Friend of Body Team Focus |
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Amanda |
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| Then | Now |
| My Recent Torch Spirit Challenge | 12 Weeks Later |
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| About Me: I started this twelve week journey feeling and looking my worst. I am 166cm (5’4”) tall and I weighed 68kg (150lbs). I started out doubting my abilities and doubting the process. I was almost positive that at the end of the 12 weeks I would see the same person in the mirror. However, the magic of the Body for Life program is not the physical transformations, it is the mental transformations. At the end of this challenge, I didn’t just feel better and look better, but I also gained confidence in my experience and knowledge. This confidence helped me see myself as a potential leader and role model in the fitness arena. After having baby number 2 and basically not exercising for at least two years I expected to be in less than stellar shape, however I was still shocked by my before photos. While I have completed many ‘Body for Life’ challenges in the past, I had not had the added challenge of being a mother of two, so I had lingering doubts about whether I could see the challenge through. I also had doubts about whether I would ever have the physique I desired. Fuelling these doubts was my lack of confidence in my own abilities and knowledge. Despite having several years experience with ‘Body for Life’ and fitness in general, I have never seen myself as a ‘fountain of knowledge’. The fact that I hadn’t lifted a weight or completed any sort of cardio for over two years made me even less confident of my knowledge. Part of my morning process was to log onto the BFLSpirit forum, to update my journal with details of my work out. I would also check the journals of other forum members. Initially I only checked and commented on my team members’ journals and the journals of a few members I have known for a while. However, as the weeks passed, my confidence grew; I started offering assistance to new members too. I was offering words of encouragement, answering questions and concerns. Without realising it, I had evolved into an experienced, motivational member of the BFLSpirit community. My physical transformation was equally as slow. I found that my body didn’t respond to exercise and good nutrition like it used to. By the eight week mark I still could not see the physical changes I desired. I was fitter, faster and stronger than I had been at the beginning of the challenge. In fact I was faster than ever – which was proven when I smashed a previous 5km run personal record by 30 seconds. However I didn’t celebrate these achievements at the time – because my focus was on my apparent lack physical changes. At about week 10 I was finally rewarded with some visual changes. At this point I also started to recognise that these changes were just a byproduct of the real changes I was making. I proudly crossed the finish line of this challenge not only physically different, but mentally different also. Not only am I physically stronger, I am a more confident person. Throughout this challenge, I called upon my own experience and knowledge to help other members of the BFLSpirit website. I have learned that it is important to praise yourself and others for the small achievements, because it is though the small achievements that we reach our goals. |
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