Posted on: Monday, July 12, 2004

FITNESS PROFILE
Regimen allows teacher to stay fit, down desserts

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer

A knee problem hasn't prevented Bert Hayashi from playing beach volleyball on weekends and lifting weights five days a week. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

Name: Bert Hayashi

Age: 41

Profession: 8th-grade teacher, Washington Middle School

Height: 5-feet-7

Workout habits: Lifts weights five times a week, alternating upper body and lower body/abdominals); rides a stationary bike three times a week; participates in a beach workout including sprints, plyometrics and volleyball drills twice a week; plays beach volleyball on the weekends and racquetball whenever she can.

When and why I started working out: "Fitness has always been a part of my life. In junior high school, high school and college, I played volleyball. I picked up aerobics at 16, because it just looked like fun. I work out just to stay in shape and because I like the challenge of sports."

My good foods/bad foods: (With a big roll of the eyes and a groan), "I am a nutritionist's nightmare. I love dessert, any kind of dessert: chocolate, pies, cakes. I like soda, too. I like fruits and vegetables, sure, but I'm known for my sweet tooth."

My biggest motivator: Whatever age I am, I look to older women and say to myself, 'That's how I want to be when I'm her age.' " Current role model: mother, Shirley Hayashi, who has joined a gym.

My biggest roadblock: A knee problem. "When I had to recuperate from knee surgery and I couldn't bend my knee, I learned patience with the injury and the rehab process. You have to listen to your body, and when it's ready to work out again, take it there. Don't think that it's the end."

What saves my sanity: "That I'm able to work out and keep up my routine. And a good dessert!"

Advice for those in the same boat: "Even when you feel too tired, it's important to make the time to work out because that release is so helpful. Have a variety of activities so you don't get bored. It's great to have the options of inside and outside activities in case of bad weather. And have fun!"