I always used to be a sporty girl growing up. I played basketball, volleyball, walked everywhere, did tons of pushups and crunches every night before bed. Then I graduated high school and started university..the usual story. I gained the dreaded freshman 15 and more, much more. I met my sweetheart in my first year of university (now my husband), became lazy and complacent and gained 70 - yes, SEVENTY- lbs. I can't even count how many times I started diets, joined gyms and bought fitness magazines thinking "Ok, this is it. No more stretch marks." In 2006 we moved to another province so my hubby could go to chef school. That didn't help. By Christmas of the same year, I had reached my max weight of 214lbs on my 5'3" frame. I hated my body, was exhausted ALL the time, and just gave up on ever being in shape again. I hated myself for being so weak and careless. My self esteem was at an all time low.

After a dreadful day of shopping the following spring, I stood loathing myself in my mirror. Something happened in my brain at that moment, an "ah-ha" moment, if you will. I started eating healthier and quickly dropped 10lbs and then plateaued. My mother-in-law at that time had lost 80 lbs working with a personal trainer and running on a treadmill. What an inspiration! I thought, if she can run, I surely can! I started walk-running that day outdoors and very slowly progressed to jogging 30 minutes, three days a week. Even though I added exercise into my life, it wasn't enough. I stayed in my 10-15 lbs weight loss plateau and almost gave up on exercise out of frustration. I thought this exercise thing was supposed to work?! I figured I was just meant to be fat forever.

Then my sister gave me the Get RIPPED! DVD for my birthday. I went out and bought weights the next day and started doing RIPPED! 2-3 days a week along with running. I couldn't believe how my body started changing! I started gaining muscle, my running improved a hundred fold, and weight started falling off again. I started feeling STRONG! I added Get RIPPED! 1000 into my routine which really boosted my weight loss and cardio fitness. Now I have joined a gym again, a 10km run is normal, and I am 44 lbs lighter... and counting all thanks to Jari Love's and her Get RIPPED! Workouts!