Before LIFTOFF I was eating very clean during the week and I was tracking my macros. The macros I came up with were numbers based on weight, activity level and age. From there I had come up with an estimate of how many macros I should be eating. Although I was VERY healthy and strict during the week, I would often go out to dinner or brunch and have a few drinks on the weekends. It wasn't until I started tracking all this that I realized how my weekends were really throwing me off. I found that I wouldn't eat enough food during the week, and on Sundays and Saturdays I was usually eating way too much. The alcohol alone was a huge detriment to my success.

I decided to start working with LIFTOFF, and while I focused on nutrition I decided it was a good time to wean off my anxiety medication. I had been on a low does of anti-anxiety/depressant medication for 6 years. Having someone checking in on my mood and my nutrition made me feel like it was a good time to come off the medication (with a doctors help!).

Since joining the LIFTOFF Community I have felt AMAZING! Nutrition plays a huge roll in depression and anxiety. Alcohol can really affect your brain chemistry. Sleep can be an issue when coming off medication so checking on energy levels with my LIFTOFF coach was helpful, not just from a nutrition aspect but it was a good self check as well. I have also felt so good in the gym! I am performing better than I ever have. I lost 6.5% body fat and I feel so much more conditioned during longer workouts.

One of my goals was to get stronger and put on mass. It has been really helpful to have a coach setting targets for me and holding me accountable. Recently I asked if I could eat more because I wanted to gain even more muscle mass. My coach pointed out to me that I haven't been hitting my current targets and I need to try to do that. If I hadn't had her to point that out to me, I never would have noticed. I think in my mind I believe I am eating enough, but if I look back at my logs, there are plenty of days I am not hitting my target - I'm still under-eating. I now feel good in my skin and I feel great during most workouts.

Anxiety has been something that I have struggled with for a long time. In the past I would over-eat when I was stressed. Having the accountability in LIFTOFF has truly helped me deal with my anxiety in a productive manner. I feel clear headed and focused. My nutrition has allowed me to feel fueled and energized. I also think its been helpful to have weekly check-ins. Some weeks I feel "fat" but then I take my check-in picture and realized it's all in my head. That’s been a good mental reality check.

Prior to LIFTOFF I felt like I was stuck. I would get frustrated with myself for not being able to figure out how to change my diet to work for me. I do it for other people daily, but when it came to myself I would feel paralyzed. Having someone else, my coach, do it with me has allowed me to feel supported and confident about the changes being made. And when I do freak out, my coach helps me come back to reality.

I am currently working on putting on mass ( lean muscle mass) without putting on body fat. This has been fun to do with someone! On my own I would have been afraid that I was eating too much and I wouldn't trust the process. But knowing I have someone who is thinking this through with me allows me to just focus on what I need to eat and hitting my numbers. Checking in weekly helps me not freak out. For instance, in the past I would maybe feel heavy or like I over-ate. I would kind of freak out and think I needed to make BIG changes to my diet or that I have been doing something wrong. Knowing I have a check-in weekly I am able to access the whole week and say "Oh I wasn’t off all week, I was just off one day" or I can say "Oh I felt off the whole week, maybe we need to change something? Or what are some other factors that could be contributing". Working with my coach on those "other factors" has been very beneficial.

Overall LIFTOFF has been extremely beneficial. I was someone who KNOWS nutrition. I minored in it. I am a personal trainer and nutrition coach so I KNOW how to eat. But having someone else look at my diet and hold me accountable has been a game changer. I have seen more progress in the past 4 months than I have in the past 2 years. It has been slow, steady changes in my diet that have made a huge difference. The best part is I get to eat more and I feel energized, satiated and I am in the best shape I have ever been in! I am excited to continue to see progress as we move forward.