Client Success Story: “Nothing Was Working with My Schedule”

Today’s client success story features my wonderful client Chelsea, who balances business ownership (she’s owns a real estate law practice) and a busy, vibrant family. When we started working together, her primary concern was that her fitness was drifting after having kids – it felt like nothing fit her schedule and she couldn’t stay consistent. Like many moms could relate to, it felt like her body was getting away from her. She and her family were already fairly healthy eaters, but when I read her first food log, I could see areas that needed tuning up to help boost her energy and well-being.

Over the last six months, we’ve implemented an incredibly effective training and nutrition routine that fits her busy schedule and gets her real results.

Since we started working together, Chelsea started lifting weights three times per week, and she lost five pounds of fat and gained eight pounds of muscle. Her body fat percentage decreased by 4% in the process. Like my client Jess, Chelsea wasn’t someone who needed to lose weight, but wanted to get in better shape. As a result of following the plan, she lost about 2 inches on both her waist and her hips, although she “gained” (consider the context here) 3-6 pounds on the scale.

This increase in fitness without weight loss is called body recomposition – the process of losing fat and gaining muscle. The net result of body recomposition is that your scale weight may not change (or may even go up), but you look and feel leaner, and fit better in your clothes.

But it’s not just about body composition. Now, she can also do things she couldn’t do before we started working together – a real push-up, barbell training, and even riding her bike with no hands!

Finally, another huge transformation for Chelsea was her energy level. When we started working together, it was obvious that she was feeling tapped out and drained. Six months later, she is truly enjoying being in her body, with higher energy and mood to deliver everything that she has to for her family, work, and community.

I’ll let Chelsea tell the rest of the story in her own words, and at the end I’ll provide a summary of the strategies that significantly contribute to her success!

“Balancing Family Life with the Stress of Running a Business…”

I’m 37 years old, a proud mom to two amazing girls, and I’ve been happily married to my best friend, Alex, for 12 years. I own a small but thriving real estate law firm, where I lead a dedicated team of three employees. I’m passionate about my faith, my family, and building personalized relationships with my team and my clients. Balancing family life with the stress of running a small business is the primary challenge I face, but I’m super blessed to have a great support system in place.

“I Couldn’t Find a Workout Routine that Kept Me Motivated…”

Before, my biggest frustration was my inability to build muscle. I couldn’t find a work out routine that kept me motivated. I used to work out with my husband or friends to stay accountable, but neither was working with my schedule any more. I needed a way to have some accountability but on my own schedule. I wanted to have confidence in a work out routine that would yield results to keep me motivated, while also being held accountable by someone else.

“I’ve Always Hated the Scale…”

I’ve always hated the scale, but even when I would follow a strict diet and exercise excessively, the number never really moved and even if it did, it wasn’t sustainable. I was not in a good place with my weight because I looked at it as being so much higher than it was pre-babies (i.e., in my 20s).

Prior to working with Rachel, I maybe did a weight work out once per week. I just couldn’t stay motivated so I focused primarily on cardio because it was easy.

“The Idea of Body Recomposition Was New to Me…”

Now, I have more energy, my clothes fit better, and my cravings have completely disappeared. I started noticing all three around the 3-4 month mark. The idea of body recomposition rather than weight loss was new to me. I’m happy with my weight now because, after months of working out and building muscle, I feel great so I know it’s a healthy weight for me. I’ve seen consistent progress, and not just physically—I feel stronger, more energized, and more confident overall.

I prioritize my weight workouts now, and I know if I’m hitting my protein and fiber goals, everything else kind of falls into place.

“I Chalked It Up to Age…”

(Rachel here… just popping in to say that I LOVE this story below…)

Our family rides bikes often and I used to tell my daughters that “when I was younger I could ride my bike with no hands”. I couldn’t do it anymore and chalked it up to age. But I recently tried again and I was able to do it because of all the stabilizing muscles I’ve built!

Self-care isn’t selfish. Investing in your own happiness is an investment in the happiness of your entire family, even if it means spending time/resources away from your family in the present.

Rachel here again!

Chelsea is a fantastic example of consistency that leads to real results! Below, I wanted to list out the specifics that she followed to reduce her body fat percentage by 4%…

To reiterate what she said, she went from strength training sporadically (perhaps once per week) to following my custom structured strength training program three times per week. At first, her workouts were only about 30 minutes long, but they have increased to about 45 minutes in duration over time.
She continued doing cardio, as well, but it was more modulated in the context of her overall lifting routine. We made sure that at each one cardio session each week was very intense. But I definitely encouraged her to not over-rely on cardio for weight management, as it is definitely not a panacea (and can really result in that “drained” feeling for women).
Chelsea also didn’t shy away from heavier lifting! She and her husband had a barbell and squat rack set up in their home garage, and we incorporated heavier functional training into her sessions almost right away. We used (and still use) video to analyze and tweak her exercise form. As I said to her in a message early on: “My general rule of thumb with intensity is that if you EASILY feel like you can complete a set, add more weight on the next set… that way you find the ‘Goldilocks’ zone.” This should be your goal with weightlifting!
Together, we focused realistically on how much exercise in her life felt balanced. As a mom myself, I totally get it (and live it every day) that your exercise pre-kids is not the same as your exercise routine post-kids. “Balance” means something different than it did in the past. So we worked hard not to create unrealistically high expectations.
Chelsea was already a fairly healthy eater when we started working together, but I could definitely see that her protein and fiber could be higher. As we improved her diet over time, her cravings – which had plagued her previously – vanished! And the higher protein intake helped significantly with fat loss, by supporting muscle gain and also moderating appetite / reducing cravings.
We also created realistic plans for all the holidays we hit along the way in six months, as her program spanned over Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas almost right away. We focused on do-able, self-caring strategies for managing food intake in the way that felt most natural and authentic! She didn’t have to give up everything she loved to see the changes in her body.

Hats off to Chelsea! She has done an amazing job, and I am so proud of her progress and healthy mindset!

If you are reading this post and wondering if you an accomplish the same thing for yourself, I wanted to let you know that Chelsea completed by 6-Month Signature Transformation Program. If you want to chat about starting this program for yourself, click here to set up a free consultation with no strings attached. We’ll take 30 minutes to talk about your specific goals and what’s keeping you stuck right now – whether it’s a busy schedule or even hormonal changes.

Here was what Chelsea had to say about completing this program:

“Five stars. I cannot recommend Rachel Trotta highly enough! Her personalized approach and attention to detail are truly unmatched. From the very first consultation, it was clear that she was fully invested in helping me achieve my goals. My workout plan is consistently tailored to my fitness level, preferences, and lifestyle. What really sets Rachel apart is her ongoing support and adaptability. She is available regularly to tweak my plan based on my upcoming schedule and how I’m doing. She has provided encouragement and accountability every step of the way. Choosing to work with Rachel has been the best investment I’ve made in my health and fitness journey!”

If you want to tap into this process for yourself, click here to set up your consultation.

Rachel Trotta

I am a Certified Personal Trainer, Fitness Nutrition Specialist, Physique and Bodybuilding Specialist, and Women's Fitness Specialist. I live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and I coach clients online all over the world. As a trainer and health writer, my mission is to make healthy living sustainable for the average person. I’m also a wife, mom, nature lover, runner, avid cook, weightlifting aficionado, history nerd, travel addict, and obsessive podcast listener. Get in touch!

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