December 6th, 2012

Ever since I was a young girl I have been involved with fitness in some aspect. I have tried a bit of dance, gymnastics, and was a cheerleader. During my pre-teen & teen years there was also a bit of track & I worked out at a gym. Body image, & my focused awareness on it, began to heighten when I was around thirteen. At that point in my life, & forward, I was constantly aware of what I was eating or wasn’t eating, which was coupled with how much or how little I was exercising. There were times of binging & emotional eating would often fill a void….I was seeking & searching, comparing my insides with everyone else’s outsides. When I was “eating right,” I was devoted to exercising regularly. But when I gave into temptation, I looked at it as a defeat. Often then struggling to “get back on track.” Unbelievably, my weight didn’t drastically fluctuate, but mentally & emotionally this all took it’s toll. Today I know that the emptiness that I experienced was a God shaped hole. And it is truly only HE that can fill me. I tried other things too, like alcohol & other substances. It is only thorough God’s grace that today I know peace. With His aide, & those he has put into my life to help guide me through this journey, I am not solely driven by food. Old behaviors die hard, so there are time when I do still resort to my old way of thinking, but there is definite progress. I have begun to embrace this, trying to not expect perfection. This is a journey, not a destination.

A couple of years ago(2009,) six months after having my son Owen(my third child in three & 1/2 years,) I ran the Army 10 Miler & a moth later the Phila. 1/2 Marathon. So began my the leg of my journey of trying to reach higher heights & perusing new goals. This which helped greatly in overcoming my struggles. This past April I joined a gym again, after five years of working out at home, running outside, or doing Insanity(all in between & during pregnancies etc.,) I began to throw some weights around. I was instantly hooked. I began to see results pretty much immediately. The scale didn’t change, & may have even gone up, but my body began to change. I felt stronger, had more energy & started to see more definition. Through a fiend, I was introduced to my trainer, Krisitin Rodriguez. We met & analyzed where I could go with things. I had the idea of competeing in a figure competition, or even just training like I was going to. Kristin provided healthy diet plans & exercise routines, which aided in my growth & development. I never felt hungry, nor too full. With her encouragement, & my husband’s support, I signed up for a competition. I was even more inspired by taking this step. I faithfully ate six meals per day & trained hard. My body began to change even more! I competed in my first figure competition on Nov. 19th 2011 & placed third in both of the classes in which I competed(Novice & Master’s 35+.) It was an enlightening & invigorating experience, that which has encouraged me to see where I can continue to take things. As I continue to rely on God & listen to the guidance of an excellent trainer, we’ll see what happens from here. I am very excited about the journey & I am so very grateful for how this whole endeavor has helped me to truly overcome this long time battle with food.

Lea

Hello,

I would like to let you know how I am doing on my healthy decision, weight loss program.  I have tried many different diets in the past.  Some of which I had a bit of success, but not many.  When I spoke with Kristin, my discussion was that I needed to change my eating habits.  I don’t just mean for a while to lose some weight then go back to eating the same as before.  Bare in mind, this is a decision I needed to come to grips with.  My attitude needed to be such that what I was entering into was a change of eating that would be the way I would eat from now on.  I knew this before, but never really allowed it to sink in.  Kristin and I spoke briefly and I felt that she offered advice that was in line with my needs.  She met with me and had prepared information for me to let me know how things worked, game me information on items I should be eating as well as taking things that I liked and worked them in to the  program.  Kristin came prepared with  plenty of information and answers to  my questions.  One of the best things that happened is that my wife sat in on the conversation, at no extra cost, and for the first time she allowed this information to sink in as well.  Now not only I but  my wife also are eating better and losing weight.  This is not a lose weight quick program, it is a change in eating correctly and lose as you go.  It is probably best to remember this more than the losing weight, because the weight will come off if the  plan is adhered to.  I met Kristin at the gym so she already knew I was on an exercise program, however, she offered good tips for success in this area also, and is always available to answer any of my questions I have been eating lighter meals and not feeling hungry because she mixes the proper foods to work together to insure it sustains you until your next meal.  She explained the way the body works in that it is best to eat something (good) every 3-4  hours to keep the body burning.  If you let it go to much longer the body will into a slow down mode in order to preserve what it needs to keep it going for a while, in the event of a shutdown.  The body is smart and some of the techniques are to fool the body by switching things up occasionally, which Kristin explains.  She originally asked me what I eat and when I eat on a daily basis.  Her response was that I need to start to eat more.  I wasn’t expecting that, but as explained earlier the body is like a wood stove and need to have a few logs thrown on occasionally in order to keep it burning.  I went into a little detail in order to give you a good picture of what Kristin has done for me.  I have changed my eating about 3 months ago and have dropped about 18lbs. so far, but this time it’s not all about the lowing of weight, which is very important to me, but I know in order to continue to live healthier I need to continue as she suggested.

A side note: I have been having trouble with my triglycerides being too high and last month when I had my blood tested the doctor said it is perfect and attributes it to my change in eating and loss of weight.

Randy S.

May 12, 2009

To all of you hoping to get in shape and adapting a new life style,

Hi, my name is Kimberly Kerr and in July of 2009 I decided I wanted to enter a fitness competition on October 31st 2009. I immediately started working out in my garage and about two weeks later decided I can’t do this myself. So I called in the help of a trusted fitness trainer who I was told would kick my butt. Well just let me tell you she may have a nice smile that says I want to be your friend but, watch out, she has a bank full of grueling exercises, that you never even thought of. The first 2 months of my workout I just worked out in my garage with free weights, a ball, a bench and some elastic bands and let me tell you it can be done. I was amazed at how many exercises I could do with such little equipment.

Kristin would give me a new workout every couple of weeks and she would also check my body-fat and every time it was exciting to see what the diet and exercise did for me. And every time I lost weight, body-fat and inches. She would even call me from time to time to ask how the diet and exercise was going and it made me feel like she really cared and loves what she is doing.

Well it came time for the competition and I was ready, because I new that I had a person by my side who new what she was doing and gave me the tools to succeed. And that’s what I did. I lost 10 pounds in 15 weeks and more than 10% body-fat. Although sometimes I would feel like I couldn’t do it I heard Kristin’s voice in the background “you want 1st don’t you?” And my first thought as I was sweating and out of breath, as though I would pass out, was you crazy woman. I cleaned that up a bit. But anyway, my second thought was YES I want first and it gave me that extra boost I needed to push through that last meter or that last push up, sit up or squat. And at the end of the day I felt good that I completed it because I new that I didn’t want to disappoint Kristin or myself. And I can’t thank her enough for training me to make better decisions in my diet and exercise. It really is a life change. So take your next step and call Kristin today, your going love your new healthy body. I know I do.

This site provides great recipes to make for you and your family.  They are easy and super yummy!

Go to: www.cleaneatingmag.com

Oxygen Magazine has great information on Nutrition and Working Out.  This magazine is not for competitors only.  They provide a wide variety of information that the general population should know and follow.  Check out their website: www.oxygenmag.com

or their magazine.