Ultra-FIT Hero – Donna Pavitt

Donna always struggled with her weight and, like many overweight people, she tried a variety of “fad” diets but always ended up regaining the weight she lost. When Donna reached a UK size 22, she decided enough was enough and she set about transforming herself from severely overweight to fit and slim. This is Donna’s story.

Like many of you who may have battled being overweight with fad diets and who have found it hard to find the right fitness lifestyle, I know how you feel! Over the years, I have used exercise and fitness for my own personal development and discovered just how much better being fit and healthy makes me look and feel.

 

My own battle with weight loss began when I was still a teenager. I went to be sized for my prom dress and discovered I no longer could fit into a size UK 18 and had inflated to a size 22! I decided there and then I had to do something about my weight.

I started going to my local gym and was introduced to a personal trainer who helped me develop a fitness program that seamlessly into my day to day life and set me up with well balanced diet/nutritional advice. From there on in everything started to fall into place and steadily my weight dropped and my fitness improved.

In January 2009 I decided that to enter the Great South Run and, having never ventured outside with my running, I considered each completed training session as a real achievement. After a few months of training I completed the half marathon distance and, after crossing the finish line, I realised how far I managed to come (both literally and metaphorically) in the past 10 months and how I wanted to help other people achieve a the benefits of being fit and healthy that I was now enjoying.

I set about getting a personal qualification and am now an Advanced Instructor Personal Trainer, qualified in Ante and Post Natal Fitness, hold a Group Circuit Training certificate, am qualified in Torso Training and Core Stability as well as Nutrition and Weight Management. My next goals include gaining a Sports Nutrition qualification and gaining my Sports Massage certification.

I now earn my living as a personal trainer and absolutely love my job! It’s very satisfying to help people work towards their fitness goals and I think my clients can relate to me because I have been exactly where they are. They can also see that if I did it that they can too!  

On a personal note, I am still running and since October 2009 I have taken part in many 5k and 10k runs, half marathon’s am already entered for the Great South Run in 2011.

To contact Donna visit here website http://www.donnapt.co.uk/

 

 

 

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Emma’s Story

Aerobics instructor and school teacher Emma Johnston, 28 from Birmingham went from non-runner to competing two full marathons in two weeks. This is her story…

I considered myself pretty fit—I taught aerobics classes after all—but while I was fit enough to teach back to back classes, running was a different matter altogether! On a whim, I tried running a mile at the end of October 2009 and it was a disaster! I was not running fit. I mentioned my urge to start running to a girl at the gym I work at and so, at the beginning of November, off we went on our first very slow jog. We were running about 2-3 miles a run, twice a week and by mid December we had increased in speed (well we couldn’t have decreased!) and got ourselves up to 5 miles 2 or 3 times a week.

About three days before Christmas my sister (who had recently been diagnosed with MS) told me that she had signed us up for a marathon and invited me to join her. I said “no chance!” but after a speech about the fact that she may never have the chance to run one again I reluctantly agreed to join her. It turned out that the marathon she had in mind was the London Marathon on April 13^th—a mere 15 weeks away.

I talked my running partner into doing some of the training with me and set about turning myself into a marathon runner. We went for our first attempt at an eight mile run on Boxing Day. It was not a good run! Too cold, too full of turkey, too far— not a good start but over the subsequent 14 weeks I went from a “around the block” jogger to fledgling long distance runner. We planned our big runs so that we would do 12 miles on week 2, 14 miles on week 4, 16 miles on week 6, 18 miles on week 8, 20 miles on week 10 and 22 miles on week 12 so we would hopefully be ready for 26.2 miles on week 14. It was an ambitious plan but failing to plan means planning to fail!

From Christmas until April I didn’t drink, ate the best diet I could and went to bed early on Saturday nights to be up very early on Sunday mornings for long runs. We would drive the route beforehand and drop off supplies of sports gels and energy drinks to avoid having to carry any more than absolutely necessary. We went out whatever the weather and this being England that meant anything from tropical heat to horizontal sleet…often during the same run! It was life consuming—full time job, aerobics classes, marathon training, fund raising…my time was not my own for the entire from the moment I decided to run the marathon to the day of the actual race.

By week 6 my running partner had decided that she might as well train to do a marathon herself. She found a run in Stratford which was two weeks after London. By week 8 I had convinced myself to do that one too. Two marathons two weeks apart….what was I thinking? It seemed like a good idea at the time!

The 4 months of training was a roller coaster of highs and lows. Some of the lows were running in typically awful English weather where, no matter how fast you try and run you never get warm. Others lows included aching knees and sore shins which began to get progressively worse as my weekly mileage increased. Heavy legs and a couple of less than great runs really knocked my confidence but I had a lot riding on my marathons…lots of people had sponsored me and I was determined not to let them down. Winter turned into spring and marathon day finally arrived.

I woke up early on marathon day, had my usual breakfast, put on my bright orange charity vest, strapped my little mp3 player to my arm. I made sure the all-important timer chip was securely fixed to my shoe and also tucked two bags of jelly tots and three tubes of carbohydrate gel into my pockets. When I arrived at Greenwich Park there were thousands of other runners bustling about. I just couldn’t believe the number of people that were there who all shared the goal of running 26.2 miles through the streets of London. The atmosphere was just astonishing. Finally at 9:40, they called all of the runners up to get into their start zone and at 9:45 we were off! Well, the front was off—the other 34,000 of us just walked very slowly forward towards the start line waiting for our turn to begin the race. It actually took 25 minutes for me to reach the start line after the official starting gun had gone off. I was chomping at the bit to get started!

The first 6 miles went quickly—there was a gospel choir, drummers, crowds and loads of excitement. All of the hills are at the beginning of the course so it was nice to get them done knowing the rest of the route was flat. The 6 mile point was also when the rain started. The crowds started thinning, the initial excitement started to die down and I remembered that I was actually running a marathon and that I had another 20 miles to go…

For me, things started to get difficult from about 11 miles onwards. The 10 mile marker was great to see, a real chunk of the journey done, but from 11-16 miles you aren’t near enough to the beginning or the end to feel motivated…I felt like I was in no-man’s land. I had started off running with two other girls but pace differences started to show at the halfway mark and it became too difficult to run together so I went solo from there until the end. The route hairpins at 13 miles and loops back round at about 21 miles. It was soul destroying to see faster runners eight miles ahead of me and much closer to the finish. There were times where I was very, very tempted to jump the barrier and join them!

As the race progressed the number of runners decreased while the number of walkers increased. I had got to 18 miles and I wanted to give up and join them but I had set myself the goal of running every step of the way. My legs were heavy and I was sorely tempted to walk despite my goal but I somehow managed to convince myself I to run to the 21 mile marker and then I would maybe slow to a walk. After 21 miles I decided to run just one more mile. At 22 miles I told myself I could run one more mile to reach the next marker. I continued challenging myself to run “just one more mile” and focused on nothing more than placing one foot in front of the other and reaching the next marker. This is when I remembered that my charity supporters had a spot at 25 miles and I couldn’t very well walk past them now could I so I ran to the 25 mile point and now only had 1 more to go. That was a very long mile!

Most of the people around me were walking by this point. The crowds were huge provided an amazing atmosphere of support and good will. I set my mp3 player to the most motivating song I could think of and ploughed on. There are countdown signs every 100m from 600m onwards and a special sign marking when you have 385 yards to go (the .2 bit!). I was so exhausted when finally saw the finish line that, for a moment I thought I might not make it; my legs were just too heavy. I realised it was “now or never” so I gritted my teeth, lowered my head and broke into a “sprint” to the finish. Oh the blessed relief! I am not one for crying over nothing but I burst into tears as I crossed the line—I had completed the hardest thing I have ever done.

Two weeks later I lined up for my second marathon in 2 weeks and my second marathon ever! Fitness wasn’t an issue—I had proved I could do it when I finished London—but tired legs were. Despite feeling heavy legged and sore I set off on another 26.2 mile run. Maybe it was the fact the course was less busy or that I paced myself better or maybe my previous 26.2 effort had increased my fitness but either way I actually ran this marathon slightly faster than my first. In four months I went from a non-running aerobics teacher to a veteran of two marathons and raised lots of money for a very worthwhile charity in the process. The challenge from start to finish was a roller-coaster of physical and emotional challenges but it’s something that I am very proud to have achieved and I am glad I did it!

To see more from Emma please visit out http://www.youtube.com/user/Funkstep22

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Pippa Crowther could have used her “bad back” as an excuse not to exercise but, despite the odds stacked against her, Pippa not only conquered her serious back problems but went on to build a successful personal training business. This is Pippa’s inspiring story… 

I’d had a bad back for as long as I can remember. Even at school I remember having to lie on the floor during lessons. In 1989 I qualified as a nurse however by the mid 1990s it got to the stage where my back would just ‘go’ every few years and I would need six months off work to recover and have rehab.

In 2001 my back ‘went again’. This time however it kept deteriorating despite medical intervention and this culminated in an emergency admission to hospital. I was discharged and put on strong pain killers but, despite medical care, the deterioration continued over the next few months. I was eventually referred to a specialist unit in Central London (the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery) for further investigation and Pain Management. By this time I was only able to travel by ambulance and stretcher and then only because of vast amounts of pain medication. The treatment helped a little but I was still in almost constant pain and unable to move about easily.  

In 2003 I was offered and granted “Ill Health Retirement” from the NHS. I was told that I could never expect to walk again unaided and as a consequence was registered disabled. By 2004 my house was adapted and I required a full time carer to assist with day to day life.  My bedroom became my ‘home’. If I went out it was by ambulance and stretcher. I could walk VERY short distances with my crutches and with support. However I was a zombie on a massive amount of medication. I was provided with a wheelchair but I declined to use it. Needless to say, as a result of my inactivity I gained a significant amount of weight.

Things changed in 2004 after seeing several different Doctors. I was referred to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore where I met with my new consultant. I had long since been diagnosed with ‘crippling spinal instability’.  He looked at my current quality of life and felt I was far too young to be so dependant and housebound and offered me surgery. He stated VERY CLEARLY this would not cure me but might improve my quality of life. It was palliative or pain controlling surgery. I had to undergo several very unpleasant investigations first but then in early 2005 he told me he could go ahead with the main surgery BUT I would have to lose more weight. I had already lost four stone and he suggested I needed to lose another four – not easy when you are immobile. However at the peak of my medication I would try and do simplest things like steps ups on my landing at home. The tears would be pouring down my face but I did it because I knew the potential payoff could give me back my health and my life.

By June I had lost the necessary weight and was admitted for the surgery in July. The surgery had just finished its trial period and was considered incredibly risky. I was told that death or paralysis were very real outcomes. I did not care – I had missed so much of life I was prepared to risk everything to some form of normality! My stay in hospital involved a 24 hour admission to ITU post surgery for close 1 to 1 monitoring. The surgery was done via the abdomen and was very close to the area where the aorta and vena cava (vital blood vessels) branch off to run down the legs. Nerve damage, spinal shock and permanent incontinence were now added to the risk factors. I had a prosthetic disc inserted into my spine which was made up of two cobalt chromium metallic endplates and a polyethylene core. Despite damage/disease to other discs this seemed to even my spine out and my old pain was gone.

I went into hospital by ambulance and stretcher and went home 10 days later by car. I was able to sit upright for the first time in a long time albeit with the aid of a spinal brace.

Six weeks later I returned to the hospital for my first check up with no crutches and having travelled again by car. Six months later I travelled back by tube with no assistance and a year later drove myself. My consultant could not believe the outcome and asked if I would advise any of his patients that were considering this surgery as an option. I have since learned it is incredibly rare to achieve this level of function after spending so long disabled. I have a Physiotherapist friend who says he has never seen this level of recovery and activity.

 

On the down side, after my surgery, no rehab was offered. I was told do what was allowed and not allowed to do and that was it. I discovered my local hospital did a six week back and core class in their physiotherapy department so I asked my doctor for referral. I attended each session and by now was able to walk almost a mile uphill to the class and then home again. Once the course ended I took up Pilates and started to swim.

Six months later I wanted to challenge myself even more and joined a gym for the first time in my life. I was still technically rehabilitating throughout this time and my rehab was largely self-prescribed. I would practice Pilates and Core training daily for an hour when unable to attend the gym and I continued to swim when possible.

Sadly during this time by father had a massive stroke and was also diagnosed with terminal cancer. I was now able to travel from London to Norfolk on a regular basis to nurse him which I did until he died. At the end of 2006 I was discharged from the pain clinic and from Stanmore and by 2007 I had started to run. Later that year I entered my first 10K race. I completed several 10K races before entering a completing the Royal Parks Half Marathon last year.

After years of pain and disability I now felt fantastic but I wanted more than to feel well myself – I wanted to help other people feel better too! I wanted to help people who had never exercised before, who had back or weight problems and introduce them to exercise. I had also discovered how good the gym made me feel and I wanted to share this passion.

I spoke to several people who said I would need to become a Level 3 Personal Trainer to do this. I had a lot of self-doubt as, in spite of losing a vast amount of weight, I was still a “big girl”. I had this stereo type in my head of how an instructor should look but I knew it is what I wanted to do and I went for it despite my fears. I chose a course I could do in my own time and embarked on a Diploma in PT with an Exercise Referral Module attached with Lifetime Health and Fitness and in 2008 I qualified as Level 2 Fitness Instructor. By the end of 2009 I had completed all of the modules of my PT Diploma and was a fully qualified personal trainer.

I wanted to give something back to the community so I started working at my local gym as they had supported me during my return to fitness. Soon after I also began work at Pennyhill Park Hotel and Spa – the home of England Rugby. This allows me time to work as a freelance PT. I train clients in their own homes and outside with minimal equipment. I have since worked with clients recovering from back, knee and shoulder surgery and I hope to study the Level 4 back Pain pathway in 2011 so I have a formal qualification in Back Pain and Exercise Management. In addition to post operative and weight loss clients I have also successfully prepared people for army entrance fitness tests, 10K races and half marathon runs and I have lost track of the number of people who I have worked with to help relieve their back pain. Core training and flexibility training is fundamental to my programming.

My outlook on life has changed completely. Every day, clichéd as it sounds, is a bonus. I want to pass on my passion for exercise. I know you can lose weight while in tremendous pain but also how easy it is to put it on in the first place - pain was the cause of this too!  My clients tell me that they can relate to me as I am a ‘normal’ person who understands how challenging exercise and rehab can be. My personal experience means I know about the ‘dark times’ you may have when in so much pain but also know that in many cases, exercise and diet can be very effective in helping people overcome enormous barrier to adopting a healthier lifestyle. 

You can contact Pippa at or by visiting her at tp://www.facebook.com/pages/PipFit/161601327204262?ref=ts&v=wall 

 

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