Ingredients:
 

1 pound(s) lean grassfed beef
2 zucchini, coarsely chopped
1/4 red onion, chopped
4 tsp truffle oil
2 tsp minced garlic
chili powder to taste
sea salt to taste
 
 

Directions:
 
Add all ingredients to frying pan and cook until meat is fully cooked. Use as much chili powder as you like. Add salt after it is cooked.
 
 
Nutrition:
 
*Makes 4 servings*
 
Cals – 246
Carbs – 7g
Fat – 13g
Protein – 26g

If you like this recipe and want more like it,
Grab your copy of the Bikini Cookbook today!

Kyra,
The Get In Shape Girl



5 weeks down, 5 weeks to go. This bikini competition may be the hardest thing I’ve ever done. So much harder than I could have ever imagined. In my last post I had just finished my first two weeks of my training for the WBFF bikini competition. They were hard, I was going through serious sugar and processed food withdrawal, the workouts were brutal but I knew it would get easier as time passed. At least I hoped it would.
 

The two weeks that followed were great, I felt like I had gotten into a groove, I was getting stronger; the nutrition program wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. That is until I got midway through week 4, then my body began to fail me, I hit the proverbial wall.
 

As mentioned previously, I suffer from POTS, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, and exercise is the key to overcoming the symptoms I deal with every day, but POTS doesn’t go down without a fight and it gets worse before it gets better. I knew that going into this, that’s why I decided to compete in a bikini competition, I knew that personal pride and competitive spirit was something that would help me fight back!
 

Hitting the wall is not unique to POTS; anyone undergoing this type of extreme change in lifestyle will struggle to continue to push their physical limitations. In my case the struggle is simply amplified by the virus. Right now the fatigue is overwhelming and I feel like I’m getting weaker not stronger. Adding to my struggles is the fact that my heart rate is staying elevated throughout my workout (between 190-210 bpm) and my blood pressure is getting lower so every work out ends with an intense feeling of nausea. Wonderful.
 
 

 
 
It would be so easy to just quit right now, just say I can’t do this its too hard but I can’t my pride won’t let me. Everyday I struggle to motivate myself to go to the gym, it’s like I have an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other, each fighting for my soul. I have 5 weeks left until the bikini competition, I have to do this, and I can’t have a set back now!!! It’s even more frustrating because I don’t feel like my body is where it should be and I’m so sick of eating the same boring meals. I don’t want to just show up and compete for the personal satisfaction of knowing I pushed my fitness level, I want to win!! I won’t even have a shot if I give up now!
 

I’ve bought a killer dress & swimsuit, I’ve officially registered to compete in the WBFF bikini compeition, I know my experience as a runway model and beauty queen will help me with my presentation! I know I can do this, I’ve done it before. Granted it’s a lot easier when you’re 25 vs. 35, I just need to stick it out 35 more days!
 
 

Right now my husband Jason is serving as my inspiration. If you think what I’m doing is hard, it’s nothing compared to his current mission. Jason is the president and founder of the Endure to Cure Pediatric Cancer Foundation, and right now he’s riding his bike from Oceanside, CA back to Boston, all in an effort to raise money for his charity. That’s crazy, that’s hard!
 

The kids going through cancer treatments are facing a far more difficult challenge then I am. In the grand scheme of things spending and hour or two at the gym and eating clean is ridiculously easy compared to those challenges. I just keep reminding myself of that and hoping that all this hard work will pay off in the end.
 

Ugh, off to suck down my muscle gain shake, 35 days until Five Guys and ice cream!!! Let the countdown begin!!!
 
Shana
 
 
 

Would you like to train for a bikini competition?
Grab the Bikini Cookbook and get started today!

This is a sponsored post through FitFluential and Under Armour. While I was not compensated, I was provided with apparel. All opinions are my own.
 

When I created my What’s Beautiful team and goal I had been giving a lot of thought to my own happiness. Yes, I have a goal to get stronger and leaner, but at the end of the day, my overall life goal is to be happy.
 

I have said it millions of times, what’s the point of having a six pack if you don’t have friends and never have any fun? Or why do I want to kill myself over a perfect diet and workout plan if I can’t ever go out with my friends?
 

Duh, I LOVE working out. Probably more than anything else. But I can’t workout 24/7. I have to fill my time doing other things. Yes, I have to work. Bills must get paid. Luckily I love what I do. I also love going to dinner with my man and trying new restaurants and different foods. I love laying out and tanning by the pool. I love traveling to visit friends all over the country. I love partying until wee hours of the morning with my girlfriends.
 

Not all of these things help me achieve my goal of getting leaner or getting stronger. But they do help me achieve the main goal in life: to be happy.
 
 

You absolutely HAVE to have some kind of balance. If you go out partying five nights a week or try new restaurants daily, you probably wouldn’t feel very good and would not be in the best of health. And if you do nothing except workout and eat a perfect diet then you won’t have much of a social life and you would feel depressed. You gotta find something in between.
 

I’ve lived on both extremes of the spectrum and I’m telling you, balance is key to achieving the overall goal of the healthy and happy life.
 

So when you start thinking about what you want and #whatsbeautiful remember, you have to find some kind of balance and what it all comes down to… being happy.
 
 

What makes you happy?
How do you find balance?
Leave me a comment below!
 
 

Kyra,
The Get In Shape Girl

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Lately I’ve been involved in a lot of conversations about goals. Most of us get involved in fitness and start making fitness goals based off our appearance. We get tired of seeing jiggly arms or muffin tops and we decide to lose weight.
 

Along the way we set performance based goals so we can distract ourselves in the process. So the overall goal may be to lose 20 pounds, but along the way you may get really into running 5k’s and you decide you want to run a sub 30 minute 5k. Or you get really into lifting and you make the goal to squat your body weight 10 times.
 
 

I think performance based goals are typically (not always) healthier mentally than appearance. The reason I say not always is because I’ve definitely found myself so wrapped up in my performance based goals that I’ve become unhappy. I stress myself out so much about being able to snatch 100 pounds that I get mad at myself when I can’t get the technique right. Or while at my Crossfit competitions I’ve found myself not having a good time because I didn’t place in the top 50%. So performance based goals aren’t always healthy either.
 

But generally it is very healthy to have performance based goals. For myself, it has helped me find comfort in eating. When I am roaming through my cabinets looking for food, I ask myself, “Is this going to help me get a new one rep max?” and if the answer is yes then I eat it and I don’t feel a bit of remorse. I cannot tell you how much this has helped me mentally. I don’t eat to be skinny, I eat to be strong.
 
 

That said, I respect and have both kinds, performance based and appearance based goals. But I think that sometimes the two can interfere.
 

For example if you’re trying to get really lean then the kind of dieting it takes can definitely take away from your strength and stamina. My girlfriend dieted down last month and she was missing weights she had been able to move before. You have to realize that can happen and be okay with that. You can’t expect to restrict calories and shy away from certain foods and be able to maintain your strength.
 

Or on the other end, when your end goal is performance based, are you willing to eat as much as you need to support that goal? For example, I have to eat and ton of food and be okay with gaining a little weight to get to a 300# deadlift by the year’s end.
 
 

Another example of this is when women decide they want to run a marathon. They’re overall goal is to lose body fat, but they get really involved in running and wanna go for the full 26.2 miles. When you have to train at the level that marathoners do, you have to eat a lot to support that. Not to mention the stress is puts on your body and all of the cardio you are doing that is not supporting the growth of lean muscle and in fact your body may store more body fat as you prepare for the race. I fully support when my clients want to run distance races, but they have to understand that preparing for a marathon is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum from lowering body fat and building lean muscle.

I do think its possible to have a little of both though. I personally am all about getting stronger and training like a maniac, and I’m willing to put on some weight, but I had to gain fat to hit all of my goals, I wouldn’t take it. At the end of the day I have to look good in a bikini
 
 

It’s a fine line we walk and it takes careful planning and preparation. It may also mean that it takes longer to get to those performance based goals and you have to be okay with that too.
 
 

Do you have performance AND appearance based goals?

What are they?

Which is more important to you?

Leave me a comment below!!

Kyra,
The Get In Shape Girl
 
 

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This was a letter sent to me from a client who recently went through three months of online personal training with me.  In these three months she went from doing hours of cardio to pushing herself in the weight room to achieve a lean, toned body.  She also went from following a strict calorie deficit diet to eating clean, feeling great and even eliminating symptoms of ulcerative colitis.  Training Katie online has been a wonderful experience, but I would like to share her story with you.  Also, she has ask to keep her photos private.  I wish I could share them, but I respect my clients’ privacy.

Kyra, The Get In Shape Girl

Dear Kyra,

Although I know you have asked me to write a “Success” story regarding my last 3 months spent participating in the Inner Circle, online personal training, I would like to consider my story a “Work In Progress” story.  I believe this category of story is more suitable to my experience over the last few months because I AM NOT DONE YET! I want to keep going!  I want to continue to eat healthy, gain muscle, and be the most athletic and happy person I can be.  I believe the term “success” sounds like the end result of a goal, where as I am still striving to achieve something better and new each day.  My time spent working with you through the InnerCircle has completely changed the way I view fitness and nutrition.  I have gone from running 8 miles a day and an empty fridge to GISG workouts, HIIT, and fridge full of the week’s MRE.  I have more energy, a better attitude, and know I am leading a much healthier lifestyle.  Basically, why would I want to stop this feeling?

The reason I initially signed up for the InnerCircle, online personal training,  was because I knew I needed a change.  After running for years on end, my body had become sore and broken down.  The same miles that were so easy before were becoming difficult.  I wanted a break from running and wanted to build muscle, so that I could return stronger than ever.  I looked to fitness magazines and blogs for guidance.  I wanted the body of an Oxygen covermodel; appearing strong, healthy, and still feminine.  After reading fitness blog after blog, it seemed as though there was a recurring theme; the models were never doing cardio for hours on end or eating only a piece of lettuce.  I didn’t know what I was doing wrong.  Even after years of exercising and educating myself about food, I still had the formula for “healthiness and strength” incorrect.  After stumbling upon The Get In Shape Girl on Facebook, my journey towards healthiness began.   I began reading the GISG status updates and emails and knew you and I were on the same page.  When the InnerCircle, online personal training, was revealed for the new year, I knew I wanted to join.  The year 2013 was, and still is, my year of change.  I coined it my “rebuilding” year.

What drew me the most to join the InnerCircle was the fact that it was catered specifically to me.  Since it was not my first time stepping foot in a gym, I was not looking for someone to make sure I completed the assigned workouts; rather, I wanted someone to push me to lift as much as I could for 8 reps.  Little did I know, this would be followed by 10 burpees, 20 situps, and then repeated 3 more times.  I LOVED IT!    Each day was something different and for the first time in years, I felt challenged.  I was sweating and out of breath during my workouts.  It felt AMAZING!  I knew that these workouts were meant for me and the goals I was trying to achieve.  The “element of surprise” was another factor that kept me motivated.  No workout was ever the same; I can certainly say I was never bored with this program.  Each night I logged into the website and jotted down the exercises for the next day.  It became almost like a game.

Although I ended up dealing with a shoulder injury for the entire 3 months, I still made it through and tried to complete the GISG workouts the best I could.  I did this because it made me feel strong!  Modifications were made, and that was ok.  I was never made to feel as though I was not completing the workout or a failure.  I can honestly say I never missed a workout (except after surgery).  The GISG online personal training workouts have become part of my daily routine.  I would feel lost if I didn’t have my piece of paper with me to show me what I was doing for the day.

My diet lifestyle has been another area of my health that has undergone quite the renovation.  My previous diet consisted of 0% greek yogurt for at least 2 meals a day, some berries, and usually some type of veggie and jello for dinner.  No fat during the day if I could help it.  I also drank at least 64oz of diet soda a day and 24oz of coffee doused with Splenda.  Looking back on it, this is not even real food.  After joining the online personal training program and talking with Kyra, I changed my diet, almost immediately.  I knew it needed an overhaul, but I did not feel like putting the effort into cooking, cleaning, and making meals ahead of time.   Today, if you are to look in my fridge, it is stocked with chicken, eggs, and tons of veggies.  I even eat fats now.  I love the lifestyle of “clean eating”.  I no longer drink diet soda and have not used one of those yellow Splenda packets since January.  I have also noticed drastic improvements with my health because of this lifestyle change.  For 9 years, I have dealt with ulcerative colitis.  I was always told it was not linked to my diet; I was taking medicine several times a week to keep the symptoms at bay.  Recently, I noticed that I have been able to go nearly 2 weeks with no medication and no symptoms.  Amazing!  Thank you CLEAN EATING!

Without your coaching through the InnerCircle, online personal training, I know I would not have made the lifestyle changes that I have made today.  In general, I am a very type A person, but for some reason, I felt I could trust you from day 1.  I felt relief in the fact that you (at one point) seemed to have struggled with the same notions of “what is fit and healthy”.  Needless to say, I thought the coaching through the program was excellent.  Although we have never personally met, I always felt as though you were looking out for my best interest and the goals I wanted to achieve.  I trusted you.  I loved the ability to check in through email each week.  This forced me to acknowledge what I was doing each week (whether good or bad).  I also thought the weekly telephone calls were great.  I almost wish those were weekly!  Often times it is not easy to type an email trying to express a concern or question, but the ability to have 20 minutes of personal phone time was just what I needed.  Hearing a voice on the other end also made the “online personal training” that much more real.  I often wondered if you spent that much time offering helpful advice to all your clients, or was I just the lucky one you liked the most .

With the ability to check in with you on a weekly basis, I did not take full advantage of the Accountability groups.  Although I am sure many clients might find them extremely helpful, I was pretty self-motivated to stay on track.

If given the opportunity to be a part of online personal training, Inner Circle 2, online personal training, I would absolutely love to join again.  Since my friends and family are constantly asking for workout tips, I think the Inner Circle would be right up their alley as well.

As previously stated, I am still a “work in progress”.  I have just started to make positive changes in my life and would like to continue to head down the right path. Although I am pretty sure I have the diet portion nailed down, I still need those daily workouts tailored to my goals.   Furthermore, with my shoulder on the mend, I can’t wait to attack those weights with no pain!  Round 2 will be a whole ‘nother ballgame!!

Needless to say, with everything that I have learned over these past 3 months, I can’t imagine what I will be saying in the 3 months that follow.

Thank you again for everything!

Katie

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Over the next two months I’m going to be giving up a guest blog spot to a friend of mine.  She’s competing in her first bikini competition.  I truly hope you enjoy her story and following her along her journey.

Hello, my name is Shana and I’m addicted to sugar. That might seem like a dramatic introduction, but it’s true, sugar is my drug of choice. My diet consists of weekly doses of chocolate cake, butter cookies, blueberry muffins, Sour Patch Kid candy, etc..

At first glance you might not consider me out of shape. I’m 5’4’’ and weigh 108 pounds; by any definition I’m tiny. However, behind this tiny exterior I’m hardly healthy. I suffer from a rare virus called Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, otherwise known as POTS. In short, my body doesn’t compensate for gravity. When I stand up my blood pools at my extremities, causing my blood pressure to drop suddenly, which in turn causes my heart to speed up to rates normally only seen during a typical cardio session. Most of the time it just makes me really tired (as far as my body is concerned I’m running a marathon everyday) but on rare occasions it causes me to faint, usually when I stand in one place for too long.

For the last 6 years POTS has ruled my life, I’ve been completely inactive and tired all the time. I’ve tried so many different medications but nothing as helped. To make matters worse I’m cardio intolerant. Any type of exercise exacerbates the issue, making me even more tired. Ironically the key to overcoming POTS is exercise! I’ve tried to get back into a regular gym routine more times than I care to admit but I’ve always lacked the motivation to push through the fatigue. That is until now!

You see, I’m a former pageant girl. Ignore all the stereotypes you’ve heard, pageant girls aren’t always brainless beauties hoping for world peace. The pageant girls I know are incredibly ambitious, articulate, intelligent and savvy women. I am who I am today because of my experiences in pageant. I’m also 35 years old and well past my pageant prime. Recently I noticed many of my pageant friends had begun competing in bikini fitness competitions. I am in awe of them, I couldn’t even imagine getting my body into such great shape! It just seemed impossible! Until my friend Melissa convinced me otherwise.

Melissa is a proud member of Team Fit Girl and recently won her WBFF Pro card at the Fitness Atlantic competition held in Connecticut this past April. She began her transformation a year ago and she looks amazing! Somehow Melissa convinced me I too could whip my body into shape, in 10 weeks no less! Just in time for the WBFF Boston Championships on June 29th.

I made the decision to take on the challenge 2 weeks ago. My hope is that the competitive side of me will overcome the fatigue. So far it has worked. I don’t want to be embarrassed; I’m in it to win it. The first week was miserable, I was tired, my sugar cravings were out of control and I was sore from the hard-core gym routine. Week 2 was easier but the results aren’t so obvious and my body is still in detox from my sugar and processed food habits.

Over the next 8 weeks I hope you’ll follow me on this journey from out of shape sugar addict to bikini fitness competitor! My hope is to bring you through the highs and lows, real time results and maybe just maybe I’ll inspire one of you to take on this same challenge, make what seemed impossible possible and become a healthier, happier person in the process!

Are you considering a bikini competition too?

Grab your copy of the Bikini Competitor’s Cookbook today!

Everyone in the fitness community all over the world, is up in arms about this whole Mike Jeffries interview with Business Insider where he made it clear exactly who he wants to purchase clothes from Abercrombie and Fitch.

“He doesn’t want larger people shopping in his store, he wants thin and beautiful people,” Lewis told Business Insider. “He doesn’t want his core customers to see people who aren’t as hot as them wearing his clothing. People who wear his clothing should feel like they’re one of the ‘cool kids.’”

A lot of people including other bloggers and fitness personalities have brought this up to me, expecting that I’d be outraged, but I have a bit of a different outlook on this, and I think you’ll be surprised.

I remember being 13 years old, going into Abercrombie and Fitch for my first time. This was in 1994 back when it was being managed by the Limited. Do you remember the old carpet that looked like flannel and the big old tables that looked like antiques? This is an Abercrombie a lot of people don’t remember. MY first purchase there was a sleeveless button up and it was a size small, but it was so baggy on me. I also remember the Woods cologne. I made my boyfriend wear it all the time. I actually heard they re-released this scent not long ago. This was before the brand changed to the super sexified brand we know today.

I have worn Abercrombie pretty much my entire life. I wore it all through high school. It was definitely a commodity and caused a lot of arguments because my parents couldn’t see spending $50 on a shirt I was inevitably going to think was “uncool” a few months after the purchase. But it wasn’t until college until my true relationship with Abercrombie and Fitch started.

From 2002 to maybe 2004 I worked at Abercrombie and Fitch while I was in college. I had a blast and made some really good friends with whom I still have a relationship to this day. It was a mindless college job. I got a discount on clothes (well, they actually made you buy their clothes, which resulted in a lawsuit, but that’s another story), I got to hangout with people my age all day and make a little cash doing it.

Many of you know that my body was also expanding quite a bit around this time. I would buy size 8 jeans and squeeze my ass and thighs into them because I REFUSED to wear a double digit size. At that time I do remember the sizes for jeans going as high as 12, but as low as 00. Occasionally we would get a few shirts in XL, but luckily I was still fitting into a large. It was no secret that the clothes ran small too – that was part of the re-branding that went down in 1997.

To be completely honest, one of my major victories I’ve had since transforming my body is going to Abercrombie now and buying a size 4 pants and small tops. Last Spring I went there and spent wayyyyy too much money. I bought a few dresses, some cute tanks and a couple of skirts. While I was there a girl who was helping me pick out a few things actually offered me a job. Knowing very well the “look” they go for when offering people positions, I was really flattered. I smiled and told the girl she was sweet, but that I was 30.

But seriously, having come from a place where I worked at Abercrombie and Fitch and barely was able to squeeze into a size 8 and large tops, to being able to wear a size small and getting offered a job is a huge victory for me – I busted my ass to get this body.

Furthermore, the Abercrombie and Fitch CEO, Mike Jeffries, may be an idiot for making the statement, “In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely,” publicly, but THIS IS MARKETING.

If you have ever started a business, run a business or worked closely with a marketing team for a business, you know that every company has a target market. Do you really think that brands like Bebe or Diesel are really trying to appeal to anyone other than small or average sized women? In college I couldn’t even fit into anything from the Bebe store – even Abercrombie had clothes big enough for me, but no one says a word about Bebe. (But then again they haven’t called attention to themselves.)

Regardless of how anyone feels or who is offended, it is marketing. Every brand has a niche market. Target has a niche market. Victoria’s Secret has a niche market. Starbucks has a niche market. The Get In Shape Girl has a niche market. You cannot hate on someone for this – it is how business works!

And, you know what.. the more you talk about, google it, tune in or read stories about Mike Jeffries and his antics, the more this FREE ADVERTISING is working!!! This company has never paid for typical advertising. Have you ever seen a print ad for them? Nope. This is why!

So you know what, I really don’t care who their niche market is. I still like their clothes. If you hate their clothes and hate what Mike Jeffries and Abercrombie and Fitch stand for, then don’t support them. But remember, that every company out there stands for something, and if you go around avoiding everything you don’t like, then you may end up really sheltered! I don’t agree with his views, but in the end, it’s just marketing.

What’s your take?
 

Kyra,
 
The Get In Shape Girl

For the Ladies

On any given morning, my first sight is the glaring green 4:35 on the alarm clock, although, sometimes, it’s 4:36 and my husband nudges me to shut the darn thing off.  Oops.

I stumble to the bathroom where my clothes are stashed then to the kitchen for the rest of my gear: watch, ear buds, water bottle and pepper spray.  I down a package of fruit snacks and sneak out the door.

You might be wondering, “Why in the world would anyone set their alarm for 4:35am?”  I am a member of the elite, pre-dawn running population.  And by “elite”, I mean “insane”.

I must say, pre-dawn is not my first pick for times to exercise.  I think it would be kind of nice to run in the daylight, without the headlamp, blinking taillight and other reflective gear, but I’m also a stay at home mom, so I need to fit my runs in around our busy family schedule.

“Is running really that important?” You might ask?

Yes.

I love to run.

I run in the dark.  I run in the rain, the snow and the fog.  I run in the heat of the summer and the cold of the winter.

Most often, I run alone.  It’s my time to think and dream and plan.  It’s my time to just be me.  Not the mom and wife working to keep everyone else fed, clean and on time for school, play dates and activities.

I’m me:  splashing through puddles, leaping over potholes, singing and dancing down the street to the beat of my music with explicit lyrics.

Most days, this is the only time I have to just be with myself, to get lost in my own thoughts.

My time on the road helps me to be a better, more patient mom to my little ladies.  I find that on my non-running days, I’m more sluggish and snappy, but when I run, I have plenty of energy to play and I’m far more tolerant of their little lady antics.

I’m a better person when I run.

I hear people say all the time, “I don’t have time to {insert any form of exercise here}.”

Me either.

I don’t have time.  I make time.

My (physical and emotional) health is important to me and I’m making it a priority.  In doing so, I have to give some things up.  The weeknight television shows that are on at 9 or 10pm?  I don’t get to watch them in real time.  Staying up watching TV until 11pm isn’t an option when my alarm will be waking me up at 4:35.

Why?  Why is all of this important?  I’d like to think I’m teaching my little ladies that exercise is awesome and that they can be girly, wear pink tutus and still be stronger and faster than the boys.  I hope that I’m teaching them to set high expectations for themselves, that they have no idea what they’re capable of until they try and if they fall short of their expectations, they can try again.

I love that my little ladies already love to run and I love that when they wake up in the morning, they ask me how my run went.  I love that when we’re driving down the road and we see a runner, they want me to put the window down so they can cheer.  I love that on the Monday after a big race, they want to bring my medal to school to show their friends.

I hope the love for all things running grows with my little ladies and follows them to adulthood.  I think we’re off to a pretty good start.

Jamie lives with her husband, two daughters and three dogs in central Ohio.  She has run 2 marathons, 3 half marathons, an overnight relay and many other races of shorter distances.  Jamie blogs about all things running, fitness and parenting related at Rise.Run.Mom.Repeat. and tweets as @runmama2girls.

Are you 40 and wondering How to Get In Shape?

Check out How This Hot Mama Turned 40 and Worked Her Way to the Athletic Body of Her Dreams

Before I started working with Kyra, I thought I was working out hard.  I’ve worked out for years and really enjoy it, and would usually do home workout videos.  I started out with the FIRM, then moved on to Les Mills Pump and Les Mills Combat from Beachbody.  I worked as hard as I could (I thought!) and tried to lift as heavy as I could, but always followed what went along with the video.

I thought similarly about my nutrition.  While I knew I wasn’t perfect, I figured I ate pretty well.  I thought I ate better than the average person, but my lunches consisted of Lean Cuisines, nearly every day.  Every afternoon snack was some kind of protein bar.  I *thought* I was doing all the right things and knew how to get in shape.

Yet for all this working out and meal planning, I wasn’t seeing the results I wanted.  I craved having a fit, tight, muscular, athletic-looking body.  Did I look decent?  Yes, but it wasn’t living up to my expectations in my mind.

I had debated working with Kyra for quite a while, and had never actually “bit the bullet” and signed up with her.  When she started her Inner Circle program (to teach us how to get in shape), it came at the same time as my 40^th birthday.  I decided to give myself a present and finally signed up with Kyra.

Wow, were my eyes opened!  The workouts she hands out are some of the hardest I’ve ever done, but they are SO fun.  I have SUCH a feeling of accomplishment afterwards.  I look forward to my workouts and can’t wait to see what’s on the schedule next!

Kyra has taken the time to really work with me on proper eating and how to fuel my body best for the workouts.  My nutrition has completely turned around!  I haven’t had a Lean Cuisine since my birthday and now focus on whole, unprocessed foods.  I am eating more than ever and really enjoying everything I eat.  I still eat many of the same foods my family is eating, so there are no separate meals being prepared.  And best yet, I’m not endlessly planning my meals, the basics are so simple and stress-free.  I’m not agonizing over how much I’m eating (or not eating), making sure I’m getting enough protein, or counting portions/calories.  I eat the way Kyra tells me, and I know I’m getting everything I need.  Best yet, she worked with me to make sure to include all the things that I enjoy.

Kyra really, really cares about her clients.  She checks in every week, to see how I’m doing with the meals and the workouts.  She has answered questions any time I’ve had them, which I think is often (sometimes I think she’s been tired of hearing from me!)  She cares about her clients, offers suggestions as needed, but isn’t afraid to give you a swift kick if that’s what you really need!

I have gained so much in working with Kyra.  I have worked harder than I ever have, but I feel so good about it.  I feel like I can tough it out through anything, that if I can do these workouts, then there isn’t anything in my “regular” life that I can’t power through and get done.  My results have been amazing.  I am so much stronger and fitter than I have ever been.  I’m lifting heavier weights and running faster sprints that I ever have in my life.  It’s fun to work out without concentrating on what an instructor in a video is doing; I can listen to my own music, move at my own pace, modify if needed.

I am inching closer to that fit, toned, athletic looking body that I want.  But more importantly, I am becoming more interested in what my body can DO—how much can I keep progressing?  How much harder can I work, what can I lift, how fast can I run?  How much fun can I have while working out?

I would definitely do Inner Circle again.  I plan on continuing training with Kyra for the foreseeable future—I cannot imagine giving this up yet!  I have told everyone I know about what a fantastic trainer Kyra is.  People are probably more irritated because I don’t shut up about it!  Giving myself this gift has definitely been one of the best things I’ve ever done!

Are you ready to learn how to get in shape?

Are you ready to make the changes to get the body of your dreams?

Sign up for Online Personal Training with The Get In Shape Girl today!

Sweet and Spicy Baby Bok Choy

Try this delicious and simple clean eating recipe today!  It’s vegan, gluten free, dairy free and paleo!

Ingredients:

4 heads of baby bok choy

2 T coconut oil

2 packets stevia

pinch of red pepper flakes

Directions:

Place ingredients in deep frying pan, cover and let simmer on medium/ low setting for about 20 minutes to steam.

Nutrition:

*Makes 2 servings*

Calories –71

Carbs –2g

Fat – 7g

Protein – 2g

Do you like this recipe and want more like it?

Grab the Comfort Foods and Tailgate Treats cookbook here!

Kyra,

The Get In Shape Girl