The first time I wrote about bulldog, it was here, a mid-point check in that discussed the steady progress this lovely bride made while working towards her wedding day weight loss goal.
Not only did she look AMAZING at her wedding, she reached and BEAT her weight loss goal. Even better, she learned to make strength training and clean eating part of her lifestyle. This is not the story of the bride who “lets it all go” after the wedding date is over.
Besides the beautiful walk down the aisle, there’s more than that to bulldog. Here are some of my favorite qualities about her that translated into measurable success, and that anyone can employ:
1) Check your attitude at the front door. No matter what kind of day she might have had, she ALWAYS showed up ready to throw down. Battling traffic, bad weather, early morning workouts, and even the occasional cold, she always trained hard, with dedication, discipline, and seriousness. We all have things going on in our “real worlds.” Make training time important.
2) Don’t be afraid to pick up some real weight. Although she started with the light dumbbells, she can now squat, bench press, and deadlift with considerable weight on the barbell, and complete a body weight pullup. I have some male clients that can’t do this. She ended up with beautiful muscle tone and not a “bulky” look.
3) Pack your meals, respect the importance of good nutrition, and learn to cook clean. It was fun watching her have the revelation from thinking she could only have chicken breast to exploring clean eating recipes together, texting one another about fun ways to grill and rub meats and vegetables. Now she knows all about about macros, fish oils, and carb tapering!
4) Make fitness fun. She regularly picks races and encourages her family and friends to join in some friendly competition. No one can say no to this sweet little “tornado” when she asks. Before, she complained about how boring cardio was- and now she completes 10Ks under 1 hr, and has fun doing it. She jokes around about our “torture sessions” in the gym and if she pays the price with some occasional soreness, she deals with it like a real trooper.
At her bridal shower and wedding reception people asked her, how did she do it?
The good old-fashioned way: show up, train hard, do it with consistency and dedication, take scheduled rest periods to recuperate, and eat sensibly for your weight loss goals. There was no starvation, no 2 hour long sweat sessions, no silly pills or gimmicks. And her success is no flash in the pan- this is a journey in fitness. She’s going places, and she’s taking the fitness lifestyle along with her.
People now look to her as a role model, ask her what she did, and look to her for affirmation. They look at her and think: “if she can do this, then I can too.”
And indeed, with role models like her, they can.
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