In this podcast, I interview Tara, who read Thinner Leaner Stronger and used what she learned to lose a total of 80 pounds, going from “morbidly obese” to super fit. She didn’t just lose a ton of fat, either. Tara gained quite a bit of muscle and got super strong in the process.

Before finding TLS, Tara was 204 pounds at 5’5”, and her doctor told her she needed to lose some weight. Like many people, Tara wanted to get in shape, but didn’t know how to do it correctly.

She didn’t know what to eat or what to do in the gym, and like many women, started to do hours of cardio every day. She successfully lost over 60 pounds, but she was skinny fat and even more unhappy with her body than before.

Fortunately, she found my work through a conversation she overheard at the gym, and she read TLS. She learned all about macros and lifting weights, and started to train. The weight continued to fall off, and now Tara’s body composition was improving. She was getting stronger and gaining muscle, and her loose skin started to fill out.

Now she’s about 127 pounds and in the best shape of her life. She’s followed the Year One Challenge For Women for 3 years and she went from being unable to lift the bar off her chest to barbell bench pressing triple digits.

In this interview, Tara and I chat about her story, and the obstacles she navigated along the way, including how she changed her diet and training and overcame intimidation and fears of getting bulky, how her mindset has transformed, how her strength has progressed, what she’s working toward now, and more.

So if you’re looking for a jolt of inspiration and like motivational stories, definitely listen to this episode.

Timestamps:

5:42 - Where was your health and fitness at before and after finding my work?

10:36 - How did you get back into fitness after getting burned out?

19:32 - How did you get over the fear of getting bulky from lifting weights?

30:13 - How has your strength progressed on the program?

48:21 - What are your plans from here? Future goals?

Mentioned on the Show:

Books by Mike Matthews: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/

Thinner Leaner Stronger: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/thinner-leaner-stronger/

The Shredded Chef: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/the-shredded-chef/

The Year One Challenge For Women: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/the-year-one-challenge-for-women/

Bigger Leaner Stronger: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/bigger-leaner-stronger/

Beyond Bigger Leaner Stronger: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/beyond-bigger-leaner-stronger/