Aerobics Guru Jane Fonda In Sydney For Fitness First Campaign
Jane Fonda might have left her aerobics days in the ‘80s, but she’s still as fit as ever at 76. The Academy Award-winning actress and fitness guru arrived in Sydney on Monday to launch a new campaign for Fitness First Australia, proving that she’s still very much a fitness icon.
The “Barbarella” star was already a Hollywood A-lister by the time she released her first exercise video titled “Jane Fonda’s Workout” in 1982. A foot fracture she suffered on the set of “The China Syndrome” left her unable to continue attending ballet classes so she began participating in aerobics classes instead.
Her workout videos became so successful that she had not only started the fitness craze in the ‘80s, she also influenced a lot of people to buy the VCR players.
Now, even decades later, she’s still considered a fitness expert and icon.
And perhaps that’s the very reason why Fitness First recruited the American screen legend to endorse its newly revamped logo and campaign.
Dressed in an off-white power suit, Fonda embodied a strong and successful woman as she spoke at the gym chain’s re-launch at the Market Studio.
If there’s one thing that the younger crowd learnt from Fonda, it’s that she looks and feels young because she embraces getting older and knows her limits.
“Instead of hiking up 14,000 feet, I’ll hike to 2,000 feet. Instead of lifting 20 pounds, I’ll lift eight pounds,” she was quoted by the Daily Telegraph as saying. “I just do less of everything because my body is older and not able to do what I used to do.”
She continued, “When you’re looking at oldness from the outside, it’s really scary, once you’re in the middle of oldness it’s not so bad unless you suffer from a terrible disease like cancer or Alzheimer’s.”
Fitness First Australian managing director Pete Manuel praised the company’s newest ambassador, saying she was a “natural fit” for the brand.
“She’s our ambassador for our ‘change for the best’ campaign but she’s obviously an industry icon, someone who has been a legend in fitness for many years and has inspired may people,” he said. “The opportunity to work with Jane was a natural fit for us and a great honour.”
Fitness First unveiled a new logo and less constricting contract packages for its customers. It announced its pay-as-you-go options, which would allow users to pre-pay their gym session and avoid going into long contracts.
Fonda told AAP that she will have a book for teenagers coming out in March. She’s also currently writing a novel, but refused to disclose what it’s all about.