At age 45 Sue has discovered life in a new and improved body!
Sue placed 10th in our VT11 Venus Transformation Contest
Here’s what Sue has to say in her own words:
I discovered the Venus Factor program in March 2014 and really liked the structure of it and the community. I weighed 172 pounds and while I’m 5’10” tall, excess weight on me is still fat and looks horrid. I took some photos at that point (I have included them to show my whole journey), just so I could look back and see where I’d come from. This would be at least the seventh time that I would have lost over 20 pounds in the last 15 years, so my struggle isn’t so much in losing the weight (I can be dedicated for a period), but in the maintaining and keeping it off. The addition of getting older (I’m 45) and having recently started HRT were added bonuses in the equation!
The thing that struck a chord in me with Venus was the simplicity in the overriding diet philosophy – I can eat anything I want, provided I am accountable and responsible for it. And I can bank up my calories for special events. I LIKE THAT! It makes the whole thing so much more manageable .. and livable! I also loved that I didn’t need to plan my own workouts .. just print it out and go do it. Brain interference = Zero.
From March to May 2014 I followed Venus, although since I do karate at a fairly high level and train regularly, I was more intermittent than structured with the workouts. I lost about 15 pounds during that time and then decided to enter the contest. At the same time, I also entered an adventure race, which is trail running, mountain biking and kayaking in the Australian Blue Mountains, outside of Sydney. I needed to train for this as I hadn’t run or ridden a bike in over 30 years! I was also training for my first dan black belt grading in karate, which I achieved at the end of June. So I was getting quite a bit of varied training but all the extra load then caused my knee to start giving me grief. The doctor has since said I have Osteoarthritis in both knees, but I’m working with a physiologist to manage that, as I’m not willing to give up any of my training.
In the middle of the contest period, I got sick. I tried for a while to control my diet, but my body was just CRAVING carbs. I would go DAYS where the thought of bread and butter and honey was at the forefront of my mind! Eventually I gave in. I also didn’t train in any way for about three or four weeks. I was disappointed in my lack of progress, given the race and the contest had end dates that were fast approaching. I made the decision then that I would not be where I wanted to be at the end of the contest, so I would not get a professional photographer. I would still take the pictures myself AND submit them .. since I committed to myself up front that I would.
Well, race day came and went and it was a blast! About 17 miles covered and we didn’t stop for over four-and-a-half hours. I was completed exhausted by the end .. but I did it! Only one week to go to the end of the Venus contest from there. I had incorporated two Eat-Stop-Eat style fasts into my week a while ago and since I was under instruction to completely rest my knee (no training in the last week for me) and I had work commitments and meetings that would make the water loading of Slim in 7 problematic, I decided to just eat super-clean, in calorific deficit and do an extra day fasting. The result was astonishing! Not only did I make my Venus Index metrics on weight and waist, I went under them! Unbelievable. The photos, while very ordinary quality, do show the incredible transformation and I couldn’t be happier with the hard evidence in front of me. And yes, I am KICKING myself for not going professional for them!
Aside from losing weight using the Venus Factor program, I have learned a couple of other really valuable things from this experience. During the time I was sick and recovering and also not training, I learned how to relax on the program and how to maintain – which is HUGE for me. I also learned how much I can change my body in just one week when I want to, and how vital diet is. I discovered through the Venus community that maintaining a healthy and fit body isn’t the effortless, anything-goes lifestyle that I’ve always assumed .. that healthy, fit people have to actively maintain their bodies and take responsibility for it. And I’ve found that while I don’t need to count calories (I haven’t for most of the contest period), I DO like to weigh myself every day to keep myself accountable .. and motivated!
Thank you for the Venus program, the incentive of this contest and the incredible community you’ve built. I am so happy with myself and my journey and with my new starting point .. and I can’t WAIT to see what else I can do with this old bod!
Sue lost 15 pounds in 12 weeks in spite of some setbacks.
Sue is active in the online forum
Sue is an energetic, fun, and super supportive member of our community where you can find her often giving an encouraging word to others.
We have a very popular thread in the forum called “The last 10 pounds” because this seems to be a very difficult part of the process and requires much patience. This is the time where your food intake needs to be almost as precise as a lab experiment. It requires tremendous discipline and consistency.
Here is a sample of the fun Sue brought to our community right from the start:
Shaeshae, I’m with you .. have just been wandering through the Forum halls and came across this thread of awesomeness!!
Hi guys! I’m down to within my last 10lbs now, which is quite exciting. The whole process has worked REALLY well – dropping 19lbs and 3.5″ off my waist in just over 9 weeks. ESE has REALLY helped me to manage the whole process and it will be an invaluable tool in maintaining things going forward, as will the VF education on how much food really makes up my maintenance level.
I can already see me doing another program targeted at muscle and muscle shape development once I reach my goal of 145lbs (I’m 5’10”) .. and I’m excited about that already!
I have a grading coming up (I do karate) at the end of June and I’m hoping to be selected to attempt for my first dan black belt! I plan to be at or very close to my goal weight by then and already into the strength improvement side of things .. will feel wonderful doing a 4 hour grading and not feeling bogged down with excess weight or lack of strength or fitness. For the first time I look forward to the challenge with only excitement and no underlying feelings of dread or fear!
You guys are awesome, the way you share your experience with newbies like me. And you make us feel like no question is too stupid (even if it might be!). Thanks so much!!
Note: ESE is the acronym for the book Eat Stop Eat by Brad Pilon.
This is only a small window of time in Sue’s overall weight loss journey.
Note: The Adonis Golden Ratio is the men’s version of our fat loss and muscle building program. Many Venus’s husbands and boyfriends use this program. We are starting to get requests for a “couple’s contest” so if there is enough interest please let me know and we can roll that idea around.
Sue keeps an online blog in our private community
Sue’s blog in the community is named “Life in a new and improved body” and yes, that is exactly what she has found with the Venus Factor!
After just a few months in the community Sue posted a picture in her blog to share some very wise words:
What are the most powerful words in the universe?
The ones you use to talk to yourself.
Talk with love.
Sue is an energetic and helpful personality in our online community.
Sue’s favorite supplements
Sue uses a variety of health supplements which she talks about in the podcast. Among them she likes some of the BioTrust products. She likes the probiotic and the frosted oatmeal protein cookies. She has the IC-5 and the AbsorbMax and would like to incorporate those into her regimen soon.
You can listen to her story and words of wisdom here:
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