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Iain’s StoryJust before my 31 st birthday, and with my daughter Lyliana just about to turn one, I had reached a complete low interms of my physical and emotional health. I had no energy to play with my little girl, go for long walks with my wife,or even go up a flight of stairs without gasping for breath. I had even had to give up on soccer, which is something Ihad played since I was a kid and a sport that I love. I was depressed about the shape I had let myself get into and Ikept falling into the trap of thinking that I would start to change my life tomorrow. But tomorrow wasn’t coming, as Icontinued to indulge in the wrong foods and a negative lifestyle. A lifestyle that had come to involve several beersevery night to wash down an assortment of fried foods. One day I finally decided that there were no moretomorrow’s and that it was time to start to make some positive changes.I made my way into the Waterloo GoodLife and from my fitness assessment I learned about the process I wouldhave to go through to reach my goals. I met my trainer Hillary and from the beginning I recognized how committedshe is to her clients. I was confident that with her guidance and help I could make some positive improvements withmy fitness. My first session involved a weigh in and I wasn’t shocked to learn that I was tipping the scales at over240 pounds. One of the things that really surprised and worried me though is that my body fat percentage was at aterrifying 25.3%. So I had my work cut out for me, and after my first session in the gym I wasn’t sure if I was goingto make it.As the weeks went on I found going to the gym less and less of a chore as I actually began to look forward to myworkouts. Within the first month I could begin to see results and I began to feel more energized. After a while goingto the gym, despite the effort I was putting in, became the easy part. The changes to my diet were really the toughpart as my lengthy commute to work, and often stressful line of work threw a few obstacles in front of me. I was stillfinding it tough to make healthy eating choices. The healthy eating guide Hillary put together for me helped, but Ifound this a tougher change as I had over ten years of bad habits to break.Eventually I seemed to plateau with my weight loss results and I didn’t seem to be gaining ground, so I really madean effort to stick with the eating plan as much as I had stuck with my training. Together with that, and thecontinuingly challenging exercise programs Hillary was putting together for me I begin to push on with my results. Itwasn’t easy, especially during the Holiday Season, but I stuck with it and I began to not avoid family photos like theplague anymore.After just eight months of hard work and positive changes I have dropped over 50 pounds of weight. I have also lost7 inches around my waist, including 20 inches total around my body, and my body fat has dropped by 14.1% for amuch healthier 11.2% in total. Besides dropping two pants sizes and feeling better about my appearance, I have arenewed feeling of energy, improved posture, and I am not as wiped out at the end of the day as I was this time lastyear. I am able to keep up with my daughter now, well most of the time, and have even taken up squash. This is asport that I wouldn’t have dared try before I started exercising. I am also getting back into soccer again thissummer, knowing that I’m now in the shape to do this. The end of my journey hasn’t been reached, in fact, I feellike this is just the beginning. I visit the gym at least 5 times a week; I stick to my healthy eating plan, and can’timagine going back to my old lifestyle. There are no more “I’ll start tomorrow’s” from me, as I now try to make themost of every day.