Interview with Diego Arizala from Canada. Winner: “Best Fitness Blogger of the year 2018”
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
How do you feel as a winner of a prestigious worldwide competition with 54% of 82,381 votes coming from everywhere? A/: I’m very happy. I was informed on December 31st when I was in Cali-Colombia with my family. We all celebrated it together.
I’m grateful with all the people who voted for me. It was great to see so many people supporting me. I won, they won, at the end we all won because we believe that fitness is more than muscles and exercises. It’s also about Mental health, social inclusion, diversity, emotions etc. Priceless! Thank you very much.
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
What your blog has that made you be the winner? A/: My blog is different. It shows very well myself, my values in a “fresh” way. It’s not individualistic. I go beyond muscles and exercises. I respect the work my colleagues do with blogs focused on exercises or on selfies showing their muscles. We need that approach too. But, I think people are saturated and lost with a huge amount of images and videos every time they look at their phones. I wanted to do a blog that can promote and inspire people to have a balance in all aspects of their lives. I invite people to think of others, their communities, animals and everything is on this planet. Fitness is holistic. It’s not only about the shape.
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
You have a great, great body and you are a very good looking person. Did it help you to win? A/: Thank you very much for your generous words. I won because people identified themselves with my values and they wanted to support the message. I definitely believe that beauty is subjective. All human beings have beauty and it starts from the deepest part of each of us. I’d prefer to invite people to look for every person’s beauty especially what they have inside. I’m sure you will always find something beautiful.
I’ve been training myself for a long time. Fitness is part of my lifestyle. I do what I preach. It’s important for me to be coherent, consistent and honest with myself and others. Aesthetics results and the shape come after you have healthy habits with your body and mind.
Are you always a winner? A/: No. Nobody wants to experience failures. However, I’m glad I had some in my life. You always learn from each experience.
Each failure helped me to be stronger, more human, destroy prejudices, better understand others and to get to know myself better. Believe me there is always something good in the failures even if it’s important challenge yourself and do your best to be a winner. In the failure you can be a winner and as a winner you can be a real failure.
All the other bloggers who were nominated in this category are amazing and I admire them too.
I’m always humble when I win and proud of myself keeping my head up when I am a failure and loose a competition.
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
What is your favorite quote as a winner? A/: Be humble when you win and be proud when you lose.
What is your most important achievement in the fitness field? A/: To motivate and inspire a huge variety of people: with disabilities, children, older adults, people with mental health challenges and cultures. Everyone should have access to Fitness.
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
What are the parts of your body that you hate and love the most? A/: I don’t really feel “hate “ or “love” for any part of my body. I “accept” in a certain way the body that life has given to me. At the same time I’m very aware that It’s essential to challenge myself, get out of my confort zone and improve my body everyday with healthy nutrition, exercises and mind work. It has to be a life project towards feeling confortable with yourself (Body and mind).
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
Do you think that being a color person is an advantage or disadvantage in the fitness and fashion world? A/: It depends on the context and on the attitude of the color person. I know society needs to evolve about this aspect and in general about diversity. It hasn’t been a disadvantage for me. I always work hard and give absolutely all at 100% to achieve my goals and give a good quality of work.
What part of your fitness life marked the most? A/: Definitely the beginning when I was a teenager. I was a sport teenager. But with small muscles. I’ve never used steroids or medication to achieve my fitness goals. So, it took me years of hard work to be in a good shape according to the standards of the fitness Industry.
You have an admirable intellectual background: you went to Yale University, Concordia University and Javeriana University. You’re a Psychiatry Clinical Research Coordinator for a research center of Montreal University in Canada during the day. In the evenings you’re working on fitness teaching courses, training people and mentoring other coaches. How do you keep a balance in your life? A/: Thank you very much. I love and enjoy working on both fields. They complement each other. The intellectual growth is key in my life. I think it should be for every human being.
I plan my agenda in a way I make sure I book some time for my work, my friends, my family, my community, my intellectual growth and for myself(meditation, training etc.). I try to cover everything that is essential.
What’s the most common training question people ask you? A/: How to get a six-pack?
What is next after being the winner? A/: I’ll continue working hard for and with people to encourage them to have a healthy lifestyle. I hope many others will join me. I also hope new opportunities will come to continue doing what I like and have a bigger impact on a long term bases.
Would you like to be the Ambassador, work for a mark and cause? A/: Yes. I’d be very happy to work for a cause, do collaborations with a mark, photographers, other bloggers, influencers, artists, websites etc.
What’s the question we should have asked you and we haven’t? A/: Who inspires you the most?.
...Who inspires the best Fitness blogger of 2018? A/: Someone who created a fitness program with deep values such as social inclusion, empowering, Mental Health, considering the emotions of each person etc. He also integrated “entertainment” and “fun” aspects every time you sweat and burn calories. Exercises should not be something boring. His program has thousands and thousands of participants in more than 120 countries creating a worldwide community throughout many years. His name is Beto Perez-Founder of Zumba Fitness.
Photo by: Marcel Cristocea
You can also know more about the Fitness blogger of the year reading his interview in 2018 for Marshion Magazine https://guideofmensstyle.tumblr.com/post/616080931348004864/interview-with-diego-arizala
Follow him and contact him at @diegoarizalacoach
“My Sport, My passion” at: https://www.instagram.com/tv/B-07gFTBidi/?igshid=1x3hu7r29j8hm