This month, I’d like to introduce you to Kim, 53 one of my most amazing success stories to date! Read below for Kim’s amazing transformation story and her sure-fire motivation to keep at it at the gym and her personal training schedule!
What were your initial personal training goals?
The impetus towards reaching out to Suzanne was actually a health scare. At the time, I was overweight and leading a very sedentary lifestyle. I had originally thought that I could do it on my own and hadn’t even considered using a personal trainer until I met Suzanne who asked me if I was getting what I needed out of my “gym time”. One thing led to another and she started working with me three times a week.
When I started out, I thought it would be absolutely great if I could lose 100 pounds. The number to me seemed huge, but it gave me a long term goal to work towards as I realized that this undertaking would be for the long haul if I was going to make this work. I knew that I had to make it a long term lifestyle change and working with Suzanne was step one.
100 pounds is a long-term goal. Tell us about your journey with Suzanne.
I knew that 100 pounds was a long term goal and with the help of Suzanne, we decided to break up my goal into 20 pound increments. Each time I hit a 20 pound milestone, I tried to do something nice for myself. This was a challenge because in the past doing something nice for myself usually involved food (something with chocolate, of course). Instead, with the help of Suzanne, I learned to reprogram my thinking to include such things as a visit to the spa, a makeover or buying a new outfit which became much more fun with each pound I lost!
When I started out, I would drop 2 - 3 pounds a week. Once I lost 40 pounds, I started to see the changes in the way my clothes fit. It felt good, but I knew I wasn’t there yet, so I persevered. By the time I had lost 60 pounds, people started to notice that I had lost weight, which was super encouraging! I would run into people that I hadn’t seen in a while and either they would not even say hello because they did not recognize me (I refused to believe that they were ignoring me) or you could see them “fake it” as they tried to process where it was they knew me from. Eventually I would get a “Wow! You look great! I didn’t recognize you.”
By the time I was up to an 80 pound weight loss, I was still going to the gym five days a week. Four of those days I would do cardio and some interval training and on the fifth day, I would take a spinning class. None of my clothes fit, so I did quite a bit of shopping. Even though I was by no means even close to “textbook” weight, I realized that I looked quite different because unlike other times when I “dieted” (a term I loathe), this time I had been working out, so I probably looked like I weighed less than I did.
Over time, I found my regular trips to the gym to be extremely therapeutic, even a lifesaver at times, especially when I had a lot on my personal plate. That also kept me motivated to keep up the effort. Eventually, I could go for weeks without losing a pound, but getting a quick fix of endorphins every time I exercised was a reward itself.
How did Suzanne help you with your goals, was it simply working out or was there nutrition involved?
Suzanne helped me understand the mechanics of weight loss; that cardio wasn’t enough to actually lose weight and that weight training would help build muscle which in turn would speed my metabolism and allow me to burn more calories. We also discussed nutrition and she helped me understand how I might be short-circuiting my efforts through poor diet choices. Suzanne encouraged me to not cut out the foods that I liked but to include them in moderation. I think this way key because I was able to sustain this new way of eating without depriving myself at times of the foods that I’ve always loved.
What's next! What are your goals going forward?
I am now within 5 pounds of my 100 pound weight loss goal and I think I’ll celebrate with a trip somewhere special once I’m there. I have thought all along that my exercise routine won’t change much when I hit it, I know that I need to keep active because if I stop working out my metabolism will slow and I will start to put the weight back on, so, I won’t stop going to the gym. I won’t stop taking my spinning class. I won’t stop being mindful of my daily nutrition. Even if I consider being a little more lenient about how often I exercise, I’ll still go regularly due to the way that I feel after a good workout. My goals have been amended from losing the weight to keeping the weight off and toning things up – I’ll have to because I’ve since cleaned out my closet and donated all of my larger clothes which is definitely a great motivator!
Have a story about working with Suzanne that you want to share? Let’s hear it! Send your story to Suzanne.reilley@gmail.com.
Success Story Archive
Rebecca Roberts