I am a synchronized skater which keeps me active 2-4 days a week and I thought I had decent eating habits but I have never been able to lose weight. I have gained 10-12 lbs over the last decade despite wishing for the opposite. I am very ambitious, competitive, and hard-working; I have a M.Sc., a good job and a happy life. With my drive and work ethic why was I allowing myself to slowly become a fat person? I kept telling myself things like “I workout, the weight will come off,” “It's ok to have an extra dessert, I’ll work it off,” and “If I buy my pants tight they’ll fit perfectly when I loose some weight,” and so on. Well you know what? I never did lose any weight and I had to retire many pairs of pants as they became too tight to wear. In the last year I accepted the fact that they would never fit again and gave them all to goodwill. It was pretty disheartening because I was giving up and enabling myself to grow into my new, larger clothes collection.

Last fall I decided to take a year off of skating so I needed to find an alternative form of exercise and fast. I knew that if I didn’t find a way to take control of my slow and steady weight gain I would become obese in a few years and that was definitely not one of my life goals! I started attending RIPPED! classes two days per week but I didn’t change my eating habits. I was not losing any weight, much to my dismay, however I was becoming stronger and I had some bicep definition for the first time ever!

I decided it was time to use the focus and determination I apply to the other areas of my life to reach my fitness goals. When I learned about the Get RIPPED! Weight Loss Challenge I knew this was the perfect program for me and it was time to seriously commit myself to changing my body. The RIPPED! team provided guidance and was very motivating and encouraging. There were so many great role models in the program it was easy to believe I could do it too. Completing RIPPED! workouts 3-4 times per week, cardio 3-4 times per week and watching what I ate was simple enough and it paid off! Within the first month I lost 8 lbs, fit into clothes I haven’t worn in a couple of years and was becoming stronger. Cardio workouts were feeling easier, my endurance was increased and my resting heart rate had decreased. I increased my weight load and stayed committed to the diet and workout regime. As a few more pounds dropped from my body my beautiful lean muscles started to show! I was encouraged by the results and kept working hard, although it really wasn’t work at all. The RIPPED! classes were fun and exhilarating; I always left with a smile on my face and a feeling of accomplishment.

After 12 weeks I lost 13 lbs and my body fat composition decreased from 21.5% to 15.7%. Now all of my pants are too big! I am thrilled with the results, I am more confident about my appearance and I feel fantastic knowing I will enter my 30’s strong and healthy. It is empowering to know I will be able to stay fit and lean as I age by continuing with this straightforward approach to total fitness. It really is as simple as lifting weights, doing some cardio and watching what you eat (and now I really know what it means to eat a healthy diet). I have learned that increasing my lean muscle mass is the key to revving up my metabolism and maintaining the shape I want. As an extra bonus my skating skills have improved because my body is stronger. Inspired by my own success I am not done yet and I will continue with the RIPPED! workouts because they are fun, efficient, and I love the results. Maybe someday I will even be able to instruct the class!