In today’s world, social media is where careers can be born. One person whose success stems from their Instagram account is Tanya Poppett, an Australian fitness instructor, blogger, model, and influencer. With nearly 400,000 Instagram followers and her own Train with Tanya app, her approach to fitness has made her hugely successful. And it’s all thanks to winning a pair of shoes.

Poppett was training to become a primary school teacher when she won an Instagram competition that gifted her a pair of running shoes. Despite always being a keen runner, often running up to 10 miles per day, she began finding the repetitive nature of her chosen discipline was damaging her joints. In search of something more holistic and less repetitive, she discovered high-intensity interval training, which involves short bursts of high-intensity exercise followed by low-intensity ones, and strength training in the form of weightlifting.

Inspired by the positive changes these brought to her life, Poppett embarked on a new career as a fitness instructor. Her friendly, relatable approach quickly made her an online success. She has been hailed as a “fitness guru”, partnering with kitchenware appliance and fitness equipment companies and even becoming an ambassador for world-leading brands such as Adidas, with whom she worked on an eco-friendly initiative to help reduce ocean plastic. Her success has allowed her to hold Active Escapes Retreats in beauty spots such as Bali, where people can join her for training, surfing, and relaxation. She has also worked with fitness platform iFit, travelling the world to film workout sequences.