12 weeks ago I received a voice mail from a girl that sounded about 16 years old.  She sounded peppy, nice, sweet, girly, everything I did not want in a trainer.  I called her back, she introduced herself as Tayler Parry and wanted to know my availability to see if our schedules would work out.  I work the graveyard shift and sleep from 9am to 4pm usually.  She said “Oh Perfect, we can workout in the afternoons then”, still in her sweet girly voice.  I told her that is sleep time for me, Tayler’s next sentence to me is the only reason I committed to her.  She changed her voice to the once that I now am familiar with and said “Jeff, do you want to change your life or not”.

It can already be embarrassing enough working out one-on-one with a trainer in a gym with people watching you.  With Tayler, it is worse, the constant pushing, yelling, encouraging voice of hers carrying through the facility.  After 2 workouts with her, I didn’t care anymore how much people looked, I was too busy trying to catch my breath or not die.  Tayler made me uncomfortable, she was in my face, not just yelling at me to work harder but also seemed happier than ever when I finished a set.

This was a tough journey.  This journey has changed my life and my families lives at how we look at food and being fit and healthy.  My wife worried and stressed everyday about what to make for meals and how to keep encouraging me at home also.  My wife had to listen to my complaints about my schedule and food and being tired.  When I started, I was in a bad place, not being able to sleep when I was suppose to and wanted to sleep when I shouldn’t be.  Never having any energy or wanting to do anything but lay around.  Being overweight is hard.  It is heavy and taxing on every part of your life.  It is an addiction that seems like you can’t get out of.

Sometimes I will hear Tayler in my head “Is that on the approved food’s list”.  And I was not even close to being perfect but I will never forget the look Tayler would give me when I told her the stuff I ate that was not on her list.  The first time was when I told her Cheerios and I don’t know that many extra jumping jacks and burpees I had to do.  My wife came to one workouts and I told Tayler I had a bite of cake and pie for my wifes birthday.  Thank goodness my wife was there, we only had to see the steam coming from her ears in anger.  She held it in.  Another contestant heard me tell Tayler that and she told me last weekend she had to leave the room thinking Tayler was going to go crazy.

Tayler Parry is not your ordinary trainer.  Not a trainer that tells you to do something and barely pays attention or is on her phone the whole time.  She cares and she wants you to do a good job and succeed.  She may have a fluffy girls voice on the phone but she doesn’t when you are working out.  She is lean, hard and tough.  She was a perfect match for me and who knows where I would be if it didn’t work out between our schedules.

So through Tayler and my Wife and me kicking and crying the whole way, I have begun to change.  It took me 11 weeks to get to a point where I felt good during a workout and hopefully I can now push myself more and more.  This will be a journey much longer than 12 weeks.  I will still play my victim and tired cards, but less often.

I am not at my goal weight, I have 50 more lbs to go.  But I know I can do it with Tayler and support from my family.  Tayler has been the perfect fit for me and my journey so far.

I am going to start having a new phrase…….Eat, Drink, Be Fit, Be Merry.

Thank you Tayler & Trevor Clay at Golds Gym KC