Making workouts fun helped Jaylene Welch lose 100 lb.
Remember the Cabbage Diet? Pritikin? Or how about that short-lived fad of getting your jaw wired shut to prevent you from overeating? A little extreme, yes, but these were the lengths Jaylene Welch was willing to go to lose weight as a teen.
But like so many, Jaylene got fed up with fads that ultimately didn’t work, and in 2010 decided to change her tack. She joined a program called The Mind Body Fit Club, a group whose weight-loss theory combines subconscious integration with exercise and proper nutrition. Remarkably, in a little more than a year, Jaylene lost 100 lb!
The “Feel Good” Lifestyle
So why did this plan succeed where others failed? The secret lies in its simplicity. Once Jaylene realized the reasons for her emotional-eating episodes and stopped making excuses why she couldn’t or didn’t have time to exercise, the weight started to come off. But it wasn’t always a cake walk.
“I used to wake up and dread having to exercise,” says Jaylene. “But I always felt great when I was done. Then I asked myself, Why would I not want to do something that made me feel so good? Remembering that feeling motivated me to get up and do it again the next day.”
By concentrating on that good feeling, Jaylene redirected her focus away from negative thoughts. Working out became a pleasure instead of a chore. “When I changed my thinking and ditched my own self-limiting beliefs, I suddenly realized I could do anything I set my mind to,” says Jaylene, who then went on to prove that to herself over and over again by completing four sprint triathlons and seven half-marathons.
Her weight-loss success also inspired Jaylene to change her career, and she has recently started a company that allows her to share her newfound passion for fitness while motivating others by organizing events that combine exercise with the coaching and social support you need leading up to the event. Check it out at cic-events.com and join Jaylene on her next run!
Jaylene’s Top 3 Workout Tips
1. Get up and get it done early. Make exercise a priority, like brushing your teeth. Just get up and do it — no excuses.
2. Wear the correct clothing for whatever you are doing. If you are running, buy good running shoes and have them fit for you at the store. If you are a woman, find a really good sports bra and double up if you need to.
3. Find workouts that you love. If you have fun doing it, you are more likely to continue.
Top 3 Nutrition Tips
1. Eat protein and a vegetable with every meal. For me, there are no such things as “snacks”; every time I eat I consider it a meal, and I eat every three or four hours.
2. Practice portion control by buying smaller dinner plates to trick your mind.
3. Have a “cheat” meal once in a while, but always keep portion control in mind. A 4-oz frozen yogurt tastes just as good as a 12-oz one!
Favorite Fat-Loss Recipe
Buffalo Chicken Salad
• 2 cups shredded chicken breast
• 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup buffalo wing sauce.
• 1/2 of a small red onion
• 1 celery stalk diced
• 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles.
Serve in lettuce cups or with celery stalks!
Sample Workout
After a 15-minunte warm-up, Jaylene performs 10 exercises for 60 seconds each with 30 seconds of rest between exercises. She does each exercise for 3 sets using 8-lb weights.
• Biceps curls with an upright row
• Walking lunges
• Overhead raises then triceps extensions
• Burpees
• Squats with an upright row
• Pushups
• Donkey kicks
• High knee runs
• Mountain climbers
• Reverse lunges with shoulder flyes
• Stats
Height: 5′ 3″
Beginning Weight (May 1, 2010): 227 lb
Current Weight: 125 lb
Kim Lyons, NASM CPT, PES, CES and Prenatal Specialist, is an internationally known fitness trainer who worked on “The Biggest Loser.” For more information about Kim, visit www.KimLyons.com.