Hiya folks,
My name is Vicki and I am a member of The Athlete Lab, or TAL as members call it. Alongside a bunch of great people, I started at TAL during a special
program. The program was built for beginners to regain their fitness, nutrition and functional lifestyle. But, let me backtrack a bit, and tell you how this all came about…
The fabric of our community rests with each individual member. If not in person, we invite you to shake hands with them virtually. Meet Vicki:
I was checking out Facebook, and saw a post from a long time friend and former student of mine, Grace, who was already a TAL member at that
time. Since I know Grace and her husband, Chris, checking out this gym was almost a logical extension. We all do a little bit of picture-peeking, right?
I’ve known Grace for a long time. I’ve known her old self, and I saw who she became over the course of 10 months. Every time she posted a new picture, I could see how she changed her physique and how energetic, full of life and happiness she looked.
The changes she made for herself, inspired me to look a little bit closer.
I knew that her “secret” to success was a particular program that was offered at TAL. I had to wait a bit, but then I saw that TAL would be hosting another Transformation Group. After the initial meeting with Michael, where he explained all the ins-and-outs, I signed up for my own journey.
This is how my most excellent adventure started.
It’s been a few months now since I had started, and at this point I feel very good in my progress.
I am stronger overall. My balance is so much better than when I started. My core is stronger. I feel great. Fitness, which is oftentimes a chore
for people, myself included, has changed. Now I look forward to showing up and seeing the people and how hard all work and how each person
supports each other. The classes are much diversified, everyday is different and that is what is so great, all around body workout and never ever boring. EVER.
But that’s only describing what today is like. There were times before I felt great. For that, I’ll invite you to travel back in time with me just a little bit more.
My health wasn’t always a primary concern of mine. Before starting my personal journey, I was overweight. I relied on taking 9 different prescription medications. I had open heart surgery and a stroke to boot. I drank way too much and my left food needed surgical attention because walking or the simple task of buying shoes was near impossible. As if this wasn’t enough, I was diagnosed with Lupus, and when I added depression to the my daily struggles, the temptation to just give up and seek refuge in mind numbing escapes was ever inviting. My escapes were plentiful. Food, alcohol, cigarettes, and a mental attitude of “I don’t care enough anymore”.
At some point, I can’t recall exactly when it happened, I suddenly felt the innate desire to change. My own awakening, and course of action, led
me to quit drinking four years ago. Subsequently, I was able to lay off seven of the nine daily medications I needed to take. Yet, I still wasn’t in the condition that I needed to be in, to continue on my path to becoming truly healthy.
Fast forward to joining TAL and the continuation of my own, although guided, adventure. I am now off all my medications. The foot I told you
about earlier, the one that needed surgical intervention? It quit hurting at the end of February. The symptoms gradually disappeared and I felt that I no longer needed surgery. Ultimately, I was able to cancel the procedure. Not just did my health improve to that degree, but it also saved me a ton of money by not having to pay my portion of the surgery. The open heart surgery and the stroke are now just a factual matter of the past. It’s an incredibly empowering feeling!
The other notable side effects are that I am sleeping better. My psychological view of life has changed, too. I feel confident when I am working as most of my work can be physical.
I am a firm believer in karma and a plan. More importantly, though, I am grateful. Grateful for what karma had in store for me. Grateful for the TAL community. Grateful for…life.
Could I have made this story shorter? Sure. Here it is: “I’ll see you folks around TAL!”
Vicki