Be Inspired : Why and How Amy, once an Overweight Mother of 5, is NOW an Aerobic Instructor

Kak Amy, as how she wants to be addressed, is a petite and active grandmother and a mother of five children. She is the co-founder and the main instructor at the Fun 2 Fit Aerobic &  Dance Studio, a place where women can get trained on aerobic and dances comfortably. Kak Amy started the studio together with her friend Kak Ram, and with the support of Y.Bhg. Datin Dr. Zainah binti Moktar. The studio is located on the first floor, Taman Sri Pulai Perdana, Skudai, Johor. On the ground floor, Kak Amy and her partner operate Fun 2 Eat Cafe where they serve healthy-cooked meals.

Kak Amy

How did her passion in Aerobic start?

Ten years ago, Kak Amy was overweight at 70 kg. She was determined to loose weight and with her husband’s blessing, she started aerobic. Being a muslimah, she was concerned going to the gym and dance studio opened for both male and female. It was hard to find any dance studio solely catered for women.

Through aerobics,  Kak Amy started to loose weight. Initially, the progress was slow, so she started educating herself on weight lost. This included learning different types of exercises, nutrition and deep understanding of our bodies. Her passion grew further and she was determined to take it to the next stage – to be an instructor.

So five years ago, Kak Amy planned to take the exams to be a certified fitness trainer. The certification was commission by the Ministry of Youth and Sports. With much challenges being a mother and soon-to-be grandmother, she passed the exams. That was the pivotal point of her passion in aerobic when Kak Amy started to train others.

Why did Kak Amy open up a dance studio specially for muslimah?

Kak Amy understands the need of other muslim women to have a special fitness center specially for women. Women tends to be more comfortable when they are among themselves. Furthermore, when it comes to dancing, one needs to enjoy the movement freely. So at Kak Amy’s all-women  dance studio, one can wear any attire they are comfortable in and sweat out!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAfun2fitaerobic and dance studio

How is a dance studio for muslimah differ from others?

First, it is for all women. No man is allowed. Secondly, ladies who come can choose to wear attire they are comfortable in. Kak Amy equips the studio with tools and equipment for all types of exercises. Thirdly, only indoor workout shoes are allowed. Trainees can keep their clean shoes at the studio. Lastly, the studio is clean for muslimah to pray as and when needed.

It is muslimah and Islamic friendly.

How does Kak Amy organise her classes?

Kak Amy, now 46 years old, trains not only at her studio but also external events. She is frequently being invited by hotels in Skudai area to train groups and companies on fitness and team building. At times, she does her training in the forest. Kak Amy uses Nashata Riada Top during outdoor activities. She has all five colors of Riada Top. She likes them because the design gives a very good ventilation during outdoor activities.

Her classes at the studio are scheduled either in the morning or evening. This is to suit busy schedule of women, working or not. Every trainee gets trained twice a week in a group of 20, for duration of an hour each. Every week, she focuses on one particular dance so that in a month, the students get to learn and practice four types of dances effectively.

What type of dances does Kak Amy teach at her studio?

All sorts of dances but since many of the trainees are new to aerobics, they focus on salsa latin, arabian dance, J-robik, hip hop kick boxing and etnic dance. However, occasionally, she schedules special dance classes like Zumba and Batuka at her studio. Her Batuka Dance Class scheduled on the 8th March is already SOLD OUT!

At each session, Kak Amy supplements the aerobic and dance routines with either floor exercise, rectangle step board, Stick2Stix, oval step board or fitball and dumbbell.
Fun 2 Fit Aerobic & Dance Studio

What motivates Kak Amy to train others aerobic?

Aerobic is good and fun for women. You get to move your body, enjoy the music and social with other muslimah. But to Kak Amy, fitness is beyond aerobic. She teaches about consuming healthy food, understanding one’s Body Mass Index (BMI) and the importance of performing different type of exercises. That is also the reason why she started  Fun to Eat Cafe just right below her dance studio three years ago.

Kak Amy trains other aerobic instructors too. When we visited her at her studio, we were appalled with the level of energy our sisters and her trainer. Her dance studio is not limited to muslimah only. She has non-muslim trainees. MUHIBBAH her dance studio is! At the end of the day, she wants her trainees to have a good time, exercise safely, has a good sleep with no pain before or after waking up and feeling fresh.

Her dance teams have won various competitions some of which represented Johor State to national level. Alhamdulillah, from her determination to loose weight, aerobic is now her passion and profession, keeping her healthy, beautiful and active.

Watch Kak Amy demoing simple steps on how to use the Gym Step

Kak Emy is the supporter of program Jom Kurus 1 Malaysia in Johor Bahru. Here is a her picture with the Kevin Zahri, the organiser of #jomkurus



If you are interested to join her exciting training program, visit Fun 2 Fit Aerobic & Dance Studio at No2A-01, Jalan Pulai Perdana 11/1, Taman Sri Pulai Perdana 81100 Skudai, Johor Bahru or simply give her a ring at +017-7716073.