I pride myself on encouraging others with their health so here I am sharing my story so you can see how an everyday person just like me lives through the struggles of life.

It’s not common to see a reverse before & after, especially from a Metabolic Nutrition Coach so it took me a long time to click the publish button today.

Lets #throwback to the end of March this year when I was just weeks away from stepping onto the bodybuilding stage as a Fitness Model.

 

To get me to this day was about 4 months of measuring every meal, 6 grueling workouts every week, countless hours of posing sessions to enhance my physique & even more hours spent in front of the mirror wondering why I didn’t have a six pack like all the other competitors. I loved every minute of it.

On the inside my body was fighting a plethora of hormone issues which I later found out, date back to quite few years ago. My doctor decided to throw me on a few medications to rectify it & at the time I didn’t think anything of it. I was going to get to that stage & by god I gave it every ounce of determination that I had. Physically, I needed to get super lean for a Bodybuilding show, restrict my food intake, train like a mad woman & all to prove to myself I could take my training/nutrition to the next level.  My new medication was telling my body to do the exact opposite, slow down, eat more &  gain some body fat.

I was neglecting my health to say the least.

Fast forward to October…

Over the passing months, a lolly bag of assorted hormones went down the hatch with each specialist that I saw. The Pathologist no longer needed to look at my form to greet me when I walk in the room & you can throw in a major operation as well.

My worst side effect was the very last. Within 7 weeks of starting a new hormone med, I had gained 7 kgs!! No change in nutrition or training just my own hormones literally freaking out & as a consequence, I suffered weight gain, anxiety & a big hole in my confidence with the medical system.

Another 3 weeks later & I was up another 2.5kgs! Net gain…. 9.5kgs in 10 weeks…!!! Not only did the scales get a good beating but now the doctors were starting to get a little concerned. They were getting used to me crying in the consulting rooms but soon I wouldn’t be able to fit through their door.

That smile is fake, I looked nothing like I should have & felt gross because of it.

They told me I should be cutting down my food & to increase my cardio exercise to drop the weight. Oh, plus they gave me another script for good measure.

I said no Thank-you.

I put my foot down from that day & said no more hormones & no more specialists. The Dr agreed.

I did end up having another major operation in the end but I stuck to my 5-6 metabolically precise meals a day, ate plenty of variety & definitely no weighing food. I was probably about 90-95% compliant with my usual eating habits plus the occasional meal or snack here & there that was out of routine. #hospitalsandwhiches

I still completed 4x45min weight sessions plus 1-2x 20min cardio a week. Nothing out of the ordinary for me at all.

My body had lost trust in me for some time so if I wanted good health had to nurture it with good nutrition/exercise choices before it was going to reward me.

 

11weeks later to yesterday…

Weight: Unknown

Measurements: Unknown

Mentality & Overall Health: No anxiety, a clearer head space & hormones slowly starting to settle

Overall 11 week progress: Bloody Excellent

Fat-loss down & muscle mass up

Am I where I want to be? Not yet

Am I still working hard to get there? You bet… and I’m not going to sacrifice my own health to get there either!

 

This year has been a complete whirlwind & even though I threw in the towel more times than I can count, I still have something I thought was worth sharing. For me, sharing my progress makes me even more accountable to my goals & I also hope inspires someone else to just keep going. Never underestimate what your own body is saying, trust the science behind good nutrition & exercise & don’t be afraid to speak up to your Dr if something isn’t right.

You will take many steps forward and many steps back but that’s life so we just roll with the punches & learn from our mistakes.

My next step towards even better health is already in place so I look forward to sharing it with you soon & as always feel free to PM me if you have any questions!