In October of 2017, I was pregnant with my third and last baby. I developed a bad case of preeclampsia which forced me to deliver my daughter at only 36 weeks pregnant. Preeclampsia is supposed to get better after you deliver your baby, but my symptoms did not. I met with my doctor in early December 2017 and he was concerned. My blood pressure was still 150/95 and I hadn’t lost a pound. I was now suffering from migraines and blurry vision. The doctor feared I was going to become a diabetic as well. The doctor was planning on putting me on a number of medications which would have ”caused me to be unable to breastfeed my baby. I asked my doctor for an alternate he recommended exercise.
I joined Gold’s gym in December. I was so scared of the gym. Everything was foreign to me and I worried everyone would judge me for being heavy. I only used the gym late at night, so no one could see me. After a few times of coming, I stub bled by this flyer about a 12-week-challenge that the gym was offering. I was super nervous about doing it because this would mean I would have to admit to the world that I was overweight. Reluctantly, I signed up for the challenge. For the first time since joining I had to go into the gym during the day for the pictures. To my surprise, everyone was super sweet and supportive. No one judged me for my extra weight. Everyone just wanted to help me with my journey.
After getting the confidence of going to the gym during the day, I decided to try a class. The first class I tried was body pump. My face must had showed the fear I had because everyone in the class was super sweet to me. One lady even helped me with the set up and with the exercise moves. I fell in love with these classes! I started going 6 days a week. I was hooked. Every time I went, I got stronger and stronger and gained confidence. I started to feel as though I belonged. The instructors were great too! Michaela is one of my favorites instructors. She was always there for me whenever I had questions or needed help. She definitely went over and beyond for me.
