When I met Marilise, she had been taking part in my cycle classes at a local gym. Before we introduced ourselves I was drawn to her huge smile, had noticed her gorgeous shoulders and her love of fitness was evident. When we spoke her genuine curiosity about life was a value we shared and I couldn't wait to work with her. In our initial chat, she said that "this is the year I am getting into the best shape of my life", in mind, body and business .. and that my friends is exactly what she did!
Here is her story :
I lost almost half my body fat. I am now in the same range as professional athletes.
So why did I decide to do it?
Last year I turned 40, and even though I was fit – I did the 100 miles Prudential Ride London cycling tour the day after I turned 40 – I felt fat. I was also mentally and physically exhausted – on the verge of burnout. So after 20 years, I left my corporate job and took a few months out. That’s when the soul searching started. I had to reconnect with my why, and I was at my lowest point when I decided to start my own business, as a high performance and leadership coach and trainer. In doing so, and through my own training, I had a stark realisation that I had to ‘practice what I preach’ and the logical next step was to focus on my own mental and physical health. I then set myself a goal for 2018: To get into the best shape of my life – for life.
With Colette's help, my incredible coach, I achieved my goal. Now, I am not going to lie and say it was easy. I had to work hard at it – every single day, some days the motivation is not there. But I’ve learned to be kind to myself. Not to beat myself up about it when I don’t have a perfect day.
The two BS beliefs I had about food and exercise, which completely transformed my life. So simple, yet so profound:
#1 Cardio is king.
I love cycling and I am in my happy place on my bike. It’s still one of my favourite things to do – it clears my mind and I often tell people it’s my ‘Prozac’. So when I turned 40 last year, I couldn’t understand why I was so heavy, despite being cycling fit. Well, it turned out that cardio isn’t king. Most of my workouts now include power walks, HiiT (high intensity interval training), strength and resistance training.
#2 Fat is the enemy.
Growing up I used to eat everything low fat or fat free. I was raised to believe that fat is the enemy. Now I eat everything full fat. And a lot of it. And I am loving it – avocados, nuts, Greek yogurt, olive oil etc. All those things I didn’t use to eat because I thought they were bad for me.
Not only am I in the best shape I’ve ever been, my business is doing great, and I am happy. It’s only after I turned 40 and realised that I was unhappy at work, that I decided to prioritise ‘me’ on my list of priorities. And I can honestly say that it’s been the best decision ever.