Cierra became pregnant with her twins 13 months into her journey. "It was very hard on my body, but I think God prepared me because I was in the best physical shape of my life," she said. She didn't gain weight until the third trimester, and delivered them in November 2019.
By December, she was back down to her pre-pregnancy weight, and she slowly started working out again in January 2020. But because she was breastfeeding, it was painful, so she decided to stop working out and focus on her babies until they were six months old, when she planned to stop breastfeeding.
But in June 2020, when she stopped nursing and planned to get back to working out, her breasts were still too painful, and it took until August for her milk supply to dry up. This and the effects of the pandemic limited her exercise and caused almost 20 pounds of weight gain.
In September 2020, she was ready to start exercising regularly, and took the risk of returning to the gym. Eight days into her new regimen, she injured her knee and couldn't walk for three weeks. "The weight gain, the new twins, the limiting environment, and a host of other personal issues became too much. I went into a deep depression October through December, which is where I gained an additional 20 pounds," Cierra shared.
Image Source: Cierra Johnson