A tired mom of three has tightened up and lost 3.5 pounds in just eight weeks after a frustrating weight loss plateau in January – and she’s saved a fortune on food in the process.
Gemma Corey, out Brisbanesigned up for the healthy mom 12 Week Challenge after losing muscle tone and struggling with bloating due to increased caffeine, chocolate and stress.
The 41-year-old previously lost an incredible 27 kilograms in one year after struggling with her weight for more than a decade.
A tired mom of three has tightened up and lost 3.5 pounds in just eight weeks after hitting a frustrating weight loss plateau in January — saving a fortune on food in the process
Gemma Corey, from Brisbane, entered the Healthy Mummy 12 Week Challenge after finding herself losing muscle tone and struggling with bloating from increased caffeine, chocolate and stress
My weight loss journey hit a plateau in January 2022. I just kept on losing and gaining 1kg. Then my family got covid in early April,” she said.
‘The consequences for my health were enormous. Because of sick children I didn’t sleep and drank 8-10 coffees a day. At night I ate constantly to stay awake. It took me three weeks to recover from the cough before I could exercise again.’
To get back in shape, Gemma pledged to complete four bodyweight home workouts a week, reduce her coffee intake and stick to her target calories by eating nutritious foods from the online library.
What is the typical day of Gemma on a plate (1,800 – 1,900 calories)?
Breakfast: A Healthy mommy smoothie or dairy-free scrambled eggs
Lunch: Dinner or a nutritious smoothie
Dinner: A fresh dinner such as ravioli with bacon and mushrooms, healthy hot dogs or bacon, cheese and cornbread
Snacks: Healthy sausage roll
Dessert: Chocolate cheesecake or Caramilk Weetbix slice
What training does Gemma do?
She started with the postnatal workouts in The Healthy Mummy app. This is a series of short workouts that show lots of safe options for dealing with abdominal separation and pelvic floor, but will help rebuild your fitness and strength.
After that, she started boxing workouts at home for beginners and fitted in bodyweight workouts during her baby’s 10-15 minute naps.
The 41-year-old previously lost an incredible 27 kilograms in one year after struggling with her weight for more than a decade
Just eight weeks later, she’s lost a total of 12 inches from her body.
I definitely feel stronger, fitter and a lot less bloated! After 12 long years of being obese and overweight, I’m finally in the healthy range for BMI and my waist circumference is less than 80cm,” she said.
Gemma, who struggles with PCOS and hypothyroidism, said diet has been key to her success over the past eight weeks, along with 30 minutes of circuit training, interval training and Pilates sessions from her living room using the app.
Gemma is also a big supporter of preparing meal and save $7,800 a year preparing all meals and snacks; she often makes as many as 156 servings for under $100.
Gemma is also a big proponent of meal prep, saving $7,800 a year on bulk preparing all meals and snacks; she often makes as many as 156 servings for under $100
Gemma, who struggles with PCOS and hypothyroidism, said diet has been key to her success over the past eight weeks, along with 30 minutes of circuit training, interval training and Pilates sessions from her living room using the app.
During her most recent prep session, she made 156 servings in 4.5 hours while caring for her nine-month-old child.
‘I had to plan carefully which meals and snacks I would make. I had to plan in which dishes I would cook/bake my meals (eg slow cooker, hob, oven and air fryer),’ she said.
“This saved me a lot of time because I didn’t have to wait for one dish to bake in the oven before preparing my next dish.”
She also opted for cheaper canned and frozen vegetables than fresh vegetables and made a ‘huge savings’ – she didn’t care about the end result, because she freezes her meals when they’re ready.
During her most recent prep session, she made 156 servings in 4.5 hours while caring for her nine-month-old child
‘I had to plan carefully which meals and snacks I would make. I had to plan in which dishes I would cook/bake my meals (e.g. slow cooker, hob, oven and air fryer),’ she said
She also opted for cheaper canned and frozen vegetables over fresh ones and made a ‘huge savings’ – it made no difference to the end result as she freezes her meals when ready anyway
‘Since I was preparing multiple meals and snacks at the same time, I created a production line with all my ingredients for each dish. This kept me focused so I didn’t forget any important ingredients or steps in the recipe method,” she said.
“I had a terrible habit of buying far more groceries than we needed. This meant there was always a lot of waste with fruits and vegetables ending up in the bin.
‘Now I carefully plan our dinners for the week and buy only the ingredients we need and replace protein, vegetables and fruit in dishes so that there is as little waste as possible. I rarely throw anything away.’