Kayla's Weight-Loss Journey Began With a Groupon Deal — Here's How She Lost 70 Pounds

In April 2016, Kayla started her weight-loss journey. "One morning I woke up, looked in the mirror, and cried for a while and then told myself to pull it together," Kayla told POPSUGAR. "I had spent so much time focusing on other people's problems to distract myself from my own that I didn't even recognize who I was anymore." On that day, Kayla decided to begin focusing on her needs, her mindset, and her body.

"When I first started working toward a better me, I purchased a month of unlimited HIIT-style bootcamp classes from Groupon," Kayla said. With the goal of losing weight and keeping it off, she knew the added accountability from the group classes would help her accomplish her goals.

After her first month of classes, Kayla said, "I was seeing a lot of progress. I enjoyed the classes, and I found a new love for challenging myself." She continued with the classes for a few months, and once her stamina and strength improved, she began working out on her own.

"I watched countless YouTube videos and used the moves I had learned at boot camp as a base while trying out new fitness classes to keep things interesting," she explained. After 21 months of training and changing her diet, Kayla had lost nearly 70 pounds.

"Since then, I have gained about 10 to 15 pounds, but I try not to focus on the scale. . . . Weighing a certain amount can take away the joy and stress relief that working out has brought to my life."

"My diet during the first couple of months of my journey eliminated a list of things: all alcohol, simple carbs (breads, pasta, crackers, etc.), dairy, and most processed foods," she said. Kayla also began to track her macronutrients and eat high-protein foods and vegetables. "My food was not the most exciting; I ate a lot of egg whites, chicken, green beans, and brown rice."

Here's an example of what Kayla typically eats in a day:

Depending on how she trains on a particular day, Kayla said she may increase the size of her meals or have an additional snack. "I try to listen to my body. I don't like to restrict [myself]; it personally leads me down a path of overeating."

"The most important nonscale victory I have experienced has been learning the importance of me time," Kayla said. "I purposely secluded myself when starting this journey to find my mind-body connection. Although I am still actively working on this, I feel more connected with myself than I ever have." Another nonscale victory for Kayla has been discovering her love of physical adventure, such as hiking and participating in races.

"The most challenging aspect of my weight-loss journey has been learning that losing the weight will not be the answer to everything," Kayla said. "Losing weight will not automatically mean you will love yourself more; it will not eliminate your self-doubt or increase your self-worth. Losing weight physically is so much less important than losing the metaphorical weight that no one else can see."

In order to stay motivated, Kayla said she reminds herself of the mental and physical state she was in when she embarked on her journey. "I find that trying new things can revive my motivation when I'm feeling stuck." She's also motivated other people's journeys and the community of men and women she's found that empower one another to reach their goals.

"Progress is not linear. You have probably seen this message floating around, but it is so true," she said. Kayla also advised not giving up if your effort and progress aren't lining up. In the words of Kayla, "Reevaluate, refocus, and remind yourself why you started."