The discipline and consistency in the gym transferred directly into my approach for studying and finally I passed – not one but all my licensing exams . I finally felt that the curtain of shame was lifted and that I could hold my head high in the world of medicine .
However , like most , being consistent is hard and I was no stranger to “ falling off .” By now I was knee deep in my career , a wife and a mother of two . I was burning the candle at all ends . Then March 2020 arrived , and the pandemic rocked the world . As a doctor , I watched patients from different walks of life affected by the virus . One thing was clear to me – that my patients who were deconditioned , unfit , overweight , were at a higher risk than those who were not . It shook me to my core that people could just die from a virus and that the chances of death were significantly reduced by living a healthier lifestyle . I did not want this outcome for anyone , and I especially did not want this for me . I wanted to be healthy ; and be around for my young children ; play in the park with them ; and have adventures . I questioned my own choices and whether I was leading by example for my children and my patients .
I stopped making TikToks about baked goods and started posting selfies of me going for a bike ride or hiking with my family . I started exercising in my home gym and documenting my fitness journey on IG to keep myself accountable . I then joined an online community of women , who like me , wanted to be better versions of themselves . In this community we referred to each other as “ Queens ” because not only were they beautiful inside and outside , but powerful , inspiring , leaders in multiple domains , and motivated by uplifting one another . This community of women and coaching program built my confidence and slowly my mindset began shifting .
There has always been a part of me that knew that I could do so much more and there was more left inside of me to offer the world . Through exercise , nutrition and cultivating a mindfulness and gratitude practice , I developed the ability to do hard things , EVERY SINGLE DAY . To manage my busy schedule , I joined the 5AM club which allowed me to show up for myself and my family .
Training and exercise go deeper though than just going to the gym . It is also about advocating for yourself and by doing so , I began to decipher between who or what fed my soul and what did not . I wasted no time on the latter . I developed a deeper understanding of my why and at the centre of that why , was my family .
In doing hard things , I learned that we all have excuses , which disenable us from reaching our full potential . Even though I was making improvements , I too was hindered by excuses and spent valuable time trying to justify them . This is where it pays to have an intelligent and personable coach , armed with a giant mirror . As I stared into that mirror and saw my reflection , I knew that something needed to change . I was too comfortable .