Fall is a great time to get that Beachbody!

I have a friend I met online. She also has a child with dwarfism. We followed each others blogs, friended on Facebook and stalked on Instagram.

Coolest thing about all of these mediums? When Stephanie saw us rushing through DuPont in Delaware (where we both bring our kids to see Dr. Bober and MacKenzie), she popped her head up and exclaimed, “Chelley?! I didn’t know you guys would be here today!”

I was stunned… we were recognized… and by such a stunning woman. “I’m Stephanie.” *pause* “From Buttons & Bows.”

“OHHHHH!” I apologized for not recognizing her more easily and we both laughed about it. After I got home, we began to talk online more, and I watched her as she embarked upon a transformation of not just her diet, or even her family’s… but changing their lives with healthy choices, taking time to workout, and better educating herself about what she was fueling her and her loved ones with.

I asked her to share her story with me, and she did… so completely I wanted to share it with you! I hope you are as inspired by her, and encourage you to contact Stephanie at stephsmith7@live.com for more information about how you, too, can change your life!

Or find her here:
Beachbody ~ Instagram  ~ Twitter  ~ Facebook ~ Blog

Stephanie shares below:

I struggled to lose the 25 pounds I gained with my second pregnancy, even though I was eating pretty healthy (or so I thought) and exercising as much as a nursing mom with two children under 2 can manage while also running an in-home daycare. But the weight just wouldn’t budge.

A friend of mine introduced me to Shakeology, a nutrient dense meal replacement shake that had helped her lose around 20 pounds in 2-3 months. She had been obese most of her life and at one point weighed 300 pounds. She managed to get down to 200 pounds by herself but then plateaued. Every year she would yoyo between 180-200 pounds, even with going to the gym everyday… After she started drinking Shakeology and doing the Turbofire workout system, she has been able to maintain 150 pounds for the past year

I had seen how the products had worked for her so I decided to give them a shot and ordered Shakeology and a different workout program called Brazil Butt Lift. I had wanted to lose all the weight I had gained with my daughter by her 1st birthday and I only had about 3 months to do it. That was August of 2012.

I started drinking the shakes (which were surprisingly delicious!) and started doing my workout program. And I did really well for about a month. Then in September 2012, my life blew up. My husband took a promotion with his company, we put our house in our hometown on the market and moved 5 hours away to Iowa. My husband lived with his aunt and uncle near his job and our two kids and myself moved in with his parents an hour and a half away while we tried to sell our house. So essentially, I was now a single parent- and I give props to all the single parents out there because it was the hardest time of my life! A month after we moved, the kids and I had to move back to our old hometown so that I could take our son to weekly appointments at Shriners to have his feet re-casted. He was born with dwarfism and clubfeet, and his feet needed some extra work. This required my 2 year old to be in leg casts up to his hips and weekly appointments two hours away for a month. And then all of a sudden it was Christmas and my grandma was put in the hospital and diagnosed with cancer and passed away 3 weeks later. And then we had literally had 4 days to find a new place to live back in Illinois or we would lose our residency status, which meant our son would lose some of the Early Intervention services he is able to receive through the State of Illinois. Because of his special needs, he needed those services because they helped provide for things our health insurance did not and truthfully, that we couldn’t afford to pay for ourselves. Our lives were a big mess. We were traveling almost every weekend, eating a lot of fast food and processed food and had huge heaps of stress on us. September 2012-February 2013 are pretty much a blur. We made it through, only by the grace of God.

Why I am now a Beachbody Coach:
The only thing that was consistent for me during this time was that I kept drinking my Shakeology for breakfast. It was a quick, easy meal for me to down when I was trying to wrangle two children by myself most of the day. My other meals during the day were not the healthiest but I did well with portion control so at least I wasn’t stuffing myself with way too much food. I did however, eat a fair share of chocolate and pizza (my stress foods) during this time. By the time we moved into our new house at the beginning of February, I had managed to lose all but 10 lbs of the 25 lbs I had wanted to lose the previous summer. I was convinced that the nutrients in Shakeology had helped me to control my cravings and helped me lose the weight. My husband and I started doing Insanity together when we moved into our new house and started eating clean, and by April I had lost my last 10 pounds and was down to my pre-marriage weight. As for my husband, who had never drank Shakeology before then, he lost 30 pounds in those two months. We were hooked and convinced that the Beachbody plan was the real deal. I was ready to help others lose their burdens of weight and unhealthiness, so I became a coach!

Why I want to help others:
When I was overweight, it affected every area of my life. I had no energy, had little self esteem, and felt very subconscious in my clothes or swimwear. I didn’t like the baby belly I had left over. I felt frumpy and much older than my 27 years. I was worn out all the time and truthfully, pretty grouchy too. And that’s no way to live your life daily. I wanted to be that fun young mom I had always envisioned myself to be – ready to tackle anything with her two little toddlers! Shakeology helped me get my energy back, helped to keep my moods more even, and helped me lose the weight that was bogging me down. I regained my self confidence, which was better than losing the weight!

I want to help others rid themselves of what is bogging them down, be it weight or financial stresses. I want to help teach others that you can eat clean and healthily while on a budget. I want them to know that you can teach your children good eating habits that will last them throughout their lives. Children with dwarfism also struggle with obesity, because their bodies have such a harder time moving than children of average height. I don’t want my son to have to battle obesity on top of his other physical limitations that he fights every single day to overcome. Ive learned a lot watching him. He fought to reach every single developmental milestone and in many ways, we as adults need to learn from that and learn to fight for what we want in our lives. He doesn’t let the “excuse” of having a special need stop him and we shouldn’t use the “excuses” of not having enough time, or money, or knowledge let us stop ourselves from being fit and healthy and happy.

 It’s now a year later from when I started and I am now over halfway through my third pregnancy. And I still weigh less than I did this time last year. So how did I do it/am still doing it? First, I drink my Shakeology every day. Second, I used top notch programs from Beachbody that are proven to get results. I used a combination of Brazil Butt Lift, Turbofire, and Insanity to get my body back. And now I am using a prenatal yoga program to stay in shape during my pregnancy. Most importantly, I eat clean and healthy. And I used my coach for support when I didn’t feel like I could do it. She was there to keep me accountable to my goals and to provide inspiration when I needed it. Now, I pay it forward and help coach others for free.

What an inspiration!!!! Beautiful, mama!! Happy Friday, all- I hope we all use this new day as a jumping off point to start a new life 🙂