Q&A with Kim Beach

Need a little inspo? Check out our Q&A with Australian fitness guru Kim Beach.

Stuck in a summer fitness rut? Australian health and fitness expert Kim Beach, whose guides have been used by as many as 15,000 people, might just be your fix. Her popularity is down to her smart and sustainable methods, which are easy and effective to follow. We think her 500,000 plus fans on Facebook would agree. To celebrate the release of her new book BEACH FIT, which offers 50 plus healthy recipes, exercise tips and general life advice, we caught up with Kim. Here’s what she had to say.

In a nutshell, what is your fitness philosophy?

I believe in embracing the 80/20 mentality when it comes to long term weight-loss and health. Eating whole natural foods and training hard 80 per cent of the time and knowing you have 20 per cent up your sleeve to go out for dinner and enjoy yourself.

How did you get into fitness? Was there a milestone moment or have you always been relatively health-conscious?

I grew up in a very sporty family and I was heavily into sport. When I finished school my dream was to do something sport-related where I could make a difference.

You promote balance as the cornerstone of wellbeing. How do you balance your personal roles of businesswoman, mum and partner with staying fit and eating right?

I will always make myself a priority when it comes to food as it determines whether you feel bad or amazing! Each week I will plan my training sessions into my calendar and this time is non-negotiable.

Your programme is sustainable and easy to follow, with many recipes taking just 15 minutes. What are some of your kitchen hacks?

Sandwich press – it can cook sweet potato, chicken, fish, eggs, pancakes etc. and it just wipes clean. It is portable too so you can take it to work.

Prepping for the week ahead by baking a few sweet potatoes and cooking up some brown rice and/or quinoa so that you can easily add any of these to your lunch throughout the week.

Do you try and promote wellbeing among your family and friends? In particular how do you inspire your kids to be healthy?

I like to think my decisions about what I eat is enough to inspire my friends to eat healthily without being vocal about it. I approach food very simply with my kids, when we are out they can choose a treat but when they are at home the kitchen is filled with whole natural foods. I feel this gives them a good balance without saying NO you can’t eat that!

What do you eat in an average day?

I have been vegan now for a year, after embracing this way of eating when I was writing my vegan program, so here is what I normally eat in a day:

Overnight oats soaked in rice milk, cinnamon then topped with berries and chia seeds.

Carrot and cucumber sticks with a bean dip.

Baked sweet potato topped with hummus, broccoli, tomato and black beans.

Green vegetable juice with some almonds.

Lentil stir-fry.

You strongly believe that you are what you eat, the 80 per cent of your results come down to what’s on your plate. So is there anything you absolutely won’t eat? Do you ever have cheat days?

You will never see me in the confectionary aisle of a supermarket! If I want to enjoy a treat I will head down to my local organic grocer and buy a Chocolate Walnut Brownie which is made with whole natural ingredients – seriously amazing!!  

Out of your many recipes do you have any favourites or staples?

My family loves the san choy bow, the fabulous black bean brownies and I love the quinoa and cranberry salad.

What do you do for motivation – are there specific songs or mantras you use to make sure you stay on track?

I am always updating my playlist, music is a great motivator and fires me up! I am also a massive goal setter whether it be training or business, my goals are stuck up on my kitchen wall so I can see them every day.

What specific advice would you give for people looking to get fit in the UK, who may not have the motivation of sunshine and beaches that spurs on Australians?

My advice is to realise that a great workout can be done in your lounge. Getting a skipping rope out and spending 15 minutes skipping is a fantastic HIIT session and also a great fat burner.

How do you deal with the temptation to let your emotions impact your goals? Over-eating when stressed or tired for example?

If my world is crazy I will put my headphones in and head out for a walk or I will find a quiet place to be still to gather my thoughts.

What are your go-to BEACH exercises?

I can’t live without walking lunges, hill sprints and push-ups.

Could you explain to us why you promote different programmes, and how it feels to support so many successful fitness transformations?

Women have very different goals so I created programmes to match these. Being able to simplify the weight-loss journey and make such a positive impact to so many ladies’ lives is definitely a dream come true!