In this post, I’m sharing tips for getting back in shape after baby number 3, with the inspiring story of Natalya!
When I created Nathalia Melo Fit, it was my goal to help as many women as possible. I felt like my background, knowledge, and expertise as a pre and postnatal trainer and, as a fitness model and bikini Olympia champion was worth nothing if I couldn’t use it for the greater good of helping women going through struggles I had been in before.
It’s no secret that I absolutely love hearing the success stories of so many women who have transformed their bodies, lives, and fitness even when they thought it was impossible.
Getting back in Shape After Baby Number 3
So, this week I am so excited to introduce you to Natalya Matriaga, wife, mom of 3, and one of the babes who trusted one of my fitness programs to transform her life (and body).
Natalya is 33 years old. She was born and raised in Hawaii (no fair right!?). She now lives with her husband in Washington State where she used to work as a makeup artist, doing bridal makeup. At the moment, she’s a stay-at-home mom with her 3 kids, aged 13, 7, and 4.
Natalya has always been interested in sports, but it wasn’t until her first child was 3 that she hit the weight room with her husband. At that time she was 24 years old and she felt like because she was young, and had time to spare, so she was able to get back to her pre-pregnancy body fairly quickly.
“After my first son getting back into shape was easy for me. Young mom bounced back quickly. Lost the baby weight fast and so on.” said Natalya.
But things were a bit different after she had her second baby, and the weight didn’t exactly “melt off”. She gave herself a challenge and signed up for a bodybuilding competition… She lost weight and got in great shape; however, she quickly realized that lifestyle was not sustainable and she even says “I do not recommend this drastic lifestyle”.
The big challenge came when she had her 3rd baby. With her husband working 12-14 hours shifts, she had to be the cook, teacher, mom, cleaner, and chauffeur to extracurricular activities. (Does that sound familiar, ladies??)
At that point, Natalya says her fitness goals started to slip away as she felt that she would never be able to lose weight and that new body (that she was not happy with) was what she would have to live with forever and just accept it.
Natalya told me, “My gym time always got cut. I was too tired for the gym. I couldn’t get to the gym. Meal planning seemed like one more extra step I didn’t have time for or even want to deal with. I had no knowledge of how I should eat or what I should eat. It all seemed hard and impossible.”
This is the reality for most moms out there.
They feel defeated and hopeless because there doesn’t seem to be any other way.
But, what if I told you there is a way… just like there was for Natalya and thousands of other women…
Natalya said she started following me (@nathaliamelofit) back when I competed, and she was drawn to the 4 Weeks to Fit, and she says:
“I saw the 4 Weeks to Fit, and I thought well hell she’s going to show us how she did it! How she had 2 babies back to back and got back into shape! FINALLY, a program that understands MOMS! Finally a professional that did it herself WITH kids and is willing to show other moms how!”
She felt inspired not only by my results but also by seeing what all the other women doing the program were achieving, so she decided to give the program a try.
Natalya lost 7lbs during the 4 weeks, but in her opinion, that wasn’t her biggest win.
Her biggest achievement was to be able to stick to the program. This is because she learned how to improve her relationship with food in a way she could maintain long-term. And she knew she could stick to the workout program for a couple of reasons:
- They didn’t require countless hours in the gym
- When the time was tight, she could do the home workouts and just train from her living room
But, Natalya wasn’t the only one getting her butt kicked by my fitness program workouts. After the first week, her husband Aaron, who has done bodybuilding since he was 18, started doing the workouts with her and also felt incredibly challenged by them too.
Natalya says:
“Even to this day 4 months after doing the 4 Weeks to Fit, Aaron still implements her workouts into his own, and we got to bond with this because it became OUR thing. Our time together was away from the kids, and we kept each other motivated. We got healthy together! Which gave us more energy to not be overwhelmed and stressed with kids and work.”
She told me that once the 4 weeks were over, she felt accomplished, and she felt like this is possible.
That she can work out and she can get to where she wants to be. She realized that her biggest struggle as a mom was not being knowledgeable enough about these things.
Natalya also realized that, sure, she went to the gym here and there… and she tried eating healthier… giving things like keto and intermittent fasting a try… but she didn’t have the knowledge to know why those things were helping… or how to continue to see results after she was done with those diet strategies.
She said, “I walked away feeling like I finally understood how to eat for ME! For MY body. For MY goals. I learned that not every workout has to be drawn out, long, or ONLY heavyweights. I can get in and get out.”
Then I asked Natalya how she felt after the challenge and I loved what she told me:
“I made excuses for why I couldn’t lose weight. Why I was too tired. That there was never enough time. But after the challenge, I felt and feel like it is obtainable because now I actually KNOW how to do it. It was only 4 weeks but damn those 4 weeks if you REALLY do it, can change your life and outlook on being healthy and fit for you.”
You see, Natalya isn’t unique. So many women struggle with these same problems. As mothers, we’re stressed. We’re tired. We’re being pulled in a million different directions. And we don’t feel like we achieve our fitness goals: be that lose weight or tone up. BUT just like Natalya, you have to take that first step, believe in yourself and find a program that understands your busy life so you don’t feel discouraged and defeated.
P.S. Are you ready to get Super Shredded this Winter (and just in time for the holidays!)?? Then come join the ’5 Week Super Shred Challenge For a limited time only you can join at the Early Bird pricing!! Hurry and reserve your spot so you can start transforming your body so you can feel more confident and sexy AF this Holiday Season! JOIN NOW.
I can’t wait to feature YOU as our next success story!
Feeling inspired? Help other mamas find this guide to getting back in shape after baby number 3, Save this post to Pinterest to come back to it later. You can also follow me (@nathaliamelofit) for more!
