April lost 36 pounds

Transformation of the Day: April lost 36 pounds. This hard working mom was ready for a lifestyle change and a career change. After a major loss, the proud mom changed course, commited to fitness and found a passion for meal prepping and meal planning. Check out her story.

I’m beyond excited to share my story! I worked in the Food & Beverage/Hotel/Hospitality industry for over 20 years. I started to notice that I was drinking 7/8 cups of coffee a day… espresso, latte, cappuccino, you name it. I also ate twice a day, but definitely had a large meal before I left work after midnight (which usually included filet mignon). I hardly saw my daughter who was about to graduate from the 5th grade and go into middle school. I knew something had to change.

I needed a new career. I wanted to step out of my industry and decided to go into the health and fitness industry, which I’d always been interested in. I left my career in May 2015 and started a new one as the Customer Service Manager at a popular, local gym.

I didn’t start to get healthy right away, we all ordered Chinese food and pizza everyday. I was also pregnant at the time and didn’t know. I noticed that I’d gained weight, but my pants still went up so I thought I was ok. To make a long story short, I was 5 and a half months pregnant when I lost my daughter, due to an incompetent cervix. I was home for 4 weeks recover, and I realized I needed to change my lifestyle. I also signed up for a Health Coaching certification course through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. (I receive my certificate in March 2017!)

I started working out once a week with one of the trainers at my gym, and gradually increased to 5/6 times a week for an hour. My workouts ranged from doing dead lifts, squats, bench press, push-ups, TRX bands, stair master, arch trainer, working with dumb bells and planks. My personal trainer Joe Torres (@Trainer_joes) held me accountable for my workout routine, no matter whether I was working out with and without him.

My weight went from 192 pounds to 183 pounds to 168 pounds to 156 pounds. In the past, Every year I made a goal to lose 20 pounds by my birthday and never stuck to with my goal. In November 2015, I made a commitment to lose 20 pounds by my birthday, May 19, 2016. I was able to lose 24 pounds by the end of January 2016. My motivation and inspiration was the expectations of my daughter. I also got inspiration from friends and family for whom I had become a role model to.

I changed my eating habits by eliminating fast food from my diet and meal prepping every Sunday. The foods that became staples in my diet are; quinoa, farro, kale, collard greens, Greek yogurt and chicken. There was hardly any salt in any of the foods I prepared. I ate every two-three hours and drank at least 4 bottles of alkaline water (32oz) each day. I also cut back and only drank coffee once a week. I substituted with herbal tea or green tea with kombucha.

I turned my meal prep into a business, I provide weekly meals for 8 trainers at the gym as well as 6 clients outside of the gym.

The advice I can give to others is stick with your goals and make small changes. Treat yourself as if you were the client/customer, because you are worth the investment.