Team Beachbody Guest

I have always been lean until I got married. I gradually gained weight, but was never obese. I was definitely in the upper range for my size (BMI). I was really good at hiding the fact I had an out of shape body due to the fact that I'm tall and carry clothes pretty well.

I've been on the roller coaster of fad diets and have gone through spurts of fitness programs throughout the years but nothing was working. What changed this time was that I found Tom Venuto and Burn Fat Feed Muscle. Without his book I would not be as slim as I am today.

I'm content with my weight range, though I still have a little fat coating covering my hard-earned muscles. I owe that to BFFM, but I was not getting ripped like I envisioned. I've been trying on my own (going to the Y and doing different fitness tapes at home), but I lacked the knowledge to do it alone, so I turned to Tony Horton's P90X.

I started the P90X program in March and was doing pretty well. I made it through the first 30 days of the program and then I started gaining weight and body fat. I had not changed my eating plan except adding some of the protein bars, shakes and recovery drinks that P90X recommended (but kept within my caloric intake range). I didn't know what was up and so I started loosing interest in the program.

Around this same time my 34 year old husband had a heart attack. He was completely fit and healthy besides hereditary high blood pressure and there were no clots or damage that would have caused the attack. Thankfully a change in medication and some treatment from excellent doctors at Vanderbilt have helped my husband get back to being healthy.

During this time, my life stopped and so did my exercise program. Whatever motivation I had that was getting me through P90X blew out the window and it was really hard to get back into anything, let alone a strenuous program like P90X. I managed for a while due to the lower body fat percentage and since I knew how to eat healthy and maintain what I had worked so hard for, but time took a toll and I started gaining a pound here or there.

It has been 6 months since the heart attack and I've been back on track with regular exercise and healthy eating, but I've lost a little muscle and don't feel ready to get back on the P90X horse. My goal is to get back to what I was when I started in March (125 lbs) and go from there with my strength and endurance.

I hope to start anew with P90X and give it another shot. This time without all the extra supplemental drinks and protein bars. I think sugar is one of my pitfalls. I don't think my body handles carbs and sugar the way they should. I'm not diabetic, but I do feel a difference when I am on them and when I am not. So hopefully with a new perspective and some hard work I will be able to start P90X by January and bring in the new year with some revamped goals!!!!