Rachel Rodriguez • Nutrition
Rachel Rodriguez • Nutrition
85+ Pound Weight Loss Part 2 of 2
Rachel's 85+ pound weight loss, a glimpse into her path as a new mom.
Going Beyond Weight Loss: Challenge Accepted
"Dude come on!" I stepped on the scale after months of avoiding it, only to find myself looking at my real weight. I felt so many emotions at once.
I'm not sure if you can relate, but oh man! I was mad, angry, full of self-doubt. I wanted to cover the mirror with a blanket. The only pair of pants that fit were the hand-me-downs from pregnancy that a dear friend gave to me.
By the same token, I was utterly upset with myself. Until I finally looked at my life and saw where I was at. I recognized that I dedicated 15 months to breastfeeding and was able to wean him off when it felt right. I was flat-out proud of myself for reaching this goal!
Free Time - As A Mom?!
Talking to my son was key for me and checking in with myself. I made sure he was far enough along with his eating habits and development. This mama was committed to breastfeeding, and everything about my life revolved around it. Until I was done….. Now what?!
As a matter of fact, I had more free time than I did before. I forgot what that felt like. Commitment is an understatement for any mom who is breastfeeding in general. Add on family responsibilities, pets to care for, and hold down a career. #lifeasamom
Beyond Life
For one thing, I remember it as if it was yesterday. I was overwhelmed with life. There were so many things going on, yet it felt as if time wouldn’t move. I remember walking with my dog Cooper on my normal route and I asked myself what else can I do? What more do I want out of life? How can I lose this weight? I’m so tired of this.
And that’s when it hit me hard! It was as if a ton of bricks was thrown at me. I didn’t know how I was going to do it; I just knew I no longer wanted to feel this way anymore. I no longer wanted to look this way anymore. I wasn’t happy where I was at. I wanted more!
Today was the day when I drew a line in the sand, and I mentally drew it and repeated, “I never want to feel this way again!” That was the day that changed my life forever. I decided to look back no longer at who I used to be because it no longer mattered.
For one thing, I never looked back at what I used to do because today I was in a different stage of my life. I needed to make the changes for me as I am today. Some people will call it a journey, but I don’t. A journey is a destination from point A to point B. I didn’t want this to end. I wanted to shape my life into what I wanted.
I no longer believed in a balance of some sort; I needed an integration. I now had limited time to work out, so I improvised. I could no longer do one-hour long workouts, sometimes I had 20 minutes while my son napped. So, I took 20 minutes and was proud of getting a workout in.
In this case, I focused on my diet, I got my annual blood work completed, and everything checked out fine. I began focusing on what I ate, and how I ate. Slowly the weight started to come off. I have lost over 85+ pounds since that weigh-in at the hospital when my water broke.
Considering that the only diet I'm on is gluten-free and dairy-free because I'm intolerant to them. I have tried almost every fad diet out there, I love trying them, learning something new, and can relate to others when they're going through it.
I Eat. I Love Food.
However, I eat what I want. I eat fast food. I eat ice cream. I love chips! Do I eat them all the time? No! But if my son wants to go get ice cream because he had an amazing day at school, we're going to get ice cream. And I'm going to bond with him enjoying that ice cream as well! This is how I coach my clients too!
Similarly, counting calories was beyond boring. I didn’t want to live the rest of my life scanning barcodes or following a diet plan. What life has a plan? Mine didn’t. Does yours? Why do my meals need to be categorized into this specific fad diets formula that supposedly works? All these numbers, and counting, I was over it! I do recommend it to start out if you're starting weight loss, but not long-term.
My background is nutrition; I went to school for it. Earned my degrees and then became a Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist, a Certified Personal Trainer, and Health Coach. I knew I had the experience; I just needed to shift a few things and make them into my own.
To point out, I wanted to integrate nutrition and fitness into my life to taste what life is really like. I wanted more from life. I want more from food and my workouts than what I was used to doing. And that my friend is how I went beyond weight loss and started to taste life once again!
Smash Your Grape
To sum it up, I wanted more from life and it became a moment where things started to integrate! It laid the foundation for what Shape Your Grape has become. The whole experience of gaining weight and losing it, really solidified what I have been learning over the years.
In addition, my experience leading others has come into play in building my business and how I can serve and help my clients and audience. What I've come up with now, The Grape Method is taking my love-hate relationship with fad diets, my education, this experience, learning how to serve and create an incredible customer experience together.
Nutrition and fitness must be one! The whole point of Shape Your Grape, my purpose behind it is to align personal and professional intent to help. Food and workouts are just one part of who you are. I want to help you expand even further by cultivating curiosity where it can a difference in your health so that you can taste life once again and shape your future!
Going Beyond Weight Loss. Tasting Life Once Again
~Rachel
Have A Grapefull Day!
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