Expert Advice: Megan Roberts

 

Megan and I met ten years ago and I have loved her since the very beginning.  At one point when we lived far away from our families Megan and her hubby Josh (who I went to high school with) became our family.  I have many good memories with them and am so happy she is contributing to our blog.  Thanks Meggers I love you!

Let me introduce myself. My name is Megan Roberts and I am an all-around fitness enthusiast and food-fanatic.

However, I wasn’t always this way. When I was in high school, I was a gymnast and worked out for several hours after school and ate fairly healthy. When I graduated high school, I actually quit gymnastics at the same time. I quit being active and I ate poorly (maybe rows of Oreos at a time, and big bowls of ice cream) and blew up my small 5’3ish” frame by about 30lbs in ONE summer. I never thought weight gain would happen to ME. To say the least, I was pretty annoyed that my butt would not fit into my size 0 jeans, but I guess this is when I would start to understand the importance of the almighty CALORIE.

My stepbrother was a “gym rat”. I asked for his help and he did just that. He helped me understand HOW to workout and how to eat. That’s when my life changed from declaring a college major of, “I’m-not-sure-what-to-do-as-a-career” to now choosing fitness!

Lets fast forward 13 years later, with 9 triathlons, 2 marathons, 2 bikini/bodybuilding show competitions, a few CrossFit competitions, and many, many years of personal training established under my belt.

I decided that I enjoy fitness, oh wait…I LOVE fitness!

I like to ask clients this question:

“What does ‘being healthy’ mean to you?”

Does being healthy just mean an absence of doctor visits because you are well?

Does being healthy mean you have the ability to run, skip and jump whenever possible?

Does being healthy mean you have the blessing to physically keep up with the demands of your daily job?

Think about that. What does it mean to you?

To me, It means being able to experience life at it’s fullest capacity! I never want to be told I cannot do something. If I’m challenged by that phrase, “Oh you can’t do that…that’s too hard”….then I’m only fired up to break through that judgmental phrase and prove it to myself.

So that’s me.

I have a passion for fitness and for teaching others how to live a life of fitness and not a ‘diet’ of fitness. If there is one thing I’m constantly asked, it is how to escape the depressing “fitness plateau” and how to overcome it. Jeez, I wish I could even escape a plateau. Alas, I cannot. Our bodies are so amazing with the power of adaptation that it becomes inevitable if we DO NOT change things up constantly. If you feel like you have experienced a plateau, let me see if I could help you.

If you’re into this process, (and you’ve been 100% strict and honest with tracking food) and your progress is SLOW, then here are some ideas, to name a few:

• Increase cardio output by doing more anaerobic sprint training.
• Start doing 2 workouts (wods) a day, 2-3 times a week
• Decrease any fat in your diet by a few grams and increase the complex carbs and lean proteins.
• Make sure your calories are high enough. Lowering calories too low will cause your body to plateau dramatically faster and more frequently.
• Add more sleep/naps to your schedule.
• Increase water intake.
• Add more heavy weight to your workouts, if possible, while keeping good form
• Wear a weight vest, during workouts (if it’s appropriate for the workout or WOD—you’d need to consult with your trainer or coach or even trust your gut)
• MAKE SURE you are consuming food within a 30min window AFTER you wake up.
• MAKE SURE you consume enough protein after a workout.

Plateaus WILL happen and slow weight loss is inevitable too. However, weight loss can be faster for others. It is up to you to stay on course and realize that your body WILL lose when it realizes that it’s receiving the correct nutrition in the right portion sizes.

Calories ARE NOT created equal. The quality of food, matters. Real, whole foods are the key to long term success.

Here is an example of my plateau:

Left: 110-112lbs, 16% body fat

Right: 102-104lbs, 10% body fat

The beginning of January 2013, I was on a mission to bust through my plateau. I was sitting at 16-18% body fat for what seemed like forever and I wanted to prove it to myself that I could step on stage at  8-10% body fat and be in a fitness show.

I worked real hard for 13 weeks. Oh my. Some days I wanted to throw in the towel and throw up at the same time because I was just sick of seriously SLOW results. As I was doing this competition prep work, I realized that no matter what, I was feeding my body exactly what it needed and it eventually responded. I stopped stepping on the scale and instead relied on pictures to help me visually see my results.

That, in my opinion, was the key to my success in learning how to “stick-with-it” and literally not giving up. Taking progress pictures is what I needed to do.

The top picture was 110-112 lbs

The middle picture was 106-108lbs

The bottom picture is 102-104 lbs

Yes you're right, its not a lot of weight loss on the scale but one thing to remember is that its MORE important to watch body fat loss progress than it is to watch the scale.  These pictures were taken over a 13 week period.  

These pictures are also taken periodically over a 13 week period. 

And then, I made it to my goal.....13 weeks later! My  moment has come.

I worked to 8-10% body fat and felt very ready to get myself on stage to compete

I stepped on stage at the end of March 2013 and realized that anyone could do this as long as you realize that it WILL TAKE TIME and effort but it is incredibly worth your time and effort.

Thank you for letting me share my story. 

Keep going, keep going, and keep going!!

You'll be so proud of yourself with every day that goes by

Keep Going!!