I don’t often do this but I wanted to share a journey that I have been on since the start of this year.

I’m not often on social media, but about a year ago, I was in here and I stumbled upon a random post from Jennifer. She was participating in a program and what she said really spoke to me.

I have spent my life being dubbed as ‘small’. But the devil is in the details. I felt sluggish. I go red in the cheeks easily and it started being a very constant thing. I had a condition called diastasis recti from having kids, and every night, my tummy looked like I was 6 months pregnant, and I didn’t know if it was from DR or bloat. My clothes didn't fit properly anymore.

I tried so many things. I tried to ‘eat healthier’. I got up at 5AM to workout everyday. Bye to pasta. I ran. I did yoga. Bye to bread. I changed to pilates. I tried Paleo. I’d sneak in poutine when I visited home and then reprimand myself for ‘cheating’.

I was frustrated that my body was not cooperating with me.

I blamed my age. Pregnancy. My inability to stick to healthy things long enough. The chips I munched on. I’m not working out enough. I’m not doing the right workout.

Then I met Gil Mesina.

Gil was different. He asked me why I wanted to start this program. He didn’t judge my motivations. I began to feel comfortable being honest with my whys vs just saying the “right thing”. Honesty bred true motivation to succeed.

I joined Mighty Transformation in January, kinda skeptically, but eager to learn. Gil shared a lot of information and his own day to day journey with us. Gil’s approach was different – it wasn’t a diet program. He taught me to take what I eat and change how I eat. It has been really sustainable for me. I didn’t have to give up all the foods that I grew up with and only eat lettuce (note – I did try that once and I couldn’t stay awake past 6pm). He gave me perspective on a better way to look at my relationship with food, which has been the key to keeping this going.

The devil is in the details. Of course, I have charts but in summary, I lost 4" off my waist, 3" off my thighs, and after struggling for years (my son is 9, so 9 years! Gulp!), I hit my weight goal in 6 months.

Slowly, I realized that I didn’t have that brain fog I used to get by evening.

My clothes fit better. At 6PM, I could still wear them, eat, AND breathe in them. Breathing is kind of important.

I can enjoy a vacation and enjoy food. Summer is particularly hard for me to stay on track with any food restriction; between endlessly being on a baseball field or traveling, I snack, I eat out more – and I’ve ended the summer as if I had been religiously on a ‘diet program’.

I can eat fries and gravy without guilt. That is very important to me 🤣.

I learned what a "non scale victory" was and how important they are to recognize and celebrate.

I found a little virtual support group of enthusiastic, intelligent, and humorous women, each on their own journey. No drama. No competition. Just all trying to learn and grow, help each other through the nitty gritty, and celebrate each other’s successes.

Thank you to Gil Mesina - you were right all along and I am so thankful for all you do.