Finalists / Amanda L.
Amanda L.
Raleigh, NC
I originally signed up for the 60 Day with the simple intention of offsetting any holiday weight gain. I was at my highest weight in years, and I just could not imagine putting on any more over the coming months. However, the very first week of the 60 Day my eyes were opened as I watched Coach Anika’s motivational video about finding your “why”. I realized then that my “reason” for signing up for the challenge was actually quite different than my “why”.
I am a proud mom of 6 year old twin boys and a 2 year old little girl. I made the decision earlier that year to leave a very successful career in order stay at home and take care of my family. Hands down one of the best decisions that I ever made, but at the same time, I stepped away from more than just my career.
I had always scheduled exercise into my work schedule, and so my gym routine went right out the door when I left my position at work. And there was a snowball effect – as my exercise diminished my diet went further and further off track. I had been diagnosed with Hypothyroidism after my daughter was born, and as my diet went off track my thyroid became more symptomatic. Before I knew it, almost a year had gone by since I had been on any type of healthy routine and I was feeling terrible.
What was worse was that my family was also suffering. Normally a healthy, happy family, we were all eating poorly, and I was noticeably more stressed and short tempered with everyone and everything. I was snacking endlessly through the day, grabbing fast food meals with the kids, and going for that glass of wine almost every night. My sleep was awful and I struggled with the energy that I needed to take care of 3 kids 6 and under. If you have ever heard the term ‘mom fog’ I had it!
My intentions were to be a BETTER mom but I was moving in the wrong direction. It really took that first motivational video for me to sit down and realize WHY I was unhappy and WHY it was important for me to focus on taking care of myself and my health. Once I understood this, I was truly motivated to get started on a health journey, not just a whim to avoid holiday weight.
I scheduled a consultation with a Life Time trainer and discussed a plan for the next 60 days. I would have to begin slow, because I was in a car accident the week before the challenge began, and was suffering from a severe concussion. My goal was to decrease my body fat to 20% or less, but considering my health position, I told myself that I would just do my best and see what happens! My trainer, Patrick, was nothing less than amazing. Patrick worked with my doctor’s orders and kept my motivation up, even though I could do nothing but walk on a treadmill the first few weeks. We focused on nutritional coaching with meal planning, and eased into a more formalized plan once I was cleared by my doctor. My formal routine consisted of personal training once a week, resistance training on my own twice a week, and cardio 2-3 times a week (tailored for me by my AMA test).
I did not lose a ton of weight during the 60 Day, but my mind and body both transformed immensely. Patrick was critical in keeping me focused the weeks that I did not see the scale move. He taught me to appreciate progress in other ways; educating me in tracking body fat and always having great insights on what I could do to offset plateaus. I can honestly tell you that if it was not for the motivation from Patrick, as well as the constant reminder to myself of “why” I started, I would have easily given up when I did not see weight loss occur quickly.
The weekly motivational videos were also a huge help, and really seemed to speak to me at just the right times. The videos taught me to stick to my plan, to not get derailed and take extreme measures if I was falling short of my goals, and to appreciate what I had accomplished, instead of stressing over being 100% perfect for 60 days.
At the end, I saw a 46% change in body fat and am shocked at the physical and mental transformation I was able to achieve in 60 days. I am in a fantastic mood everyday now – thank you post-workout endorphins – and I have the energy and patience again that I need. I have incorporated diet changes at home that benefit everyone, and found out that my kids actually love to eat avocados with me!
My mindset is so much better today – life is what you make it, and I have decided to make the daily choices to take care of myself and make myself proud. It’s about doing my best every day, and knowing that every day my best will be different. I am continuing my training with Patrick and want to work on more tactical goals this year such as increasing my weights during training (here I come 200lb deadlifts), perfecting body weight pull-ups, and celebrating other personal bests. I am headed where I want to be going now, and I will forever be grateful for the last 60 days.