A different kind of before and after!
Sans tan, almost the same physique/weight in each photo. BUT, completely different LIFESTYLE!
10 years ago I was harming myself with extreme exercise and restricted diet protocols. I would train 7 days a week for up to 3 hours living on 1100 calories. ( well I would hardly call it living)
I would body check 1000x a day and my anxiety, sleep and stress was at an all time high.
How did I stop the extreme body obsession?
I got help. {full stop}
You can’t fix what you don’t understand.
Where your mind goes, your body and your behavior will follow.
I quit beating myself up over eating “forbidden” foods - in fact, I removed the good vs. bad food dichotomy from my mind.
Every time I workout now it's because I want to and I'm excited about it. It's the exact opposite of the hardcore gym schedule or training programs I used to keep. I would miss someone's funeral if it was going to interfere with my workout. I would drive through blizzards to get to the gym. I'm so not that person anymore.
It occurred to me that this FREEDOM is only what happens when you uncouple food from exercise. Part of the reason I was so hellbent on sticking to my workouts is that I felt like I was earning my food.
There was never enough food. No way I wanted to eat less, therefore I couldn't workout less, or so went my screwy logic.
Food doesn't even enter into it now. When I take a few days off training, I eat the same way I always eat - what I want, when I'm hungry. I always feel my best when I lean into balanced good nutrition, but that still includes wine and dark chocolate and Wednesday night I enjoyed some chicken fingers at a pub with a friend.
There is no, "Oh, you didn't workout today. No chocolate for you.” Diet culture does that to us, fitness magazines, social media, all the little charts showing how long you have to run on a treadmill to burn off a cookie.
The whole notion is ridiculous. Your body is so much smarter than that. My body is in maintenance and this is where I am able to live my best life.
Today here are the things that I keep in mind:
I hardly think about food anymore, my social life is thriving, I’m happier than I’ve ever been. I rock 70lb dumbbell rows like nobody’s business, I can do 10 unassisted pullups, and I have a really strong core.
I leisure walk daily, sleep my ass off and eat #Moderation365.
My quality of life is great, and I wouldn’t give that up for anything.
I’m very grateful today for simply existing— to be able to be silly, laugh, and make connections with so many beautiful souls on this planet.
At the moment, I have and STILL work with women who lose and gain 15, 20, 40 pounds in a year depending on if they are restricting or rebounding.
This is why #moderation365 is the only nutrition philosophy I fully support and endorse. I want to encourage all of my clients to eat to satisfaction at every, every damn day and watch how their appetite calms and feels reasonable since we are not overdoing exercise or restricting our food.
If you resonate with my story- and you ready to get your life back, LMK
