Ladies and Gentlemen of the interwebs……Over the next few months, I am going to share some stories with you. Stories of everyday people, achieving extraordinary results.

People that mean something to me. I am so proud of them, and everything they accomplish.

This particular person is my friend Pete Wildman.

Before I get into his interview….I want you to have a face to put to the story…..

This was him Before 8 weeks……and at the end of 8 weeks…..

Pete – what do you do for a living?

I operate a recruitment agency. We help some awesome people (I’m biased) to further their careers, and we help our clients find the right people to make their businesses better.

Do you enjoy your work?

I’m quite lucky I think. I enjoy the relationships, and I love the flexibility of my work situation. Processes bore me, but people don’t. The ups and downs of Recruitment can be a bit ‘champagne and razorblades’, and when it’s your business, you feel the highs and the lows so much more than you do on a paycheck, but I’ve learned not to get too emotional about either and overall it works for me!

What drew you to the 8 Weeks to wow program and the idea of Transforming yourself?

Basically, I came back into the fold. I’ve been involved with ORIGINAL Bootcamp and the 8 week programs they run over the past 5 years or so on and off, but I’d piled on the pounds since we had our daughter in 2014. Enough was enough.

Did you think your lifestyle and eating needed a big Overhaul?

Absolutely. As a formula, A less active lifestyle plus junk food = getting fat shouldn’t be a big surprise to anyone. I knew what I needed to do, and I knew where I was going wrong. but I needed something structured to get me in gear and keep me honest, and the motivation that the 8 week challenge provides is brilliant – the inspiration of a collective community of people on the same journey, being guided to a better place by an awesome team of trainers.

How often did you exercise before the challenge?

My structured ‘training’ went out the window 18 months ago, and my fitness went with it. Since then it’s just been a couple of games of soccer a week, occasional swims and a round of golf here and there, but nothing structured or progressive.

Pete, Prior to his 8 Week transformation

How often do you exercise now and what kind of exercise or fitness is it?

Daily, with a few exceptions, but that’s not a hassle because I’m enjoying it. I trained twice today, before work and lunchtime, and I’ve got soccer training tonight.

I do a lot of high intensity interval training sessions, usually 20-40 mins long (sometimes on my own, sometimes in a group). I box a couple of times a week, and play soccer a couple of times a week. A couple of months ago I couldn’t have done this much exercise without breaking.

Did you have any goals that you really wanted to achieve by doing the 8W2W program?

Absolutely. I wanted to feel like ‘me’ again, which translates to being comfortable with how I look and feel, being functionally fit and light on my feet. I had a wardrobe full of clothes that I couldn’t wear, and I wanted to fix that. Literally a whole wardrobe of pointless clothes, and I’d started rotating a handful of outfits because I couldn’t bear myself to buy ‘fat’ clothes. In December we drove to a wedding in the Hunter Valley and I had to stop in and buy a $10 pair of MASSIVE trousers from Kmart (the only place open that early in the morning) because nothing in my wardrobe would fit me, at all. It was embarrassing. I felt down all weekend, and it was a bit of a catalyst for me.

What did you think of your diet previous to the 8 Weeks to Wow challenge?

I knew it was a rubbish diet, and I was gaining weight month on month. I have a lot of coffee meetings in my work, and all those large cappuccinos were hitting my waist. I was constantly hungry, and was eating a lot of snacky stuff, grazing mindlessly on crap to ‘keep me going’ or ‘cheer me up’. It was bad enough to give me some medical issues, and as a result I was smashing through packs of Rennies like they were Smarties. Being overweight meant I was snoring badly too (Sorry Nikki).

What did your diet consist of on a typical day?

Coffees, chips, fizzy drinks, stuff like that. Funnily I wasn’t eating a lot of bread, pasta, rice etc, so my evening meals were quite healthy, veggies, meat, fish, mainly, it was breakfast (Bacon and egg butties from the local café, toast, cereals), lunch and snacks that were killing me, so that was the stuff I had to change on the challenge.

What did you miss the most being on the challenge? If anything?

I like the foods that are ‘allowed’ on the plan., so eating this was is quite easy for me as long as the food is available….I don’t drink that much these days either, but the only thing I really missed was a cold beer or an Old Fashioned every now and then.

What did you find to be the hardest part of the 8 Weeks to Wow program?

For me, the hardest part was breaking free from the rubbish habits I’d developed, and getting back into the healthy mindset. That lasted a week or so. Once I’d got over myself, the challenge for me wasn’t difficult. I like the foods, I enjoy training, and I saw results quickly, which kept me motivated. I could see and feel that it was working.

Did you have any favourite meals that you looked forward to eating?

This time round I really got into frozen steamfresh fish portions (4 mins in the microwave and a godsend – super-easy , really tasty, and convenient to have in the freezer at work too), and good healthy stir fry’s. If I wanted a bit of a ‘sweet fix’, I’d whip up some choc flavoured protein powder into some ForMe Yoghurt – that stuff’s awesome, and it’s great frozen too.

                                                 Pete, after his 8 week transformation

What was your go-to snack?

Either a protein shake, or a slice of low carb bread with smashed avocado and a slice of tomato, with a bit of cracked pepper.

Did you get more creative in the kitchen or did you keep it simple?

I’m pretty simple in the kitchen. I actually don’t mind rotating a handful of my favourite meals, but my wife gets a lot more creative than I do, and this time around she got more involved with the eating side, so we’ve had a lot more variety and that’s been nice.

Did you have any doubts that you would be able to get through 12 weeks of healthy reboot?

Not really – I knew it was time to make a change and I know when I apply myself to something I can be quite driven and strict with myself.

Did you get much support from Family and friends for your choice to make this commitment?

I’m lucky that my friends are pretty supportive people. I’ve always felt that if the people in your life aren’t supportive of what you’re working to achieve, maybe you need to reassess the people in your life!

Did you fall off the wagon, or eat anything outside 8W2W rules on a regular occasion?

Yes, I did. I tried the protein bread on the plan but it was really expensive and I found another low-carb bread that was about 5% carbs, and just tasted so much more like a ‘real’ slice of bread, and was about half the price. I substituted this for the protein bread, and to me it made a big difference (previous times I’ve done this kind of challenge, bread just wasn’t an option). Being able to take a sandwich to work sometimes, or grab a slice of toast occasionally just makes it more sustainable in the long term for me.

I’m out and about quite a lot with work, and if you’ve failed to plan ahead, ‘finding something suitable’ on the fly can be difficult. If you think of Service stations or 7-11’s, convenience stores etc…these places aren’t packed full of healthy, real food. I’m pretty good with planning this stuff generally, so I only got caught out a couple of times, and when it happened I just made the best choice I could with the food available – e.g. I had some Beef Jerky rather than a pie, for example, or a protein shake out the fridge that wasn’t a super-low carb one…following the plan as closely as I could in that moment.

When did you first start to notice a difference in your appearance?

About 3-4 days in – I felt noticeably less bloated. I know I won’t have changed my body composition really at that point but I felt lighter and less sluggish.

When did you first start to notice a difference in your fitness?

After about 2 weeks. When I started I was embarrassed at how unfit I’d become. I had back pain when I ran which meant I physically had to stop running after less than 1km, which was a massive shock to my system. I hadn’t realized I’d got that bad. I was having to stop training before I was really that out of breath, because the pain was so bad, and it was all due to the weight I was carrying. After a couple of weeks that pain wasn’t hitting me as quickly and I could work so much harder. I don’t get that pain at all now, which is amazing. I also hadn’t done any upper body training for 18 months or so, and at the 2 weeks stage I was noticeably able to do much more. Perhaps the biggest difference though at that point was recovery time – I was getting far less DOMS despite doing far more work.

What do you feel you have achieved overall?

Well, at this point I’ve shifted more than 20kg in fat, but I’m a lot stronger as well, so I must have put some lean muscle on too. That means I’ve dumped more than 20kg’s of fat. Someone pointed out that’s like carrying around 20+ bags of sugar, everywhere I went, all day, every day. No wonder it was hard to run, and I felt sluggish all the time! I can now wear everything in my wardrobe again, and I’ve lost nearly 8 inches off my waist. That’s CRAZY good.

Do you think this eating plan and fitness regime is something you can do long term?

You know what – I do. My story is a bit different to a lot of people on this challenge because I’ve ‘succeeded’ on it before, then over time I’ve slipped up and gained weight again. This time though I think the eating plan is a lot more sustainable for me, so I’m confident I’ll stay healthy.

What was the secret to your success?

Commitment, basically. Once I’d made the decision, I was ‘all in’. There’s no point getting up early morning to train half-arsed. If you’re doing it, do it properly, and trust in the 8 Weeks to Wow plan.

Is there Somebody or something that truly inspires you?

I have a cousin in the UK who as I type this has just completed his second marathon in one day, in the heat of the Sahara Desert. That’s bonkers in itself, but he also did a marathon there yesterday, and the day before that, and he’ll be doing another one tomorrow. The Marathon des Sables is a crazy, hot, sandy and bonkers 6 day event running 250km across the desert. My cousin’s a guy in his 40’s with three kids, who wasn’t really very active at all until fairly recently. I figured if he can do that, I’ve got this!

Is there Somebody or something that truly Motivates you?

There’s a great community spirit with Original Bootcamp, and I’m inspired by a lot of the people I’ve met there over the years (the trainers and the recruits). I’m also motivated by the way I feel when I play sport – it feels good when I’m fit, and it feels rubbish when I’m not.

In 10 years time – where do you hope to be, and what do you hope to have achieved?

I hope I’m lucky enough to still be here, to be in good health, to have made the most of family time, and to have great relationships with the people I care about. Hopefully I’ll have had success in business, and I’d like to be standing here in ten years time looking forward to the next 10 years.

Do you feel that you met the goals you set out to?

On this challenge yes – and it’s important to recognize that, but I also see where I am now as a new starting point. I am using this challenge as a springboard to push on from.

Has this Eating plan changed your outlook on a healthier approach to your diet?

This time around the eating plan on the 8 weeks to wow program has been set in a way that I feel is more sustainable for the longer term – and that’s what I really love about it.

Outside a fitter and healthier body and mind, what else do you feel that you achieved or found out about yourself during this 8WC?

I didn’t really find out anything about myself – it’s more that I found myself again. I know that sounds a bit cheesy, but whatever. I’ve got my self-confidence back, and that feels good.

How do you feel about your physical appearance now?

I’m a lot happier with how I look (and more importantly, how I feel) than I was at the start of this challenge.

How do you feel about your fitness now?

My fitness now is on a different planet to my fitness at the start of this challenge. It goes beyond fitness though –I don’t think people realize quite how much being overweight affects so many parts of your overall health and wellbeing. I’m sleeping better, I’m not a snoring nightmare for my wife, and a bunch of medical issues have cleared up, so I’m really happy.

What is next for you?

I have two goals really – the first is at a very bare minimum, which is to maintain where I’m at, and not slip backwards like I have in the past. The second is to push on from here – I’m looking into some longer term challenges, maybe some endurance events that will keep me honest over the next year – something that’s achievable but only with some sustained level of commitment.

The best question is for last Pete……. What do you want to be when you grow up?

Who wants to grow up? True story: 5 minutes ago I just got off the phone with my wife, who was in Cotton on Kids with our daughter. She wanted to know why they don’t do the kids range in her size: “they’ve got capes with sparkly gold stars on, and unicorns, and neon everything, and glittery stuff and…..” She was kidding, but grown up stuff often just means ‘with the fun taken out’. What do I want for my future? A happy life with a good balance – good health, and lots of time to be with the people I love. I’ll take that.