No stranger to change and sacrifice, we catch up with Adette Bos on the strides she’s made on her epic transformation journey 

Back in 2017, Adette made the life-changing decision to lose weight, after weighing 133 kg and being overweight for most of her life. ‘I took it upon myself to overhaul my entire lifestyle,’ she says. Today, working as a production manager in the film and television industry, and leading a more proactive, healthy lifestyle, Adette is living the best days of her life. ‘I am passionate about what I do and always strive to be the best version of ‘me’ that I can be. This mindset and work ethic has helped me along my transformation journey,’ she enthuses. Today, Adette has dropped 60 kg and is maintaining her healthiest body yet! A competitive person by nature, she has remained determined and consistent, and continues to partake in CrossFit while eating consciously and making sure to cut out all sugars and starch.

In Which Ways Has Fitness Become An Integral Part Of Your Life?
I initially incorporated CrossFit as part of my transformation journey and it helped so much. Then, after doing gene testing at the end of 2019, I was told that according to my genes I should not do CrossFit but rather endurance training, such as cycling. A friend then invited me to do the Cape Town Cycle Tour (CTCT) with her, which is a 107 km race. With no real training and very little bike-handling skills, I finished with a time of 3h45m (being in the top 13% of all the women entered). This was when I realised that I have potential and was (and still am) adamant to explore all possibilities to become the best in the sport. After doing some research, I found the best coach out there – Dr. Jeroen Swart. In October 2020, we started training together, and after only a year of training, race season started. Today, I am overwhelmed with the milestones I have achieved while working a full-time job as well… Cycling became my absolute passion! So I train hard and put in the work to become the best in South Africa – and eventually in the world.  

How Do You Feel About Your Journey Thus Far?
I can’t imagine my life without training and being fit. With the training, and especially the cycling, it gives me some sort of purpose and satisfaction. Through this journey I have found a hidden talent, and that makes me excited. I can do things that I never thought I could do before. I can hike with friends now and go on group adventures, and never feel like I’m not good enough or like people are looking at me strangely because of my weight. 

Has Eating A Healthy Diet Been Difficult To Maintain?
No. When you train, you feel that you don’t want to eat crap, and when you eat healthy you feel good about yourself and actually want to train. So the two go hand in hand. I do my own food-prepping in advance – mainly on Sundays, but still prepping some nights or early mornings during the week. I’m actually in the privileged position of receiving breakfast and lunch at work, but I choose to make my own food in order to have full control of what I put into my body. Currently, I also have a nutritionist who helps me to continue to lose weight, while being able to train hard and build muscle as well. 

Words by Charndré Emma Kippie
Photography Courtesy Images