Transformation Tuesday: Sheila P.

You ready to be inspired?  I introduce to you a woman about to turn 50, but her body and spirit can do more than most 25 years olds that I know.  She has a can-do attitude about life and as she says “in training for living her life”.  It is a pleasure to train her every week and celebrate her ever-ongoing victories out on the surfboard or fishing on the boat.  

I introduce you to: Sheila… in her own words.

“I grew up in a household where food was really appreciated – foodies before that was a term.  However my parents were always dieting and never losing.  They tried every fad as it arrived.   At the same time women and girls were spending a lot of time and emphasis in their lives on clothing, fashion, looking a certain way…. Behaving a certain way.  I really just wanted to play… pretty much any sport outdoors.  When I was young, I would watch Jack Lalane and Lilias Yoga and marvel at what their bodies could do (and try to copy them) while waiting for cartoons (there was no cartoon network).   I started running in high school.  In college I fell in love with scuba diving and fishing and sailing fast high-performance sailboats.

Then came middle age!  Now it wasn’t enough to run.  I could tell when I was on vacation that I was fatiguing way to early when sailing or rowing or hiking.  Exercising was always coming after a long to do list.  So, I decided a year ago to up the muscle toning part of my life.  Yoga was just not quite enough and running was just not enough. I wanted something more total body and muscle oriented but I could not envision being in a gym.  Also lap swimming fills my ears with water and gets tedious.   My friend had just joined Bay View Boot Camp so I gave it a try.

I love how I feel after a workout.  There are sore muscles and that is what I want.  I don’t want to go into the after-middle-age life wondering where those muscles went.  I want to hear from them and know I can do whatever I attempt to do.  I recently went surfing and popped up on the long board NO PROBLEM!  That is huge because in the past I have not had the arm strength to really get paddling fast enough to catch the waves.  I sail regularly and we stop sailing because of time now not because of fatigue.  I trim the spinnaker without asking for help!   I was recently fishing and a man came across the parking lot to help me put my kayak in the back of the truck.  By the time he got to me I had already done it.  He said, “OH I was coming over to help you” I just laughed and said “I go to boot camp.” 

As for eating better, I have always had a good eating lifestyle.  And while I still struggle with replacing white things with whole grains I do have a pretty good diet.  More veggies on my plate than anything else.  I do not own a scale but I think I feel slimmer in the way my clothes fit.  In fact I have dropped a size.

What do I love most about this new lifestyle?  Basically I am in training for living my life.   I know that I can physically do whatever I want.  I will not say I am not strong enough. 

What do I say to people like me?  Use it or lose it.  Seriously, I turn 50 in January and I don’t want to go down that path of old age injuries and weaknesses.  I want to be able to do anything that comes my way.  If I can’t do it now I won’t be able to do it in the future.

How awesome – thank you for sharing Sheila!!  Just by reading this I think her ‘can-do attitude’ is contagious.  

If this impacted you in some way, please leave a note below and let us know how.  

Take action!  Follow our weekly Food Friday email so you’ll be the first to know about our upcoming October Body Transformation Challenge.