During this year’s LYL Hot for the Holidays program we introduced a transformation contest and invited clients to enter.
The winner was selected based on both their physical and mental transformation; with more emphasis placed on the mental transformation as we feel that this has much greater impact on achieving life-long fitness success.
The Winner Received:
Free Photoshoot with Stone Photography (valued at $150)
1 Free Month of LYL Bootcamp (valued at ($150)
100% CASH!!!
1 Month Supply of Protein Powder and Krill Oil Caps ($90)
TOTAL PRIZE VALVE = $490.00!!!!
We announced the winner at our LYL Christmas party on Friday night.
2014 LYL Holiday Hottie Winner!!!
Nicole Serrick
Here is her unedited personal essay.
After reading, please take the time to share a comment below as I know your words will go a long way in helping this amazing women continue her success.
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A New Beginning
Love Yourself Lean for the Holidays Challenge
By Nicole Serrick
It is the final week of my first Love Yourself Lean program and I’m in awe of what one can accomplish in such a short period of six weeks. This is my story, not of the completion of this program, but of the new beginning that I’ve been given.
September 2013:
The weather was starting to cool off and I realized it was time to get my fall jacket back out of the closet. This was a terrifying thought. Will the jacket still fit? I’d known that I had put a few pounds back on since my June wedding in 2012, but the thought of not being able to zip up my favorite North Face jacket hadn’t truly occurred to me. You see, I’d been lying to myself. I kept telling myself I’d lost some weight since the summer and that my discomfort was just ‘fluid build-up’. Little did I know that I was finally about to hit rock bottom.
The reality hit me like an anchor was dropped in the pit of my stomach. The jacket was so tight I looked pregnant! How could this have happened? How had I let myself get this far so fast? All the questions started running around in my head and then I realized that I’d been living in denial about my inactive lifestyle and poor eating habits; Nay, dysfunctional eating habits. I knew I was an ‘emotional eater’ and I knew that my willpower was lacking. I was now forced to take a hard look at myself and start to make some changes.
I had gained over 20lbs in one year and had nearly hit the 200lb mark. I should point out that I am only 5’1″ and although I’m curvy, I had to face that I was actually now obese. I also had to face that the weight gain wasn’t an isolated event. It is a symptom of a larger issue. I had to do something. But what?
I was not putting my health first and my shift-work schedule had become my crutch. “I can’t commit to anything right now because I don’t know what my schedule will be”, I would say to myself. As well, financially, my husband and I had significant resources tied up in debt and even a gym membership seemed a stretch.
That’s when things started to change. I moved into a 9-5 position and my best friend reminded me that my work would pay for fitness related items through our Wellness Benefit. Could it be? Did I finally have an opportunity to get my life back? Yes, I did.
October 2013
It was time to start researching some fitness and health programs. You see, I’m no stranger to fad diets and even the correct way to eat. I’d lost considerable weight the right way and the wrong way several times over. So what was I missing?
I was about to sign up for the ‘Ripped in 42’ Heavy Weights Program when, again, my best friend brought to my attention the ‘Love Yourself Lean Program’ (LYL). She was going to do it as well. Then she told me the cost and let me tell you I’ve spent thousands in other weight loss programs that didn’t offer a quarter of what LYL offered on paper. I agreed to join.
I liked the idea that LYL was all women, that my best friend would be doing it with me (everyone knows you need a buddy to help keep you motivated and accountable), and that it was only 6 weeks; A great amount of time to really commit and find out if you like something.
November 11th 2013
My first class, and guess what? I didn’t make it! “Well hell”, I thought “how can I start now? I’ll feel intimidated; I’ll feel left behind at the next class.” I felt like I had already failed. The disappointment was paralysing. It also didn’t help that I was intimidated by how fit and pretty our coach was! Would I feel comfortable with these ladies in my group?
It is important for me to point out that I also suffer from an autoimmune disease called Crohn’s. I was truly sick the first night and I realized that I was being too hard on myself. I also realized that I was coming at this from the wrong angle; a very negative one. I was negative about my ability, my level of commitment and the list goes on so I stopped it right then and there. I took a good look in the mirror and instead of shying away from the LYL group I did something that saved me. I logged on to Facebook and opened the Hot for the Holidays group.
The positivity from my coach Danielle and the enthusiasm from the rest of the girls were jumping off the page! I decided right then and there to become a part of this community. (I’m not usually much of a joiner) I hadn’t truly been inspired before but already I was feeling the positivity from ladies I hadn’t even met yet and soon realized that my fears were just silly insecurities. And for the record, Danielle is so amazingly funny, non-judgemental and positive; she also made me work my butt off at every class and pushed us to do that little bit extra each time.
Danielle and the rest of the girls in the program have made me realize that women shouldn’t be jealous or insecure because of each other. We need to stick together and when we do, the results are nothing short of amazing! The level of understanding and support from the ladies of this program was something I can honestly say I’d never felt from any other program I’d completed in the past
The Program
My first class was amazing and brutal. Boy was I out of shape! I couldn’t do a proper burpee because my stomach was getting in the way and the rest of the exercises made me tire quickly. Yet, I went home that first night feeling fantastic. I wondered, ‘How could that be?’ and I realized that it was because had something to strive for now; A place to start and something to measure by.
Each class was just as hard and I swear I’ve never sweat so much in my life, but at the same time I started to feel myself getting stronger. The weight loss and inches actually started to become secondary as I began to like the feeling of being healthier and fitter.
Throughout the program I had to miss a couple more classes due to my chronic illness and had to run to the ladies washroom during a couple of workouts, but I never let it stop me. At home, I kept up with my workouts and during each class and bootcamp I made myself give 100%. For that one hour of class time, I pushed myself harder and harder.
I started to wonder if it was really working right around the time we had the surprise stair workout at the Miller Centre. I actually was quite ill that week and couldn’t make the group workout so my friend who was doing the program agreed to do the same workout with me the next night on our own. That was the moment that I knew I had truly changed. We completed the workout and never gave up or wimped out once. That was a feat in itself! The old me would not have even bothered to make up with work out, let alone finish it as it was intended without the being under the accountable eye of our LYL coach. This was progress.
As the weeks went by, I really started to feel the difference in myself. I started to look forward to things that would normally give my anxiety like wearing a dress to my Christmas work party. I also found myself looking towards the next program to continue this process of remaking myself.
Results
Coming to the end of Hot for the Holidays, I find myself reflecting on several things. First, that I have finally found a group of women where I feel accountable, encouraged, and supported. It is a group that you feel proud to belong to and I have actually made new friends.
Second, I have relearned how to eat properly and not let the food addition rule my life. The motivation to be healthy is quite high when you have worked so hard physically that you don’t wish to ruin your efforts with such counterproductive measures.
Third, I have learned to allow myself to enjoy a treat once in a while without beating myself up thus restarting the destructive cycle of becoming so discouraged that you end up eating even more unhealthily. I realize that this is no different than any other addiction and that I will have to actively battle this for the rest of my life.
I have learned that when I do treat myself, I need to turn the negative guilt feelings in a positive action like going to a work out. I cannot let myself go more than two days without a proper workout without feeling quite guilty. If I can maintain this I know I will reach my goal weight.
Finally, I’ve learned that this is just the beginning of my journey and it is one that will never end for me. I will always have to work at staying healthy and I will always need to belong to a group where I am held accountable to other people. I know that my own personality type can slip easily into a sedentary lifestyle and I never want that to happen again.
I will continue to lean on the Love Yourself Lean family and am excited about not only losing weight, but also becoming the healthiest and fittest I’ve ever been in my life.
Thank you for this program. It is intelligently designed, easy to follow and the level of experience and scientific knowledge that is brought to the program is fool proof. To achieve results, all one needs to do is follow it as intended.
Although I’ve lost a total of 7lbs and countless inches, I think I’m most proud of the fact that I significantly improved on my fit test. I went from 8 poor burpees to 16 solid burpees in one minute!
I really want to continue this program and thank you for the opportunity to organize thoughts into this essay for the LYL Challenge. I would be grateful if I was to win the free Fab Figure program but I can guarantee that I will be rejoining LYL regardless.
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Congratulation again Nicole!!! We are so proud of you and cannot wait to see you rock your photoshoot!!!
Courtney
P.S. Our next challenge starts in January – doors to register are now open
Details Here è http://www.courtneyrowsell.com/fabulicious-figure-program/