Every now and then, we bump into some girls whose story is just as inspirational as it is motivating. Seeing fitness journeys unravel is always so informational just because we can see that it's not the same for all. What works for one girl, might work differently for another. Our latest Kayla Itsines Girl to have gone beyond her limits and obtained amazing results is 18-year old Grace! She shares her own personal insights concerning the highs & lows and the do's & don'ts of her Bikini Body Guide journey, and how these came intertwined with an emotional one as well. 

Follow her journey on her Instagram account kaylagbug!

How it began —

Every year in exam season (April to June) I try to eat healthy and exercise – it gives structure to my days and means I’m never too lethargic or tired to revise. For previous years, this has consisted of a few runs a week, various gym classes and almost clean eating. Last year I began in April (as usual) with my normal routine. I’d been following Kayla Itsines on Instagram for a while but had always been skeptical about wildly amazing transformations involving exchanges of money over the Internet. One day at my school, a girl in the gym was jumping around looking like an absolute lunatic. I asked her what she was doing and she wheezed out the word “Kayla”.

I bought the guide after much deliberation, concluding that if I were to be spending any money in exam season, it should at least be on something productive. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I joined the girl and realised that even as a former competitive gymnast, I was nowhere near as strong as any of the BBG girls. Throughout my exams and into the summer I was dedicated to resistance training, with a few LISS or HIIT sessions a week (I have to say, I was not fantastic at keeping these up). At four weeks I was over the moon with my progress, though looking back on it now, it was nothing compared to how far I’ve come. People started noticing from about 6 weeks. Nothing compares to the feeling of someone you haven’t seen for a while double taking when they see you. Over the summer the weeks were a bit all over the place, but I made sure that I didn’t count a week unless I’d done every single workout, from the Monday to Sunday period (I’m mildly OCD).

Now, despite how much I love my journey in hindsight, I don’t want to lie to you – it was hard. There were days when I just didn’t want to, or felt I had no time. There were days when I had just done a big exam and I just wanted to go home and eat the whole fridge (and trust me, sometimes I did just that, and more). I even broke my elbow falling down 7 flights of stairs around week 5 but was so determined to continue that I just substituted all arm exercises for abs or legs! (This being said, please consult a doctor before doing anything so reckless, I will admit my tenacity is often slightly OTT). Despite all the downsides please please PLEASE, do this for the moments when you physically cannot stop yourself from grinning at the mirror. I remember getting up one day when all my clothes were in the wash and finding this teeny tiny skirt that I had been given 3 years before, and had never been able to fit into. I tried it on, expecting myself to have to call for help to squeeze it on. It was too big! I can't even start to describe that feeling. These are the moments you should do it for. I promise you that an hour or so after each workout (if not straight after) you will, without fail, feel amazing. It is so worth every time you yelp while foam rolling your legs. It’s even worth every time you say no to that warm cookie.

I can honestly tell you that by the end of the summer I’d never felt happier – I was strong, confident and healthy and let me tell you, NOTHING compares to that. I’m so excited to embark on that journey again - admittedly after a few months' lapse - and can’t wait for not only the progress, but the whole process again.