Diet Pills, Quick Fixes, and Big Mistakes

In recent years, I've come to discover that our society is starting to be built on the wrong kinds of stepping stones. Too much of our country's men and women are obsessed with "bigger", "better", "faster", "thinner"....to what avail? To teach our children that getting what we want is quick, easy and painless? Do we want our children to grow up spoiled and having everything handed to them, or do we want them to grow up with solid morals in working for what they want?

Two years ago, I REALLY wanted to lose weight. Like, BADLY. I was just reaching the 1 -year mark of breastfeeding my youngest daughter, and was SO ready to not be a milk-machine anymore. I'd gained 60 pounds while pregnant with her (yes, no hold-backs on food did this to me. Lol), and while I'd lost a good portion of it during breast-feeding, I was still very much overweight.

My husband returned from Afghanistan on his R&R about 6 months into his 12-month tour. My "plan" was to work out, lose weight, and be his hot momma when he came home. Six months in, I'd done nothing to attain this. I saw photos of us together during his leave, and was ashamed of my lack in dedication and motivation. I wanted to lose weight, and fast.

I learned about phentermine through word of mouth. I found a doctor in my area that prescribed it, and let my health insurance company know I was switching doctors. When I went to see him, I expressed my weight concerns, and it took NO time (or convincing) what-so-ever for him to decide that the fix was phentermine.

I was given the pills after having a very detailed physical (I got an EKG, blood work, the whole 9 yards), but I got NO nutritional guidance aside from "Go on the Special K diet". <-YUCK! My doctor never recognized me from one appointment to the next. I was really there just to lose the weight without any strings attached. What phentermine did for me right away was give me cotton-mouth and unimaginable energy. I was so hyped up on energy that I had massive jitters. I became ruthlessly active with doing whatever I could to expell some of that energy. My mom (I stayed with my mom during the deployment) was loving that she'd come home to the sides of her house scrubbed down, or all of her cars getting washed. Eventually, I started incorporating P90X into the mix, because there was only so many times I could wash the house/cars. Haha. I dabbled in the workouts, but again, wasn't totally committed. I didn't have a goal besides, "Lose all the weight having children has brought upon me."

Something else phentermine did was take away any inclination that I was hungry. No stomach rumbles, no mental reminders that I needed to eat something, and when I did make myself eat, there was no "pleasure" from it. The good tasting food wasn't the same. So because it took the joy out of eating, I ate better foods because it didn't matter to me either way. It wasn't until I had no desire for food that I realized how much my every day was consumed with thinking about food. But see, here's the downside to that. Because my hunger had dissipated, I had to set alarms for myself to feed my kids, or else I'd forget it was meal time. I was never in the mood to cook anymore because there was no desire to EAT the food I would make after I was done. It was pointless work to me. On any GOOD day, I'd eat about 500 calories, and even that felt like too much. I was losing about a pound a day at some points, but I now know I was losing just as much muscle as I was losing fat.

I was what is commonly known as "skinny fat". I may have been losing weight, but I wasn't eating enough to sustain any muscle in my body, so my body was still made up of fat. I had no muscle definition. I was just losing flab. I'd gotten down to a size 7 jeans (from a 14). A size that I never fit in even when I was in high school. Basically, I was anorexic, with a prescription from a doctor to do so.

Is THIS what we want our children to grow up thinking is okay?? I am EMBARASSED to admit that I went to such extremes to lose weight, and I was MORTIFIED with how badly I'd let myself get after getting off the pills. I slipped into a deep depression, and I felt like the world was weighing on my shoulders. I felt like I'd disappointed everyone in my life, and yes, it got to the point where the will to live was hanging on by a thread. I needed help, and the many various drugs that were being prescribed to me in therapy weren't cutting it.

I had to fix my inner demons, and dig into the root of what was the cause of my weight gain. It had nothing to do with child-bearing. It was all ME. I had self-doubt, self-loathing, and quite frankly, a tremendous amount of self-hate. The minute I stepped up to FACE my problems, a veil was lifted from my eyes. I started to see myself for what I was. I was still very much broken, but the ability to heal was now present. I quickly recognized that I did not like the easily predictable "failure" I'd become, and decided to change it. I created new goals that revolved around being a role model for my kids, being a supportive and productive wife, being an inspiration to others.....I want to BE the change I wish to see in my family, in my community, in our world.

Which leads me to today's status message on my Facebook pages.

A "quick-fix" earns you nothing. You MUST push through the grueling work part of losing weight in order to reap long term benefits. There is simply no other way to build your self-esteem, self-respect and self-discipline any better than doing it the hard way. You will be a MUCH stronger person because of it!

People look at these words and think, "Eh, my self esteem is just fine". I disagree. There is ALWAYS room for improvement, and improvement can be as simple as taking care of yourself. It will NOT be an easy road, and quite frankly, who wants to walk their life down easy roads all the time? You get absolutely no sustainable rewards from "easy". But when you bust your ass to make the seconds in your day count, you will find that the hard road is ALWAYS worth the benefits reaped. "You reap what you sow", "I didn't say it was going to be easy. I said it was going to be worth it," "You get what you pay for". ALL of these apply! ALL of these aren't said for the speaker's health! It is said because it is tried and true and repeated for YOUR benefit.

Anyway, I hope you all gained something from my humiliation. I am sharing this with you now because I have come to learn that my past mistakes are lessons learned and that they should be shared so that when the going gets rough, YOU guys know what the crappy alternatives are. Fight through your own negativity, and give that bitch the boot!

Taking Care

After reviewing a lot of my beginning blogs about health and fitness, I came to realize that I had not touched on proper form or eating before/after work outs. These are two EXTREMELY dire things when you embark on serious fitness.

When I began TurboFire in May, I was a mess trying to find myself through better health. I was not accurately aware of what I was getting myself into. I had some recollection of how fitness has helped me in the past, and my idea of "eating healthy" was hardly eating at all. There was that whole "Want to lose weight? Eat less" stigma (which is SOOOOOO not the right way to lose weight, you guys!!), and I thought that was my problem. I was not EDUCATED in the field of health and fitness. While I still hold no degree, I CAN tell you what I've learned through my experiences and readings, which in my book, is just as important (although I would like to widen my learnings through some schooling in this field, but I digress).

Within a month of my high intensity workouts, I started to feel pain in my shins and feet. First it was my shins. I always heard about shin splints, and when I was in high school, on occasion came across what I felt was a mild case of it, so I was pretty sure that's what I felt coming on. I brought the pain to the attention of my support group and coach, whom I know many had been through the ropes of TurboFire before me, and I wanted to hear their suggestions.

The fix was very simple. Pivot MORE. Work INTO the movements. Do low impact modifications until I felt I could handle more strenuous moves/the pain subsided. Once I lost a little more weight, and incoporated ALL of the suggestions, the pain was gone.

Soon afterwards, I started getting shooting pain in both of my feet. At first, I ignored it. I felt I was getting the pain simply because I was heavy and have never been this active before. I pushed through. But then the pain continued to get worse with each daily workout, and finally, I had to stop mid-workout and take off my shoes. The minute I did that, the pain was gone. I thought I'd had pretty decent shoes, so again, I took the problem to group. One suggestion that stood out from the rest was, "Are you tying your shoes too tight? Try to curl your toes. Your blood vessels expand when you do these workouts, and you might be constricting their ability to pump blood." Bingo. I was tying my shoelaces tight, thinking the pain was caused from not tying them tight enough (yes people...I lack common sense sometimes. Don't judge). The very second I loosened up those laces, and hopped back into my workout, the pain was GONE. And never to be seen again.

Now here is something else that I don't feel I got into enough detail, that is absolutely essential on the scale of importance. Nutrition.

I played around with my nutriton in the mornings after the first month because I wanted to see how it would affect my energy levels during my workouts. I'm so glad I did. In the beginning, I thought jumping right into a workout right after waking up would work. I found myself starving 10 minutes into it. So that theory worked for all of 3 days. Then, I read to drink a glass of water, and a small glass of milk prior to working out. That was fine on lighter workout days, but none of my TurboFire workouts fell into that category. I was always having a high intensity day or a longer workout day, and not eating SOMETHING was starting to feel like a real burden on my body. The day I decided to eat a 200-calorie or less balanced breakfast, wait an hour, and then hop into my workout was the day I realized I hit the jackpot. My movements packed a serious punch (pun intended), and I was able to push harder, longer.

I'd say the hardest struggle with eating prior to a workout for me is the wait period in between. I get busy. I wake up and want to jump into it, but remind myself the importance of eating beforehand. Sometimes, I wait too long to get into my workout, and then lag in my workout. Today, for example, was a not-so-great workout day. I pushed like a crazy person, and made (I'm sure) very unattractive faces while I pushed through, but about 10 minutes into my workout, I got a sudden, piercing headache. Totally out of the blue, and totally not a normal Nicky thing to happen. I took note of my aching belly, paused, and scarfed a handful of almonds. I gulped a bit of water, evaluated my headache (it had dulled by that point), and jumped back into my workout. I decided to up my water intake during the workout, considering the heat today. I'm so glad I did. The headache did not worsen. As a matter of a fact, it lessened, and by the time I was done, it was gone.

Naturally, after my workout, it was time to eat again. And of course, my after workout go-to snack is my trusty Tropical Strawberry Shakeology, with a scoop of extra Banana Cream protein (I'm always working on improving my protein intake. It's a never-ending struggle).

It is SO important to listen to your body, you guys. Take into account your surroundings as well. Aim to drink a gallon of water a day, and if it's hot, drink MORE than that. Make SURE you eat regularly! Every 2.5-3 hours is ideal. Find out what your calorie intake should be according to your age, weight and height and educate yourself on what "balancing" your meals REALLY means. It isn't just more veggies/less carbs like many people are led to believe. There is so much more to it than that. Learn what YOUR body responds to well, learn the science behind it, and DO IT! :)

It's About the Journey, Not the Destination

I recorded myself working out today.....YIKES.

It's not the first time I've done it, but it certainly has been a while since I've last done it (when I first started my challenge). Let's just say that I really don't recommend it to people who are first starting out, or to those who have very high expectations for themselves. If you have an established positive self-image, or are looking for ways to improve it (and are confident in your efforts) then yeah. You might be able to handle watching the playback. Me? I can handle it. Watching my flabby belly flop along to the music (I say that with love, AND it is fact, not harshness, speaking) actually provides me with the extra motivation I need to keep going.

When I'm in beast mode (GRRRRR!), I divulge myself into false pretenses of what I actually look like when I'm working out. I thank God for this. Lol. I would much rather like to believe that I look 50-60 pounds lighter, and equally emanate the men and women on the disc I'm following than to have a giant mirror or recorded video showing me what I ACTUALLY look like doing the workouts. If this were the case every day, I'd likely fail. The IMPORTANT aspect in all of this is not what I look like doing these ball-busting moves. It's the fact that I was DOING them. Dudes, I keep up with the hot chics and the ripped dudes, despite my size. I may have only lost 11 pounds in the time that I've been doing these workouts (I had a lazy-ish second month. So shoot me), but I FEEL phenomenal. It is not destination that is important, which TOO MANY people fail to recognize. It is the journey, you guys! Yeah, who wouldn't love to have a rockin' hot bod, but THAT is just a destination. What you learn along the way, what you develop inside of yourself to get there, learning about how strong you REALLY are, is all priceless. I actually think it's more important that reaching the goal itself. The payoff off is self-esteem, self respect, pride in oneself, and being all around happy! I have a balance I was lacking throughout my whole life, just by simply deciding that I deserved to treat myself BETTER.

It's worth the work, you guys. It's WORTH kicking yourself in the butt for. It is WORTH the sweat, the tears, the ache, the pain.

Go get your future, you guys. Grab a hold of it, and steer it where YOU want it to go. Stop holding yourself back. And yes....it's YOU that keeps you from getting where you desire to be.

1) STOP THAT!

2) Go get the you you've always wanted.

Because It's Been a While....

There came a time when I felt like I'd already said everything I needed to say to inspire others in taking the necessary steps toward health and wellness. But I was so so SO mistaken!

You see, the thing about staying motivated is constant reinforcement. Consistent reminders. Beating it into your own head, day after day, every minute of every day, until it's there without having to be reminded. Until it is HABIT! I have to have this picture....

on my desktop on my computer to remind me that my goals are far more important that the excuses I give myself to fail on any given day. My lifestyle isn't about being skinny. Being fit and being healthy have become a prevalent, dominating voice in my mind. Whatever form my body decides to take, you know what? GREAT! If THAT is what healthy is supposed to look like, I will take it!

Ideally, l'd like to look good naked TMI? Sorry....ok, not really. I don't think there's ever been a point in my life where I felt comfortable in my own skin. Never. Can you imagine that? I'll bet many of you can. I look back on my past, and while I would KILL to have that pre-baby body back, I'll tell you a little secret. I didn't earn that body either! That was simply a product of teenage luck + Puerto Rican booty genes. <- Fact. I didn't work out back then. Goodness, I skimped out of any rigorous sports or exertion in high school at every chance I got. If missing it didn't give me a failing grade, I wasn't doing it.

What has changed between then and now? Well, I'll be honest. The thought of running still scares the bejesus out of me because running and I have never been besties. The thought of hitting the pavement over and over and over and over and over again....well, you get it. I'd much rather go swimming over and over and over and over and over again. <-Not easy to do in a state where you don't know where the nearest free pool is! (PS: I miss Maui!!!!)

Here's the thing, you guys. And bare with me, because it's going to get REAL here for a minute. What has changed is my mindset. I am not afraid of raising my heart rate anymore. I'm not afraid of sweating it out every day for the benefit of my long term health. Yes, it hurts like a (...fill in the blank...) right now, but it is WORTH IT! People always say "It gets easier" and "It'll make you feel better about yourself" and "To lose weight, you have to eat right and exercise", why? BECAUSE IT'S TRUE!!!! There are no shortcuts. And if you find one, I promise you that it will not last. Quick fix surgeries, "magic" weightloss pills, body wraps, or WHATEVER else you've considered, are NOT going to reap the real results you are searching for because the REAL change happens on the INSIDE of you.

To get the body you want, you have to makeover the person on the inside that kept you from getting there to begin with. And how does that person get adjusted? By DOING the grueling and painstaking WORK that it takes to get there. You have to kick your own ass, you guys. No one is going to hold your hand and do it for you. You have to break down that jerk inside of you that keeps telling you that you "Don't feel like it today" or "Need to start this but can't right now for this reason or that reason" or "Don't have the willpower it takes to do that" or "Can't because my body/spouse/job/time won't let me". I don't give a CRAP what your reasons are. The ONLY person holding you back is YOU. You have NO ONE else to blame for what you look like or why you feel the way you do but YOU. The second you realize that and decide to take control of your own life and your own past mistakes, is the day you are ready to take the next step. Until then? No one can help you. Not even you.

I Get Disappointed In The Scale Too....I Am, After All, Human

Today I want to touch on something that I don't think a lot of people have gotten a chance to see from me lately. I've been pretty great about staying upbeat and positive throughout these last few weeks, but I am human too. And I do meet disappointment from time to time. I've just gotten so good at letting it roll right off. WELL.....

I know that I said I lost 5 pounds a couple weeks ago, and 5 inches off my waist, which was AWESOME! The bummer is that that's all I've lost thus far. And trust me....I have been BUSTING it up in my living room every day (with the exception of a couple emergency/sick days), and being practically a saint with my nutrition. I'm taking everything incredibly seriously, and for a number of great reasons. The only problem is, the results aren't matching up to my expectations....YET.

When I start my workouts in the morning, my body is achy from the day before, I'm usually hungry (I've started having a pre-workout snack that works wonders with my energy, but I digress), and I'm not going to lie....I'm not exactly looking FORWARD to kicking my own butt. That takes a lot of "talking-it-up" in my own head. But let me tell you what it's like once all the huffing and puffing, jumping and pivoting, and sweating and stinkin' is over.

Once my workout is through, and I have a moment to chug my water and catch my breath, I look down at myself. Every day I do this. And do you know what I see? Dudes.....my leg muscles. They are WICKED after I work out. Now, don't get me wrong. There is still MUCH more work to be done here. However, there is definitely a difference between when I was sitting on my behind doing nothing on the couch, to the last month of straight in-my-living-room-butt-whooping. I can see the different muscles in my thighs. Like, not just a raised quad. I can see the lines defining the two (whatever you call them) muscles in the front, and my hamstrings are poppin' too! I may not have lost inches on my thighs since a couple weeks ago, but my muscles are starting to shine through the excess fat, which to me, is far more important that any weight loss.

My scale has not MOVED sinced I last updated you guys on it. Which is GREAT news considering the information above. Why? Because my muscles are taking over. They're replacing the fat that once was. Let me clear up a little well-known fallacy that many of you have probably heard, and that I know I've been guilty of saying in the past.

Muscles do NOT weigh more than fat. A pound is a pound any which way you slice it. Muscle is DENSER than fat, so it takes up less space. When my scale stopped moving, I knew exactly what was going on. I need to allow my body the time it needs to change and to quit being the impatient butthead I know I can be. I need to allow the time my muscles need to take over inside of me, and once that transition happens, and my body is comfortable with the muscle built in, the fat shredding WILL happen! And THAT, my friends, is when the pounds will start sliding right off.

In the meantime, you may catch me grumbling here and there about my stupid scale being a real jerkface, but don't mind me. I know what's REALLY going on, and I'm doing what I need to do to get to that "happy place" I've built up in my head regarding my goals and my healthy new lifestyle. And that's ultimately the most important thing.

So when it comes down to your health journey, remember this: If you have just started this journey for yourself, and you are doing all the right things, and the results just aren't coming to you fast enough, give it time. Be patient with yourself, with your body. You may have been like me and ate crap for your entire life and avoided any strenuous exercise like the Black Plague. As Tony Horton, the trainer for P90X says, "Rome was not built in a day, and neither were you." To break the old you down and build a new you in the process, it will take time.

If you have enough strength, determination, and desire to see yourself through all this sweaty, grueling work, you will NOT regret it. I promise.

I Don't Sail With Pirates

Good afternoon, my friends!!

Today I'm going to set down an important rule for myself, as it's really important to set some boundaries when one embarks on setting up a business, or are just plain tired of getting stepped on. I have come to find in the last few days how saddening it is to be taken advantage of. It truly puts an ache in my heart to discover this when I'm on the verge of some serious mental breakthroughs with turning my life upside down (in a good way!) and wholeheartedly reaching out to helping other people who can relate to my journey. Today, my friends, I am going to lay down my rule for what I expect from people if/when they want my professional help. Now, I am MORE than happy to give advice, offer a helping hand, and be a good friend. As a matter of a fact, I aspire to improve in these areas of my life every day. However, after having started my business as a Beachbody coach, and taking on this new road in improving my lifestyle, I've also come to find that my free time is shortened by the new responsibilities I have at hand, and the time that I have left, is being wasted on few people that are placing their investments in the wrong places.

When I have clients coming to me for business advice or expecting my coaching strategies for free, this presents a problem for me. For one, they are getting some valuable information and some valuable strategies, and I am getting nothing in return. In caring for my body through healthy eating and exercise, I also need to care for my heart and soul. In order for me to do this, I need to set a ground rule that people need to understand. And here it is...

If you received your Beachbody program in any illegal manner (it's a burned disc, it's a copy, etc), I can not allow myself to coach you, and you will be hard pressed to find another coach who will.

1. First of all, this is incredibly illegal, and you could get into serious trouble for acquiring/producing an illegal copy of these products. It's immoral, and I can not be associated with any part of it. To me, this is no different that walking into any retail store and shoplifting, because that is what it is. Stealing.

2. Secondly, this squashes my efforts, and the hard efforts of other coaches like me, who strive to provide our clients with the best training, the best service, the best products, and the best health they can possibly recieve from us. By purchasing a workout program through the Beachbody website or through my Beachbody coaching website, depending on the workout you choose, you are receiving good quality discs, workout gear, a nutrition guide and the most important item in the box, the program guide, that walks you through the program from day 1 to your finishing date. It is WORTH the investment....that is, if you're in it for the right reasons.

3. Finally, what using an illegal copy tells me about your character is that you are just looking for a cheap, illegal way to invest in yourself, and that the program will probably inevitably start collecting dust on your bookshelf after you attempt it and give up. If you put your hard earned money into an investment like this the RIGHT way, you are MORE likely to invest 100% of your time and efforts into it too. Otherwise, it's just something you got for free, and who cares if you don't finish it, right? If you don't invest in your health nobally, please don't expect my assistance. I need to protect MY investments, too. When clients come to me for help, I am investing 100% of MY time, MY knowledge, and MY compassion into them.

Please don't view this as offensive. I did not write it up to be portrayed in that manner. However, people who expect my help must also respect the fact that I am running a business here, and that I can not be giving out free handouts or else I will be taken advantage of, time and time again.

I DO coach for free. That is something I offer to anyone and everyone. But if you start asking me for professional advice about a Beachbody program that you've acquired unethically, I can not produce a beneficial response. It is against what I believe in, and I'm sorry that you feel you've been inconvenienced.

I Will Succeed. Will You?

Today is my rest day, and thank God for it! My sides are screaming, my legs are burning, and I am just in overall recovery from the beating I've been putting myself through. Despite my woes, however, this is not as difficult as my brain panned it out to be prior to jumping in to this decision. "What decision?" you may ask. Well, the decision to change my life.

I was pushing 200 lbs, which is not acceptable for my 5'3" frame. I have the notorious back rolls that women dread. My thunder thighs rub together when I walk. I went to get my driver's license renewed, and when I got it, I thought to myself, "OMG! When did I get an extra chin!?!??" My arms are fatter than they've ever been. Even my feet have grown in size! My butt....well, I love my butt, even if it is a lot bigger than it used to be. It has a good shape. ;-) I have cellulite on my CALVES, people! Ok, so you get the picture. I was NOT a happy camper. I needed to step up. I needed to GROW up! I was so stuck in, "Ugh, I'm fat. Someone reach out to me and help me change." Well, welcome to the real world, Nick! NO ONE CAN HELP YOU BUT YOU! It wasn't hard to flick the switch. It really wasn't. I just made it out to be hard prior to jumping in. I was convincing myself that I was too weak, too fat, too down-in-the-dumps, too undeserving, too broke, too SORRY for myself, to change. All not true. All tremendously stupid lies. ALL of them!

I don't have a lot of money. As a matter of a fact, my family is in a great deal of debt. When I made the decision to change, we'd just completed rehoming 10 puppies. We'd used a bit of that money to play "catch up" and to help prepare for hubby's (then) pending deployment. And I'd decided, "You know what? If I keep sitting here waiting for inspiration, it will NEVER come. I will just keep gaining weight, keep doing the same old crap, and die a lot sooner than I'm willing to let this life go." I wasn't ready to admit defeat. I wasn't ready to say to myself, "Ok, well, I guess I'm okay with my lifestyle that will kill me." Because I was NOT okay with that.

A lot of my battle was not knowing the way. I knew what was mentally needed of me to keep the workouts going, but I didn't exactly know HOW to eat right, nor was I willing to adhere to some of the foods I knew I should be eating. It was just easier to say yes to cookies, yes to cakes, yes to donuts, yes to white rice, fried foods, sugar laden foods, and the like. I thought by not eating out so much and just making everything from scratch, we'd lose weight. Nope. I thought if I just cut out soda, we'd lose weight. Nope. For some people, yeah sure, little changes may work. But for me, I needed to make the change whole-heartedly, 100%, or else I'd just fall back into old habits. So what did I do?

I signed up for a Challenge Group. I signed on as a coach. Initially, the coaching network was just to save an extra 25% on my future orders. I didn't even really THINK about the possibility of reaching out to others and helping others because I was so consumed with the ME I needed to fix first. And that's okay, people. There is NOTHING wrong with realizing that you need to fix YOU before you are fully capable of helping others. For many, it takes some serious time before they can really be of any true service to another human being.

I'll tell you one thing though. This decision has been the best I've made.....ever. I'm making more friends than I ever knew I could have. And we aren't talking just acquaintances. I'm talking real FRIENDS. Being in this business has taught me how to REALLY open up to people and be emotionally vulnerable to letting others in. Over the years, I'd developed a wall to guard unwanted hurt and the possibility of pain. That's no way to live! And you know what? By emanating the will to succeed, and living a life that I can be proud of, I am attracting people LIKE ME who want the same things and perceive the same goals that I do. The people who are Debby Downers and Negative Nancys aren't attracted to successful people. They want to be around people LIKE THEM who will feel sorry for them and help them wallow in their sorrows. Decide right now which person you want to be, and then ask yourself want kind of people surround you. Remember: who you attract is who you are. If you want to change who you attract, you must first change yourself.

Success can be anything you set your heart to. YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING you want. Are you already coming up with arguments as to why not? Well, then you're digging your own hole. Stop arguing, and start listening. It IS possible. It IS attainable.

I recommend the book "First Steps to Wealth" by Dani Johnson. Better yet, go to one of her seminars. You will come out a new person, and will shake the hand of success shortly after.

In the meantime, I need to go build my business, meet a lot of new faces, become the best me I can be, and spread the wealth of happiness that has been bestowed upon me. :)

God Bless You Guys, and thanks for reading. :)

Aloha,

Nicky

Safety Tip of the Day: Clean Your House

So let's talk cleanliness today.

I think I told you guys about the last time I cleaned my house. Well, considering my husband left for deployment last week, I haven't exactly been feeling up to being "Suzie Homemaker". However, today circumstances arose that made me realize I needed to stop putting it off. It'd become a safety issue.

Now I know you must be thinking, "Oh my goodness, woman. How dirty does your house need to be to be a safety issue???" No, it's nothing like that.

As you're all well aware (or at least you should be by now), I've been knee deep in my Challenge Group where I've taken on TurboFire as my workout of choice for 90 days. Today marked day 8 of my challenge, and I'm still going strong (if not STRONGER!). To prepare for my daily workouts, I have to move my couches and coffee table off the area rug, and roll up the rug so I can workout on the hardwood floor. Trust me, I've tried to do it a million other ways, and this is the only way that WORKS for this workout, in this house. Otherwise, I've got the rug slipping and sliding underneath my shoes. So I've been doing this now for about a whole week. And every day for the last couple of days, I've come to realize that my shoes aren't gripping the ground properly, which is dangerous. I've been in some positions where if I hadn't mindfully been aware that my shoes would slip a bit, I could have twisted my ankle up pretty bad, or worse. Today, I just about stopped the tape and busted out my mop. I pushed through the rest of the workout because I don't like to just stop and get sidetracked. It's an old habit I'd like to drop. So I finished up the workout, and then instead of jumping right into work (yes, I have designated HOURS for my work!), I alloted some time to clean today. And my goodness, was it needed!

My dog, Daisy, just had a litter of pups a few weeks ago, and on top of THAT coat shedding, her winter coat is coming off in handfuls. So needless to say, my house was in dire need of vacuuming and mopping. I took care of everything I needed to do to ensure that tomorrow's workout is optimal. It's important! If you don't have a clean and safe workout area, you can NOT give your workout the attention it deserves. What does this mean to you? If you don't have a clean & safe space to bring it, you aren't going to burn as many calories!!! So yes, it is worth the effort, worth the time, and worth the energy to clean up before/after your workout so that tomorrow is another great workout day. :)

This message was brought to you by the lady who didn't clean her house for a week and thought it would be okay to workout on microscopic dirt. Don't make my mistakes. :) Take care and be safe people!

For The Ladies (And The Men Who Can Handle It)

So today was a very off-day for me. I've been tremendously diligent in my efforts to eat better than I EVER have been in my life, and in keeping up with my TurboFire workouts for my 90-day challenge duration. I have no more excuses in my mind that keeps me from my goals. That Nicky is long gone. HOWEVER, like I said, today was an OFF day. Where to begin....

Last night I was lucky enough to indulge in a glass of red wine. I asked my coach if wine was against the rules at all, and while it wasn't, I was limited to 1 glass (not a big deal, I wasn't looking to get trashed anyway), for the week. It was my "treat for the week". Ok, can do. I didn't expect that one glass to make me feel a little silly, and I think it had a lot to do with my clean eating lately. Anyway....

I had friends over, and I'd excused myself to use the bathroom. I got there, and lo and behold, THAT time of the month decided to spring itself on me at that moment. All of a sudden. And in full force. Super bummer. I wasn't all that surprised or anything. By this point in my life, it's more like, "Oh ok. Whatever. Let's get a tampon." However, this morning was the pits.

I woke up feeling groggy, exhausted, and was in quite a bit of discomfort with my lower back. These are my personal normal symptoms of my monthly visit from "Aunt Flow", as my good friend Jen calls it (haha), but for whatever reason, this month it feels much more intensified somehow. I woke up 2 1/2 hours later than I normally do. I fed myself as soon as I got up, because I was starving upon waking. I waited a couple of hours because it was kind of a hefty calorie breakfast, and then attempted my workout. Talk about DRAGGIN'! I pushed myself. I REALLY did. I probably had to push myself harder today than I have in the first few days I did my workouts. I was getting the movements much easier, as they get easier with every day, but the strength, the energy, the momentum I needed to get through it, was virtually gone. My body was NOT cooperating at all.

Listen to me when I say that this is not "Nicky making excuses". This is me explaining a very important difference between making excuses and listening to your body.

Right away, after several failed attempts at being able to keep up with my workout, I checked in with my group. I explained my symptoms, and right away, everyone jumped in to tell me I needed to rest today. I was ACTUALLY pushing myself too hard! Yeah, I know. This is ME we're talking about here. I have NEVER been told I was pushing myself too hard before. Not until today. And you know what? I immediately thought to myself, "No....no, this can't be. I'm going to try again." I turned away from my computer and un-paused my workout, again, and tried again. I pushed myself HARD for another 10 or so minutes, and then came to the conclusion that yes....today was just not my day to be superwoman. Lol. And I accepted that, made my daily shake, drank it down, and laid myself up on the couch. I wrote a few of my daily dreams down in my "dream book", and then quickly realized that I needed to share my revelation with all of you today.

It is IMPORTANT to know when your body needs a break, and it is important to listen to your body. It's much more difficult to "hear" your body's pleas when you eat so much junk and don't keep up with exercise. I'm quickly realizing that my body responds to everything I'm doing to it. I've always had a kind of "vision" as to what clean eating would entail, and ever since I've completely made the transition, my body responds very well to it. My energy has magnified tenfold. But so have my menstrual side effects. I'm not going to sit around and feel sorry for myself today. I'm going to sit around and read inspirational books, write down inspirational thoughts, and stay inspired about how much I'm going to ROCK IT tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that, etc.

Do NOT hold on to your setbacks. Let them roll right off your back. Move forward into your day, and into the next, and continue the good habits you incorporate into your life. Be PROUD of your efforts! Be proud of yourself! You are making a change. For some people, it's more effective to do it a little at a time. For others, they need a drastic change, cold turkey, all at once. Whatever works for you, just do it, and be proud that you did. :)

Are You Worth The Investment?

What do you hear when someone tells you that they can't "afford" to invest in their health?

 "If organic/natural food wasn't so expensive, I'd eat better."

"Gym memberships are too expensive."

"I live too far away from a gym to work out. It would increase my cost of gas."

Or one of my favorites, because I hear it all the time...

"I'd order that shake you sell, but it's just too expensive."

Want to know what I hear when I hear all these excuses? I hear...

"I'm not WORTH investing in my health."

Be open minded and just listen to me for a second. I'm not JUST trying to promote my business, although it's a great business to be a part of. It's got fool-proof (yes, I said fool-proof....a caveman could do it) sales trainings for it's coaches, amazing daily/weekly/monthly/annual incentives, a wide plethora of opportunities for advancement, hefty discounts, tremendous military benefits (this perked MY ears up!), and above all, the means to improving one's LIFE.

I'm trying to express the importance of eating healthy and exercising. Yes, I sell Shakeology for my business, and I'm a firm believer in some of the seriously awesome benefits it produces for people. If I ate a good 11 plates of vegetables per day, could produce enough energy to really get me through my days without feeling the need for a nap, curb my own cravings, curb my appetite, CRAP ON A REGULAR BASIS, boost my immune system, cleanse my body of toxins, help build and repair my own muscles after a workout, figure out a way to get my brain to function better to keep me more alert, decrease my risk of degenerative diseases, lower my cholesterol, etc, I'd forego the shake for sure. Fantastically for me, I can take care of ALL of these in one shake I use to replace ONE of my FIVE meals for the day.

Just because I eat five meals a day, it doesn't mean that I have to buy more food that I did before. As a matter of a fact, counting the cost of my monthly Shakeology, I spend the same amount of money for food monthly as I did before. After INVESTING in my health, I spend the same amount of money per month on food, but made the necessary cut backs of everything I USED to spend our grocery budget on to completely transition over to healthy foods. Wholesome foods. Foods that I KNOW are good for me. I don't go to McDonald's, Jack In The Box, Taco Bell, or Little Caesar's anymore (and trust me.....I had some reservations about these cutbacks, especially given the fact that all of these are about a mile walking distance from my house!). Do you know how much money people would save if they completely cut out fast/junk food all together?

Do you even completely realize how much being healthy and fit improves the overall quality of a person's life? And I'm not talking about being skinny or being "hot". I'm talking about being HEALTHY. Think about it. How many hours a day do you sit in front of a computer? How many hours a day do you actually spend with your family (not just sitting in the same room with them...I mean INTERACTING with them)? How many hours a day is the tv on? How many hours a day do you sleep at night? What kinds of foods do you eat? Do you eat out? Do you make healthy choices when you do? And think about THIS for a moment...how "healthy" are those healthy choices REALLY? I don't know about you, but I like knowing where my food came from. And I like knowing what's in it, too.

When someone tells me that my "shake" is too expensive, it means one of two things to me.

1) They are actually having financial issues, and

2) They have other excuses they don't feel comfortable sharing with me....things that maybe run along the lines of...

"I don't know what it tastes like."

"I'm not ready to get serious about my health."

"I don't have a good support system to maintain a healthy lifestyle."

"You're just trying to take my money for the commissions. You don't really care about my well-being."

"If I just ate better, I could cover all of those things that that shake claims to do."

Let's start with number 1.

"I have financial issues, and I can't afford to foot $100 a month on a shake."

Join the club. 98% of the population is struggling with their finances in some form or another. The difference between those who have taken on their health battle and you is that they've decided to allocate their money in the RIGHT places nutritionally. It's not rocket science. Quit eating crap and use your money right. If you have money problems, read this book. https://www.cfivip.com/checkout/order_now=Y

Best book EVER, next to the Bible, of course. ;-)

And now all the #2's.

"I don't know what it tastes like."

So what? It offers a 30-day money back, bottom of the bag guarantee. In other words, you can drink ALL of it, and return it within the 30 day window, EMPTY, and STILL get your money back. Or get it, try it once, and send it back for your money back. Whatever. Point being, this excuse is pretty lame.

"I'm not ready to get serious about my health."

Then I can't help you until you are, because the only person who can MAKE you ready is you. Talk to me when your "why I should" is big enough.

"I don't have a good support system to maintain a healthy lifetsyle."

So get a new support system! Beachbody coaches offer monthly (and sometimes bi-monthly) Challenge Groups that help keep each other accountable by doing posts every day for the duration of their challenge, which has been proven to help people accomplish their goals. If you go to the gym with a partner, doesn't that help you maintain your motivation? It's the same concept. You're working out on your own time, but you're posting your food intake and daily exercises/struggles/successes to each other in a private setting and your group encourages you to continue and succeed. You don't need EVERYONE in your life to agree with what you're doing. First and foremost, you need YOU to be on board. Once you have that, you're 90% there. The rest is hard work, and however you make yourself "git 'er done" is up to you.

"You're just trying to take my money for the commissions. You don't really care about my well-being."

Not true. I WANT to build relationships. I despise the thought of appearing like one of those desperate car sales people that approach you the very minute you walk on a lot, and hound you for sales. I didn't take on the coaching responsibility thinking it was going to be a cake walk. I did it knowing I was going to build relationships and make lifelong alliances. I'll let you in on a little secret. I'll be your coach for FREE! I don't charge people anything to listen to their woes and worries or to give them pointers on improving their fitness/nutrition. I coach because I wanted to do this. Products get purchased because my customers want to improve their health. No forceful selling necessary.

"If I just ate better, I could cover all of those things that that shake claims to do."

You sure could. That is, if you could find half of them at the market, and eat them everyday.

Acerola cherry, Acai, Amaranth, Ashwaganda leaf, Astragalus root, Barley grass, Bilberry fruit, Blueberry fruit, Brown rice, Camu camu fruit, Cacao, Chia seed, Chlorella, Coconut flower nectar, Cordyceps, Flax seed (sprouted), Gingko leaf, Goji berry, Green tea, Himalayan pink salt, Kamut grass, Konjac root, Luo han guo, Maca root, Maitake mushroom, MSM, Oat grass, Pomegranate fruit, Quinoa, Reishi mushroom, Rosehip fruit, Sacha inchi, Schisandra, Spinach, Spirulina, Stevia Peas, Tulsi (holy basil leaf), Wheatgrass, Whey protein isolate, Yacon root.

If you've ever heard the expression, "You get what you pay for", it certainly applies here. These superfoods aren't "just fillers", as I've been told before by people thinking they knew what they were talking about. Yes, nothing comes close to eating fruits and vegetables RAW and in their natural form. There is no argument against this. The POINT is that most people don't eat that way, nor can they afford to do so. $100 a month seems like a lot of money, but break it down for a moment. That's roughly $3.50 a day. Count shipping costs (if you decide to "just try it") and it raises your amount to $4 a day. What daily habits do you have that costs this much? Morning cup of coffee? God forbid, cigarettes? It's not impossible. It's completely and totally do-able.

This shake is serious business, and I'm in the business of getting people aware of it, because TOO many people know NOTHING about it and are choosing to ignore the Beachbody coach's pleas for people to listen! We want to HELP! We joined this business to reach out and change lives, and the monetary benefit is simply a perk. Haven't you ever heard that money doesn't buy happiness? Do you know what does? Changing lives. And my dreams consist of doing just that.

Contact me for questions, concerns, or even just a friendly chat. :)

nickyhynson@beachbodycoach.com

http://www.myshakeology.com/nickyhynson

http://www.beachbodycoach.com/nickyhynson