Q&A with Tehillah McGuiness

A day in the life of the pro surfer, athlete, sports model, celebrity fitness trainer and founder of Ohana Fitness & Surf.

Q What time do you usually get up and what’s the first thing you do when you wake up?

A I like to wake up early-ish to make the most of my days. I would say usually around 7:00am, depending on work and conditions for surfing. The first thing I do is get a coffee on the go.

Q What do you eat for breakfast? What do you drink?

A I try to really fuel my body as best as I can in the mornings. Depending on how I am feeling It could be anything from: warm oats with honey and almonds, with some fresh fruit and yoghurt on the side; poached egg (I have nearly mastered this) on wholemeal toast with fresh spinach and feta cheese, or granola with  mixed fruit on the side. Coffee would be my choice of drink and I always start the morning with my ‘magic water’ Deeside Mineral Water.

Q How do you get to work?

A Depending on where I am working it could be by car, bicycle or walking .

Q Where do you work? Or does this change?

A This changes from day to day depending on where I am (in the UK or Canary Islands). If I am coaching surfing then I am blessed enough to call the sea/beach my office. If I am training clients in fitness then it will most likely be on the beach or studio. My first choice is always the beach if I can help it.

Q What do you do when you get to work? 

A If it’s surf coaching, I decide on the surf spot for the day, load the boards and equipment (pick up the clients of course) and then head to the beach to share some waves with them. I feel so blessed to be a part the ‘surfing journey’ for so many people. This has to be one of the best jobs in the world. If I’m fitness training, I head to the ‘training location’ for the morning with clients, break a sweat, enjoy some hysterical laughter with them, watch them achieve their goals and leave with an incredibly happy heart.

Q What do you eat for lunch? Where do you buy it or do you make it?

A I always carry energy bars and snacks with me to keep me going through the morning until I can have something more substantial for lunch. I usually make lunch and take it with me, as my schedule is usually pretty busy and I like to get ‘inventive’ with my meals. I usually have a baguette with various fillings on, depending what I feel like. This can be anything from tuna/mayo to bacon/brie/avocado. If it tastes good together I will eat it. I love mango sorbet so I usually finish off my lunch with a little treat or two.

Q What do you do in the afternoon? Does this change from day to day?

A This changes from day to day. If I have finished my lessons in the morning and have some free time in the afternoon I usually go surfing myself. If the conditions are not good I enjoy some much needed relaxation, swimming or snorkeling, or island explorations.

Q What do you do in the evening?

A I am usually really tired by the evening but evenings are usually when I have time to catch up with all my emails from the day… if my brain allows! At the moment I have so many projects on the go that require so much of my time, but if I am not catching up with friends or spending time with my beautiful family (when I am in the UK), one of my favourite things to do after a long day is to just sit outside in my garden with a cup of tea and enjoy the silence and peace of nature. You can’t beat a full moon beach session either.

Q What do you usually do when you get home?

A I would say it’s a bit of a rush to get my things together to go surfing, while trying to grab some food to eat along the way. If I stop and relax its game over. I try limit myself to catching up on the technology side of things once a day, otherwise I find I am just constantly on my phone/computer but not really getting much done. It’s a bit of a tough one, as there are always things which need your immediate attention, but I don’t like to feel as though I have wasted time I could have used to do something else. My mom is the best at keeping me balanced with all of this. I love you mom!

Q What do you eat for dinner?

A I try and maintain a healthy balance between food groups and actually find it better for me to eat several smaller meals during the day. Dinner really depends on what I feel like and is usually my most ‘exciting’ meal of the day. This can be anything from roasts to stews, fresh seafood platters, steak, pasta, you name it. I really do enjoy food so I try and be as creative as possible. I am an absolute sucker for desserts/tarts, so there is always something sweet in my fridge.

Q When do you usually do your workouts? What sort of workouts do you do?

A Whenever I have time. I find that I struggle more to get going in the mornings when it comes to working out, so I prefer to go surfing and leave the workouts until later in the afternoon/evenings. I get bored easily if there is no variation, so I try and keep it interesting. I love swimming and doing various exercise drills in the pool. Cycling is also one of my favourites, as well as Pilates, yoga, plyometric and functional training.

Photo by Mauro Lado.