‘Step up,’ says fitness junkie Netumbo
By Rosalia David
SHE is all about empowering women to live their best lives by adopting healthier lifestyles. Meet Victoria Netumbo, a self-confessed fitness junkie.
This week, Confidente caught up with the consistent and determined fitness fanatic to hear her thoughts on living a healthy lifestyle and the secret behind staying fit.
She said her journey to peak fitness started back in 2016 when all she wanted were stronger legs for her basketball career. She started exercising at the Katutura Youth Complex running up and down the stadium stairs several times per week.
“I badly wanted stronger legs to support me in basketball so I would go run up the stairs at the stadium and work out with the local boxers since there’s a boxing gym. I would do it three times a week in the afternoon and later met a friend (Mike) that introduced me to weight-lifting and started taking me with for his sessions at the Nucleus Gym,” she added.
The curvaceous Netumbo says there is really no big secret to living a healthy lifestyle but it takes a lot of commitment and consistency. “You just got to want it enough to get it. It means you have to be committed and stay consistent. Staying fit comes with a lot of sacrifices, maybe cut out that favourite snack or skip Friday game night with the girls because you got to get up early for hiking or a jog.”
She faced challenges from the time she started seriously working out, being inwardly disciplined was one of the hardest things to attain.
“I had to remind myself all the time how far I have come and how much I want this. Life is not easy in general; every one of us has our stories. Life knocks us down and drives us backwards. But when people actually decide that they won’t let anything stop them from picking themselves back up and moving forward towards their dreams and goals – that’s inspiring!”
Netumbo’s love for training comes from her devotion to sports: in high school she decided to join the school basketball team and few years later she was selected to represent Namibia at U17 Cossasa ball games in Lesotho.
“I’m inspired by the spirit of sport – the perseverance and drive and desire and hard work that it takes to be the best and compete and practice to be better, because you love something. I got my first MVP (most valuable player) trophy at the regional games when I was just 14,” she noted.
In 2017, Netumbo went to play for a Zimbabwean team (Vixens) where she had to learn the basics of the local language on the court because her new teammates often forgot that she did not understand Shona or Ndebele.
Netumbo in 2019 qualified for the First African 3×3 Beach Games in Cape Verde. “We finished fourth out of nine countries. I also took part in the three-pointer shooting contest, in which I won a silver medal,” she recalled.
“Honestly, if you really want to embark on a fitness journey my advice to you is start off small, like replace junk food with healthy snacks, a healthy breakfast is a must! And follow a structured exercise pattern and keep your body hydrated,” she said.