Featured Fitale – Paige Mariah

Hi Everyone! I’m Paige Mariah, a marketing coordinator by day and a life & style blogger 24/7. I’m also a self-proclaimed professional thrifter and a health & fitness enthusiast!

For years I’ve always said that I wanted to “get fit” and drop a few pounds but never made a real effort. Last year, 2 years after graduating from Hampton University, I realized that all of the junk food and alcohol was finally catching up to me in a very noticeable way. I felt uncomfortable, unhealthy and unhappy. Luckily, a lightbulb went off in my head and I was finally ready to make a serious lifestyle change.

My beginning weight was 186.5 lbs and I’m currently 149 lbs.

I began my weight loss journey by hiring a personal trainer in August 2016. However, it wasn’t until I finally committed to embracing a consistently clean diet in November 2016 that I started to see noticeable results. I don’t think my journey has an end date. I still have a lot of goals that I want to reach and I’m excited to see where this journey takes me.

At the beginning I worked out with a personal trainer once a week and went to group fitness classes at my local gym. In January 2017, I decided that I was ready to try weight training. I fell in love and haven’t turned back.

Before I started this journey, I could probably count on one hand the number of times I would eat vegetables in a month. I now LOVE veggies and they are apart of almost every meal. I pretty much cut out processed foods and refined sugars and I closely watch my sodium intake. I went from heating up hot pockets everyday for dinner, to prepping healthy meals every Sunday that last me the entire week.

Currently for breakfast, I’ll have greek yogurt and fruit. For lunch and dinner I have lean white ground turkey and various roasted vegetables (can’t forget the sriracha). For snacks, I enjoy Power Crunch protein bars, popcorn, nuts, string cheese, etc. One of my favorite snacks right now is unsalted rice cakes, topped with roasted red pepper hummus and cucumber slices.

My favorite fitness activity is lifting weights! I continue to be surprised by my own strength and it’s just an awesome feeling.

I maintain a clean diet and try to limit the sweets, treats and alcohol. I still allow myself to have fun and enjoy treats every once in a while but I now understand the importance of moderation. I also go to the gym and lift 4-6 days a week.

It definitely wasn’t easy to develop the willpower that I have now. However, I knew that I had to build up my mental toughness in order to be successful with this. I learned about the concept of delayed gratification and started reminding myself that instant gratifiers like that donut or piece of cake would never be as sweet as the prize I’ll be rewarded down the line if I actually stick to my goals. I also started becoming super motivated by my own results. Seeing the progress that I was making was definitely motivation to keep going.

Google is your best friend! There are so many free resources online that can help prepare you to begin this journey. I’ve spent hours and hours reading articles and watching YouTube videos on fitness. You can find everything from healthy recipes to demo videos of specific exercises. I’ve learned so much and I’m continuing to learn more and more everyday.

I think the biggest misconception is that this journey can be rushed. A lot of people go out searching for quick fixes – magic wraps, teas, pills, instead of preparing themselves to actually do the work. A successful weight loss journey is the result of 3 things, a clean diet, consistent exercise and mental toughness. It takes time and patience but at the end of the day it’s so worth it!

I have way too many to name! I have a special fitness Instagram where I follow hundreds of girls dedicated to fitness. They inspire me every day!

I share my journey, tips and tricks on my youtube channel, Paige Mariah and of course on social media, @paige_mariah!

Subscribe to our newsletter

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name

Last Name