Next time you’re struggling to get out of bed to exercise, spare a thought for Brea Wells, whose outdoor gym crosses state borders.
Story by Gretel Sneath Photo by Jessica Drury
Brea Wells has an infectious spring in her step that entices others along for the ride. Her work as a mobile personal trainer stretching across remote South Australia and New South Wales means the old excuse about the local gym being “too far away” soon disappears in her cloud of red dust.
The 26-year-old mother-of-two estimates that she travels up to 1000 kilometres a week. “It’s money out of my pocket, wear and tear on my ute and time away from my family, but it’s more of a lifestyle than a job,” she says. “Every busted tyre, dent or late night is all totally worth it to see women who often put their health as a last priority achieve something that they didn’t think they would ever be able to do.”
No gym equipment? No excuse. As it turns out, cattle and sheep yards in station country can make really effective gymnasiums. Add some old tyres, heavy ropes or chain, and substitute a handful of branding irons or a lump of wood for weights, and Brea assures that a challenging, ready-made circuit awaits.
“You can also incorporate routine tasks into individually tailored workouts; sheep work can easily become a high-intensity training session, and rock picking can feature a lot of fitness movements like squats, lunges and oblique twists,” Brea says. “Sometimes your exercise isn’t a plan written on paper, but an impromptu trip out in the paddock.”
This story excerpt is from Issue #110
Outback Magazine: Dec/Jan 2017
