Love Pounds+Life's Passions = Life's Work

Me and Insanity trainer, Shaun T

The other day I ran into Shaun T, and I felt that uninhibited girly, giddy, oh so corny feeling you get when you have a surprise encounter with a celebrity or an influential figure in your life.  In January of this year, I jump-started my fitness routine (after taking what I will call a love hiatus-ill explain this later) with the Beachbody fitness program, Insanity. You've probably seen the infomercials. As an avid gym goer, and crazy cardio chic, I wanted something that was going to kick my @*$ and snap me out of my fitness funk.  My sister-in-law, Tara, said that this was it.  I remember that first week of doing the workout, thinking and saying out loud every profane word I could think of.  Mostly, I thought it was truly insane, and impossible to do these moves as fast and as accurate as Shaun T and the others in the video were demonstrating.  Still, I forged on and did my best. Day after day, week after week I got better.  And better.  By the second month, it was back to square one with newer, harder, fiercer, kick-ass combos and longer routines. But this time I knew I could, and I knew I would.  I would say out loud, "What used to be hard, has now become easier," before, during, and after my workouts.

There was one specific day I remember clearly.  I was following along with the video and doing the oblique-push-ups.  I was ready to give up.  I just couldn't anymore, I thought.  Then I looked down on the floor, and saw my shadow staring back up at me. I watched her go up and down, one more push up after another.  I thought, wow she's strong!  She's an athlete.  She's determined.  She is in it to win it!  She is never giving up!!!  Before I knew it, I finished the drill fully.  I felt elated, exhilarated, electric!  I finished 60 days of Insanity and haven't stopped since.  I've completed 90 days of Les Mills PUMP, all 21 days of the Ultimate Reset, and I'm currently on day 56 of TurboFire.  I have been drinking Shakeology daily, eating lots more veggies and fruit, and drinking 3L of water a day. Since Jan I've lost 17 lbs.  After years of trying and not succeeding, I am now finally at my ideal weight.  And it is easy.

Me and Sean

So back to the Love hiatus-as you may have read in my previous posts, I met the love of my life early last year and fell deeply in-love.  So naturally, I wanted to spend every waking moment with him, and so I did.  With more and more time spent together, I took a fitness hiatus, and wasn't working out as much as I normally would have.   In addition, we were enjoying each other, having fun, ice cream, steak, wine, and cheeseburgers.  I just had no cares as to what I was putting in my body.  It was all good!  Have you ever been so happy that you let yourself go?  Ever hear of the "love pounds." Yup!  I gained them.  But, it was all good.

Until one day I realized my energy was low, I was sluggish a lot, and I no longer fit in my clothes.  In fact, right after Xmas last year I had to buy bigger pants. Not one size bigger, but 2!  Yikes!  I did not feel good about this, and knew I had to do something. I was determined to prove to myself, and others that feeling good and living in love has no limits.  Whether or not you've uncovered yours, everyone has limiting beliefs and it's important to be aware of them to achieve sustainable happiness.  I knew I was facing one of my limiting beliefs, and so I wanted to demonstrate that I need not create a reality that would limit the bliss I was experiencing with Sean by putting on weight,  feeling unattractive, and having no energy to enjoy our time together.  I knew this was simply a situation only I could change. 

I decided I was done with my weight struggles, and wanted my blood pressure to normalize without having to take medication.   I was finally done complaining and got into action.  In January of this year, I became a Team Beachbody Coach to not only hold myself accountable, but to also help others get healthier too!  After all, the way to create more of something in your life is to find a way to use your passions to give that very thing back to others.  Yes, I experience true joy and satisfaction knowing that I've made a difference in someone's life by helping them achieve their health and wellness goals.  So much so, that I decided to take it a step further.  Last month I enrolled at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition and I am studying to become a Certified Health Coach.  I am so thrilled that I finally did this after first thinking about doing it, back in 2008.   Also, I am back to teaching intenSati classes, and last month got certified to teach Turbo Kick classes.

Ever hear of that saying, "setbacks are set-ups for come-backs"?  Thanks to the love pounds gained in 2011, I've discovered how to turn my life's true passions into my life's work, and as a result 2012 is wrapping up to be a powerful, significant, turning point in my so called, Life!

If you would like to join me on this journey to experience limitless health, wealth, and happiness don't hesitate to reach out!  And if you know someone who you think could benefit from reading this post, please go ahead and send it on!

I'm In-Love Now

Enjoying the snow (Feb 2011)

Remember when I wrote back on New Year's Eve that I went on my first date of 2010?  Well, turned out I didn't have to go out with anyone else!  He came exactly as I ordered:)  I now know the value of doing visualizations.  You imagine in great detail what you want in order to create the feeling of already having or experiencing your desires.  It is this feeling that is real.  It is the practice of creating, imagining, dreaming, believing that allowed me to begin to trust my intuition.  And because I trusted myself and had faith that it was all working out no matter what, I entered this new territory with courage, compassion and allowed for the kind of connection that occurs naturally. 

I did want to share with you the first valuable lesson this year brought me.  I learned that as soon as I decided I was ready for the love of my life to show up and I wasn't willing to settle for anything less, he showed up!  In actuality, we showed up for each other!  I say this because he has told me that he too was ready, that he too was waiting for me, and that he too was not willing to settle for less!  So the lesson is, DECIDE!  If you want something to change, BE IT!

What I want to convey here is that he didn't show up and then I believed it.  I believed first, and then he showed up!  I shifted myself first, then I was able to open up and be available so that when he came along, I was able to recognize him.  Last year was a year dedicated to shifting my beliefs and cultivating new truths.  With regard to love and relationships, the "old" me was always waiting for the other shoe to drop, waiting for the other person to figure out I wasn't that special and eventually he would tire of me, etc.  Hey, I had a track record to prove it!  History doesn't lie!  Ugh!  Yes isn't it all silly?  It wasn't until I put it on paper, said it out loud, shared it with others, that I was able to hear and feel the absurdity of my old belief patterns.  It became apparent that it was my own limited thinking that was keeping me stuck in an unwanted cycle. 

Turks and Caicos (May 2011)

The great news is that it's never too late to replace old thinking patterns with new ones!  So that's what I did.  I created a new belief system for myself and practiced new thoughts.  The "new" me believes I deserve to be happy, to be loved, and to be honored!  And when the old patterns of thought creep in (35 years in the making don't disappear overnight), I close my eyes, take a couple of deep breaths and remind myself that I deserve to be happy, to be loved, and to be honored.  When I first began taking intenSati classes 3 years ago, hearing these words made me giggle with embarrassment.   I couldn't say them.  I didn't believe them.  Today, these new thoughts are louder and more dominant.  And I think and say them out loud with conviction, with confidence, and with gumption! 

Last year I was determined to dream BIG!  I committed to leading from the HEART which meant telling the truth about and expressing how I FEEL!  I practiced the belief that I WILL FIND LOVE and CULTIVATE ABUNDANCE!  I chose to love myself and honor my worth!  As a result, I fell in love with me.  And that is where it all began.  

I used to hear people say that once you meet the perfect one for you, you just know it!  That it was something you just felt and knew to be true and real.  I never believed it.  Until now.

What are you willing to believe?  What do you stand to lose if you don't?

Happy Valentine's Day

Woke up feeling fulfilled! I have so many reasons to be excited for today. It's the first time this week I woke up in my own bed since Tuesday and boy did I miss it! I realized I had been doing lots of running around and had not allowed myself time to sit still and just receive. So let's celebrate a couple of rock star moments!

One of last week's highlights was attending the Strategic Planning Meeting for C&B in Chicago. I was honored to be chosen to represent, and was fully mindful of the fact that I was the only store manager from the East Coast. I was excited, nervous, thrilled, and scared all at the same time. I know I have a lot to say, and I wanted to make sure I represented my peers, and the store staffs as well as I could. The whole flight there I focused on being able to express myself beautifully by balancing grace and wisdom. We arrived there safely despite all of the flight delays and cancellations due to a nor'easter. The meeting was short, but our mission was clear. We were going to define our strategy for the future and choose initiatives that would best represent them. There were so many people to meet and so many more to reacquaint with. This was day one. And for the next 6 weeks, I will be flying to Chicago to continue the conversation.
A couple of more canceled flights later, I finally arrived back home on Thursday afternoon with some homework to do. I had challenged our COO with revising our goals by changing some words that would evoke emotions, positive feelings, and make them truly inspirational. He quickly turned it around and suggested that I re-write them and present them to him next week. And just as quickly, I agreed! I really appreciated that exchange between us. He is sharp, open-minded, and leads from his heart. I know we are still in good hands. And I am happy to do my part!


Another highlight took place when I got home Thursday just in time to attend Gabrielle Bernstein's lecture called, LOVE WINS Releasing Romantic Illusions at the Organic Avenue in LES. She is the author of the book, Add More ~ing To Your Life and I have been listening to her lectures and guided meditations for about a month now. It was my first time seeing her speak live and she is a bright light for sure. There was an amazing presence of feminine power and love and appreciation for everyone there. I was with my old friend, Andrea and my new friend, Zoe. It's comforting to be on this journey with so many others.
The most important idea I walked away with was to find love and light in all of my relationships. She says, make your romantic relationships more friendly, and your friendly relationships more romantic. Based on the teachings of A Course in Miracles, Gabrielle says to stop idolizing your lover and bring an equal perception of love to everyone in your life. Only then can you achieve a holy relationship, "where the other person doesn't complete you, but instead enjoys your wholeness with you."

On that note, Happy Valentine's Day to everyone and may we all remember that LOVE is IN each and everyone of us at all times...