My Story...

I was asked the other day to share my story on my team conference call. After I was asked, I started to think about my story and where it actually began. Well, it began at birth.

When I was born, I had asthma...but no one knew it. I was sick and in the hospital just about every 6 months until around age 6. This is when my mom jokingly told the doctors at the hospital to keep me until they figured out what was wrong with me. Needless to say, because I was never feeling good, I never wanted to eat. I didn’t have an appetite and was SUPER skinny. I remember a picture from my sister and I playing in a pool down the Cape. I was wearing my two-piece bathing suit and you could see my ribs. I was just scrawny. In the picture on the left, you can see how skinny my face was.

About a year later, things started to get better with my asthma. That’s when I discovered food. I would eat anything you gave me...as long as it was not something I thought was gross, like liver. I LOVED food! I remember on Sunday mornings after church, my family and I would go to a specific restaurant for breakfast. I think it was called Big Boy. My sister and I cleaned out the buffet...literally. I am sad to report, Big Boy is no longer in business.

Thankfully, when I discovered food, I was active. In the Fall, I played soccer, in the Winter, I played soccer and basketball and in the Spring I played soccer and softball. If I wasn’t this active, I would have gained weight a lot faster than I did. Because my sister and I were so active when we were younger, our dinners were quick. I remember lots of pasta dinners and looking back on it, it’s because it was cheap and it was quick. Strangely, I remember having orange soda with dinner often too. Odd.

I continued to play team sports through my Sophomore year of high school and in my Junior year I quit playing because I needed a job. Why? Because I wanted that car to drive myself to school, to drive my friend around...heck, to do whatever it was I wanted to. I held some random jobs, but all of them were active. I was a janitor once, I was a softball umpire, I worked as a bagger at Shaw’s...lots of jobs. And don’t forget, I still loved food.

When I went on to college, my love of food continued, but my activity level slowed down. I mean really slowed down. I worked less because of school and of course, I ate the things we know we are not supposed to eat. I remember going with my friends for steak and cheese subs at 11:30 PM...yes, 11:30 PM! And the adult beverages were everywhere! NOT good for your waistline. This is when I really started to pack on the pounds. And at a 4’10” frame, it was becoming a problem. But I didn’t notice it yet.

At the end of college, I was back working at an active job again. This is when I met the man who is now my husband. On our wedding day, I weighed the highest I’ve ever weighed. 142 pounds! I was only 28, I was on high blood pressure meds, about to be put on high cholesterol meds, I had a skin cancer scare...I was spiraling downward. Yet, I still didn’t notice. The middle picture is from a series of engagement pictures. Sure, I look happy, but inside, I wasn’t.

I noticed when a good friend asked me to go to Vegas with her and her husband for vacation. Of course I said I would go. I had never been to Vegas and I thought it would be a ton of fun with close friends. Then I started to picture what our vacation would be like. I would be, in MY words, the “fat girl next to the skinny girl at the pool”. My friend had a baby recently and looked amazing! I...did not. THIS was when I noticed. THIS was my a-ha moment.

When my neighbor learned that I was going to Vegas and I told her how I felt, she introduced me to Shakeology. I decided to try it because I tried other programs, that I will not mention, but they didn’t work for me. Nothing worked for me and I thought, “What do I have to lose?!” I started as a discount Coach. I just wanted the discount on the products and I really only wanted to help myself. I started with ChaLEAN Extreme and Chalene Johnson and during that 90-day program, my life changed. At the end of the program, I lost 2 dress sizes and about 15lbs. I was no longer on high blood pressure meds, I was not going to be put on high cholesterol meds and had my asthma more under control. I was HOOKED! I even asked my family to join me in, but they wouldn’t join me.

Fitness became my drug. I was addicted. I continued on my journey by doing Insanity twice, Les Mills Combat, 10 Minute Trainer, P90X, the Ultimate Reset, Turbo Fire and now PiYo. I couldn’t stop and didn’t want to stop. THIS was no my life and I was becoming more and more happy with my life. I’m proud to say that I am down another dress size and have lost a total of 25lbs since I started my journey. Even after all these programs, I’m not in to- notch shape, because I still struggle with food. The good thing about doing these programs, though, is that it showed me how being involved in my fitness IS my business.

After seeing the results I was getting and the fact that I was HEALTHY, I started to take the business more seriously. I started to explore the back office that Team Beachbody gives to Coaches to help them with their business and follow successful Coaches on my team and within the coaching network. To my surprise, my exploration opened my eyes and got me dreaming. That dream showed me how Coaches really can help people change their lives - both physically and financially.

Since taking the business more seriously, I’ve been making a supplement income. So much so that I’ve been able to pay off a car loan, pay off my credit card AND save half of what I need for a down payment on my next house. My husband and I are trying to upgrade because we want to start a family and with our current situation, it’s going to be hard. Currently, I work in Boston, full time and my days are anywhere from 11-13 hours long. Typically I do not take lunch breaks and I work on weekends just to get the work done. If I have a family, I don’t want to be doing this. When I was growing up, my mom worked nights and my dad worked days and yes, we did see each other but it was hard to get us to be truly together a lot. I don’t want that! I want something more!

Speaking of my dad, he just had gastric bypass last week. Remember how I said my family wouldn’t join me? Well, this surgery was my dad’s wake up call. It was HIS a-ha moment. Sunday I learned that he has been drinking Shakeology every day and he’s even starting to move! He’s taking baby steps and that means SO MUCH to me! I want my family to be healthy and happy and what I have been doing for the last few years has inspired him in some way and now he’s making a lifestyle change!

The picture on the right is from a few months ago. Now I realize that each one of us has a gift and a reason for being on this earth and if mine is to share my story and inspire others then so be it! I want to help others with their journey through support and friendship and help others learn what it means to be FREE! If you think I can help you, message me or leave your contact info in a comment and I will reach out to you. I would honestly love to connect with you and share more. Together, we can be free and live the life we were put on this earth for!