In only 12 weeks, a busy mum of 2, Kylie Ralston has lost 8cms off her hips, 7 cms off her thigh, 5cms off her bust and waist and lost 5kgs.  She has also greatly improved her fitness.  

Kylie's Success Story

I'm married and have 2 children - both boys, age 9 and 3 (nearly 4). I gained a lot of weight after the birth of my first child and the weight stayed on.  I've lost a bit here and there over the years but only about 3kgs. I lost a fair bit after the birth of my second child but it slowly crept back on and I've been overweight for the last 3 years.

I didn't feel good about myself.  I felt really fat, unattractive, had no energy, was angry at myself and felt I was a big disappointment for not having lost the weight. A real (bad) attitude hanging on my shoulders.

I knew I had to change. In the past, I had tried dieting and walking. I found I kept losing interest after a few days. I always felt like I couldn't do it anyway so why bother. And looking back now I have to laugh at my walking - it was a stroll for 30 mins. I mean who am I kidding - that that would do anything.

One thing I found during the Rush 12 Week Challenge was how extremely important good nutrition was for losing weight.  When you eat the right foods, you feel so much better and from feeling better,  you want to go out and exercise.

I also reduced the size of my meals. I would eat the same size plate as my husband. I laugh because my 9 year old eats more than me at dinner time now!! I focussed on not eating because of boredom. So I made a list of simple pleasures that I could try so that I have something else to do when I am feeling bored. I've especially found logic puzzles keep my mind occupied on other things in the past 2 weeks, but there are other strategies on the list if I get tired of doing these.

We have a cupboard in the house that contains "treats". I have stuck a sign on this cupboard that reads "Look how far you've come. Not long to go now. Keep up the great work". On the pantry I've hung a sign that reads "Don't let yourself down" and on the fridge I have a sign that reads "It's not the one piece of chocolate that hurts - it's all those one pieces added together that hurts". I followed one of the transformation assigments and organised my pantry.

Another quote I hung on my fridge says "What you get by achieving your goals is nothing compared to what you become by achieving your goals". This is so true. The feelings I have inside of me that tell me wow I actually did something good is so much more important than feeling let down by not completely achieving it all. Because I know that if I do this again I will be at my ideal weight.

I followed the advice of the Weekly Workout Plan.  I would go for a 4km brisk walk every day except Satuday with my exercise buddy, Sasha the border collie. On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, I would do a 30 min interval walk/run program. I would also do the Busy Mums Muffin Top Workout and Full Body Toning Video two times a week.  Another Busy Mums assigment was to set up an exercise area in my home so I would remember to exercise.  Here is a picture of it.

Thank you to the busy mums for the videos of the workouts. These have been fantastic. Being time poor is no longer an excuse as the videos aim for maximum results with minimum time.

Kylie's exercise buddy, Sasha

And my dog has loved me for it. All those mornings when I couldn't be bothered there she was crying to go for our walk/run. So I'd drag myself out of bed for her but end up feeling so great afterwards.

I was so thankful that I was able to particpate in the Rush 12 Week Challenge.  The key to my success would have to be the emails and articles that I received from BMFC. Without these,  I would have lacked the motivation to do the other things (exercise, eat right) that were also required to be successful. I found the emails with our tasks very motivating. I would leave the email selected in my inbox so everytime I walked past the computer it was there to remind me. Their articles were great with loads of info for me to keep me motivated and believing that I can do this.

This challenge has been great in helping me achieve weight loss and also measurement loss. I am happy with my results. I could have done better but life sometimes gets in the way ie illness, hubby being away and not being able to do everything I've wanted to in that week. But instead of giving up at those times (I would have in the past) receiving those weekly emails has given me the strength to carry on and not beat myself up at missing a few exercise sessions. I can't thank you enough for the support and help that I've received.

What have I learnt about myself in the last 12 weeks? Well I have learnt that I CAN lose weight. This is a real big thing for me. So many times in the past I have set goals and can't see any results and nothing happens. I exercise and work really hard and nothing seems to work. Well this time it's been different. What's different about this time. I think certainly my attitude and belief. But I think this has come from the emails and assignments that have been set. Each one has been set with an ulterior motive (a good one) in mind and it's worked. And whilst I haven't reached the goal to lose the amount of weight I wanted to I can really see results. My measurements have been great.

I've also learnt that in the past if I slip up I give up. This time I haven't been too hard on myself and I've gotten back into it and continued on from there.

This challenge is just the beginning for me. I will continue with my eating and exercise program. And spend some time each week exploring the BMFC site and reading the articles that are there.

My husband is very proud of me. It's funny because I know I've lost weight but sometimes it's hard to see yourself. But my friends down the road, Deb and Rob keep telling me how skinny I look. And I saw some friends yesterday that I haven't seen for about 6mths and they commented that I looked good. I've also recently started my Family Day Care business and it's certainly helping with the lifting of young children.

My target is to be fit and healthy and slim. And to be the best Mum I can be. To live a happy and healthy life.

I have photo's of us as a family. In these photo's I'm at the size I want to be. I have these photo's in my bedroom, my desk and a copy in my wallet. When I look at these pictures I have a carefree feeling and I can clearly remember how healthy I felt and how much energy I had then.

I can't believe 3 months is over all ready. I'm excited about what I've achieved. It's the first time in my life that I've done this. I've been at my weight for so long and nothing has shifted it so I'm a bit excited. And I'm starting this all over again tomorrow because I'm sure I can repeat this and lose the rest of my weight. (I can't wait for the next challenge that's why I'm starting tomorrow). 

Thank you busy mums for this challenge. It's been great. I can't wait for the next one.

Share this Article

del.icio.us  Digg  Reddit  Facebook  StumbleUpon  GoogleBookmark  Technorati  Furl  Twitter