READ MORE: β’ Paula Bennett reveals she has undergone a gastric bypass
As a result, she constantly felt exhausted and six months after the birth of her fifth child, Olive, she decided to start eating better and working out.
Martin's initial commitment was to exercise three times a week. She teamed up with another mum-of-five, something she says was "the best idea", and the pair began following Kayla Itsines' Bikini Body Guide workouts.
On their off days they'd go for walks, which eventually turned into runs. Martin says teaming up with her friend meant they could both keep an eye on their kids while they trained.
When it came to reviewing her diet, Martin made the biggest changes.
She cut out processed food and sugars, replacing them with whole foods such as oats, bananas, lean proteins, almonds, tuna, greens, eggs, sweet potatoes.
After just two weeks the busy mum saw changes both in her physical and mental states.
"I was able to think clearly for what felt like the first time."
She credits ditching sugar with having "a dramatic effect on my mind and energy levels."
And when the weight began to fall off she started really enjoying her workouts, no longer felt out of breath from simple tasks and noticed her back pain improving as she built up her abdominals.
"I went from not being able to do sit-ups or any core exercises to having a very strong core five months in," she said.
"At first I could only manage 300m, but after 10 weeks I could run 5km in my fastest time ever."
At the 10 week mark, Martin realised she had lost 15kg, something she says absolutely encouraged her to keep working out and eating well.
She went on to lose a further 10kg and now weighs 65kg.
Following her success, Martin has some words of wisdom for other busy mums looking to make healthy changes.
"Don't wait for the right time," she said. "Don't wait for the baby to be asleep, don't wait until the washing basket is empty, and definitely don't wait for when you feel less tired because it won't happen."
She recommends planning workouts but being flexible and including your children if you like.
Whether it's three 10 minute stints or a half hour morning session, Martin says the most important thing is to "find something that feels like it fits long-term.
"I realise now how easy it is to incorporate exercise into a busy day, it just needs to be a priority."
