JESSIE’S GIRLS AM-BADASS-ADOR

Anneliese Warhank

Hey! I’m 36 years old and live in Helena, Montana. I stepped into the weight room in high school and instantly fell in love with it. But society told me I needed to spend hours doing cardio to get the body I wanted so I did just that throughout my 20s. By the time I hit my 30s I was fed up with basically starving and killing myself following diets and doing exercises that really weren’t that enjoyable.

It was around that time I first heard the term “reverse diet”. Like with most things in life I turned to the Google to learn more and found Jessie’s blog post explaining reverse dieting and how to find your “total daily energy expenditure” (TDEE). I was shocked, I couldn’t believe I could lose weight by actually eating more. How could this be? Society had been telling me 1200 calories was the path to health. Wouldn’t doubling my caloric intake just lead to unwanted excess weight?

I continued to live my low cal life but kept remembering what Jessie’s blog said. It would be 2+ years before I finally took the plunge and started trusting the process. I took my time reverse dieting but it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. By doing so I developed a healthy relationship with food, built a body I’m proud of, and found my tribe with the Jessie’s Girls community.