Meet Courtney A of Bossier City

Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney A

Hi Courtney, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My journey in developing confidence and self-esteem began during the COVID-19 pandemic. During that timeframe, I was only a freshman in high school when the schools across the states closed, which initially seemed like a dream of a lifetime. Like many others my age, there was nothing but time on my hands to scroll on social media all day. I always created short videos just for fun but always kept my account private. After months of being isolated at home, my health started to take a turn. I turned into what one would call a “couch potato” and just laid around and fell trapped into boredom eating. Not just simple boredom eating but eating all sorts of junk food in the book you name it. I would never exercise anymore and my sleep schedule became poor. I took laziness to the extreme and it quickly caught up to me when I ended up gaining a significant amount of weight. Of course, the time came when public schools opened back up, just as students had to wear face coverings to prevent the spread of the virus. Not only was I not pleased to go back but I ended up moving schools so now I was the new kid who didn’t know anyone. This is when I experienced anxiety for the first time because it was hard to adjust to getting back out of the house, especially in a new environment. I had gained over 50 pounds and continued to eat poorly in excessive amounts to cope with my feelings. That of course only made me feel worse afterwards and I struggled with body image and my overall health because of my decisions. It took me roughly two and a half years to decide that I was tired of being comfortable with being uncomfortable and wanted better for my overall health. I decided to stop eating fast food and drinking soda because I didn’t like how it would make me feel due to the fact that I lacked portion control and became gluttonous. I then began walking every day after my meals if I could and throughout school before jumping into the gym. Once I started becoming consistent in valuing the nutrition my body needs and what I put in my body I was able to feel better and walking those steps allowed me to lose weight. I started going to the gym and quickly realized my health isn’t just an on-again/off-again journey, it’s a lifelong commitment to myself. I began documenting my journey on social media since I spent that period of time prior to not posting anything due to my lack of confidence. Once I started, my platform quickly grew with those who could relate to struggling and wondered how they could improve. Little to my knowledge I made a simple post about my weight-loss transformation and it reached millions of people on my platform it gave me the encouragement to keep posting how I was able to improve myself. I kept posting and it would always reach a significant amount of people. Each post allowed the opportunity for my fitness motivation and proper balanced meal ideas to expand and I built an amazing community of supporters who followed me along the journey.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Overcoming obstacles and hardships has been a big part of my journey. I was once overweight and faced many challenges, but I didn’t let that stop me. Through determination and a change in mindset, I lost a significant amount of weight and became a fitness enthusiast. My journey wasn’t easy, but it taught me the value of persistence and self-love. Sharing my story on social media has allowed me to connect with a big audience and inspire others to take that first step towards a healthier lifestyle. Remember, it’s all about progress, not perfection, and every step forward counts.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a fitness motivator who is also a full time college student currently in my junior year in the allied health program which inspires me to focus and prioritize overall heath in general.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
In all honesty the one and only who’s been most helpful in helping me overcome challenges and continue to progress through is God. I was raised in a Christian household and I’m forever a God fearing woman. I have been blessed to grow up in a household where I have my two parents who love me for me and encourage me to do better for myself each day. I’ve overcome struggles that I thought at first was no way out of. It was countless times that only God and my parents would know my struggles. I grew up as a happy kid but experienced low points as the pandemic approached like many others. I really changed my perspective on a variety of things which inspired me to start getting back in shape, eating better and most importantly building a better relationship with Jesus because I became distant with my faith during those low points. I spent a great amount of time isolated from people I would spend time with outside of going to school. I had to value the importance that a bad day does not equal a bad life and now I can confidently look in the mirror and say all the positive things about myself to myself because of hard work. Once I was able to pick myself back up through encouragement and having supportive parents I hit the ground running and never looked back. I accomplished so much from graduating high school early and attending college immediately after to begin my career. With only one year left until I graduate from college, I’m cherishing these moments of building a positive platform to inspire others that have been where I have and that there’s so much more to life and you can change for the better.

Contact Info:

• Other: Snapchat- https://snapchat.com/t/LsFgWpe3 Tiktok- https://wwwtiktok.com/@iamcmolly?_t=8nU1XuhMqhb&_r=1

Image Credits
Courtney A. (Self)