Sunny Mathews, a 73-year-old fitness guru, inspires people daily with her positive attitude and determination to stay healthy! After retiring, she became a health and wellness coach to help people all over the world become their best selves. Her advice for anyone who needs motivation to work out is “you just get up and get it done!” Here is her story.

“I am a retired college professor, but clearly, I am not retiring. At 73 years old, I am channeling my passion for health and fitness into a second career,” she says.

“I started my fitness journey at the cusp of turning 50 years old. It was 1996 at the 100th anniversary of the Boston Marathon. My husband was running his 96th marathon and I was totally inspired by the energy of the 45,000 runners.”

Sunny ran 9 marathons herself, but she wanted to increase her speed and stamina. She struggled through the marathons, but always completed them, even if she didn’t get first place. She felt accomplished just being able to run so far and push past mental barriers.

“It was a struggle, to say the least, but I never quit.”

Now, she does a lot of at-home workouts, incorporating both weights and cardio to increase her strength and heart health. She wants to show the world that anyone at any age can choose a healthier lifestyle.

“At some point, I made the switch to half marathons, and then 10K’s, then 5K’s, and then I moved onto streaming my workouts at home.”

She enjoys it because she can choose her own pace while working on her strength, flexibility and cardio. For the fitness guru, she says she’s thankful her body can still do what she wants it to at her age.

“Things that you youngins’ take for granted,” she jokingly adds, “like getting in and out of the car with ease, hiking, bending, reaching, opening jars on my own.”

Advice from the motivational fitness guru

“The time to start is now. It’s never too late to start. Consistency over time gets results. Have a mindset that moving more and eating smart are priorities above all else. Get up, and get it done!”

On one of her Instagram posts, she also says not to beat yourself up if you get off track.

“When you go on a carb binge, when the cookie just flies into your mouth, when you miss a few workouts and don’t drink enough water, you don’t quit, you don’t call yourself a failure, you aren’t destined to be this way forever. You get curious!!

Why did I make those choices?
What did I feel like right before it happened?
Would I do anything different next time?
Do I still value my goals?

We leave the past in the past and realize the only thing that matters are the choices we make right now!! This isn’t a once in a lifetime chance to get healthy; this is a journey and no journey is ever a straight line to the end result.

Each one of us has our fair share of indulgences, missed workouts and mess ups. This is life people!! We are human!! And, we are ALL a work in progress!! What can you do this week to make 1 tiny millimeter shift towards the end goal?? Focus on your progress and good choices each and every day!! It’s never ever too late to make a fresh start!”

She makes being a fitness guru look easy! You’ll find a mixture of nutrition tips as well as exercise routines on her Instagram. If you need some motivation or just don’t know how to get started, Sunny has a lot of wisdom to offer. Fitness and health have been her passions for years, and show shows that it isn’t about circumstances – it’s about choices.

We can all choose to make healthier choices each day, and even if we slip up, that’s okay. We just have to try our best, and keep our goals in clear focus. Most of us would like to feel more vibrant and healthy, but it often seems overwhelming to take the necessary steps. However, Sunny shows that taking baby steps leads to transforming your habits and mindset over time.

The secrets of the online fitness guru

Her diet centers mostly around whole, plant-based foods, as you can see from her posts. Plant foods offer a variety of benefits, including:

– Weight loss
– Lower blood pressure
– Better heart health
– May prevent Type 2 diabetes
– May increase longevity
– Decreased cancer risk
– Improved cholesterol levels
– Lower risk of stroke
– Boosts brain health

Benefits of a plant based diet

According to Harvard Health Publishing, here are some tips to follow for a healthy plant-based diet:

– Fill your plate with lots of color. Make sure to eat lots of fruits and vegetables throughout the day, including as snacks between meals.
– Have smaller amounts of meat. Use it as a garnish rather than as a main part of your meal.
– Choose healthy fats like olive oil, avocados, nuts, nut butters and seeds.
– Eat whole grains like quinoa, barley or oats.
– Eat lots of leafy greens
– Cook vegetarian meals at least once a week.
– Have a big salad in order to get your greens in for the day.

Final thoughts: move your body every day, and focus on whole foods

Fitness guru Sunny Mathews inspires the world with her positive outlook, willpower, and sound advice on health. She posts daily on Instagram to show everyone that eating healthy doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated. Using simple ingredients, she makes delicious, plant-based meals that anyone can make. She also does simple at-home workouts using her body weight and free weights to increase strength.

Even just 15 minutes a day of exercise can change your mindset and physical health, and inspire you to keep going. The hardest part of the journey is to just get started, but once you do, you’ll realize how much better you feel. If you’d like to follow Sunny on her journey and gain some inspiration yourself, you can do so here. Remember, it’s never too late to adopt a healthy lifestyle!