Laurie’s Success Story
My weight has yo-yoed since high school, which initially began with bulimia. Back in 1972 when I began this crazy journey, I had never heard of the word “bulimia” nor did I know anyone who was bulimic besides me – I just figured I was the one who invented it. The point is, I’ve been battling my weight issues for more than 40 years.
I’ve been both a client and an employee of Good Bodies/North Point/Alloy for many years. I definitely found the best gym in the world to help me achieve my goals along with the tools and knowledge; but the problem was me, getting in my own way.
In March of this year, I went on a three-day Silent Retreat – no cell phones, TV, talking, etc. After much introspection during this Retreat, I made up my mind about some things I needed to do. Since that Retreat, I have lost 53 pounds, dropped 16.6% body fat, not lost any muscle, dropped my cholesterol 7 points, dropped my LDL 12 points, raised my HDL 11 points, and dropped my triglycerides 24 points. This is probably the first time in my life where I’ve lost weight slowly (averaging 1.5 lbs. per week). In the past, I wanted quick results – instant gratification, so I would pretty much starve myself!
The InBody scale has been a great tool during those times when I have gone a period of time without seeing the number on the scale go down, as the analysis breaks out how much body fat I’ve lost and how much lean muscle mass I’ve gained. I learned it’s not about the number on the scale – actually I’ve always known that but never truly believed it. It’s your skeletal muscle mass, body fat mass, visceral fat level numbers to track and watch change as you adopt healthier habits. I’ve finally changed my Muscle-Fat Analysis bar lengths from the letter C to the letter D. My visceral fat level has come down from a very unhealthy 16 to a 7.
What have I been doing during these past 7.5 months to bring these changes?
- Work out at Alloy three times per week
- Walk an hour every day
- Yoga once a week
- Interval training twice a week
- I’m not on any diet – I eat anything I want – but smaller portions
- I don’t weigh myself everyday like I used to
- I eliminated alcohol (not forever necessarily, but for now)
- Eliminated unhealthy stress
I was able to walk the 30 mile 2-Day Breast Cancer Walk this year with no blisters, no aches or pains thanks to the weight loss and getting back in shape. I can’t believe how good I feel!
