Club Julian’s advertising tagline “Changing the Way You See Fit” certainly applies to the story of member Lauren C. When Lauren (29) joined Club Julian in March, 2016, she was hoping to make a few lifestyle changes including improving her overall fitness level, losing a few pounds, and gaining energy. But just one short month after joining, she found out that she was expecting for the first time, which obviously changed the weight loss goals. But to her credit, this life-changing news didn’t alter Lauren’s resolve toward improving her fitness. Nor did her commitment waver when she found out in May, 2016 that she was carrying twins!
With the support of her husband, Alex, the approval of her physician, and expert advice from Trainer Jordan at Club Julian, the Northern Virginia native stayed active in her workouts right up to the end – literally! In fact, not more than a few hours after her December 6th personal training session with Jordan, Lauren had a slightly earlier than expected 2am surprise. Her water broke. On December 7, 2016, Lauren gave birth to Henry & Hannah, who are now about 8 months old and doing great!
According to Lauren, having personal training available at no additional cost as part of her Club Julian membership was a huge selling point when she was evaluating her fitness options. “When it comes to working out, I am the kind of person who needs an accountability partner,” explains Lauren. “Like many people, I have trouble prioritizing my health, but I know when I have an appointment with a trainer, I am going to try to keep it.”
According to Club Julian wellness director, Debbie Petitta, there are many advantages for healthy women to continue working out during pregnancy. “Staying active during pregnancy allows for easier delivery, an easier time losing baby weight, and it helps prevent high blood pressure and Gestational Diabetes,” says Debbie. “There is also evidence that it helps prevent postpartum depression.”
Lauren says that throughout the duration of her pregnancy, Jordan continually modified her workouts. “There were certain pieces of equipment and certain exercises that I could no longer do as a result of my condition,” explains Lauren. “Jordan would always check in with me before the workout to make sure I was feeling OK.” And according to Lauren, Jordan even checked in at the hospital after the twins were born to make sure everyone was doing well (what a guy)!
Lauren reports losing all of the 50 pounds that she put on during her pregnancy, plus an additional 10 pounds in the eight months since delivering her two bundles of joy! Her new goals at CJ are to regain her strength and stay fit in order to keep up with the demands of her new family. She also says that her personal training sessions represent “time I make for myself” which understandably is a rare commodity for a busy mother of infant twins. Lauren says hubby Alex has been great about pitching in to watch the babies when she is at Club Julian. “He is proud of me. That’s why he makes sure that I get over here at least once a week because he knows it is important to me and the family that I stay fit.”
Congratulations to Club Julian member Lauren C. and family!