After seeing the embarrassing photograph from her friend’s big day and constant fatigue that was stopping her from being the mother she wanted to be, she decided ‘enough was enough’.
She cut out all processed food, fast food and alcohol from her diet, in favour of a healthy diet full of organic healthy options through Isagenix, which she supplemented with exercise three to six times a week.
Using her dream of entering a figure competition to spur her on, she continued to get slimmer and trimmer and would perform at her first event last year.
Now, having dropped to less than 63kg and with 16 per cent body fat, she regularly flexes her muscles to wow the crowds in the competitions - regularly placing in the top five.
Rachel, a health and fitness coach from Washington, USA, said: “I gained quite a bit of weight from my two pregnancies, so when I lost 35lbs I thought I was looking pretty good.
“But when I saw pictures from my best friend’s wedding it was a reality check that I was still quite obese.
“I realised that I was still very overweight and technically obese according to my BMI.
“I also wasn't able to be the mother I wanted to be. I finally said, ‘enough is enough’ and decided this was not the way I wanted to live my life anymore.
“I wanted to be the mom who could run after her kids and do cartwheels, not stuck in a recliner too tired to do anything.
“Isagenix provided an easy to follow plan. It was something that was maintainable for an extended long-term time-frame and had a great community that provide a lot of support and accountability.
“I cut out processed food, fast food and alcohol from my diet. I stuck to eating whole foods and tried to be as organic as I could.
“I was so proud of how far I’ve come, from a place where I was obese and depressed, to feeling like an athlete and someone who is proud to be a role model for my kids.
“I never could have imagined this transformation, if someone would have told me, I would have laughed.”
One of the main motivations for Rachel, aside from her photo-based embarrassment, was wanting to be a better mother for her children Lauren and Decklan.
She said: “I feel like a different person, it feels like before I was living a different life.
“I remember being so physically exhausted and used to avoid social situations, now I’m really excited to be around people.
“For me the most important thing was just being able to run around with my kids, teach my daughter to do a cartwheel. Before I could barely walk up and down the stairs.
“Now my kids ask me to flex my muscles, so they can take pictures. My daughter even told her teacher that I lost weight.”
After entering her first figure competition last year, where she placed 8th, she’s continued to do more competitions and continue to lose weight.
Last weekend, she placed second and third during her last competition recently as well as winning 'Most Inspirational Award' and two months ago was announced as one of 15 finalists for the Isagenix Isabody Challenge.
Rachel said: “There were 46,000 people who entered this challenge so to be selected as a finalist was beyond words for me."
