True transformation happens when you change your habits, behaviours and mindsets so you can have the body you want and keep it.

Before I fully committed to transformation, I was sad, lonely, felt unworthy, old and frumpy. I was very overweight, had no self-confidence, and was a people-pleaser who worried about what others thought of me. I feared judgement and avoided anything that would put me in the spotlight, because I was ashamed of how I looked. I had a strong diet mindset, was a perfectionist and needed others to validate me. I focused on the negatives, compared myself to others, and ran away from the hard work I knew I needed to do.

I thought that if I could just lose weight, I’d be happy, and that the secret was to diet more and exercise more.

Then I had my snap point and committed fully to transformation.

This year I have changed so many habits — some that have been around for more than 35 years! This hard work, which often goes unnoticed, needs to be celebrated and acknowledged. Anyone can go on a crash diet and get ripped. But not everyone is willing to work through habits to ensure a lifetime of health, confidence and happiness.

I hope that my story might inspire someone else to keep going, or inspire someone else just like me who is wondering if they can change their life too.

My answer is ‘yes, you can’.

Transformation requires strength, courage and patience. You need to delve deep inside yourself and confront your deepest fears and demons. Some demons you will slay, and others you will learn to tame. Some demons may have been living there for decades, and will take much effort and work to control.

You need to replace old habits with new ones because habits really do beat intentions every time.

I am still working towards my ultimate body shape goal. But this year, I have:

• Learned to love myself the way I am
• Learned that it’s okay to be seen where I am
• Got rid of the perfectionism and diet mindset
• Stopped feeling guilty or afraid around food
• Stopped being a people-pleaser
• Stopped worrying about what other people think of me
• Learned to believe in myself and celebrate ALL my wins
• Grown in confidence
• Taken my power back from those who have bullied me in the past
• Embraced the hard work required
• Trained well in FIRE and ICE
• Confronted my fears
• Inspired other people on their transformation journeys
• Fallen in love with the process of transformation, instead of focusing on the end result
• Changed my body shape considerably.
• To say I am proud of myself is an understatement.

“To get from a miserable place to a happy place, you have to be brave enough to travel through a scary vulnerable, lonely place called uncertainty. Having the courage to choose uncertainty over certain misery is a happiness decision that will transform your life.” – unknown.