A Muted Tooted Horn

I don’t much like people who talk about themselves. Bragging is really, really annoying and I stop listening. But, I must admit that talking about what you have been able to accomplish in the right way is a great way to inspire and motivate other people. That is the essence of the Beachbody Message Boards - not to brag, but rather to inspire.

In my world, most success stories revolve around losing weight and I find a lot of satisfaction in being able to read and hear so many great success stories. These are people that I see and work out with in the virtual SuperGym where I am a proud member. People are always upbeat and always trying to do their very best in every workout that they do. I wish that all of you would at least become a free guest member so that you know what I am talking about and can experience it yourself.

And so it is that I only offer a muted toot of my horn. Not because mine is not a significant success story, but rather because it is success story that far fewer people can relate to in a world plagued by obesity.

Twenty three years ago this month, I had a car accident that transformed me from a super healthy, elite runner to a sickly, whiney, angry guy who struggled every day just to get through life. After three years, 13 different doctors and botched treatments and a botched surgery, I was diagnosed with CFIDS - a chronic illness that was a side effect of all of the “mistreatment” that I received.

At my worst, I couldn’t walk up a flight of stairs. At my best, I was finally able to work as a personal trainer because the lifestyle gave me a way to be fit, since my ability to run had all but deserted me, and at the same time help other people with their fitness. But the overriding fatigue that I felt made life for me an act of will every day and that will was often tested.

Personal training, as I got older, was less feasible as an occupation and I turned to the Internet as a way to express my passion for fitness and as a way of making a living. I became a Polar Authorized heart rate monitor dealer and did my best to be successful. But that business, with it associated high level of stress, began to erode the gains that I made in my health and when it failed, I realize now, it was a very good thing.

So my success story began in late December 2006 when I heard about becoming a Beachbody coach. I signed up as a coach, bought P90X so that I could start working out at home and not have to beat myself up every day because I couldn’t run like I used to, started using Beachbody products, lowered my stress by becoming a coach and saw my health gradually being restored.

Now, just over a year later, I consider myself to be completely healthy. I feel no effects of the CFIDS whatsoever and in fact, at 57, work more than 60 hours a week, work out 6 - 7 days a week, take no prescription drugs and thoroughly enjoy my life as a full time Beachbody coach, supporting his family, including his 3 1/2 year old daughter Grace and 1 1/2 year old daughter Carly.

I hope that my success in overcoming a chronic illness will inspire you to overcome your challenges. Exercise and good nutrition and a low stress lifestyle combined to restore my health. It will work for you, too, if you are ready to make the commitment to change.

Lucky Us - An Open Letter to My Coaches

Does anyone count their blessings anymore? I sure do. But I also know that it is hard on a bad day, but even on the worst day, there are many things to be thankful for. One of the blessings that I don’t have is a coach to give me ideas. The reason that I haven’t sent out a newsletter in a few weeks is because I am not blessed like most if not all of the rest of you are to have a job other than being a Beachbody Coach. I went from having a business and being a coach to just being a coach and I have to hustle every day to succeed in this business.

I am constantly seeking out advice to be the best coach that I can be so that you can be the best coach that you can be. Your success has been entrusted to me and that is a huge responsibility. When Carl Daikeler had the audacious idea of entrusting the success of his company to the people who were benefitting from buying and using his products, it was an incredible leap of faith. His reputation and the reputation of the company has been placed in our hands because Beachbody is giving us their customers to guide, motivate and inspire.

Carl and Kevin and Pete, to name just a very few, inspire me and I need you to hear and feel my passion and enthusiasm. But I can’t just give you ideas and “rah rah” about this business. I also need some time to implement my ideas and the ideas that I have been able to glean from Kevin or Doug and test them and accept or reject them before I blindly pass them on to you. You certainly don’t need to waste your time on the trial and error that I have to use.

And so it is that I was lucky enough to get an idea from Brian, via Monica, about using MeetUps.com to schedule home presentations. He told me in an email that I read early last Sunday morning and within hours, I had signed up and scheduled a presentation which happened this past Sunday evening - http://weightloss.meetup.com/830/.

Now before you start thinking that I want you to spend $12.00 a month to join MeetUps.com, that is not the point. The point is that I have now experienced the power of home presentations and realize why all of the top coaches use them so successfully. Those top coaches grasped very early on how lucky they were to be a part of Beachbody and what the responsibilities and rewards are for being entrusted with helping other people. Carl and Kevin and the rest of the Beachbody management team are helping us to help other people to succeed. Once you fully grasp that, you can start looking people in the eye and telling them about what we do and telling them how you count being a Beachbody Coach as one of your many blessings.

Food And Mood - We Are What We Eat

If you’re putting a lot of effort into your workouts and supplements but still not feeling the rush of energy and joy you read about on the message boards, the reason might be your food choices. The next time you reach for “fast food” or decide to simply skip a meal, consider the effect your diet plays on the way you feel. After all, what good is having a beach body if you’re not able to enjoy it?  Continued…

Couples Who Laugh Together, Last Together

So much of our attitude about life and our capacity to meet life’s challenges depends on the quality of the relationships we have, especially our most intimate relationships.

When they go sour, life tends to feel bleak. Because the quality of our relationships has a powerful effect on physical and mental balance, as well as our sense of satisfaction in life, it’s important that we keep our relationships rewarding and fresh. The data on divorce provides compelling evidence that we are not succeeding at all. Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce — cohabitation couplings are far likelier to end badly — and of the marriages that endure, many are less than happy.

Most people know the value of a good relationship and no matter how often they have lost at love, they keep on hoping. As a result, advice on how to make relationships work fills shelves and shelves of bookstores and hours of talk-show time. Some of it is even good, the product of careful research on happy and unhappy couples.

But of all the elements that contribute to the warm atmosphere of a good relationship, there is one that seldom gets translated into advice or even therapy, yet it is something that everyone desires and most people would like more of: laughter.  Continued…

Your Brain On Optimism

Do you remember that commercial, “This is your brain” and they showed an egg and then, “This is your brain on drugs” and, if I remember correctly, it was an egg cracked open and hitting a frying pan? Well, I wonder what the portrayal would be of a brain on optimism?

It seems like we are being constantly bombarded with bad news and negativity these days and I personally find it draining emotionally. People going into foreclosure with their homes, the jobless rate going up, a war dragging on and so many young lives being lost or their bodies and souls being scarred for life. With money being in such short supply in this country and around the world, I found this headline, “US Plan Sees Shiny Future For Green Zone”, particularly untimely. The article goes on to say, “Forget the rocket attacks, concrete blast walls and lack of a sewer system. Now try to imagine luxury hotels, a shopping center and even condos in the heart of Baghdad. That’s all part of a five-year development “dream list” — or what some dub an improbable fantasy — to transform the U.S.-protected Green Zone from a walled fortress into a centerpiece for Baghdad’s future. But the $5 billion plan has the backing of the Pentagon and apparently the interest of some deep pockets in the world of international hotels and development, the lead military liaison for the project told The Associated Press.”

I guess, however, that we can’t worry about the things that we can’t control and can’t dwell on the tragedies that are unfolding around us, because if we do all of our lives will be miserable and I for one, would be totally unproductive and add to the problem.

Instead I seek out things to be optimistic about. Last night, for instance, Howtobefit.com met MeetUps.com and I had the first of my Sunday evening meetings to help people overcome their weight management and fitness challenges. It was among the most most rewarding 90:00 that I have ever spent, talking about what I do, sharing it with other people and knowing in my heart that I am directly making a difference in changing people’s lives and, if fact, giving them optimism.

Helping other people helped me to recharge my optimism and I hope that you can find a way to recharge your optimism, too. It makes facing the day’s challenges so much easier…

10 Steps to Improve Your Brain Power

We know that exercise will help us look better in a bathing suit, but most of us aren’t aware of how important it is when it comes to brain function. While common lore suggests that jocks are dumb and brainiacs rarely leave the research lab, science paints a different picture—one wherein the fitter you are, the smarter you become. Let’s look at 10 ways to improve your cognitive abilities. Continued…

Food for Thought (Literally)

Most of us make most of our eating decisions based on how they’re going to make our bodies look. But it’s worth remembering that our diets affect how our heads operate, too. Brain function depends on an enormously complex system of chemicals and electrical impulses, and the fuel we put into our systems can make a big difference on how we process our information, our moods, and our energy levels. The good news is that what’s good for our heads is also good for our tails.  Continued…

Test Your “Brains Behind the Food” IQ!

Sure, you’ve thought about brain food before, but have you ever thought about the brains behind the food? Doesn’t sound too appealing at first, I know. I’m referring to the people who were responsible for some of the most successful food ad campaigns, making their products standouts in a market full of competitors.  Continued…