It is amazing what can happen in a year. To explain how much I have changed I have to go back to 2015 and a low point in my life.

In 2015 I was laid off from my company after 11 years. I was not interested in looking for a job right away, but as months went on I could not find any desire to try looking. I did not have the desire to exercise much either, or meet up with friends. I stopped cooking for myself, began eating out more and not thinking about how much I drank. For about 3 years I lingered along with little drive in my life.

One of the best things I had going for me was being out on my boat, with my friends and family on Lake Austin. I have been water skiing for the last 50+ years and it was always something I looked forward to. Last year I realized how much those 3 years of not being active set me back: I could not get up skiing. I did not have the strength to get up on the ski. The boat pulled me over time and again. This was the worst I had felt in years; it was worse than being let go from my old company. I could not allow myself to lose skiing too.

My son Bennett was working at Life Time and suggested I work with his colleague David Forrette. Initially David and I started improving how I moved and supported my cardio with the Metabolic Assessment to help me get back in to running too. After 6 months of training with David 3x a week I began to feel much more confident. I could not believe I was deadlifting 265 pounds, back squatting 195 pounds and doing 10 push-ups without collapsing into a heap. This summer I achieved my goal: I was strong enough to get up skiing. But something was still not right.

At the beginning of 2018 I began to notice I was having pain in my stomach. I was feeling nauseous and sick to my stomach during some of our workouts, but I wanted to power through. After much conversation with David we agreed that I should check with my doctor to understand what was going on. After visiting the doctor we found out that I was dealing with a hiatal hernia and microscopic colitis. This time I did not want to hesitate and hope it would work itself out. I promised myself I would change it right away.

Then I saw the promotion for the 60Day Event. While I never felt overweight or that I needed to watch what I ate or drank, I really wanted to look like I worked out and I really wanted my stomach to stop hurting. When I brought the idea of participating in 60Day to David, he was behind me 100%. He did inform me that our new plan would ask me to step further outside my comfort zone than I had before. From my perspective I was not sure how much more uncomfortable I could get!! But I knew he was right. I knew I was going to have to upgrade my dietary habits and dedicate myself to more activity during the week.

We continued lifting 3 days a week. I increased my cardio to 4-5 times a week. I took the Food Sensitivity Test and sat down with David and Kelcie Reightler to begin upgrading my nutrition. I elected to try the Gut Fix program despite my love for coffee. This Gut Fix was easily one of the biggest challenges I have ever undertaken and it has been worth it in every way. As of writing this my stomach discomfort has dropped off substantially and I am no longer running to the restroom in fear of being sick during exercise. My energy level is still going up and I am no longer in pain while running. I did not realize how poorly my body was feeling until experiencing the impact of the Gut Fix.

When I started the 60Day Event I really just wanted to feel better and finally look like I lifted weights. I wanted to have that ‘why.’ As 60Day is coming to a close I see that my ‘why’ is having the healthiest life I can have. I do not want that stomach pain or feeling of weakness. In the last 60 days I have lost 5 pounds of weight and 8% body fat. The biggest change for me is how much more value I see in my endeavors toward a healthy lifestyle. I love the time I spend here at Life Time and I see the immense value in taking care of my nutrition and how I treat my body.

As I said I am amazed at what can happen in one year. I could not have predicted the level of success I have seen from working with David Forrette and his ability to see what I need and understand what I really want. His approach on the whole person and introducing the right pieces to help them at the right time is invaluable to me. He helped me get started with the Metabolic workouts when I was ready and needed to up my game. David’s suggestion to get involved with the lab testing and leverage Kelcie’s expertise is a tremendous example of the great team they have in South Austin. I cannot express enough how impactful my experience with David and the team at South Austin is, but I hope this will do.

I am very excited to craft the next chapter of my journey here at Life Time.