Tiffany's History With Diet and Weight Loss

Tiffany grew up active and healthy. She played varsity sports in high school and stayed active throughout college and into her 20s. But by the time she hit 35, she was miserably unhealthy.

"Throughout my late 20s, I gained over 100 pounds during three pregnancies in four years," Tiffany told POPSUGAR. "Then, as the mom of three small kids, I never made time to take care of myself and my health." This led to more weight gain and a growing number of health concerns that went ignored.

By the age of 35, Tiffany weighed 315 pounds. She was exhausted and sick all the time, had become extremely sedentary, and had stopped participating in much of anything. She developed a chronic cough from constant acid reflux [2] and said, "I had become so disconnected from my own body and health that I was able to ignore all the signs of a serious issue that I was having until I ended up in an emergency room having an emergency hysterectomy."

It was while Tiffany was in the hospital recovering from that surgery that she realized she was far too young to be so sick and so out of touch with her own body and health. "I didn't know how I was going to do it, but I decided right then and there that I was going to fight for my life and my health and that I was going to be in the best shape of my life by my 40th birthday."

Tiffany's Weight-Loss Journey Begins

When Tiffany first began her journey, she said, "I literally had to learn what real food was. I was so used to eating fast food or convenience food that I had never actually learned how to shop for, prepare, and enjoy whole foods."

At first, she didn't count calories or macros; she just took processed food, gluten, and sugar out of her life and replaced them with whole foods. "I lost weight right away and felt amazing."

Tiffany's Workouts

When Tiffany made the decision to get healthy, she and her husband opened a CrossFit gym. "It had been my husband's dream to open a CrossFit for years, but I was never on board with the idea until I hit rock bottom and knew I needed to do something," Tiffany said.

In the beginning, she started doing CrossFit two days a week. She fell in love with it right away for two reasons. "First, even though I was unbelievably scared and self-conscious to try CrossFit when I was so overweight, I realized right away that our CrossFit gym was a community of people of all different fitness levels who all supported and encouraged each other." Tiffany explained that she felt safe and comfortable there, and that was more important than anything for her when she started.

Second, although Tiffany was so out of shape that she had to hold on to a wall in order to step on and off of a box during a workout, CrossFit introduced her to weightlifting for the first time in her life. "Even when I weighed 300 pounds, I felt strong and capable with a barbell in my hands. That feeling of strength sparked something in me that I had never felt before, and the more I did CrossFit, the more and more I began to believe that I could do anything
I set my mind to."

Two days a week of classes quickly became three days, then four or five. Tiffany said, "I now train five days a week for two hours a day. It is my favorite part of every day, and I'm still enjoying that amazing feeling of strength that it gives me!"

Tiffany's Struggle With Diet and Weight Loss

After a year or so into her journey, Tiffany loosened up the food restrictions and started to look for a program that would help her use healthy foods to really aid in weight loss. She spent the next three years trying different programs.

"I would have success with many of them for a while, but inevitably I always hit a wall. And no matter what I tried or how low the calories got, I still couldn't lose a pound for months at a time," Tiffany shared. She was still doing CrossFit and getting stronger, and she was healthier and feeling better, but said, "Not losing weight was so frustrating! I never gave up, and I never stopped looking for answers. I was never afraid to keep trying new things."

Tiffany Finds Renaissance Periodization

About two years ago, Tiffany found Renaissance Periodization [3] (RP), which is a macro-based meal plan, and that's when everything changed for her.

"I was excited to have a program that was so specific and clear, and that had a plan for what to do when the weight loss stalled. I felt like I had answers about how it would work and why it would work, and there was scientific data and results to back up the claims," Tiffany explained. She dove in and was 100 percent committed to following the plan — her results were unbelievable!

Tiffany lost the majority of her weight in the last two years with RP, and it's helped her achieve the most dramatic physical changes. Even through extreme weight loss, she has increased her strength, endurance, and speed in training and became a much better athlete.

"To be able to see such amazing results without having to starve myself to the point that I have no energy has been my favorite part of RP," Tiffany said. "That and the fact that I feel so supported by information, answers, research, and continued education from RP and its active community of coaches and clients."

What Tiffany Eats in a Day

The thing Tiffany loves most about the RP system is that it's intentionally designed to provide times of calorie cutting for weight loss, but it also requires periods of maintenance to allow your body to recover and rebalance after weight loss. "This was a new concept for me, but one that really helped me gear up for short periods where the calories are lower, because I knew that it was only going to last a few weeks," she said.

Here's a typical day of eating when Tiffany is in the middle of a 12-week calorie-cutting period.

Upon waking: coffee with one tablespoon of nondairy coffee creamer
Pre-workout shake before 7 a.m. training session: one scoop of whey protein mixed with 22 grams of carbs from Tang drink mix
Lunch around 1 p.m.: chicken tacos (three soft corn tortillas with six ounces of shredded chicken breast, lettuce, and salsa)
Snack around 3 p.m.: Tiffany explained, "At this point, I figure out what I will eat for the rest of the day. I plan my snack to fill in any macros that I need to hit my numbers. Usually I will need to eat more protein so I eat some type of lean meat and veggies (I enjoy chicken breast mixed with steamed broccoli with a calorie-free ranch seasoning sprinkled on top). If my dinner is not carb-heavy, I will add in a bagel or raisin bread here as well."
Second coffee: "My favorite time of day is second coffee!"
Dinner around 6 p.m.: six ounces of lean meat with sweet potatoes or rice with unlimited veggies
Bedtime around 9 p.m.: one scoop of casein protein; if she has carbs available, she'll cook her casein protein into Kodiak cake waffles [4], or if she has fat available, she'll mix it with peanut butter as a delicious bedtime treat
Craving stoppers: a couple of things Tiffany always has in her fridge to calm cravings or to pop in her mouth when she's hungry are pickles, cherry tomatoes, and sugar-free jello with fat-free whipped cream on top

Tiffany's Nonscale Victories

The most important victory Tiffany has experienced is her health! "In my 20s and 30s, I spent time in doctors' offices, emergency rooms, and hospital beds on a regular basis. I didn't realize how awful I felt every minute of every day until eating healthy foods and exercising began to change me from the inside out. I felt the difference very quickly, within weeks, and it just continued to improve," Tiffany said.

She also stopped having acid reflux, which meant she stopped coughing for the first time in years. Tiffany also felt more awake during the day and was able to sleep better at night [5]. She began to deal with less anxiety, and she felt more balanced in her moods and emotions. "I feel like I've been given a brand-new life full of energy and possibility — one that I control and that I can take wherever I want it to go!"

Tiffany's Life Has Forever Changed

Losing weight has also given Tiffany victory over fear in so many things. When she weighed over 300 pounds, she either couldn't or wouldn't do a lot of things that deep down she really wanted to do.

"Fear of what I would look like, what would happen if I physically couldn't do it, or what people would think of me made me a spectator in life instead of a participant," Tiffany said. But over time, the strength she felt in a CrossFit gym began to impact every area of her life [6]. She began to re-engage and to remember what it felt like to have fun and be free and fearless.

It started small, with things like passing a volleyball with her kids or lacing up ice skates and doing a couple of laps around the rink. Then she got on roller coasters and strapped in for a zip-line course. "Things that would have been absolutely out of the question suddenly became possible just because I decided that they were. And the more weight I lost, the more physically capable I was to enjoy more and more of the fun things in life," Tiffany shared.

How Tiffany Stays Motivated

From the very beginning of her weight-loss journey, Tiffany's husband has been 100 percent there alongside every step. "Having someone next to me who I could trust and lean on when things got hard was absolutely essential to staying the course. And having someone to celebrate successes with made the victories way more fun and meaningful for me!"

"The community at Parakaleo CrossFit [7] has been an unbelievable force that has continued to push me and motivate me day in and day out," Tiffany said. Their early acceptance when she was at her heaviest was what gave Tiffany the courage to get started. Their unwavering encouragement is what makes training with them her favorite thing in the world.

"A completely unexpected result of losing 145 pounds has been that I have become a picture of hope for so many women in my CrossFit community, and I have gotten to connect with people in a very real way, to encourage them the way that so many others have encouraged me." Helping people reach their health and fitness goals motivates Tiffany more than anything because it reminds her that we all have the strength and ability to change anything that we want to change.

Tiffany shared that truthfully, her results have also been a really big motivator [8]. "From the very beginning, when I saw changes, even if the changes were small, it made me believe that change was possible." Small successes like getting to buy jeans in a smaller size invigorated her and helped her see that any sacrifices she was making were worth it.

"When I started using the RP templates, they were restrictive, and they demanded that I be accountable to weighing and measuring and timing out my meals, but the results were immediate! My body responded, and the weight came off," Tiffany said. So when temptations to cheat came up or life got stressful and it would have been easy to make an excuse and quit the restrictive protocol, she was able to fight through, knowing that if she didn't quit, she was going to lose the weight.

Tiffany's Tips and Advice

Tiffany's biggest word of advice? Do not quit! "If my journey proves anything, it's that you are never too far gone, too broken, too old, or too unhealthy to take back your life!" she said.

But the journey can be long, and you have to be willing to keep going, even if it takes a while. Tiffany has been working at losing weight and regaining her health for six years. She knows this is something that she'll need to be consciously putting effort into for the rest of her life. "There will be all kinds of ups and downs in your journey, but if you commit to continuing to try your best day after day, you will get to the place you want to be!"