Team Beachbody ¡preestreno!Español Guest

I have been battling my weight since 1969. My pediatrician put me on a 900 calorie a day diet at age 9. I lost weight that summer and didn't have to worry about it again until after the birth of my first child in 1980. After that it has been yo-yo dieting, I tried everything, fad diets, pills, weight loss companies (probably shouldn't mention those here!), and never quite got it. What I needed to get was that there is no quick fix, I needed to have a commitment to exercise and eating right. I get it now. Took me long enough!

The years between 2002 and 2008, were very difficult. Two jobs, full time graduate student, still raising my family, divorce, family deaths, pet deaths, both daughters in the hospital (different times of course), lost my job, was unemployed for 8-months, lost my house, lost my boyfriend, and the list goes on. I was so big that my hips constantly hurt, I couldn't breathe when I had to bend over to tie my shoelaces, I hung over the sides of chairs and in the seats in the car. I was embarrassed to be seen in public. I tried to keep a good front going and a smile on my face, but, needless to say, my self-esteem dropped to below acceptable levels, I felt I couldn't control any aspect of my life, depression hit hard, I was in a downward spiral.

But then in January something clicked. I'm not sure what happened, survival instinct maybe? I decided that, if I couldn't control anything else, I COULD control what I looked like, and I didn't like what I saw in the mirror each day. I decided to order Hip Hop Abs because I used to love to dance, and besides, if I made a fool of myself, who was here to see it? I took my measurements, took my pictures, found a thread on one of the boards, then committed to doing the full rotation of HHA and programmed it into WOWY.

After the first week I noticed my clothes getting looser, and after the full rotation I had lost 18 pounds and 12.25' and down 10% body fat! Well, that just got me all jazzed up! I got my next set of Shaun T's DVD's, Rockin' Body, and did a full rotation of that. MORE weight and inches came off! I was just spinning, I realized that I could actually control what I looked like. I guess I never really believed in myself until I actually did it. From there, I joined a fitness challenge and lost even more.

To date I have lost 35 pounds and over 21 inches! I went from a size 18+ (I started wearing stretch pants 'cuz the 18's were too tight) to a size 8/10 (depends on the brand). OK, get this, I called my mom to tell her about my weight loss, and she says that the last time I was a size 10 was in high school! I thought about it, and OMG, she was right!

Today, and for the rest of my life, I like myself again, I like what I see when I pass the store windows and see my reflection, I like not having to hold my breath to tie my shoelaces, I like looking down and seeing both sides of the chair as I sit typing this. I like my life again! And I'm not done!

Why did I become a BB Coach? It is THIS feeling, the feeling of accomplishment, of self-esteem, of empowerment; THIS is why I decided to become a coach, THIS is what I would like to help others accomplish, because, honestly, there is nothing better than liking the entire, beautiful person that you are!

If you would like to contact me, my e-mail is candlemaven@gmail.com