Mary's Story of Rise Up Glory
LIFE BEFORE RISE UP
Before Rise Up, I was not being consistent, and my nutrition was like a yo-yo, constantly up and down. I kept attempting to make healthier choices but wasn’t following through. Looking back, I think my biggest barrier had to be myself and my mindset. At the time, I was making a lot of excuses and was not willing to change my mindset around nutrition being a lifestyle change rather than just a quick fix or “reset.”
My biggest fear was not being happy with my results. Before starting the program, my weight and body fat numbers were pretty high, and I was scared they wouldn’t decrease. At the same time, those numbers scared me and I knew I had two choices:
Let my fear take over knowing it would continue to get worse
Invest in myself, trust the process and commit to the work I needed to do to get the results I wanted.
WHAT HAPPENED WITH RISE UP
Before this year’s Rise Up and having done the program previously, I knew what to do but just wasn’t doing it. I felt like I was hitting a plateau and not making progress, so instead of seeking help from my lovely RF coaches, I became disheartened and went back to stress eating/emotional eating. My mindset around food wasn’t healthy either. I wasn’t thinking of healthy foods as “fuel” but associating them as “good vs bad” which quickly led to a more negative mindset.
For me personally, this year’s Rise Up was different. I think this year was the biggest wakeup call that I had to change everything. Having done Rise Up before, I kept thinking of it as a “reset” button and not a lifestyle change. Every year I’ve done this program I have seen results, but my problem was not continuing to put forth the effort and work needed to maintain results. This turned into a cycle of disappointment and shame.
This Rise Up, I changed my tune, deciding I was going to dial it in, focus and get it right this time! I knew I owed it to myself to try a different approach because what I was doing was NOT working. There are so many things I could say about this year that were different, but I will highlight 3 of the biggest game changers this year:
Rise Up Community: the motivation this year was LIT. Part of my success is due to this community of Rise Uppers; some who have become my “chosen family”.
Keeping things simple: Rise Up reminded me to keep things simple and stick with the basics because they work! That is what this program is built upon and IF you follow the program as outlined, you will succeed! A big piece of this is following the 7 Essentials - these are the 7 key simple and basic habits and behaviors that when done over and over repeatedly, lead to the big changes and results. The program teaches you how to incorporate these habits into your daily lives so they stick. The 7 Essentials are ALL equally important to your success inside and OUT of the program. DO NOT try to skip on those steps or sleep y’all — it makes a difference!
Shifting my mindset: This time around, I completely shifted my mindset both how I approached the program as well as my relationship with food. In past Rise Ups, I fell into the comparison trap but this time around, I took the mentality of “me vs me”; focusing only on myself and what I was working to accomplish.
I never thought about the end of the program but instead, took everything day by day (sometimes meal by meal LOL). It was constantly reminding myself that yes, this is not just a 6-wek program but a gateway to the beginning of a healthier lifestyle so, there is no end. This significantly reduced the pressure of thinking about my numbers and where I would be at “the end”. I began to build trust within myself that as long as I continued to show up for myself every day, my results would reflect that.
When it came to nutrition, rather than attaching an emotion to food, I took the mindset that the healthy foods I was choosing to eat with the program were fueling my body to not only (literally) keep it going but also give it what it needs to do the work and reach my goals.
HOW LIFE IS DIFFERENT NOW
In 6 weeks I am healthier, more confident and stronger than I have ever been. I will start off by saying I am much happier and confident with the body I am in. For those that know me, understand how much of a struggle this my whole life has been (so this one’s a BIG deal). I also feel more confident than I ever have in my ability to keep going and make this sustainable long term. I am much more mindful of the choices I am making every day that are either helping me or hurting me with my overall goals of staying healthy, happy and strong.
Rise Up different than any other program out there. First, the community is unmatched! I don’t know a more genuine and dedicated group of people than these Rise Up’ers and this RF community as a whole. The motivation is what has kept me going on some of my hardest days. I will also say the coaching and accountability was essential to my success this year. The weekly check ins, support groups, the workshops, and tracking sheets all played a role.
Having done Rise Up multiple times, I have had the privilege to work with all three coaches and can honestly say they have all helped me in their own individual ways; each bringing something unique to the table and are all so knowledgeable and helpful. They genuinely want you to have the tools to succeed and you can feel that. These coaches have believed in me at times when I didn’t believe in myself, which is something I will be forever grateful for.
If you are feeling how I was before Rise Up - stuck, knowing what to do but not doing it, yo-yoing with food and emotional eating, my advice to you is JUST START! Put one foot in front of the other and have faith in yourself and the process.
Results Fitness is a community filled with genuine, nice humans and extremely knowledgeable coaches who want to help you be the best version of yourself. Rise Up is a program that will change your life-it’s not easy but it’s worth it - you’ll see.
You will get out of your comfort zone a little but that’s where the magic of progress happens. You owe it to yourself to try and not give up before you know what you are capable of accomplishing. You will be amazed at what your mind and body can do for you when you decide to show up for yourself!
