A fitness guru and the head coach of the Crossfit Fatutoa gym in Vaitele has stepped forward to offer workout tips on staying healthy at home during the coronavirus pandemic. 

A large majority of people in Samoa are struggling to maintain their exercise regimes while being isolated at their homes.

Brandon Sefo, who has been teaching fitness for several years, said staying fit improves health and boredom when workers are asked to stay at home. 

“If you’re physically fit, you’re that much less likely to get sick therefore able to do more what you want to do more and to work more so I think a lot of people should prioritise not only their exercise but what they’re eating too,” he said.

“[For] anybody in lockdown or [looking to] just stay busy, working out helps not only boredom but it can make you feel happier with all the endorphin released with exercise and workouts.”

The gym’s workout book has gained new popularity on social media as people seek means of physical stimulation. 

Mr. Sefo says he wrote the workout book in January in response to messages from people in Samoa and overseas who don’t have time for gym.

The programme is a 30-day guide to workouts that can be performed at home and without equipment, just body weight.

Due to the state of emergency, gyms have been closed to the public. Workout sessions can still be found on the gym’s website and social media accounts.

They began posting guides to home workouts on Saturday, following the Government’s announcement of a state of emergency to help their members and anyone who wanted to follow.

“On our Facebook and our Instagram page, we post the workout videos everyday at 12:30 and again you don’t need any equipment [...] just those you mostly find at your houses or just bodyweight and they’re all roughly under 30 minutes so it’s a nice quick workout to get,” Mr. Sefo said.

“I think it should be a big priority in people’s lives.”

The gym has been open since 2014. It started training people behind their houses until it grew and moved to its current Vaitele location since 2015.

According to the head coach, positive feedback for him and the other gym coaches provide him with motivation to keep going.

“A lot of really great stories from our members and athletes and we’re just really happy to be a part of that and help them with what we love to do,”  Mr. Sefo said.

“It’s good to see that they value that and that it’s helping them with their lives.”

An estimate of 60 gym goers attended the gym daily, before the state of emergency orders kicked in. 

One New Zealand-based Samoan, Aliimau Avea Peseta, exercises every morning, afternoon and evening with her three children to avoid boredom and stress while being quarantined at home.

"Everything is closed and for [those of] us that love to work out in the gym we can’t get to the gym with being isolated at home so we make the most of our workout at home," she said.

"I certainly don’t want to sit on the couch and watch T.V. all day because we all know that’s not going to help us being fit and staying fit means we are healthy and being healthy means we can fight this virus easily....because we all know this virus is taking away the weak and the elderly."