Are you struggling with stubborn belly fat despite your best efforts? You're not alone. In this enlightening episode of The Holly Perkins Health Podcast, I sit down with Niki, a courageous participant in my Body Composition Project, to delve into the common challenges women face with fat loss, particularly those over 40. As we navigate the complexities of women's health and wellness, Niki shares her heartfelt journey, revealing the frustrations she encountered with traditional fitness methods that simply didn't deliver results.
Are you struggling with stubborn belly fat despite your best efforts? You're not alone. In this enlightening episode of The Holly Perkins Health Podcast, I sit down with Niki, a courageous participant in my Body Composition Project, to delve into the common challenges women face with fat loss, particularly those over 40. As we navigate the complexities of women's health and wellness, Niki shares her heartfelt journey, revealing the frustrations she encountered with traditional fitness methods that simply didn't deliver results.
Niki's previous routine was filled with high protein intake and extensive cardio, yet she found herself battling increased belly fat and discomfort. "I felt like I was doing everything right, but nothing was changing," she confides. This resonates with so many women grappling with body composition issues, especially during pivotal life stages like perimenopause and menopause. However, everything changed when Niki joined my program. In just two weeks, she experienced remarkable transformations in her body composition and energy levels, proving that tailored programming in strength training and nutrition can make all the difference.
Throughout our conversation, we emphasized the significance of personalized approaches to health and wellness, particularly for women navigating midlife transitions. By focusing on specific guidance in fitness and nutrition, we can unlock the potential for effective fat loss and improved overall well-being. Niki’s story is a testament to the power of holistic health strategies that prioritize individual needs, moving beyond one-size-fits-all solutions.
Join us as we explore the intersection of women's health, nutrition, and mental health, shedding light on the vital role of strength training and the importance of bone health for women over 40. If you're ready to break free from the cycle of ineffective weight loss strategies and embrace a more personalized approach, this episode is for you. Tune in to discover how you can reclaim your health and achieve your fat loss goals, just like Niki did. Let's embark on this transformative journey together!
-If you're interested in womens health, this is the podcast for you.
Get FREE lifetime access to my 4-week Strength Without Stress program today! This unique program helps you build lean muscle and reduce inflammation—without the fatigue from long or intense workouts. All you need to do is post a review of my podcast, grab a screenshot, and upload it at: hollyperkins.com/review
This offer won’t last—soon it will sell for $197. Don’t miss your chance to grab it free!
Resources:
• Get up to 40% off Beam’s best-selling Dream Powder when you enter HOLLYP at checkout here.
• Transcripts can be found on the official blog page for this episode at hollyperkins.com/blog
• Find me on Instagram: @hollyperkins
• Discover more on my website: hollyperkins.com
-Follow so you'll know exactly when new episodes are available on Tuesdays.
Nikki, I am out of my mind excited about this interview. So first and foremost, thank you so much because you sharing your story is so powerful in terms of demonstrating to other women what is really possible. As a coach, I field the phone calls every single week. I have the conversations every single week. And women, generally over 40, more so over 45 and into their 50s and 60s, have a common frustration, which is no matter what they do, no matter what kind of program they try, no matter what kind of diet plan they follow, they really struggle to change their body composition. And in particular, their belly fat. This is a conversation we hear a lot. Out there in the world, belly fat is known to be stubborn. And if you're listening to this podcast, you may agree. If so, give me a heck yes. And I would even say, larger in the health and fitness community and even the medical communities it really is this sort of like mystery around what it takes to really improve belly fat and I have always said that when you get the pieces of the puzzle right your body will change before your eyes and a lot of times I'm sitting here saying it either on the podcast or on social media And I know listeners are saying, yeah, right. That sounds like a load of BS. So whenever I have an example of a client that proves it, I get so excited, out of control, like a kid on Halloween. So Nikki, I'm so thrilled that you're here. And with your permission, I'm hoping we can share your photos on the podcast episode page on my website so that As the listeners hear this, they can actually come see these photos because a photo is worth a thousand words. So thank you for being here. Tell us a little bit about where you were just before you started working with me, what you were struggling with, the journey that you had been on, and what issues were up for you at the time. Speaker #1 Okay. Well, thank you for having me. It's an honor. I think like most other women, I've... tried everything, was trying to do everything, do all the right things, nothing seemed to be working. The more I tried to lift more, exercise more, my body about five, six years ago started to rebel more. So the more I tried to increase my lifting, I would get more sore. The more I would try increasing my steps, I would have heel pain. pain so bad that I could hardly walk for the next few days. So it was just a combination of the frustration of what the heck is going on. I'm doing all the right things, I thought, and nothing really seemed to click right in the right sequences. Speaker #0 And give us a bit of context in terms of what your general programming looked like beforehand. And That can be your nutrition, that can be your strength training, your cardio. And how old are you? Because I think that your age is quite relevant here. Speaker #1 Yep. So I'm 45. And my protocols before this were trying to get at least 30 to 40 grams of protein in every meal, walking 10,000 steps a day. lifting two to three times a week. And that was pretty much my standard of what I was doing. But for the past few years, my belly area, no matter what I did, it just kept getting bigger and bigger. The weight wouldn't go down. In my 20s and 30s, I've never had a problem with belly area that's always been fairly trim and smaller. But yeah, as I started to get closer to my 40s and then after I turned 40, that's really when it started to really get a little more prominent in my belly area, which. made it more frustrating, more uncomfortable in just everything. Speaker #0 This is so common for women in middle life. You know, you don't need me to say that. I think a lot of people know it. We can talk about why that is, but really what it comes down to is the hormonal shifts. And as I talk about here on the podcast all the time, rarely does more actually work better for women in this life stage. Tell me a bit about any other specific cardio activities outside of the walking and the 10,000 steps. Were you doing any dedicated cardio? Speaker #1 So I have a rowing machine. I would row occasionally. I had a rebounder, which I like that for bone density, joint health. So I would do rebounding exercises on YouTube, those types of things. Yeah, and that was... pretty much what I did for for the cardio besides just the standard walking. Speaker #0 Okay. And how long before starting with me? Had you been following a program consistently? Speaker #1 Oh, gosh, probably for about a year. And again, anytime I tried to increase more, because I wasn't seeing the results I thought I should be, my body would, would get more sore, and it would protest more. My knee would flare up so that I
would have to cut back on the walking. So that was, again, also the frustration of my body was just in pain, even though I thought I was doing everything right or being as healthy as I thought I could be. Speaker #0 Yeah, I hear that a lot. So many people are doing everything they should be doing, right? It's like, I'm doing everything I'm told or what I hear out in media. And as I often say, like really getting it right, there is an art and a science to it. And so to anyone listening to this, if you're in the same boat where you're like, I'm doing everything and it's not working, hear us loud and clear. It's not that there's something wrong with your body. It's not that you're broken. It's not that you're different. It always comes back to the programming. And when you get the right pieces of the puzzle together, Things really do change very quickly. So before we get into really Nikki's reveal, tell us about when you made the decision to start working with me and in transparency, Nikki enrolled in my program, The Body Composition Project, about three weeks ago from this date. I would say maybe a little bit longer, but about three weeks ago, she enrolled in the program. and this is a hands-on guided coaching program that brings together what I always talk about in the trifecta of body composition, which is strength and conditioning programming that's progressive, my very specific approach to cardio, and my very specific approach to nutrition. And so we started working together about three weeks ago or so. So Nikki, before you made that decision, what was it that kind of nudged you to try this program or to actually start taking? a different action. Speaker #1 Yeah. So again, I had tried a lot of different programs and through another challenge or program that I had just followed up on your three-day muscle mastery course came up as an option and it was free. I thought, well, let's just listen to this and see what you have to say on that part of it. And what I heard in that time was exactly what I was actually looking for is I felt like I was doing something right. I mean, all the things right, but I didn't have specific guidance to me specifically at my current age, my current body composition. So through that course, I learned that what your focus was on is a specific plan for strength training with the feedback with specific cardio and exactly telling me the macros breakdown of how I should be eating, instead of just saying, go out there and eat 150 grams of protein. So that was the the turning point of why and how I decided to join the body composition project. Speaker #0 I love it. So I want to cut to the chase, which is Inside of my program, I have several devices where I'm able to supervise the participants. I'm able to keep an eye on people. And this is really a way so that I can do everything I can to ensure people get results. And one of those devices is progress photos. No one likes doing them. Everyone moans and groans over progress photos, myself included. And while it is elective inside of the body composition project, I really encourage people to do it because there's a certain amount of progress we should see on a regular basis in a person's photos. And if I'm looking at a person's photos and we don't have this general amount of progress every two weeks, then I'm able to jump in and say, you know, what do we need to tweak in your programming? So when the participants start the program, they take one minute to think about what they want to do. one set of photos, our starting set of photos. And then every two weeks, they send us a side-by-side comparison of their front, side, and back photos from two weeks ago, and then those same photos from this week. And so it's every two weeks we're taking these progress photos, and the coaches and I are supervising them and assessing them and sending feedback. So Nikki, being the good student that she is, took her progress photos. at exactly two weeks. I actually chuckled when I saw the date on your photos because they were exactly, exactly two weeks later. So we started, we kicked off the body composition project a little over two weeks ago. She hit the ground running with my programming. She took her starting set of photos. And then exactly within two weeks into our coaching program, she uploaded her side-by-side photos and I literally nearly fell out of my chair because the visible progress is so obvious. Beyond that, the most remarkable visible difference is in her side facing photo. We'll share these photos. Nikki, you're cool with that, right? Speaker #1 Yep, absolutely. Speaker #0 Okay, thank you. We're going to
share these photos over on my website so that you can see this. And that side facing photo, when I looked at it, I literally had to double click, zoom in, zoom out, check my dates, go back to my file, make sure I was looking at things correctly, and just kind of shaking my head, making sure it was accurate because there is such a massive difference in the contours and the belly fat, specifically body fat in her midsection. And so many women come to me saying, Belly fat is the thing that won't change. Belly fat is the hardest nut to crack. And yet, two weeks into the program, there was a marked change in her body fat head to toe, but specifically through her midsection. And also Nikki, in that side facing photo, through your glutes, your glutes and your hips look very different to the degree where This is the kind of progress I would normally see four to six weeks into a program. I mean that. And so when I saw these photos, I reached out to Nikki right away and I said, we got to talk this out. So what you're hearing today in this podcast is our firsthand conversation around exactly what just happened in the past two weeks to produce these kind of results. Now, I know. These are the results I want to see with my participants. I know every participant is capable of this, but it doesn't happen all that often. I would say about 10% of participants get these kind of results quickly. And so we're going to hear from Nikki exactly like what she did. Now, I have a suspicion she literally just followed the program, but I also want to double check and make sure that like you weren't doing anything in addition to the program. You weren't doing anything in a... you know, above and beyond what the programming suggests. So talk to us about that. Let me, let me first ask you this, Nikki, I'm assuming you literally just followed the program as it's written verbatim and probably didn't miss a beat. Is that correct? Speaker #1 Exactly. One of the first things that you said on the initial, one of the kickoff calls was forget what you think you know. And if If you follow the plan, you'll see results. And that's exactly what I did. Speaker #0 Did you complete the cardio workouts for the first two weeks? Speaker #1 Yeah. Speaker #0 All three? Speaker #1 Yep. Speaker #0 That's amazing. Okay, so to our listeners. In the first two weeks of the program, actually in the first month of the program, the cardio programming is only three 30-minute steady state workouts where your heart rate is between 70 and 75% of your theoretical maximum heart rate. And so if you are familiar with heart rate intensities, this is a very moderate intensity. It's a very comfortable and doable intensity. I say this because I assumed Nikki did do the cardio, but you never know. And I say this to the skeptical listener, who's like, she must have been doing so much cardio every single day. And I want to explicitly call that out. Did you do any additional cardio beyond what's in the program? Speaker #1 No, actually, I was doing less than what I had started with before the program. Before I started with the program, I was religiously trying to get the 10,000 steps in a day. which is about three and a half to five miles of walking in addition to whatever else I was doing. Once I started the program, I didn't do that. So I don't look at my steps. I don't do any extra outside of it. I just do the three specific strength programs and then the three to four steady state cardio programs that were listed in there. And actually that it feels like less than I was doing before. So I thought this is too easy. It's really not going to produce anything. But this is what the program says. So this is exactly what I'm going to do. Speaker #0 Yeah. And again, we saw those photos. It's like, holy cow. What did you what activity did you do for your cardio? Were you walking but only for this shortened amount of time each time? Or did you do something different for those 330 minute sessions? Speaker #1 No, because I still have issues with my heel my heel and foot pain, the more walking I do, the worse that gets. So actually, all I did was on my little trampoline rebounder, I just walked, hop, danced for 30 minutes while keeping my heart rate in that specific parameter. And it was fun. It was fun. I felt like kind of, you know, just a little kid, just bouncing and hopping around. And again, just trying to make sure it stayed my heart rate stayed in that. specific range and that's all I did for cardio. Speaker #0 That's amazing. I hear this a lot from participants. It's like all of a sudden cardio gets easier and more enjoyable and guess what? Again, when you get the programming right, this is
what should happen. And so I, first of all, I love rebounding. It feels so good. I think it's a great activity and I always encourage my participants. If they don't know what to do for cardio, just put some music on a dance. As long as your heart rate gets into the range, you can be doing any activity. And I think, Nikki, it's even more powerful for the fact that you were that person who was getting 10,000 steps a day, as so many women do, and kind of, you know, gave that up to do something which might seem, quote unquote, like fluffy cardio and or just like fun, pleasurable cardio. but it actually was a piece of the puzzle for bringing about such incredible results in the first two weeks. Tell me about your own experience, what you felt in your body, and when you took your progress photos, I'd love to hear about your own reaction to your progress. Were you expecting to get these kind of results in the two weeks, and how did you feel, and what did you... think when you saw your photos? Speaker #1 So these types of results, definitely no, because, because I've tried so many other programs, because I've done so many other things that worked kind of, but I had to work really hard to get any kind of progress. So I wasn't expecting a whole lot. And again, because I felt like I wasn't doing the hard cardio and but I was getting my three strength trainings in, but it didn't feel like I was doing a lot. that again, I wasn't really expecting big changes. I was feeling better. I feel like my posture is a little bit taller. When I walk, I feel like I'm walking with more length and those types of things. And my mood is better throughout the day, all day. So, but when I took the photos and did the, especially the side-by-side comparison, I was I was really surprised and I did look back and forth a couple different times thinking, wow, that is that is a huge difference. But I mean, it doesn't feel like it, but it the pictures really, they don't they don't lie that it's quite amazing. Speaker #0 It's really true. A picture is worth a thousand words and they don't lie. And that is one reason why we look at progress photos, because I've had participants have an experience of their own body as they go throughout the day, as they go throughout the week, that's not based on the mirror or a photo. And they'll say to me, I don't really think there's any progress. But when we look at those photos, it really does reveal the truth. They don't lie. And Let me ask you, did you, are you doing circumference measurements? Speaker #1 I have not, no. Speaker #0 Okay, and that's fine. I kind of figured you didn't because that isn't one of those things I talk about a lot, but sometimes people, depending on where they have come from in their history of programming, some people just automatically do circumferences, but are you weighing yourself? Speaker #1 Yes. Speaker #0 And did your weight change? Speaker #1 No. Speaker #0 Not at all? Speaker #1 Not at all. It's about the same. And actually, actually, as of this morning, it's up a little bit. But I've got a one of those Hume scales. So I do the it's got the different calculations, which aren't necessarily accurate, but I did compare it from the last time I had done the comparison and it's more water weight that the scale would be up. So but yeah, the scale has not changed. Speaker #0 That is wild, wild, wild, wild. Because literally, when you look at the photos, I would have expected a significant weight loss, like five or six pounds. And I think it's even more noteworthy that there's not, because this does mean a loss of body fat and or potentially an increase in muscle mass. Now, you know, it's hard to say explicitly, is this an increase in muscle? because Would a person have an increase in muscle in two weeks? But keep in mind, she had been working out beforehand. So this could just be everything coming together. But did your bathroom scale indicate a change in your body composition? Even though the weight didn't change, is it reporting a difference in your body fat? Speaker #1 Yes, almost 1% difference lower than it was two weeks ago. Speaker #0 Okay. And is it giving you a difference in lean? mass? Does it say fat free mass or lean mass change? Speaker #1 It does. And that increased. So the muscle mass increased a little bit. The body fat went down. And again, my water weight was increased from two weeks ago, too. So it's retaining a little more water. So I guess that makes me feel better that the number on the scale didn't go down, that there's other things that are changing. And again, just looking at the progress photos, I don't really care what the scale numbers says. I
feel so much better and physically looking better in that aspect. Speaker #0 And even beyond that though, like let's not forget we're two weeks into a program. And what I often say to women is beyond everything you just mentioned, right? Looking better, feeling better and or a change on the scale or a change of body composition. The truth is, I think some women are just so desperate for proof of results. There's so many women that are out there killing themselves. Nothing is changing. And so we're, you know, like above and beyond everything else. It's like this visual progress in two weeks is everything outside of the metrics. Does that make sense? Yeah. So talk to me a little bit about What you suspect changed in your nutrition, if anything at all, did you start doing something differently when you started working with me as compared to what you were doing before? Speaker #1 So, you know, the trend now is protein, protein, protein, with no real other guidance on what the other macros should be. So, you know, like by my doctor was always, okay, you should get X amount of grams of protein, but real no breakdown of what the carbs and fat should be in comparison to that. So then just starting working with you, I just haven't changed the actual foods I've been eating, but just adjusted. So now I'm more carbs in trying to get closer to that 40% range. And then my protein and fat is 30, 30. So that is the Only change or the biggest change in my nutrition is just adjusting. the macros break down just a little bit. Speaker #0 And that's what I say to people all the time. It often isn't about radically changing the foods you eat. It's the combination, the serving sizes, the proportions, the portions, right? So, okay. Can you tell me how many grams of protein were you aiming for before we started working together? Speaker #1 Um, 140, Speaker #0 150. Okay. And where I was. Speaker #1 where I was told by my doctor where I should be at whatever that percentage is. Speaker #0 Okay. And where are you now when you approach it the way I teach? Speaker #1 So closer to probably 110, 120. And for me too, that feels better. I always felt like I was trying to choke down the protein. It just felt like it was too much. and then I wasn't getting enough carbohydrates because there wasn't enough calories left. And then with that high protein, I think my fats were too much as well. So just adjusting it to be a little more carbohydrate focused and really watching my fat intake has kind of helped to balance things out as well. Speaker #0 What do you know what your macronutrient distribution looked like when you were aiming? Speaker #1 Before it was probably, I think, closer to like a 30-30 even split across the board. But I would probably end up more at 35 or more in fat by the time the end of the day came. Speaker #0 So pretty much like split right down the middle. Let's call it 30-30-30. It's not really. It's 33-33-33. But basically. In other words, your carbohydrates were below 40% each day and your protein was above 30% each day. Speaker #1 Yes. Speaker #0 Yeah. And were you tracking your macros at the time? Speaker #1 I was. Yep. Speaker #0 Okay. All right. So, I mean, this is what I see all the time. People increase their carbohydrates and they start to lose body fat. And so many people go nuts when they hear that. But it really is about that perfect blend of getting the right macronutrients and I will go to my grave swearing that that 40% is the bare minimum because I've seen this so many times with people where they increase their carbohydrates even up to 50% of their daily calories coming from carbohydrates they feel better and the fat comes off so outside of these obvious changes as you've increased your carbohydrates, do you notice any other experiential changes? Like, do you notice anything like appetites, different food cravings, brain power, any of those other things for good or bad? Have you noticed any changes? Speaker #1 Oh, definitely. So I'm able to stay focused at work longer. Changes in what I had planned to do in the day and then something else comes up doesn't irritate me or bother me as much. I'm able to flip into different tasks quicker. And then my overall mood all day is so much better. And I do attribute that to getting enough carbohydrates because I've, you know, been in the industry for so many years, I've been low carb, low carb, low carb. So getting this 40% as though it has been kind of a, Ooh, I don't know, it seems like a lot, but I just feel overall so much better. yeah and i don't have the food cravings as
much um i feel more sustained throughout the day um and then i have to kind of remind myself oh it's been four hours since i ate last i really need to eat again that's Speaker #0 amazing so you're not going into your next meal hangry starving oh my gosh i have to eat no it's so huge as you've increased your carbohydrates uh what carbohydrates are you choosing? Speaker #1 So a lot more fruits, like the berries, I eat quite a bit of those. And then just potatoes, I make homemade sourdough bread, sweet potatoes, rice, are my main sources of carbohydrates. Speaker #0 That's amazing. I love it. I mean, it's so huge because again, people are like, wait, what? You eat fruit? Isn't fruit high in sugar? It's just like, no, it's carbohydrates. You can call it sugar if you want, but it's not table sugar, right? And again, I just am so excited. And thank you so much for doing this interview because this is my experience of what people have happen when they get their carbohydrates right. And oh, by the way, I think... you know what nikki's saying here i see a lot so many women come to me eating low carb and they are terrified to take their carbohydrates up to 40 percent and when i say 40 that's 40 of whatever your daily calories are we're not even notice we haven't even talked about calories and we probably won't in all honesty but getting your carbohydrates up to 40 per day is terrifying to women But you know what's wild? When we look into the research and medical definition of what's low carbohydrate, what's wild is anything under 45% carbohydrates is technically considered low carbohydrate. 45 to 55, even up to 60 is considered moderate carbohydrate intake. And so we've gotten this skewed perception on what is low carb and what is high carb. And women come in and they're like, oh my gosh, 40%, that's so many carbs. And I'm like, technically it's still considered low carb, believe it or not. But carbs have just gotten so demonized in the past 30 years that people have started to think that any carb is going to make you fat and that's just not the way it works. So... Talk to me about your strength workouts. Again, I'm going to assume you follow the program, but for people who don't know anything about my program and or where you were in the past with your strength training, what would you say you were doing in the strength workouts as compared to what you were doing before? Speaker #1 So before I was following different people on YouTube as a like a class. or I had other different platforms where I would follow different types of strength training, but there was no specific guidance or a set schedule as to why I was doing the specific program I was doing. It just sounded fun and I was able to do it. But with this program, there are three separate days with specific things to do, X amount of reps, how much time to rest. those types of things. And I do all of this from home. So it's things that I have at home and just follow along with that. And before I would always shy away from, because of my knee pain, because of the different aches and pains I have, I would shy away from the lunges, the Bulgarian split squats, those types of things, because I was nervous and I didn't want my knee to flare up and to get sore from that. But with this program, I've been doing it as instructed, but really just slowing down, maybe taking a lighter weight while I make sure I get the form correct. And then with the feedback on on some of those exercises that we do, you get the I get the adjustments and the feedback on how to do it better or how to do it a little more proper to get the better results from that. Speaker #0 And what would you say of all the exercises, what's the heaviest weight load you're doing for any one exercise? Speaker #1 20 pounds. Speaker #0 20 pounds in each hand? For like which exercise? Speaker #1 For like chest press, Arnold press, those types of ones, I do 20 pounds. Any of the squats or the dumbbell squats, I would have 15 in each hand. Um, walking lunges, I started with 15. But because my knees and I really wanted to focus on my form, I dropped down to 10. And that then I could actually do do them correctly and fully. And and really get the benefits of that. Speaker #0 Yeah, that's huge. And I asked that because a lot of people think, oh, she must have been using really heavy weights and or going to a gym and or doing really really long workouts and you know you really spoke to the fact that it's so doable so realistic and it might even be less than what you were doing in the past how long on average do these three
strength workouts take you Speaker #1 About a half an hour. Speaker #0 That's amazing. Speaker #1 Yep, yep. Half hour, 40 minutes at the very most. But the other programs I would do, I would shoot for, you know, the quicker 20 to 30 minute exercises to really get in and get out. And I think that might have been part of the issue is it was just too fast. And I wasn't truly slowing down and getting the benefit of the actual exercise. specifically to target that muscle. So that's one of the things I like about this is it gives me the exercises, but there's no time limit. And I can go through them slowly and really focus on all right, are my shoulders back and down? Are my knees where they're supposed to be? Are my feet hip distance apart to really do it nice and slow and controlled? Speaker #0 Yeah, it's almost like I would summarize that by saying Before, you were working out. You were just working out. You were doing workouts. You were, it sounds like by nature of a shorter workout, you were probably moving quicker, doing higher intensity to get done in a short period of time. But it's kind of, and I see this with a lot of women, they're just working out. They're going to classes, they're doing, you know, one thing one day, something different a different day. And really the biggest change is all aspects of what you're doing now are programmed. There is specific cardio that's specifically programmed. There are specific exercises that actually have an intention and you're following it. So it's like you're following a program now, whereas in the past you were just working out. Would you agree with me? Speaker #1 Oh, absolutely. Because I didn't know what I was doing. It just looked like, oh, this looks like a fun one. I'll try this. Or I only have 20 minutes. What can I find? And then also being in a rural Midwestern area, I don't have access to. specific trainers or I mean, we have a local gym, but you know, the class and stuff that are available are limited. So the resources I have are just online. So to really get this one on one, and a specific programmed routine, it just isn't anything that I would find around here. Speaker #0 Yeah, yeah, I think that's common for a lot of people, you know, the vast majority of people live in non urban centers, and That really makes a lot of sense. And it's like, ultimately, at the end of the day, there are so many people that believe in order to improve your body, you just have to work out, or you just have to work out more, or you just have to work out harder. And if a person is working out just for the joy, or because it feels good, or because they want to be healthy, I've always said, you can do whatever you want, and it really kind of doesn't matter. Go after what you enjoy doing. But if you're actually doing it because you want to improve your body or you want to improve your body composition or improve bone density or reduce aches and pains, that's when it's really not enough to just work out, to just do whatever or whatever is convenient or whatever's hard or whatever's fun because it really does have to have what we call specificity of movement. The outcome you get is based on the programming and Really, I would say this was like the perfect storm in a positive way for you, where it's like all the pieces of the puzzle came together. You were doing so many things right. It just needed to have a bit more of those levers pulled to put you into the right strategy. Speaker #1 Oh, absolutely. And that was one of the biggest things that spoke to me when I first joined was I knew I had the right pieces. I just didn't know how to. properly put them together to actually get the results I was looking for. And to reduce the pain, the constant pain that I was having with that. So by just tweaking what I was already doing a little bit and following a well laid out program, yeah, just being able to see the results and just feeling better overall has been huge in just a short amount of time. Speaker #0 Yeah. Again, two weeks, which really blows my mind. And I'll admit I've been in practice for 30 years. I would say you're up there in the top five in terms of the biggest transformation I've seen in such a short period of time. And while I always say everyone's capable of this, there are so many nuances to where you came to me from. And so in your case, it's just like you said, there were so many things. You were so close. We just needed to make some of these adjustments and then boom, your body will change before your eyes. So I'm just so excited and also so grateful that you're such an incredible student. If there's a woman out there who can really relate to your
story, who wants to have a similar transformation and or just feel like she's moving in the right direction, what advice would you give her in general? Speaker #1 I would just say it's so close and you know getting getting the specific guidance and just following a plan consistently is really all that it takes. I'm not doing anything hard. I'm not doing anything different really than I had before. It's just making just those small changes and I mean, good grief. If I can do it, I really think anybody, anybody out there can. Absolutely. Speaker #0 I love it. It's true. It's kind of like just recalibrating a bit. I always say, people are often right on the cusp. They're so close to stepping over to where they will start seeing progress, but it's just that recalibration. And I think that, you know, your story thus far has just so beautifully eliminated that. So. thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing this with us. And I'm so excited when the program is done in six months minus two weeks, we need to do Where Are You Now? Because I am already so excited for your really big transformation at the end of this program. So thank you for doing this and high five and just keep it up. Speaker #1 Thank you so much for doing what you do so I can reap the benefits of it as well. absolutely. Speaker #0 Oh, absolutely. Thanks, Nikki. Speaker #1 Thank you