Carlot has been training at BOOSTClubs Naarden since the summer. And she gave her success story a beautiful title: ‘Stronger than I ever thought.’ She would like to take you through how she could responsibly lose weight while being full of energy, coming from a pregnancy and a difficult personal period.
“It is said that it takes 28 days to learn a new habit. Or to unlearn a habit. With this in mind, I made a decision at the end of May 2023 to lose weight and get fitter. About a month of hardship, then it would get easier. A clear and achievable goal.
At that time, the scale showed 80.6 kilos. A familiar weight, but now without a baby in my belly… And this while I had started 2023 full of good intentions. The pregnancy pounds were finally going to disappear. My Strava history shows that I indeed started January well. But in the same month, disaster strikes. My best friend dies suddenly.
What follows is a period of mourning, sadness, lots of chocolate, and wine. And little energy or exercise. I grow 2 clothing sizes and am about to buy another size bigger, when I dare to step on the scale. It turns out to be a good decision because I am shocked by what I see. The number I see is the motivation and kick in the butt that I need at that moment.
I decide that losing 5 kilos will be my first goal. That seems challenging enough and I have never achieved it before. Despite the help of a dietician, I remained stuck at 75/76 kilos for years. So going back to that ‘eternal’ weight is step 1. Because it didn’t work before, I give myself plenty of time, until the end of the year. If I want results too quickly, disappointment is lurking, I reason.
I am not completely myself yet. But I am very motivated. So I drastically change my diet and make an appointment with BOOST for personal training. I know this will be difficult, so all help is welcome.
The intake with Bart at the beginning of June in Naarden is pleasant and he introduces me to Mandy. Because I am going on vacation, I decide to start personal training only afterwards, in August. Then I can go full steam ahead for 3 months without interruption from that moment on. I do sign up for the group classes on Monday mornings already. In addition, I often cycle on my racing bike during the weekends.
I come up with my own diet, eat less, lots of vegetables, no sugar, and snack on carrots when I’m hungry. And especially not eating extra after exercising. I am strict with myself, especially those first 28 days. I stick to my diet well 90% of the week, there is occasional wine and I also go out to eat twice. I’ll see if this works and if not, Mandy will help me in August. At least I have already started a bit.
The first Monday morning HIIT group class I find incredibly tough and fantastic. The endorphins keep rushing through my body all day long and my workweek has never started so well. It motivates enormously to continue exercising consistently. The first weeks in which I stick to a strict diet, exercise a lot but hardly lose any weight are the hardest. But then suddenly, after week 4, the scale shows results.
And that result continues steadily. It gives me energy, so I stick to my exercise and diet schedule even during my vacation. When I meet Mandy for the first time in August, I have already reached my goal: -5 kilos. It wasn’t easy. But it went easier than I thought once I got through those first weeks and got used to my new habits. I am now much less hungry and no longer have a craving for sugar, making it easier to stick to my diet.
Mandy motivates me to continue and convinces me that I can lose even more weight (I really thought this was it). She also encourages me to get even fitter and stronger. With her help, I can now deadlift more than 100 kilos, bench press 40, and squat with a lot of weight on my back. I am especially surprised by the last one, that my body can do this after 2 difficult childbirths.
After a few months of HIIT and PT, I wonder if Jochem in the group class has reduced the pace and intensity of the training. Of course not, I just have an incredibly good condition by now. I also notice that I haven’t had any vague pains or back pain for months. Colds pass me by for the first time (despite having two children in daycare), and my permanent new diet seems to have cured my irritable bowel syndrome. I feel fit and strong and instead of having to buy pants two sizes bigger, I now have to buy pants two sizes smaller.
Being healthy and fit gives energy. Thanks to the good guidance from BOOST (and Mandy in particular), I have risen from one of the deepest and darkest periods in my life to come out stronger than I ever could have imagined. These are the most important lessons that have brought me to this point:
Rewarding yourself with food because you have exercised so hard is a mistake. This was my biggest lesson. I never lost weight, despite exercising a lot. I didn’t understand it, but it was because of this.
Only when you are 100% motivated to make a change will it succeed. With that, you accept that it will be tough and suffering for the higher goal makes it easier to stick to it.
Small goals work best. The first month is the hardest, but the first result after that month is also the best motivation to keep going.
Sugar makes you hungry. Not snack carrots and they are really tasty.”
Do you want to achieve results like Carlot and lose weight responsibly? We would love to meet you to discuss your goals and do a trial training session right away. You’ll know what you’re getting into 😉
Schedule your trial session here, and who knows, see you soon at one of our clubs!
