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In January 2003 I began dieting and exercising to lose weight. Many people commented and asked what I did to lose weight. I did not use a secret program or special diet to accomplish what I did. I remembered something my mother told me when I was a teen-ager. My mother is 5’2” tall and is a petite woman. She has always been a small, beautiful woman. When I was in high school I weighed less than 100 pounds. My mother told me then that when I got to be her age, which was 42 at the time, that I would not be in as good of shape as she was at that time. When she told me that, I laughed at her and said of course I would. In 2003 I realized that I was approaching the age of 40 at the speed of light and that the words of my mother were going to be true if I continued in the lifestyle I was in. Being the adult that I am, I wanted to prove my mother wrong. I was not happy with my appearance, had little, if any, self-confidence and I didn’t want my mother to be right. So, I made a commitment to myself to do something about it. I set a realistic goal for myself. I gave myself two years to lose weight and get in shape. The way I saw it, was in two years I could shed the unwanted pounds and maintain my desired weight. So, In January 2003, I began dieting. I didn’t use a special diet. I just cut back on what I was eating. I started eating more salads, fruits and vegetables and eating less mashed potatoes, pizza and cookies. In a few months I noticed my clothes were getting bigger and I had to buy a belt for my jeans. By March of that year, I had lost almost 25 pounds. I was eating less and satisfying my hunger with less food. But, then I noticed that I wasn’t losing any more weight. I was eating less, but my weight loss had leveled off. I continued to cut back on my food with no results. I became extremely discouraged. At that time, I decided I needed to do more than just dieting. I needed to start exercising and I needed help in doing so. I am the type of person that needs a motivator, a reason to be in the gym. So, I started searching for a personal trainer, some one who will motivate me to exercise. That’s when I found my personal trainer. The first thing she and I did was review my caloric intake. Once I sat down and started thinking about the food I was eating, I realized that I wasn’t eating enough food to lose weight. At that time, I was getting between 800 – 1000 calories a day. My body was not getting enough nutrients to continue to lose weight. I sat down with my trainer and discussed the infamous food guide pyramid that we have all seen. In May 2003, I started working out one-on-one with my trainer 3 days a week doing cardio, weight training and Pilates. I also started recording everything I was eating. My eating habits started to change once again. I started eating breakfast, having healthy snacks between meals and drinking lots of water. I cut out all the chocolate candy bars I was taking from a co-worker's candy dish. The weight started coming off again. Physically, I was feeling better. I wasn’t as tired during the day as I had been and I started sleeping better at night. I became excited over my achievements. My first visit with my trainer was on April 28, 2003. She took all my measurements at that time. On July 2,2003 she took my measurements again. In two months, I had lost only 7 pounds, but more importantly I had lost over 9 inches total. I was ecstatic. I was losing the fat and building muscle. Personally, I could not see any changes in my appearance, but what I did notice was that my clothes were getting too big. I was so inspired by my personal trainer, who became my mentor, I became a certified Pilates instructor one year later.

As time went on, I lost my trainer and thought I had everything under control. However, my weight was creeping back up. I did not want to admit that it was me that was causing this weight gain. I just knew that I was doing everything right. I thought it had to be a physical reason why I was gaining weight. I went to several doctors and all said I was healthy. My self esteem took a nose dive. I was teaching classes and eating right. But what I wasn't doing was tracking my food and wasn't exercising enough for me to maintain. So I again got a personal trainer. I went through the same steps as before. Started tracking my foods and picked up the exercise and can you believe it...the weight started melting off again. But my trainer eventually moved on and left me by myself once again.

So, after years of ups and downs, I figured out that I do have to track my food and I do have to exercise most everyday. This time when I was back on my own, I knew that I needed more than just me. I kept seeing the infomercials for P90X and thought to myself, I can do that. That's what I've been doing. So I eventually ordered it. I fell in love. I was doing the program, noticing changes and having fun while doing it! Co-workers saw me going into the gym everyday and some would come in and see that I was doing this P90X program. Many started asking questions and some bought the program for themselves and/or spouses. After some time of doing this program I purchased the P90X+ and let me tell you...if the P90X doesn't kick your butt, the X+ will certainly do it!

Then came the neck injury and I had to stop the pull-ups. And just when I was getting used to doing them unassisted. Dang-it. I went back to the P90X for a while, but then I saw this Chalene Extreme and thought I needed a change. I ordered that program and saw different changes in my body. It's fantastic! There are so many more Beachbody programs that I want to try.

Now, 7 years later not only do I have Pilates certifcation, I also have my Group Instructor, Indoor Cycling, Water Aerobics, Yoga, and Group Barbell certifications. Fitness has become my passion and that is why I signed up to be a Team Beachbody Coach. Let me guide you through YOUR journey.