BASE Lowdown: Personal Trainer, Coach France

Getting the Lowdown on BASE personal trainer and group class coach, France.

France is a certified personal trainer with a huge passion for strength training and bodybuilding.

She started her fitness journey doing at-home bodyweight workouts for a year before transitioning and finding her love for weightlifting. Today, she has a goal of becoming an IFBB Bikini competitor and will be competing in her first show in March 2022.  

Through her knowledge and own experiences, she strives to help beginner clients, especially women, feel more comfortable with lifting so that they can achieve their goals all while feeling strong, confident, and empowered.

Learn more about France’s training style on his BASE Team profile page.

What’s non-negotiable for you when it comes to fitness and health?

Making sure I drink enough water and hit my protein goals for the day.  

What’s a typical breakfast for you?

For a savory breakfast, it’s an egg white omelette with onions and mushrooms with either rice or potatoes on the side. For a sweet breakfast, it’s always a bowl of oats with berries.

How do you manage your training and diet when you’re on holiday?

If it’s for a longer holiday, I buy myself some groceries and cook my own meals when I can. Usually that would either be for breakfast or dinner and for the rest of the day, I treat myself to whatever I want. Training wise, I just try to stay as active and get in as many steps in as I can. 

For a weekend trip, I just allow myself to relax and enjoy my time. You’re not going to lose your progress from a few days of not sticking to your usual routine.

For me, I think there’s a time and place to be focused on your training and diet, but holidays are what they’re meant to be – holidays. Just enjoy and treat yourself a little! The gym will always be there when it’s time to get back.

The best thing we can do for ourselves is…

To eat well, get up, and MOVE. Even if it’s just for a short walk

What’s your go-to snack?

Is a bowl of oats considered a “snack”? I prefer eating bigger meals but maybe a Barebells protein bar. Team Cookies& Cream all the way!

What do you do to relax?

Go out for long walks or watch YouTube videos.

What’s your post-workout routine?

I always make myself some whey protein “ice-cream” and a huge bowl of oats with frozen berries, dark chocolate, and peanut butter. And yes, I may or may not have an obsession with oats.

Sum up your dietary approach in a sentence?

The best diet is the diet that you can stick to.

Being a good personal trainer means…

Understanding that everybody is different and that what works for someone might not work for someone else. It may take some more time to learn and figure out exactly what works best for a client and that’s completely okay. 

What’s the biggest diet mistake or misconception?

That intermittent fasting, keto, or any other popular fad diet out there is the key to fat loss.

What are your top tips for how to keep your energy levels up?

Eat! And don’t be afraid of carbs. You need to be fueling your body with enough food to sustain your energy levels throughout the day. Or have a cup of black coffee. Always does the trick for me.

I believe everyone should…

Understand that not every day is going to be perfect and that perfection isn’t something that we should strive for anyway as it sets unrealistic expectations. We’re only humans and we’re bound to have good and bad days.

At the end of the day, consistency is what’s most important. Take each day, each workout, each meal at a time and try to enjoy the process as much as you can. This is what’s going to get you closer to where you want to be.  There’s no need to be stressing about every minor bump on the road. 

3,2,1… GO!

● Best Bangkok Healthy Eatery? Definitely my kitchen haha! All jokes aside, Pimp My Salad.

● Favorite Cheat Meal?

This is a tough one but if I really had to choose one, it would be pizza – Neapolitan style. 

● Favorite Exercise? Cable kickbacks. Absolutely amazing for the elites.

● Most-hated exercise? Bench press.

● Weird fact about you? I don’t watch Netflix which is unheard of in today’s generation. I spend most of my free time watching YouTube instead. 

● One thing you can’t live without?My earphones. I’m always listening to music wherever I go.