In this post I’m sharing the story of one busy mom and her weight loss journey. I’d like to introduce you to Falon. I worked with Falon in my personal coaching program. Let’s get right into her inspiring story of losing 18lbs while maintaining her 12+ hour shifts as a nurse practitioner.
A Busy Mom and her Weight Loss Journey
This week I’m highlighting the story of Falon, mom of a 2-year-old little boy. Falon is a wife, mama, and a super busy nurse practitioner who works 12+ hour shifts! As you can imagine, she is a bit short on time, to put it mildly!
Unfortunately for her, that was translating into a lack of discipline and multiple false starts. And while Falon worked a job rooted in caring for others’ health, in addition to the important job of motherhood and caring for her son, her health was on the back burner.
But with perseverance, discipline, and a lot of drive, Falon is now in a place that has her feeling happier, healthier, and more fulfilled.
The “before”
You could say Falon was pretty much a typical all-around fitness pro before kids. She was a group fitness instructor, did CrossFit, and was a distance runner with an ultra-marathon under her belt. Falon says she was in peak shape for her body. Then she got pregnant and had her son who is now 2.
Speaking about her old life vs. her current, Falon says: “After having him my time-shifted drastically and I guess you could say I lost that part of me for a really long time.”
Working full time as a nurse practitioner (including many overnight shifts), in addition to being a new mom, she found she was placing herself on the side. After we have kids or have a major life change like a new job. It’s easy to let our fitness goals fall to the wayside. Of course, having kids can transform our bodies, and Falon was not liking the changes. “I was so disappointed with myself for not losing all the ‘baby weight’ and taking control sooner.” she says.
This type of thinking is very common in new moms! The feeling that they know something needs to change, but they don’t have the time or motivation to get the ball rolling. Then they only grow more and more disappointed with themselves. Sadly, this can actually have a further negative impact on motivation!
Often this is one of the biggest obstacles when a busy mom starts her weight loss journey.
So Falon knew she wanted to change. But she even found herself missing her old drive and determination. At this point, she tried many different methods to get herself back on track. After all, she had been at the top of her fitness game pre-kids, it’s not like she didn’t know what she was doing. But then Falon realized something. She was living a different life now than before. Her time was now at a premium.
“I was having several struggles ranging from finding the time to workout to my food intake.”
She has to juggle so many different things each and every day just like so many other moms. There are the physical things we have to do. Things like going to work, taking kids to daycare or school, cook, clean, bath time, etc. Plus the mental burden on moms. Such as remembering meetings, appointments, stressing over finances or whatever other stressors we may encounter, etc.
We, women, tend to be particularly good at multitasking, yes, but sometimes that comes at the expense of our sense of well-being. And when we get a moment alone…well, it sure is tempting to just plop on the couch with a good Netflix show or to scroll through Instagram for a while! Talk about a obstacle for a busy mom on her weight loss journey…
Getting past obstacles
What matters most is doing things that serve you. While there’s nothing wrong with some TV, games, or social media on your phone for a bit of relaxing self-care, you also have to think of self-care in terms of things that will help you in the long run. It’s all about having a growth mindset!
Let’s say you have two hours of free time in the day. You can (very easily!) spend those two hours lost on a screen. OR, by tweaking your mindset a bit, you could spend one of those hours working out, and still have an hour to yourself for whatever it is you like to do to relax. It’s all about perspective.
It’s important to remember too that being in good shape is not just about looks. As a nurse, Falon knows all too well how important prioritizing her health is. She knows the negative effects slacking off can have on her body and health. That was one of the big motivators driving her to keep trying things to get in shape and to decide to invest in help from a coach.
Another big motivator, according to Falon, was wanting her son to grow up in a body-positive household rather than one where he sees his mom dread stepping on a scale or feeling bad about how she looked.
In her words: “As a mother, one of my fears is projecting my body confidence issues onto my children.”
Like many moms, she wanted to raise her son in a household where health takes priority. It’s interesting how we moms see things in such a different light once we have kids. We begin seeing the world through their fresh eyes. A child is pretty much a blank slate. You can fill that blank slate with healthy eating habits, a positive relationship with food (not one riddled with guilt, and neither overly-junky nor overly-restrictive), an active, healthy lifestyle (did you know that exercise is important for kids too?) etc. It’s amazing how having kids can help shape your mindset for the better!
Putting in the work
Armed with a sense of knowing she needed to change, but not quite knowing how to go about it considering her new lifestyle, Falon found out about my coaching program. She needed something that would take into account her busy lifestyle and lack of free time, yet give her that push she needed to prioritize herself and her health.
Falon put in the physical work to get herself back on track. She learned about appropriate portion sizes which she says she had struggled with before. And she was encouraged by the discipline she was suddenly felt to stick to her workouts. Falon explains it was not quite a motivation that hit her, but the discipline to stick to the plan even on the days she didn’t feel like doing it.
Motivation is all well and good, but, being real here, motivation won’t be with you every day of the week. It’s determination and discipline that get you through those days where you’re wanting nothing more than to skip your workout. Being determined means you won’t give up on yourself and will go through with that workout no matter what!
The “after”
So what has been the result of all the hard work Falon has put in? Well, she has already lost 18! With this weight loss, she reports that she now is fitting into clothes she hasn’t fit into in a long time. Falon also noticed reduced cellulite on the back of her legs and also has gained strength. She tells me her runs are so much better now!
She also has changed her mindset towards fitness. Now Falon feels more of a sense of determination to keep at it. Because as we said before, it’s not every day that you’ll feel that drive and motivation to work out. But by habit-forming and sticking to your workout schedule, you become more disciplined. And that’s what matters in the long run.
Remember, it’s not ultimately about getting to a certain weight or hitting a certain run time or things like that, although those are great secondary goals. It’s about living your best life where you’re healthy, fit, and feel good about yourself! And as a nurse practitioner, Falon definitely knows the harmful effects of not taking care of our health.
Asked what advice she’d give to others on the fence about looking for help with their fitness, Falon says,
“Your body is the biggest investment you have to sculpt into what you desire, to care for those you love, and secure a long healthy life. Just take the leap, I promise you won’t regret it!”
Are you a busy mom starting your weight loss journey?
If YOU are resonating with Falon’s story, I encourage you to look into my personal coaching program. If you’re a busy mom wanting to start her weight loss journey… I am the coach for you! With my programs, you get the guidance, support, and accountability you need to accomplish your goals… whatever that goal might be.
And, even if you have a crazy schedule, where you feel like you can’t make it happen… I promise you we can with just a little compromise and a knowledgeable coach who fully supports you on your corner.
What’s more, I don’t just work with pregnant moms, new moms, and seasoned moms. Want to get in shape in preparation for getting pregnant? Did you know that being in good shape before getting pregnant can help you have an easier pregnancy and easier labor?
As a busy mom of two, wife, business owner, and former professional athlete I know how time is a scarce commodity… So, I would love to help you stop wasting time(and money) on things that don’t work and help you start working on your goals today!
Apply for my personal coaching program here.
Photos by: Lauren Cherie Photography
