https://ultimateperformance.com/personal-trainer/los-angeles/I’m almost halfway through my 12-week program and to say things have changed would be a gross understatement.
Just seven weeks ago, I was at the tail end of a horrible stomach virus when I went in to meet with Eddie, my future trainer at Ultimate Performance Los Angeles.
Physically, I was coming off a bad year. I had spent the better part of the last year trying to figure out what was wrong with my stomach.
My digestive tract has been all kinds of messed up and I’ve done every test under the sun, accompanied by some elimination diets.
The result? I’d become unmotivated and incredibly discouraged because I was constantly in pain, and, for lack of a better term, “skinny-fat.”
I knew I had gained more fat than I’ve ever had, and simultaneously lost any muscle I had previously gained.
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The few years prior to this, I’d been working with a personal trainer. I loved the experience because I find gyms completely overwhelming and intimidating. However, due to my stomach issues and without ever setting a real goal, that slowly came to an end.
Back to meeting Eddie at U.P. – I knew he took his job seriously and was committed to making me achieve any goal I had, and was very serious about knowing my commitment to the process. I sat there laughing because yes, I’d love to look like any of those “after” photos, but I could never ever imagine that I could achieve that — my “friends” agreed.
I was committed and serious. Because I was familiar with training, I was excited and had a rough idea of what to expect.
It also seemed too good to be true that not only did working out just three times a week seem too simple, but they actually recommend it!
Here’s the most surprising thing to me: the diet.
I’m someone who eats out almost every single meal. I don’t cook, I don’t have any gift in the kitchen, I would rather order in.
I was sent graphs, pictures and a spreadsheet. I thought that it was too easy, or they hadn’t given me enough information. ‘This is it?’ It was.
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I went through it and it made complete sense to me. For someone like me, who’s not so great in the kitchen, it was perfect.
I used a graph to show what each meal should consist of i.e., protein, carbs, and fat. Then a spreadsheet that had every type of food imaginable in those categories: good fats, bad fats, lean protein, and carbs from a variety of sources, etc.
Armed with that and the app MyFitnessPal (which I’m addicted to using now), the diet aspect of this process has changed my life.
The best thing is that my stomach and digestion are the best they’ve been in over a year. Eat well and feel great, it’s almost too simple!
A few simple things at home really made this work for me. Meal prep and no junk food, then planning ahead and accountability. I cook all my proteins one day and if possible, I will cook my veggies day-of or even at meal times (because two-day old broccoli smells like sewage).
Kevin is barely six weeks into his program and he’s in the best shape of his life.
That’s how easy it is. I’d reference my spreadsheets at the grocery store and make sure I had everything in the categories covered.
I have a gigantic sweet tooth, so I had to get rid of any sugary things in my house. It’s important to know your weaknesses. That’s also not to say that I have not slipped up – it was my 30th birthday during Week 4.
Additionally, planning ahead on MyFitnessPal is actually fun, and it makes things super easy. This way I already know what I’m eating for dinner by breakfast time if I can, so I’m not worried whether or not I’ll be snacking on everything in sight.
The most important thing is my daily log that Eddie checks in on. I enter all my nutritional info after each day and if I’m slow on entering, he makes sure I don’t forget.
The workouts: Let me tell you, they’re not messing around!
Yes, I have previous experience with a trainer and I know how to do a lot of the workouts. Here is the difference, I get pushed further than I thought I could ever go. Also, they took what I know and made the correct adjustments and some might seem tedious, but they are not.
Kevin is learning how to train with purpose and intensity to keep himself in great shape long after his transformation program ends.
The smallest adjustments here and there make the biggest difference to your body. I know because I can see it. I started getting comments from friends and family after week 2.
Obviously, those things are super encouraging. While I might have been struggling on some days with wanting to just eat a plate of brownies and never enter a gym again, knowing that what I was doing was working, and it was working that quickly, made me go back.
I believe I lost almost 4% body fat in the first two weeks. That’s the best encouragement for me. You work hard and you see the numbers improve.
Going into my sixth week, I already have the best body I’ve ever had in my life and I also now have an insanely better grasp of how to properly eat to feed my body the nutrition it actually needs.
I’ve gone on trips, had a birthday party, and Eddie has been insanely flexible and communicative about how to balance life and still accomplish the goals we set out.
I haven’t had to stop my life and do this for 12 weeks, I can do all of it! I have no idea how I will look and feel in another six weeks, but I keep telling everyone if I don’t look like I superhero, I’m going to be pissed, so here’s hoping!
