Losing 26 Pounds in Menopause at 49: Valerie's Story

Nikkiey: Hey everyone, welcome to our WarriorBabe interview with our WarriorBabe, Valerie. Valerie has been in WarriorBabe for 10 months now, starting back in the Blueprint in June of 2020. Valerie's primary focus over the last 10 months of being a part of WarriorBabe has been fat loss and getting more toned, showing more leanness, and we'll touch on her amazing results within the interview today. I am so stoked to have Valerie here so that she can bring you insight and value today.

She has done such a great job, both mentally and physically, because we all know it's not easy and we want to be where we want to be faster. I've watched you along your journey, and although you have made such amazing results, I know that you always want to be better. I'm really excited for you to share insight here in this interview, and your results in the time you've been with WarriorBabe. So everybody, let's welcome Valerie here today. I am so excited to have you in.

Valerie: Hey, Nikkiey. Hey, community. How's everybody doing? So happy to be here, and thank you for the opportunity, Nikkiey, letting me share my story.

Nikkiey: Yes, that's exactly it. Your story, and I cannot wait for you to share it. So let's get a little background on you first. How old are you, occupation, what's your family lifestyle like, all that jazz?

Valerie: I'm 49, I'm a banker. I have two adult kids, 24 and 27. Married for 31 years. Fitness has always been a part of my life. I really started around 2005, and I'm just incorporating it back into wanting my kids to be healthy as well.

Nikkiey: Awesome, awesome. So let's start from the beginning of your WarriorBabe journey. You said you started near the beginning of 2020?

Valerie: 2005. Sorry, 2005 is when my workout journey started, but WarriorBabe was 2020.

Nikkiey: Gotcha, gotcha. So let's start from the beginning of the WarriorBabe journey. Where were you before you found WarriorBabe? What were you doing before WarriorBabe?

Valerie: Really, Nikkiey, I was following my girlfriend, whatever she was doing. She was a competitor, and she was dealing with her own nutritionist, and she kind of just gave me what she was doing. I was thinking, well, if it's working for her, it's going to work for me, and I couldn't be more wrong. I wasn't getting any results. She was cutting and I was gaining. She's losing five pounds, I'm gaining five pounds. It was just frustrating. I had the workout mentality, I was fond of that, but my nutrition was just all over.

In the past, with different diets, I'd see somebody doing something and try to jump on their bandwagon because I thought I was going to get results too. I ran into a friend at the gym, she was doing keto. She explained it to me, she gave me some information. Worst thing I ever did to myself. All I did was lose a couple pounds, and I ended up gaining double the weight back. I was like a fluffy girl. I tried Weight Watchers, I tried Jenny Craig. My husband and I tried to do V Shred, and that was horrible for us.

There were just so many different programs out there that I tried, and I was getting a quick result and then I would end up doing more damage. It wasn't really sustaining my lifestyle. I really wanted to get the knowledge of how to do this myself, so I could do this for the rest of my life and not around other people's ins and outs. I want to teach myself how to do it.

Nikkiey: Yeah, I love that. I love that. What struggles were you trying to solve?

Valerie: I would say my struggles really were that I was working out, and I just wasn't getting results. I felt like I couldn't even walk past a mirror and look at myself and be happy with my results. I had a lot of self-image issues. My husband would say, oh, you're beautiful, but when I walked past the mirror I didn't want to look at that girl. It hurt. It hurt.

Nikkiey: Yeah. You're not alone, babe. There are a lot of women out there that have the self-sabotaging thought process around body image, looking in the mirror and not wanting to look, trying so many things that only wreck the inside of the body, that maybe get quick results but don't have the longevity.

So with being a part of WarriorBabe, let's talk about the results, because it's been so cool to watch your journey from the start of the Blueprint to now. It's had its ups and downs, and I would love for you to shed light on that. Let's just talk about your journey in the last 10 months. What results have you achieved?

Valerie: Oh my God. First and foremost, I would say my mind. My mind is on a whole new level, and I thank you and your program for that, because I was really hard on myself, and I always let people get into my head and follow them. Now I'm like, I'm the leader here and I'm going to lead my journey.

My husband would get up and say, I don't feel like going to the gym today. Well, if he didn't feel like going to the gym, I guess I didn't feel like going to the gym, because I wanted to be around him. Now he says that and I'm like, deuces, I'll see you when I get back. Or if he wants to go out and do something and it's just not where I am that day, then all right. I took some ownership of me. I'm a mom. It was their needs first, family needs first, and I never really put my own needs ahead of everybody else's. Now, I'm not saying that I'm completely selfish, but I'm taking control over my results and what I want.

Nikkiey: Yeah, I love that. That's awesome. Deuces, I'm out, going to the gym, see you later, I've got my goals, I'll be back in a bit. That's awesome. What are the results you've seen in terms of weight?

Valerie: Oh yeah, amazing. I started at about 164 and I'm weighing in at about 138 now. My pant sizes were like a 10 or 12, and I'm into a 4. So I'm real happy with it. Of course, my mind is always going, like, what's my next thing? I still want to lose some more inches. I'm not really worried about the scale so much, I'm worried about those inches. I've got a couple of problem areas that I want to target. Of course, we know we can't just target one area, but I know that if I keep on my journey, keep consistent and trust in this process, it's going to happen. I have no doubt. I have no doubt.

Nikkiey: Yeah. Your before and afters, I'll have to get them in here and put them in, because holy moly.

Valerie: And I get in my own way sometimes. We had this talk one day on the call, and I was down on myself because I was like, I'm not seeing any results, I'm not moving. And I realized I'm looking at myself on a daily basis. When I sent you a picture, you were like, really? Do you not see the difference? I think for me personally, I look at it from week to week, versus looking at what I have accomplished in these 10 months. That's where I'm like, okay, fire.

I just recently started back at the gym, and I got the best compliment the other day. Some of the people that were going to the gym prior to COVID were there together with me this past weekend, and they were like, what in the hell are you doing? And I was like, what do you mean? And they're like, man, your muscles are popping out. They saw the difference, and they're like, wow, you're doing an amazing job. They said they didn't want to say anything.

Nikkiey: Yeah. What you've accomplished, Valerie, in 10 months is what people try to accomplish, or think they're going to accomplish. First of all, people always want fast results. But you've stayed consistent, steady. You've had a little up, down, up, down, but the majority of the time you're winning. You're on point. You're consistent. And that's what's gotten you to where you are now, 10 months later, where typically people might take five years to get where they want to be. You accomplished it in 10 months, and there's still so much more to go. You're still on this journey, right?

Valerie: Yep. And it doesn't help that the good old doctors confirmed that I'm going through menopause. You keep reminding me that it's a good cycle to go through, though, and that maybe I need to train a little different. That has helped, to listen to my body, listen to those body signals that you told us to recognize, and rest, recover, and understand that you want your body to work for you, not against you. And follow me and do what I tell you to do, and it's working.

Nikkiey: Yes, let's talk about that, because this is only recent, right, with your doctors? I know we were seeing good results, and then you started coming to the calls. You came to the call and you're like, okay. Again, big picture, there were big results, but week to week, we went a couple of months and I'm just like, huh, okay, what's going on? And then you came back in and you're like, yeah, I'm going through menopause right now.

Valerie: Yeah. I've definitely got to train different. Again, I've been working out for a long time, and it took a little bit off my pride that I had to change some things. And then changing those things, the results started picking back up. It's just hard to adapt at first, but I have to realize that at this stage of my life it's important to make those changes.

Nikkiey: You just nailed it. That's going to help so many women, Valerie. Your body adapts, right? You've got to adapt with it, and you did, and that's where we noticed another shift. People try to fight through menopause, and it only ends up with eating 1200 calories, and then six months later you're crashing. If you're fighting your menopause, trying to go harder, thinking you're working harder, you're just making the whole thing harder. If you work with it and adapt to it, and you're a prime example...

Valerie: Yep, so true.

Nikkiey: ...it'll start getting back into the groove.

Valerie: Yep, so true. Your body does adjust. I didn't think I was going to be able to eat carbs ever again until I got into this program. Now I'm just like, when is she going to give me more? Keep them coming.

Nikkiey: Yeah. I'm glad you brought that up, because a lot of women struggle with that. They struggle with the mentality of eating more. How did you deal with coming in from what you were doing, trying a bunch of different things, to coming into WarriorBabe and me telling you to eat? How did you deal with the psychology of eating more to build more muscle?

Valerie: I started doing a happy dance, I'm not going to lie. I didn't have a problem with eating food. I'd say now my body gets mad at me and I'm like, oh, hold out just a little bit longer, it's not time to eat yet. But in the past, mentally, I felt like I wasn't allowed to have it and I just dealt with it. Now I'm like, these are body signals, you need to listen to them, maybe you need to make some type of adjustment. I've always had an appetite.

So it's nice that I don't have to seclude myself from functions, or from enjoying the foods that I enjoy cooking, because I enjoy cooking. I love baking and things like that. So I don't have a problem making a recipe in my own style and sitting back and enjoying it now. Before, I'd be like, oh no, that's got flour in it. Oh, that's too much. I can't eat that many fruits. I can't have that. I remember one day you told me to eat a Pop-Tart, and I'm like, for real? For real? I went out and bought a big box.

Nikkiey: That's awesome. Good, I love that. You had no problem eating the food. It was just, I guess, understanding... maybe you can tell me. You have no problem eating it, but what can I eat, how much can I eat?

Valerie: Yeah, exactly. And that's where understanding the macros came in. The part I really needed was knowing what I was allowed to eat, or how much I was allowed to eat. Once I found that part out, I felt golden. I felt like there was no blockage now. I figured out, hey, if I want to eat this, I might have to give up something else to fit it in. But I'm willing to cut back on my rice a little bit just so I can eat that Pop-Tart. That's how I feel about it.

Nikkiey: Love it. Since there are going to be a lot of women listening to you, and this is so valuable, so much insight in so many different areas for women, from food to menopause, what advice would you give somebody who's just starting their fitness journey?

Valerie: I would say take your time and read everything. The first thing I did once I signed up for the program was listen to everything you said, probably in three days, and I don't think I retained any of it. I was probably staying up later than I needed to. I was listening to you on the way to work, after work, on my lunch break. I wanted to know everything right away. But what happened was I had to go back and listen to everything again just so I could actually retain it.

So I would say take your time, stay consistent, trust the process, trust you, don't be afraid, and enjoy the process, because it is a lot of fun. I struggled a little bit at the beginning with MyFitnessPal, just putting everything in. Do I scan it this way, do I do it that way? But now I can literally get it done in five minutes, if that. I know what I like to eat. If I want to cook something and change it up, I know I have to change it up in there immediately. So I'm not afraid of all those things.

So again, enjoy the process, stay accountable, get on the Facebook group, talk to the other babes, let them be your pat on the back. I know my husband is tired of hearing me talk about my journey sometimes, and it's really the babes in the community that are willing to listen or leave encouragement, whatever the case may be. I don't mind if somebody private messages me, and I hope no one minds when I message them. Some of the babes are going through things and I'll reach out to them just to check up on them, because I feel like we're a sisterhood. We are miles away, but I feel like that's what you brought to this. Not only fitness and nutrition, but you brought us all together from all different parts of the world. So thank you.

Nikkiey: We're all growing, and we're all on the same journey together, going after the same goal. But the core root of everybody is this strong go-getter mentality. And you can see the ones that have the excuses pop into the community, and you think, oh man, they're not going to last. Not everybody will, right?

Valerie: But you would hope. Everybody has to do it on their own time, and you can't force somebody to do something. Commitment takes place, and determination, and once you have that, you're writing your own pages there. This is your journey and you have to walk it, you have to live it, and that's what makes a difference.

Nikkiey: Exactly. Amen, amen. Where did you first hear about WarriorBabe?

Valerie: So I told you I tried all these programs, right? I was on Facebook and your ad popped up. I had told myself I wasn't doing anything else. I'm not doing any more programs, I'm not trying anything else. Every woman's thought process. But then you popped up. I swiped you up, I was like, I ain't watching this, and the damn thing came back up again. It fell into my algorithm. So I was like, all right, let me watch it.

And from there, that's when I started losing my sleep. I ended up watching the whole thing, and you told me I was getting something at the end. I probably watched three different ads. Next thing I know, I couldn't sleep. I was just like, oh man, this is exactly the program I'm looking for. She's going to teach me all this stuff. She's going to give me some coaching. Oh my God, this is everything I'm looking for. I started getting really excited, my heart rate just started going.

The next morning I got up and I just said, I'm signing up. I didn't need anybody to talk to me or anything. My mind was already made up. I didn't talk to my husband, I didn't do anything, I just signed up. I'm going to say about a month later, I was in the program and my husband's like, what are you doing? Why are you going downstairs to get on some Zoom call? Where are you going? And I was like, oh yeah, by the way, I'm a WarriorBabe.

And he was like, what? You know, what? And I said, I'm a WarriorBabe. I'm involved in this community where there are women just like me, and we're on this journey. I feel like I started becoming you on this commercial. I'm telling him everything, and he's like, okay. Then he says, well, show me what you're doing. So I show him the program, and his first response is, well, do they have a Warrior Dude? And I'm like, no, I'm sorry, there's no Warrior Dude, it's just for babes.

So I invited him to do my workouts with me, and he was just like, holy crap, what did you do to me? I feel so sore. This hurts. I have muscles I didn't know I had. So he didn't have a clue what I was doing until about a month later.

Nikkiey: That's hilarious. That's so funny. Because so many women are like, I have to talk to my husband...

Valerie: Right, right, right.

Nikkiey: ...and you're just like, I want it, let's go, and months later he finds out. That's so funny. So what piqued your interest the most? Because you couldn't sleep, and the next morning you're like, I'm in.

Valerie: It was just the knowledge you were dropping and the things you were saying. I was like, okay, she's going to teach me about macros, because I'd heard that I can learn about macros and that's going to make some differences in my diet and everything. Before you, I was on Google searching for different macro tests, find my body type, whatever. And I tell you what, I took the test seven times in ten minutes and gave different answers. I didn't know what to do. It was frustrating. I was just like, well, what do I follow? Then you say, oh, I'm going to teach you this, and I'm like, you're going to teach me? Okay, you're going to teach me.

So I'm having a conversation with you and you don't even know it. It's true, honest to God. This is how it went down in my head. We're having this conversation and you're like, yeah, I'm going to teach you. All right, I'm going to give you a chance, but if you don't teach me, I'm out of here.

Nikkiey: That's so funny. Did I meet your expectations?

Valerie: You did, over and beyond. I'm telling my girlfriends, and I'm still trying to get my girlfriend to do it, and she's just like, I am not counting my macros. I said, well, people that track macros get more results than people that don't. She's like, I'm not doing that, I already know what I'm eating. I said, well, then your program worked for you, but it didn't work for me. I need something that's going to work for me. And this is proven. During COVID you've gotten me into the best shape I've been in since, I can't even tell you when.

Nikkiey: All during COVID you've had the best results you've had.

Valerie: Oh my gosh, yeah. I've had the best results in my entire fitness journey since I started working out in 2005. That's when I really started watching what I was doing. Prior to that, I would go for walks and things like that. I had lost weight, but I wasn't working out. My husband scared me when we first got married. We were really young, I got married at 18 years old. He asked me to go to the gym with him, and we did a leg workout, and the next day I couldn't walk. I was scared as hell. I was like, if this is how it's going to feel, I never want to feel this again. And then 15 years later, I said, all right, I'm ready to start working out. No lie.

Nikkiey: And now you're doing strength training five days a week.

Valerie: I'm a whole other woman now.

Nikkiey: That's amazing. So describe what it means to be a WarriorBabe.

Valerie: Oh my God. I would say it's how my younger son said it. He said, you must be the most focused I've ever known you to be right now. So the focus of being a WarriorBabe has brought me to another level, my energy level, my spirit, just as a person. That's what WarriorBabe has done for me. It made me a better person.

Nikkiey: That's awesome. That's so cool to hear. Where do you feel like you got the most value from WarriorBabe? What about the program gave you the most value?

Valerie: Definitely the mindset. It's hard to say, it's the whole package. But definitely the mindset. The macros, just giving myself the power to be able to enjoy things in life. The coaching, just you being there to support us. I'm so happy that I'm not on this journey by myself, where I don't have someone to check in with. That to me is such a valuable piece, and I hope it never goes away. I like that you're there to help us be accountable. You've given us a community.

Everything, Nikkiey. I can't say one thing over the other. I sleep more now because of you. I'm going to bed because you're like, oh, we need to get more sleep, and I'm like, I need to watch this show on TV, but no. Everything that you have preached to us, I take every bit of it seriously. Everything about this program, the friendships that I've made outside of my own life, where I am now at home in Maryland. The friendships that I've made through WarriorBabe, I feel like I know more about some of these ladies than I do my friends here.

Nikkiey: That's so cool.

Valerie: Yeah, I can't pinpoint one thing over the other. The whole process.

Nikkiey: That's awesome, that's so cool. With the women that are listening right now, if you had to look them in the eye and say you need to become a WarriorBabe, why should somebody listening right now take action?

Valerie: If you're tired of being where you are and you're ready to make that journey into a new you, I would say stop looking back, move forward, put one foot in front of the other, and let the journey begin. Let the new you come out. Let the new you start your life.

Nikkiey: Powerful. Mic drop. That is awesome, babe. This has been such a great interview, your value, insight, everything you brought to the table. So good. So to close it off, what are your favorites? Everybody always loves to see meal or macro options. What's your favorite snack or macro combo?

Valerie: This last month it's been Eggo waffles. Two Eggo waffles and walnut butter. There's this walnut butter called oatmeal cookie dough, and I just put that on my warm waffles and let it melt. It's like heaven. That's my late-night snack.

Nikkiey: That is amazing. Oh my God. Share with the community what this is. And then what's your favorite muscle group to work out?

Valerie: I would say shoulders and biceps.

Nikkiey: Nice.

Valerie: I think everybody... but that's not my favorite one right now.

Nikkiey: Which one are you talking about?

Valerie: I need to be working on legs a little bit more.

Nikkiey: I don't think anybody... I think there's one babe, Lori, that said she enjoyed legs as her favorite workout.

Valerie: Now that the gym is open, I would say maybe it will transition, but working out legs is not my favorite.

Nikkiey: That's awesome. Well, thank you, babe. This was an awesome interview. I'm hoping that tons of babes will get tons of value and tons of insight. For those of you who want to learn more about the programs, about WarriorBabe, what it offers you and how to get started, you can go to warriorbabe.com and become, like Valerie said, part of thousands of strong women, a community of women. Even though there are thousands of them, you make friends. Everybody knows what everybody's doing, because on the Q&As they hear the wins. You can become a part of thousands of women who are getting toned and becoming stronger, more confident versions of themselves. Valerie, babe, thank you so much for being here today and sharing your journey, sharing your story, giving value and providing insight. It was awesome.

Valerie: Thanks, Nikkiey. Thank you for the opportunity.

Nikkiey: Yeah. All right, guys. See ya.