03/01/2023
A different kind of transformation post 👆
I got into fitness ten years ago to improve my physique and mental health. I had no idea what I was doing but after a few years of trial and error, I became obsessed.
I hired my first coach for a bikini competition in 2017 and then continued to compete for three years. I loved the discipline and community that I found in the sport but was also restricting myself and pushing my body to its absolute limits with no real break in between shows. I got really good at it and won nationals twice and was runner up for my IFBB pro card.
I planned a trip to New York and was going to come back and continue prepping for another pro qualifier show but while I was away I obviously ate all the delicious food that was there. I came back 25lb heavier 😳
This is obviously not a normal amount of weight to gain over a 2 week period and that should have sent alarm bells telling me that my metabolism and hormones were completely messed up. Instead of listening to my body, I continued the cycle of eating 1200 calories a day, doing over an hour of cardio a day, and hating what I saw in the mirror. I consistently gained weight and my confidence and mental health went down the drain, especially coming from an industry where you are judged solely on what you look like.
I knew at that point that I had to make a change and take matters into my own hands. I got my hormone levels tested, started eating more nutrient-dense food, took up yoga and started being grateful for all my body has done for me rather than punishing it.
Fast forward to today, I no longer look in the mirror and pick myself apart, I have a healthy relationship with food again, and I train because I love my body, not because I hate it.
This isn’t the easiest post for me to make and I shied away from posting about my struggles at the time in an attempt to seem “perfect”. Weight fluctuation and body image issues are something we all face at some point in our lives and if I can overcome these issues in a healthy way then so can you 💕
