Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is simple; it’s a matter of calories in versus calories out. That was my fitness philosophy for the last 15 years. I worked out twice a day and ate whatever I wanted. I even joked with people that I worked out so much to support my eating habit. It worked for a while; I didn’t gain any weight. I even thought I was healthy because I worked out so much. Did I ever have it wrong!
For years, I woke up at 5:00 a.m. each weekday and spent an hour at the gym lifting weights. I followed that up with a 45 minute cardio workout on my lunch hour. I ate lots of fast food and lots of sweet treats. If I ate more, I would compensate by working out a little longer. That all changed after my son was born in 2005.

Gone were the 5:00 a.m. workouts; sleep became a priority. I also reduced my hours at work to part-time to spend more time with my son, so the lunch hour workouts disappeared as well. My workouts became sporadic at best. Couple that with no changes in my eating habits, and surprise, I had a very BIG problem. Over the course of three years I packed on 30 pounds. Being 6’2 with a large frame, I was able to hide some of the weight gain. But the scale didn’t lie and neither did my clothes. I eventually had to buy pants with a 38 inch waist and then a 40 inch waist. I was miserable.

I was on an emotional roller coaster. One day I would be angry because I would blame my family for my weight gain and my inability to work out like I used to. The next day I would feel depressed and go on an eating binge. I would feel guilty the next day and compensate with an extra long workout to try to burn those extra calories It was ridiculous. I had no consistency and no plan to make it better. I had lost my confidence and my self-esteem.

That all ended when I discovered Body-for-LIFE. As I read excerpts from the book, I felt like my eyes were opened. I realized for a long time I let food and exercise work against each other; eat more, workout more. Body-for-LIFE showed me a better way. Diet and exercise are meant to work together. I decided I would follow Body-for-LIFE because it was a simple plan to implement and a simple plan to follow. It had worked for others so I knew it would work for me if I was willing to make the commitment. I was.

For the first few weeks of my 12-week Challenge, I spent a lot of time thinking about all the food I was giving up. I missed my nachos, double cheeseburgers, pizza, ice cream, and cookies. But slowly, those thoughts changed from what I was giving up to thoughts of the great food I was eating. I enjoyed shopping for healthy foods. I enjoyed planning and cooking my family’s meals. But most importantly, I enjoyed seeing the results. By weeks six and seven, others started to notice my transformation which gave me more energy and confidence. I was able to start encouraging others to follow Body-for-LIFE because I knew it was working for me. By weeks eleven and twelve, my focus became less on completing the Challenge and more on my strategy to carry this forward for the rest of my life.

In the end, I lost 44 pounds and 14.8% body fat. My strength training became much more intense and my cardio much more efficient. I’m eating great foods and exercising half as much as I used to. I regained my confidence and I have a plan to stay healthy. Body-for-LIFE has changed many lives and it has changed mine. I will be forever grateful for what this Challenge has given me, and I look forward to sharing this amazing program with many, many others.

Results: Lost 44 lbs. of scale weight while decreasing body fat by 14% in 12-weeks*

Products Used: Myoplex® Original, Myoplex® Lite