I can't help it. In the last few years, I have finally found a piece of myself that was missing. I had searched for a long time before I found Beachbody. Well, really Beachbody found me. I remember the last round of Weight Watchers I did and how incredibly frustrated I was getting. I had been working out once a week. Every time I added a workout, I would gain on the scale that week. See, Weight Watchers really only cared about the number on the scale. They encouraged taking measurements, but the measurements didn't count toward the overall goal of weight loss. They didn't look at what kind of weight I was losing. They just cared that the scale went down. And if it went up, well, that was okay as long as it didn't keep going in that direction. So, I learned that if I worked out, I would gain weight that week. If I didn't work out, I would lose. Sounds healthy right? I knew that this was not what was supposed to be happening. (Weight Watchers was a great place for me to start and I am not discounting it as a useful program, I had just outgrown the program and needed something else.)
When I was introduced to Beachbody, I didn't follow the meal plans for the programs. I would calculate my calorie intake for whichever program, and then use MyFitnessPal to track my calories. This worked for a little bit. I went down two pants sizes. I still wasn't really getting this whole healthy thing figured out. I decided to really try out one of the meal plans. I did 21 Day Fix. I followed the containers, read everything that was available to me through the program and followed it religiously for 2 and a half weeks. I lost steam at the end and did the workouts but cheated on the meal plan a little bit. I still had great results and it was enough for me to continue with it. When I signed on for the All-Access Pass to Beachbody On Demand, I had so many choices that I just started to pick and choose programs and do them. I'd get great results but I knew it could be better. I started reading everything I could about health and fitness. I learned a lot in a short amount of time. Toward the beginning of 2017, I was in the midst of a pretty bad episode of Seasonal Depression. It didn't matter what I tried, nothing was helping. I continued to exercise but could feel myself giving up with the fatigue that set in around 1 or 2 PM each day. My students started to notice. I was relying on caffeine to keep me going in the afternoons. Finally, I made a decision that helped me find that missing piece. I signed on as Beachbody Coach. I didn't sign on to sell a product. I signed on to get a discount on that product. I watched a video about Shakeology and what the ingredients can do for your body. It's all about gut health. I had already started reading other things that said that everything dealing with our health starts in our gut. If your gut is messed up, your body can't absorb the nutrients it needs. It didn't matter that I was taking extra vitamin D and Vitamin B and Fermented Cod Liver oil. While those things helped my depression and fatigue temporarily, they didn't do everything I needed them to do. After listening to one of the creators of Shakeology discuss the purpose of the shake, I knew that I needed to try it. So, I committed to three months. If it did absolutely nothing for me, I would cancel the orders and go back to the supplements that had kind of been helping me. That was at the end of February 2017. It's now January of 2018 and I'm coming up on a full year of drinking Shakeology.
Each year, it was probably about April when I would be able to keep my energy levels up and I would come out of the fatigue and fog. When I started drinking Shakeology, it was within the first few days of drinking it that I started to see a difference. And this winter, when I normally would be having these symptoms, well I'm still waiting for them to show up. They usually start right before Christmas. I'm still watching and waiting, but I'm still drinking my shake every day. I have not gone one day without it since February of 2017.
I worried that the fatigue would set in back in October when I joined Autumn Calabrese's Prepare to Be Obsessed group. But it didn't. I have never felt stronger than I do now after doing 21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, 30-Day Chisel, and a hybrid of the three. Then she released A Little Obsessed. I have found that I enjoy pushing myself to do better, lift heavier, and not modify the moves as much as possible. I even asked for heavier weights for Christmas so that I'm ready for the next level while I'm doing 80 Day Obsession.
So, am I a little obsessed? No. I'm definitely a lot obsessed. People ask me what I enjoy doing. The answer . . . I love following a Beachbody program from start to finish. I enjoy meal planning and prepping for the week. I love posting about my experiences and journey. I love taking selfies after my workout and saying a little something about how I felt about a workout or what struggles I am or was having. Do I expect everyone to follow and do what I am doing? No. Everyone is different and different things work for different people. Maybe you enjoy working out with a group of people in person. Maybe you love Boot Camp and wouldn't think of missing it. That is awesome and amazing and I cheer you on! Maybe, like my husband, you prefer to do your own thing at the gym and run obstacle course races and half marathons. Awesome! You are doing a great thing for yourself.
But maybe, just maybe, there is someone out there that felt a lot like I did when I was yo-yo dieting. When I was so worried about the number on the scale that it was throwing me into a horrible mental state every week when it just would not go down. Maybe there is someone who always starts out the new year with another gym membership and swears that this time it will stick. Maybe, like me, that dwindles quickly because life, responsibility, kids, work, and whatever else gets in the way of keeping that insane schedule of leaving the house to fit in a workout. Maybe, there is someone out there that feels defeated and just doesn't know how to fit in time for themselves. That is one reason that I choose to post.
My living room has become my gym. I don't have a special space to workout. It's a part of my every day life. It's right there for everyone to see. In fact, when we have people over, my workout bench functions as seating. I don't have to leave my house to workout. In fact, most days, I don't need more than 30 minutes to get in a workout. I don't have to drive anywhere. I don't have to pack a bag. I don't have to shower in a strange place. I don't have to worry about equipment being available.
I'll tell you what I had to do. I had to commit to myself. I had to invest $99 for a year of access to thousands of at home workouts. I had to buy weights over the past few years. As I get stronger, I buy the next weight. The first time I did 21 Day Fix, I used 3 and 5lb weights, and those 5lb weights felt impossibly heavy. If I do it now, I use 8lbs as my lightest and go up to 20lbs on leg days. I own up to 25lb dumbbells. It took me a year. I asked for weights for Christmas and birthdays, even Mother's Day. And I'm not the only one that uses them. They are available for my family to use and as my boys get older and get to the age that they are able to lift weights, I hope that they will use them as well. Isaac has already agreed to do Double Time with me in April when I finish 80 Day Obsession! I can't wait.
So, I guess my point is that I know I post a lot of workout pictures. I mostly do it for myself. I do it because I have found something I love and want to share that happiness with my friends and family. But I also do it because there might be someone out there that can relate to my story. They might be feeling like they don't know what to do. Maybe they see what I am doing and think, that can't be that hard. If she can do it with a full time job, a home to take care of, a husband and two boys, why can't I?
