The real question

As I talk to more and more people about Beachbody, my workouts, Shakeology, and overall wellness I realize how much I love being a Beachbody coach. To be honest, I became a Beachbody coach is very different from why I love being a Beachbody coach.

Yes I've been active most all my life. Soccer, dance, marching band, gymnastics, cross country, track, and constantly being told to "go outside" on nice days (a great favor done by my parents to my siblings and me). Never really overweight but not the skinny girl either I made various vain "attempts" to watch what I ate as the typical self conscious teenager. In college I was always very active and avoided the freshman fifteen just by the nature of being in band and taking advantage of the salad bar and gyms on campus. It was never a conscious effort - just happened. Then I had surgery on my ankle and had to take a year off of running and virtually all physical activity as I relearned basic things like balance. I gained about 20 lbs and weighed over 170 through the rest of college and a year and a half after graduation. It bothered me and I tried to lose some weight but never made a well-educated, whole hearted effort. As my sister graduated from high school (weight at this point was over 175), I realized how fast time flies and I joined http://www.sparkpeople.com/ and started paying attention to the little habits I have that weren't helping me any healthier. I lost about 15 pounds and found it so very rewarding. I was taking control of my life and losing weight in a very healthy way. Good thing too because at my height, 170 put me near the upper end of a healthy weight. I wasn't overweight...yet. However, with the way I was going, "overweight" was in my very near future. Then there was the family history. I'll spare the details but there are plenty of weight related reasons for me to get that in check now while my metabolism is at its peak as opposed to try to undo years of habits I could improve now.

That's when I hit my plateu. I tried what felt like everything. I mixed up my calorie intakes, obsessed about tracking every bite of food. Did more weight lifting. Worked out in the morning. Switched it to evenings. Joined a new gym. Worked out twice a day. It was ridiculous. Seemed like I would never get under 160.

Then last fall I had a sick day that changed my life. We all know there's nothing good on daytime TV and as I don't have cable (one of my excuse busters and ways to save dough!) I had even fewer options for shows. Flipping channels I saw a commercial for Turbo Jam by Beachbody. Seemed like a good deal and a great way to bust the "I can't get to the gym today" excuse. If the DVDs are in my living room, I'd have no more excuses. It would be up to me to DECIDE to workout and do the right thing. The music was addicting and within the hour I had ordered my Turbo Jam. Once I started doing the workouts, I reactived my twitter account so I could talk to the creator of my new addiction: Chalene Johnson (chalenejohnson on twitter). I met a ton of Turbo Jam addicts and ended up going to a Beachbody Coach info meeting thanks to an invite from Chalene's sister, Jenelle Summers (turbosister on twitter). I heard all the great things that could come with being a coach but I'll be honest (just like I was with Jenelle that night) my main reason for becoming a coach was the savings I would get on Shakeology and other Beachbody products. Little did I know that the discounts would become the smallest benefit of being a coach.

Through twitter, I met so many amazing people whom I feel like I've known forever. I've been fortunate enough to meet several of these other wonderful coaches in person and others I email / text / twitter nearly daily. Not to mention that I quickly learned that as much as Chalene is a celebrity instructor, she didn't come by it by accident. She recommended books and daily reminds me (along with her thousands of adoring fans) that to-do lists and goal setting is the prime way to achieve success. I started 2010 with real goals thanks to books she recommended and have been en route of achieving them ever since. She's not the only God-send. My fellow Beachbody coaches are amazing. Beth, Kristy, and Jaime are my Turbo Sisters and we have an email string that just hasn't seemed to die. I send tweets back and forth with my Chicago girls Katie and Ashley on a regular basis. With everything going on lately, I don't know how I'd make it through without them. Ophie invited me to visit her TurboKick class in Indy and next thing I knew I wanted to teach classes in Fort Wayne. Well actually I wanted to go to classes here but after checking http://www.turbokick.com/ I didn't see any classes in the area so I figured I needed to learn how to teach. Thanks to the ladies I've mentioned so far and all of the other amazing Beachbody coaches I didn't name (sorry! This blog was already getting too long) my new drive is invigorating. I'm more productive at work, my personal life, my Beachbody business is starting gain a little drive, and its so exciting to hear how my own successes (big or small) are helping other people make changes.

So why did I become a Beachbody coach? Yeah it was for the discounts and opportunity to "maybe someday" make it a business. Why do I love being a Beachbody coach? Now that's the real question with an awesome answer. With this network, I've found more than fitness, I have wellness. I have amazing friends with the same kind of drive and determination. They understand the importance of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. They are helping me get through some of the toughest stuff in life. We laugh. We cry (rarely!). We support each other. And we get to work on our own businesses in the process. Who could ask for anything more?


For more information on becoming a Beachbody coach, leave me a voicemail by clicking the voicemail button at the bottom of my blog or send an email to gabriellah99@beachbodycoach.com.