She may hate gyms, but author Marisa Mackle makes plenty of time to keep fit playing tennis and walking, she tells Patricia Weston.
Do you take regular exercise?
I walk religiously for two hours every evening. I walk along Fosters Avenue with a friend so we get our talking done and our exercise. I also play tennis at Donnybrook tennis club.
Ever been a member of a gym?
Yes and I hate them, running on the spot is so boring. I like the fresh air, so I'd rather not exercise in a gym.
Did you play sports at school?
I was very fit in school. I was on the hockey and netball team for five years and I loved it.
Do you have any unhealthy habits?
I took up smoking when the ban was introduced, when most people were giving up. I was on holidays recently and everyone was smoking so I just went back on them. Hopefully I'll give them up soon. Both my sisters are doctors and they're always on at me to give them up. They say it's more dangerous once you're over 30. But I gave up alcohol three weeks ago because I hate hangovers and I lost 10 lbs.
Are you conscious about your appearance?
Ever since I've started having my picture taken I suppose I've become conscious. If I know there's a photo shoot coming up and I want to lose weight I'll starve myself for two days and workout to my Mr Motivator aerobics video. I can lose 3 to 5lbs in a week doing that. I weigh seven stone so I'm probably a bit obsessive. My grandmother and mother are very slim and I was always the heaviest in the family, so I am conscious of putting on weight and most of my friends are models or airhostesses. When I worked as an airhostess for Aer Lingus I was very slim. You had to do demonstrations and everyone would be looking at you so there was no way you could be huge. Also the aisles were so narrow that you'd have to squeeze between trolleys so you had to be slim. If you did put on extra weight you couldn't get another uniform without discussing it with your supervisor first.
Do you eat a balanced diet?
I'm not very good at healthy eating. I eat chocolate every day because I'm addicted to it. I eat about two bars a day. At school I used to buy boxes of chocolates and eat them and pretend to the cashiers in the shops that I was buying them for presents. When I was in Austria a few years ago I brought home boxes of chocolates for all my friends. A week later I had eaten them all and had to go and buy more.
Have you ever dieted?
I've tried every diet and I have every diet book going and none of them work. The weirdest diet I tried was the cabbage soup diet.
It's an awful diet because you just drink the soup and eat fruit and vegetables. I couldn't keep it up. I'm a vegetarian so I wouldn't do the Atkins diet. I tried the weight watchers diet and I think that's probably the best.
Marisa's latest novel is The Mile High Guy published by Dodder
Patricia Weston recommends:
According to Margot Brennan of the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute (INDI) "Fad diets make you fat". She says, "crash diets mess up your metabolism so the body requires less calories to carry out everyday activities."
Margot recommends seeking advice from a qualified dietician rather than following a diet plan from a book. "You need to adopt a healthy eating plan based on the food pyramid that fits in with your lifestyle."
She recommends eating low glycemic index (GI) foods that slowly release sugar throughout the day, such as brown rice, wholemeal bread and pasta. Low GI foods curb chocolate cravings.
For more information on healthy eating visit www.indi.ie
Patricia Weston is an NCEHS fitness instructor, personal trainer and pilates teacher.
Consult a physician or qualified healthcare provider before embarking on any exercise regime.