Emily Skye in Workout Gear Shows Incredible Postpartum Fitness Journey

Fitness model Emily Skye welcomed a baby 18 months ago, and finally feels like herself again. Skye shared a video detailing her journey back to fitness, emphasizing that while postpartum recovery does take time, it absolutely is possible. "My fitness journey over the past 18 months! To [those] who said I couldn't do it, & that my body was ruined after having babies: It took time but I DID IT & I am stronger & fitter than I've ever been before & I've never loved my body more! I did it for ME & my family so I am my best mentally & physically. ☺️⁣ There's so much that happens in between a 'before & after' – a LOT of hard work, sweat & tears!! I don't train for an "after pic" anyway, I train for LIFE! 🙌🏼⁣." Here's how Skye stays fit and strong.

Skye encourages anyone who wants nice abs to try strength training. "It's not about doing heaps of ab work," she tells PEOPLE. "You can't spot reduce. Work your whole body doing high-intensity interval training workouts and weights. A lot of women neglect [weight training] because they have this fear that weights will make them bulky, but it's actually really good for getting that toned look. Plus it burns fat. You've got fat that sits on top of the muscle, so if you work the muscle and get it nice and toned, once you remove the fat you're left with long, lean, toned muscles."

Skye recommends doing HIIT circuits three times a week. Here is a routine she recommends, as told to PEOPLE:

1. 30 seconds of squats
2. 30 seconds of mountain climbers
3. 30 seconds of V-ups
4. 30 seconds of push-ups

"I'll do those four exercises back-to-back with no rest, and that completes a round," Skye tells the publication. "I aim for 10 rounds, but if you're a beginner, you can aim for four or five rounds. I aim to have no rest at all, but if you're a beginner, you can take 30 seconds to a minute of rest. If you want an efficient and effective workout, those circuits are great because you could do them in 20 minutes."

Skye enjoys a balanced diet and avoids drastic diet fads. "I don't deprive myself, I eat a variety of whole foods," she tells Trimmed & Toned. "I stick to almost a Paleolithic diet but include sweet potato, pumpkin, brown/black rice, natural yogurt & cottage cheese. My body and mind function far better eating this way. I don't believe that diets, quick fixes and depletion diets are healthy for you and they put a lot of strain on your body as well as being unmaintainable. I keep a relatively lean body throughout the year and I'm always within a month of being 'comp ready'."

Skye recommends avoiding processed foods for the most part—but she encourages women to eat enough calories to fuel their workouts. "Some things are okay in packets, but mostly processed foods are packeted, so stay with the fresh food section of the shop," she tells PEOPLE. "If you stay there, you can't go wrong. A lot of people don't eat enough food. They think if they eat less or calorie-restrict they'll burn more, but your body will adapt to that, which means it slows down your metabolism and will store food as fat. You've got to eat enough food to keep everything going."

Skye's personal mantra for life is based on forgiveness. "NEVER let what someone thinks or says about you define you, she tells Trimmed & Toned. "You know who you are better than anyone! Completely remove the negative and poisonous people from your life – to do that means to cut all ties with them physically and mentally. Make a conscious effort to not allow them to affect you in any way. Forgive these types of people for the person they choose to be and let them go. Holding onto hate and anger is not healthy and will only bring YOU down and subsequently makes you unhappy! Take control of yourself, your actions, feelings and your life. NOBODY can take away your happiness without your consent!"