Purposeful Fitness with Coach Ola

In this episode of Purposeful Fitness with Coach Ola, Coach Ola sits down with Heather Boddy to explore the unique intersection of cosplay, fandom, and fitness. What if your workouts could be inspired by the characters you admire most? Heather shares how channeling the energy, strength, and personality of favorite characters—from superheroes to anime icons—can transform the way we approach movemen...

Ramadan: The Month of Becoming Ramadan Mubarak. In this episode, I reflect on why Ramadan is truly the Month of Becoming — not just a month of fasting, but a month designed to shape our character, awareness, and daily choices. Ramadan interrupts comfort, exposes who we really are, and creates space for intentional growth. The hunger, the fatigue, the restraint — all of it becomes an opportunity to...

In this episode of Purposeful Fitness with Coach Ola, I’m sharing what I’m calling The Year of Becoming — a personal reflection on growth, boundaries, and stepping into the version of yourself you’ve been building toward. This isn’t a “new year, new me” pep talk. It’s about becoming: choosing alignment, protecting your peace, and remembering you’re worthy of love, support, and respect. n this epis...

Ramadan is one of the blessed months in the Islamic calendar that Muslims partake in around the world through fasting and acts of worship. Swimming is one of the sports that require a lot of energy from the body, and it can be challenging for someone while fasting. So what should you do? Should you cut it out completely or how do you make it work out? In this webinar replay, I spoke about the impo...

As salam wa alekom and hi everyone!  I am coming back to podcast, Alhamdulliah. It has been a while, and there are reasons behind that. In this episode, I discuss the following: Reasons that I signed up for therapy in Sept 2020 and why I left in 2024 Lessons learned from therapy since I was asked to share about it Another online program that I found beneficial for my mental health Who I find to be...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola, Jeri, and Khadijah will discuss the reality and struggles of triathlon racing and swimming for the Muslim woman and athlete. The perspectives shared are quite interesting and unique so please enjoy this podcast with us.   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, there are many potential struggles a Muslim athlete may have t...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola, Naadhirah, and Nipal will discuss the struggle of swimming for the muslim woman living in Africa.   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, this discussion delves into detail regarding what it's like to be a Muslim female swimmer in Africa. Please join us for this interesting discussion.   Here are some key takeaways: ~How...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola and Abbie Fish will discuss how swimsuits can impact our mental health. This is an important topic for the modern day athlete as well as everyone else so be sure to tune in for the details!   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, this discussion delves into detail regarding swimsuits' impact on our individual mental healt...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola and Nura will discuss the importance of Muslim communities speaking up about swimming for future generations. Please join us on this interesting talk and learn why swimming should be a topic of discussion for Muslims.   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, this discussion delves into detail regarding the importance of sw...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola and Shereen will discuss the history of the burkini. Please join us on this interesting talk and learn about the origins of the burkini and where it actually came from.   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, this discussion delves into detail regarding modest swimwear, where burkini originally came from, and the limitati...

Introduction   In today’s episode, from the #swim4akhirah campaign, Coach Ola, Carly, and Shanay will dive deep into water safety. They will also discuss how muslim mothers can incorporate swimming into their lives. Tune in for this interesting talk, with your favorite drink, and enjoy!   Summary and Key Takeaways   Overall, there are many hurdles to being a muslim woman especially living in the W...

Fabio Comana is the director of continuing education for NASM®, and a faculty member at San Diego State University and the University of California, San Diego. He was the original developer of ACE’s Integrated Fitness Training™ (IFT™) model and led development on their personal trainer educational workshops. Fabio has a wealth of experience from working as a collegiate head coach, strength and con...

Today we meet with a special guest and personal friend, Yaz! We discuss favorite workouts and the importance of recovery. We also discuss how to make the most out of the COVID-19 situation and how to handle the quarantine. Optimism is imperative at this time and focusing on your mental health is critical.  Reading is also discussed as well as how you can get your family members involved with your...

In today's episode, we discuss how you can take care of your immune system during Ramadan and also during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Noor Salem discusses the importance of organic foods and to prioritize eating as healthy as possible. The transition from processed foods to natural is an important one. Please join us as we learn how we can strengthen our immunity, in sha Allah.  Noor Salem is the auth...

In today's episode, we discuss how mothers can manage their fitness journeys during the COVID-19 pandemic and during Ramadan. Hanan Fadel discusses her personal training and how she specifically trains moms. She also discusses some of the difficulties moms may experience. This can bring up some potential hurdles especially at a time like now when someone may be fasting and may also be self-isolati...

Have you ever thought of swimming while fasting or ever tried to? Welcome to my interview with Fares Ksebati, CEO of MySwimPro and founder of World Swim Day.  Our guest today, Fares Ksebati is the CEO of MySwimPro, a global technology, and media company that creates mobile and wearable applications (MySwimPro and MyTriPro) that help people improve their performance and health. World Swim Day, a gl...

Ramadan Mubarak to everyone who celebrates Ramadan! I wanted to put this quick and short episode together because I want to bring light on to how being active is an act of worship, and why we need it for Ramadan. Make sure to tune into the previous episodes with the following guests and topics: How to regain mobility during Ramadan with Dr. Jen? How to maintain muscle gains during Ramadan with Bel...

Has the pandemic of COVID-19 put you down under lots of pressure and stress while you're trying to manage your emotions? Join our guest for today, Amber Romaniuk who is an Emotional Eating, Digestive and Hormone Expert who helps professional women achieve optimal health through mindful eating, self-care and overcoming self-sabotage with food. Her podcast “The No Sugarcoating Podcast” has over half...

Today's episode is an important topic for the swimming industry to come out and bring light on mental health for the swimmers in the house. As a swimmer and as a swim instructor, it really is challenging for the mindset to be outside the water.  Our guest for today is Abbie Fish who founded Swim Like A. Fish in 2019 after 25+ years of success in competitive swimming. From qualifying for the Olympi...

Have you ever tried to go on plant-based or didn't know the benefits of it? Join me today with my guest, Sara Zayed who is an advocate on the plant-based diet lifestyle. Sara Zayed is the founder of Posifitivy, a health, fitness, and lifestyle medicine blog geared towards young women. She graduated with a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Rutgers University in 2016 but was always dra...

Ramadan 2020 happens to be on April 24th this year, in shaa Allah.  Because we have one month to go, this is the best time to take whatever we were working on this year to put all the effort to welcome the blessed month. In this episode, I talked about the following topics: How to stay grounded and hopeful when the masjids are closing down all around us.  How to build the right mindset for Ramadan...

We're in tough times during the COVID-19 epidemic, and we're living in times of uncertainty.  Finding hope and staying grounded can be so hard now, and it's really important for us to come together and stay focused. In this episode, I talked about the following objectives and points What is an abundant mindset and what is a scarcity mindset? How to get an abundant mindset during times like now? Wh...

What is total body conditioning you may be wondering and how is that needed for your swimming journey? Tune in to this episode with me as I dived deeper into this topic and how it can help you with your swimming journey.  In this episode, I discussed the following: What is TBC all about? Why it's important? How to incorporate it into your workouts? If you have always wanted to get started with you...

Have you ever wanted to try something challenging for your fitness journey? Tune in to this amazing interview with Khadijah who is breaking the barriers for the Muslim women who choose to cover up in the hijab in the triathlon world! Khadijah is Mother, Project Manager, and a Triathlete.  Her mission is to Promote a Positive Image of Muslim Women and Islam in General through Sport. In our intervie...

This episode is a bonus episode because on March 2nd, 2014, my grandmother passed away, and it was the day BeFit4Akhirah was born inside of my heart. I wrote this poem as a way of expressing myself and being able to inspire anyone who is looking for an inspirational episode to find hope again in life. To find that spiritual connection and to be empowered in moving forward in life. It is a very sho...