There I was standing in front of my mirror not the least bit thrilled about the image that was waving back at me. How did I let myself get this way? Oh, yes! I know how! Chicken wings, French fries, Chinese food, alcoholic beverages, nachos, and burritos! Ummm, lets just say anything that was deliciously fattening, I enjoyed eating. And that would be how I got to this ungodly shape that is overshadowing my real body.
“Babe, all this happy weight has got to go!” I told , my boyfriend, one night as I viewed myself from different angles in the mirror. But the angle didn’t matter; I was dissatisfied with my body from any angle.
“You look great to me, Baby,” he said as he devoured the last chicken wing.
“Thanks, but I need to look great to me too.”
And that was it. My first defining moment. The moment that I realized something had to change if I wanted the body I was meant to have. The weight-loss regain had been a battle I was fighting for a long time, and I was truly over it. I would be skinny for half the year and thick for the other half, and no matter which part of the year it was—I still didn’t have a booty. Why couldn’t I be slim and thick at the same time? Hell, I knew it was possible because some of Victoria’s Angels were pulling it off with ease. I wondered what their secret was until I realized it really wasn’t a secret all. It was what dieticians and nutritionist had been telling the world for years, “Eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly to lose weight and stay fit.” Okay, cool. I’ll eat salads three times a day, do a work-out DVD, and I’ll have an hourglass shape with a booty in no time. Ha! I can’t believe I thought that would work. It only took me a short amount of time to realize that salads and workout DVD’s weren’t going to get me the results I craved. So, I decided to do something I was afraid to do—go to the gym. I began focusing on crash diets and cardio. I was too afraid to strength train because I feared looking like a man. Instead, I would go hard for 3 months or so, lose like 30 pounds, and then start thinking I was cute, stop going to the gym, and of course, gain all the weight back. And to top it all off, I still DIDN’T HAVE A BOOTY!!!!!
This is when I learned the truth—losing weight is a process that requires patience, dedication, and knowledge. And at that time, in March of 2015, I had to accept that I wasn’t very patient, dedicated, or knowledgeable about the weight loss process. That was defining moment number two. The moment I realized that I had to step out my comfort zone if I wanted real results. This is when my boyfriend asked me a very good question. “Michelle, what do you want your body to look like?” In order to properly answer it, I went to Instagram in search of the body I was trying to sculpt.
I searched #FitnessMotivation and that’s when I found her; the woman who had already achieved my body goals. Her name is Michelle Lewin, and she is a famous Hispanic fitness model.
I showed her page to my bodyfriend and commented on how I liked her muscle composition, abs, and of course BOOTY! That’s when he told me the only way to achieve a body like Lewin’s was to lift weights. I was both thrilled and shocked. Thrilled that lifting weights wouldn’t make me look like a man and shocked that the solution to achieving my body goals (strength training) had been staring me in the face for months now, and I had been ignoring it. But now, after seeing how lean and beautiful Lewin’s muscles were, I felt empowered to add strength training to my work out. So, I did, and this time I was serious. I headed back to the gym and began to strength train as well as continue my cardio routine. However, my workout now consisted of 90% strength training and 10% cardio. I thought I was going to hate lifting weights and ended up loving it! Strength training is the only workout regimen that I have ever been consistent with. Loving the burn turned into extra motivation to go to the gym, and it also inspired me to document my progress.
I began documenting my transformation on Instagram by posting photos and a weekly progress report. My goal was to see if my 90/10 method was working, and within the first year of documenting my progress, I was sure it was. I lost 50lbs from lifting 90% of the time and only doing cardio 10% of the time. It was great! I had lost significant weight and gained an immense amount of knowledge as well. I learned that building the body I wanted was going to require consistent strength training and additional knowledge about my body type. After learning more about my body type, I began bulking for a year and gained healthy weight (muscle). At that time, I also learned that there are certain periods I need to focus on fat loss and other periods that I must focus on muscle gain. But the most important lesson I learned was that fitness is not a once in a while thing; it’s a lifestyle change and a continuous process. I am proud to say that I made that lifestyle change and continued to document the process on social media. As a result, I gained followers and began helping people lose weight or gain muscle just as I did. That is how you ended up on my web page today.
Since my fitness journey began in 2015, I have grown as a woman and as a fitness-minded individual. I have gained the knowledge and established results that have developed the products that make my program so unique. FitMelle is for the woman that’s like me. The woman that wants to lose weight the right way and bask in the results for many, many years to come. Fitmelle is for the woman that understands that fitness requires patience, dedication, and change. It is for the woman that wants to learn how to sculpt the body she’s always dreamed of. I am not here to take your money and tell you how to lose weight. I am here to teach you how to lose fat or gain lean muscle. Once you’ve achieved your body goal, I’ll be here to teach you how to maintain it as well. Together we will transform you, into the you, you want to be!
