Editor’s note: This is the first in a series on local residents’ exercise habits.

Many people use the excuse “I don’t have time to exercise” as a reason for not maintaining a healthy lifestyle, but according to Anita Keetch it’s all about desire.

Keetch, of Grantsville, has always been involved in some kind of physical activity since childhood, but it wasn’t until she reached college that she began to make fitness a habit.

“I liked how I felt — toned and strong — and I noticed exercise helped me in my other activities too,” Keetch said.

Her weekly exercise routine includes strength training combined with cardio. Keetch will strength train with dumbbells and resistance bands for 30 to 45 minutes a day, two to three days a week. She alternates cardio routines between the days she’s not strength training with jogging, biking or using a stairmaster.

Keetch also likes to hike with her family on the weekends or find some other family friendly activity to do with her husband and children. For the past two years she’s been involved with taekwondo and holds the rank of a red belt.

With a bachelor’s degree in exercise science and a master’s degree in sports medicine, Keetch has been working as an athletic trainer for sports teams around the state for the last 20 years, although she said she’s currently more focused on personal training.

Keetch recently started a “Boot Camp” for women in the Tooele Valley area who want to get fit and stay in shape. The benefits of living an active lifestyle are infinite according to Keetch.

“I’ve always been able to go and do what I want to. I’m physically strong enough to pursue what sports I want to participate in. I was 41 when I started taekwondo, which is a physically demanding sport, but it wasn’t a problem,” Keetch said, who is now 43.

Keetch attributes feeling less stressed, sleeping better, avoiding aches and pains, and hardly ever getting sick, as well as feeling stronger and healthier, to living an active lifestyle.

She’s kept her routine constant for years, except for taking a few breaks when pregnant with her four children.

“If you make the time to fit exercise in your life you’re going to be happier and have a better outlook on life,” Keetch said. “I think people who use time as an excuse have a problem with priorities. You make time for what you want to make time for. Sometimes fear or a lack of knowledge keeps us from finding a good way to fit it into our lives, but it’s all about desire.”

compiled by Natalie Tripp

If you or someone you know would like to share their exercise habits, please contact Natalie Tripp at Natalie Tripp: ntripp@tooeletranscript.com

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