Many years ago, I went through a breakup that left me lost and confused. I no longer knew who I was or what to do with myself without my other half (literally). To deal with my confusion and pain I turned to partying. I was partying so much that I pretty soon began to gain weight - the only problem with this weight gain, though, was that I wasn't noticing it until one eye opening day at the beach...

I was taking pictures with my sister and friends at the beach in our bathing suits, as girls typically do, and chugging a Four Loko to keep me drunk throughout the day. I don't particularly remember much from that day other than yelling at my sister and demanding why she hadn't posted the pictures of us on Facebook yet later on that day. To this day, I'll never forget the gentle way my sister told me the reason why she didn't post the pictures was because I looked "bad" and that she couldn't embarrass me. I didn't comprehend what she meant at first until she calmly handed her phone over for me to look at the pictures and I, for the firs time, saw the UNHEALTHY sloppy individual that I was turning into - My face looked bloated, my breasts were bursting out of my top in an unflattering way, my belly was hanging out, but worst of all, I looked like a complete DRUNK.

If it weren't for the way my sister handled this situation, I fully believe that I would have continued on my unhealthy path. But sometimes, an angel in disguise drops a bomb on you so big that you run away from your lifestyle and never look back. Soon after, I changed my diet up and began creating healthy breakfast smoothies and started meal prepping my lunches for work. I was blown away by how much better I felt! For the longest time, I always had stomach issues and until I started adding real nutrients into my diet, I could make it through the day without a bathroom emergency EW!

The biggest turning point for me though was when I first stepped foot into a gym - I will admit that I was highly embarrassed at first, but after following my sister and some friends around, I soon emerged from cardio prison to the weight section. I went to the gym everyday after work for a couple weeks and one day, one of the friendly employees who worked the front desk walked up to me practically picking their jaw up off the floor to tell me how great I looked and that I have made amazing progress since the day I signed up. This was the first time anyone complimented me on my physique and I was completely flattered and HUMBLED. Needless to say I was hooked!

I now meal prep most of my meals, leaving room for some treats, and workout 4-5 days a week to maintain what I have worked so hard for and to also keep me sane. After a while, the gym stopped being a place to lose weight, it turned into a place to gain something instead. In fact, I no longer look at the gym as where I go to just lift weights, I go there because the gym lifts my confidence, which then lifts my spirits, and ultimately lifts my SOUL. I consider myself a Soul Lifter (as apposed to a weight lifter teehee! ) and now am a Certified Personal Trainer so that I can lift other people's souls through fitness too!

I have been working on creating my own online fitness business called "Soul Lifter FItness" and am soon ready to launch my website and show the world! In the mean time, if you'd like to catch a glimpse of my Soul Lifter lifestyle, please take a look at my Instagram @Soul_Lifter_Fitness for workouts, inspiration, and food prep ideas! I also plan to create a YouTube channel as well so stay tuned - I have so much that I want to share with you all to help lift your soul through fitness too!