By Heather Cabot, The Well Mom
Fitness guru Julie Barroukh wants to do for resistance training what Suzanne Somers did for the “Thigh Master.”  

“Women NEED to do weight training. Period. Cardiovascular exercise and stretching are other important components of a well-rounded fitness program. But weights are key,” she tells The Well Mom.  Her message is reaching a national audience.  She’s featured in the October issue of MORE magazine, as a healthy role model who is fitter and stronger today at age 44 than she was at age 20.

Preaching the benefits of resistance work comes from a very personal place for this Los Angeles mom.  The mother of three dropped all of her baby weight and went from a size 12 to a size 4 through muscle building workouts.  Yet it took nearly a decade to generate the motivation to get her tush to the gym.

After having three babies in less than four years, Barroukh says she didn’t recognize herself.  One day she caught a glimpse of her sleep deprived self in a mirror and realized she had become someone she barely knew.

“The woman I saw was fat and frumpy…I decided it was time to get my body back,” she says.

The next morning, she signed up for some personal training sessions.  From the start, weights became a central part of her routine three days a week.  Gradually, she started ramping up her heart rate with the elliptical cross trainer, treadmill, and Stairmaster in addition to cutting back on junk food and her portion sizes.   Eight months later, Julie was 40 pounds lighter and on the verge of making another major life change.

With her newfound passion for exercise, Julie became a certified personal trainer and parlayed her expertise as a former TV producer into developing “Moms With Muscle,” a series of fitness DVD’s (www.juliebfit.com).

Today, she is still a size 4 and keeping up the habits that changed her life.

“I’m just amazed at the power of my body. And it feels good because I know I’m taking care of it now,” she says.