For the past week I've been unsure of what to post for my blog. I've had so many thoughts flowing through my head due to last weeks annual Coach Summit where over 9,000 Team Beachbody coaches took off to Las Vegas Nevada. With all their posts flooding my Facebook news feed as well, as their videos of all the amazing happenings saying I was inspired doesn't even begin to explain it. My heart was so full seeing the positivity coming from all these people. People that I only know through meetings here on Facebook in private groups or through zoom calls in my coaching class I took. We've spoken through messenger and through commenting on each others pictures so it boggles my mind when I think of how these people have truly changed my life in a few short months when I've not met them in person, and I'm still getting to know them. With so much going through my head it's been hard to get a clear thought of what I wanted to share with all of you...but when I finally took a step back the other day and was talking to a coworker of mine that recently became a coach on my team it all came together. I had that "aha" moment as Oprah Winfrey likes to call it. (I think she probably trade marked that phrase). As I was telling her about all the videos I've watched, posts I've read, articles, and blog posts that have recently crossed my path all of them have had one incredible thing in common. They've all in one way or another encompassed one core theme. GOD. It's funny how he'll creep into our lives when we don't expect it. His lessons always seem to find a way to pop up. It's his little way of saying "I'm still here" or "I'm a part of your life and you'll always have me guiding you." For the past few weeks I've noticed more and more those people that are at the top of this business have stated time and time again that GOD has made a huge impact on their life. He's guided them to this business and to helping them make a difference in the lives of others. So for today's post I want to reflect on this. I want to share with you how I've found that GOD is always there guiding me in my path in life and how he's led me to where I am today. This is not something that I've always felt comfortable sharing with others, however I've heard time and time again over the past week how the only way we can grow and be successful in our life is by being uncomfortable. When we are sitting still, are comfortable, and stagnant we're not growing, we're not moving forward, and we're not achieving ultimate success. So I'm opening up today with you, and letting you inside a little, and sharing with you how GOD has led me here.
Since a young child I've always felt that when I "grew up" I would help people. That I would make a difference in the lives of others. That's always been deep down in my core and what I've truly wanted to do with my life. I've gone into teaching because I've wanted to make a difference in the lives of children, but for some reason it's not quite been enough. I decided two years ago to go back to school to get my Master's Degree and become certified in the State of New Hampshire so I could eventually work with student's with special needs because I want to help make a difference in their lives. Yet there was this nagging feeling that it's still not 100% where I should be. I've felt for a long time that I've been pulled in numerous directions. That my heart and soul is telling me that I'm meant for bigger things, but that as a mother I want to be home and want to spend time with my two amazing little boys that the Lord has blessed me with. I don't want to constantly be away from the working to just get by. As we all know in today's society so many people are working jobs where they have to be away from their family and spend less and less time "living life". Then that's where GOD comes in. I have always had my faith, and my strong belief that GOD will guide me to where I am meant to be. He has never let me down. In tough times he's always managed to get us through and he's watched over us when we've struggled. When a sorority sister of mine posted about Shakeology it opened a whole new world for me. I believe that day GOD reconnected us and brought us together to change my life.
When I sit back and look at my life and look at the connections I've made with people it is truly mind blowing. People come into your life for many reasons, but I believe that we are all connected. I believe that each person is there to teach you something or to direct you down a new road to turn your life in a new direction. You just have to keep your mind open to the new opportunities that are being placed in front of you and trust in GOD that it will all be okay. I'm so thankful for that day that our Lord brought my friend back into my life, because as I look ahead I can see all the amazing possibilities that it offers. I know it's the right place to be because I can feel it in my gut in ways I've never felt before. I see the incredible changes that are happening for my friends and family. They are happier, healthier, and stronger then they've ever been. When I sit back and see the positivity, encouragement, support, and friendships that are given to others through Team Beachbody it is like no other company I've ever worked for. But what I've enjoyed most, and I feel is helping me grow more in my faith is the faith and trust I've seen people have in GOD. That he's guided them to this business where they are able to help others change their lives for the better. Where they are supporting and encouraging one another to reach their goals and dreams and to Never Give Up on their faith or their belief that they can live a happier, healthier lifestyle. I believe that I've been brought to where I am today for many reasons. I believe I'm here to strengthen my belief in GOD and to make my trust and faith in him a bigger part of my life. To not be afraid to talk about him or my beliefs with others because that is okay. I also believe that I've been brought here to help others reach their goals and dreams and to feel better about who they are and be comfortable and confident in their own skin. I am here because it is an opportunity that is going to help me live the life I want to live. It's going to allow me to spend more time with my husband and my children. It's going to allow me to finish my degree and help create more opportunities for special education in early childhood programs. It's going to allow me to have the financial freedom my husband and I have always wanted through a job that I truly and deeply love. I've always had Big Dreams but was never sure how I was going to achieve them. But today. Today I sit here writing this blog post with the utmost confidence that I now know how I'm going to make my dreams for my family come true. I have this strong faith and confidence because I've prayed so many times to GOD to guide me in that direction and I know now that he truly has. He's provided me the opportunity to not only give myself the life I want for my family, but to show other people that they too can make their Dreams and Goals come true. Next year I will stand on that stage at the Coach Summit in Nashville Tennessee with thousands of other coaches and not only have changed my life, but the lives of my family and friends. GOD BLESS <3
Hello my friends! I hope you've all had a great week! So today I have a question for you. I want you to look inside of yourself, deep down and reflect for a moment. How have you been feeling? Are you just not feeling yourself? Are you feeling tired? Stressed? Overworked? Has your life hit a mundane routine that is just not fun anymore? Are you wishing you could get some life back and feel alive again. Have you been struggling with a weight loss journey where you've been trying to loose weight and get fit for months (or longer) but not seeing the results you want? Have you just had a new baby and want to get back to that prebaby body but you're not sure how to fit fitness and healthy eating into your diet cause your whole world has been flipped upside down? I know exactly how you feel! I have been there and I am there now! BUT the big thing is I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired! I was ALL DONE saying "I just don't have the time"...I was all done with putting everyone else before me. I realized that as a Mom, a Wife, a Daughter, a Sister, a Friend, a Coworker I not only owed it to myself to turn my life around, but I owed it to the others in my life to become a better me. I was feeling so tired and stressed all the time that I was taking it out on those around me, this wasn't fair to anyone. So I decided right then and there that I was done being a person I didn't like. How if I didn't like myself were others going to like me and want to be around me? I said that day, 11 weeks ago, I was going to make a change. I was going to do something to be a better me. It was time to focus on me and becoming that person I longed for. I wanted my life back. I wanted to feel strong inside and out. I wanted to conquer those goals and dreams I had of running again, of getting back the body I had before I had my two boys, I wanted to see the definition in my arms again, I wanted to see the muscles in my abs that I know are there, I wanted to fit into those favorite pair of jeans hanging in my closet. I wanted to be the person I once was that somehow in the midst of becoming a wife, a mother, and a teacher got lost. I was beginning to forget who she was. I wasn't happy anymore. I wasn't enjoying my life. I was getting frustrated and yelling at my boys every day. I was dragging in the morning and not wanting to go to a job I once loved. The passion I had for my family, my career, my life was gone. I didn't want to be that person. I knew that I needed to turn my life around and find that passion and love again before I started loosing what I have worked so hard for, what I once loved, what God had blessed me with in my life.
The day that I walked through my door and my husband said a package from Beachbody came I knew that was it. I knew that my life was mine again. I opened that box and couldn't wait to get through it to see everything! I wanted to rip it open and put it in the DVD player right away! The next morning I was up at 4:30 am to do my T25 workout. It was like Christmas morning, I was so eager to start this journey. As the weeks passed and I got up every morning to do my workout and make my Shakeology I began to feel the changes. I was pushing myself every day to the limit. I was sweating like I never had before. My body was sore and achy but as the days passed that went away. I KNEW it was working. I could not only feel it, but as each day passed I could see it. I was slimming down. I was seeing muscle definition, and my clothes were starting to fit differently. Then the day came I decided to finally step on the scale. I was so afraid to because over the years I learned to not weigh myself and compare myself to others. I always weighed more then friends that were the same height or size as me because I was an athlete with a lot of lean muscle. However, growing up that was hard to understand and I would beat myself up over it and couldn't get out of my head the thought that my body was unattractive. But I did it, I got on that scale, put my worries aside, and I had lost 10 pounds!! I did it! I was finally below the 150 mark and for me that was HUGE! I felt success, and boy was it sweet! This was working! This program was giving me the changes that I had wanted for so long, and I was truly loving it. I started feeling a new vitality. I had energy that I hadn't had in a long time, and I was feeling a passion for something again. I was feeling alive!
Throughout the weeks I began to realize that this journey wasn't only helping me to get my old prebaby body back, but it was giving me so much more then that. It was giving me passion, it was giving me confidence, it was giving me a whole new life that I never expected. My relationship with my husband grew stronger. My friendships I have are finding a new life through sharing my story with them and helping them start their own journey to becoming a healthier person. I've reconnected with old friends and I've made new ones through the various challenge groups and fitness group that have supported me and motivated me in ways that they don't even realize. But most importantly I'm growing to love and respect my body. I'm learning to be comfortable in my own skin. I'm learning that this body I have is mine forever and if I don't love and respect it and take care of it who will? People think that Beachbody is just a company that sells fitness programs and nutrition supplements but it's not. When you get involved in this company it truly changes your life. When you get to the heart and core of this company you have a CEO that truly cares about not only his coaches but the people. Beachbody is truly a family of people that want to help support, encourage, and motivate one another to live a healthy life. They are people that are real every day people that have been right there where you are. They have gone through this journey too and they have conquered and overcome obstacles to reach their dreams and their goals. They all want to truly, with their whole heart, help you accomplish your dreams. I have NEVER been a part of something that has had so much passion and drive to want to help everyone around them succeed to their fullest potential. I have met people that want the best for me and my family and it has filled my heart and soul with so much happiness. It has motivated me to be a better version of myself. The best version of myself. Know that you can have that too! You too can be surrounded by people that help motivate, encourage, and support you to reach your dreams! I didn't have the drive for a long time to change. I was sitting right in that same seat you are feeling tired, worn out, and unmotivated, but I took that step, I made that change, and so can you! Join me and I can help you reach those goals, I can give you that same success if you're ready to make that commitment! Make your life yours again!
Hello my fit friends! I hope everyone is having a great weekend! It always goes too quickly for me. So this week I wasn't sure what to post. I was kinda stuck because nothing was flooding me with the urge to write. Then just now as I was standing in the kitchen with my son making him an ice cream cone and I took a spoon full of ice cream I had this twinge of guilt. Then I thought to myself as to why am I feeling guilty? I work out 6 days a week sometimes 7. I go running about 3 times a week between 3-6 miles. I eat healthy every day and never eat junk food. So why am I feeling so bad about eating 1 spoonful of ice-cream? Why did I feel so guilty when I had a small, and I mean small slice of pizza the other day? Then I thought about how various times this week I've seen many others posting in groups about how they fell off the wagon, or how they ate a cookie, or how they went out to eat with their children and had an ice-cream for dessert. We are NOT perfect. Nor do we have to be. There are things in this world, actually LOTS of things, that taste amazing!! Wouldn't it be awful if we didn't taste them sometimes? We are all working hard. We are all getting up each day pushing play on our DVD players to bust our butt for 25-45 minutes a day. We are putting on our running shoes and stepping out that door and onto the pavement to move our bodies and run one more mile then we did the day before. This is a lifestyle. We are not always going to be perfect. We should not always deprive ourselves of those delicious tasting foods. When we work hard every day burning calories, eating healthy, and watching what we put into our mouth we deserve to have that ice cold beer or glass of wine sometimes. We deserve to have a slice of that delicious pizza or cake at your child's birthday party if we want. We just have to do it all in moderation. We are learning to build a new lifestyle. A new way of living and being healthy. But we need to remember to not get angry at ourselves because we deserve a treat every once and a while.
This isn't the only reason I've seen people posting that they're upset with themselves. I've also seen posts where you're upset at yourself because you didn't work out much during the week because you've been busy. We've all been there. I've been pretty bummed because I didn't run at all this week. The weather along with a busy schedule at work as well as other commitments made it a tough week for me. We can't get angry at ourselves every time something happens. We deserve to treat ourselves better than that. The fact that it is bothering you when you miss a workout or eat something that may not be the healthiest choice means that it matters to you. You are changing your lifestyle and you will stick with it. We all fall sometimes, but the most important thing is getting up and continuing on to reach your goals. Life will happen, and it will get in the way at times, just know that tomorrow is another day and you will do your best. Make that commitment to yourself that you'll do better the next day then you did the day before, but also accept that you are human. You deserve to every once and a while have that piece of cake, but the rest of the time make that commitment to stick to your plans, reach for your goals, because with hard work and consistency, you will make progress!
Here is a video I saw this week. It is VERY inspirational and I hope you can take from it what I did. We sometimes may fall, but if you get back up and keep your goal in sight, you can achieve it. You can reach your dreams! What she did shook the entire crowd! Strength and Determination in Action!
