A stressful work life that goes unaddressed can wreak havoc on anyone's health. Lucie recognized this in her own life. She wasn't sleeping, her health was getting away from her and she had put on weight.
Coincidentally, Lucie had a number of people close to her deal with serious health issues. This was the trigger for her to get help. She attended a seminar where an oncologist explained how weight lifting was one was one of the best ways to manage and prevent chronic disease.
For Lucie her health is her number one goal. With what she saw happening around her, it became important for her to do everything in her power to take care of her health. She saw exercise as a way to manage the stress in her life and to help her to be healthy.
Before joining Evertrain, she invested in 6 months with a personal trainer at another gym.
"It was fine, but I wasn't really being looked at. I felt like it was a cookie cutter solution. I didn't feel like the stress part of the equation was being taken care of. In fact, the exercise was too hard on my body."
Eventually she came across Evertrain and decided to join the FitAfter50 Group program.
Getting started
Around the time she decided to join, Lucie was planning on leaving her high stress job.
Because of the uncertainty of her work situation, Lucie joined on a 1 month trial. This would allow her to try us out and figure out her job status as well.
One month later, she realized that this would be the fit she was looking for.
After the one month trial Lucie (jobless at the time), extended her program and joined for another 6 months.
A structured plan
Lucie committed to herself and her goals. She attended 2 morning group training sessions every week and walked consistently on other days.
During training sessions, she focused on posture correction and learning proper form in exercises like squats, lunges and deadlifts.
She also committed to improving eating habits by focusing on getting enough lean protein and vegetables at each meal.
Lucie focuses intensely on scapular retraction in her pull down to improve posture.
Focusing on the bigger picture
After her initial 6 month commitment, Lucie was still looking for a job that would fit her needs. She didn't want to fall back into a high stress job like the one she had left. She knew that the habits she was building were a longterm project and that she had found something that addressed fitness, nutrition and lifestyle. After taking a one month break from the group, Lucie returned with a new job and committed to a 12 month program.
Since then she has been working on adding a 3rd workout at home and focusing on new habits.
Lucie practices her squat form with extra focus on driving her knees out and keeping her chest up.
Success so far
"Physically I look a lot better. But it's not just physical. I can feel and see a lot less stress in my face and in my body. I've gotten into a routine where I do the things my body needs. I listen to my body more and I'm more at peace. I'm putting my longterm health first."
Lucie has reached her original goal of losing 22lbs and she still has room for more progress. But she realizes that her body will reach the point that it is supposed to. Her health is still the number one thing.
She has recovered a lot of the energy that she lost and is managing stress and getting better quality sleep.
The morning group can always count on Lucie bringing her warm smile and positive attitude to the workouts.
What the future looks like
"I feel that I have the tools in my tool belt to help me manage whatever is going to be thrown at me. I feel much stronger. If you are physically strong it shows in how you stand and how you carry yourself."
Lucie isn't all the way to her goals just yet, but she is taking it one step at at a time.
Takeaways from her time as an Evertrain member
"I like the approach. My coach is very diligent with keeping good form. I feel that my coach is looking at the whole picture, taking the person at where they are starting out and helping them move closer to their goals. He helps me to understand that the little things are important and building habits are about committing to the longterm (even if the changes are not immediately visible)."
Advice for someone like her
“Try it out first to see if it's right for you. If you're on the fence, ask for a one month trial to learn for yourself if this will be a good fit for you.”
If you would like to learn more about a coaching program like the one Lucie is on, simply click the link below. We would love to speak with you on how we can help you overcome obstacles and reach your goals.
