I want to share my story with you all in hopes that I inspire you.
This was hard to do and I was not sure which part of my life would help you out the most. But if you have any questions, I’m sure I have the answer for you.
I would say that before my journey, I put myself last and didn’t take very good care of me. I was pretty closed-minded and would start things only to quit after so long.
When I was younger (before kids and marriage) I was interested in weight training and started with it until I met my now husband. I got out of it before it really started. I have always had a passion for health and fitness in the back of my head, but I would look at fitness magazines while eating chips and drinking Pepsi or having cake, ha ha I obviously wasn’t ready or at least my mind wasn’t. I thought I was living a ‘healthy life” by eating fiber one cereal with skim milk, a turkey sandwich with baked chips and a diet Pepsi, a couple miniature candy bars then for dinner things like meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn. I did moderate cardio workouts.
On top of having a husband, job and 3 active kids, I was running all over town to different activities on most days of the week. I didn’t really have much time to myself let a lone think about cooking. We would often eat out at a fast food restaurant at least once a day in between events. When I did cook it was a lot of processed boxed or frozen foods.
When I noticed I was gaining weight, I would go on a fad diet for a while only to find myself back to the way I was. Sure, I would stay strict Monday – Friday but then when the weekend came watch out, that was the time to relax, socialize, sleep in with no workouts. I didn’t think weekends counted. My famous words were “Ahh I will start on Monday”. :)
After years of that, I packed on some unwanted pounds and became out of shape. My lifestyle was starting to affect my life in different areas. I didn’t want to have my picture taken unless I had a child with me or I was making a funny face. I didn’t want to wear shorts and forget about going to the beach. I was unhappy with myself. . I was also having problems with chronic back pain and headaches.
Years of self-neglect really took a toll on me; I knew it wasn’t what I wanted. Everyone would say your skinny, oh it’s your age, and your metabolism starts to slow down as you get older, or you look good for your age… What was that all about? I didn’t feel old and surely wasn’t happy with the way I looked.
As my children were getting older I was noticing that they didn’t need me as much and I was starting to have more time to myself. I sat back and wondered hmm now what do I do, who am I and what do I wanna be when I get grow up? :)
Not to long ago, I started running 5 miles a day 5 days a week. That was great for my heart but not to transform my physique. I was watching our local news and seen Jill Coleman from JillFit Physiques on there talking about weight lifting for woman, I was so excited, I got a hold of her right away and started personal training at the Metabolic Effect studio. I then read the metabolic effect book and played around with living the fat loss lifestyle for about 2 years. . It was hard to change our lifestyle that we had for so many years. I loved the way I felt eating real whole foods opposed to the processed, low fat, low sugar food I was eating. But I heard a lot of negativity about it, like really your not going to eat that? Wheat bread is healthy, oh you are being silly…you know what I mean right? In December 2011 I got an e-mail from Jill she was introducing her Elite Coaching Club. After thinking about it for a couple of min. and talking to my husband and him telling me that I should do it- I did. I remember getting the syllabus explaining what all we will be doing over the year and saying “OH SHIT what did I get myself into” She was talking about coming out of our comfort zone, doing photos shoots, going to retreats, meeting new people, having an open mind, having personal calls with her.. I was so nervous but knew I needed to do this to get to the next level. So last year, I learned to have an open mind, enrolled in Integrative Nutrition to become a health coach, I did my first photo shoot, trained and competed in my first bikini competition. (With my son). I also learned that it is ok if your family wants to continue eating the way they eat, this was my journey not theirs. I still went out to dinner and to get-togethers. I was not deprived, if anything it was very liberating, I was doing what made me happy while everyone else was doing what made them happy :)
I finally found my balance and couldn’t be happier. When I started living the fat loss lifestyle, my family seen my changes and has made positive changes of their own. So for me now, I will continue my journey to grow with my passion for health, fitness and nutrition all while helping as many people as I can.
I live a fat loss lifestyle and workout 30 min. a day. So can you :)
Remember; you’re as old as you make your mind up to be–you can take control of your health at any age
On top of having a husband, job and 3 active kids, I was running all over town to different activities on most days of the week. I didn’t really have much time to myself let a lone think about cooking. We would often eat out at a fast food restaurant at least once a day in between events. When I did cook it was a lot of processed boxed or frozen foods.
When I noticed I was gaining weight, I would go on a fad diet for a while only to find myself back to the way I was. Sure, I would stay strict Monday – Friday but then when the weekend came watch out, that was the time to relax, socialize, sleep in with no workouts. I didn’t think weekends counted. My famous words were “Ahh I will start on Monday”. :)
After years of that, I packed on some unwanted pounds and became out of shape. My lifestyle was starting to affect my life in different areas. I didn’t want to have my picture taken unless I had a child with me or I was making a funny face. I didn’t want to wear shorts and forget about going to the beach. I was unhappy with myself. . I was also having problems with chronic back pain and headaches.
Years of self-neglect really took a toll on me; I knew it wasn’t what I wanted. Everyone would say your skinny, oh it’s your age, and your metabolism starts to slow down as you get older, or you look good for your age… What was that all about? I didn’t feel old and surely wasn’t happy with the way I looked.
As my children were getting older I was noticing that they didn’t need me as much and I was starting to have more time to myself. I sat back and wondered hmm now what do I do, who am I and what do I wanna be when I get grow up? :)
Not to long ago, I started running 5 miles a day 5 days a week. That was great for my heart but not to transform my physique. I was watching our local news and seen Jill Coleman from JillFit Physiques on there talking about weight lifting for woman, I was so excited, I got a hold of her right away and started personal training at the Metabolic Effect studio. I then read the metabolic effect book and played around with living the fat loss lifestyle for about 2 years. . It was hard to change our lifestyle that we had for so many years. I loved the way I felt eating real whole foods opposed to the processed, low fat, low sugar food I was eating. But I heard a lot of negativity about it, like really your not going to eat that? Wheat bread is healthy, oh you are being silly…you know what I mean right? In December 2011 I got an e-mail from Jill she was introducing her Elite Coaching Club. After thinking about it for a couple of min. and talking to my husband and him telling me that I should do it- I did. I remember getting the syllabus explaining what all we will be doing over the year and saying “OH SHIT what did I get myself into” She was talking about coming out of our comfort zone, doing photos shoots, going to retreats, meeting new people, having an open mind, having personal calls with her.. I was so nervous but knew I needed to do this to get to the next level. So last year, I learned to have an open mind, enrolled in Integrative Nutrition to become a health coach, I did my first photo shoot, trained and competed in my first bikini competition. (With my son). I also learned that it is ok if your family wants to continue eating the way they eat, this was my journey not theirs. I still went out to dinner and to get-togethers. I was not deprived, if anything it was very liberating, I was doing what made me happy while everyone else was doing what made them happy :)
I finally found my balance and couldn’t be happier. When I started living the fat loss lifestyle, my family seen my changes and has made positive changes of their own. So for me now, I will continue my journey to grow with my passion for health, fitness and nutrition all while helping as many people as I can.
I live a fat loss lifestyle and workout 30 min. a day. So can you :)
Remember; you’re as old as you make your mind up to be–you can take control of your health at any age
I started Healthy Balanced Bodies because I wanted to help busy men and women find time for themselves and create an eating and exercise program that is sustainable and effortless. Get fit and healthy with a lean schedule.
Core Values:
- Balance– We can have it all, but in order to find balance, it takes focus, attention and responsibility
- Inspiration–Comes from within, find your passion/purpose and connect that with your actions
- Positivity–You may not be able to control outcomes, but you can always control your attitude
- Choice driven- You always have a choice, in any circumstance, to make a difference in your own life, to take action
- You’re as old as you make your mind up to be–you can take control of your health at any age
