In 2010 I walked out of my doctor’s office shaken & overwhelmed. At over 300Ibs I was classified as morbidly obese, I had just been told that I was on the verge of heart disease, at risk for diabetes and would soon require medication for high cholesterol. I had a 2 year old daughter at home and if I didn’t make a change I was on a dangerous path that was going to impact my quality of life and almost certainly the amount of time I was going to have with her.

The direction from my doctor was simple, get up, get moving and eat a more health conscious diet. The very simple act of being more active and less sedentary and being more conscious of what I was eating was enough in the beginning to produce results. But I fell victim to societal pressures and the oh so common desire for instant gratification. I tried numerous fad diets, detox programs and unhealthy short cuts to try and speed up the process and get me to some ideal I had created in my mind, some magical time in the future when I would finally be happy. I would wake up every morning disheartened because I hadn’t reached my goal yet. Over the years I was able to lose weight but I was constantly plagued by feelings of inadequacy, I was mentally and emotionally torturing myself because I wasn’t ‘there’ yet.

It wasn’t until I met Grace and Andrew in 2016 that I was able to step outside of this unhealthy mindset and make a breakthrough that would resonate in all aspects of my life. When I became a Bravus client I had already lost 100lbs of excess body fat, and after joining I was able to lose 40 more. With Grace and Andrew’s guidance I was able to build on habits I had already implemented, I was given an abundance of tools and resources and I experienced even more results. The most profound of these for me has always been the mental and emotional growth that came as result of the personalized programming and customized approach they take with each of their clients. I experienced growth in my overall health and wellness that carried through and impacted me outside of the gym. I saw advances in my career, my life at home, my outlook, ability to tackle challenges, deal with stress and overall resiliency. I became grounded in myself, confident in my abilities and open to possibilities. I set goals in areas outside of the gym and accomplished them, one after the other. My mindset had shifted, aspirations ceased to seem unattainable and instead I saw them as possibilities. Most importantly, I had learned to love the journey, I had discovered the importance of treating each day with the same excitement and vigor as if it was ‘the’ day, the end result, the goal. I truly came to appreciate the experiences of every day and to love myself for everything I am on this day while continuing to strive and put work into my goals and where I would ultimately like to be.

I’ve been at this now for 10 years, I’m still learning and I continue to develop and put work into being the best version of myself possible, it truly is a lifelong journey.  I found the most amazing coaches who have become incredible mentors and I discovered my own passion for health and wellness. My physical transformation is eye catching but what that does is provide me with an opportunity and a platform to share the truly remarkable personal growth I have found as a woman, mother, professional, family member, friend, and human being.

Without a doubt I understand the challenges and obstacles those like me have to overcome and endure to make progress and I can tell you with utmost certainty, it can be done, you can do it and it will be something you never regret. 

Being a Lifestyle Coach and working with Grace and Andrew as a member of the Bravus team gives me the chance help others turn the unimaginable into the attainable and live a life they love.