Team Beachbody Guest

I have had challenges with obesity and emotional eating for most of my life. In 8th grade, I remember weighing 200 pounds! I fluctuated between the sizes of 14 - 18 until the age of 27. Since then, I have gained and lost 60-80 pounds about 3 times - never able to maintain a healthy, fit body.

The worst emotional eating challenge I ever had to face hit me in May 2000, when my father had a heart attack. During the next three years, I emotionally ate to the point of gaining 90 pounds!! It was depressing trying to find decent clothes at size 24/26!!! The extra weight eventually cut off the circulation in my spinal column which caused me to faint when I tried to sleep in a bed. For 7 years, I had to sleep in a recliner to take the pressure off my spine so I could sleep through the night. I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to sleep in a bed again. Thankfully, just this past July 2009, I began to sleep horizontally again without fainting!!

While caring for dad in February 2003, I saw a Power 90 infomercial. Tony Horton really made a mind grabbing positive impact on me. I called Beachbody and ordered the program. When it arrived, I never opened the box. I put it aside for “some other time…...” My father’s health began to steadily decline and in August 2003, his awesome 79 years of life ended. During the next month of sadness and reality, I promised myself I would take some action to improve my health and fitness. I knew my father truly loved me, but it really bothered me that he had an obese daughter to look at in his last days. Having to watch my father’s life decline due to a heart attack was wake-up call #1 for me.

I rode more rollercoaster diet rides until the spring of 2004, when I saw an infomercial for Slim in 6. Beachbody caught my attention once again. I thought I could commit to 6 weeks better than 90 days and eventually I’d work up to Power 90. When Slim in 6 arrived, I opened the box and then put it in a closet. Why?!? …because I was too depressed to do much of anything at 240+ pounds. Even though I wanted to succeed, I just didn’t believe I could really change my lifestyle so I kept running away and avoiding the responsibility to myself.

July 4, 2004: I was in a grocery store and ran into a former college Biology professor I hadn’t seen since 2002. I highly respect this man for his teaching ability and great example of health and fitness. One of our Biology labs included a fit test. I couldn’t run and I couldn’t hide. I had to do the test, while learning how to take blood pressure and heart rates. I was totally embarrassed, out of breath and disgusted with myself. On July 4, 2004, I was in even worse shape than in 2002. I couldn’t run and I couldn’t hide from this man once again. I’ll never forget it. I wanted to immediately disappear. This was wake-up call #2 for me. I had to do something to change my lifestyle!

July 5, 2004: Still in shock from seeing my Biology professor the day before, I had a silent pity party by myself that morning. When I sufficiently purged my defeated thoughts, there was silence. I then had a new conversation with myself…. “…you know that quitting is not acceptable behavior! You need to make a plan and start working on it. You can turn this around – you know you can.” Immediately after that, I found the Slim in 6 box, started reading all the material that came with it to get prepared for a new direction. I began Slim in 6 that same day and lost 10 pounds and 10 inches in 6 weeks. If I had cleaned up my food choices, I would have lost more, but that was a start.

Then, I went backward a little and gained 20 pounds by December 2004. I had not made a true lifestyle change YET. There I was at my highest weight of 260 (size 24/26) and needed to once again do something and turn my life around. I stayed connected to the message boards and WOWY (Work Out With You - online gym) and just began working one day at a time, setting my focus on exercise and better eating choices. I lost 50 pounds by 2006 – then hovered between 210 and 225 until April, 2009.

My oldest son was about to graduate high school in June and I decided the best graduation present I could give him was a healthy, fit mom before he went to college. He was recruited to play basketball at a Division III college, so I've had a disciplined athlete before my eyes for years as motivation! I wanted to be fit and less weight for his last high school basketball game as a senior in February, but didn't make that goal. It was now April and graduation was the end of June. I had three months to make something happen.

I also had a doctor appointment with a blood test scheduled in June. I had been getting blood tests every four months for a couple years, keeping watch on high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high triglycerides. My family history includes thyroid issues, adult onset diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke. I was beginning to get more concerned and needed to face reality. I had high cholesterol, high triglycerides, high LDL levels and high blood pressure. At 49, I wasn’t getting any younger. It was time to finally get serious about my health/fitness and DO SOMETHING about it. NO EXCUSES!

While I’m at one of my most frustrated, low points in life, trying to figure out a plan to change my lifestyle and lose a decent amount of weight in 3 months, a famous Beachbody Coach steps in to help, totally unexpected, but at the perfect time. During March 2009, I was having what would be my last “pity party for Joycey,” when I ran into Earl (Wink) Broughfman while instant messaging one day. I’ve known him from the Beachbody Message Boards for about 4 years now. He happened to ask how I was doing with my Beachbody journey, and I painted a bleak picture. Wink responded with encouragement and hope and wanted to know what he could do to help me succeed. First of all, when a Grand Prize Winner of the 2007 Million Dollar Body Game offers to help you, it’s a little difficult to say, “No, thank you....” How in the world could I say no???? I have the utmost respect for Wink! He lost 140 pounds, has kept it off and continues to improve his health, body transformation and exercise lifestyle. I told him that I really needed help to stay on track. He said he would help me with “The Joycey Project,” as I called it.

I was talking with Wink one day when I expressed concern about whether he’d give up on me at some point.(I wasn't the easiest project to work with at first - I'll admit it.) He calmly said ... that he’d be there to help me as long as I was willing to do the work - that I needed to put Joycey FIRST. *****THAT***** was my third, and ultimate wake-up call – more than anything before. THANK YOU, WINK! ;-) I had to face myself in the mirror right then and there. DID I REALLY WANT TO SUCCEED OR NOT??!!?? .... I have total of about 100 pounds to lose. Wink had lost 140. He KNOWS what it’s like to make a 180 degree lifestyle change. I had been given this awesome opportunity to be coached by someone who was a proven lifesaver of his own life!!! No more running away - no more hiding. I rearranged my mind and decided NOW was the time to put Joycey FIRST and focus on my health and fitness needs. Every now and then, Wink would throw out some of his “Wink Wisdom” which would confront me to become even more responsible. IT WAS UP TO *ME* to make my dream come true or not.

I decided within the first couple weeks of Wink's coaching to make some drastic changes and follow Tony Horton’s 30 Day Food Plan that Tony designed in a Beachbody Chat one night in October 2008. No coffee, no sugar, no wheat/gluten, no red meat, and no dairy. I focused on that for two months and started taking Shakeology every day. I wanted to see what Shakeology would do for me, especially since I had a blood test in two months. I was looking at the possibility of my doctor wanting to put me on cholesterol medicine after the last count of 261 and I DID NOT WANT THAT to happen! Within the first week of taking Shakeology, my energy increased tremendously! ---> During the following two months, my cholesterol dropped 83 points, LDLs (bad fats) dropped 77 points, triglycerides dropped 20 points and I lost 20 pounds!!! All my blood test results were back in normal ranges again and I finally dropped down out of the obese category!!! My doctor told me that I needed to keep doing whatever it was I was doing!!!

***Health update: (10/20/09) my doctor told me I could stop taking my blood pressure medication!!! Blood pressure AND blood test results are all in normal ranges!!! :) :) :)

I started walking to build up strength and endurance and then added Power 90 as well. It wasn’t long before I was challenging myself to grandstand/bleacher workouts. Thank you for your inspiration, Kim Barnett - the other 2007 Grand Prize Winner of the Million Dollar Body Game! I can run 2,400 grandstand steps, even leaping double steps without stopping! I’m also walking/jogging 5 miles. (...jogging half a mile without stopping! NEVER before! ) I’ve lost 45 pounds since April 2009, making it a total of 80 pounds since 2004.

I was able to give my oldest son a healthier, fit mom for his high school graduation present, with 20 pounds off and awesome blood test results in two months. Now, I get to give my youngest son a great present as well - a mom who is still making healthy lifestyle changes for even better days ahead.

Not only did I stay in touch with Wink, but asked Sabrina Dunham (one of the 8 finalists in the 2007 Million Dollar Body Game) for help as well. Sabrina lost 85 pounds and has also kept it off and continued her lifestyle change with great success. Thanks, Sabrina!

Since April, I have surrounded myself more closely with a few successful proven winners on a more regular basis to help bring my level of believing UP so I could change my mindset to accomplish my dream. Their patience, guidance, and encouragement as well as MANY other Beachbody friends have helped me save my life - truly priceless!

Because I've STRUGGLED for so many years, my story may take longer than some others, but achieving and succeeding is great no matter how long it takes. I’m almost done with the weight loss part of my journey with about 22 more pounds to go. Then, I look forward to focusing more on muscle toning. Regaining health, fitness and LIFE is the BEST!

Slim in 6 helped me jumpstart my quest. Later, I added Power 90, Turbo Jam, Slim Series Express and other various workouts. I like to follow the Power 90 format with M/W/F Sculpt/weights and T/Th/Sat cardio workouts.

P90X is my next workout dream!

I have always wanted to help others improve their lives. Now, my ultimate dream is to motivate, inspire and encourage others to regain their health and fitness and to become a motivational speaker. I’ve also known that I could never achieve that dream if I didn’t change MY lifestyle FIRST. Recently, I have begun to catch a glimpse of that ultimate dream!

I’m very thankful for the Beachbody community that has helped me achieve success. Team Beachbody truly is a TEAM of supportive people building each other up TO WIN HEALTHY, FIT LIVES!

DECIDE. COMMIT. SUCCEED.
Beachbody can help you save your life!
It helped me save mine!
THANK YOU, Beachbody!