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Even though Alicia Taylor was active growing up, she found herself gaining weight after the birth of her second child. “Life slowed down, and I was working three jobs,” she says. Parked in front of the computer for all of them, Taylor was sedentary for much of the day. “I started gaining weight to the point where I got almost 60 pounds overweight.”
Unsure of where to start, Taylor tried to get her nutrition on track. First, she restricted herself to less than 1,000 calories a day. “I was hungry all the time!” she says. Taylor soon abandoned her so-called “starvation diet” for Slim Fast, but that didn’t help much, either. She felt like the shakes weren’t filling enough, and she was always hungry and tired. Next, Taylor tried supplementing her diet with chromium pills, rumored to accelerate fat loss, but the pills only made her jittery, she says. Still not getting the results she hoped for, she quit trying and put her goals on hold for a few years.
Living in South Florida, Taylor and her then-husband would stroll around the Disney parks for an hour and a half each week. But since she was riding on the back of her husband’s motorized wheelchair, she still wasn’t getting a whole lot of exercise. “I would periodically try exercising and then two weeks later, I got frustrated or [would] not have time for it so I’d quit,” she says.
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Then in 2004, it was back on the diet rollercoaster. Taylor became a vegetarian and also started following the low-carb Atkins Diet. “With the Atkins Diet, I felt weak all the time,” she says. She found the diet too restrictive when combined with her vegetarianism, and abandoned it after four months. Her foray into the South Beach Diet wasn’t much better. “I was already bored of dieting so I didn’t last long,” says Taylor.
Getting Off the Diet Rollercoaster
When Taylor, standing at 4’10” and 158 pounds, had a hard time bending over to put on her shoes, she knew it was time to make a change. “I couldn’t do a lot of daily things…I felt like I was 90,” the 44-year-old says. So when a Daily Burn commercial came on in January 2015, Taylor figured she had nothing to lose. “I signed up for it the next day and I never quit,” she says.
Her first program: True Beginner with trainer Justin Rubin. Taylor was surprised at how difficult the movements were, but she was able to hold on to a chair to stay balanced during many of the exercises. But signs of progress came quickly.
“I was able to reach behind me,” she says, noting that her flexibility started improving right off the bat. Then, she didn’t need a chair to balance on one leg. “I started feeling much younger and energetic even though it was just True Beginner.” After finishing the program, she went on to complete Move!, Cardio Sculpt, Total Cardio and DB15. She estimates that she lost about a half a pound each week.
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No Gym Necessary
"Daily Burn has taught me to rethink the meaning of unobtainable."
Workouts at home are a must for Taylor, who suffers from agoraphobia, an anxiety disorder that makes it difficult to be around crowds, and thus attend a regular gym. “I used to go late at night because I don’t like being around a lot of other people,” she says. “Basically, I have panic attacks when I’m out in public.”
One major fear she had was that someone might take her photo at the gym and turn her into an Internet meme. “That kind of thing terrifies me, so it was perfect for me to do Daily Burn at home,” she says. “I love the variety. I feel like I have a gym because it’s not just a selection of five DVDs.” She especially likes Daily Burn 365, which features a new, no-equipment workout every single day.
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Hooked on a Healthier Lifestyle
As she gained strength, her energy levels started to skyrocket. But 12 weeks into Daily Burn, she felt frustrated since the scale stopped moving. “My husband told me, ‘If you’re not gaining weight, you’re still moving in the right direction,’” Taylor says. That support kept her going.
Clean eats were key, too. Before Daily Burn, Taylor and her husband ate out a lot, and Taylor hated to cook. But with her newfound energy, Taylor was inspired to overhaul her diet, too. The couple stopped dining out (at Olive Garden and other local restaurants) and began meal planning with an online service that sent her recipes. Plus, she took all meals seriously. “I stopped skipping breakfast,” says Taylor, who likes eggs, high-fiber cereal and oatmeal in the mornings these days. Her favorite meal prep secrets? Chopping vegetables on the weekend so she has them on hand to cook during the week, and loading up her freezer with healthy meals that can be reheated. “I always make enough to freeze so I have some for nights when I don’t feel like cooking,” she says.
"I feel like doing things. I feel like going outside. I have the energy to actually get up and take care of my home."
Stronger Every Day
The progress Taylor has made during her 15 months with Daily Burn has kept her motivated. When she first started out, “I flipped through the programs and I saw Inferno and thought, ’I’ll never be able to do that,” recalls Taylor. Fast-forward one year and she has completed the entire Inferno program. “A year ago, I thought that was an unobtainable goal. Daily Burn has taught me to rethink the meaning of unobtainable,” she says. Taylor is now 105 pounds, which she says is right in the middle of the healthy weight range for her 4’10” frame.
But weight isn’t her main concern any more. “For me, it’s more than just the number on the scale,” says Taylor. She feels more energized after completing a workout than she does after drinking a cup of coffee. “That’s been major,” she says. “I feel like doing things. I feel like going outside. I have the energy to actually get up and take care of my home.”
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Taylor’s husband saw how empowered his wife had become and decided to convert an extra bedroom into a workout room, just for her. “He liked the changes he saw in me,” says Taylor. Inside and out.
To learn more about Daily Burn 365 or to try a free 30-day trial, head to DailyBurn.com/365.
Note to reader: The content in this article relates to the core service offered by Daily Burn. In the interest of editorial disclosure and integrity, the reader should know that this site is owned and operated by Daily Burn. Always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise or weight loss program. Daily Burn users who worked out for 30 minutes or more at least five times a week for 60 to 90 days reported an average weight loss of about one pound per week.
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