Hayley Smith

INTRODUCTION

"Fitness isn't a destination, it's a way of life."

Fitness is my way of life! It is my passion, my drive, my pulse, the thing that gets me out of bed in the morning. It motivates me, moves me, enables me to accomplish great physical challenges and I also get to meet the most diverse array of people from around the world. I believe that people should be excited to work out, and that exercise should be fun, not a chore. I teach a program called Zumba Fitness and it embodies just that! To find out how you can Join the Party™ head to my zumba.com website (link below).

Now read on to uncover more about my background and how I came to be a part of one of the biggest fitness programs in the world...

FINDING MY MOTIVATION

I didn't always want to be in the fitness industry. I originally trained as a professional actor in the UK, but after a disappointing start to my career I quickly became frustrated and realised it was not the right industry for me. I left the UK in 2011 to go travelling and explore who I was and what I wanted to do, and set out West, to the ski hills of Canada. What followed was the greatest and most exciting adventure of my life. I crossed many things off my bucket list, tried some I had never even dreamed of, and met the love of my life (an Australian), which ended up taking me to Europe, which is where I would eventually make the transition to health and fitness...

BECOMING A ZUMBA® INSTRUCTOR

I remember my first Zumba class; I could only follow about half of the choreography, but I had so much fun that I was hooked! When I decided to pursue a career in fitness, Zumba was the obvious starting point. I began by teaching free classes to students at Leiden University, and soon started teaching my own class every week at a local sport centre. Now I have moved to Australia, where I teach several classes a week, including my own which I run under my business, Haylstorm Fitness. My next goal is to become a fully certified group fitness instructor and personal trainer.