11.04.2011

My Fit Memoir: Kyla of Healthy Girl!

Morning Brickhouses!!

It is FRIDAY!! TGIF!! Last day of Week 3 for the R30 challenge! Thank God I am soooo ready for my weekend!

Today I want to introduce you to a new element of the blog called My Fit Memoir! In the Fit Memoirs, people who have found their pathway to success in fitness will share their journey along with success tips and inspiration for YOUR journey! I am so pleased to have our FIRST Fit Memoir come from none other than my little sister Kyla Camille of Healthy Girl!

My sister has always been someone that danced to the beat of her own drum! Growing up, while I was trying hard (too hard) to fit in and be "cool", my sister defined what that was for HERSELF! Even though I wasn't able to admit this growing up I, being the eldest of us two looked up to HER being comfortable in her own skin, going and doing what she wanted to without answering to peers or following social norms. As a result I call her my BIG little sister because she is truly wise beyond her years!

Her journey has motivated me SO much and I know you will be inspired and motivated as well!

Ah-mazing right? Read the interview to get the "skinny" lol

Hello!
Hi. (laughs)

(laughs) Okay, Let's start by you telling us how your fit journey started.
My fit journey started by accident! On my 17th birthday mommy and I went to the Cheesecake Factory for my birthday. Whatever I ate made my throat itch and lips swell up. I thought it would pass but it was like that for a couple of days so we went to the doctor's for an allergy test. They tested me and I found out I was allergic to soy, peanuts, and tree nuts.

Oh yea Cheesecake Factory cooks their food in peanut oil!
Right, and I had an allergic reaction because of it. Once I found out that I was allergic to those things I realized that pretty much EVERYTHING I ate had some form of soy or peanut product in it. Mommy would buy me expensive products that didn't have those type of ingredients but they were nasty, plus I am a picky eater so I just didn't eat.

At all?
I mean of course I ate! But there wasn't much I could eat and neither me or mommy knew how to shop for my allergies. I lost a lot of weight just by eliminating the things that could kill me! Over time I figured out what I could eat and enjoy and my weight still remained lower.

Senior Year - Seven Months post allergy test

So besides the changes in your diet how did you maintain it?
When I got to college in 2009 my roommate and I didn't get along AT ALL and I wasn't able to connect with people together like we had planned. All of my friends from high school were still in high school in DC [she attends Virginia Commonwealth University] so I was alone. My school has a student organization fair and I signed up for Crew...to make friends.

How would you explain Crew?
Crew is rowing in a 70 foot boat! Think a rowing machine except wayyyy bigger!

Kyla is the one with white glasses, a fro, and melanin! lol

I detest the rowing machine! But I remember your back and arms were super defined when you were on the Crew team!
Yours would be too! We had 5am workouts seven days a week, a three mile run to the boathouse, rowed from 5am-8am, and then did workouts on the rowing machines at night! Total body workouts every day! So yea I was cut.

Kyla and her Crew teammates!

Second semester I decided to quit crew because it was taking too much of my study time. It was then that I gained the infamous Freshman 15 but mine was more so 20ish or so (laughs). I still went to the gym like twice a week but I gained because I still ate like an athlete who was doing killer workouts everyday even though I wasn't.

Did your clothes fit?
They were a little snug but I could fit them. I was still healthy and healthy looking.

Ok so when did you get RIPPED?!
I got ripped when mommy moved to PA to take care of Grandaddy my sophomore year.

Kyla, our Grandaddy, and a plump version of me! Summer 2010

Her moving sparked it?
Yes, In 2009 I was  diagnosed with ADHD and had been taking a pill called Focalin to keep me focused. It helped me to excel in school. The insurance mommy and I had made it so that my prescription could only be filled and picked up in DC. When mommy moved she couldn't pick it up and mail it to me like she did my freshman year because she was in PA with Grandaddy. I was too broke to travel monthly to DC so I had to go without it.

Focalin also acted as a appetite suppressant so on it I was eating a  moderate amount of food [three square meals and snacks] when I was off of Focalin I ate A LOT, fell in love and gained love weight, and pretty much flunked out that semester. I researched natural methods of treating ADHD because I was not happy with the way things were going in school. I found that working out and eating healthy can help aid ADHD so that's what I did.

Post Workout satisfaction face!

Post workout sexy!

When I first started back up I was just doing treadmill and elliptical workouts which were starting to bore me. That's when I started my blog on Tumblr so I could follow fitness blogs and other people making their fitness journey so I could learn what to do to get ripped.

Next I got a trainer at my school's gym that I worked out with weekly for $24 a session. Once I got a job there my training sessions were discounted to $10. [RESULTS BELOW]


Ripped

Ripped Back

Gun Show!!

O.M.G.

Well Damn.


What do you do at the gym? What is your exact major right now?
I am a fitness monitor. I make sure no one is dying and I clean up after lazy people who can't put weights back.(laughs) I take my fitness training and group exercise classes in December and then I will be officially certified and my major is Exercise Science which is a pre-Med tract.

What advice do you have for someone who is interested in starting their fitness journey or is currently on it?
My advice would be to make sure that you are not just taking care of yourself physically but mentally as well. Allow yourself to have slip-up days. Why be miserable? Being healthy is not about punishing, depriving yourself, or feeling guilty about eating. There are so many misconceptions about losing weight and dieting. First off diets, especially fad diets (think Atkins, baby food, 28 day diet etc.) are meant to get results fast but it will be temporary. No one can keep up a diet forever. It has to be a lifestyle change where you are making overall healthy and wise decisions. Your body is like a machine, it needs fuel [food] to survive. Everything you eat doesn't turn to fat so don't be afraid of eating. FAT IS NOT THE ENEMY!! We actually need fat [good fats] to survive.

Now that's good eatin' (Made by Kyla)

Second, the best advice I can give regarding workouts is to incorporate weight training into your regimen. Working with weights keep you tight and toned. I can't emphasize it enough my breasts are extra perky and they weren't always! Also ladies, if you want a nice booty-- SQUATS!! I had a touch of cellulite before I started training and squats smoothed it right out!

Kyla- Healthy Girl!

I hoped you enjoyed our first Fit Memoir and have gained a wealth of knowledge from my BIG little sister! Don't forget to check out her blog here for more pictures of her progress, recipes, tips, and daily visual motivation. You'll be seeing much more of her as starting next week, she will be taking YOUR questions in another element of the blog called "Healthy Girl! Speaks" .

If you have a question for Kyla to be included in next week's Healthy Girl! Speaks, or have your own story you would like to share for My Fit Memoir!, please email us at lgifitnessbykef@gmail.com or leave a comment.

Have an amazing and fit-abulous weekend!

-KEF
xoxo

#operationbrickhouse
#R30challenge
#Fitmemoir
#getsome

3 comments:

  1. This was great. I look forward to reading more :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. -Victoria This is awesome ladies!!! Kyla looks amazing!! I'm ready to start my fitness journey!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. This was amazing! Kyla looks fantastic. The conversational tone kept this interesting and then to see the transition...I just love this.

    ReplyDelete

Please add your name at the beginning of the comment so I can know who you are :)