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Discover How NBC News Anchor Sarah Carlson Lost 6 Inches Off Her Waist

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Sarah After MamaTone with her boyfriend Nate

Today’s transformation is a very special one for me.  For many of you living in WI, you know Sarah Carlson as the news anchor for NBC.  I have been fortunate enough to know her also as a good friend.  Sarah is responsible for hundreds if not thousands of you reading this blog, and taking my classes.  Sarah was the first person to give me a chance on TV, and I am so grateful for that.  Sarah has gone through hell the past couple years, but has overcome and endured.  Not only has she lost close to 25 lbs, she has lost about 6 inches off her waist!  She came to me about 3 years ago frustrated that after 9 months post partum, the weight and the belly fat was just not going anywhere.  I started training her and we focused more attention on the weight training and less on the cardio.  I will admit though, Sarah still loves to run 5-10 miles 3-4 times per week, but she has been extremely consistent with her weight training, and at 113 lbs is one of my stronger clients.  She also has a pretty impressive stomach, especially from what is was like just a couple years ago.

Here is her story in her words:

 

Sarah Before

I could bore people to death explaining the list of “things to do” on my desk at home today. Short term disability, health insurance, doctor’s appointments, school registration… it never ends! One thing I refuse to take off my list, though, is exercise. It’s true I would get more done if I didn’t take an hour or so out of every day to work out. But it’s one of the reasons I’m surviving the stress of a soap opera life and health problems. Continue Reading →

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How Jennifer Lost 100 lbs

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Are you part of our community of Fit Moms?  If not put your name and email in the box to the right to receive a free gift and receive awesome articles and videos on how you as a mom can get and stay in the best shape of your life.

Today I have a video to share with you, that might be one of my favorites of all time.  It is a story of a client/friend of mine named Jennifer, who over the course of about a year has lost 100 lbs through Fit Fun Bootcamps and MamaTone. I knew Jennifer a little bit in college, and 4 years later our paths crossed again and she joined Bootcamp and MamaTone.

Check out this video

Jennifer before

The reason why this is one of my favorite videos, because it does much more than talk about the 100 lb weight loss and the physical changes she has gone through, it talks more about how she is different as a person.  Seeing the increase in self confidence, and the deep down conviction that anything can be accomplished in life, are some of the best rewards I get as a trainer.  This is far greater to me than any number on the scale.

Jennifer is one of the 31 woman featured in my book that is coming out this summer and I couldn’t be happier or prouder of her!

If you are inspired by Jennifer’s story or have a question for her, share your thoughts below using Facebook or the comments tab, and she will answer them.  To learn more about Jennifer’s photography business check out http://jenniferledwardsphotography.com/

If Jennifer’s story has wanted you to take action, I encourage you to take two action step options.  If you are in the Madison, WI area, check out our Fit Fun Bootcamp or MamaTone schedule. If you aren’t in the area my Fit Moms For Life monthly DVD program might be a great option.

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Working Out While on Vacation

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Hi, this is Liz one of Dustin’s contributors.  With Spring Break fast approaching my anxiety about getting good workouts in while away from home increases greatly!  I’m so used to MamaTone 3 times a week, running, and doing Got Core once or twice a week I know that I will go crazy if I don’t challenge my body while we are gone.  I’m a strong believer that I’m  better mom, wife, and person when I get my work outs in.  We will not have access to a gym while we are in Arizona; so I have found one way to battle this anxiety is to write down all the exercises I can think of that Dustin and Abby have taught us that don’t use equipment.  That way I don’t have to try and think of things on the spot, I have a cheat sheet.  I also recommend finding something unconventional you can use as a weight if possible.  Last fall while visiting family I found what I think of to be as a better use of soda ;)  What do you do to maintain your fitness while on vacation?

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My Wake-Up Call

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Shelly K, contributor to Dustin's blog

In my last post, I wrote about Why Losing my Driver License was Rewarding, ultimately sharing there was much pleasure in being able to enter a new much lower weight and see a much thinner face in my pic.  I told you in the next post I would tell you how I did it.   Well it started with a wake-up call!

It was late summer of 2009 and I was vacationing with several close friends from grad school and their families on a private resort property in Canada.  It was tradition for 10 brave folks to take the “Island Challenge” – that is paddling a ten person canoe to a private island (maybe 1/4 to 1/2 mile), running the hilly trail route (maybe 1 mile…not sure) and canoeing back, all timed to be recorded in the trip ledger.  The canoeing part went ok, I mean you have 20 arms allworking together, but when the run-time came I petered out after about a minute resorting to walking and a little jogging while the others quickly made it back to the canoe yelling for me to keep going.  Eventually I made it to the canoe and we paddled back, but not before our time ticked past the last year’s Island challenge time thanks to the weakest link – ME!    All because I fell prey to the all too common: get married, work more, turn 30, have kids while omitting health habits of good exercise and eating.

Continue Reading →

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Surviving the Treadmill

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I’m all for running outside to enjoy the great outdoors.  But sometimes it’s just too darn cold.  Or sometimes it just doesn’t work with kids.  So, as busy parents, we resort to the much-hated treadmill.  I created this for one of my mom clients who is time-crunched.  It’s quick and easy.  And, I would argue that it is possible to get a good cardiovascular workout on the treadmill without boring you to death.  This one works even if you are not a runner.  Simply make all of the work portions a hilly hike instead of a sprint:

Build a pyramid with one minute of active recovery (walk or slow jog) after each work portion.  Keep in mind that the work portions should push you to the point that you would have trouble carrying a conversation.  Start with a 5-10 minute walk. Then,

30 seconds hike at 3.5  mph, 5% incline, recover

1 minute jog or sprint, recover

1.5 minutes hike at 3.5 mph,  5% incline, recover

2 minutes jog or sprint, recover

2.5 minutes hike at 3.5 mph, 5% incline, recover

3 minutes jog or sprint , recover

then go “down” the pyramid

2.5 minutes jog or sprint, etc.

Follow it up a 10 minute slow walk, some pull-ups, push-ups, squats, and plank holds and you have fit in a quick, effective workout!  Please let me know if you have questions or want some more advice on heart rates for each level.

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Going Gluten Free

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Hi, this is Liz one of Dustin’s contributors.

Liz

Up until about 2 months ago I have never really worried about food allergies, now I’m obsessed!  About 7 months ago I started having a lot of GI tract issues.  Mostly early in the morning when I was out for a run.  It got so bad that I planned all my runs around local bathrooms.  It eventually got so bad I knew I wasn’t going to be able to train for my upcoming marathon if I didn’t do something.  I was also finding that no matter how well I slept at night I was SO tired in the afternoons.  So as embarrassing as it was (and yes this is embarrassing to blog about)  I went and visited my doctor.  He ran some tests, they all came back normal.  So he suggested that I had Irritable Bowl Syndrome.  I was not willing to accept that diagnosis because I knew something must be causing everything that was going on with me physically.   Continue Reading →

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Discover How Lynn Lost 61 lbs Through Fit Fun Bootcamps

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The before pic that started it all

Today I am happy to share with you a great story of a mom named Lynn who lost 61 lbs.  Lynn has been coming to Fit Fun Bootcamps for over a year now I believe and she has quietly been transforming her body in amazing ways.  Lynn ins’t the loudest person in the group, but she has a soft, determination about how that I really love.  It seem like each month I have to reset my image I have of her body, because it is always changing. :)  Lynn does a great job sharing her story with you below.  I think it is great that her husband is so supportive of her and her choices she is making.  Lynn has bought into my system of training and eating and she will never be the same.  Are you ready?  One note: MamaTone is pretty much the exact same workout as my Fit Fun Bootcamps, which are similar to all my different DVD programs.  The only difference is that is it during the middle part of the morning and we provide childcare.

Picture me, 33 years old, in the jeans section of a department store, 3 months after the birth of my second son. I have already lost the 30 or so pounds I gained during pregnancy or so I thought and I start trying on pants. The smallest ones I can fit into are a 22. A 22! I’m depressed. I leave with one pair of 22’s. I have to wear something. I am not the first or last mommy to have been in this position.

Picture me, later that month checking facebook. My friend posts a picture of me pushing my older son on a swing at the park. I don’t even recognize myself. I’m really depressed now.

Lynn smokin 61 lbs lighter and many sizes smaller

I decide things need to change. I decide to start with what I can do. I decide I’m going to need many partners to help me get through this journey. My first partners are Bob Green and his book The Best Life Diet and Leslie Sansone and her Walk Aerobics DVDs. I start paying attention to what I am eating and make small changes as Bob’s book suggests. I weigh myself and I am 190 pounds.

It’s 5AM and I have just fed the baby, I decide this will be my work out time. The 3 ½ year old is asleep and the baby usually takes a cat nap after his feeding. I place him in a bouncy seat and pop in a DVD. I don’t think I even bothered to put on a pair of shoes that first day.

Now, if you knew me at all, you would know that I am all about truth. My mother refers to my proclivity toward frankness as “graphic”, a perfect description. I start marching and side stepping and instantly I notice that I can feel the globs of loose fat and skin moving up and down with me. I am uncomfortable and embarrassed. How did I let this happen? Luckily, it was just me, my sleeping baby and Leslie in the basement and so I persisted. I got up faithfully every morning and did a DVD. Sometimes I made it through, sometimes one of the boys woke up and I didn’t, but I persisted. And every day, Leslie told me that I was making a good choice. Every day, she told me it didn’t matter how big I was or how long I had to exercise (a mile, 2 miles, 3 miles), I had made a good choice. I needed to hear her say that every day as my fat was flapping up and down.

Fast forward several months and I have lost many pounds. My next partner turns out to be Fleet Feet. I had treated myself to real shoes a few months back and was put on the Fleet Feet e-mail list. I read about their No Boundaries beginning running program. Previously, I had always been interested in running but didn’t feel I could do it. I was a great walker, but as soon as I tried to run, I overheated, got a headache and felt like I was going to die and would quit. That would all happen in about the space of one minute out on the trail! I e-mailed my husband and told him I wanted to join this running group and asked if he could come home early every Wednesday and wake up early every Continue Reading →

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Fighting the Baby Fat

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Hi, this is Katy one of Dustin’s blog contributors.  This time of year always gets me thinking about what I am thankful for, and this year I am most thankful for my new, healthy lifestyle.  Dustin did a blog post on my weight loss awhile back, but I didn’t go into detail on my struggle with the dreaded baby fat.

One year ago today, I delivered my 3rd child and was itching to change my life.  While I was pregnant both my mom & sister had lost over 30 lbs.  No one wants to be the fat one in the family, but I figured there wasn’t much I could do about it while I was pregnant.  It was hard when my sister would call me excited she had lost another couple pounds (while I had gained another couple). Continue Reading →

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Enough Of The Self Sabotage!

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This is Tracy, one of Dustin’s guest bloggers!

So many times in my weight loss journey I have convinced myself that I would never be successful at something, so why even try.  Sounds like self sabotage, I know.  I am really trying to work on that.

And, this week I accomplished something that I had fully convinced myself was not possible.  I QUIT drinking Diet Coke…..

To some reading this, you might think, “that couldn’t have been that hard.”  But, for someone who has had at least one if not three (or more) Diet Cokes every day for probably the last 20 years, I will let you, this was a HUGE accomplishment.  This has been one of those things that quite often in my journey, I have been told I should try to take out of my diet.  However, as I mentioned above, it was also one of those things I thought I could never do, again, self sabotage.

So, let me tell you a little about this week, and how I came to be 7 days DIET COKE FREE!  (I even love the sound of it!)

Continue Reading →

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Starting My Journey Again….With Your Help This Time!

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This is Tracy, one of the guest blogger’s for www.dustinmaher.com

I actually asked Dustin if I could be a blogger, hoping it will help me with my accountability.  Because to be honest, that is where I fall short in this whole weight loss journey every time. I have done Weight Watchers, and done well.  As soon as I quit going, boom, it all comes back.  Same with other things I have tried.  So, I hope you don’t mind, but I am going to make myself accountable to YOU!

Over my many years of trying to “get healthy” and lose weight, I feel I have picked up the majority of the tools/knowledge I need to be successful in my journey.  I have figured out what I “should” eat, I have found a great workout program that is affordable and fits my needs in Mamatone, and I really do want to be successful. I know I have said that before, but as I have recently turned 35, have two small children who are 5 (Maddy) and 1 ½ (Cayden), I know that my time is NOW.   I just don’t know why I keep losing my way.

I have always been bigger, however as a child was always very active.  I played sports all throughout school, including softball in college.  I think that is what always kept me from being too overweight.  However, as college ended and my forced workouts came to an end, I didn’t really pay attention to what was happening to my body.  I mean, come on, I was too busy working, partying and eating out with friends in my 20’s to even realize I had put on about 50lbs.  Then you put two kids, working full time, etc. on top of it, and well, I am here today to say, I don’t have the luxury to continue to be ignorant any longer.

So thanks for joining me on this journey, and as I check in with you each week, I will tell you about the challenges I faced (I am sure there will be many).  And hopefully, the successes I have.  (Lets hope the successes outweigh the challenges!)

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