As I reflect on my before & after photos, I am overjoyed with the progress that I have made over the last 60 days. To many who view my photos, you may be doubtful that these results are obtainable for yourself or even possible. I used to be that person who looked at the drastic before & after photos and thought, “I could never do that” or “they must be on something.” I’m here to tell you I’m a working mom of two, who had no super powers for this challenge, other than sheer determination & a mindset to change my health habits not only for myself, but for my kids.

I always “appeared” skinny but I was never fit or truly skinny, I was what you would call “skinny fat.” I gained most of my weight in my stomach, hips & butt. I would wear looser pants and baggier shirts to camouflage my appearance, which didn’t always work, since I was asked a few times by my patients if I was pregnant. My energy levels were plummeting & my reality check came both during & after my second child’s pregnancy where I was diagnosed both with Gestational Diabetes as well as hypothyroidism.  It was then that I realized that exercise and a healthy lifestyle were the way to conquer my health problems. I set a goal after my second child that before I turned 30 I would be in the best shape of my life. Like most, life happens. I kept on making excuses for not achieving my health goal such as I was too busy with work or I was too tired after taking care of the kids, or I had mom guilt.  I convinced myself that my expanded belly was never going to be better that it was a result of having two kids and my best option was to just continue camouflaging the area. To make myself feel better I would say to myself I’ll start tomorrow, and now almost five years later, tomorrow finally came all because Life Time opened near me.

When Life Time opened up in my area I quickly signed up & participated in Team CUT classes with Felicia. I noticed an increase in my energy levels after participating in the classes as well as some strength gains. However, it wasn’t until one day during a CUT class Felicia asked everyone to write down their goals for the class that I had a reality check. That moment was truly a game changer for me. It reignited my drive & motivated me to finally stop making excuses for myself & to start being the best me I could be.  My goal originally was to be in the best shape of my life, however when I found out about the 60-Day. It quickly turned into, I’m going to be in the best shape of my life and win the 60-Day!  I quickly made it known to both Felicia as well as my TEAM CUT members that I want to win the challenge, so they could help keep me accountable & push me towards my goals, which they both came through!

I chose this Challenge because I knew that if I can conquer this goal during the busiest time of the year, with Thanksgiving, Christmas, holiday parties & going away on vacation for a week, that I can achieve anything. However, knowing myself, I knew I couldn’t do it alone. I chose Felicia to be my personal trainer as I knew from my experience with her during CUT she would help me achieve my goal.

Felicia’s training sessions helped me dig deep, pushed me out of my comfort zone and “transformed” me into the best me there is, and boy did they!  She always believed in me, reminded me of my goals & pushed me to do more then what I thought my body was capable of doing. She helped me fine tune my nutrition in order to NOURISH my body to achieve results. I honestly have to say that I eat more calories than I ever did in my life. I now eat 5 meals a day as well as use Life Time’s nutritional supplements to help fuel my workouts & help with recovery.  The first week of changing the way I ate was the hardest, but within that week, my energy level and the way that I felt also changed dramatically, and that was the motivation to keep going. It changed me so much that it triggered me to remember how I used to feel after eating and it became a deterrent for eating unhealthy because I didn’t want to feel tired and sluggish.  During this 60-Day I managed to enjoy all the holidays and go on a week-long vacation all without feeling like I was missing out or feeling restricted.

This 60-Day Challenge has been life-altering for me. I never thought I would be able to have abs like you see on magazine covers, especially after having two kids! By doing this challenge I truly learned Lifetime mission statement “the healthy way of life.” Even though this challenge is over, the difference in energy, mood & total well-being is life-altering & I never want to go back to who I was before. I now no longer have to camouflage my appearance. More importantly I do not have mom guilt either, because my girls love Lifetime’s kids club, they actually tell me to work out longer! I also have more energy to keep up with them. Finally, after 34 years, I am confident in who I am & can honestly look in the mirror & be happy at who’s looking back.