Paying it Forward - Fitness Challenge Group #1

6 weeks ago, I began the fitness journey that is completely changing my life. Today, I want to share my experience with you and invite you to join me so that you can reach your fitness goals too!

Over the years, I have done several at-home fitness programs..most of them being BeachBody programs. I'm sure you've seen the infomercials on TV or heard of these programs (P90X, Insanity, Turbo Jam, and the list goes on). Have I had success with the programs I've done in the past? Eh, somewhat but it didn't really stick. What I learned doing these programs in the past is that it is really easy to come up with excuses and quit when you're working out at home, by yourself, and no one knows about it.

Fast forward to early January 2016. I had been trying different things at home over the past several months on my own but nothing was really sticking. I kept starting over every Monday. Who can relate to the new Monday syndrome?

One day, I happened to come across a random advertisement on my Facebook news feed talking about a fitness challenge group. It sounded like the missing piece to my puzzle for success : Accountability. How did I miss this before? I commented on the post requesting more information about how I could be a part of this group. Turns out the post I was commenting on was from an amazing BeachBody coach who spends her life inspiring and helping people like me reach their fitness goals.

Long story short, this BeachBody coach helped me decide on a new at-home fitness program that would be best for me based on my abilities and fitness goals. She then invited me to be in her next challenge group on Facebook. What is a challenge group? Its a private Facebook group with a few other women who are also on their fitness journey just like me. I have been a part of this group for the past 6 weeks. Each day there is a "homework" assignment which is simply to comment on my coach's post with whatever she requests. For example, post a motivational quote or take a picture of a healthy meal I'm eating or something like that. I also share my results at the end of each week with the group and sometimes post other random triumphs or struggles I am dealing with on my fitness journey. It is so great to be able to talk with other people who are going through the same thing that I am and it has helped me stay accountable day after day. Without this group, I'm sure I would have given up by now.

The other piece that is awesome about this fitness journey is that when I purchased the program that I am doing, I signed up to be a coach too! I have promised myself that this time, I am not giving up. I just knew that this challenge group was going to change my life. I made a commitment to myself that once I started seeing results, I wanted to be able to pay it forward and help other people reach their fitness goals too.

So, 6 weeks have gone by and I am seeing amazing results! I have already lost over 10 lbs and 13.5 inches. Now's the time to start paying it forward! While I continue my fitness journey, I want to help you on your journey to becoming a healthier you!

My Facebook fitness challenge group will begin on Monday, March 21st and I would love for you to join me!

If you're ready to get some seriously awesome results, then you need to get in contact with me right away to claim your spot in my fitness group!

So, what are you waiting for!? Let's chat!!

Add me as a friend on Facebook at facebook.com/melissa.turner.507 or e-mail me at mboyerfitness@gmail.com

I can't wait to hear from you!

A Day in the Life of My Fitness Journey

What does a typical day look like for me with the fitness journey I am on? Allow me to share. No matter how busy you are, you can make the time to live a healthy lifestyle!

4:15am : Alarm rings. I get up and get dressed in my workout clothes, grab some water and head downstairs to my workout room to get started. The workouts in my program range anywhere from 25-45 minutes. How convenient right!? I don't have to spend extra time driving to a gym or anything like that. I love being able to workout in the comfort of my own home. Once I complete my DVD for the day, I usually add in a few extra exercises at the end (leg lifts, a wall sit, a plank and pushups are my go-tos) which brings me to about 5:30am.

5:30-6:45am is spent getting ready, eating breakfast, and packing my morning snack to take to work with me. My typical breakfast is oats with milk and berries (which I prepare a few days in advance), some cottage cheese, and a banana. I also allow myself to have coffee in the morning with some sugar free powdered creamer. Can't go without my caffeine ;) Work starts at 7

10:30am is morning snack time which usually includes some raw veggies like carrots and celery and 1 serving of original Wheat Thins.

12:30pm is when I come home for lunch, take care of our 4 dogs, pack my afternoon snack, and make my lunch which is usually my meal replacement shake (Shakeology).

3:30pm is afternoon snack time. Lately I've been having greek yogurt, sunflower seeds, and some raw veggies.

5:00pm-10:00pm or so is when I come home from work, do some cleaning around the house, prepare for the next day, find some time to share my journey online, and make dinner. My dinners vary a lot but recently I've been eating a lot of stir frys. They are super easy to make since I can prep everything I need for it ahead of time and I get a great variety of food like plenty of different vegetables, meat like chicken or venison, and brown rice. Sometimes I'll have some dessert such as mixed berries with yogurt if I'm in the mood for something sweet.

10:00pm is bedtime, then I get up and do it all over again!

See? It is really easy to live healthy. All you need to do is commit 30-45 minutes a day to physical activity and do an hour or 2 of meal prep once a week or so. Sundays are my favorite day to meal prep. All I do is cut up vegetables and cook some meat in the crock pot. Easy peasy!

The best part of the program I'm doing now is all the food I get to eat. I'm honestly never to the point where I get super hungry anymore because I eat every 3 hours and I get to eat a lot! I mean think about all that food I listed above. It's a lot! I feel so much more satisfied eating all of this food than I ever have before. The program helps you to calculate how many servings of each food group you are allowed daily based on your fitness goals, your lifestyle, and your weight. No counting calories, points, or weighing food! All you have to do is measure your food in color coded containers for each food group. It is so easy and effective. It has quickly taught me how to keep my portions in check day in and day out.

Here's an example of how I track my food daily. These worksheets (which I created myself) are really nice and they help me keep track of everything all in one spot.

Have a great day!

My Whys

As I continue working on my personal development, I have been working on figuring out my whys for a couple areas of my life.

First of all, why am I putting so much time and effort into improving my health? Back in my more immature years, my reasons for trying to lose weight were always about everyone else. I wanted to be popular at school, I wanted to look like all the "cool" girls who I thought had such perfect and easy lives, I wanted boys to think I was attractive. I'm sure many can relate. Were those reasons ever enough to keep me motivated to stick with anything? Nope! Every Monday was a new fad diet I was trying or some other stupid quick fix that I thought was going to work.

In the more recent years after graduating from college, I had some success through a couple different methods/programs. Back in late 2013/2014, I had lost 50 lbs in 6 months but I still wasn't doing it for all the right reasons. When I met my husband in late 2014, I was at my best by comparison to how I used to be but still not quite where I wanted to be. Oh, how easy it is to slip backwards while dating, getting engaged, and getting married with so many dinner dates and cooking for each other and just being super busy, staying on a "diet" easily slips off the priority list. So I found myself back at square 1.

Now that I'm married to a man who loves me for me no matter what, it's quite a bit easier to find the real reasons why I want and need to work on living a healthier lifestyle. I'm doing it for ME, not for anyone else. I no longer want to feel guilty after everything I eat. I no longer want to keep trying to fit into clothes that dig into my skin all day long. I no longer want to get easily tired out doing active things with my husband. I no longer want to avoid stepping on the scale or looking in the mirror at all costs. I want to be able to look in the mirror every day and like the person I see looking back at me and this time I will get there! 

The 2nd why I've been working on is figuring out why I am a BeachBody coach. I'm a BeachBody coach because I truly have a passion for building friendships with other women who are on or want to be on their own journey to becoming healthier. It is NOT about hooking you in, making a sale, and never talking to you again. It IS about building a friendship, potentially helping you find a fitness/nutrition program that will work best for you and helping you through it so that you can see amazing results just like I am and share with you the things that I'm doing to learn long lasting healthier habits. I would love nothing more than to hear that a friend of mine is seeing results and is becoming happier with the person they see in the mirror. 

I want to be the person that makes a difference in your life!

Add me on Facebook at facebook.com/melissa.turner.507 or e-mail me at mboyerfitness@gmail.com

I would love to meet you and get to know you!

Friday Fitness Humor

A little truthful humor. Have a fantastic Friday :)

http://www.teambeachbody.com/teambeachbodyblog/lifestyle/10-reasons-to-date-a-woman-who-works-out?ICID=CT_BLOG_DATE_FITNESS_GIRL

4 Weeks of Lessons

4 weeks ago, I embarked on a new fitness journey, different from any journey I've ever tried before. I responded to an ad on Facebook that caught my eye about enrolling in a fitness and nutrition program and having virtual accountability from a fitness coach and being involved in a fitness Facebook group. I thought, hmm maybe support is my missing piece to my puzzle. For months prior to starting the program I'm doing now, I had started and restarted my "diet" countless times. It sure is easy to give up when no one knows what you're doing and you hide it from the world.

I'm not a fan of gyms because I don't like the feeling of being self-conscious of other people watching me workout. Even if I did, I live 30+ minutes away from any decent gyms plus I work 10+ hours a day so it'd cost way too much time and money to drive to a gym every day. The most sensible option for me in terms of time and money is to workout in the comfort of my own home. So that's what I do!

I researched several programs before deciding on The Master's Hammer and Chisel. Watching videos about it and reading reviews was a bit intimidating as it sounded pretty intense but I talked myself out of my excuses and told myself that I could do it. My alarm rang at 4:45am on Monday, January 18th and it was go time! I successfully completed my first workout, followed the nutrition plan to the best of my ability and had some new friends in the Facebook group I was invited to be in to share my thoughts with. It was a great start!

For the last 4 weeks, this routine has continued. My workout is the first thing I do every morning 6 of the 7 days of the week. You've got to have 1 rest and recovery day, right!? I follow the nutrition plan tailored to me to the best of my ability every day and share my journey with as many people as possible - not to bring attention to myself but instead, to be an inspiration to other people that they can do it too!

Have I been perfect every single day these past 4 weeks? Absolutely not! Have I ate "too much" a few times? Of course! Have I ate out at restaurants? Yep! Have I felt discouraged when I couldn't get through all of the reps of my workout successfully? Very! Struggling is a part of this journey every day, but is it worth it? It is indescribable how worth it this actually is. Even in these 4 short weeks, my self-esteem has increased and I'm starting to understand what it's like to feel comfortable in my own skin. As of my last week's weigh-in/measurements, I had lost 6.5lbs and 8 inches! I can't wait to see what the next several weeks brings for results! I decided to step on the scale this morning to find that my total loss is now 9.3lbs! Soo excited!

So, what has 4 weeks of commitment showed me:
- Portion control is actually super easy
- I can eat 5-6 times per day and still lose weight! How amazing is that!?!
- Weight lifting has showed me that I have muscles I didn't know existed
- Sharing my journey with others is super fun, although it is a little scary to put myself out there like that
- The right support system is the true key to success

I am so excited to continue my journey and see how greatly my hard work will continue to pay off.

Why not you, why not now? Make the decision to become a healthier you right now! I would love to help you begin your fitness journey so you can start seeing results too!

E-mail me at mboyerfitness@gmail.com for details about how I can help you!

My Story

I wanted to begin this blog by sharing a bit about me and my fitness story.

I like living in the present so I'll just start with where I'm at now. I'm 26 years old and live in Minnesota. I've been happily married to my amazing husband for just over a year. We don't have any kids yet but that will come soon I hope! We do have 4 dogs though so they keep us pretty busy. I'm a Christian striving to put God first in my life every day in all that I do, putting my life in his hands to take care of my needs and worries of every day life. I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a few years ago but thankfully, God has blessed me with good health lately. I'm so grateful that I do not have any major physical constraints that limit my ability to exercise.

I'm currently on week #4 of my exercise program which is called Hammer and Chisel. It's an awesome program that mixes weight lifting and cardio. I am already seeing so many changes in my body. My clothes are looser and I'm starting to see and feel some muscle definition all over. With the way I'm now eating, I am feeling so great day after day. Committing to my fitness journey has changed me a lot over these past few weeks, physically, mentally, and spiritually. I know that this time, I'm making permanent lifestyle changes and I will not give up!

One of the pieces that is really helping me stay on track in this journey is accountability. Although sometimes it is hard and takes some courage, I am trying to share my story with as many people as I can. Why? Because this helps me stay accountable. If I have all these people watching me and cheering me on, it makes it a lot harder to give up. I wouldn't want to let all these people down and be a failure publicly. Accountability and support is so important!

Another part of being on this journey is that I have a passion to help others reach their fitness goals too. I recently took up a new hobby of being a BeachBody coach so I can share my story with others and hopefully motivate some new friends to walk with me on this journey.

If you're ready to make some positive, healthy changes in your life, I can help! Please reach out to me right now to learn about how I can help you. I can help you find the right fitness/nutrition program that best suites you and get a great deal on it! I will commit to supporting you day after day on your fitness journey, providing you the support that you need to succeed! You can even have the opportunity to win money for losing weight! How great is that!?

Don't wait, contact me now!

E-mail : mboyerfitness@gmail.com
Facebook : facebook.com/melissa.turner.507
Facebook Fan Page : facebook.com/mboyerfitness
Instagram : mboyerfitness
Twitter : mboyerfitness

I'm looking so forward to talking with you and helping you reach your goals! :) <3