START HER FIT KIT was launched in October of 2019.

It is a 5-week, get-started challenge, to help you get organized, on track, to your health and fitness goals, with online group support.

Below are the results of the START HER FIT KIT-spring challenge.  

Note: COVID, and a mass shutdown, happened 1 week, after starting this challenge.  Due to this new normal, and a massive adjustment in lifestyle, and habits, the challenge was extended 2-weeks.  It ended up being a 7-week challenge. 

A small reminder, that each person is an individual, has different backgrounds in training, level of fitness, and nutrition knowledge.

There are 3 main goals of the challenge: 

• • SIMPLIFY nutrition, for fat loss
  • CLARIFY training program, how much works, for you and your lifestyle
  • ACCOUNTABILITY to ensure success

There were 15 challenge participants, for the third cohort of the START HER FIT KIT.   

One (1)  participant ended up pregnant and did not follow the program.

Three (3) clients were contacted, regularly about check-ins, updates, however, there was no data logged, in order to follow their progress.

This left eleven (11) participants, for the third installment of the START HER FIT KIT.

Each participant was given an in-gym program, at-home programs, nutrition plan, and encouraged to submit, to submit their weight and measures, every Friday.  

Progress photos were requested, in the beginning, middle and end of the challenge, and was left up to who was comfortable, submitting their photos.  

Note:  The photos are only for personal progress. They would never be shared, socially, and through my online coaching platform, you can delete them at any time.

Each week, there were video lessons, on nutrition and/OR training topics. Participants were encouraged, to ask further questions to clarify the information presented.

The selection on which topics are covered was left up to the group.  If there is a request for a topic of interest, we discussed that topic.

A weekly goal or focus was given for the week.

Each participant was encouraged to log their nutrition daily in the coaching platform, which included logging their workouts or any physical movement they did that day.  

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Everyone who participated, and tracked, lost weight.

Some participants opted, to do additional check-ins, or weight/measures, more frequently, as you can see in their data entries.

Others preferred to check-in less.

Everyone was encouraged to track something – either weight, measures, or use progress photos.

The biggest loss was 12lbs in 7 weeks followed, 11lbs weight loss, and 9lbs weight loss.

The smallest weight loss; was 1-2 lbs for 2 participants, in the 5-week challenge. Upon further inquiry, by their own admission, one followed the training but did not follow the nutrition.   Another participant gained, weight after starting the program, and then started to lose weight by week 4. 

Program implementation, was not 100% perfect on the plan, each day, however, there was progress by all participants.

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Weight is just one measure, used to track progress.  We also use body girth measures.

I have included the measures, of three (3)  clients, who had significant changes, in body girth measures.  Seven (7)  other participants had little to no change in body measures or did not track body measures.

There are times, when the scale changes, very little, in the beginning of fat loss however, the body girth measures, will change.

One client went from a 40-inch waist (anything over 40 inches is indicative of possible metabolic, and other health-related concerns), to a 36-inch waist.  Another client lost 3 inches off their bust.

Weight loss is never linear. We use a variety of ways to measure progress.

Self-reflection is progress used frequently, to stay aware, and conscious in the fat loss process.  Here is some of the feedback, by the challenge participants, about their struggles, what they have learned, and overall reflections about the program.

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As a coach, and former math teacher, program development and evaluation of that programming is an ongoing process.  We all learn by making mistakes, adjusting,  and re-testing to see what will work, and what needs to be eliminated.

Over the years, I have learned, what works,  for fat loss, and long term success at keeping the weight off.  My challenge participants were open to adjusting on the fly.   

Here are some of the struggles,  faced, during this third installment of the START HER FIT KIT challenge.

I was not expecting a massive pandemic, during my lifetime.  COVID threw everyone’s world into a tailspin.  

Schedules, habits, kids, working from home, new environment, home workouts, and no gym to name a few of the challenges facing us all.   

There were some positives to the pandemic —- less social distraction – such as eating out, socialization (in general), and being tempted, by others.  

The challenge of the app is a limiting factor for some – including logging of workouts, new food tracking systems, and technology in general.

The app houses all the fitness, training, and nutrition information, and it is the communication hub + Facebook group to help support the participants and my regular clients.  The learning can be quick, is practiced, frequently and videos or snapshots, help speed up the process.  

In the future, I would like to get around this limitation as quickly as possible, and perhaps run a LIVE training session to get everyone familiar with the app, or give 2-3 days, of practice, before starting the challenge. 

Besides, the client who got pregnant, during the challenge, the other 4 clients, who fell off, or did not track, or I heard very little from them, can be related, 100% to COVID. They were either at home, with kids full time, or working.

The change in environment, schedule, and overall responsibilities, was a hard, adjustment.  Hopefully, they will come back for a second round, and complete the program.

Tracking is a must.  Participants, to get the most out of the program,  will be encouraged to track, either weight, measures, or photos, or some combination of the three.  It will need to be communicated more clearly, of this, on a weekly basis, for future clients of the program. 

I was surprised, at the success of the program considering how much everyone was handling at the time.  

COVID, schedule change, environment changes, home/life balance, kids at home while working, just goes to show, that if life is busy, you can still prevail.   If you want fat loss and/or better health, it can happen, no matter how many lemons life throws at you. 

1. Goals are achievable,  even when life throws you into a complete tailspin.
2. Structure and accountability can help keep you on track.
3. Mistakes will be made; learn from them. Recover faster, AND get back on plan.
4. Little ‘deposits’ of short workouts and better quality nutrition add up over time and produce great results.
5. Your health as a priority is always a good thing.