Health, A Lifelong Priority.

Client: Lizana Muir

I am not your typical client specifically looking to increase performance or to shift a weight class. My primary goal is HEALTH and Married To My Macros is definitely helping me.

My health journey has been a long one and Kat has helped me continue to heal but also provide me with something I've never been able to achieve - better body composition WHILE still having energy and looking after my health. 

Through my teenage years and 20's I was always sick, on antibiotics, eating the wrong food drinking a lot, partying, constantly tired and always low on energy. I never slept well as long as I could remember. I was very active - running, playing sports, working out at the gym and eventually finding CrossFit and Weightlifting. I could never understand how people worked out every day! Sometimes twice a day? Where did they find the energy or how do they recover so quickly? I love exercise but I found I would have a great few weeks where I would feel amazing and invincible followed by weeks of lethargy and niggly injuries. 

All of this I lived with but when the food intolerances and gut reactions started to get worse is when the true frustration set in. I started avoiding foods that caused adverse reactions and that helped a little but mostly things slowly got worse. Even though I had adopted a clean diet free of processed foods, dairy, gluten and sugar. 

I've also had a lot of stress in the last 5 years - I've moved house 3 times, moved countries, had my heart broken, changed jobs multiple times (all my own doing), ran my own business and juggled multiple jobs at once, had so much money I was lost with what to do and also had no money I was worried debt collectors were going to knock on my door. 

Years of abuse from food, alcohol, sleep, antibiotics, stress and anxiety.

In my early 30's I'd had enough. Enough of the limited foods I could tolerate, the exhaustion, the rashes, acne, brittle nails, orange skin, shortness of breath, aching joints, mood swings, insomnia and the list goes on!

I had low thyroid function, gut dysbiosis and adrenal fatigue. Basically, my hormones were all over the place and I was exhausted, couldn't digest food therefore absorb nutrients and found it hard to lose weight and gain muscle. I worked with a Dietician for a few years and we started my recovery. Medicating for my low thyroid, gut healing and de-stressing including not so much high intensity exercise. 

That was a HUGE part of my recovery and these things take time. I had to go through that to get to where I am now. I got to a stage a year ago where I was feeling pretty good. I could eat a larger variety of food, I was generally relaxed and had energy to slowly start exercising regularly again. Then I moved countries! 

When I met Kat I had regressed and a lot of my symptoms had come back. Basically, my thyroid was still low even though I had been on medication for 2 years and I was back in adrenal fatigue - my cortisol levels remained the same all day; basically, my body was in a state of stress all the time... which leads to burn out. I had also put on a lot of weight and was at my heaviest. I knew what I had done previously so started back on that regime but nothing was working. 

And that's where MTMM came along!

I had never tracked macros before, I'd always just eaten good food. Kat showed me that eating the right food for me in the right quantities is hugely important and beneficial. Kat has focused on foods and supplements to heal my gut and techniques to reduce stress AND making sure my macro profile is sufficient for my needs. I eat MORE protein than ever, and I still get to eat delicious carbs and healthy fats.

My focus other than nutrition is sleep! Listen to my body... rest when I need to and also work out with the intensity I feel that day. Some days I just want to walk cause that's all I can manage but other days I can CrossFit and feel great. That's ok. I know the difference from feeling muscle fatigue or tired to feeling exhausted.. so I listen to my body. I'm kind to myself. Which - reduces my stress!

I've been able to focus on my health - all while feeling better about myself, losing fat, gaining muscle AND healing my body. 

It's a long journey for me and I'll always be susceptible to slipping back into Adrenal fatigue but I'm so glad I have Kat to help me along and to have shown me that I CAN lose weight, look good, feel good about myself AND be healthy. I also love that I have someone to guide me and listen to my complaints and questions. Someone who supports me and is genuinely interested and invested in my journey and seeing my health improve. 

As far as improvements in the last 5 months - I now have clear skin, no acne or rashes, I sleep better, less gut distress or reactions, my nails are long and strong, the high energy days outweigh the exhausted days and I'm more in tune with my body. Numbers aren't so important for me but I have lost nearly 6kg and over 9 1/2cm in total around my waist, belly and hips. Still lots of work to do but I'm on the right path with Kat's help! 

Everyone's journey is different and ever evolving. 

This is mine.