Featured Fitale – Brianna of Carbs Don’t Kill My Vibe

My name is Brianna (@CarbsDontKillmyVibe) and I am a full time social worker and part time fit chick! I began my transformation journey in 2012 after graduating from USC with my Master’s Degree. Over the course of three years I had picked up  40-50 lbs of unhealthy weight.

I’m an emotional eater and needless to say graduate school and working full time caused me to have a lot of extra stress! I turned to food for comfort and found myself eating out and over indulging in sugary/salty campus food. At my largest I was 187 lbs. After graduation and the end of a failed dating relationship I decided to put my energy and focus towards losing weight. I had no idea what I was doing at first and initially tried a bunch of fad diets such as the Lemonade Diet, Cabbage Soup Diet, Diet Pills, Herbal Life, ETC. None of these diets or programs worked for me and I began to feel even more frustrated and depressed as time went on.

One day I randomly began looking up “Clean eating” and “Meal Prepping” on the internet. It seemed simple so I decided to try it out and I haven’t turned back since! Slowly but surely I began to lose the weight and keep it off! I began exercising 5-6 x per week along with eating clean and meal prepping. I didn’t have a gym membership for the first year I started working out and instead participated in outdoor workouts such as hiking, cycling, and walking/jogging.

I was the furthest thing from an athlete when I first started this journey. I never played sports and was not athletic. However, as time went on I began to find true enjoyment in being active! It became a stress reliever and a way to help me deal with my emotions. After two years of consistency I was able to lose 50 lbs!

This is a lifestyle and a journey and though I continue to have ups and downs I have been able to keep the weight off and remain active. I still meal prep my food every week and eat clean 85% of the time. I love going to the gym and lifting weights, cycling, and doing yoga. My favorite form of exercise is plyo because it pushes me, helps me build my endurance and makes me feel like a true athlete! Living a balanced lifestyle is key!

Though I live a healthy lifestyle I still enjoy cheat meals and occasionally alcohol. I don’t avoid social gatherings and instead find ways to make healthier choices. There is no short cut to weight loss or magic pill to get results. It takes time and work to receive long lasting results. It didn’t take a week to gain all the weight so it will take longer than a week to lose it! My advice to anyone facing this journey is to be patient with themselves! You will have to change many bad habits and will hit bumps in the road but the important part is that you don’t give up and remain consistent.

Two of my fitness inspirations are Lita Lewis and Massy Arias. Both are strong women whom maintain healthy active lifestyles and provide valuable information about healthy living.

I utilize my Instagram @CarbsDontKillmyVibe and Facebook page to provide info on meal prepping, workouts, and my weight loss journey! I recently launched a small line of fitness apparel which can be found at www.carbsdontkillmyvibe.bigcartel.com.