Becoming A Positive Role Model

Kaela in her skinny jeans!

I am so proud of the person I am spotlighting today, not just because her fat loss story is an inspiration, but also because she is my sister. Kaela has overcome many struggles in her life and has been faced with many trials. She is a powerful example of someone who can come back stronger after something tragic happens to them. She has not allowed her life circumstances to determine who she would become. She is defined by a quite determination to do what's best for her and her family. She is constantly working towards self improvement, realizing that it is a lifelong pursuit.

Her Background
Genetically speaking, Kaela has all odds against her when it comes to obesity. Kaela is my half sister, which is not something I mention often, but it is relevant to understanding her situation. Her father's side of the family has a long history of obesity and obesity related diseases and also various forms of cancer. Knowing that she came from a family that struggled with obesity, when Kaela was younger, she was afraid she would have the same problem. She knows, even today, that staying healthy and fit will remain an uphill climb for her throughout her life. When she was younger, she didn't want to become overweight, but like many teenagers, didn't have the knowledge or a healthy body image to do so properly.

Kaela struggled with an anorexia as a teenager and young adult.

It was because of this, and other issues she was dealing with at the time, that Kaela became obsessive with her weight and began an unhealthy relationship with food. She started limiting and controlling what she ate. She battled with her unhealthy eating patterns throughout high school and early adulthood. At one point she weighed a sickly 100 lbs., way to small for a healthy 5'9" tall woman. Her boney frame was a far cry from healthy, and when she realized what she was doing to herself, she knew she had to stop. Kaela couldn't go a minute without thinking and obsessing over food. She realized that her eating disorder was controlling her life. And it scared her.

The pendulum swung the other way for Kaela, since she knew that counting calories and portion control would lead to her compulsive eating behavior again. After realizing that her controlling eating behavior was so consuming, she found another way to deal with her problems. She replaced one unhealthy behavior with another and began "emotional eating" for comfort and stress relief. Because of this, her weight steadily climbed over the years that followed.

Her Wake-up Call
It wasn't until after her first child was born, that she realized that she had let herself go for too long. She wanted to be a better example to her son and she wanted to have the health and energy to take care of him. She realized that she would have to watch what she ate, but this time had to be different. She could not slip into her old eating patterns. She also knew that losing weight with a baby to take care of would also be difficult. Any new mom understands how hard it is to work out, let alone get a shower in! But she was ready to make some positive changes; she was tired and frustrated and desperate to feel better.

Kaela and I were pregnant at the same time! She had her baby 6 weeks before I had mine.

Kaela and her son just after he was born.

Kaela and I after my youngest was born.

Kaela had another wake-up call around the same time. Her father was diagnosed with diabetes. She did not want to end up in his position, and the reality of that seemed closer than ever. It was time to overcome her hereditary disposition for obesity and obesity related diseases.

It was around this time that I gave her a copy of Tosca Reno's book "The Eat-Clean Diet" for her to check out. I love it because it most closely follows what I personally teach my clients about proper eating, namely avoiding packaged, processed foods, eating whole grains and lean meats, etc. Not only that, but if you are "eating clean" you won't have to worry about starving yourself, because you will get full off of the high fiber, nutrient packed foods. Not to mention, it is very hard to overeat whole, unprocessed foods.

How She Did it
Eating clean, whole foods, paired with regular exercise (thanks to a jogging stroller and exercise videos) and a determination to be a better example for her son, Kaela began to lose weight steadily and slowly. This was how it was to be done, no more extreme weight loss tactics or starvation methods. She also began at the start of each week planning her meals before hand to ensure that she would be successful and not obsess over what she would eat next. She monitored calories at Sparkpeople.com that kept her accountable for what she was eating without becoming obsessive. I helped her to find a good calorie goal for a sustainable weight loss of 1-2lbs a week. I also made sure that she was eating no less than was prescribed. Sparkpeople's program also has built in alerts to keep you from under or overeating and monitors calorie burning as well.

She also learned that exercise worked out best for her first thing in the morning. She found that if she waited to workout until the evening, that she would find excuses throughout the day or just plain run out of the energy to get her exercise done. Not only that, but she workouts with exercise videos and runs with her son when she can't make it to the gym. She has also recruited her fiance to workout with her which keeps them both motivated.

Instead of making excuses, Kaela learned to set herself up for success. Preplanned meals, exercises that can be done from home, accountability on a community based weight loss website all helped to keep her on track even when progress stalled or her motivation was low. Also, having a personal trainer for a sister to troubleshoot and give advice doesn't hurt either. ;)

Kaela has learned the only way to permanent fat loss is by taking things slowly, consistently and making a complete lifestyle change. And while I would like to take credit for what happened over the course of the last 16 months, I really can't. I was there to guide her and help her make adjustments to her diet and routine, but it was her dedication, hard work and consistency that paid off. And it paid off big time.

Kaela has lost 41 pounds and counting. But that's just a number on the scale. You can't really weigh or put a price on the improvement of the quality of your life. She has much more energy and has completely transformed her lifestyle into an active, healthy lifestyle that her son, and everyone that knows her can be proud of! Way to go Kaela!

If you want to follow Kaela's fat loss journey in her own words, she is keeping a fat loss blog at Losing It and Thriving. Go and show her some love!

Kaela and I ready to run a 5k!