Hello, beautiful people!
My name is Andresa Moscat, and I am here to share a little bit about my experience in search of a healthier lifestyle and my attempts to maintain consistency in exercise.
But first, let me introduce myself. I’m 27, married, and have two daughters. I work with my husband, and after many, many attempts, today I can say that I exercise regularly and LOVE it.
But the journey to get here hasn’t been easy! I’ve been going to the gym since I was 15 on and off. But the part of the story I want to share is that of my first pregnancy. When I got pregnant I was already overweight and gained 55lbs, GASP!
The period right after my first daughter was born was very complicated, full of adaptations. But I was determined to lose those horrible 55lbs. I started to eat as healthy as possible and with a lot of effort/sleep deprivation, I returned to the gym.
It took 6 months, and yes! I had managed to lose all 55lbs plus an extra 4. My self-esteem was returning when suddenly BOOM, I was pregnant again.
If you thought 55lbs was a lot, get ready for 70lbs this time. Yes, you read that right, 70lbs!
“Ok, ok, I shed the weight once, I can do it again,” I thought.
Not so fast, young lady. This time it was different. A lot of things happened, including a problem with my knees and lower back, so I had to stop everything and begin physical therapy, and then we moved.
I moved far away from my family and friends. It was hard, I had two young daughters, was nursing, and didn’t have much support from my family. Anxiety was merciless, and I turned to food for comfort. To make matters worse, I suffered a panic attack. But God put incredible people in my path who made my life lighter. I gave myself time, rested, slept, and didn’t demand so much from myself. After that pause, I realized that I was ready to return to my physical activities.
At the end of 2018, I decided to make a deal with myself. It was time to take weight loss seriously since it bothered me so much, and I kept complaining and making excuses and finding culprits for my own lack of willpower.
I thought, “I’m going to do everything right for a whole year, and if I don’t lose weight I’ll eat pizza every night”. Crazy right?! Well…
On January 1, 2019, I was running my 100 meters, because that’s what I could do. Today, I can run 200 meters, hahaha!
*Editor’s note: A year later, Andresa has lost almost 90lbs, participated in a 5km run, and stands firm with new goals.
I want to leave with you some tips that helped me and that can help you if you are starting your pursuit for a healthier lifestyle and are feeling discouraged.
1 – DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF WITH ANYONE
Understand that each person lives a different reality and has difficulties and faces different peculiarities. That person may be able to run 10km, but they don’t have asthma or have been training for who knows how long. UNDERSTAND this and police yourself.
The only person you should compare yourself with is you.
2- DON’T BE EMBARRASSED
Let me tell you a secret if you are someone who is embarrassed to go to the gym because of the ripped people, they are so busy looking at themselves in the mirror that they will not even notice if your weights are light or if you aren’t as lean as they are.
3- BE PERSISTENT
Herein lies the problem. I want you to pay close attention. NOTHING that isn’t natural for you today will come easy! It will only become easy if you have the persistence to make it become natural. Does that make sense?
Think with me, if you never go to the gym, it is very naive to think that from one day to the next you will be very excited and eager to train. It won’t be like that! It’s not part of your routine. It will take effort. Be ready for this!
Keep in mind that the beginning is always more difficult, and if you are persistent there will come a day that working out will become natural, and what’s more, you’ll actually end up liking it.
GO even without wanting to!
4- SET GOALS
Now get a pen and paper, I want everyone writing, lol.
Divide your goals into 3 types;
-LONG-TERM GOAL
This is the largest achievement that you have in mind. For example: “I want to participate in a half marathon”. Now that you have defined your long-term goal, move on to your short-term goal.
-SHORT-TERM GOAL
Now the thought is: “To be able to participate in the half marathon, I need to be running 10km in 5 months”.
– IMMEDIATE GOAL
For the immediate goal, you need to think about today, right now: “To run 10km in 5 months, I need to run twice a week, starting tomorrow.” Your immediate goal needs to be updated frequently as there will come a time when you will be able to run more than 2 times a week, or you will be able to increase the kilometers per run, etc.
5- PLAN AHEAD
You NEED to plan for your new routine. Maybe you will need to wake up earlier and consequently, you will need to sleep earlier. You can’t watch Anne of Green Gables until late at night. But you can watch on the gym’s treadmill with your earphones on, lol #fitnesstip.
6- GET INFORMED
Today we have everything at our fingertips, literally. All the information in the world is there on your cellphone. I will give you three Instagram accounts to follow. They don’t know, but they changed my life.
The first is from nutritionist @laranesteruk. This woman is out of the ordinary. Read everything on her IG. You will start looking at the food on your plate with different eyes! The other account is @drnetodourado. On his IG you will be able to understand a little more about supplementation. And the last one is @gutogalamba. There is a lot of cool stuff about physical exercise there. Get all the information you can from people that motivate you or accredited professionals who can properly inform you and help you change your mindset.
And finally, read this sentence below and think about it: “It’s useless to do the same things and expect different results”.
Make a commitment to you to seek your best version every day. And don’t forget: “An imperfect workout completed is better than a perfect workout uncompleted.”
I hope these tips help you. We are in this together!
