Connect
To Top

Meet Monica Sanders of MotivatedByMoni in Decatur

Today we’d like to introduce you to Monica Sanders.

Monica, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Weight and body image is something I’ve struggled with my entire life. Once I hit college, I began partying and gained the freshman fifteen plus change. Due to my excessive partying and skipping class, I did poorly and ended up having to sit out a semester of school. During that time of me not being in school, I was depressed, so I began to focus on working out and losing weight. When I returned to school, I continued to workout out and that summer, I even joined a weight loss support group. Fast forward to a year later, I joined a sorority and began drinking and partying again and I noticed a little bit of the weight coming back but I wasn’t focused on it. When things started to happen in my personal life such as deaths, school setbacks, etc. I used food as a way to cope and naturally I gained all the weight back I lost plus more. None of my clothes would fit, I lost all of my confidence and felt like a prisoner in my own body. In 2018 I decided to do something about it. I had to free myself, so I began documenting my journey once again.

Has it been a smooth road?
A weight loss journey is a struggle and truthfully, it’s more of a mental struggle than a physical struggle. There are times where you want to give up and never do it again. There will be times where you’re not motivated so you have to become disciplined. I struggle with binge eating so I had to really take the time to do the mental work and work on my unhealthy relationship with food. Other struggles of a weight loss journey stem from not being patient with yourself, being controlled by the scale, not seeing results and comparing your journey to others which may lead to self-doubt.

Please tell us more about what you do, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
MotivatedByMoni is my platform where I document my journey. I specialize in natural weight loss through dieting and exercise. I want to show people that great results are possible from just working out and eating right. In this day and age where everyone is getting plastic surgery, I wanted to build a platform for real people like me who aren’t perfect and honestly, I think that’s what sets me apart. A lot of “fitness influencers” only show their highlight reel or of them working out but I’m vulnerable with my supporters. I document my struggles, when I slip up, and when I get back on track. I show people that they’re not alone and we’re all going through the same thing but we’re in this together.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
What I love most about the city is that it’s so diverse, and it’s a growing city. It’s becoming somewhat of a mecca for millennials. So many young people are successful here. What I dislike most is the traffic on 85, 285 and 75.

Contact Info:

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More in