 “It’s
only a matter of time,” was the motto that helped turn
this overweight mom into a fitness competitor. Growing up,
Shelly Braconnier was an active child who never had problems
with her weight. However, after graduation she says she was
so busy that physical activity dropped to the bottom of her
priority list. When she later became pregnant, the situation
got even worse.
During her pregnancy, the mom-to-be tried to maintain a walking
schedule, but her eating habits changed dramatically. “I
was constantly bombarded with comments by friends and family
suggesting I should eat when I was hungry and not worry about
my weight. So I ended up listening to each and every one of
my cravings, which were usually for French fries and ice cream.”
 As
her shape began to change, Shelly chalked it up to baby weight
and continued eating and taking life easy. But when the baby
was born a reality check was in order. “At nine months
I was huge and after I had my daughter I weighed 210 pounds.
Whoops!”
As a new mom Shelly quickly discovered that it was harder
than ever to find time to exercise. It wasn’t until
the emotional pain associated with her weight gain began to
deeply affect her that she made some life changing decisions.
 “I
felt huge. I couldn’t walk without becoming out of breath,
nor could I run because I was just too heavy. Every time I
looked in the mirror I was disgusted by what I saw, and I
was continuously cutting myself down with negative self talk.
I was worried about my current condition and depressed that
I had been in denial about my eating habits and lack of exercise.
There was nothing left to do but attempt to get myself back
into shape.”
After beginning a walking program Shelly saw some results,
but she realized she was still far from her goal. “I
knew I needed to make exercise changes but didn’t quite
know how to begin. I thought if I began to run three times
a week instead of walk maybe I would lose more weight. I attempted
to eat a healthy diet but was making apples pies and dinners
for my husband, so it was really difficult.”
But Shelly stuck to it and eventually managed to trim down
to 165 pounds—where she promptly got stuck in a fitness
rut. “I had made good progress but it seemed that from
that point on, no matter what I did my changes were limited.”
Still not to be deterred, Shelly bought some exercise equipment
and decided to hire a trainer. “I had been reading Oxygen
magazine and was amazed at the physiques of the women in those
pages. I secretly wanted to be like them but wondered how
I would accomplish such a feat. The shop recommended that
I contact a woman named Shelly Lynn Hughes and I wasted no
time making an appointment.”
 “During
my first meeting with Shelly I was about 160 pounds. She immediately
put me on a workout regime where I was lifting weights and
doing cardio. Most importantly she didn’t laugh when
I told her I wanted to compete in fitness competitions—she
helped me put a plan of action into place. My workouts were
structured and I saw muscles grow and my shape slowly began
to change. Shelly suggested that I should alter my diet as
well and not long after that many of my dreams became a reality.”
Within one year Shelly lost 40 pounds and looked better than
she ever imagined. “My self-esteem improved immensely
as I was so proud of my accomplishments and looked forward
to taking the stage in my first competition. In September
2003 I competed in Femsport in Figure for the fist time. I
placed eighth out of 24 girls and can safely say at that point
I was hooked. I looked great, felt amazing, and to my surprise
realized that competing was actually fun.”
Some of Shelly’s current goals are to compete at the
regional and national level within the next two years, to
receive her pro card to acquire sponsorship and to possibly
begin acting or fitness modeling.
“The power of the mind is extraordinary, so my message
to anyone who reads this is believe strongly in yourself and
your dreams. You are worth it.”
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