Woman, 33, reveals how snap decision helped change her life

A 33-year-old revealed how she tried everything imaginable to get her health back on track but one fateful day in the car changed it all.

Elyse Hargrave has lost 60kg. Picture: Supplied

Welcome to You Got This, news.com.au’s weekly fitness series featuring stories and ideas from real women who’ve experienced it all.

A woman has revealed how she transformed her Sunday mornings, going from being in bed hungover to going for runs along the beach, and lost 60kg.

Elyse Hargrave, 33, reveals she would often binge eat and then feel an incredible amount of guilt. She would also drink an excessive amount of alcohol in social situations to help deal with her low self-esteem.

For six years, she tried everything she could to help get her health back under control.

“I had tried almost everything - Michelle Bridges 12WBT, F45 challenges, paleo, keto, low carb, 1,200 calories,” she told news.com.au.

Elyse would often binge eat and drink a lot of alcohol. Picture: Supplied

“I would lose some weight then it would all get too hard, as often the guidelines were restrictive, and It would send me into a binge state and I would gain all the weight back on.”

Elyse even went to see a doctor, but the conversation left her feeling “disheartened and defeated” after she was told to begin restricting her diet to just 900 calories a day - less than what a child needs to survive on.

“I had already been trying so hard to lose weight and felt like I was failing and starving at 1,200 calories and to have that to decrease even more seemed impossible and I had thoughts of giving up on my journey,” she said.

“I believed I was destined to stay on the heavier side forever and thought I would just focus on being as active as I could for my weight.”

Then, one day while driving to her gym, she noticed that a brand new gym was about to open.

BFT Narellan, based in Sydney’s south west, is a group training strength and conditioning gym.

Elyse Hargrave has lost 60kg. Picture: Supplied

She is thrilled with her new body. Picture: Supplied

“I had nothing else left to lose. I had tried so many other gyms and PTs so I gave BFT a try. I did a eight-week challenge with them and never looked back,” she said.

“There was one-on-one personalised coaching with their eight-week challenges. I also went from trying to restrict my calories to 900-1200 a day, to getting to have 2,300 calories a day and felt unrestricted. I had a lot more energy as a result. I felt like I was focusing on a sustainable approach and on making this a lifestyle, rather than a quick fix.”

She said within the first few weeks of the challenge she came around to “trusting the process” and listened to the advice of eating more.

“I could see the weight starting to come off and I didn’t feel deprived of food or that I was starving myself. I also didn’t feel like I wanted to binge eat,” she said.

In total, Elyse has lost 60kg and feels more confident than ever. She can now go shopping and buy new clothes with ease and she’s ditched hangover Sundays in bed for runs along the beach before going for a swim.

A new gym helped her transform her life. Picture: Supplied

She’s now taking on yet another fitness challenge - something that felt impossible at the beginning of her health journey.

HYROX is a fitness race that combines both running and functional workout stations, where participants run a kilometre, followed by taking on a functional workout station, and this process is repeated eight times.

Now she is taking on huge fitness challenges. Picture: Supplied

“Now that I have lost my weight, I needed a new focus to keep me motivated,” she said.

“I had completed the Wollongong half marathon already and HYROX seemed like a good next challenge that would bring my gym fitness and running fitness together.

“BFT have put together a training program which I have been following for around two months to prepare for HYROX. I did those and really enjoyed them.

“We did the PFT testing in June, which is essentially benchmark testing ahead of the event, and it was suggested I compete in the ‘pro’ category. My goal is to finish the Hyrox in 1 hour and 20 minutes, but just crossing that finish line, from having come from where was - will be an amazing achievement.”