26-year-old Hayley Webster was always active growing up.

At only five years old, she started playing basketball for Grampian Women and Beacon Basketball Club for about 12years, training for around 9-10 hours per week at one point.

Weekends would take her around the country for basketball matches and as she grew older, she coached U12s Grampian Girls and Under 5s at Beacon.

But things changed for Hayley when she fell pregnant in early 2022.

She said: “I used to eat well and watch my weight but when I fell pregnant, I put on six stone.

“I felt really uncomfortable and unfit – I had never been that size before. I’ve got asthma too which didn’t help and my clothes didn’t fit me.

“My son Lyall was born in October 2022 and after having him, I’d either stay in my pyjamas, wear tracksuits or my maternity clothes. I had a whole wardrobe of my usual clothes that didn’t fit me.

“I got into a bad routine of eating lots of takeaways for dinner and having chocolate for breakfast. I felt so unfit and I didn’t like the photos of me and Lyall when he was born.

“I knew that if I didn’t do something, I would struggle to crawl through soft play with Lyall and I didn’t want that.”

Deciding to make a positive change for herself and carve out some personal time, Hayley joined Sport Aberdeen’s Fitness membership in March 2022.  

Above: Hayley’s before and after photos which she kindly shared

“I used to take Lyall swimming at Get active @ Northfield and someone there told me about the Fitness membership.

“I stay in Danestone so Get active @ Jesmond was the closest gym to me.  

“I really like it – it’s friendly and a nice environment. People in the gym are really friendly – some even came up to me after my recent article in the Press & Journal – and the staff are always friendly, you get a nice hello from them when you go in. 

“It’s so good to get out of the house, being at home with a baby during winter means you’re always stuck inside, so when my partner comes home it’s nice for me to go to the gym, put my headphones in and have my own time.

“23 hours of my day are spent being a Mum, so it’s nice to have one hour to myself.

“I always train at Get active @ Jesmond, I usually go at teatime and it’s never too busy that I can’t get on anything.

“I try to do three to four weightlifting sessions per week plus a circuits class in The Quad on a Wednesday night.

Above: Hayley doing weight training in the gym at Get active @ Jesmond

“To be honest I had no idea about weightlifting when I first started, but you learn as you go and I watched loads of videos for inspiration so I feel quite confident now.

“Going to the gym has become a hobby, I don’t go to lose weight anymore – I go because I really enjoy it and want to get better at it.

“I even recently persuaded my boss to sign up for a Fitness membership as well!”

When asking Hayley about her goals for the gym in 2025, she explained:

“Weight loss isn’t a focus for me anymore because I’ve done that. My main goals now are getting fitter, eating healthier and lifting heavier.

“Also, I am training to become a Personal Trainer – I’ve completed my Level 2 Gym Instructor course and in the new year, I will be starting my Level 3 Diploma in Personal Training.

“Once I hopefully gain this qualification, I’d like to focus on pre- and post-natal personal training once Lyall goes to nursery.”

Hayley shares her words of motivation for those thinking about joining the gym, she said: “It will make you feel so much better, even if it’s not for weight loss, it’s a hobby – it’s something to do for you.

“You don’t need to have a physical goal, mentally it will make you feel better. There are loads of health benefits – getting fitter and feeling better within yourself.

“Especially for Mum’s who are stuck inside quite a lot, a bit of time for yourself is so important, as you spend so many hours of your day being a Mum.

“And you always come home in a better mood after going to the gym!”

Sport Aberdeen’s Fitness membership is only £30.50 per month and provides access to nine gyms, five swimming pools and over 100 fitness classes every week.

Join in January 2025 and receive February completely free! Find out more and sign up here.