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| Me and my son Kyndel |
For most of my adult life I have been an athlete. I started off at an early age taking Karate and dance classes. By the time I got to high-school I decided I would try out for the track team. I did very well at track and it wasn’t until my sophomore year that I realized I needed to change my body a bit to help me win the shorter races. With the help of my coach I lost ten pounds and my speed tremendously improved. Although this was my first attempt at losing weight, it wasn’t something I was unfamiliar with, as close family members had struggled with weight for as long as I could remember. I competed in track & field through high-school and into college. After graduating college I settled into the routine of adulthood . . . work, work, and more work, with very little “me”. By 2006 I had topped the scales at a 176lbs. To some of you reading this, 176 may not seem like much, but coming from a smaller athletic physique that my sport allowed me to maintain fairly easily, up to this weight, was quite a jolt for me.
I had been working as a Fashion Designer sitting at a desk all day everyday sketching and creating. Loving my job, but hating what I looked like. I was unhappy and when I left work I had no energy so I ate and went to bed. Late in 2006 I picked up my first copy of Oxygen Magazine, a fitness magazine I now live by and strive to grace the pages of one day. It was the Special Edition, “Fat Loss” with Jennifer Nicole Lee on the cover. The picture of her before and after was amazing! I couldn’t believe this woman who had given birth to two children was able to look so incredible! I thought to myself, “what is your problem? you haven’t even had kids.” That’s when I got motivated. I joined a gym and a boot camp class the next day. After about a month at the gym and in boot camp a trainer who had become a friend started to talk to me about competing in fitness competitions. I was still looking in the mirror at all of the “problem” areas, though I had lost about 10lbs of fat and gained some additional muscle. He encouraged me to learn more about the competitions and see if I’d like to give it a try. I had already been gobbling up every oxygen magazine I could get my hands on, and if they had published 5 a month, I would have purchased all 5 monthly as well. I had seen some of the competitors in oxygen magazine and learned that Jennifer Nicole Lee, my initial inspiration, actually won Ms. Bikini Universe. After gaining that knowledge, in my mind, it was a done deal. I was ready to get serious and give it a go. I was also dating someone at the time who trained figure and fitness models and when I told him I wanted to compete his response was, “You’ll never be able to do it.” I think this is definitely part of my personality and I know now that he knew this about me, but if you tell me “I can’t” do something, then I’m more likely going to do it, and do it better than anyone expected.
Over the following 4 months I ate a very strict competition diet that consisted mostly of chicken, green beans, and brown rice. I followed a very strict 2-a day workout regimen and before I knew it I had gotten down to my smallest adult size and weight. I was a size 4 and competed at 142lbs. I didn’t place well in my first competition, something like 23rd out of 130, which to some that’s decent, but for me it wasn’t what I had set my sights on. I wanted to win! I continued to compete the rest of that year before deciding to take a break. Eventually, I quit my day job and got certified through the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and began my own personal training business. Over the course of 2 years I had changed my body, changed my career, and met my husband.
When my husband and I met, I was a personal trainer in great shape but not planning on competing. I was ready to start a family, so we got married quickly and soon thereafter I was pregnant. Although I continued to workout while I was pregnant and I ate healthy, I still managed to go from 155lbs to 223lbs by delivery day.
I was an absolute marshmallow. My family and I laugh now because I’m just not a good pregnant person. I was miserable and uncomfortable the entire time. I was swollen and puffy for the latter half of the pregnancy. Even my OBG made a comment about my water retention near the end. The last thing I could think about was trying to lose this weight once he was here because my husband and I had been going through major difficulties in our marriage that required Christian counseling. I simply was not in a good place. Nevertheless, my little bundle of joy arrived on March 10th, 2010.
After Kyndel was born the condition of my marriage continued to decline. I had gotten a desk job Fashion designing again when I was pregnant because my husbands business was failing. During that time he became emotionally and verbally abusive and progressively got worse, which ultimately led to my divorce. Because of my stress level of being a new mom, working full-time and supporting my family, and dealing with an abusive spouse, I was unable to lose much weight. I had gotten back down to 176 by the time my son was 6 months old but I was still very “fluffy” and not liking anything about my body. As a matter of fact, I had sort of resolved to the fact that I would NEVER look like a fitness model again. I would tell myself, “well, you’ll never have a flat tummy because you had a baby.” There is a whole list of negative self talk I could post, but I won’t because it’s not who I am today.
In late April of 2012 I ran into my old friend, Jerome Givens (owner of Jerome’s Gym in Richardson, Texas). This is how God works. My divorce was in the court system and still pending and I had praying diligently for help with my body and my overall health and fitness. Then God brought Jerome to my path unexpectedly. We talked briefly and he told to come work out at his gym. That was the beginning of my 2nd journey to fitness model physique as I call it.
I signed up for Jerome’s boot camp and one on one training twice a day 6 days a week. I would work out on my lunch hour and then go to boot camp in the evenings and was even able to incorporate my 2 year old into the boot camp workouts so that I wasn’t losing time with him completely. I listened to everything Jerome told me to do, and did it, even if I thought I couldn’t. The times I didn’t believe in myself, he believed in me, and told me so. So I would stop and say a prayer for God to help me to get through the workout that he was leading Jerome to help me with. Every time I prayed I could do anything Jerome asked me to do at least once.
For 17 weeks, with the help of God and my amazing trainer Jerome, I worked out harder than I have ever worked out in my life. I sweat more than I ever have, I cried, and I laughed and then I made it to the competition stage once again. On 8/17/2012 I competed in the bikini division at the Europa Supershow. As I stood backstage I began to realize my physique wasn’t quite soft enough for the division, but I was having a blast anyway. I rocked the stage proudly and thanked my trainer and God for giving me the strength to transform my body again.
Although I didn’t place, I tell people I still won. I won my self-confidence back. I won amazing friendships with new women at the gym. I won a body I’m proud of. I won healing for my soul and I won a deeper relationship with God through this process.
If I could do it again, I wouldn’t change a thing. I’m setting a new goal to compete in a crossfit competition and continue to compete in the bodybuilding arena as well. My ultimate goal is to inspire others to achieve their fitness goals with the help of Christ. If you believe, and you ask for his help, you can achieve anything that’s in his will. It is in his will to heal your soul. My soul desperately needed healing and this external transformation changed so much more internally than anyone could ever imagine
I had been working as a Fashion Designer sitting at a desk all day everyday sketching and creating. Loving my job, but hating what I looked like. I was unhappy and when I left work I had no energy so I ate and went to bed. Late in 2006 I picked up my first copy of Oxygen Magazine, a fitness magazine I now live by and strive to grace the pages of one day. It was the Special Edition, “Fat Loss” with Jennifer Nicole Lee on the cover. The picture of her before and after was amazing! I couldn’t believe this woman who had given birth to two children was able to look so incredible! I thought to myself, “what is your problem? you haven’t even had kids.” That’s when I got motivated. I joined a gym and a boot camp class the next day. After about a month at the gym and in boot camp a trainer who had become a friend started to talk to me about competing in fitness competitions. I was still looking in the mirror at all of the “problem” areas, though I had lost about 10lbs of fat and gained some additional muscle. He encouraged me to learn more about the competitions and see if I’d like to give it a try. I had already been gobbling up every oxygen magazine I could get my hands on, and if they had published 5 a month, I would have purchased all 5 monthly as well. I had seen some of the competitors in oxygen magazine and learned that Jennifer Nicole Lee, my initial inspiration, actually won Ms. Bikini Universe. After gaining that knowledge, in my mind, it was a done deal. I was ready to get serious and give it a go. I was also dating someone at the time who trained figure and fitness models and when I told him I wanted to compete his response was, “You’ll never be able to do it.” I think this is definitely part of my personality and I know now that he knew this about me, but if you tell me “I can’t” do something, then I’m more likely going to do it, and do it better than anyone expected.
Over the following 4 months I ate a very strict competition diet that consisted mostly of chicken, green beans, and brown rice. I followed a very strict 2-a day workout regimen and before I knew it I had gotten down to my smallest adult size and weight. I was a size 4 and competed at 142lbs. I didn’t place well in my first competition, something like 23rd out of 130, which to some that’s decent, but for me it wasn’t what I had set my sights on. I wanted to win! I continued to compete the rest of that year before deciding to take a break. Eventually, I quit my day job and got certified through the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and began my own personal training business. Over the course of 2 years I had changed my body, changed my career, and met my husband.
When my husband and I met, I was a personal trainer in great shape but not planning on competing. I was ready to start a family, so we got married quickly and soon thereafter I was pregnant. Although I continued to workout while I was pregnant and I ate healthy, I still managed to go from 155lbs to 223lbs by delivery day.
I was an absolute marshmallow. My family and I laugh now because I’m just not a good pregnant person. I was miserable and uncomfortable the entire time. I was swollen and puffy for the latter half of the pregnancy. Even my OBG made a comment about my water retention near the end. The last thing I could think about was trying to lose this weight once he was here because my husband and I had been going through major difficulties in our marriage that required Christian counseling. I simply was not in a good place. Nevertheless, my little bundle of joy arrived on March 10th, 2010.
After Kyndel was born the condition of my marriage continued to decline. I had gotten a desk job Fashion designing again when I was pregnant because my husbands business was failing. During that time he became emotionally and verbally abusive and progressively got worse, which ultimately led to my divorce. Because of my stress level of being a new mom, working full-time and supporting my family, and dealing with an abusive spouse, I was unable to lose much weight. I had gotten back down to 176 by the time my son was 6 months old but I was still very “fluffy” and not liking anything about my body. As a matter of fact, I had sort of resolved to the fact that I would NEVER look like a fitness model again. I would tell myself, “well, you’ll never have a flat tummy because you had a baby.” There is a whole list of negative self talk I could post, but I won’t because it’s not who I am today.
In late April of 2012 I ran into my old friend, Jerome Givens (owner of Jerome’s Gym in Richardson, Texas). This is how God works. My divorce was in the court system and still pending and I had praying diligently for help with my body and my overall health and fitness. Then God brought Jerome to my path unexpectedly. We talked briefly and he told to come work out at his gym. That was the beginning of my 2nd journey to fitness model physique as I call it.
I signed up for Jerome’s boot camp and one on one training twice a day 6 days a week. I would work out on my lunch hour and then go to boot camp in the evenings and was even able to incorporate my 2 year old into the boot camp workouts so that I wasn’t losing time with him completely. I listened to everything Jerome told me to do, and did it, even if I thought I couldn’t. The times I didn’t believe in myself, he believed in me, and told me so. So I would stop and say a prayer for God to help me to get through the workout that he was leading Jerome to help me with. Every time I prayed I could do anything Jerome asked me to do at least once.
For 17 weeks, with the help of God and my amazing trainer Jerome, I worked out harder than I have ever worked out in my life. I sweat more than I ever have, I cried, and I laughed and then I made it to the competition stage once again. On 8/17/2012 I competed in the bikini division at the Europa Supershow. As I stood backstage I began to realize my physique wasn’t quite soft enough for the division, but I was having a blast anyway. I rocked the stage proudly and thanked my trainer and God for giving me the strength to transform my body again.Although I didn’t place, I tell people I still won. I won my self-confidence back. I won amazing friendships with new women at the gym. I won a body I’m proud of. I won healing for my soul and I won a deeper relationship with God through this process.
If I could do it again, I wouldn’t change a thing. I’m setting a new goal to compete in a crossfit competition and continue to compete in the bodybuilding arena as well. My ultimate goal is to inspire others to achieve their fitness goals with the help of Christ. If you believe, and you ask for his help, you can achieve anything that’s in his will. It is in his will to heal your soul. My soul desperately needed healing and this external transformation changed so much more internally than anyone could ever imagine
