Alicia Jones Shares Her Post-Baby Fitness Journey

Everyone meet my super hot mama friend… Alicia Jones AKA Alpha Flex Fitness! She was pregnant with her adorable baby boy, Cruz, the same time I was pregnant with Scarlett… they’re literally a couple weeks apart! And now, she looks like that and I… well, I’m 30 weeks pregnant… enough said haha! As you can see, she has had an amazing body transformation. It just goes to show that there are really no excuses because she was able to do it all as a new mom too! And I know first-hand how hard it is to find the time (to even just take a shower, lol). Can you say GOALS?! I just had to interview her to get all the deets:

How was your pregnancy like?

My pregnancy went really well actually. I never had morning sickness or anything crazy. I felt happy all the time and the only “complications” were my son was breach so I had planned a C-Section. I actually didn’t workout at all and was pretty unhealthy. I craved McDonalds’ burgers and fries constantly! I also craved cookies, root beer, and deli meat! Haha! I ate out pretty much 3 times a day. It was bad. I was completely ignorant to having a “fit” pregnancy, mostly because, even before I was pregnant, I was also inactive and ate unhealthy. It wasn’t until after I had my son that I dabbled into getting into shape which lead me to educating myself on nutrition, etc… then I fell in love with it!

What made you decide to take fitness seriously?

I wanted to lose my baby weight and I knew that meant I was going to have to get educated on diet and exercise. I had moments where I really wanted to try shakes, wraps, waist trainers, fat burners, anything that would help me see results quicker. Thankfully, my husband stopped me from buying into all these things and showed me a weight room. I trusted him and started doing my own research. I slowly became so fascinated with the fact that I could literally control my body by what I ate. Not just physically but health wise. I continued to research every day. I learned a lot from bodybuilding.com. I would print their 12-week trainers, sit and watch the “how to” videos and I would also use a lot of YouTube for inspiration. It took a while to see results, but I was feeling really good, I did my best to re-inspire myself everyday, always telling myself “Never give up on a bad day” (a saying that an old friend of mine shared with me once). Eventually, I really started seeing results and it excited me. I kept telling myself, “Why stop now? Let’s see what else we can do.” I reached a point where I felt so amazing all the time I just had to show people they could do it too. So I started studying to become a Certified Personal Trainer. I want to help people learn to love themselves, through fitness.

How did you find the time to workout as a new mom?

The same way I find time to brush my teeth or eat, shower and sleep. I make it a priority. It’s never a matter of IF I am going to workout, its WHEN. When my one-year-old was little, he slept an awful lot so that made it easy. I had a mini gym in my garage to make it easier. Eventually he got to an age where I had to create separation between “gym time” and “home life.” My husband is also very active so on the weekends we swap watching him and during the week I pay for him to be watched. The gym became my “me time,” where I could walk in, put my headphones in and focus on just myself for an hour. It became an outlet for me, which in turn made me a better mother and wife. Oh and back when I was working full time, I woke up at 3:55 a.m. everyday to workout before work (which were 10 hour shifts by the way) while my husband and son slept. The key is making it a priority and if that meant losing sleep to get in my gym time, I did it.

Who are your fitness inspirations?

This is a hard one! I have a lot of well-known professional athletes that I look up to like Jamie Eason & Ashley Kaltwasser. But truthfully, I get a lot of my inspiration from my peers who are also on their own fitness journeys. I have more connection to people who I can really relate to. Celebrity’s & “Fitness Gurus” are great to look at but sometimes they can use their position to mislead people. I like to be inspired by the rawness of the journey.

Alex Garcia @BIGWOLF_FITNESS13– Working mother of two, living in Japan! She’s probably one of the coolest chicks I know, from her hair to her attitude. She speaks her mind and stands up for what she believes and I admire that. She’s also got huge biceps. (lol)

Chelsey Stoner @CHELSEYJSTONER– A fitness competitor & 1^st Phorm Athlete. She’s raw. She shows all sides of the fitness world. She shows her moments of success but she isn’t afraid to show you the ugly side of things, the struggle. I go to her for advice a lot.

Erica Capelli @ERICACAPELLI– Entrepreneur/Owner of ThirtyRack fitness apparel. She is the goofiest fit chick ever! She inspires me to be myself. She embraces all her flaws, she’s open about her life in such a connectable way, I magnetize to her. She’s got a mean six pack but truthfully, what I admire most about her is when I just started out, I messaged her asking for help, along with several other “gurus” or whatever we call them these days, she was the ONLY one to respond. Shes humble and I dig that.

Ashlee Nevares @XOASHLEENICOLE CPT, Health Educator, Bikini Competitor. She’s the one I always go to when I want to double-check anything health related. Shes a plethora of knowledge and I admire and respect her so much. Shes a health advocate, she does things the right way, by the book, which is the same way I like to do things. So I have kind of adopted her as my mentor. (Whether she knows it or not) 😉

Blythe Bratcher @LOTUSSOULYOGA– Yogi, Hair stylist & Reiki practitioner. She’s my crunchy, philosophical, yoga friend who lights my soul on fire. She inspired me to take up meditation & yoga. She inspires me on a deeper level than physical fitness, but overall spiritual, emotional and mental well-being. She helps me stay grounded, connected to the world and my energy/frequency I put I out into it.

Gurus I Follow: Ashely Horner, Nikki Blackketter, Heidi Somers, Elle Chapleau, Jessica Arevalo, and Danielle Waltman (these are mostly YouTube and for entertainment).

Do you have any advice for postpartum women who want to get in shape?

Believe in yourself. You have to actually believe you can do it. You can have the body and health you desire, you just have to put in the work. Don’t compare yourself to other women, focus on you at all times. Nobody is perfect, but if you stop trying to fight your flaws and learn to embrace them, something magical happens. You feel beautiful all the time. You feel strong, you feel powerful and you dig up confidence you never knew you had. Be a little selfish! Spending time on yourself will make you a better wife, mother, sister, employee, etc. Surround yourself with positive motivation, fill your news feeds with fitness related content, it will remind you of your goals, even on days when you don’t want to be reminded. Make a commitment to be healthy for you and your children. Be an example. I am not special and I don’t have any secrets. I am just a woman who decided what I wanted and went for it. You can too but you gotta believe in yourself. Never tell yourself what you can’t do… find a way, not an excuse. You got this!

Wow, talk about hard work and dedication! She truly is an inspiration. Follow Alicia’s fitness journey and continue to get inspired… Her IG is @alphaflexfitness and here is her YouTube channel! I still got about 10 weeks (give or take) left of my pregnancy but she gets me so excited to get back into shape as soon as I’m cleared to workout after giving birth!