She was running triathlons and half marathons, working in healthcare as a registered nurse, and still gaining weight every year. Her doctor told her it was just her age. She had to get her wedding ring cut off because of the inflammation. She was prescribed methotrexate, came home, looked it up as a nurse, and said no.
In this episode I sit down with Sabrina, a Powerhouse Academy member who has been with us for a year and who I honestly wish I could clone. Her story is not just about the weight. It is about what happens when a woman who has spent her whole career being competent finally finds the confidence to match it.
This one made me almost cry twice. It is that good.
In this episode, we talk about:
- Why running triathlons and working in healthcare still was not getting her results
- What her doctor told her at 45 and why she refused to accept it
- How she kept going through a house fire six months into the program
- The difference between competence and confidence and why women starve one while overfeeding the other
- How she stopped needing external validation and started bringing her real voice to the table
- How her son and husband are both showing up differently because she is
- Why she FaceTimed her husband mid-call to prove I was real
- The golf pants story that ended with her wearing her teenage son's lululemons on a golf course
Sabrina's story is a reminder that the unpredictable things in life are not reasons to stop - they are exactly when the foundation you have built matters most. If you are waiting for things to calm down before you start, this episode is for you.
Ever wish you had a fit and straightforward BFF with over 15 years of experience to help you filter through all the information regarding fitness, nutrition, and life? That's exactly what you'll get when you listen to the Unfiltered Fit Life Podcast.
Join Former Bikini Olympia Champion, mom of 2, and fitness coach Nathalia Melo each week as she shares fitness, nutrition, and life tips to help busy working moms simplify their fitness journey so they can learn easy and simple strategies on how to lose weight and feel sexy AF.
After helping over 5000 busy working moms, Nathalia has found the blueprint to fitness, nutrition, and life success, which she will be sharing in this podcast: actionable tips that will help busy working moms be more present at work and at home.
This show is for you if you realize that nothing good comes from your comfort zone and are ready to challenge yourself to achieve great things. Follow Unfiltered Fit Life wherever you are listening to join us each week for a splash of sass, humor, and a whole lotta truth.
Podcast Transcript
Perimenopause, a House Fire, and Finally Feeling Like Herself Again: Sabrina's Story
INTRODUCTION
I introduce Sabrina, a Powerhouse Academy member who has been with us for about a year. I note that I was convinced we had already done this interview - and we had not - so we are fixing that today. Sabrina admits she was low key panicking before we started and I tell her she just needs to share her story.
SABRINA'S BACKGROUND
Sabrina is 48, a registered nurse and clinic supervisor at Canadian Blood Services in Canada, married with a teenage son. She loves adventures, activities, and travel and describes herself as someone who is usually up for the next thing - which made what she was experiencing feel even more frustrating.
WHAT WAS HAPPENING WHEN SHE REACHED OUT
The come to Jesus moment came on a ski trip when she bent down to do up her boots and her pants popped. She had been active for years - running three to four times a week, completing half marathons, then triathlons - and still could not understand why she was where she was. She could no longer keep up with her husband or her son on hikes. Beyond the physical she felt drained, lost, and unable to find herself. In healthcare she knew what competence looked like and leaned on it constantly to compensate for a confidence that had quietly disappeared.
WHAT THE DOCTORS TOLD HER
She went to her doctor about severe pain in her feet that made it difficult to walk in the mornings. She was referred to a rheumatologist who diagnosed her with rheumatoid arthritis, told her it was just her age, and prescribed methotrexate. She came home, researched the drug as a nurse, and decided it was not the right answer for her. She tried a naturopath next and that did not work either. Then she found the podcast and trusted her gut.
WHAT MAKES POWERHOUSE ACADEMY DIFFERENT
Sabrina had never really worked with a coach before outside of a triathlon training program. She describes the noise online as so overwhelming she stopped Googling and just decided to trust the process completely. She did not even know what a macro was when she started. Within weeks she was seeing results and making the connection between her nutrition, her energy levels, and how she showed up the next day. She describes it as simple once the overcomplication was stripped away.
THE HOUSE FIRE
Six months into the program Sabrina's house caught fire. The garage and laundry room were destroyed and there was smoke damage throughout the home. She reached out to the team and said she did not know where to start but she wanted to keep going. She describes going to the gym and lying on the floor one day just grateful to be there. The structure of the program gave her something to hold onto when everything else felt uncertain. She says she does not know where she would have gone without the foundation she had already built.
THE CONFIDENCE SHIFT
Before joining, Sabrina was a leader who appeared confident but inside was constantly seeking validation, avoiding conflict, and pulling back in meetings rather than contributing. She now describes having difficult performance conversations at work without hesitation, bringing her actual voice to the table, and no longer minimizing what she has to say. I name what was happening - she was over-investing in competence to compensate for a lack of confidence, and the two are not the same thing. Her knowledge never changed. What changed was her willingness to show up with it.
THE RIPPLE EFFECT
Sabrina describes her family thriving when she is thriving. Her son sees her joining the women's golf community and trying new things and is proud of her - and she notices he is standing a little taller himself because of it. Her husband has always accepted her as she is but she describes showing up differently in the marriage now. The word she keeps coming back to is longevity - you show up for others better when you show up for yourself first.
ADVICE FOR WOMEN ON THE FENCE
Sabrina's advice is direct - figure it out. If you want it badly enough, figure out how to invest in yourself. She speaks honestly about the Canadian dollar making it feel even more significant and still says there is no cost you can put on what changes when you finally do it. She closes by saying she wishes she had found the program sooner and that when she sees younger women in the community she wants to tell them how glad she is that they are not waiting.
THE GOLF PANTS STORY
Sabrina closes with the story of needing to wear pants to a golf tournament with the women's community she had just joined. All her pants were too big. She ended up wearing her teenage son's lululemon trousers, put together a whole collared uniform, stood in the garage hoping he would not notice, and he did not. Two days later she went shopping, had no idea what size she needed, and came home with a pink golf shirt and feminine pants. She says she is still exploring what size she is - and could not be happier about it.
