Some Monday Motivation and Making Time to Work Out Even When You Are Busy

The Dreaded Monday is among us yet again! Lol. 

Time For #MotivationalMonday!!

A lot of my close friends have been making some life changes and seeing some AWESOME results and I'm just sitting here like:

I just look at how amazing they are doing and know that there is no reason that I couldn't be doing the same.

This is one of my best friends, Stephanie:

The before pic was her almost 3 years ago, with my babygirl.  She has lost 50+ lbs in about a year (a little less)! She has been making time to get healthy by clean eating, running and lifting weights all while working and going to school, both full-time!

Another bestie of mine, Jess has recently started working out again and look at what she has already accomplished by changing her eating habits and working out!

Another dear friend, Kayla has been doing great as well... Better than great! I mean she has already dropped about 20 lbs!

CAN YOU SAY MOTIVATION!!!!

That being said, I know why I haven't had much success and when I do take two steps in the right direction, I end up taking three backwards. 

I usually tend to make lots of excuses as to why I can't do this or that. But now I really have no excuse. If I didn't work out one morning, I figured I would have to wait until after I got off work and got my little girl to sleep and the majority of the time, I would go to sleep with her. The fantastical two-hour lunch break I have wasn't gonna work either because I didn't have a way to get home to work out and I didn't want to go for a run or do any kind of anything that would cause me to sweat and not be able to go take a shower and have to go back to work. By me not being able to go home for lunch meant another temptation. FOOD.  Going out to eat three days a week. Not good, especially when you aren't making even halfway good choices. 

But now, I have a car so I can go home, workout, take a shower and eat. YAY ME!! That is exactly what I came home to do today. 

And this is what I plan to do everyday. I can't let anymore time fly by and me continue to be unhappy with how I look and feel. The excuse of being too busy or too tired is no longer valid for me. 

If you are struggling to find the time to work out, here are some tips on how to make some:)

1. SCHEDULE YOUR WORKOUT!-- If you go ahead and schedule your workouts for the week, you will have already set that time aside for it and you will be less likely to skip it.
2. WORK OUT AS SOON AS YOU WAKE UP-- Now if you are like me, and arent a morning person, this one can be a bit tough. Set your alarm earlier, and set it across the room. That way when that alarm buzzes, you HAVE TO get up and turn it off.  Then the hard part is over. Drink some water (it helps boost your metabolism if you drink it as soon as you get up, set a glass or a bottle beside your bed), eat some breakfast, wait a little bit and then get that workout in! Do you know how great it feels to already be done with your workout before most are even out of the bed?! No one is up to distract or interrupt you. It feels pretty freakin awesome. And you have also boosted your mood for the day! 
3. WORKOUT BEFORE BED!-- If the morning workout is out of the question for you, then try it before bed. I know I tend to sleep better when I work out at night. I don't know if its just where I am able to clear my mind, or work out that extra stress but it still feels good. Everyone is in bed, once again, no distractions or interruptions
4. PUT IN WORK ON YOUR LUNCH HOUR-OR-KIDS NAP TIME!-- If you have enough time during your lunch break, or while the kids are napping, get your workout in at that time. Perfect way to de-stress midday! 
5. MAKE IT A FAMILY THING!- If you have kids, take them outside and go for a walk or a bike ride. If weather doesn't permit that, you can always have fun inside with games like Wii Fit and all the fun dancing games. As long as you are having fun and being active, that's all that matters. My little one loves to do planks and squats with me and she LOVES TURBO JAM!!

Hopefully some of these tips are able to help you make some life changes for the better. No time like the present for you to get healthier and happier!

On your busiest days, how do you make the time to work out?

Toddler Temper Tantrums and Terrible Twos

 

So this is not fitness related at all...well I guess it could be. I was stressed out and worked out at the same time! But I have to get this out about my little pride and joy.

 

She had an appointment monday afternoon at 1:15pm. On any other day, she is at pre-school getting ready for her nap. This isn't the first appointment she has had during her regular naptime, so I already knew that Bug would not be a happy little lady.  But I had no clue what she had in store for me. NO CLUE AT ALL!!!!

 

When I picked her up, she was in a fairly good mood considering. We get to the office and I am filling out paperwork, when she decides that she wants to write too. I told her to hold on a second and that I would get her something to write on. That didn't work for her. A lady behind me hands her a piece of paper and a pen so that she can write. Well she didn't want that either. She wanted to write on the pink sheet of paper that I was writing on because it is her favorite color (and those were her words lol). At that point, she starts this crying and screaming and drooling everywhere. I don't know what is up with the drooling, its like her thing now. Her nose started running and that made her more upset so we went to the bathroom to clean up her nose. She blows it, washes her hands and comes out of the bathroom a brand new child. She goes and plays with the blocks and a little doll until she gets called back. She cooperates very well with myself and the nurse as I undress her for her to get weighed and measured. But as soon as the nurse said that it was time to get dressed again, something flipped in this child's brain. I managed to get her pants and sock on without an excess of struggle but her shoes were a different story. She started SCREAMING like I was killing her or something, crying and doing the whole drooling thing (and for some reason that drives me crazy!). Everytime I would get one shoe on, she would kick it off with the other foot. I would sit her up in the chair and she would throw herself back down to the floor. I would get down on the floor to get them on her and she rolled around so that I couldn't grab her feet. All while screaming non-stop. She was swinging and smacking at my arms. Just flipping out! The nurse looked shocked at how Ari-Bug was acting...no she didnt just look shocked, she genuinely was shocked and really so was I. She has never acted like that before. At home or in public. I mean she has had her moments but NEVER THAT BAD!  I knew she was just sleepy so I tried not to get too upset with her but I could only take so much of it. I managed to get one shoe on her and said F it with the other shoe. I was done trying. Then out of nowhere, Bug says " I want to go to the lady!" and walks over to her and gets on her lap and lays her head on her chest.  At this point, I think she was too tired to keep it going much longer. When we were all done, I carried her out to the car, still with only one shoe on, and take her back to school. I was so wore out by the time I got back to work, I'm not really sure how I managed to get through the massages I had booked for the rest of the day.

 

I've been told that 3 year olds are even worse than the whole TERRIBLE TWO stage, but her 3rd birthday is only a couple months away. I don't know if I am getting the late terrible two tantums or a preview of whats to come from my soon-to-be three year old.  

 

 

How can my usually oh-so-sweet and precious little girl turn into THAT!! LOL All I can say is keep me in your thoughts and prayers. I'm going to need some serious strength and way more patience that I have to deal with that. I'm going to have a head full of gray hairs by my 23rd birthday in November!!!!

 

If you have a toddler, (or an older child- either way you've been here before) WHAT IN THE WORLD do you do when your child is having a tantrum like that?

She has had tantrums in the grocery store as well and I honestly just kinda ignore her there. I can only ignore so much though, especially when she decides she is just gonna walk or run away from me.

SHE TURNED HER CAN'Ts INTO CAN's AND HER DREAMS INTO PLANS!!

Geez. I feel like most of my posts have been about me falling off track and how I plan to get back on. Every time the problem is stress. It goes away and then it comes back 10 times worse. This time was different. I almost lost my job over something that wasn't really in my control. It was from me having to depend on someone else and then pretty much getting screwed over.. That started a big argument and things became...ugh... just crazy intense. It almost pushed me to my breaking point. But just when I got to my darkest place, things suddenly took a turn. Things have started to turn. That has caused me to look back on how far I have come. I don't mean as far as my weight loss because that has been a roller-coaster. I mean as far as everything else in my life. I have so much to be thankful for and with that I have so many positive things I need to think of, rather than all the negative that surrounds me. 

I definitely have a problem with that though. All the negative seems to greatly overpower all the great things in my life. I don't want it to be like that anymore. With so much in my life that is good, why would I let all this stupid negativity get me down, break my spirit, and constantly keep me depressed.

The only thing holding me back is me. I know that I am far from perfect and all these problems in my life will make me appreciate this journey and everything in my life. It still does get aggravating when I keep starting over. I think I will start keeping a journal. Maybe then when these problems and stressful situations do arise, I can get them out and down on paper, out of my mind, and hopefully that will help me handle everything a little better, just a thought.  

I never want to go back to the negative place I've been in over the past couple weeks and I will do everything in my power to prevent that. Working out can be such a good way to relieve stress.  You would think I would be doing it all the time. But I've gotten so depressed, I've barely done anything. I would have my daughter taken to daycare, go to work, have her picked up and then myself picked up and go home. When I got home, I wouldn't do too much then either. Make Bug something to eat. Depending on how I felt, I maybe ate something, watched TV and went to bed.  It was almost like I didn't care anymore. But everyday I looked in the mirror I didn't like what I saw. I still don't. I know what I need to do to change that picture, but somehow that didn't make it any easier. It didn't make it any easier even though I know I just had to do it. Just do it.  And at the time, I guess I really didn't want to do it.  

And I'm sick of all the reasons why I don't want to or don't feel like starting and following through with my healthy lifestyle change.  Have you ever been SO COMPLETELY SICK AND TIRED of how things have been that no matter what you are gonna do what you have to do to make a change? I think I am finally there.  If I'm not, I need to be.  No one can make these changes but me. So that's what I am going to do. 

When things get tough, I will adjust so that things can still work for me. I am sure there are people out there with worse situations than what I have been in and still manage to reach their goals and make things happen to better their life. So why can't I? 

Thats the thing. I find myself using "can't"  wayyyyyy too much. I have to turn my CAN'T's in to CAN's and my DREAMS into PLANS!

That is the only way I am going to succeed in ANYTHING! 

And I am so ready. I deserve to be happy, healthy, successful and full of life!

I deserve to reach my goals and make things happen in my life!

Uhh...I ripped my pants! Time for some BRAZIL BUTT LIFT

So today started like any other day... I worked out early and went to work (I work at a Chiropractors Office) at 8 am. As I sat down in my chair, and because I apparently can't sit down like a normal person, I put my right leg (well ankle/foot) under my butt. BIG MISTAKE. As soon as I got all the way down in the chair,

 RIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPPPPP!!!! 

I RIPPED MY FREAKIN PANTS!!!

I was absolutely MORTIFIED! I joked around with my co-workers about it and laughed hard about it. But deep inside, it wasn't a joke. This was/is serious. I mean it wasn't anywhere that was super noticeable, unless someone was just hanging out between my legs LOL. I tried to hide it the best I could for the rest of the day. I went to do a massage and while I was just sitting on my stool massaging my clients neck and shoulders, I happened to try to roll to the right a little and it ripped more. UGH!

 When I got home, I couldn't get this off of my mind. I thought back to before I had my daughter, when I was smaller, and someone told me I had "elephant legs". It didn't bother me then. I was/am known for my ghetto booty, the junk in my trunk, so I always just felt like I had legs to match the butt..I felt like I had to have the foundation to hold it all. They were big, but not huge. But I have had a child and gained quite a bit of weight and with my scrub pants ripping at work, it all hit me at once.  I mean I have already started my weight loss journey and promised myself that this was it and I was going to get healthy and fit, but now, ITS ON!!

I know I am going to work harder for this than I ever have.

I am going to do AND complete Brazil Butt Lift. 

I've been doing it here and there, but now its really gonna get some attention from me!

My legs and butt were always something I wanted to improve on, what better way to do that than by a workout where those areas are the main focus, while still getting full body results!

So tonight here I am, with a before pic and I want you to hold me accountable. 

In about 2 weeks, Ill post a progress pic. In 2 more weeks, Ill post another. I will probably do it for 8 weeks, even though it is just a 4 week program. I want to keep changing my booty and body, and still be known for this badonk-a-donk of mine, but it be 1000 times better:)

BTW-It kills me to put this pic out for the world to see but you won't be seeing this for long!!

Have you ever ripped your pants in public?! If it's a funny story, I want to hear it LOL

If this has never happened to you, BOOOOOOOOOOOOO !! :P

Healthy Eating on a Budget! Why is it so freakin' EXPENSIVE?!

I have struggled with my diet for a long time now. I can definitely say that when I first became interested in changing my eating habits, the prices of healthy foods disappointed me. All I could think was "It's so important to be eating healthy foods but how in the world can I if everything is so freakin expensive? There is NO WAY I could afford it!" I am pre-diabetic at 22 years old. I HAVE TO change the way I eat but with my budget, I just couldn't see how I was going to keep food in the house for me and my 2 year old (who is very picky), while still buying the healthiest food I could. Not to mention, try to keep my head above water with all my bills.

 

I know you have been in the grocery store and looked at organic and all natural foods and wondered why it costs so much to eat the foods that we are "supposed to" eat. There are plenty of reasons to eat organic food... good, better yet, GREAT reasons to do it but for some of us that just can't afford it. I really thought that I had to eat organic, all natural food to be healthy and it made me want to give up. While it is better to eat organic foods, it is not 100% necessary to do so. Some fruits and vegetables are safe to eat even if they're conventionally grown. Let me tell you this was a relief to me!   I had to do a bit of researching but it was really quite simple. Here are steps that I am taking to eat healthy on a tight budget.

• I thought that I had to buy FRESH fruits and vegetables. But guess what? Frozen is good too!! In some cases, they are more nutritious than fresh. Just depends on what's in season in your area, how long after it was picked before frozen and how it was frozen. But either way, frozen fruits and veggies are great and can be cheaper than fresh.

• Don't be afraid to go for the generic or store-brand items. They (a lot of the time) taste the same and sometimes better. You should still check the product labels for specific differences in the brands but for the most part, you can save plenty of money by going with generic healthy foods without splurging on the name brand stuff. It's not really necessary.

• If you are a meat eater, I seriously recommend checking out the meat section and look for meats that have been marked down because they are getting closer to their "Use By" date. Especially if you plan on using them quickly, or if you buy it in bulk (example being...I found a family pack of chicken breasts kinda like whats below. I am a single parent... just me and my 2 year old so that lasts a little while.

Be on the look out for coupons and check your grocery store's sales papers. You can find some really awesome deals if you take a look.

On that last one, I think i will try becoming one of those extreme couponers. LOL... Can't knock their hustle. Some of them are getting hundreds of dollars worth of food and paying little to nothing for it. I will probably have more paper cuts than I really need, especially since I am a massage therapist. I really don't want to use gloves if its not necessary and considering my luck with paper cuts (and I got the equivalent of a paper cut with a piece of plastic) I should probably rethink that plan!

With that being said, I am going to hang out and enjoy the rest of my evening with my little princess. But before I go, I must ask...

How do you save money when grocery shopping for healthy foods?

December & Forming A Healthy Lifestyle

So...Last night I had a horrible time falling asleep...I tried but I tossed and turned. Something was on my mind. Too many negative thoughts. My self esteem and self image kinda sucks. But its a work in progress. So I know I have to give this 10000000%. I am taking the month of December to PUSH MYSELF. I WILL make a routine of working out and eating right. With no excuses. I WILL change my mindset and my lifestyle.

For far too long, I have looked in the mirror and been disgusted with who I saw looking back at me. I don't like the thoughts that float through my mind. I hate going out with my friends. A voice always runs its mouth in the back of my mind as I get dressed. 

"You look disgusting."

"I don't even know why you try to get dressed up and look cute." 

"That big saggy belly is NOT ATTRACTIVE and its not like you can hide it!"

"Everyone thinks your friends look good. But you are just the fat girl that tags along." 

"You might as well stay home. Nothing looks good on you." 


I usually end up crying at least once or twice.  I try to tune it out, but I fail every time.  My mind just won't allow it. And I am so so sick of this. Knowing what I have to do, I tell myself today is the day that I make this healthy lifestyle a habit. Today is the day that I stop making excuses. Unfortunately, I haven't made it a habit yet and that is because I am an impatient person. I want results and I want them now. Not the best way to be but hey, its me.
 I wish I could drop all the weight and get fit like yesterday. But I also know it takes time. It took time to go on, and it will take time to work off. But with the way that I have been living, it will never come off. I will do great for a few days or even a week. Then I fall off track and I get depressed. It repeats over and over again. Food is my main problem. I'll be real with you, whoever is reading this. I am gonna be completely honest. Maybe you are like me, in the same boat. I work full time, I have a two year old, and I am a single parent with no help whatsoever from my daughter's father. I just got my own place a month ago and still trying to figure out a budget and figure out life on my own. I get about $100 in food stamps. I am trying to figure out how to balance everything out from rent/utilities, phone, internet, child care, and hopefully soon I will have a car so then insurance and gas. I know everything will work itself out. But right now, my finances are a definite problem. The things that are best to eat, are more expensive than the processed junk that is super cheap. So what do you do? People say that you need to make an investment in yourself and in your health. And I completely agree. But what do you do when you LITERALLY don't have the money? I go to a couple food pantries in my area for some extra help, but its not like you can hand pick what you get there. I get what they give me and I definitely am not gonna complain. I just try to make the best choices I can and do what I can.

But during my tossing and turning last night, I made a decision. And I know its not gonna be easy. I will take the month of December to seriously focus on my health and fitness. A pre-challenge you could say. Apparently, it take 21 days to form a habit. I am gonna to take 31 days. 31 days to prep for my New Years Resolution. I will reach my fitness goals by my 23rd Birthday. (which is November 8th)  70 lbs. 31 days to change my mindset, my way of thinking and the way I see myself.

December will be the month I make to-do lists and schedule my day out to make the most of it.  I became a Beachbody Coach because I wanted to help others reach their goals and have the body they have always wanted. Reach the level of health they want. Live the life they want.  But how can I do it if I am not moving forward with it myself? 

2013 will be MY year. Nothing will hold me back this time. But I am (re)starting now... I want to be happy with myself, with my body and my life and I want my daughter to be proud of me too. I can not and will not let her down. 

It took everything in me to decide to post this picture. As you see, I am not smiling. I am very unhappy with this picture. Its not pretty but its me Only one way to fix that though. I have goofed off and wasted too much time. I could have been where I want to be by now. I started this journey back in March or April.  I know I can do this, but up until now, I've waited for the right conditions. "I have to have my own place so I can control the food coming in and I can workout without having to worry about a bunch of people interrupting or intruding."

Well the conditions (technically) are perfect. All of my previous excuses are not valid anymore. Not excuse will be valid. 

THIS IS IT!!! GONNA GET MY TURBO ON NOW! POST WORKOUT SWEAT PIC COMING UP!!

Turbo Jam-Learn and Burn & Turbo Sculpt

And I had a partner:)

Arianna did some Turbo Sculpting too! I love her!

About Me

Hello There!!! My name is J'Wana and I am a single parent to an amazing little girl named Arianna, as well as a full-time Massage Therapist. Here is a little about myself.

My childhood was a lot different than most people. I am from Washington, DC. but I moved around A LOT!!. D.C., Maryland, Northern VA, Southern VA, Texas... I was all over the place. And no, I wasn't a military brat. Just had a tough life.  For as long as I can remember, I have been the chubby girl. I was always told it was baby fat and that it would go away once I got older. I remember during 7th and 8th grade, I was in pretty good shape. ( I was also walking and riding my bike to school and back which was 3 miles round-trip) But when 9th grade hit, that's when things really started to change. I was living in Southwest Virginia, small southern town of Marion, Va. Some of the food was different but OH SO GOOD!!! I didn't realize how the food and less activity would change my body, I really wasn't too concerned with it to be honest with you. I was a cheerleader in 10th grade and over the summer when we got our uniforms and had to try them on.... well I had the biggest size they had and it just barely fit me. But I also knew I had a big booty, even when I was smaller everywhere else. Nothing I was ashamed of but I still hated (not really hated but you get my point) all the skinny girls that didn't have any problem with their uniforms. But I figured that by the time we were done cheer leading for the year, I would have lost all the weight. WRONG! I had to get a job. My first job- WENDYS. As much as I loved (and still love) food, the last thing I thought about then was my health or fitness. So I worked hard and ate good and gained weight. As a matter of fact, all of my jobs while in high school were in the fast food industry, so its what I ate most of the time. I didn't realize what an impact this was making in my mind and body.

Jump ahead to after I graduated (2008-2009), I moved in with my two of my friends. We all worked at McDonalds. I don't need to explain further. Then I find out I am pregnant...


I had a cute little bump for a while. I was eating for me and baby. And while I ate plenty of healthy foods, ice cream and Chinese food were constants in my life. Next thing I know..


And I still had a good 6 weeks to go when this picture was taken. But where I wasn't gaining much weight everywhere else, I figured things would more or less snap back into place once I had my precious baby girl.



I breastfed and a lot of the weight came off. But her father went to jail when she was 13 days old. So I was a 19 year old new and single parent and then Postpartum Depression hit. Food was what made me feel better so I ate and ate and ate to ease the pain away. I ate until he got out of jail, then I ate more. The man I waited for, visited every weekend so he could watch his little girl grow even though it was only 15 min visits, he turned on me. He began sneaking around, stealing, and treating me like a dog. I got called every name in the book. So I ate more. When I finally worked up the courage to leave, he took my daughter and blockaded himself in the basement. I tried to get the door open and he said "You better stop before your FAT ASS breaks this door"....That broke me down to nothing. After a couple days of arguing, I finally got me and Arianna out of that house and away from him. But mentally and emotionally, every name he called me still stuck. He wasn't done with me yet and I wasn't done with my emotional eating. I was stressed out to the max trying to figure out what to do next. One day, I stepped on the scale and had to blink multiple time to make sure I was actually seeing the numbers I saw: 200lbs!! WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?! HOW?!! WHY?!!! 
My inner "Debbie Downer" was saying he was right, you are a fat ass and you have no importance in this world.

But I did mean something to someone, if no one else----ARIANNA!

So we moved to Washington DC and I enrolled at the National Massage Therapy Institute in Falls Church, VA. l! It was amazing but I still had to work so I got a job with my mom at IHOP.... Uh-Oh! The smells of pancakes, bacon, ham, potatoes. Who could resist? I sure couldn't and didn't. Work during the weekdays, school on weeknights, and then work during the overnight shift on the weekends. Those overnight shift were the worst. Whenever we were slow, I got one of the cooks to make me some NY cheesecake pancakes or some hashbrowns with cheese or some other ridiculously fattening thing that I wanted that night. Not good at all. And it all caught up to me!

Arianna and I both had check-ups with our doctor. They did a full physical on me since it had been a while since I had one. Blood work and all. About a week later, I get a letter from the doctors office, they wanted me to have a follow up appointment because my blood test came back abnormal. In bold letters I read PRE-DIABETIC.  What!! Diabetes runs in my family but ME, 20 years old... oh no not me I don't want diabetes. Something has to be done!...right?

But the truth is, I didn't know what to do and I was terrified. I knew what I needed to do and where I wanted to be but how do I get there?


I started getting stressed out again. Then one night I was up late, couldn't sleep and I was flipping through channels and I came across a Brazil Butt Lift commercial through Beachbody... those girls looked amazing. It looked like fun and thus something I would actually do so I ordered it. I thought "This is it, I am finally gonna get back in shape and be beautiful like the girls on the commercial"....
I have never been one with a great self-esteem. So when I got my BBL in the mail, I was so happy. I wanted to change the way I ate, change my life. I tore open the box and popped it in the DVD player. I didn't realized how tough it would actually be for me. But Leandro's energy and quite frankly, his accent (which I love haha) kept me going and boy was I sore!

I told my mom that with my pre-diabetic status, I needed her to buy better and healthier food. She made the joke that just because I have to eat healthy, she didn't have to, which actually hurt my feelings. It would be good for her, me and Arianna. She would buy me salad, and then everything else she always bought so not much changed except for a bag of salad mix. I remember one day I went and bought a juicer and took it upon myself to do some grocery shopping. I got ground chicken and turkey instead of pork and beef. I got loads of veggies and fruit, granola, greek yogurt. I mean I think I did good. As she watched me put the food away, she commented "I hope you plan on eating all that because it sure doesn't look appetizing". I went to cook dinner (which may or may not have been spaghetti) with the ground chicken and she looked at me with a disgusted look on her face and said. " You're gonna use that?!"... How could I eat right if every time I make a good decision, she had a comment that made me want to just say screw it? The only thing that kept me from giving up completely were the people on the Team Beachbody website. One thing I wanted out of the website was a friend and coach that had been in the same boat as me as far as the amount of weight that I needed to lose and the struggles I've had. One of my buddies Janet told me she had an amazing coach named Rachel that had went from 301 to around 130 IN A YEAR!! She sent me a link to Rachel's profile. I sent her a buddy request and we started to talk. We have some much in common and her wise and caring words stuck with me. I needed her as my coach. And I made her my coach. This was the beginning... Little did I know, unexpected depression and excuses were heading my way.


D.C. wasn't what I expected, I wasn't happy there. I really started to miss Marion, VA. Yeah, it's a small town with not a lot to do, but it is a good place to raise kids, not too much crime, and its the place I lived the longest that I can remember of my whole life. I wanted to go back. I ended up stopping BBL and ordered Turbo Jam. When I got it, once again I tore open the box and put it in the DVD player. In comes Chalene, smiley, blond, perky Chalene. I didn't know what to expect from this woman but I ended up loving her. She is so motivational during her workouts, reminding you that all the motivation, all the energy is in your head. You can keep going! You can push harder! I enjoyed TJ a lot, but still ended up giving up on that as well, but Rachel continued to check in on me even after my posts to the challenge group and TBB website had stopped. I feel like anyone else would have just given upon me, figured I was just a waste of time. But she didn't and I am forever thankful for that. Through my talks with Rachel, I realized that I couldn't keep giving excuses for me not taking the step forward, pushing play and eating right. This is in my hands. My body, my health, my life is in my hands. I want to be around for my beautiful little girl for a very long time, but if I don't take care of myself now, that won't happen. I also realized that I wanted to become a Team Beachbody coach. If I could do for someone else what Rachel did for me, it would make me feel so good. I want to help people with their health & fitness. As a Massage Therapist, I am love to help people with their pain and make them just feel better in general and I am supposed to tell my clients know how important it is for them to exercise, eat right, and drink plenty of water. I want to be a model of that, not the one saying "Do as I say, not as I do." SO I MADE A DECISION...

Despite what anybody else may have wanted me to do, I moved back to Marion, I am working as a Massage Therapist, just became a Team Beachbody coach and restarting my Turbo Jam & Brazil Butt Lift. I will eat right, exercise at least 5 days a week and drink plenty of water.

No. I don't have the results that everyone wants to see. I am at the beginning of my journey as many people are. I now have all of Beachbody watching and waiting. Watching, Waiting and thus Motivating me to transform my body and mind into the person, the mother, the role-model for my daughter that I want to be.

My goal as a coach is to change another's life while molding, changing and sculpting my own. If I can just reach one person, then that's great! But if I can reach many.... WOW! That would be a blessing!
Watch me during my journey or join me with a journey of your own. 

Just don't give up, don't let anyone hold you back or tear you down. Know that this life is yours. This body is yours. If you are unhappy with any of it, change it.