Singapore #Fitspo of the Week: Jona Mae De Gollo
Life goes beyond the digits on the scale and your body is capable of so much more. Yahoo’s #Fitspo of the Week series is dedicated to inspirational men and women in Singapore leading healthy and active lifestyles. Have someone to recommend? Hit Cheryl up on Instagram or Facebook.
Name: Jona Mae De Gollo (@jm.degollo)
Age: 33
Height: 1.69m
Weight: 60kg
Occupation: Spin Instructor
Status: Married
Diet: It’s very simple for me – as long as it’s wholemeal and clean, I eat pretty much everything. I don’t go on a strict diet but I do believe that our body needs a well-rounded diet to provide the body with essential nutrition, fluids, macronutrients, micronutrients and adequate calories.
Training: I like changing up my workouts because I get bored doing just one type of workout. I do enjoy strength, HIIT, yoga and at the moment I’m a spin instructor and that takes up most of my time.
Q: Did you like sports as a kid?
A: I wasn’t very competitive as a kid although my father did put me in a karate class a few times. I was the more creative kind so I join a dance group until high school and then the choir group.
You started to become more active after moving to Singapore.
After university I decided I want to be independent and live on my own, so I moved to Singapore in January 2011 to expand my horizons and have been here since.
I got my first road bike in 2016 and every weekend I enjoyed riding around Singapore with my group of friends. Then I moved on to doing strength training, HIIT and CrossFit sometimes.
What I like about fitness is how it makes me feel powerful and gives me instant gratification – that is, feeling good and positive after a workout.
When did fitness start becoming a bigger part of your life?
When I started working at a fitness gym called TripleFit (now-defunct), I learnt about proper posture and technique from the personal trainers, worked out regularly there and really enjoyed the camaraderie. I gained a lot of friends who want the same things as me.
You are now a spin instructor. How did the opportunity come about?
I think people started noticing my workout routines and how dedicated I am to working out. Thus, one of the owners of R10T approached me to pick up spinning. I went two months of training before I started teaching classes.
Did you ever see yourself becoming a fitness trainer?
My friends and people in the industry planted this seed in my head, giving me the confidence to take the leap. The biggest factor is my husband who pushed me to take the role. Since the pandemic hit everyone, I lost my job in the recruitment industry and thankfully within a few months, this opportunity knocked on my door and I said yes to it in a heartbeat.
Was there ever a time where you felt the least confident about yourself?
Yes. I’ve been doing modelling on the side and there are times that I feel like I’m not good enough, especially when they criticise things that I cannot change, such as my skin colour or the way I look (don’t get me wrong I’m happy for what it is).
Models are constantly put in a situation where people will judge, but I’ve come to terms with that. Your imperfections make you unique as an individual. It’s a lot of work on the inside but I think being surrounded by people who support you emotionally also matters.
Are you satisfied with your body now?
I am more than happy for what it is now. It took me a while to work on it and the effort that I put in matters more than how it looks.
Have you ever received any comments about your body?
Yes of course, but no matter whether it is good or bad I think what matters is what I tell myself – which is, I am more than the size or shape of my body.
