A 37-year-old mother who completely transformed her body to become a fitness model has revealed she didn’t lose a single kilo.
Catalina Levitt fulfilled her dream of becoming a bodybuilder without cutting calories or giving up junk food and chocolate.
In fact, the Sydney mum-of-two learned that she had actually been eating too little.
Catalina had never been overweight, but wasn’t achieving her desired results despite exercising six times a week and eating ‘healthy’.
Catalina Levitt, 37, underwent an incredible transformation to become a fitness model without losing a single pound. She is 57 kilos in both of these pictures
Catalina Levitt fulfilled her dream of becoming a bodybuilder without cutting calories or giving up junk food and chocolate
But the busy mum later discovered she was undereating, especially in the beginning of the day when she would often skip breakfast and only have a salad for lunch.
And although Catalina was working out daily, she was only doing cardio.
‘I wasn’t overweight, but I wasn’t fit,’ she told Daily Mail Australia. ‘I had too much fat and not very much muscle.’
‘When you undereat and do lots of cardio, your metabolism gets really low and you don’t get the results. You think you’re healthy, but that’s not necessarily healthy.’
After she had her second baby, Catalina knew she wanted to become healthier and fitter as well as set a new goal for herself.
‘When you’re a mum you’re giving yourself 24/7, so I wanted to do something for myself,’ she said.
‘I’m the kind of person who, having a goal and something to look forward to keeps me motivated and inspired. I knew that would make me really happy and proud.’
‘I was setting up my New Years resolution and thought I wanted to do something big this year, for me.’
In fact, the Sydney mum-of-two learned that she had actually been eating too little and doing too much cardio – which was hurting her results
After she had her second baby, Catalina knew she wanted to become healthier and fitter as well as setting a new goal for herself and decided to become a fitness model
Catalina began to train with a coach, Stephanie Parsons, who completely changed both her diet and exercise routine.
She gave up cardio completely and instead focused solely on strength training and lifting weights.
Catalina also gave her diet a total overhaul, eating six times a day and focusing on her balance of protein, carbs, and good fats.
‘I fill my body with healthy and fresh produce and that’s basically what it is,’ she said.
Red meat, such as steak, is almost always on Catalina’s menu, as well as a rotating mix of chicken, fish, or turkey.
She also adds sweet potato, brown rice, or quinoa for energy as well as nuts and avocado for snacks and egg white omelettes or oats for breakfast.
But Catalina, who loves chocolate, said she also still goes out once a week with her family and lets herself order whatever she wants for dinner.
At first adjusting from barely eating two meals a day to six was a struggle for Catalina, who realised she needed to learn a new kind of time management.
‘I’ve got to do activities with the kids, do my freelance work, do the training sessions, do the meal preparation, do the grocery shopping,’ she said.
Catalina (pictured with her husband and two children) gave her diet a total overhaul, eating six times a day and focusing on her balance of protein, carbs, and good fats
She also gave up cardio completely, and still barely does it all, and instead focused solely on strength training and lifting weights
‘I had to learn how to manage my time and still be able to fit in everything I had to do.’
So Catalina became diligent about her planning and organisation, doing a big grocery shopping once a week and cooking on Sundays for the four days ahead.
‘There was also a lot of support from my family,’ she added. ‘My husband would look after the kids on Saturday so I could train and practice during the week.’
Catalina said that when she first began to enter the world of bodybuilding, she was surprised by the sheer amount of dedication and discipline it required.
‘Some people might think it’s all about how you look, but it’s not,’ she said. ‘There’s a lot of discipline behind a competition preparation, and it’s not only about physical strength.’
‘You have to be strong mentally to achieve that as well, and a lot of people don’t see that. I didn’t know that until I started the process.’
‘It wasn’t an easy road at all, but it was definitely a rewarding one.’
It was especially rewarding when Catalina began to see her hard work pay off and her body and stamina change.
‘I feel stronger, I feel fitter, I feel more energised, and when you’re a mum those three things are really important,’ she said.
Catalina said that when she first began to enter the world of bodybuilding, she was surprised by the sheer amount of dedication and discipline it required
But Catalina said bodybuilding has made her feel stronger than ever, which has only helped her while juggling motherhood duties
‘I’m on my feet all day, lifting my 19-month-old baby girl. It’s a massive benefit that this has given me, just to deal with my every day life in a much better way.’
And it wasn’t the number on the scale that had changed, but rather a body that had shed fat and built muscle.
‘The scale might have the same number, but you look different because your body is composed in a different way,’ Catalina said.
‘I don’t focus on the scale numbers anymore but on how I feel and the changes I see. The numbers don’t say much.’
Now Catalina is preparing to compete again next year and hopes that this time she’ll be able to place in the top three and bring home a medal.
It’s this dedication that keeps her going, and she believes is an important thing for every mum to have.
‘It’s about having a passion in your life,’ she said. ‘For me it’s bodybuilding, but for other mums it might be something different.’
‘Whatever your passion is, develop it, do it every day, and try to follow it because that’s what’s going to make you happy.’
‘If you spend time doing what you like, that’s going to make you.’
Catalina credits her coach Stephanie Parsons (pictured) with completely overhauling her diet and exercise routine