“My story is that I started this weight loss/ body strengthening journey not for anyone other than myself. The weight added up when I had my two sons pretty close together (the youngest is two). What pushed me to finally make that big step and say, “I can’t do this alone, but I know I have to do something” was when I went to my doctor because I hadn’t been feeling well; I’d noticed I was having signs of high blood pressure like intense headaches, exhaustion, and light-headedness, and to top it all off, I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression for years.My meds were only controlling it superficially: on the inside, I was rotten. I was put on a medication that is meant for seizure treatment (one off-label effect of this med is weight loss) so, naturally, I started it. A month later, I weaned myself off it: I had started developing tingling and numbness in my fingers! And that was the last straw. I asked myself then, “Karla, what are you doing? What knowledge and abilities do you have to get into better health?”I saw the advertisement for Studio G’s 6-week challenge on Facebook, and I was both nervous and anticipative about what it would mean to take on something like this. You see, I’m a nurse in a high-stress job and I work every weekend, I’m a wife and a mother to my boys— my oldest son is special needs and that comes with therapies throughout the week and special half-day pre-school— and I am also a student currently finishing up my internship and will graduate this semester with my master’s degree in leadership and education in nursing.Would I have the time to take on a program that required my full dedication to meal planning, exercising, and making sure I was hydrating enough at work when some days I don’t even get a full lunch, and there are dishes, laundry, diaper changes, and potty training to take care of on top of homework? Yikes!Well, fast-forward to today, and I am 20 pounds lighter, my muscle that I haven’t seen since I was 20 is shaping back. I FEEL GREAT! I’ve got energy, my high blood pressure is resolved, I’m happier (so is the hubby!), my anxiety hardly ever gets the best of me lately, and my clothes don’t fit— I never thought I’d run into this on the opposite side, too bad I got rid of all my small clothes years ago. I’m going shopping!!!Don’t get me wrong, it was not easy. Heck yes, I wanted that cookie, that glass of wine with dinner, or simply to drink my Bowl of Soul at Java! But I am looking back at this journey and I am proud of the sacrifices and discipline I put myself through.The best feeling of all though: I feel empowered.My coworkers and friends are so impressed by all I’ve accomplished that some of them have joined this studio and have reaped all that it has to offer. And this journey isn’t over yet. Summer is coming and I want to bust out my two-piece bikinis, but I’m going to keep working on it so that I feel confident and in love with myself. There’s always room for growth.I only have one message for anyone who has experienced something like what I have, or even if you’ve got a crazy journey that is nothing like mine: if I can do it, you can do it. And I couldn’t have done it without Studio G and all of the amazing instructors that I have befriended.“
Yoga
“My story is that I started this weight loss/ body strengthening journey not for anyone other than myself. The weight added up when I had my two sons pretty close together (the youngest is two). What pushed me to finally make that big step and say, “I can’t do this alone, but I know I have to do something” was when I went to my doctor because I hadn’t been feeling well; I’d noticed I was having signs of high blood pressure like intense headaches, exhaustion, and light-headedness, and to top it all off, I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression for years.My meds were only controlling it superficially: on the inside, I was rotten. I was put on a medication that is meant for seizure treatment (one off-label effect of this med is weight loss) so, naturally, I started it. A month later, I weaned myself off it: I had started developing tingling and numbness in my fingers! And that was the last straw. I asked myself then, “Karla, what are you doing? What knowledge and abilities do you have to get into better health?”I saw the advertisement for Studio G’s 6-week challenge on Facebook, and I was both nervous and anticipative about what it would mean to take on something like this. You see, I’m a nurse in a high-stress job and I work every weekend, I’m a wife and a mother to my boys— my oldest son is special needs and that comes with therapies throughout the week and special half-day pre-school— and I am also a student currently finishing up my internship and will graduate this semester with my master’s degree in leadership and education in nursing.Would I have the time to take on a program that required my full dedication to meal planning, exercising, and making sure I was hydrating enough at work when some days I don’t even get a full lunch, and there are dishes, laundry, diaper changes, and potty training to take care of on top of homework? Yikes!Well, fast-forward to today, and I am 20 pounds lighter, my muscle that I haven’t seen since I was 20 is shaping back. I FEEL GREAT! I’ve got energy, my high blood pressure is resolved, I’m happier (so is the hubby!), my anxiety hardly ever gets the best of me lately, and my clothes don’t fit— I never thought I’d run into this on the opposite side, too bad I got rid of all my small clothes years ago. I’m going shopping!!!Don’t get me wrong, it was not easy. Heck yes, I wanted that cookie, that glass of wine with dinner, or simply to drink my Bowl of Soul at Java! But I am looking back at this journey and I am proud of the sacrifices and discipline I put myself through.The best feeling of all though: I feel empowered.My coworkers and friends are so impressed by all I’ve accomplished that some of them have joined this studio and have reaped all that it has to offer. And this journey isn’t over yet. Summer is coming and I want to bust out my two-piece bikinis, but I’m going to keep working on it so that I feel confident and in love with myself. There’s always room for growth.I only have one message for anyone who has experienced something like what I have, or even if you’ve got a crazy journey that is nothing like mine: if I can do it, you can do it. And I couldn’t have done it without Studio G and all of the amazing instructors that I have befriended.“