Ann Marie Riley
1. What did life look like before you focused consistently on nutrition and fitness?
I have always been an active person. I’ve been working out at the Warehouse for almost 2 years and I take my dogs for walks twice a day. I felt that I was in pretty good shape but my weight kept increasing a couple of pounds every year. I knew exercise alone wasn’t going to do the job. I knew I needed to change my eating habits. My friend said something that really resonated with me when we were talking about health and fitness. “You can’t outrun your fork!” She was right on! In the past, I had done the 21 Day Fix and had great success, but when it was done I went back to my regular eating habits. The day after Christmas I decided that I was going to do the 21 Day Fix again. This time I focused on finding a variety of recipes that I could rotate through and not get tired of. It worked! I am still using the containers and have found recipes that I actually LOVE. I used to hate veggies and now I love them because I know how to prepare them so they taste delicious. I’m not perfect. I certainly have bad days, like when I ate a half of a sleeve of thin mint Girl Scout cookies. I didn’t beat myself up, I just told myself that tomorrow was a new day. My gut did remind me that it wasn’t a good choice though.
2. What made you decide to make a change?
The main reason I decided to make a change is because my daughter is getting married in August. The vain part of me knew I wanted to look good in the pictures that would be displayed for a lifetime. I didn’t want to groan every time I looked at them. I was also approaching my delivery weight from my second child (he’s 22 now) and I was NOT okay with that. Also, around 5 years ago I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and put on two different medications. Another reason for a change was because I will be turning 50 in May and wanted to take on that birthday being the best version of myself. This girl is not afraid of turning the Big 5-0. Bring it on, I feel awesome!
3. What has changed (attitude, energy, weight, habits, priorities, race times, blood work, confidence, etc.)?
A few things have changed for me. To start with, I’ve lost 17 pounds since the day after Christmas and I’m not stopping. I feel stronger, healthier and in better shape than I’ve been in over 20 years. Last year I was taken off one of my blood pressure medications and I’m hoping to get of the other one soon. I would like to thank all of the Warehouse team and members for all of their help and encouragement. I’ve learned that there is no quick, easy way to health and fitness. I’ve learned to take it one day at a time and that the key to success is consistency, determination and …forgiveness!