QA: Inge Muller was 127kg at her heaviest, look at her now!

PROFILE

Name: Inge Muller
Age: 36
Location: I currently live in the Middle East, Bahrain.

What do you do?
I manage a salon, and have recently joined a real estate company as an agent.

What else do you do?
When I’m not working (which is most of the time) I do some freelance writing for a local magazine and dabble a bit with painting. The rest of my free time is divided between my son and my friends. Ultimately I would like to focus more on writing and breaking free from a typical 9-5.

YOU AND SLEEKGEEK

How long have you been a member of Sleekgeek?
I’m not really sure how long I have been a member, it just feels like I’ve been part of the family forever. 2 years maybe?

How did you find Sleekgeek?
Sleekgeek was recommended to me by a friend and fellow member, Anthea Swartz.

What is your favourite part of the Sleekgeek Community?
I love that Sleekgeek cuts through the nonsense that deceives and dominates the fitness and weight loss industry. It truly comes across that this community has everyone’s best health interests at heart. You focus on keeping it simple and attainable, the people are real, the struggles are real and the emotions are real. We get to celebrate victories and push through hardships as a community

YOUR TRANSFORMATION

Describe the “old you” before you made your transformation. How did you get there and what were you like?
This is a hard question. I’m trying to love myself and all aspects of myself, and the person that I used to be was not necessarily the happiest or most loveable person. I don’t want to be hard on that person, she loved me enough to get me to where I am today.

I would get very upset and resentful if anyone even dared suggest that I was overweight, I always thought, surely there are people bigger than me, why does it seem that I am the one being picked on? I can look back now and realize that even if hurtful, the majority of comments and advice came from a place of love, but I wasn’t able to see it for what it was back then.

I lived in my head a lot of the time, and I always said to myself that “one day” it will be me who looks fit, “one day” I will be able to wear shorts on the beach. It wasn’t within my scope of vision yet that “one day” starts with me doing it today.

What ignited your initial motivation to change?
My lovely mother died of a heart attack 5 years ago, a big piece of me died with her that day.

I packed up and left the only home I’ve ever known and moved overseas. For just over a year after her death, I continued to eat my grief, unable to come to terms with it in any way possible.

I would love to say that I woke up one morning and decided to change and that was it, in reality, it was a slow process of realizing that if I continued on my current path of self-destruction, that my son would also end up without a mother way too early in life.

I went extreme, I demonized carbs and did HIIT workouts until I wanted to throw up. It worked, but of course, it was not sustainable. Just about then I made the most wonderful friends, got introduced to Sleekgeek and together we have struggled, overcome, failed and got back up together.

What are some of the things that the new you does differently now?
I definitely look at food differently now, food is not my enemy. I’m an avid follower of James Smith, and he wrote a post that said: “you consume your food, don’t let your food consume you”.

My mom’s words also echo in my head as she often used to say, “there are no unhealthy foods,” however the moment the word TOO comes in to play is when you will start developing issues. Too much. Too little. Too often. Now, I keep it simple. I tend to get overwhelmed when nutrition gets complicated. Does it have a good amount of protein? It is a yes?. Is it deep fried? It’s a small portion then.

Maintaining weight and slowly dropping fat is a lot easier when I don’t agonize over the details too much.

What are some of the things that the new you still struggles with?
My worst struggle is my mind. I have to tell myself daily that I am worth it, that I deserve to be happy with myself.

If you could give yourself one piece of advice to help with that struggle, what would it be?
That inner voice is a bitch and wants to see you fail. Knock her out and carry on.

Did you plateau, get stuck, or get disillusioned, or even slide backward a bit on your journey?
Oh, so many times.

I’m currently on a  plateau, and I know that I am consuming too many calories for fat loss. I get tempted every day to say “aaah to hell with it, I’m gonna eat the world because I’m not losing any weight anyway.”

I end up not eating the world though, and I think that is due to the perception change that nothing is forbidden if I truly want cake I can have it, but then I have to accept that there will be consequences, not necessarily ballooning weight, but definitely slowed down progress.

I am okay with slow because I am a lot healthier than I used to be.

What is better since you got healthy?
EVERYTHING! I sleep better, I have more confidence, I am happier overall and my body is capable of so many amazing things that I don’t give it enough credit for.

TRAINING 

What’s your favourite form of exercise? [Running, yoga, weightlifting, etc]
I love weights and recently discovered that I enjoy yoga a whole lot. If the zombie apocalypse hits, I am doomed because I loathe running, not for a lack of trying.

How long have you been training and how did you get started?
I’ve been training for about 3 years on and off, I started with HIIT type workouts, I still incorporate a lot of Crossfit and interval training in between my weights.

What does your typical workout look like?
It varies, some days I do only weight training, some I combine weights and CrossFit type exercises.

Favorite exercise? [Distance / pose / movement / etc]
I love deadlifts and squat work.

Least favorite exercise? [Distance / pose / movement / etc]z
Running, with a side of running and then a little bit of running on top. Did I mention running?

How does exercise make you feel?
It is surely a mood lifter, exercising clears my mind and makes me feel empowered to tackle the rest of my day.

Do you prefer to train alone or with others? Why?
I don’t mind either, I’m fairly competitive so I like to push myself against other people and sometimes it’s just me against me.

Most embarrassing training moment?
Almost every yoga class where I can not get myself in or out of a certain position and land on my backside.

Top 3 things you must have at the gym or in your gym bag?
I don’t even have a gym bag. Water, that’s it.

Your next training goal?
80kg deadlift and visible traps.

Top 5 songs on your training playlist?
I don’t have a playlist, I listen to whatever the gym decides I am listening to.

How has exercise/training/Sport Changed your life? [Made it better, etc – please be specific]
it is a non-negotiable me time. Whatever else happens in the day I know that hour is mine for me to clear my mind and work on myself.

NUTRITION

What’s your favourite meal?
I like curries, the spicier the better.

OK, now what’s your favourite healthy meal?
We have a takeaway here that makes a superfood salad, its full of nuts, chickpeas, beansprouts and chicken. Very scrumptious.

Favourite protein?
Chicken and chickpeas

Favourite fat?
Butter and full cream anything.

Favourite carbohydrate?
Plain boiled potatoes.

What’s your nutrition philosophy / approach? [If you have one]
Make the best of every meal even in situations out of your control.

How many meals a day do you eat?
Mainly 2 meals a day, brunch and dinner. I don’t snack as a rule.

Do you have a cheat meal/treat strategy?
If I want to snack on something less than healthy I make sure that I’ve had a proper meal already. I mostly crave junk when I am over hungry, so food first. After that, if I feel I still want dessert, I have it. It doesn’t happen often, maybe once or twice a month.

MINDSET

Most memorable personal best achievement to date. Something you maybe never imagined you could do?
Box Jumps! Man, it feels good to be able to jump that high and not break my calves.

Favorite quote?
Before any words pass the gates of your lips ask yourself: is it true? Is it kind? Is it necessary?

Favourite book?
“The Long Walk” by Stephen King.

Ive read it about 6 times.

What inspires and motivates you?
I lose inspiration and motivation very quickly, they are fickle beasts. I try to rely on focus and dedication.

For what are you most grateful?
Every single day that I am still alive.

When it’s over, it’s over. I don’t think we fully comprehend that this life isn’t a trial run, there are no take backs and reruns.

What do you want to say to other community members who might be nervous or hesitant to make a start?
That “one day” is not allowed to happen in your head only. Don’t sweat the small stuff, make one change at a time and learn to love yourself right now, not only when you fit into the pants, or when you can run a 5km.

What are your top 5 tips for anyone starting on a healthy journey?

1. Start now. Not Monday
2. You don’t have to be perfect, just present in everything you tackle
3. Don’t get sucked in by quick fixes, anything worth doing is worth doing well.
4. You are worthy of good health.
5. Track your food on an app, even if it’s just for a short while. It will be a revelation.