Four Weeks Later
Four Weeks Later
I am a 26 year old mother of two children, a one year old, and a toddler of two and a half. My husband and I moved to the UK in October 2010 when my youngest baby was just a few weeks old and I joined a gym as soon as I could. I did lots of training, from spinning, dancing, swimming to boxing and weight training. After a year I had lost some weight but it felt like mission impossible to get back into the sort of shape I expected.
I was really struggling to lose my post-baby tummy even when surviving on an occassional salad leaf and protein shakes! Trying dozens of diet plans and workout programmes but to no avail. I started to wonder - am I creating unrealistic pressures to lose the baby weight and get back into those skinny jeans?
I first met Darryl at one of his
Primal Bootcamp sessions. I told him what my current activity level was - which was very high. To be honest I thought his class would be quite easy. Big mistake. I soon realised my fitness levels were really quite poor. I couldn't do a single squat or press-up correctly, and I would also often give up at the earliest opportunity. After my first training session my whole body was sore for days and I couldn't understand why after spending one year training in a gym three times a week I still wasn't fit enough to do the most basic movements that were demonstrated by Darryl.
After a few group classes I decided to try one-to-one sessions with Darryl - would his approach to training and nutrition really make a difference? He started with a health and fitness assessment which involved a series of tests and let me know exactly what my starting point was. He explained that payment alone wasn't enough, but a commitment to pursue health not just during our sessions but for the rest of the week. It would have to be on his terms and something jointly agreed. I was a little sceptical but I had tried everything else. I decided I had nothing to lose.
I booked a series of sessions and then we formulated a plan setting realistic goals. I really enjoy and look forward to each session. It is so different to anything I have done before. I am always learning and achieving new things. For example I could never imagine I could do balance walking on a park bench or learning to vault a fence (I'm sure it wasn't a big deal when I was a child). He has such a unique approach to getting fit, with animal crawls and play-based moves that I'd never experienced in my gym. Hard work but fun and engaging at the same time.
MOTIVATION
What Darryl made me understand is that I can push myself a bit further, that and I didn't need to train for hours and hours until I felt sick or survive on low-fat, low-calorie diets to achieve my goals.
I learnt not to give up at the first obstacle and that nothing bad happens if I push myself to the limit:
"pain is temporary it may last a minute or an hour a day or a year but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If i quit however it lasts forever"
I wrote this in big letters and stuck it to the fridge doors. Darryl sent this to me as a motivational email.
Darryl is a great inspiration and teacher, we talk a lot about health, nutrition as well as being prepared for life's challenges. I am on my way to recovery. Stopping my obsessions about weighing myself ten times a day. Aiming to maintain a healthy body composition rather than a certain amount of kilos.
FOUR WEEKS LATER:
After 4 weeks I was hesitant to take any measurements or photos, in fact I postponed the 4 weekly assessment because I was sure there would be no change. I am pleased to say I was happy to trust Darryl's judgement.
The photo above shows the before and after from Day 1 to Day 28. In terms of the results after 4 weeks. I've lost 8 cm (3.2 inches) from the waist, 7cm (2.8 inches) from the love handles, 6 cm (2.5 inches) off the hips and I've lost 3% in body fat. My resting heart rate went down from 67bpm to 54bpm, what progress after a year of no significant changes.
It wasn't easy to agree to post my photo. But this has given me the encouragement I need to continue, I am happy with my progress so far, but still have work to do. I feel positive about making these lifestyle changes. Thanks for your help so far Darryl!
Samanta
Thursday, November 24, 2011 at 23:18 | by 
