By Liana Jacob
MEET the British woman who has gone vegan and found weight training which saw her dropping two dress sizes after her unhealthy ready meal eating habits resulted in her struggling to run up the stairs without running out of breath.
Personal trainer, Sally Donald (23), from Inverness, Scotland, has always come from an active background as a gymnast during her childhood, when she would train up to five times a week.
Due to the lack of knowledge she had about exercise and nutrition, Sally found herself eating ready meals every evening and working solely on cardio for over two hours a day.
While her weight has always stayed consistent at 8st 9Ibs, changing up her gym routine and ditching her unhealthy eating habits, she went from feeling bloated and sluggish to withstanding strenuous weight lifting sessions while dropping from a UK size eight to 10 to a more toned size six.
Turning vegan and consuming the average of 1,800 to 2,400 calories a day has left Sophie feeling much more energised and happy.
From needing a personal trainer, the Scottish blonde has found a new career in personal training other people who were in the same situation.
“I began to feel sluggish and bloated before I made the decision to actively start working out every week, although I’ve always been relatively body confident,” she said.
“I couldn’t run to the top of the stairs without feeling out of breath. I wasn’t overweight, but I was unfit.
“I didn’t have a huge amount of knowledge about what I should be eating or what I should be doing in the gym to reach the goals I wanted.
“This led to hours and hours of cardio, which didn’t get me anywhere in terms of changing my body composition.
“I was fed up of feeling tired and sluggish all the time; I wanted to feel healthy and fit, so I got a personal trainer and started training twice a week.
“He really helped me learn my way round the gym and build my confidence. I now feel more energised, confident, happy and focused.
“Although I still have some work to do, I’m happy with how I look and feel on a day-to-day basis.
“I decided to cut out all animal products and I now follow a vegan diet which is hugely beneficial for my health as well as being better for the planet and for the welfare of animals.”
The consistency of keeping on track with her intense routine proved to be difficult.
“The hardest thing would probably be motivation. It can be hard to motivate yourself to go and do a workout when it’s cold and dark outside, but consistency is the most important thing in maintaining a healthy lifestyle,” Sally said.
“People always ask for help and advice with what they should be doing in the gym and how they can eat better.
“I would say get yourself a personal trainer. Don’t waste time in the gym doing exercises incorrectly or badly programmed workouts. A personal trainer will help you achieve your goals and give you the confidence in the gym.”
