"So why did I decide on top of everything else that I do, to start a small business? I’ll start by
giving you my more recent background. I’m a wife, fulltime employee and mother
of three. About six years ago I trained for and competed in a sprint triathlon
and my first half marathon, and then also did multiple 5k, 10k, and other half marathons. I felt fabulous! I was in great shape, I was eating
well and life was good. Fast forward a few years… I lost my job when my company
moved to Ohio. I was blessed to find a new job right away and as a bonus it was
a WORK AT HOME job doing exactly what I had been doing before. Awesome. But,
then being at home and the free time that involved, led me to get involved in a
few other things (all good and all volunteer work-school board, coaching, other volunteer stuff) but before I knew it I
became “busy”. Too busy to do what I had grown to love doing. Fast forward to April
2013, I had a bunch of blood work done. I was losing some more hair than normal
(like literally handfuls), my vitamin D level was non existent, my blood sugar
was low, my iron was low, you name it… They put me on some prescription strength
vitamins, but after a year of this my levels were still low. I was
sleeping ALL THE TIME. Working at home made it easy. Get the kids ready for
school go back to bed till 8, log in to work, then about 10am take a 20 minute
cat nap. At noon take a 45 minute nap. At 3 take another 20 minute cat nap…
Then by 9pm I was still exhausted and would fall in bed and get nothing
accomplished. I have come to term this period as the “horrible terrible vicious cycle”. I was
consuming 2 pots of coffee a day to try and stay awake, I was hardly eating
because of all the coffee. When I did eat I had an upset stomach because of all the coffee. If I didn't have my coffee I couldn't stay awake. I was not exercising and was putting on weight along
with losing all the muscle I’d work so hard to tone (my 6 pack abs were gone). I was miserable.
The turning point for me was spring break this year. I
looked in the mirror one day and realized the same capris that looked so good
on me two years before were tight and I had a muffin top! I didn't even want to
put on a swimsuit, at all. I wasn't fat by most peoples standards, but I wasn't
the me I was used to. I was blessed with good genetics and muscle tone, where did this none muscle stuff come from? I clearly wasn't happy. The next
turning point was catching myself not hearing my kids, I just
couldn't focus, because I was so tired. I felt like the worse mom ever the day my youngest looked at me bewildered and said, “mom, I just told you that…” How much of their lives had I missed because
I was tired? How many conversations were listened to but not heard?
I came home from spring break, which had been a bust financially as
our transmission went out on us while we were in Missouri -that was an extra
two grand we did not plan on spending nor have saved. I remember seeing about
that same time a post from Leslie, my coach, whom I had been stalking for about 6 months, about the
money she was making and I remember seeing a post about how good her nails
looked after Shakeology. I know, money and fingernails, right.. But seriously, if you've ever had problems with vitamin deficiency, you know how bad of shape my hair and nails were in (besides the rest of me). I decided I had to do this. I studied up on Shakeology and all the problems I was having could possibly benefit from it. So, I ordered my first challenge pack and signed up as a
coach on April 18th this year. Like I said, our budget was tight. We just replaced that blessed transmission (I pray it's blessed now anyway) and I couldn't really afford it. So I cut back. No more Biggby fancy coffee. No more fast food or McDonald frappes... which if you have ever had are a little piece of heaven ( which I have not had ONE frozen coffee drink since spring break). But I did it. I took the jump and decided not just to order to Shakeology but to sign up as a coach (mostly because there is a discount).
By day 4 on Shakeology, I remember walking upstairs at
11:30 am and realizing that #1. I had actually been productively working without feeling like I was falling asleep at my desk, and #2. I had only had 1 cup of coffee, the rest of the pot sat there cold and
untouched! I would normally have consumed a whole pot by 9am and also would have normally been walking upstairs to start the 2nd pot of coffee for the day (to replace my lunch). I had not planned on giving up coffee, it
just happened on it’s own. I felt better than I had in the last couple years. I
actually gained weight the first couple weeks I was on Shakeology because I was
eating again, not junk food, but just meals in general. I wasn’t sleeping
through my day and living on caffeine.
Now I’m down about to where I was a few
years ago and my clothes fit normal again. I don’t quite have my abs back like
they used to be but with TurboFire and PIYO I’m getting there. But it’s not
just about size. Even if my jeans were still tight and I still had a muffin
top, I would be forever a Shakeology customer just because of the way I feel.
On top of that I have just started to notice changes in my skin, hair and
nails. Today I was up at 5:45 am and worked out before starting my day. The other bonus to
this is teaching my kids about nutrition and health. They have my shakes once
in awhile as a treat (not a meal replacement). They watch me make healthy
meals, and they are knowledgeable on their own nutrition.
The coaching for me was just going to be a way to get
Shakeology cheaper and to hold myself accountable to the workouts, but by the
end of April (less than 2 weeks after signing up) I had already hit Emerald coaching status, by
signing up a good friend, my cousin and my sister-in-law. I realized that in
that short less than 2 weeks time, I had already earned $159, my challenge pack
had cost $150 after shipping. I decided at that point that I would really work
this business. I had seen what some of the other coaches were making, but it
didn’t really click that that could be me. In the 3 months and one week that I've
been a coach I've earned almost $900. That may not sound huge, but when you are
living check to check it’s a blessing!
I've also fell in LOVE with Beachbody as
a support system and company. The coaches in our group and some of the other ones
that I follow on facebook, all genuinely care for the people they are
helping. This is what I feel was lacking in my life. Working at a desk all day,
at home, in my basement, I rarely feel that what I do on a daily basis benefits someone other than the company I work for. But with Beachbody, I've had people
message me about how I've helped them. One of my first Shakeology customers
sent me an awesome thank you note. She had a lot of the same problems that I
had prior to taking Shakeology, and also feels much better and cut back her
coffee intake. I look around the Beachbody group and see all the lives that are
being improved, not because people are “skinnier”. Skinny is not the goal.
Healthy is. I was “skinny” but I was not healthy. Skinny doesn’t make you
happy. Healthy does. Skinny doesn’t let you enjoy time with your kids. Healthy does.
I don’t know that I can repay Beachbody for the turnaround that I have made in my life any other way than paying it forward. I feel God has big plans
for Beachbody and I. Like I said, I’m a new coach, just over 3 months, but
Leslie has convinced me to name some “big scary goals” that I’d like to hit
with this business. So now, I’ll share those with you, too. First and foremost
is to start paying down our debt and take some personal development courses on
how to start living debt free. I know debt free won’t happen in a year, but I’m
taking those steps to work toward it. Next, is to have that emergency fund so
when the transmission does out when we are out of state we don’t have to worry.
Also, being able to tithe at church. I always made excuses before, mainly that I just
didn't have any extra money. From dollar one that I made from Beachbody I have given
10% back to our church. No more excuses…
Next is the BIG BIG goals for next year…
paying for next years awesome family vacation in CASH, flying all 5 of us to
the Bahamas or taking a cruise for my sons senior year. And the biggest one of all, by July of next
year, to be earning enough weekly to cover my son’s college tuition bills when
they start rolling in , IN CASH. I have some even bigger, scarier goals for 3 years but I
haven’t quite nailed them down yet, but I believe that God called us to do BIG
things with our lives, and that we should listen when we hear him squeak open
that door of opportunity. God won’t push us through the door, he will open it
and just see if we are listening, if we are ready and willing to put in the
work to do what needs to be done with our lives. Not only are our bodies meant to be a temple that we take care of, but caring for people and giving back to others is also something we should be doing. I want my kids to be proud of who I am. I want my family to have a mother/wife that they can say was here for them, listened to them and worked hard. Not a mom that barely dragged herself out of bed for a cup of coffee each day. I will be that mom. I will follow the path that God will lead me in, and I will listen for that voice of opportunity. Before, I was too tired to look for opportunity even if it was hitting me in the face.
I know that building a Beachbody business
won’t be easy, it’s not just playing on facebook or instagram all day. It will take time, it
will mean building relationships with people and helping them. I decided I’m
all in, I hope you are too!"
