How This Trainer Used Exercise To Tackle Postpartum Depression

I don’t come from a fitness background. When I was in high school, I would get a doctor's note to get out of running the mile in gym class. In college I worked out a little, but a trip to the gym would mostly consist of taking a few selfies to show I was there. I was intimidated by the equipment and I didn’t feel like I knew what I was doing. I dabbled in fad diets and wasn’t consistent with exercise. After I got pregnant in 2012, I was feeling isolated and sad, sleeping a ton, and not eating a lot. I knew my approach to fitness needed to change.

My therapist suggested I try exercise to help with my symptoms.

I started with taking walks on my lunch breaks at work, something I still do to this day. Being outside clears my head and gives me a sense of peace. I also started going to the gym regularly. When I first started, I didn’t have a plan—I just wanted to be consistent. I did some cardio here and there—20 minutes, then 30 minutes, then up to 45. After some time of exercising consistently, the mental piece of exercise finally clicked for me and I found my purpose for being at the gym: to be the best version of myself for my daughter. I had always viewed the reason for exercise as a physical thing, but this shift in perspective is what really helped me get focused and stay motivated.

Hiring a trainer helped me get results, and eventually led to my own fitness career.

When I got more serious about working out, I hired a trainer who I knew could create a structured plan to push me. We did two lower body days, an upper body day, and a full body day each week. I also started running, starting with a mile and increasing my mileage gradually each week. I signed up for a 10-mile race in 2015, and my goal was to run it in under 2 hours. When I finished in 1 hour and 58 minutes, I felt a huge sense of accomplishment. I wanted to keep chasing that feeling, so I started to think, "what’s next?"

I continued working with a trainer until 2019, when I decided to earn my own personal training certification. In addition to my full-time job, I started taking a few clients here and there, and during the pandemic, I transitioned my business, Tonyael Miller Fitness, to be fully online.

Portable workout gear is a total game-changer.

Sometimes as women, moms, or caregivers, we take on a lot and often feel like we don't have time to get to the gym. And sometimes that's true—life gets in the way, so having fitness tools you can take with you and use anywhere can really help you stay consistent.

I love a kettlebell workout, but I can’t take those with me everywhere. I’m really into resistance bands and jump ropes, which are so easy to throw in a gym bag or bring on the road when traveling. On Thursdays, I like to use a resistance band set that offers a variety of difficulty, and I do as many reps as I can with whatever band feels most challenging.

Here are a few WH-tested portable workout accessories to consider:

I aim for consistency, which starts with waking up early.

I used to think that people who woke up early in the morning to work out were crazy. When I first started my fitness journey, I would schedule my workouts in the evening around the time the kids’ club at my gym was open, so I had somebody to watch my daughter. When I began training more consistently, I started working out in the morning more often. Now, I’m out of bed at 6 a.m., and try to get to the gym by 7 a.m. I've found this routine just flows better—I feel more productive throughout my day when I get a workout done in the morning.

Here's what a typical week for me looks like:

Monday: Lower Body(using heavy weights)

Tuesday: Upper Body

Wednesday: Cardio

Thursday: Glute-Focused Lower Body (using resistance bands)

Friday: Full Body

Saturday: Active Rest

Sunday: Rest

These four things are key to my strength transformation success.

Find your purpose.

Why are you exercising? You have to know your "why." It could be to lose weight, to set a good example for kids or family, or purely for mental health reasons. Everyone has a different motivation for working out, and finding your purpose is going to help you stay consistent and stick to your workouts. My “why” is my daughter, Janael. She’s 12 now, and we even work out together sometimes. I want to set a good example and be the best version of myself for her.

Have a plan.

If you don't have a plan going into your workout, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and not know what to do. Determine what your goals are, then make a workout plan that's designed to help you achieve them. It’s hard to stick to a workout routine if you don’t have a plan to follow! If you don't want to work with a trainer in-person or virtually, that's ok—there are plenty of good resources online. (Like the WH workout finder tool!)

Put yourself first.

Speaking for myself and a lot of other moms and caregivers in my life, we tend to put everyone else first and put ourselves on the back burner. Making yourself a priority and scheduling time in your day–even if it’s just 10 or 20 minutes–for exercise is really important. You can't take care of others if you aren't taking care of yourself.

Prioritize nutrition.

Before I leave for the gym in the morning, I make a green smoothie containing fruits, veggies, and some of the supplements I take. I have a protein shake right after my workout—typically within 30 minutes of finishing. It took some trial and error, but I figured out that a high-protein diet works best for me. I typically eat four meals a day to keep myself fueled, and aim for each meal to be made up of about 50 percent protein, 30 percent carbs, and 20 percent fat.

Comments (0)