“It is a myth that women become like men by training strength”

Is not that Vikika Costa (Alicante, April 12, 1989) has put aside the videos of his tricks to have a abdomen of steel (his core is one of the most admired in Spain) or its famous tables to boast of strong glutes. But, in the new facet of her as a mother, Verónica Costa, the real name of this businesswoman fitness with a million followers on social networks, expand the registration and go to the plates to do with your baby or openly show that you can train nine months pregnant.

There are no secrets, he says, to continue reserving his space for daily physical activity. Does juggle To keep the Breastfeedingrecording training sessions, office work serving clients, meeting, collaborating with brands with which she feels related, such as Born Living Yoga, training, going to the physio… She smiles when asked about the conciliation. “What is that invention? Before Ian was born I imagined that I would put it next to my mat and train calmly. Nothing could be further from reality, because it demands constant attention,” he explains.

In the absence of parents in Madrid, “the true conciliators,” says the Alicante native, have external help from a person who is already like family. “Even so, we slept very badly and during the day I sometimes use the breast pump.” But she believes it’s part of her vision of her life and work. And from the example of her father. “Being so lucky that my main activity is a passion, I have never had a fixed schedule or vacation. I have never fit into a traditional 40-hour sit-down position. But forever, not now that I have my companies. In the second week after giving birth I was already working, perhaps because my role model at home has never complained about working 16 hours a day. Fortunately, I am privileged to manage my time even though my baby depends on me every two and a half hours. She organized me.”

It does recognize that maintaining a balance is key for mental health and that is why he has been going to therapy for three years. She can’t be the super woman at everything. “It helps me to better manage so much pressure, not to explode, to have a good relationship… When I experienced the benefits I wanted to take it to my company, since I have always seen health in a global way and not for an aesthetic purpose. The benefits of sport are more mental than physical, along with rest and food is the bus that we recommend”, he jokes.

A 10 IN GYMNASTICS

The personal trainer of Cristina Pedroche is behind the platform on-line Virtual Training, with 300 types of training guided by 16 professionals, and Vikika Team, with a team of six nutritionists, three psychologists and three trainers. “Since I was a child I loved sports and I got 10’s in gymnastics”. Partner of the also trainer Javier Menéndez, she began advising on nutrition and showing how she trained.

“Then there was no such thing as living on social networks, I did it just because I wanted to encourage more people to lead an active life. Everyone can do what they want with their body, but it is vital to have good habits to reach old age well. And if I could inspire someone I already felt happy”, describes the influencers sporty.

The pandemic led to the emergence of training at home. And she got the desired adherence from his set to the halls of many people. In contact with weightlifting and weight training rooms from a very young age, she affirms that he has internalized the importance of this work and feels responsible for having popularized these routines in a certain way among girls. “It is a myth that a woman becomes like a man for train strength. Fortunately, we already know that we can take more than one-kilo pink dumbbells and there are more and more examples, even in well-known characters and that helps a lot. I am proud to have been a pioneer in networks in showing what really works for good health and at an aesthetic level makes you lose more fat, “she defends.

He still remembers when what already began to look normal was not yet. “They called me ‘the fitness of Instagram’They gave me that role, but I didn’t care because I loved competing and I saw that in the United States they trained strength just like they did, that it wasn’t for women or men, but very positive training from any perspective. And, meanwhile, here the girls went to dance classes and they went to the living room. I resisted,” says Costa.

THE CRITICS

Now her mission is focused on “helping other mommies” to keep pushing to the fullest. “Women are always questioned about our figure. If we are fat because we are fat, if we are strong because we are strong… We are validated based on whether we enter or not in the beauty canon of guys. And if you don’t go through there you have to justify yourself. “.

Vikika Costa experiences those judgments of others in each publication, a true “national sport”, she admits, and one only has to go through her social networks to understand what derogatory comments she is referring to. He does not care. “There are those who are accustomed to speak ill of what he does not know”. She has always been clear that negative opinions speak more about others than about her. “Even success is criticized because they do not see themselves capable of doing it and you are reminding them of it with your actions. Perhaps they are afraid or do not want to get involved, because training requires perseverance. The Habits that I promote are always in tune with the bodybecause it is the house we live in, not an entity that is loose, and we are crushing it with stress, tobacco, lack of rest, not listening to our emotions…”.

It is not satisfied with the million and aspires to continue growing. “There is much to do still to instill that itch for physical activity“. According to the latest report of the apps Strava, Spanish women perform 29% less physical activity than men. “If for years I have established in myself a conscience and discipline that I have tried to transmit, it would not make sense that my team did not surround me with good professionals with the ability to reach through the screen knowing how to take everything from a pathology to a problem of self-esteem” .

He believes that there is a lot of information on health and numerous alternatives to train but not all of them are equally valid. “There is a lack of professionalism, specialized people. For example, the word diet has been used to make real barbarities. The pineapple diet, which consists of eating only pineapple without considering other nutrients, destroys your body and is not a healthy way to lose weight. We must stop thinking about the body of others and take care of our health without trying to be someone else.”