Tammy Fisher Photography

As I cruised through my thirties, people kept giving me the warning…”your metabolism is going to come to a screeching halt when you hit 40.”  I heard them, and I listened.  However, when I blew out my 40 candles…it hit. My furnace quit burning, and everything I ate turned to fat cells inside my body.  Those fat cells got so comfy sitting on my hips and thighs.  In fact, those fat cells pure put up camp on every inch of my body.  At 42 I stepped on my scale and saw that in 2 short years…I gained 15 whopping pounds.  For some folks, 15 pounds isn’t that big of a deal…but my friends, when you are supposed to be shopping in the petite department…15 pounds means a whole lot!

I was down in the dumps about my body.  Okay, even worse than down in the dumps.  I was waking up every morning and throwing myself a pitty party in front of the mirror.  Although uninvited, defeat and self-loathing decided to attend this daily soiree in my mirror.  I didn’t know what to do.  I decided to accept the agony and continue on…that this is the way it had to be.

One afternoon, I was getting ready to do a senior session when I was stopped in my tracks by a Mom that was completely in shape.  After further chitter chatter, I found out she was 40.  I also discovered her secret…the reason why she looked so amazing.  A small card was placed in my hand…and with that the doors of opportunity and freedom swung wide open.  I didn’t know at that moment…but I was about embrace a new Tammy.

In October 2011, I began my journey with Toni of Body Transformation & Nutrition. ”This isn’t going to be an easy road for you?” Toni said. “WHY?”  I asked.  She looked me straight and the eye and let me know the truth…without hesitation.  “First of all of you have NO muscle on your body. Plus, your genetics and body shape are going to make it hard to grow muscle. It can be done, but It is going to take a lot of work!”  I was motivated, on the go, ready to rock, and feeling a new leash on life. I no longer woke up in the morning and put on my pitty party hat…those days were behind me.

However, like in all journeys, there are forks in the road. Well during the first week of November, I didn’t come to a fork in the road…I came to a dead end!  A horrible car accident forced me to change my plan.  My priorities changed.  No longer was my weight my biggest concern. In an instant…my life was my biggest concern.  My body had to heal from the bruises and abrasions that provided visual testimony to this life changing event. Then…for weeks I was forced to do something that is extremely hard for me.  I had to sit and heal.  While sitting and healing, I was frustrated.  I was frustrated that I had spent so many years inactive and not using my body for what God designed it to do…to move!  I knew while sitting on that couch that my road to body change was not over. I knew that I was going to turn around in this dead end and get back on the right path! If anything, having to sit, stirred up more determination and motivation to make extreme life changes.  That forced break in my fitness journey was the best thing that could have happened to me. I proved to myself that no matter what happens, with the help of God…I can commit to my best self, the person I was born to be. So, my journey to health picked back up.  I stayed true to that commitment I made while being forced to sit on the couch.

Don’t get me wrong…I still feel moments of defeat.  Days where the drain of life feels bigger than the desire for a healthy lifestyle.  However, on those days, I  pray to be rejuvenated…and I remember those pity parties I used to have in front of the mirror.  That is what motivates me to do the next right thing for my body.  I could not have made such drastic changes without the guidance and support of Toni.  She had guided (okay, sometimes pushed me) each step of my way.  I will be relying on her for many years to come as I continue this walk.  Her business has changed my life forever.  I posted my before pictures on FB a few weeks ago, and was aware that many felt it was a mistake.  “I can’t believe you would post those.” some people said.  The old Tammy would have curled up and felt embarrassed…but the new Tammy is proud of those picks.  I know where I have been…and I am proud of how far I have come.   After all, my new morning mirror parties have nothing to do with my size or weight.  My new morning parties have to do with my commitment to a healthy lifestyle.  They have to do with the fact that I don’t want to hide myself anymore.  They have to do with the fact that I can run through the woods during a photog session, and I’m not gasping for air. They have to do with the fact that I won’t be fatigued when I move my 18 year old baby into the dorm in the fall.  They have to do with the fact that one day in the MUCH distant future I will be able to dance with him at his wedding, and able to run around after my grandchildren (again, in the much distant future).  More than anything, they have to do with the fact that through this life changing journey… I have so much to celebrate.  Yes, my morning mirror parties have become just that…simply put, they have become a celebration.

Images by: Robin Cotten Photography