Haters

So I got my first internet "hater" today...

Basically some random person on Instagram asked me "How can you be a coach when your (their misspelling, not mine) not in shape."

I could take this 2 ways. I could cry and hide and delete the comment and worry about how I can be a good or effective lifestyle coach with Beachbody extolling the virtues of health and nutrition and fitness when I am not in perfect shape myself (YET!)

OR

I could continue to inspire others on THEIR OWN journeys to health and fitness. The journey that begins with a small step that is often hard to take. The journey that started for me 4 years ago when I weighed over 300lbs. The journey that has helped me lose 70lbs in 4 years.

I began my Beachbody journey a LOOOONNNNNGGGG time ago (back when Power 90 was really the only thing out there). I started and stopped and started and stopped and started and stopped... you know the deal right? I lost a little, I lost a lot. I have plateaued for over a year. I gave up on myself and believed again. I gave up again. I believed again.

But throughout my journey - this one that I have been on for most of my life I have done at least one thing. I have been HONEST with my online community.

I am not perfect. I have 50lbs of fat to lose. I don't eat perfect every day. I don't always commit to my workouts. I give up and then start again. I do that a lot.

Since becoming a Beachbody Coach a little over a year ago, I never give up on myself for long. I never give up on my clients. I push and check in and motivate and encourage myself and others. I help. I listen. I offer tips and tricks and ideas and more importantly than anything else, I offer wisdom from someone who has BEEN THERE. Someone who is still on the journey. Someone who knows exactly how hard the struggle can be.

I am there for anyone who wants help with their struggle. Free. No charge - if you choose to take advantage of some awesome programs and supplements and nutrition, GREAT. If you want to pay it forward and help others by becoming a coach FANTASTIC. If all you want is someone to listen and maybe help motivate you out the door on a one mile walk - I will be there.

So thank you random internet hater. If you chose to spend the time to comment and try to tear me down, I must be doing something right.

Changes, still making changes

I started my Beachbody journey in December of 2009 (for the 3rd or 4th time) with Turbo Jam and Power 90 at 290+ pounds. I started, I stopped. I started, I stopped. I did this over and over again. I was fat fat fat. I had Postpartum Depression, I hated myself and my body. I couldn't stand to have my husband look at me, let alone touch me. I had serious gallbladder disease (and had to get it taken out in 2010). I did P90X in the summer of 2010 - 84 days of it. And I hated every minute. I was not losing weight. I was not losing inches. I was eating crap and fooling myself that it was okay. I would binge, I would eat in secret... I had problems. I did 1 week of Insanity, and "rested" for 4 or 5 months. I started Turbo Fire in January of 2011 and made it through a month before I started student teaching. Not that I did the program right. Hated long workouts, never made it past Fire30 and the HIITs. Made some changes, dropped some weight (not a lot. I hovered between 280 - 270, up and down, up and down...) I was in a car accident in June of 2011 and extremely lucky to walk away with a broken wrist and scrapes and bruises. The ambulance took me to the trauma center in the nearest big city because "no one will believe you walked away from that wreck alive".

The accident took a physical toll on me, and an emotional one on my marriage. I found running and inconsistently ran and did strength training at my college fitness center. Still ate crap, made some changes and hovered around 260-270. On Antidepressants, but still emotionally scarred. Running more consistently and in the winter of 2012 moved to a more whole foods based diet. Stayed in the 250s but far more flab than anything else.

Then something (inspiration, lightning bolt, cosmic head slap) hit me. I decided to become a beachbody coach. I restarted TurboFire (still not "really" following, but better) and I got Body Beast. Whoa. Serious changes ahead!

Since January of 2013 the weight on the scale has only gone down another 10lbs - but now I bounce around the low 240s, and the bouncing gets lower every week. The BIGGEST changes have come since June 2013 (around Summit). I am getting help with my emotional issues. I am changing more and more for the better every day!

Body Beast has contributed the most to my physical changes. Some measurements have not gone down much, but that is because my body composition is changing so much. Consistency is the key. When I truly committed to myself and my journey each small change added up. Again and again. Good choices led to more changes and better choices and more changes - a perpetual cycle. I am not done, but I am firmly on the path.

Since the beginning of my journey I have lost about 50lbs, completed a half marathon and learned to love and appreciate what my body can do for me when I take care of it. This isn't the end, but the beginning...