My career brought my family and me to Columbus in July 2017. We immediately started locking down the bare necessities: schooling for our toddler, childcare, learning our new neighborhood, and finding a gym. That’s when my journey at Life Time began. I was into Crossfit in my home city of Dayton, however with my new schedule I needed a gym with childcare options, and hopefully, multiple locations. After taking the tour and seeing that I could do my Crossfit workouts at the gym while my son played in the daycare area, I signed us up immediately.

Fast forward about 10 months, I was settled in at the gym, meeting new people, enjoying the plethora of equipment and the extended hours. From a fitness perspective though, I had made zero gains. Using an app on my phone for programming, and not paying any attention to my diet, it was easy to see why my fitness and health issues were not improving. I was diagnosed with arthritis about 5 years ago. Along with that I have struggled with high levels of inflammation, acid reflux and GERD since I was in high school, I was stuck taking pills to manage my issues. Every time I tried to stop taking medication, my symptoms worsened, and next thing I know, I’m back on the meds. I woke up one day and realized I was 36 years old, with a 4 year old, worsening medical issues, yet still wanting to expand our family. I needed to make some changes to my fitness and diet to improve the quality and longevity of my life. It was about that same time a trainer in the club, Adonnai Santos, mentioned the 60day to me. With a little hesitation, I thought to myself, why not? I asked Adonnai if he could help me get stronger and have a leaner, more muscular physique. With all the confidence in the world he looked at me and said, “Definitely!” I signed up that day.

As it turns out, joining the 60day is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. After the first week of sticking to my diet and working out in the group setting, I lost about 3 pounds and 2% body fat. That reinforced my decision to join the program and things really started to take off from there. I quickly realized just how bad I was at planning my own diet, as one of the first things I had to do was clear out my refrigerator and cabinets of things I would not be eating. I donated boxes of things like processed foods, snacks, box dinners, because I knew that hopefully, if things go right, I’d never want to eat them again. Adonnai set my diet plan, and I stuck to it as strictly as possible. There were a few times I had to substitute certain meals because I was on the road or ran out of something before I was able to make it to the grocery, but for the most part, I was extremely disciplined with my nutrition. I found new foods that were appetizing and delicious, even some foods I had literally never eaten before, things I chalked up as food for health nuts, or bland and gross. I also had to donate several of the “premium” supplements I was accustomed to taking because of the hidden ingredients I never knew to look for. After comparing ingredients and seeing all the hidden ingredients like sucralose and fillers, I changed all my supplements over to Life Time’s line of products. I was then fully invested and becoming addicted to the process. I did not only see the benefits on the scale, but also in the mirror. Friends and family were starting to take notice. That’s not what I was in it for, but it definitely felt good to get compliments from people and have them ask questions about how and what I was doing to get these results.

Fast forward again to the end of the 60day. I cut my body fat percentage in half, which I would’ve never thought possible in just 60 days. I also lost close to 15 pounds. The body I have now, I only dreamed I could have after years of extreme dieting and working out. My son always made me feel like a superhero, now he tells me I look like one. He’s 4 years old and for his birthday, he asked me for weights so he can be big and strong like his daddy. Not having a father growing up, I want to set the standard and give him somebody to look up to in every way possible. Seeing him now eat his vegetables, want to play outside more instead of with his video games, and checking the nutrition facts of his snacks to make sure they don’t have a lot of sugar in them, makes me feel like I’m on the right path in setting a standard of fitness and health he can follow. I’ve also inspired other people in my family to make changes to their eating habits and be more active. In the last month, I have stopped taking all medications, and I feel amazing. I recommend anybody that has a dream of looking and feeling better, and learning the right way to go about sustaining it to sign up for the 60day. My life has changed for the better in so many ways, and I know that this new life, is my new lifestyle. I am not done, I’m just getting started, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.