Fitness model Eliza Watson has given us the opportunity to interview her, in order to discuss her successful business, her philanthropic side of things and body positivity.
What inspired you to get into fitness?
“To be honest, way back I was scared of food, my view back then was ‘the less you eat the fitter you look’. One day, I came across a gym where I was doing a photoshoot and I noticed a coach that was training both women and men who were fit and muscular. I was so fascinated by that, that I asked for advice from him and he told me to double in what I eat and rest more. That’s, when I decided to educate myself and in a number of years, I saw the progress and I enjoyed fitness. It helped my relationship with food and improved my mental health.”
Can you tell us more about your trip to Sri Lanka and what you learnt from it?
“It was eye opening for me. I was studying psychology at university and I took the opportunity to do a placement and it was awesome. It opened my eyes on how different cultures view mental health and what difference it made to institutions just by having human contact. Even though there was a language barrier, I was still able to lift their spirits through craft and dancing; it was a groundbreaking experience.”
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start out in the fitness modelling industry?
“Don’t get hung up on weight or height, or age, it doesn’t really matter. In terms of getting into it, you should start making connections, seek out fitness photographers that you like their work and get to know portfolio builders who have significant followers on social media like instagram.”
Do you have any future shoots or projects that we should keep our eyes peeled for?
“Since we are currently in a pandemic, all my future projects and photo shoots are on hold. I was supposed to go to America to do some shoots, but right now I am just in the UK.”
What have you learnt from doing fitness modelling?
“The more comfortable I am with myself, the confident I am with my pictures. Body confidence is key and you need to always love and appreciate your own physique. What you see on social media is a trick of lighting and angles. Always love every part of you, no matter what.”
Are there any health myths that you wish to debunk?
“Quite a lot – eating carbs does not make you fat, you cannot lose fat in a day; it will just make your skin look tired and dull if you don’t eat at all. Instead, make sure you have a consistent diet and regime and seek a professional trainer for advice.”
It is great that you are getting creative and doing all kinds of photoshoots for body positivity. What has been your favourite shoot so far?
“There is one that I really enjoyed. It was a set of shoots that I did for a fitness app. Usually, in my photo shoots I kind of just hold the pose, but for this app it was over 100 videos of fitness exercises and a real workout routine that was filmed by a drone. It was a proper fitness test!
I also enjoy doing beach bikini photoshoots, it makes me feel confident and I enjoy getting a tan!”
What was your training process for tough mudder events?
“ I always do resistance training workouts and high intensity workouts, since I am much better at short bursts of energy. But, for tough mudder events there’s a lot of running and it had required for me to do a lot of endurance training. I was required to set myself up mentally for this.”
Tell us one fact that you love about living in the UK?
“I love the diversity and getting to meet different people; especially in the area I am living in.”
What do you enjoy doing when you are not focusing on your fitness?
“In my own time I enjoy going on nature walks, meditating and reading.”
