After going almost vegan, keto, and pretty much every other diet trend out there, it's safe to say that I'm in the "it is what it is" phase of my life. My budget is not fit for a trip to Dr. Miami and I'm slowly but surely embracing the fact that there is no easy way to leveling up your fitness game, but hard work always pays off. Just ask Cassie, who lost 30 pounds in less than a year after giving birth; but, in a recent essay for Almost Home, she revealed that her waist wasn't snatched without dedication.
In the article, she shared before and after images that detailed her progress since her first month as a mother, a decision that Cassie says she was reluctant to make:
"Anyone that knows me and my Virgo mind for real knows how hard it was for me to decide to post this before and after. But since becoming a mother and experiencing how amazing the female body is, I felt it necessary to share."
Cassie said that although her weight loss plan was effectively initially, she soon learned that her journey to being snatched would involve a lot more bumps in the road than she'd previously imagined. After being diagnosed with postpartum thyroiditis, a precursor to Hashimoto's disease, she found that her wellness was about way more than losing weight.
"The next 3 months following were confusing and depressing to say the least. I changed my diet paying attention to things that I reacted negatively to (ie, bloating)."
"I had completely lost my mind, but I'm glad that I did. I needed to understand what was happening with my body. I went from creating and bringing life into this world to trying whatever I could to get back to feeling like myself again. It wasn't about my weight anymore, it was about being happy, feeling good and not developing a disorder I've never heard of."
Cassie says although her health condition tried to stop her from being great, consistency and grace were the keys to aligning her mind and getting her #FitGoals all the way together.
"It was discouraging. Once I started to become more consistent, I started to see and feel the results very slowly but it was happening. I know a lot of people think, well she's married to a personal trainer, it shouldn't be hard for her or she should be in shape she has no excuse, but I was unhappy with myself. S— happens, I'm human."
"Today I'm in better shape than I was before the baby. I honestly don't think I've ever been in this good of shape. Working out has given me a place to get rid of any negative energy and emotions that I might have, boost my serotonin and practice discipline. Every day that I workout isn't perfect, but I show up and I push myself."
The new mom also had this advice for women struggling to embrace their "it is what it is" stage in their lives and encouraged us to stop striving to be "skinny" and start working to be healthy:
"Whatever your goals are, choose to be healthy. For me, this is what it looks like when I'm taking care of myself. This is what healthy looks like for me. It's not about being thin or muscular or whatever people have in their minds as looking 'healthy.' Health comes in all shapes and sizes, it's different for everyone. Health is a peace of mind."
To read Cassie's full essay, click here!
Featured image via Cassie