My transformation: Healthy inside & out

Progress pictures, weight loss numbers.. it’s all very impressive. But we also shouldn't forget the improvement we make on the inside. This is my journey, not as imposing on the outside but a huge transformation on the inside.

My transformation: Healthy inside & out

My whole life I have been a petite girl. I’m 1.60m short and have size xs/34, a normal size for my length (or lack of it). I have never really had a thing with food. From being a picky eater when I was young to completely skipping meals when I was busy or stressed. For some reason my brain doesn’t get the signal when I am hungry, it just goes into an energy saving state where I feel like a wet paper towel. In my years as a student I would not eat in the morning, then when I got super dizzy I would eat anything with sugar preferably chocolate. Next to dizziness I would have tummy aches and had the worst case of PMS (Pre Menstrual Syndrome). When you would look at my diet and how I physically looked, It didn’t add up, I was still petite and had the smallest jeans size compared to all my girlfriends. And I always told them: There is an obese woman inside of me just waiting to get out. And I was probably right.

BFFF
In 2010 I moved in with my best friend Christel (yes the one with the abs of steel). After college, we started working out together whenever we could. I was working fulltime at an international fashion company, travelling the world and always on the road. There was not a lot of time between traveling and working, but we managed to keep each other motivated. Although we thought we were being very healthy, our food choices were very questionable. We would go on a salad-and-crackers diet, but fill up with alcohol in the weekend.

The turning point
When Chris and I started working out at a new gym in Rotterdam called Elevator Sports, we ran into so many people who were taking much better care of their bodies. Because we went from a 90 cardio/ 10 weight to a 70 weight/30 cardio routine, we needed to fuel our bodies differently to keep up with the insane circuit training routines. The funny thing is, that my turning point wasn’t a specific day or thing I did. For the first time I listened to my body, I actually got hungry due to the muscles I built and those muscle were now asking for food. I drank more water because I was sweat like a pig during the workout. We shared tips, tricks and recipes. We posted every workout on Instagram and this is how #FITGIRLCODE was born. It was a way to bundle everything we had learned and the things we are still learning. And not just from us, from people all over the world, that’s the great thing about the internet!

Now that I am eating a lot healthier, I can see some difference physically. But the real transformation is the one from within.

• No more sugar cravings
• Less PMS symptoms
• More energized
• Better digestive system less bloated
• No more dizziness
• Less headaches

Working out together and paying attention to all the crap (excuse my French) we were putting into our bodies, was my turning point. But it did not happen overnight. It happened because I listened to my own body for a change. When I was tired, I would chill. When I had too much energy, I would run. And when I was hungry I would eat food that fuelled my body. Listen to your body it will be your number one fitness and health guide you will ever have. And if yoll u've us, we would love to take second place.