The Photo That Changed My Life

Everyone has THE PHOTO. You know what I mean, right? The photo that changes it all. The photo that makes you stop dead in your tracks and say…this is not me. This is not the person I want to be. No more. It is time to make a change. Well…I want to share with you my version of THE PHOTO and my story.

This photo was taken in July 2006 – 5 months after my third child was born.

You may be scratching your head wondering what the issue is as I am sure you see what anyone would see…A HAPPY FAMILY: A new mom with her handsome husband, two cute boys and her darling 5 month old baby girl. I mean we are on VACATION in HAWAII for goodness sake, how can life not be PERFECT, right??

But that’s just it, at the time I couldn’t see that because I was not happy with the person I was at the time. When I see this photo now though, I get so many thoughts in my head. Yet I can remember exactly how I felt at the time. I am thankful now for that FEELING. Why?

Because that was a pivotal moment in my life.

I remember it well. I was DIGUSTED with myself and KNEW something had to CHANGE.

I wanted to be that HAPPY MOM I knew I should be – although something was holding me back. I was just plain tired and out of shape. When I looked at myself in this photo I HURT inside.

In fact, there were more than 180 photos from that Hawaii trip and I think I was in maybe 10 of them. OK, despite me looking at this photo and not being able to get over the fact that I still looked pregnant… What was worse than anything I saw, was HOW I FELT as a new mom of 3 children ages 5 and under.

I was tired and unmotivated, borderline depressed (some may call it the baby blues). I wanted to nap when my baby napped – and while I knew I needed sleep, it was MORE THAN JUST THAT. I had little motivation anymore and I knew that wasn’t quite right. My baby was heavy and I couldn’t carry her without getting winded. I was surrounded by younger more fit moms and I longed to look like them and have some of THEIR energy.

That DAY that I was looking over the photos and THE PHOTO was a defining moment in my life. That moment was a new beginning for me, I took CONTROL and I MADE A CHANGE.

What did I do?

I had ordered Power 90 a few months prior, but like many people who buy fitness programs, I hadn’t stuck with it. Maybe I did it once or twice a week and THOUGHT IT was working… Well, it WOULD work, IF I WORKED… So over the next 120 days I worked… and I worked HARD. And let me tell you IT WASN’T EASY.

I had to CHOOSE to workout instead of nap.

I had to skip eating the graham crackers I wanted and make better choices.

I added veggies and whole grains to my diet and you know what? I started seeing changes.

Admittedly, I struggled with the exercises in the beginning. I couldn’t do yoga poses or even lift my knees up at the same time that I was moving my arms. But everyday… I saw progress. I went from 1 pushup on my knees to more. Then I did a few on my toes. I was progressing…I was transforming…I was changing and the results started happening. In 4 months’ time I lost 21 lbs and 4 pant sizes. I had MORE ENERGY and I was FEELING AMAZING!

As a result of the 30 minute daily exercise I was doing and the better fuel (aka food) I was giving my body I had MORE CONFIDENCE and I WAS A HAPPY MOMMY! And the biggest bonus, I loved the person I saw in the MIRROR – I felt comfortable in my own skin vs. looking at the younger fitter moms wishing I could be more like them…because ultimately, I became the person I strived to be.

So, now THIS PHOTO has new meaning to me. Instead of feeling disgusted, I am THANKFUL. I have so much gratitude to so many. I thank my friend Monica for sharing Power 90 with me, Tony Horton for packaging this 30 minute workout, Carl Daikeler for marketing it via Beachbody and my family for supporting me along the way.

It sure is hard to believe I started on this journey almost 9 years ago…but it is exactly that… a JOURNEY. I now have new fitness goals to reach and mountains to climb. I am a constant work in progress, but I like that…and I now use all of my pictures as a visual map to document the journey I continue to embark upon. I can’t wait to see where my next adventure takes me.