Stats Before After Height 167cm 167cm Weight 66.1kg 56.8kg Chest 90cm 83cm Waist 75cm 64cm Calves 37.5cm 36cm Arms 29cm 28cm Thighs 61cm 55cm Hips 106cm 95cm

As a Personal Trainer I was great at motivating and helping others to achieve their health and fitness goals, but somewhere along the way I forgot to set some goals for myself. I trained clients most days, taught yoga/Pilates classes during the week, and as a wife, and a mum to a 10 and 12 year old, I had to squeeze in my own training where and when I could. Looking back, I was displaying all the signs of over-training. Gaining weight, not sleeping, constantly exhausted, even waking up exhausted! I pretty much followed a nutritionally sound diet during the week but come Friday afternoon it was time to socialise and relax and sometimes I would go all day on only two small meals, or wine and cheese! No wonder all of my clothes were tight and uncomfortable! I had been buying Women’s Health and Fitness Magazine for quite a while, to keep in touch with the latest health and fitness news and I loved to read the success stories from the BodyBlitz Challenge. One day, after struggling to find something that fit to wear out I decided that was exactly what I needed – a ‘challenge’. I read the stories of the ladies who had great success with Sue at idealbodiesonline and decided, personal trainer or not, I needed accountability, support and someone to do the hard work for me – prepare a program and eating plan – so that I was able to stay focused on my clients as well. I knew I needed to train and eat smarter but the biggest challenge for me was to completely put my trust in Sue and do exactly as I was told! No more, no less… just do it! At first, the scales dropped a little but then for the next nine weeks nothing happened…well not on the outside anyway. The support of the online forum became invaluable at this time as I struggled to stay patient, and consistently follow the program. My body was very reluctant to let go of the weight. It became a mind game, as I constantly had comments like ‘but you look great already – you don’t need to do this’. I felt very different and I was determined to see it through.

It became about a lot more than just losing some weight. I took myself off to a natural hormone doctor and discovered that my hormones were all over the place, being 46 this was to be expected if not accepted. With an action plan in place there, Sue then tweaked my nutrition slightly to include more healthy fats like flaxseed oil, avocado, and nuts and I was off and running. My body had finally kicked into gear! My husband and kids were great, very supportive and encouraging even though they thought it impossible for me to lose weight on the amount of food I was eating.

I soon learned that five to six small meals per day were exactly what my body responded to. I learned to look for triggers that would make me overeat. Rest also became a crucial factor, especially after a big weights session. In fact, the whole challenge was a big learning curve and a roller coaster of ups and downs as I battled with the power of my very overactive mind. The whole process has taught me that it doesn’t matter who we are, what knowledge we have or how motivated we are, we face the same challenges at some stage and to achieve our goals and dreams we need to be strong-minded, patient and consistent.

It’s all about putting that knowledge into action!

In Craig Harper’s words ‘Knowledge isn’t power, it is potential power’. However, if we slip up it doesn’t mean we are a failure, just that we are human. The important thing is to get
right back on track at the very next meal.

It was very empowering and a very happy day for me when, with just days to go to the 12-week mark, I weighed in under my goal weight. But more important than losing the weight was losing some old habits and beliefs that were holding me back from realising my full potential.

My family is so proud of me and my husband says he doesn’t think there is anything I can’t do now! He could be right – there is no turning back now.