My Story
I’m Nada Mostafa, also known as Holistic Nada. I’m a kinesiologist, personal trainer, and yoga teacher dedicated to promoting holistic wellness and a balanced lifestyle for Muslim women. My approach is rooted in knowledge from my personal journey, the experiences of my clients, and evidence-based practices—all to help you achieve your health and fitness goals while strengthening your connection to our divine faith.
My journey began when I was very young—around 15 years old. As a competitive swimmer, I was constantly surrounded by voices that scrutinized every part of my body, often telling me what needed to change. Being in such an environment made me hyper-aware of my appearance; I felt like my worth was tied solely to how my body looked and how fast I could perform.
When I eventually stopped swimming, I started to gain weight quickly—I no longer had the “Michael Phelps metabolism” that let me eat anything I wanted! This marked the beginning of a cycle of shame, disappointment, and an obsession with my weight, which ultimately led me down a difficult path that left me feeling broken.
The mistakes I made... so you don’t have to
With social media, YouTube, and Google, I had access to endless information, but unfortunately, much of it was more harmful than helpful. I tried every diet you could think of—keto, paleo, intermittent fasting, detox cleanses. I even restricted myself to eating just one meal a day.
Food became an obsession. I spent 80% of my day thinking things like:
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“How many calories did I eat today?”
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“Did I go overboard with carbs?”
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“I ate too much at breakfast, so I’ll skip lunch and wait until dinner.”
With all the restriction, my body went into starvation mode, and I began craving everything I’d denied myself. My breakfasts were healthy, but the rest of my day often spiraled into bingeing on chips, chocolate, and carbs.
The biggest question that haunted me was:
“If I’m barely eating, why am I not losing weight?”
I kept asking myself:
“Why don’t I have the willpower to stick with this?”
I entered a dark mindset about my body, one that I rarely share. I developed a deep urge to punish myself for not being “strong enough” to lose the weight, which led me to an eating disorder where I would binge and then purge, forcing my body to reject what I had consumed.
And so my path to seeking knowledge began...
I was desperate to understand why I couldn’t lose weight, so I decided to make my studies entirely focused on the human body and enrolled in a bachelor’s program in kinesiology. Along the way, I discovered yoga during the COVID pandemic. Yoga played a huge role in helping me reconnect with my mind and body. I tought me what it meant to tune out the noise of my perfectionist tendencies, to let go of my need to control everything around me including my body. It tought me to find acceptance with who I am and how I looked. That was the moment I decided to love my body despite the societal pressures telling me I’m not pretty or skinny enough. It also guided me toward a deeper rediscovery of my deen.
How faith lead me to self acceptance
II felt a profound desire to deepen my connection with Allah, and I realized that what I was missing was knowledge. I chose to embark on a journey of studying the Quran to truly understand the words of Allah. This journey completely transformed how I viewed my body and released much of the self-criticism I once carried, especially through this verse from Surah al-Nur:
وَقُل لِّلۡمُؤۡمِنَٰتِ يَغۡضُضۡنَ مِنۡ أَبۡصَٰرِهِنَّ وَيَحۡفَظۡنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبۡدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنۡهَاۖ وَلۡيَضۡرِبۡنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّۖ وَلَا يُبۡدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوۡ ءَابَآئِهِنَّ أَوۡ ءَابَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوۡ أَبۡنَآئِهِنَّ أَوۡ أَبۡنَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوۡ إِخۡوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوۡ بَنِيٓ إِخۡوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوۡ بَنِيٓ أَخَوَٰتِهِنَّ أَوۡ نِسَآئِهِنَّ أَوۡ مَا مَلَكَتۡ أَيۡمَٰنُهُنَّ أَوِ ٱلتَّٰبِعِينَ غَيۡرِ أُوْلِي ٱلۡإِرۡبَةِ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ أَوِ ٱلطِّفۡلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمۡ يَظۡهَرُواْ عَلَىٰ عَوۡرَٰتِ ٱلنِّسَآءِۖ وَلَا يَضۡرِبۡنَ بِأَرۡجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعۡلَمَ مَا يُخۡفِينَ مِن زِينَتِهِنَّۚ وَتُوبُوٓاْ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تُفۡلِحُونَ (٣١)
Tell the believing women to lower the gazes too, and guard their privates, and guard their beauty except for what is obvious. And they should strike upon themselves their shawl over their breasts. Except for their husbands, fathers, father in laws, kids, step kids, siblings, nephews, nieces, women, old men who have no desires, or the child who is not attracted to a woman’s body. And they shouldn’t wear loud jewelry and shoes so that they expose what’s supposed to be hidden to their beauty. And repent to allah believers so that you may be successful. (ayah 31)
And so my journey to restoring wellness began...
Just by reading this ayah of Allah prescribing to us to hide our beauty, means that we as women are TRULY beautiful in the eyes of Allah. And if almighty Allah creaty us with beauty, then who are we to negate the true fact that we are in essence beautiful regardless of what society tells us. And so we must all as Muslimahs make the decision to only want to be beautiful in the eyes of Allah, and not in the eyes of society’s standards.
I began my journey to rediscover wellness through a lens of self-acceptance and empowerment. I chose to eat not to be thin, but to nourish the body Allah had blessed me with. I exercised not to display my body, but to feel strong, disciplined, and ready to become the best version of myself for my Creator.
The key to your journey of weight loss and health lies within; it’s rooted in what is spiritually divine. All you need is the guidance I wish I’d had—someone who has walked this path, so you don’t have to face it alone. That’s why I’m here: to be the support for you that I once needed.