Team Beachbody Guest

Before I began my transformation, I was fat, miserable, and extremely self- conscious. I dreaded getting out of bed in the morning, dreaded getting dressed for the day and dreaded going to social situations at my children’s school. I have 5 sisters (one twin) and whenever I got together with them, I just wanted to cry. I knew I could look as good as they did if I could just lose weight. I also found myself unable to keep up with my children. I no longer wanted to go for bike rides or walk them to the pond to play. I found myself sitting on the couch more and more and making excuses for why I couldn’t go outside to play a game of soccer or tag. I tried to blame my weight gain and inability to lose it on a thyroid condition and my age, but deep down I knew there had to be a way for me to lose weight.
At a recent annual physical my doctor let me know that my cholesterol was over 300. He told me that it was not a matter of if I would have a heart attack or stroke, but when! He wanted me to try diet and exercise and he would recheck me in 3 months. At the end of 3 months I had been unable to stick to a diet or exercise so I went on cholesterol medication. My cholesterol still remained in an unhealthy 250 range and I was quickly approaching my 40th birthday. It was depressing to realize that I might be taking this medicine and popping a baby aspirin for the rest of my life. I also realized that I could be significantly shortening my life span. Having a husband and four children to take care of, I felt ashamed that I was being so irresponsible with my health and possibly jeopardizing my future with them.
My husband actually proposed using power 90 as a workout. He knew I was frustrated and concerned about my health and feeling depressed about the way I looked and he was feeling the same way about himself. He had seen an infomercial for P90X but thought that might be too difficult for us so he asked me to look at power 90 as an option. After watching several transformation stories on line, I couldn’t wait to get started. I felt as if my situation was no different from the people in the videos and if they could do it, I knew I could too. I also knew I would have the support of my husband and together we wouldn’t fail!
The biggest obstacle I had to overcome was putting myself first and making my health a priority. As a wife and mother, I was definitely in the habit of meeting everyone else’s needs which usually left me with little time for myself. My initial attempts to exercise were met with lots of interruptions, whining, and clinginess. Inviting my kids to workout with me quickly changed that behavior. Although it was at times frustrating to be stumbling over kids while trying to work out, they soon became my biggest cheerleaders. They were great at keeping me accountable with my workouts and my meals, asking “is tonight cardio or sculpt” and reminding me “that is not on the power 90 meal plan”.
I have never looked or felt better in my life! In 6 short months I went from a size 14 to a size 6. Instead of dreading the task of getting dressed in the morning, I now enjoy it. More importantly, my cholesterol has dropped below 200. My doctor was thrilled with my results and has taken me off my medication. However, the most positive impact this transformation has had is on my role as a mother. Every day I hear the pride in my children’s’ voices when they talk about the changes I’ve made and I see how much more aware they are about their food choices and their desire to exercise. I know that the example I am setting will help ensure that they become healthy fit young men. I also know that I am imparting on them an important life lesson and a simple rule– If you make a decision and commit to it, you will succeed!