Megan has been a client since September 2017 when her gym near Regina hired us to coach the nutrition portion of their Fall Challenge. She achieved so much in the first 3 months, but I suggested she stay after the challenge as I knew she had more to achieve AND more to learn that she could take with her for the rest of her life.
She recently sent her notice to finish Mission Nutrition and she sent a wonderful email filled with all she has taken away from our program. I believe there is something to this email that can help others so I asked her if she didn’t mind sharing and she was happy to share what she learned through her journey :).
Often we see clients end the journey a little too soon before the Mission is complete. Understandably though, as we as people in today’s society tend to have this idea that losing weight is fast and once we get there everything will be rainbows and we can just carry on. However, sometimes it’s not quite that easy and there is more work to do AFTER the weight is lost – we need to reverse the diet for one by increasing food intake (which is scary for most and hard to do on your own), clients will go through hard times (life happens), go through great times, events, holiday season, etc, etc and learn how to manage all these things without undoing the hard work put in while on the program. The goal with our program is not just to have people lose weight and end at that point – there are 1000 programs out there that do that. Our program is to teach how to manage all the ups and downs that may come and teach that lack motivation isn’t what is getting in their way.
Our mission is written at the end of every email: “to educate people on how to create and keep the health and body they desire while living the life they want to live.” Losing weight is tough, but it’s not the hard part. Keeping it off is harder and continuing on with habits that got you the success long after you are no longer chasing an exciting, sexy goal is very important.
When she gave her notice I was not at all surprised as she had been practicing doing it on her own while still checking in the odd time to make sure she was still on track. She did it in a very smart way and stayed accountable by staying on the program but practicing all her habits on her own and seeing how well she could do on her own. She had proven this really was something that she had built for real in herself and no longer needed my assistance – which IS our end goal! Some clients truly enjoy the check-in process and stay for the check-ins with our coaches and that is totally fine as well! Megan went through 2 cut phases, 1 gain phase, and maintenance in between with me so she is well aware of what she needs for all types of weight management for herself whether she wants to lose, gain, or stay the same. Just under two years may seem like a long time, but what she has truly learned about herself and the habits she has now for the rest of her life are invaluable.
You may have seen this lovely ladies success story before, but I think it’s cool to see that after all this time she is in such a comfortable place within herself, her workouts, and her nutrition. Please read on 🙂
Megan wanted to share what she had learned before sending her final check-in:
I have done some reflecting on my goals and where I am at with nutrition and the gym. In working my way through my injury I think I have made some really great emotional/mental realizations.
I have reflected back to when I started with you and my goals. My goal was honestly to lift heavy weights and look like a CF games athlete, lean and strong!!
And while those goals still exist in a way MUCH lower on the list, I have gained what I know are so much more valuable insights and goals in my life by going through this journey with you and at the gym. So as you can probably tell by now over the last month or so I have decided I am going to give my notice to cancel my membership with Mission Nutrition but I didn’t want to just quit with telling you how you have changed my life for the better and why I have decided to quit.
I started just under two years ago with you and within the first 6 months I achieved huge goals, I was so much leaner and stronger! But I never really thought twice about WHAT I was putting into my body or how I was treating my body outside of the gym, just meeting those macro numbers. Since then I have gained so many valuable insights throughout this process with the help of you! I want to list some of the biggest changes/habits I have now have because of this process that I will continue to follow throughout my life!
1. Eating QUALITY! It has been a while now that I have made it a weekly goal to eat over 800g of veggies/fruit per day at least during the weekdays. Eating quality foods has made an incredible difference in the way I feel not only when I workout but also waking up in the morning and throughout the day. I have switched to eating local/organic quality meats as well. Your body NEEDS micronutrients but you never really think about hitting those numbers.
2. Hydration! I made it a goal to drink 3 cups of water every morning before I even touch coffee. I always drink it because I want coffee haha, but I always have another bottle in the afternoon and then another at night. It is pretty rare that I go without having at least 8 cups of a day and the days I do drink less, I really notice it! Hydrating my body has done wonders for my workouts, my skin, getting over colds faster (seriously), etc.!
3. Dealing with an injury, one of the bigger lessons I think I learned lately is the importance of nutrition especially when your NOT working out. I basically didn’t workout for 1.5 months and have worked out way less over the past 3 months due to my injury but my overall body doesn’t feel like it’s changed that much. I could have thrown in the towel and said F it, I am eating pizza and ice cream for 2 months because I can’t workout. But I didn’t and I think that made a huge difference in me not only maintaining a steady weight but also emotionally making it through the month of zero workouts.
4. It’s ok to not be perfect. So I know I am bad at cheating at weekends but I have learned something that has really helped me and that its ok to not be perfect. If I can eat properly 90% of the time I will still achieve my physical goals, maintain sanity and still enjoy life! This helps with not overdoing it because I know ill eat pizza again in my life, I am not giving anything up so I don’t need to eat 12 pieces of pizza in one sitting like it’s my last meal. I can enjoy 2 or 3, get back on track and maybe in a month or two I’ll have it again.
I am getting a lot better at tracking even on the days I know I go off track. And some days I am just so hungry I want an extra few carbs here and there so I have them :p.
5. And I think the most important thing I learned is to love who I am. Before I started Mission Nutrition I honestly felt unhappy and uncomfortable in my body because of how it looked. I was never concerned about how I felt or its “health-state”. Now I can honestly say I am happy with my body and I want to give it what it needs not just to look a certain way but for longevity and overall health :). I want to feed it food to make me healthy, I am ok skipping the gym if I feel my body needs to rest or recover, some days I just want to do some yoga and relax and some days I need a good CF workout kick in pants! It’s not about being the best at the gym it’s about feeling the best I can overall. When I started I believed hitting a goal weight would make me happy, it didn’t. Getting to the point I am now by finding a balance with everything I have going on in my life (nutrition and gym being only two of those things) HAS made me happy!
Thank you SO MUCH for helping me get to where I am today, I know I would not be here without you. I plan to continue to track macros and adjust on my own here and there based on how I feel and my training. But overall I feel like I am in a really good place physically and mentally.
And again I think I am just at a point in my life where I am ok to track on my own (and I promise I WILL continue to track! It has become a habit :)). And most importantly I have found a really good balance and I don’t feel the need to change a lot.
I just want you to know what an amazing impact you have had on me and how I treat/feel about my body, they are all lessons I will keep with me forever!!
Again thank you for building my confidence and helping me develop a much healthier perspective on myself, my body and what is really important!!
