Winter fitness and exercise therapy with Sarah Zahab

By Zenith Wolfe

Sarah Zahab is getting Westboro residents moving again.

She’s an expert in human movement – a kinesiologist – and the co-founder of Continuum Fitness. Zahab opened the gym in 2011 with her husband to provide one-on-one physical therapy sessions to people with joint pain and difficulty moving.

The Kitchissippi Times sat down with Zahab to talk about why exercise is important and how to stay fit in the new year.

KT: Tell us about your fitness journey and how it led you to found Continuum Fitness.

SZ: I was always an active child, and it transitioned to being active in my university years. I danced competitively when I was young, and after I stopped dancing, I was looking for other opportunities to become active. I came across fitness competitions and decided to compete.

But mostly, I really enjoyed my studies in human kinetics and kinesiology. I started working, during university, in a gym setting. A number of years into [the job], it felt like a seamless transition to open up Continuum Fitness with my husband, who was a strength and conditioning coach.

KT: Why is exercise so important?

SZ: The Canadian guidelines recommend that we should be obtaining 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week – plus two strength sessions – for overall health. What’s really important to understand is that these recommendations are for optimal health, not aesthetic purposes. It’s to improve our cardiovascular health, our muscular systems, our lymphatic systems.

KT: It’s the time of year where people are struggling with the winter blues, cold and windy weather, and the return to work. How can people stay fit given all these factors?

SZ: Starting small and remaining consistent is really important. For many people, walking is very accessible. You might not be able to walk as far or as long because it’s cold, but you can still go for a walk. We’re very fortunate in the Westboro community to have Kichi Sibi trail to walk and ski.

KT: People are also starting to act on their New Years resolutions. What advice do you have for someone who has set a fitness resolution for themselves?

SZ: If you are going to set a resolution, I would suggest that it is SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. Ensure that you’re doing an activity you could see yourself doing for the rest of your life. Start out slow.

You can read the full Q&A on Kitchissippi.com.

Natural Food Pantry

Your Local Health Food Store

It’s been over forty years since the first Natural Food Pantry opened their original location at Westgate Shopping Center.. Since then, they have expanded to six locations across the city including their new Westboro location at 1960 Scott at McRae. Their other stores include a new ground floor Billings Bridge Centre location, their newly acquired Britannia store (formerly Rainbow Foods), their Kanata store at 5537 Hazeldean Road, their expanded locations at 4325 Strandherd in Barrhaven and the newest location at 1777 10th Line Road.

As always, the stores are filled with a wide variety of quality products with knowledgeable staff to help guide you. The Westboro location beside Farmboy has convenient parking right at the door.

Be sure to sign up for their monthly emails like their HealthE-News providing recipes, articles, special offers and information on Educational Initiatives, webinars and courses and their monthly flyer specials.

And don’t forget to check out their fully stocked online store at NaturalFoodPantry.ca