Posted on September 19 2017
| Age: 29 Height: 5'5" Starting weight: 225lb Current weight: 162 Starting size: 16-18 Current size 8-10. Occupation: 7th&8th Grade Social Studies Teacher Murph: 50:10 Grace: 3:21 Fran: 6:47 Back squat: 260 Front squat:190 Deadlift: 295 Snatch: 110 Clean and jerk: 150 |
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Katie went from 225lb to a solid 162 lbs. It wasn't easy but it was worth it! Read her story below to find out her back story and how she got healthy for good!
Growing up in a family of six, things were pretty hectic. Not to mention, my older brothers were sports GODS! It seemed as though everything came naturally to them- whether it was football, lacrosse, wrestling, baseball, basically anything requiring physical assertion. Then there was me. The chubby, funny, ok at sports but definitely not going to a D1 college to play, younger sister. This isn’t a sob story about my life, in fact I had a great time in high school, and an even better time in college, but this all contributed to the overarching problem- bad diet and little to no exercise.
When I was in high school, my mom put me on weight watchers, I’ll never forget being on the 9thgrade basketball team, having a snack with my friends before practice, wondering why they could eat the cheesiest, greasiest slices of pizza and look great, and here I am at 185 pounds, snacking on butter free popcorn. What the heck!! Although I did lose some weight, I was always the heavier girl on my sports teams, and once I got to college, and those mandatory workouts were no longer mandatory, I put on even more weight. I shot up to a whopping 225lbs (I’m only 5’5!).
In college, my diet consisted of whatever was cheapest in the food court (I needed to save my money for beer, naturally)! Cheeseburgers, chicken fingers, waffles and pancakes for breakfast, and large amounts of alcohol. To make matters worse, I got a job at a local pizzeria to make extra cash. To a normal human, that sounds great, to me, it was almost a death sentence. It meant mozzarella sticks, pizza, cookies, and soda non-stop. And with this job, I also allowed myself to skip
the gym one day, and then two days, then I cancelled the membership completely.
Once I completed my undergraduate work, I decided to spend two more years away, working on a Master’s Degree. With this newfound workload, I knew things in my life had to change. I was miserable. My appearance was horrific, my drinking habits were outrageous, and I don’t think I could even run 400m without getting a cramp. Something had to change. So it started with small changes, cutting out soda, no pizza at work, just salads. I got up extra early to go to the gym in the morning, and then sometimes I would even go back to the gym at night after I got out of class. Within three months I lost about twenty pounds. Even though I felt great, I slowly began to fall off track again.
Flash forward to just two years ago (as a reference, I graduated grad school in 2012, so it was a few years in between). I weighed about 190lbs, I was starting to look better, feel more confident, but I knew I needed something to take me to the next level. It was that summer that my brother, Brian, invited me to his first Crossfit competition to come cheer him on. At first I laughed at him and said no way, I do not want to be around shirtless, sweaty men, clanging barbells and doing some sort of weird pull-up on an apparatus. I felt like I was too out of shape to even WATCH him compete.After negotiations, he finally got me to attend, and within the first ten minutes of watching him compete, I knew I could be successful at this sport.
I came home from the competition, swallowed my pride, and bought a Groupon for a month at a local crossfit box (Go Crossfit Lighthouse, woo!). Walking in that gym, I was scared of being judged for my appearance. I don’t think I even had the muscles capable of resembling abs at this point. Nonetheless, the coaches immediately took to me, showed me the ropes, and helped me change my mindset about myself.Emotionally, joining Crossfit was probably the best thing I could have ever done.I finally found something I was good at, and something that I could devote so much of my time to.
After a year of Crossfit, my then coach, and now best friend Amanda asked me to join the fitness challenge at the gym. She knew she could push my nutrition to a level that I never experienced before. I reluctantly agreed, but fought her every step of the way.I can now thank her for helping me lose weight, getting me down to a solid 162 lbs.So for those of you who may think I am OBSESSED with this lifestyle, you’re only half right. I refuse to deny myself of something I want, however I also know the goals I have set forth. So, here’s an example of a day in the life of Katie.
Food:I follow zone, which means I get 3 “blocks” for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and two snacks that consist of 1 block each. For example, one of my favorite breakfasts is 2 whole eggs scrambled, with ½ cup oatmeal, 1 scoop protein powder, 1 tbsp of Peanut butter, and a peach on the side. Lunch and dinner typically consist of 3oz of protein, a ton of veggies (heavy training days I will implement more carbs such as a sweet potato or rice), and almonds or olive oil for a fat. My snacks are usually either yogurt and walnuts, or a protein shake and a piece of fruit. Needless to say, I never go hungry!
Exercise:I do crossfit 5-6 times a week. I follow both my gym’s programming and good ol’ Ben Bergeron’s programming on Competitors Training. I will also be using the Hatch Squat program soon to increase my squat to reach my goal of a 300lb PR. I also make sure to run, row, or bike EVERY day.
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