Tag: weight loss before and after

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Find loads of high protein and lean muscle building recipes in my E Cookbooks perfect for meal prep and beyond. Build muscle and lose fat for your long term health one delicious bite at a time.

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Never Quit: The Only Way To Guarantee No Results Is To Give Up

August 9, 2024August 9, 2024 melaniewalessustainableliving

Now 8 years into my journey I get a lot of comments such as “Well, it’s easier for you because_____. It’s harder for me because_____. “

I wouldn’t call the efforts required over 4 years to lose 145lbs and another 4 years of maintaining and leveling up my body composition.… easy. But that’s beside the point. No one wins in the competition of who’s had it the hardest.

We all have our own unique set of circumstances and challenges that we navigate while prioritizing our heath and well being.

The great thing about living a healthy life with healthy habits and routines is that it works for everyone.

Young and old.

Underweight and overweight.

Weak and injured.

Through all stages of life and through all manner of struggles, we all benefit from taking care of ourselves with a healthy lifestyle.

It is a huge step to let go of the narrative of old self limiting beliefs and to start putting our energy in the right places.

I promise that each of our own challenges and life histories do not need to be a permanent crutch. We need to let go of comparison and allow all the things we have uniquely survived remind us of how awesome and capable and resilient we are.

When new purpose outweighs old excuses results have no choice but to follow.

The only way to guarantee no results is to give up.

Never Quit!

If you have thought about having me as your coach to support you along your own fitness journey check out the Online Fitness Coaching page on my website for more info and how to inquire about my online fitness coaching service. Receive customized activity and nutrition plans, monthly virtual calls, and weekly email check in’s.

See my client testimonials.

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Find Your Turning Point Now

April 23, 2024April 23, 2024 melaniewalessustainableliving

Earlier in my life I attempted to lose weight more times than I can count.

During an attempt I took up swimming. I had recently hurt my knee after a fall down my back garden steps. Swimming was a good fit because it allowed for movement while not aggravating my knee injury.

I started feeling better. I started feeling proud of myself.

Then I shared with someone how I’d taken up swimming and how I was focusing on losing weight again. This individual promptly told me that swimming was not going to help me lose weight. Great that it was helping me feel better, but not to get my hopes up for weight loss.

This conversation was devastating. I lost my drive to go swimming. I allowed it to set me back on my fitness journey for many years to follow.

Recently I’ve been sharing simple ways you can start to incorporate healthier habits into your daily routine. This is because getting started with something and then to BUILD off of that initial momentum is crucial.

We all have to start somewhere. We also need to believe ALL our efforts are worth it. Because they are.

Could our efforts be optimized and maximized? Of course! That’s what I do as a coach for my clients. I help my clients optimize their time and efforts so they can achieve amazing and long term results.

But, building a base of healthy habits through small daily actions and believing it’s worth it to do so creates both momentum and confidence to remain consistent.

Consistency is key for progress.

My turning point came after having my daughter. With an infant to care for I had to find ways to incorporate my health goals into my busy days. I had to get creative to make it work. I also started to believe in my efforts again no matter how small they were.

From 2016-2017, in less than ideal conditions, I managed to lose 40 lbs during my first year postpartum.

The momentum I created then still carries me through today. Sure, by deepening my education and experience I have learned how to optimize and maximize my efforts to take my results and that of my clients to the next level.

But never underestimate the power of ALL of your efforts towards a healthier version of you. Don’t be discouraged. Keep going. You’ve got this!

See my client testimonials.

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The Best Strategies For Navigating Trigger Foods

March 6, 2024March 12, 2024 melaniewalessustainableliving

You may see my transformation below and think I have iron clad will power. This is not the case. I can and do succumb to tasty treats and have indulged in excess.

If this is the case, then how did I transform and how do I still maintain my results? There are a multitude of reasons, but one of them was learning how to deal with trigger foods.

What are trigger foods?

They are usually ultra processed and extra tasty foods that hold the magic combo of sugar, fat and salt. They are low in protein and low in fiber and you know the saying, “bet you can’t eat just one?”

Next are the 5 best strategies for successfully navigating trigger foods.

Don’t Buy/ Don’t Make: You can’t indulge in something that is not available.
Out Of Sight/ Hide It: Constantly being reminded that a tasty treat is available makes it so much harder to exert willpower. Hide them from yourself.
Swap it: Make an alternative (but similar) treat Instead that is higher in protein, fiber and nutrients. My E Cookbooks are full of swaps.
Pair It: Enjoy a smaller portion along with an otherwise high volume, high fiber, high protein and nourishing meal.
Not First: Fill up on fruits, veg, and protein to start your meal. Eating foods first that are designed to be as tasty as possible will make other foods incredibly lack luster by comparison. In addition, if you eat these types of foods while hungry, it will easily lead to overconsumption. If you are going to include these foods, save them for last.

Use these strategies to help you reach your fitness goals and to help you maintain your hard earned results long term.

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Life After A Diet: 3 tips to make the transition easier.

August 31, 2023August 31, 2023 melaniewalessustainableliving

Progress does not end because a diet has ended.

Fat loss has only been one facet and not the entire story of my transformation.

Eating, building muscle, and getting stronger has been my primary focus and where I have devoted most of my time and focus.

Not on dieting.

Here are 3 tips for those of you nervous about getting out of a deficit for a reverse diet, maintenance phase, or build.

1. Focus on how you feel each day. Not on how much you weigh. Before you weigh yourself, write down on a scale of 1-10 how your energy is that day. 10 being fantastic. This alternate scale number is an amazing indicator of your progress.

2. Create a performance goal for yourself and create a plan to work towards it. Use your added calories to help you get better at something you find enjoyable.

3. Remember that when it comes down to it, in life, our goals are to feel good, and to feel good, longterm. We want to be able to live a life we love and be there for the people who need us. I also plan to be a jacked and badass grandma one day. That will only happen if I keep working to make it happen NOW.

~~~

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Client Spotlight

The 2 Basic Foundations of Sustainable Weight Loss: Consistency And Time

July 18, 2023July 18, 2023 melaniewalessustainableliving

🌟Client Spotlight🌟

1 year later and this amazing client never ceases to amaze me.

She show’s the power of staying consistent over time. She consistently reaches her step goal and fits in her workouts. She consistently meets her protein and calorie targets. All to maximize her ability to build muscle, get stronger and reduce body fat.

This is not to say that in the last year there have not been difficult days or even weeks.

As I remind all my clients, we do not live in a bubble when we decide to make fitness a priority. As a full time working parent and wife she still juggles life’s demands.
But through all of it, she still makes fitness a priority.

And because she has, she is making incredible progress that is both maintainable and sustainable.

As I reminded her recently in our weekly email check in. She can do this. Because she has already done it.

Time and consistency will keep giving her the results.

Because the time will pass anyway. Why not make the most of it.

Let’s make the most of your time!

Melanie was my last ditch attempt at losing weight before I decided I would just give up. I had spent the previous 9 years since I had my daughter being told by doctors that I needed to lose weight, but them providing me with no or very unhelpful guidance in how to do so. This culminated with a doctor telling me the only way I would lose weight was if I went on a 1,000 calorie a day diet of protein shakes and veggies. Previous doctors had told me I would lose weight if I got a handle on my stress. One told me to start taking the stairs instead of the elevator after I told her that I worked out in the gym 6 days a week. I’ve worked out religiously for 20 years, but I never understood nutrition which led to a vicious pattern of restricting food and then binging because I was so hungry. Every time I tried something new to lose weight, I would end up gaining some more. Then came COVID. I was stuck in the house with a 7 year old trying to do virtual school and also work full time. My husband had to continue to work outside the home. My anxiety was through the roof and I ate all my feelings. I gained 30 pounds in a short period of time.

My goal has never been to lose a massive amount of weight. I just wanted to feel like myself again. Fit into my clothes again. So far, I’ve lost 10% of my body weight and the clothes that were packed away fit again. Best of all, I feel so strong and healthy and I feel like I’m setting a good example for my daughter.

Melanie’s greatest quality as a coach is her kindness. She is always supportive and never judgmental. Whenever I have a bad week and feel like a failure, she sends me motivating messages that make me feel like I’m normal and I can get right back to the plan. She takes all aspects of my life into consideration. Working full time, being a mom, hormone changes, sleep changes, holidays, and traveling are all acknowledged and considered when coming up with a healthy living plan. She doesn’t pretend like I live in a bubble and am unaffected by outside forces.

She doesn’t hold me to a plan of foods that I don’t like. I can eat whatever I want as long as it fits within my macros. Her workouts are very easy to follow and make the best use of my time. I actually spend less time in the gym now than I did before I started working with her. Working smarter, not harder. I’m still a work in progress, but I’m gaining my confidence back.

If you’re on the fence about hiring a trainer, I highly advise that you take the leap. Don’t give up on yourself. I promise that you will not be disappointed working with Melanie.
A.W.

Find additional Client Testimonials.

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Simple and practical weight loss advice. The things I did and still do to lose weight and keep it off.

March 2, 2022March 2, 2022 melaniewalessustainableliving

Over the course of losing and keeping off over 145lbs I have learned quite a bit about what it takes to make weight loss not only possible, but also sustainable.

Here are a few practical things I did to lose weight and what I still do to maintain my results.

1. Meet a daily step goal to ensure regular activity.

2. Resistance train with a focus on progressive overload to build muscle and strength.

3. Keep track of my total calories and prioritize protein and fruits or veggies with each meal to align my nutrition with my goals while still including some fun foods in moderation.

4. Do the above consistently.

5. Believe it is possible and that my efforts are worth it!

There is nothing quick or special about what I have done to lose weight or keep it off. At the end of the day, it comes down to diet and exercise, but our mindset is also so important. The process is slow. Some weeks we can feel like no progress is happening at all. Sometimes we need to make an adjustment to our plan while resisting the temptation to do something drastic. Knowing how and when to focus on fat loss, diet breaks, a reverse diet, or gaining muscle can seem overwhelming and confusing. Coaching ourselves while remaining objective to make the best choices for our unique circumstances and long term goals is easier said than done. Which is why I love helping others on their journeys!

If you have thought about having me as your coach to support you along your own fitness journey check out my website for more info and how to inquire about my online fitness coaching service. Receive customized activity and nutrition plans, monthly virtual calls, and weekly email check in’s.

Follow me on Instagram for more tips, free recipes, and full days of eating.

http://www.instagram.com/melaniewales.sustainableliving

Keep Leveling Up. Weight Loss is only the beginning.

January 25, 2022January 25, 2022 melaniewalessustainableliving

If you follow me on IG you already know my latest news, but here sharing in my blog too. If you are new to me, over the course of my transformation I have lost 145lbs since having my daughter in 2016. I did this all naturally through diet and exercise and many rounds of cutting reversing, and maintaining. I went from the photo on the left to the one in the middle.

Then 10 weeks ago I took a big step and had a full tummy tuck to remove the extra skin I had on my lower abdomen as well as a breast lift and augmentation. (The weight loss plus 2 years and 9 months of breast feeding left me with nothing😂 and yes you can lose weight while breast feeding! I lost over 100lbs and my milk supply was fine!) The photo on the right was taken yesterday. I am ahead of the curve on my recovery and back at it with regular training and nutrition aligned with my fitness goals.

Something I am a big advocate about is reminding people that this process takes a long time and loads of patience, but it is worth the wait. It’s imperative that we create new and lasting habits along the way so we can not only keep our results, but improve them year after year. This is so much better than a quick fix that dissolves even faster due to unsustainable approaches and unrealistic expectations. (If I didn’t have good habits already in place that I maintained post op, things could look very differently right now.)

Over on IG I share loads about my journey via weekly updates in my stories and regularly post macro friendly recipes, full days of eating, and training videos.

I hope you enjoy and find my content helpful🤗.

Whatever your goals, you’ve got this! The little things we do each day add up big time if we don’t quit.👊

Find out more about my online coaching services and e cookbook on my website.

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www.melaniewales.sustainableliving.com

My fitness journey, nearly 5 years in. 145lbs down and stronger than ever! Sustainable, long term weight loss is possible.

February 13, 2021 melaniewalessustainableliving

Don’t underestimate what you can do with time. Most people give up too quickly. They expect results to be faster. This has taken nearly 5 years. This did not happen from doing endless hours of cardio and from eating as little as possible and only eating “clean” foods. I tried that approach many times before and any results I did get never lasted long. I often felt hopeless. That something was wrong with me. I thought I was meant to be a heavier person and that due to genetics, hormones, etc… this was just how life was going to be. But then something unexpected happened. I got pregnant and gained even more weight rapidly! My pregnancy ended up being high risk. I had to deliver my precious baby early since I developed preeclampsia. Just home from the hospital with my 4 lb baby to care for, I knew once and for all I was finished with all this yo-yo diet nonsense. I was going to lose the weight, I was going to get strong, I was going to do it sustainably, and I was going to love myself every step of the way. I chose to focus less on the big picture and instead focused on the small things I could do each day.

During nap time I dove deep into learning about science based approaches for sustainable fat loss. I applied what I was learning and upped my protein intake, started resistance training to build muscle, and used a small calorie deficit to elicit fat-loss. I have only ever lost around 3/4 a pound on average a week during while dieting. Yes, that’s right. I’ve utilized diet breaks, calorie cycling, reverse dieting, and other tactics to make it easier to adhere to rigors of being in a calorie deficit. I’ve taken long periods at maintenance to ensure that the fat-loss results I achieved were results I could maintain on an enjoyable amount of food and a realistic amount of activity.

Nearly 5 years in and you better believe that I am so glad I never gave up even when there were days and weeks that I felt so far away from my goals.

If you are curious to have me as your 1 on 1 coach so I can help you along your own sustainable fitness journey find more details about my affordable fitness coaching service through my website. Link below. I will never guarantee “rapid results”. But I can help you learn about sustainable techniques for your body and mindset so you can have lasting results. You will still have to do the work, but I will use my knowledge and experience to help remove the guesswork out of the process so you can achieve your goals with a custom program based on you, your starting point, goals and preferences.💚