“No matter how hard I push, I don’t feel like I’ll pass out. That’s my biggest win. Before I couldn’t handle being in the sun for more than 5 minutes, now I can do a 5k run. it’s a huge difference and all from nutrition.”
Rania has always been an avid Crossfitter, but she is also anemic and the condition made her feel dizzy after every workout. No matter how hard she was training, she felt like she hit a point where she wasn’t getting better in her workouts. It’s not possible to outwork a bad diet, and she knew she needed help.
She saw the results her friends at the gym were getting from nutrition coaching with BODZii, so she decided to give it a try.
“The blood injections helped, but the room would spin every time I finished a workout. If I went into the sun I would pass out. I thought that was normal for me because of my condition. Now I’m at my healthiest and I can feel it in my body”
How did nutrition help her gain strength into her workouts? Here’s a Q&A with Rania on her health journey and how BODZii nutrition coaching pushed her lasting change.
Q&A with Rania
What does a day in your life look like before and after BODZii?
“Before BODZii, I would pick the easiest thing I could grab for breakfast and go to the office. Now I understand every meal should be a whole meal with carbs, protein and fat. For example, breakfast pre-BODZii would be bread and cheese which had no protein at all. Now I get soy milk ad cereal for carbs with a protein shake. I balance my macros every meal.
The way I eat to support my training is also completely different. I used to eat whatever, I gave no attention to nutrition so I just had homemade food. That has given me health issues that I didn’t even realize. My protein level has improved significantly, so I don’t feel dizzy anymore.
Now I understand I need to have carbs before and after. I’m eating more than I used to, and not only have I gotten stronger from it, I’ve also lost 2.5” on my waist from eating healthier. Both my nutrition and sleep have gotten better, so I’m much better rested.”
What has been your greatest improvement since joining BODZii?
“Definitely feeling healthier, happier, and getting stronger. The way I used to diet before BODZii, I could drop 14-15 kg, but as soon as I pick up the barbell I felt dizzy. I would avoid chocolate, chips and junk food, then miss it so much I eat a ton of it.
Now with Coach Zeynep I do macrocounting. When I feel like eating something, I’ll count it, put it in my macros and just make it work. I don’t eat big quantities anymore because I’m not keeping myself from it. My cravings are gone because I don’t put myself in a mindset where certain foods are forbidden.
What has been the journey of working with a coach like for you?
“It took me a while to get used to the concept of counting macros. It was challenging for me. Zeynep did her best to motivate me to weigh my food and put everything into MyFitnessPal but I just didn’t get the idea of a properly portioned meal. I would just try and hit the carbs, protein, and fat count for the whole day without balancing it between meals.
Getting used to weighing food took two months. I’m grateful to my coach for motivating me during quarantine. On the third month, she helped me start working out in the morning with cycling, then work out in the evening with my friends. She helped me workout more than I used to and pay attention to my food.
Every week Zeynep reaches out. She’s really caring and showed me so much attention and care during the whole process. Her constantly texting me and asking what workouts I’m doing, telling me she’s here for me definitely pushed me forward.”
What has helped the most about working with a nutrition coach?
“I had zero knowledge before. Working with Zeynep gave me the information I needed to help my health and workouts. Not only that, but accountability and setting time with Zeynep has been vital.
I don’t think I would have felt motivation working out during quarantine if not for my coach. I don’t want to give my coach bad news and disappoint her (even though she is always very nice.) She is very positive and I’m so thankful for her help.
We come from similar cultures so she is very familiar with the foods I eat. I never have to explain what a cultural dish is, since she gets it right away. I was fasting during Ramadan which she was familiar with, so I didn’t have to explain.”
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