Don’t Get In a Pickle, Have a Ball!

“I am the smallest I’ve ever been!”

Those were the words I had the pleasure of hearing during my most recent measurements with Sharon Meyer.  It’s been such a pleasurable journey training Sharon and her husband Allan over the past three years. The Meyers and I started training right before the Covid Pandemic in 2020. They were referred to me by their previous trainer, who is also a good friend of mine.

Prior to me, Sharon had lost a lot of weight and made some amazing changes to her lifestyle. After I took over the reins, she buckled down even more and reached goals beyond her beliefs.

Working Out With The Meyers

My journey with the Meyers has been a fun one. When the gyms shut down back in 2020, we worked out on their driveway. We would work out for an hour and then we’d hit the courts and play pickelball. Fun times for sure!

Although the road to making changes hasn’t been easy, Sharon lost more than 20 pounds while working out with me.

(You’ll find out more about her changes a little later in this blog)

Despite everything that Sharon has been through on the road to her healthy lifestyle journey, she persevered and was determined to reach her goals.

 So let’s see how Sharon got started, and how hard she worked to reach her goals and maintain her healthy lifestyle!

Q&A With Sharon Meyer

Q) When you first started your journey years ago, prior to us having fun together, what made you start a healthy lifestyle?

Just like a million other women, I have spent my adult life taking care of others – husband, kids, family, friends, students and even the pets!  Somehow, I convinced myself that my personal needs were not a priority.  It’s easy to put the needs of others before my own, first as a wife and then as a mom.  But somewhere along the line, 2006 became about me!

If I had to pick a starting point, it would be around the time Powerhouse Gym (currently Kinetix) opened seventeen years ago. Our son was 15 at the time and wanted to join so he could use their free weights. I wanted him to lift correctly, so I hired a trainer to give each of us a training session.

From that one session I used the workout on my own. After a few months, I had another session. During the winter break of that year, I had time off from teaching school. That’s when I increased the number of cardio workouts, along with a lifting program, and started to see that I was losing weight and getting smaller.

By the time the New Year started I was going to the gym seven days a week for either cardio or weight training. I was finding a whole new me. I worked with our trainer to learn what weight training exercises to do and did weight training on my own. The other days were spent exercising on the elliptical trainer for cardio. It was hard at first but getting easier all the time. Somewhere along the line I was the one who became the “Gym Rat” in our family.

At the time, I wasn’t focused on losing weight. My journey to what I look like today might have happened more quickly had I had the goal of losing weight. On the contrary, maybe it happened gradually, allowing me to continue to make progress and completely change “me”.

In the beginning, I exercised more often while only giving up sodas or iced tea. I did have one of my many physical issues diagnosed during this time. They found a cyst inside a bone of my left foot. The doctor made it clear that my weight did not cause the bone issue, but losing weight would be helpful. About six months later I chose to focus on my food and more frequent training sessions. This is around the time I partnered with my trainer to set specific goals.

Unfortunately, the side of the bone with the cyst broke and I needed to have my first foot surgery and be non-weight bearing for months. The surgery kept me completely off my foot for eight weeks, minimal weight bearing with crutches for six weeks, and then another six weeks with a walking boot. This was the longest five months.

Although I had workout restrictions, I did not allow this to stop me from my new goal of losing weight.

Q) In total, how much weight have you lost?

I originally lost 100 pounds over a two year period. I lost 60 pounds the first year and 40 pounds the second year. A few days before my two-year mark I was very nervous that I would not make that century loss. But on the exact two-year mark I reached the 100 pound loss.

Over the span of 17 years, I have gained and lost a few pounds because well, life just gets in the way. As of today, I am virtually back to my lowest all time adult weight right now, thanks to you [Travis] and your food plan.

Q) If someone was motivated to start their healthy lifestyle journey by seeing your hard work and changes, how much physical activity would you tell me you do?

At this point, I do a lot of physical activity. Not all of my physical activity is done at the gym either. I have always been very driven at anything I set my mind to in life. Although, it hasn’t always been easy to be active, it has benefited my weight loss.

I am extremely fortunate to have a very supportive husband. When I started at Powerhouse in 2006, I told him the only way I was going to work out consistently was to do it at 5AM before going to work and that having his support would be great. He, of course, was in with both feet, but sleepy eyes.

Once exercise became a routine, it was just a way of life. Eventually, I found pickleball and that makes exercise even easier and much more fun. You don’t realize how it is helping you because it is just so much fun.

I also box at Title Boxing and weight train with you at Kinetix.

Q) While being active, your body hasn’t exactly made it easy for you. What are some of the surgeries you have had that slowed down your progress?

This question makes me laugh. Yes, my body lets me down all the time, but I don’t let it get in the way of my determination.

I had zero surgeries before 2005. I feel that the first four foot surgeries over a three year period affected me the most out of all the surgeries, but I wouldn’t say they held me back. These surgeries occurred in the first three years of my journey and progressed from there.

Like I said, I am very determined once my mind is made up. I still went to the gym and worked out, just like I’m currently doing. I’d drive there in my car and the front desk person would retrieve my wheelchair for me since I was non-weight bearing. I’d lift weights with my trainer or box in the back sitting on a chair for cardio. He taught me to punch so I could use a punching bag for cardio. I did this from my wheelchair four days per week and worked with him to do upper body and strengthen my non-surgical leg the other days.

Through it all, I went to the gym every day. These were some of the hardest workouts I have ever done. Most everyone thought I was crazy and said that they would have taken the time off. That just wasn’t me. It was frustrating that I did not lose more weight during this time, but I did maintain when others would have gained.

People often told me that I had a lot of courage to come to the gym in a wheelchair, cast, crutches and walking boot after my surgery. I never felt there was another option. I had come too far in my weight loss and was not going to allow this to get in my way. Going to the gym during this time saved me from getting depressed and built my strength to handle what was to come in my recovery.

Over the seventeen years, I have had to continue my journey and accommodate my training while I had back surgery, foot surgeries, torn meniscus, gallbladder removal, thumb joint removal, partial knee replacement, bicep tendon repair, and this most recent foot surgery. I recovered very quickly from all surgeries and I credit my physical health from my lifestyle change.

Q) How beneficial has a personalized meal plan been not only to your weight loss but also your health? 

My weight loss has been more about the food plan than anything else. I am a type 2 diabetic along with other health concerns. I had been on Prednisone twice this year due to some breathing issues. This raised my A1C to a level of concern for healing from this current foot surgery. So much so, that surgery wasn’t an option until it was brought back in line.

My birthday was April 1 and I told you that I wanted a food plan to lower my A1C and that I would follow it to the letter starting April 2, so surgery could happen. Well, the two of us working together was amazing. I lowered my A1C 1% in three weeks in addition to losing 12 pounds. This is unheard of in such a short period of time. I wasn’t focused on weight loss, but it certainly is a nice benefit.

You and I have worked together to continue the weight loss with different food plans, so I have some variations. Losing weight while very sedentary due to having surgery shows how much the right food plan works. In the last fourteen months I have lost 72 pounds, which is 27% of my original body weight. I’ve also gone from a size 26 to a 14, lost 48 inches, and lost over 18% body fat. Healthwise, I lowered my cholesterol and blood sugar and have been able to go off my blood pressure medicine.

Q) What’s one thing you would tell someone who also wants to reach their goals like you?

It was hard work, but I wouldn’t say it was hard. It is easier than most people think. You just have to be motivated and have support. I give my trainers over the years a lot of credit for pushing me, but most of the time they give me most of the credit. I work very hard they brought out a side of me that I didn’t know existed. In the end, my total commitment is what has made me so successful.

Also, you have to be around those who have or share the same goals. I have made so many friends at the gym and we all encourage each other. All of us have tough mornings when we don’t want to get up at  and go to the gym. It helps that others are looking for you to be there and will wonder where you are if you aren’t. 

Lastly, setting short term goals along with the long-term ones is how I have done it. You need to be determined and not feel like you are giving things up. It has to be a lifestyle change, or you won’t be able to make it stick long term. I have managed to keep my weight off for seventeen years by sticking with it. Life gets in the way at times, you might gain a few pounds, but you know what to do to get back on track. Your support has always been helpful.

Conclusion

It’s been a pleasure working with Sharon and Allan. Sharon has been through a lot on her journey, but has done great at making the changes she wanted to make.

When Sharon came to me with a specific goal, we created a plan, and she followed the plan exactly how we put it together.  She was very determined to reach her goal and was consistent with her activity and food.  That is a formula for success!

Great work Sharon! And if you want to reach goals like her, follow the formula for success! Come up with a goal, create a plan, follow the plan, achieve your goal!  Get Fit and Stay Fit.

Travis Johnson

Fit For 18!