Burn Fat Participant Feature: Erin Jamieson

We will be featuring some of our past participants of the Burn Fat & Feast and Elite programs. We want to celebrate and share these amazing women with everyone. They have worked so hard on their journey to a healthy lifestyle! Today we are featuring Erin. Read this Q&A about Erin’s fitness goals and how she tackled them!

Q&A with Erin Jamieson

Tell us a little about you, where you live, children, occupation, etc.

I am in my early 40s, and live in Knoxville, TN with my husband, our 10 year old daughter and our two (insane) dogs. After 20 years in corporate America, I’m recently unemployed, and transitioning into how to adjust to a job search.  While it is a bit scary and overwhelming to not be working, it has allowed me a bit more time to dedicate to nutrition and fitness!

Describe your nutrition before starting the Burn Fat and Feast program.

In my late 20s and then again after having my daughter, I’d had great success with the Weight Watchers online programs, each time losing over 30lbs, and each time keeping if off for four to five years. I then went through some changes in my personal life, and over the course of time, had gained over 50lbs. I didn’t eat fast food and had cut out all soda. At home I ate fairly well, but on the weekends my husband and I definitely indulged our tastes for wine and beer and pizza. As the 2016 approached, I suddenly found that I weighed more than my husband, had to buy the largest size jeans I’d ever owned, and was completely miserable.  

Describe your fitness routine before starting the Burn Fat and Feast program.

In that first round of Weight Watchers in my late 20s, I started exercising regularly. I found a love for running, and over the course of the past 15 years or so, have run several marathons and half marathons – some when I was incredibly fit and thin, and others when I was well, NOT. Even through my ups and downs with weight, I was always active – whether running or working out at the gym. In the summer of 2015, an Orange Theory Fitness opened in Knoxville, and I was instantly hooked.  But even with almost two years of working out there regularly & running, I kept gaining weight (despite the fact that the trainers kept telling me I needed to adjust my eating in order to really lose weight!).  

What made you decide to join this program?

At the end of 2016, when I was so very miserable, I kept seeing Sarah’s posts (she and I went to college together) about Burn Fat and Feast, and I’d read about the program on her website, and see testimonials. I kept going back to her site to read about it, and finally decided to give it a shot. I KNEW I needed something (I’d signed back up for WW in Fall of 2016, but wasn’t dedicated and was wasting my money). So I signed up! For me, I think it helped that another of friend of mine and Sarah’s joined as well – having at least one person I knew in that group made it less intimidating.  Within the first week, I was hooked.  I didn’t see results RIGHT away – but hind sight being 20/20, I know it’s because I was still trying to fit at least one glass of wine into each day’s macros.  After that first two weeks, I did see a slight decrease in weight, but knew I needed to cut the wine. ? So I did, only allowing a couple of glasses during the weekend, and then I started dropping the pounds.  

How do you feel now that you have graduated?

I feel SO HAPPY. Thus far, I’ve done one round of BFF a round of BFF Elite. And I’m already signed up for another round of BFF Elite starting in a couple of weeks.  I am in the midst of one “round” on my own, and doing pretty well. But I really do like the accountability and the group setting to keep me going. Thus far I’m down 15lbs and 11 inches. In my case, I still have 30lbs to go. I know we’re not supposed to put TOO much thought into the actual weight, more of how we feel – so I’m using that number as a gauge for what I know is healthy for my height, build and age.  My energy is up, my mood is incredible, and my workouts are certainly amped up. I am fitting into more of my clothes – which is probably the best part!  I am happy too for my daughter to see me committed and working hard, and eating healthy!  

Share with us 2 successes, things you learned or what your biggest takeaways were upon completion.

Well I learned that while I might love wine, I definitely don’t need to be having it every day! I won’t lie, there are some evenings when I do miss it, but when I do get those few glasses over the weekend I do truly enjoy them.  I’ve also learned that I THOUGHT I was eating a lot of vegetables before BFF… I clearly was not.  I find I am going through produce incredibly fast, and I feel accomplished when I have to go back to the store.  Lastly, I learned that I don’t need near as much protein as I had thought.  It is clearly vital to our nutrition, but seeing as how I have no plans to enter a body builder contest, no need for me to eat so much of it. And who knew –  I have fallen in love with beets and with mashed cauliflower.

Erin, thanks again for participating in the Burn Fat & Feast and Elite programs. We are so proud of you, and we hope your successes will inspire others to begin their fitness journey! To learn more about the Burn Fat & Feast program, CLICK HERE. Save