I can't do Kathy's story justice, so I'll just let her tell it to you.
This morning, I woke up, looked in the mirror, and felt good enough to take after pics in the same outfit I put on in August. I will send them after I tell you my story.
My dad was 6'3" and my mom was 5'2 3/4" (the 3/4 was very important to her). She had a petite body frame and wore size 6 1/2 or 7 shoes. As I grew, I always had a small frame and I was thin, but compared to her, I was big and she let me know it. I took ballet and danced in the Boston Ballet's Nutcracker when I was in 5th grade (age 11), but was constantly told how clumsy I was. By 13, my feet were a size 8 1/2 and I had to endure "big foot" comments. I barely made the low end of the weight range for my height, usually falling into the underweight range, but I was still told how big my butt was, constantly. My brothers would make beeping noises when I backed up, as if I were a piece of construction equipment. At the same time, my chest was about as flat as possible (32AA), so I heard the standard comments: "You're a carpenter's dream - flat as a board," or "I've seen bigger lumps than that in oatmeal." You get the picture? I was smart and confident when it came to scholastics, but I developed a lot of insecurities about my body.
Blessed by good genes, and being physically active (dance, softball, etc), I stayed thin throughout my teens and 20's, while listening to folks tell me how lucky I was, and that it would all change when I had kids or when I hit my 30's. Well, I gave birth 2 moths before my 30th birthday and was at my pre-pregnancy weight 5 weeks later.
My dad was 6'3" and my mom was 5'2 3/4" (the 3/4 was very important to her). She had a petite body frame and wore size 6 1/2 or 7 shoes. As I grew, I always had a small frame and I was thin, but compared to her, I was big and she let me know it. I took ballet and danced in the Boston Ballet's Nutcracker when I was in 5th grade (age 11), but was constantly told how clumsy I was. By 13, my feet were a size 8 1/2 and I had to endure "big foot" comments. I barely made the low end of the weight range for my height, usually falling into the underweight range, but I was still told how big my butt was, constantly. My brothers would make beeping noises when I backed up, as if I were a piece of construction equipment. At the same time, my chest was about as flat as possible (32AA), so I heard the standard comments: "You're a carpenter's dream - flat as a board," or "I've seen bigger lumps than that in oatmeal." You get the picture? I was smart and confident when it came to scholastics, but I developed a lot of insecurities about my body.
Blessed by good genes, and being physically active (dance, softball, etc), I stayed thin throughout my teens and 20's, while listening to folks tell me how lucky I was, and that it would all change when I had kids or when I hit my 30's. Well, I gave birth 2 moths before my 30th birthday and was at my pre-pregnancy weight 5 weeks later.
In my thirties, I took up Kenpo karate, working out 3 hours a night, 4 times a week, while being married, working full time, and raising my son. My weight stayed between 116 and 120 (I'm 5'6"). I was incredibly fit and wore mostly size 4. People told me it wouldn't last and that I'd start putting weight on in my 40's. That didn't happen.
I divorced at 34, remarried at 41 (big mistake), and dropped karate to focus on my son's athletics. He played baseball on AAU teams and traveled all over the country and I was his driver/travel buddy. I still worked full time, I took night classes at college, and drove Josh wherever he needed to be. Over a 9 year period, I went from wearing a size 4 to wearing a size 8. My weight went to 130, and I felt so fat that I bought large and extra large shirts, sweaters, and sweatshirts to hide my imperfections. I was still active, always on the go, confident with work and with motherhood, and my body image issues were known only to me.
Then something happened. As I approached my 50th birthday, for God only knows what reason, one day I looked in the mirror and said, you know what? I look damn good. There are women much younger than I that, for a variety of reasons (genetics among them), look much older than I do. For the first time, I allowed myself to think of me as pretty. The month I turned 50, I got a new haircut, and new fashionable glasses. I finalized plans to divorce my husband, and with my son turning 20, I focused on setting the course for my life based on what I wanted and not what anyone else demanded. A year later, I met an incredible man and we dated for 4 years before parting ways as friends. My career has gone well, and I'm writing a murder mystery, and planning to sell my home and move to the Maine coast. All good things. But then there was the weight issue.
All those people who had said I'd gain weight in my 20's, and 30's, and 40's, and 50's were wrong - until after menopause. About 4 years ago, I started to notice that my waistline was thickening and my clothes were getting more snug. I developed muffin top and HATED it. When I went for a physical 3 years ago, I weighed in at 154. I was still in my weight range, but nudging closer toward the top. I started working out with a personal trainer twice a week, and then on my own a couple of other night, but I was exhausted, and couldn't keep up the pace or the expense. I found the Fitbie Flatbelly diet plan and worked to make sure my meals were healthy and didn't exceed 400 calories. That was effective to keep me where I was. When I went for my physical, last year, I was at exactly 154, and my doctor remarked that she'd never had someone stay at exactly the same weight for two consecutive years. That was a good thing, but...
I hated my shape. My waistline was gone. I could dress to look good and camouflage it, but I wasn't happy that I couldn't wear whatever I wanted. I donated some of my favorite dresses because they no longer looked good on me. I tried to tell myself that it was okay - that I still looked damn good for my age, and I should cut myself some slack because I was post-menopausal and these things happen, but I wasn't happy.
Then I saw your clean eating page on Brookline's FB page, and I added some of your recipes and did some of the short workouts that you posted. I still had no interest in Shakeology, until you posted the before and after pics of someone almost my age and I thought, if she can do it, so can I.
I am not technically adept enough with social media to edit the pics to put them side-by-side for comparison, so I will message them to you one at a time. The first 3 will be the before's, which were taken on August 22nd. I took the others this morning, Nov. 20. I've actually looked like this for a couple of weeks, so this was probably a 10 week conversion, using 21 DF for 2 full rounds, and then replacing the 21DF cardio with Country Heat in recent weeks.
My starting weight was 154 (same as it was at the doctor's in January). I now weigh 140, and plan to stay there.
My bust went from 39 to 38.
My natural waist went from 36 1/2 to 32.
My waist across my belly button, as Beachbody wants it measured, went from 40 to 35.
My hips went from 41 to 38 1/2.
My thighs went from 23 to 20.
My biceps went from 11 1/2 to 12.
That's 14 lbs and 13 total inches lost in less than 90 days, and I feel great and have more energy.
I can't thank-you enough for not kicking me to the curb when I wasn't initially interested in trying Shakeology, and for all the encouragement you've given me. And I appreciate all the folks in the challenge groups for being supportive and helping me stay motivated.
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Kathy, you put all the work in. You made this happen; not me. I'm so proud to have you as a friend and a partner in this lifelong journey towards whole body health and wellness.
And to anyone reading this... there is no age limit on fitness. There is no such thing as "too old" to get healthy. Sometimes you just need someone to stand by your side, show you the way, and cheer you on.
That's what I do as a coach.
If you found something here that you can relate to - if you need to start a journey towards better health and fitness, and need a helping hand in getting there - either complete my
questionnaire, find me on
Facebook and message me, or
email me at sandirides@gmail.com.
If you don't put you first, who will?
The workouts went with me where I went - in my living room; at my girlfriend's house; in the back yard if I wanted them to.
It got me thinking about all the childhood crap we carry with us into adulthood. All the disordered eating that was created by the "well-meaning" adults of my childhood. All the comments and looks that stung... that I still recall - from classmates, from parents, from teachers, guidance counselors, and the list goes on - all the judgments, all the critics, all the shit that I still carry with me and still let control me in so many ways. And there, on my TV (or laptop, or cellphone, depending on the day) was Shaun T, telling me to "throw it away". 
