The bond between mothers and daughters is strong.
But not all moms and daughters are as close as Cheryl Shaw and her daughter, Tessa. The 50-year-old mom and 17-year-old daughter live together in New Jersey, and both have struggled with their weight over the past several years.
One day, Cheryl saw a video that documented a woman’s weight loss. She felt so inspired by the video that she decided to make some changes for herself. But she didn’t want to leave her daughter behind. The two decided to work together to get fit.
In a video she posted to YouTube, she told the camera:
“I’m a single mom, and they depend on me… I’m all they have. I’m definitely an emotional eater, and my daughter takes after me. We’re sick of looking like this, and it’s time to get the weight off and work hard.”
This kind of leadership is exactly what makes Cheryl such a good mom.
She saw how much of an impact she had on her daughter and knew that if she wanted Tessa to be healthy, she had to take the reins and make a change with her. And that’s just what she did.
At the beginning of their challenge, Cheryl weighed 256 pounds, and Tessa weighed 181 pounds. They both had a lot of work to do, and they stuck to it every step of the way. The pair started running together, doing squats, participating in at-home exercises, and worked on meal-prepping delicious-looking and healthy meals that they could enjoy together.
Even though Cheryl regularly works 12-hours shifts in an emergency room, she continued to make time to work out and eat healthy.
As anyone who has ever tried to lose weight knows, that’s not always the easiest thing to do. But both Cheryl and Tessa put their health and each other first and worked out even when it was snowy or when they were exhausted from their longs days.
Sometimes, they slipped up on their journey. In her video, Cheryl talks about going off her healthy eating plan for a couple of days. But this mother-daughter duo understands that experiencing setbacks doesn’t mean you should quit. It’s just a sign that you should work even harder toward your goals. Therefore, Cheryl got back on the bandwagon quickly, continuing to make improvements even when it seemed impossible.
After 100 days of hard work, dedication, and commitment, the progress these two made was absolutely incredible.
Tessa lost a total of 32 pounds, while her mother lost 42. Together, they were down 74 pounds! This sort of progress proved that all their hard work paid off in the long run even if it was difficult or time-consuming.
But weight loss isn’t just about looking better.
It’s about feeling better, living longer, and being a more productive, happier self. And it looks like these two certainly hit that mark. During their journey, not only did they achieve the healthy lifestyle they had been working toward, but they also grew closer as mother and daughter, and they struggled and learned together.
Anyone struggling with weight loss should feel encouraged by the story of this mother and daughter pair.
Your aspiration to live a healthy lifestyle shouldn’t be motivated by a desire to fit society’s standards of beauty. Instead, motivation should come from a desire to be there for your loved ones as much as possible. After all, when you take care of yourself, you are more capable of being able to take care of others around you. And at the end of the day, as Cheryl and Tessa know, that’s all that really matters.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
