Health is Wealth
As everyone may know or will soon find out, I am an aspiring fitness fanatic who recently underwent a decently dramatic body transformation. I just wanted to share a little bit about my journey, as I am asked pretty regularly how I accomplished such.
I’ll start by saying this: my weight and I have never been friends. I have been a victim of chub rub since as far back as I can remember. One thing I always noticed, though, was my weight fluctuating up and down. I never worried too much when I ballooned because I knew I would “deflate” again at some point. UNTIL I HIT MY 28thYEAR. The closer I inched to 30, the more effort it took for my body to bounce back.
In 2016, I had reached my peak, and I was extremely uncomfortable in my skin. I am 5’3 ½ and at the time weighed in at 170 lbs.; not great for my stature. A number of things had to change for me to see changes.
1. I took exercising seriously. I had been working out spottily since 2014, which did nothing for me. I was inconsistent, and when I did attend classes, it was only about twice a week (if I was feeling jazzy). I now work out a minimum of 4 days a week—6 days if I’m feeling myself. It took a little while but I needed to form a habit. Now I feel strange when I don’t go (except on Sundays, because God wouldn’t want me feeling bad about anything on Sundays).
2. I changed my eating pattern. Not much, but enough to make a dent in my metabolism and overall well-being.
a. I wish I could say I cut sugar and carbs (a girl can dream), but I did cut DOWN on my carbs. Any little bit helps.
b. I switched to brown rice instead of white; I only take a small spoon-full of rice with my normal meals in general.
c. I also cut out yucky fast food (except my beloved Chik-fil-a and Chipotle) and now I can no longer stomach McDonalds, Popeyes, BK, or any of those places without getting sick. My intake of fried foods has also dramatically decreased.
d. I also don’t eat as much as I used to. I was not as deliberate with my portions, and changing that increased my metabolism itself, just by allowing me to eat smaller meals more frequently. You are not supposed to eat until you’re uncomfortable, which is not something I knew before then.
3. There were a number of other little things that I found to have contributed to my initial weight gain, such as thyroid issues and my birth control at the time.
a. Most of my weight loss happened after I ditched my BC, which had me feeling like the equivalent of Violet from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (dramatic exaggeration—but you don’t get to tell me how I felt!). Weight literally fell off my body.
b. My thyroid levels had been off for some time also, but never enough to have needed medication for it. It ended up taking care of itself after I changed my lifestyle with eating better and working out.
Well I hope this soothed your inquiring minds about how I ended up where I am. I feel as if I am at a solid 88% of my body goals, so I am happy with how far I’ve come. Also, please don’t ask me
If you want to know more information about my gym, check out the Features section of my page. Its called The House of Athlete, owned and run in Weston by NFL superstar Brandon Marshall. I attend their classes designed after pro athlete training, and when I am training with Shannon, I feel like a pro fa sho.