My 5 Year Transformation

I think it is time for my transformation story.  The post covers my 5 year transformation from weighing 180 pounds after two kids all the way down to 138 pounds today!  Read on to find out what worked and what didn’t on my 5 year transformation journey to lose over 40 pounds and keep it off!

Why I got started

In April of 2009 I had my second child (our daughter) who weighed 9 pounds 12 ounces at birth!  I was wearing a size 14 and weighed 180 pounds a couple weeks after she was born.  I was extremely unhappy with my weight and body image.  I wasn’t even sure how I had gained so much weight so quickly.  I had a few things going against me: my family genes are strong for obesity, I was raised on southern cooking, and I had recently had 2 children.  I had been an athlete (basketball and soccer) my whole life and so it was hard to accept that I had gotten so out of shape.  My husband, being the supportive husband, suggested we start exercising together.  He had watched someone’s transformation video on YouTube from P90X and thought it would be good to try.

Results from P90X

We decided to start P90X the fall of 2010.  It was HARD to stick to P90X.  I remember, almost nightly, I would fall asleep reading to my son in his bed.  My husband would have to come in and wake me up to do the scheduled P90X routine.  I’m not going to lie, I was pretty grouchy and irritated but continued to push through and complete the program.  If you are not familiar with P90X it is a Beachbody program with Tony Horton with programs including plyometrics, yoga, chest and back, legs and back, and abdominal.  The programs run 45-60 minutes on average.  The biggest change I made in my diet during this time was cutting out soda.  I was drinking almost 44 oz of soda per day (that’s drinking 370 calories!).  At the end of P90X I had lost 30 pounds!  I was feeling better about myself and had convinced myself that I was big boned and so I couldn’t/shouldn’t loose more weight.

Taking a Break

After we finished P90X I continued to eat healthier and eliminate soda.  I wasn’t performing a regular exercise program initially.  I would intermittently perform the ab ripper X program from P90X.  We also purchased a recumbant bike, and I would ride the bike 3-5 times per week for 30-40 minutes.

This takes us to November 2013 when we started a no-carbohydrate diet, again thanks to my husband for suggesting/researching ideas.  We started the Instanity program by Beachbody and I lasted 20 days (this was not for me!).  I was still maintaining my weight, which I thought of as a success since I was eating more “cheat” meals.

Once moving to Georgia (September 2014) I had more time to go to the gym, so I joined the YMCA.  I usually completed 2 classes per day including spinning, kick boxing, body pump, and TRX.  I was getting more tone, but still not loosing weight.  I decided to try and alter my diet more by trying intermittent fasting with decreased caloric intake.  Intermittent fasting is where I would count calories and limit my eating to between 10am and 6pm.  As with the other diet programs, I was maintaining my weight.  I was so confused how I could be doing 2 hours of exercise per day and still not loose weight.

21 Day Fix

I was getting really frustrated with not being able to loose the last amount of weight, what I thought at that time was 5-10 pounds.  I was waiting on a patient at work and saw an infomercial for 21 Day Fix.  I thought it sounded interesting and cost effective.  I had my husband do some research on outcomes and reviews and I decided to go ahead with the program.  I was lucky enough to have to have a friend lend me the program to save on the upfront cost. 21 Day Fix is another Beachbody program.  This one is with Autumn Calabrese with seven colored containers pre-measured to the precise portion for your diet along with a 30 minutes exercise program daily.  My first day was 8/24/2015.  Initially it was really time consuming to find recipes and plan meals that would fit into my container counts.  As the program went through the 21 days though I found it took much less time to meal plan.  See my review of the 21 Day fix and the exercise routines here.  At the end of my first 21 days I had lost 5 pounds and 7.25 inches!

Why couldn’t I loose the weight before?  The answer wasn’t how much I was exercising or that I was eating unhealthy…it was I was eating TOO MUCH!  With these portion containers I learned to limit my portion size and eat more vegetables and meat and less carbohydrates.  But the great thing is you keep eating the food you like and want.  I know this sounds simple.  But, I thought I was doing this enough already.  With this success I decided to continue with the 21 Day Fix healthy lifestyle change (not calling it a diet anymore, since it is my lifestyle change) and the daily exercise programs.  As the rounds of 21 days added up I did find myself eating more treats including creamer in my coffee, an extra yellow (carbohydrate) container, and/or a handful of chocolate candy.  Overall, after doing six months of 21 Day Fix I had lost 12 pounds and 10.5 inches!

Hammer and Chisel

I started this new Beachbody program, Hammer and Chisel, on February 22, 2016.  I started Hammer and Chisel because it’s almost bathing suit weather time.  I wanted to tone more before going out in public in my bathing suit. Hammer (Sagi Kalev) and Chisel (Autumn Calabrese) follows the same meal plan using the colored containers as the 21 Day Fix.  There is a new calculation to determine your container count based on your goal of muscle toning or muscle bulking.  I stayed with the same count I was on for the 21 Day Fix which puts me in the muscle toning category.  The workout programs are 30-45 minutes of power lifting, whole body exercise, cardio, and agility.  There are also two 10 minute ab programs.  The first 60 days work out schedule is made up of days altering between hammer program and chisel programs.  I have to admit, Sagi Kalev annoys me (think Arnold Schwarzenegger as an exercise coach).  His programs tend to last a little bit longer because he talks a lot…but I still enjoy the exercises :-).

I have now completed the first 1/2 of Hammer and Chisel, or about 30 days of the Hammer and Chisel program and have lost 4.5 inches in total!  My weight is staying the same at 138 pounds, but my clothes size is decreasing.  I am now in a size 6!  The biggest change is my muscle tone.  My husband comments almost daily about how strong my arms and legs look.  Recently, one of my patients grabbed onto my arm for support, look surprised, and said “Ooh, she has muscles!”  🙂

My 5 Year Transformation – What’s Next

After I finish the second half of the Hammer and Chisel program, I am going to continue with the Chisel portion.  It seems that once your complete the first 60 days you can either choose the Hammer portion to continue muscle bulking or choose the Chisel portion to tone muscle (there is a workout calendar for each).  I am really happy with the results from the first 30 days and so I am looking forward to the next 30 days.  As I mentioned before I am continuing with my healthy lifestyle eating plan as determined by the 21 Day Fix.

If you have any eating or working out questions, leave them below.  Whether you are an exercise pro, or working on just getting the motivation to get started, I wish you luck on your transformation journey!