Nothing is Given, It is Earned!

This is a very important subject, in my opinion, and comes from personal experience.  Nothing is given to you, it must be earned. Whether it is losing weight, accomplishing a goal, or a new business venture.  I hear people all the time use the excuse that they can't lose weight because they don't have good genes or they weren't born skinny.  No one is born skinny or successful, it is something they have worked hard at.  We are where we are in life because of what we have done and the habits we have formed. If you want better results then you better be ready to put the work in to get it.

I personally had an experience recently where someone assumed that I am naturally skinny and that I was given what I have.  That is so far from the truth.  Anyone that lives a month in my shoes would know that I workout everyday, eat very well, and put the right stuff in my body.  Was I born this way? Absolutely not, I have worked very hard to get to where I am today. Lots of blood, sweat, and tears to show for it.

I have never publicly shown my before photo's but here it goes.  This takes a lot of courage on my part to dig these up!

That was me in 2010 and I am not proud of it. I had let myself go, I was eating junk and not working out. My a-ha moment came when I was working at a desk job and sat in the chair and I was overlapping the chair. That may not seem like a huge deal, but to me it was!  I was mortified and knew that I had to change.

So the summer of 2010 is where it all changed.  I started to engage in better eating habits.  I slowly started to weed out junk food and white breads and pasta's.  I knew I was an athlete deep down, So I tracked down Rick Copley (Who was not my husband at the time) because he had the reputation of being a great trainer and getting results. I started to workout in his fitness program.  As I started working out I watched my body start to transform.  The classes were challenging but that is exactly what I needed. I needed someone to push me and that's what he did.  6 months into my workout journey I noticed a huge change in my body. Other people were noticing my weight loss.  When I started I was a size 11 and weighed 150lbs. My goal was to be a size 5.  6 months of hard work and lots of sweat I had lost almost 20lbs and was a size 7.

Life took some turns and in 2011. I ended a long term relationship and that's when Rick and I started dating. That was also when we started using Advocare products. Little did I know, the person who helped me break that weight plateau and confidence plateau would turn  into my best friend and husband. With the help of Advocare products and my incredible trainer I soared past my goal.  It was not easy, by any means and I worked my tail off.  Today I can say I weigh 130lbs and I am a size 1. I have abs and muscle, which I have never had in my life. I feel amazing and I wouldn't trade that journey for anything. I am proud of what I have accomplished and have new goals. I continue to work hard, eat right, and it has become my job to help others do the same.  It was NEVER easy and I worked really hard. I never gave up on my dream.  That is the key, my will to succeed.

I want to encourage everyone to not give up on yourself and realize that it is NOT easy. You can have what you want in life, you just have to work hard to get it. I continue my journey everyday to try and help others achieve their fitness and weight loss goals. Remember that "Whether you think you can or think you can't, your right!"