Kylie is an amazing woman who decided to take control of her life. She changed her diet, lifestyle and didn’t accept obesity and sickness as her destiny. One year in to her journey Kylie has lost 30 kilos and drastically improved her life. Kylie took part in our last Make Life Merry Challenge (and already signed up for our January challenge! Yay!), today we’re so excited to share her story with you. Always merrymaking, e + c
I feel incredibly blessed to share my weight loss journey with you. I am also feeling vulnerable with the words I am about to express because they are said with the emotional release of breaking out of my fat shell. Vulnerable because I am about to say out loud to the world a number, that defined me. That number is 160. To be honest I didn’t actually know my number because I couldn’t find scales to weigh myself until I visited my GP.
My name is Kylie, I was morbidly obese, I was slowly killing myself and I accepted this as my fate. The reality of a heavy person is rather difficult, though your mind has a way of always making excuses. You believe them to be true which enables a thought process of ‘this is how my life will be’. I won’t go into all the typical obese person story of negativity.
I want you to know I loved myself and who I was as a person, I was simply extremely unhealthy.
I had tried all the big name diets that work for a little while however soon enough all the weight I lost was back on my body… plus extra. I believe that I was bound to fail eventually because those big brand diets do not focus on the main ingredients of good health.
Speaking of good health, in the last 5 years I was also diagnosed with major depression, severe anxiety along with Fibromyalgia and just recently Hashimotos disease. I had all the logical, legitimate and valid excuses I needed to justify to myself why I was morbidly obese. This also meant my obesity affected my family, my career, and my friends. Some of whom I slowly removed myself from because I was ashamed for them to see me so heavy and unhealthy.
I basically didn’t participate in life.
On the 23rd of May 2015, I decided I wanted to start eating better food and I gradually made better choices and removed sugar from my diet. I had a close friend release weight and become healthier through going Paleo. At the time I thought it was extreme, though certain elements I thought made sense.
The first week was good for me, however the second week I struggled as my brain and body realised it was not going to be receiving sugar to function. I did not give up.
As each day and week passed, it soon became months and I noticed a dramatic change in my energy levels, body shape, awareness, sleep patterns, pain levels and overall mood. I went from little movement to being able to do a 4km walk or more a day. It was a massive achievement for someone with my health issues.
I started to understand why I had failed at diets. I was food illiterate, I didn’t understand food at all. I became fascinated with learning how our body works and what it needs to function. The only way that made sense to me and showed results was through my research into Paleolithic logic and following the guidelines. I then focused on incorporating gut health into my wellness regime and realised I loved the taste and flavour of all these wonderful probiotics. Finally, all the missing pieces of how I was eating to how I should have been eating fitted together. This kept me inspired and passionate as I was seeing such amazing and positive results. I loved my newfound lifestyle and felt comfortable with my progress.
One day, I received an email from The Merrymaker Sisters telling me my dear friend (the one who shone the light on Paleo) had bought me a 4 week ‘Make Life Merry Challenge’ membership… gulp. At the time I thought what am I going to do get out of this, I mean I am doing okay all by myself, I don’t need a group, I cook my own meals follow my own path and listen to my body. And I had my own evidence to prove it – I had reduced my waist by 27cm, arm by 6cm, and leg by 5cm as I took weekly measurements of myself. I had never participated in a virtual challenge before, nor had a meal plan or followed a recipe! How would I be able to do this?!
The Make Life Merry Challenge turned out to be an absolute blessing, I learnt so much about the right foods, about wellness and every single day I increased my happiness through the support, story sharing and special guests within the Facebook group. Not to mention each Wednesday we had webinar night where we had the chance to ask questions to the special guests who all had a wealth of knowledge, increasing my passion for this lifestyle. I even followed recipes every day from ‘The Make Life Merry’ guide and was eating the most delicious food, I wouldn’t have tried or made without The Merrymaker Sisters.
Which brings me to Emma and Carla, the girls behind the name, they actually cared about my journey, they encouraged, supported, laughed and cried with me through the Facebook group and that personal dedication delivered by the girls allowed me to break further out of my fat shell. Their support, positivity and energy they invested into this challenge went above and beyond all of my expectations.
During the 4 weeks I joined a boot camp group with a personal trainer, really, me the fat girl who couldn’t walk 200m without losing her breath 4 months ago was now doing boot camp!!!! Even more impressive I actually LOVED boot camp and how my body felt afterwards. My motto was “the only person I want to be better than was the person I was yesterday”. I know I wouldn’t have had the courage to join boot camp if it wasn’t for the challenge, it gave me the confidence to try. All I could ask of myself was to just try it and not feel ashamed of myself but proud of myself for trying.
I added additional rituals to my day based on the information I was receiving from the challenge, which further enhanced my wellbeing. I felt validated, listened to and supported. I woke up each day happier, healthier and I owe it to The Merrymaker Sisters for assisting me in that mindset shift.
You see, being obese is one thing and being healthy is another, being healthy is the greatest gift you could give to yourself. I feel healthy each and every day and The Make Life Merry Challenge enhanced my understanding of health and wellbeing.
My number is now 131, whilst in the challenge I released 1 kilo each week.
My goal is to reach double digits and for my body to find the ideal number it needs to be the healthiest version of itself.
I set small goals of releasing 10-kilo increments rather than focusing on the end result.
I sleep deeply and well for at least 8 hours each night.
I am selfish with myself for the first time in my life and put myself first, which is difficult to do with a young family, however the ripple effect is of huge benefit to everyone around me.
I eat nutrient dense, clean foods and good fats.
My skin is softer, clearer and less break outs (I suffered constantly of acne prior).
My brain functions better with no brain fog, pulsing or confusion.
My flare-ups of body pain have not been experienced.
I focus only on being healthier, the weight loss is a byproduct of being healthy.
I practice gratitude and mindfulness each day.
I feel alive and beyond happy, the kind of happiness I never knew existed and I have not experienced in my life. It literally shines out of my face!
My emotions and mood is consistent all day every day and I do not have mood swings or get easily frustrated.
For me this is not a diet, it’s not a short-term fix, it is a COMPLETE lifestyle transformation and I absolutely love it.
I could say the usual things people on a weight loss journey say such as “if I can do it you can too!” however I want to inspire you through sharing my story. If sharing my story helps one person take the leap of faith in themselves in order to turn their life around it will be worth it because the ripple effect it creates for them and their life is massive.
I want you to love yourself, to nurture yourself and to believe in yourself.
With the help of The Merrymaker Sisters who have skills, ability and support to get you started on your journey, you will make changes for life. If you are thinking “this is as good as it gets, I am stuck in a fat shell” like I was or you simply want to experience a new way of being healthier, happier and merrier.
The 4 week challenge by The Merrymaker Sisters is the most rewarding and educating platform to kick start your health!
You got this! (the girls taught me that!).
Many blessings,
Kylie
Thank you again Kylie for sharing your story! We are truly inspired and love being part of your journey! Kylie has now started a blog My Fat Revolution which aims to help others on a similar journey. #youreamazing