GILLITTS resident, Roxanne Clarke, will represent South Africa in the World Fitness Federation (WFF) Worlds competition on 7 November at UNISA, Pretoria where she will compete against athletes from all over the world.
She won the beach bikini over 1.63m category and was the overall SA bikini champ for 2015 at the recent National Amateur Body-Builders’ Association (NABBA) Nationals, held at Sibaya Casino in Durban.
What makes her results even more remarkable is she doesn’t take any supplements as she is still breastfeeding her 17-month-old daughter, Lilly. Roxanne credits her success to eating a healthy diet and gyming six times a week.
“I only eat whole foods, no processed foods and try to stick to organic and free range. Once a week I allow myself a cheat. My favourite indulgence is cheesecake.”
Health and fitness have always played a big part in her life. Her mom was a bodybuilding judge and her dad was also into fitness. At the age of two and a half she started dancing. She won a bursary to dance in a ballet school in Sydney, Australia – Ecole Classique – and then danced for the State Theatre Ballet Company in Pretoria, later working as as a corporate dancer.
After suffering from many of the symptoms associated with Coeliac disease, she decided to follow a diet for this problem and was so impressed with the improvement in her health that she decided to study nutrition. She got her diploma in nutrition through The Blackford Centre in the UK and is currently studying to be a personal trainer.
“I specialise in weight management, food intolerances and fitness training, competition preparation diets and run my own website, Freedom Health.”
In 2011 she returned from overseas and in 2012 entered her first International Federal Body-Building (IFBB) competition. In 2013 she made in into the NABBA KZN team but had to pull out after finding out she was pregnant.
“After being told by specialists having a child was never going to happen and many sad years of trying, I decided to change my diet and start competing, and six months later Lilly was conceived with no medical help.”
Her family is very supportive of her competing and husband, Justin, her mom, Wendy and Lilly will all be there to support her at worlds.
