Client of the Month: Andrea
Andrea lost an incredible 40kg and finally threw off the shackles of obesity that have held him back since childhood.
Forty-year-old Andrea barely remembers a time when he wasn’t overweight – it has been his reality since breaking a leg when he was six.
But in recent years the workload and travel schedule he had as a successful managing director of an engineering firm meant the weight just kept creeping up.
It was when his weight jumped up from 100kg to 115kg that he knew he needed to take action.
Ultimate Performance Dubai and its impeccable reputation for results caught his eye, so Andrea decided to put himself in their very capable hands.
In just nine months, Andrea lost a remarkable amount of weight and achieved something more than 30 years of trying couldn’t – a healthy body that he could be proud of.
CHANGE THE WAY YOU FEEL ABOUT YOURSELF,
“The programme works for everyone, it worked for me, and I was 40kg overweight and had never set foot in a gym in my life....and I have enjoyed every single step of the process.”
"Through this transformation, I have found a new body, new motivation to exercise and be healthier, a new hobby that I am sharing with my wife, something to be proud of, a new community, a great coach, a new wealth of knowledge about exercise, nutrition, and well-being.When he first came in, Andrea was in a bad place with his health and his body weight.“I found the person I was ‘designed’ to be.”
Andrea’s biggest problem was food – for the most part he ate healthily, but without any control and often too much to offset the stress of travelling.
As his travel schedule increased, so did stress and tiredness, which led to more coffee and more food – all of this just made him feel more sluggish and exhausted.
It was a vicious circle, and he didn't know how to break out of it on his own.
“Earlier I didn't have a relationship with food; it was a stress-slave relationship: When I was stressed or when I was tired, I just ate.”
For Andrea, his transformation was all about getting educated on food and nutrition, and gaining a deep understanding of his own body.
That’s exactly what he has achieved alongside his staggering weight loss.
“I definitely have a completely different approach to food now; I can feel what I need to eat, when I need to eat and yes, it's being driven by a very hard process with MyFitnessPal checking, but I can see that the more I do it, the more I start getting used to listening to what my body requires.
“I'm starting to develop a normal relationship with food, but I needed the six-month shock of having something very strict to be able to develop a normal relationship with food.”
The first few weeks were naturally a bit of a shock to Andrea’s system, but his U.P. trainer kept him motivated and focused and, of course, once the weight started to come off, Andrea needed no external encouragement.
Seeing himself get leaner and stronger week on week was a real buzz and kept him striving for more.
Now, after more than three decades, he is no longer overweight, which is a wonderful and liberating feeling.
THE WEIGHT BATTLE CAN BE TOUGH IF YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND YOUR BODY.
“I broke my leg when I was six, and I stayed with a broken leg for six months, after that as far as I can remember I've always been overweight.
“I was convinced that being overweight was my ‘nature’... although I could have improved a little bit, I have always remained overweight.
“And now is the first time in my life where I'm not overweight, so it has completely changed my life, my perspective – everything. I've never been lean, and now I am lean. It's actually strange; I don't know what to do with it.”
Andrea can barely believe the results he has achieved. It’s still sinking in that it’s actually his own trim and muscular body staring back at him in the mirror.
“It's funny because I can't recognise myself.
“When I walk in the street, and I see my reflection on some shop fronts, I don't recognise it; it takes a couple of seconds for the brain to realise that that image is me because I'm just not used to it, which is fun.
“I have also found out that renewing your wardrobe 4 times in 9 months is extremely expensive (but so satisfying)!”
Becoming lighter and fitter impacted other areas of Andrea's life too – not only did his new appearance make him feel more confident, but he also felt sharper at work.
“Mentally, I feel completely different. It’s like my attention, sharpness, and focus is now on steroids, and it is consistently in overdrive."I am never tired during meetings, conversations, workshops, and so on. It is like always at my best... quite amazing really.”
Now that Andrea has lost the weight, he can see just how simple but effective the U.P. formula really is.
He says what really worked for him was having a structure to follow week by week that added up to some life-changing results.
“What U.P. gives you is a programme. You follow the programme, and the magic happens.
“The beauty of this programme is not immediately apparent, however.
“The programme gives you structure, forces you to plan and to carve out time for the transformation in your schedule.
“And although it seems impossible at the start, I found that carving out time for the walks, for cooking, for eating, and for the gym greatly helps me in my work as it gives me those breaks that are needed to recharge my mind and my body and to be more effective.
“I have started doing the walks with my wife in the evenings, which is very good. It gives us time to talk, she joined U.P. as well, and so we walk together, and that's definitely a huge, unexpected benefit.”
