I am a 26 year old mother of two children, a one year old, and a toddler of two and a half.  My husband and I moved to the UK in October 2010 when my youngest baby was just a few weeks old and I joined a gym as soon as I could. I did lots of training, from spinning, dancing, swimming to boxing and weight training.  After a year I had lost some weight but it felt like mission impossible to get back into the sort of shape I expected.  

I was really struggling to lose my post-baby tummy even when surviving on an occassional salad leaf and protein shakes!  Trying dozens of diet plans and workout programmes but to no avail.  I started to wonder - am I creating unrealistic pressures to lose the baby weight and get back into those skinny jeans?

I first met Darryl at one of his Primal Bootcamp sessions.  I told him what my current activity level was - which was very high.  To be honest I thought his class would be quite easy.  Big mistake.  I soon realised my fitness levels were really quite poor.  I couldn't do a single squat or press-up correctly, and I would also often give up at the earliest opportunity.  After my first training session my whole body was sore for days and I couldn't understand why after spending one year training in a gym three times a week I still wasn't fit enough to do the most basic movements that were demonstrated by Darryl.

After a few group classes I decided to try one-to-one sessions with Darryl - would his approach to training and nutrition really make a difference?  He started with a health and fitness assessment which involved a series of tests and let me know exactly what my starting point was.  He explained that payment alone wasn't enough, but a commitment to pursue health not just during our sessions but for the rest of the week.  It would have to be on his terms and something jointly agreed.  I was a little sceptical but I had tried everything else.  I decided I had nothing to lose.

I booked a series of sessions and then we formulated a plan setting realistic goals.  I really enjoy and look forward to each session.  It is so different to anything I have done before.  I am always learning and achieving new things.  For example I could never imagine I could do balance walking on a park bench or learning to vault a fence (I'm sure it wasn't a big deal when I was a child).  He has such a unique approach to getting fit, with animal crawls and play-based moves that I'd never experienced in my gym.  Hard work but fun and engaging at the same time.

 

What Darryl made me understand is that I can push myself a bit further, that and I didn't need to train for hours and hours until I felt sick or survive on low-fat, low-calorie diets to achieve my goals.

I learnt not to give up at the first obstacle and that nothing bad happens if I push myself to the limit:

I wrote this in big letters and stuck it to the fridge doors. Darryl sent this to me as a motivational email.

Darryl is a great inspiration and teacher, we talk a lot about health, nutrition as well as being prepared for life's challenges.  I am on my way to recovery.  Stopping my obsessions about weighing myself ten times a day.  Aiming to maintain a healthy body composition rather than a certain amount of kilos.

After 4 weeks I was hesitant to take any measurements or photos, in fact I postponed the 4 weekly assessment because I was sure there would be no change.  I am pleased to say I was happy to trust Darryl's judgement.  

The photo above shows the before and after from Day 1 to Day 28.  In terms of the results after 4 weeks.  I've lost 8 cm (3.2 inches) from the waist, 7cm (2.8 inches) from the love handles, 6 cm (2.5 inches) off the hips and I've lost 3% in body fat.  My resting heart rate went down from 67bpm to 54bpm, what progress after a year of no significant changes.

It wasn't easy to agree to post my photo.  But this has given me the encouragement I need to continue, I am happy with my progress so far, but still have work to do.  I feel positive about making these lifestyle changes.  Thanks for your help so far Darryl!

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