My Biggest Excuse Ever

We're all guilty. Early mornings, late nights, those weekend afternoons. The little voice inside your head nagging you to do the opposite of what you should do has no preference in time. Except for the time you wish it didn't talk the most and we listen. Yep. I've been letting that little voice plant its seed in my mind for quite some time now (take a look at my Facebook page and see how long it's been) and it's not so little anymore.

That's the thing about seeds; they don't stay seeds for long. If the ground it fertile - if there are people and things contributing to that "excuse seedling" and you let it soak in some sun and water -  something is bound to sprout. And oh, did it sprout.

I'd like to title this seedling "Biggest Excuse Ever", or B.E.E. for short. Which is appropriate, because this thing kept buzzing and buzzing around my ears and every time I tried to swat it, I ended up hitting myself in the face. Which hurts after like a 1,000 times, as you can imagine.

You see, something had been off for me with this whole coaching thing. Something wasn't quite right. I found myself scrolling through the ol' newsfeed and wincing every time another coach posted about the latest "20 Seconds Super Extreme" program or how many pounds they dropped. Something about it seemed so superficial.

Cue little seedling voice:

"Your values don't align with this company."

"You're all about going outside and being one with the universe, not pressing play on a television inside your guest room."

"In the end, it doesn't really matter about what's on the outside - but the inside."

Buzz, buzz, buzz!

Basically, it all boiled down to one ginormous, GARGANTUAN excuse:

"You Don't Need Beachbody."

Wait, what?? After replaying those statements over and over in my head over the course of a few weeks, heck even I thought them to be true.

But here is what I truly know to be true. Truly.

I have 100% total respect for the founders of this company and Shakeology. They sought to provide amazing nutrition to the mass through the use of a single drink, and are constantly looking to improve their fitness programs so that they can reach more people and witness more transformations. And these aren't just body transformations, oh no. I dare you to try and change your body without changing your mind. Something happens inside of you when you instill the discipline and self-worth of weight loss that's hard to explain. Perhaps another blog post.

The world is a beautiful place and should be enjoyed as much as possible. Run, walk, skydive - whatever you need to do to fill your lungs with fresh air and exhale gratitude. I believe this to be absolutely key to be in balance with the universe (call me a hippie if you must). However. The amount of personal development that has taken place just by committing to a fitness program each day and working on my balance, core strength, and cardiovascular endurance is immeasurable. If 30 minutes a day inside is what it takes to sculpt my body to reflect the respect it deserves, then so be it. There are worse things you could be doing inside.

There are a lot of words being thrown around the internet these days like "fat shaming" and "skinny shaming". While I won't get into either of those specifically, I think it all comes down to your personal confidence and being able to recognize that your outer appearance is a direct reflection of the goodness you're putting in. Educate yourself on what eating healthy even means and WHY you should even care. The more you know, the more you're naturally going to improve your health. Fact.

And on top of all of this truth cake with a side of truth sauce? The very cherry on top? I had proof that I needed this company and all that is stands for. I thought I was a hot shot and could make my own exercise schedule, moderate my nutrition and stay on track.

Wrong.

Where did that get me? Right back in the same ditch where I started before coaching came along. Maybe "ditch" isn't the proper verbiage, because this geological bend is different than most. It has pizza. And cookies. And wine. And lazy weekends followed by a lazy week (to be followed by another lazy weekend). And enough excuse-pies to feed a whole village with.

And some people like the ditch-life, I don't blame them. But compared to the fulfilling, holistic lifestyle that being a Beachbody coach had led me to live, you couldn't convince me with all the truth sauce and excuse-pies in the world to look the other way. Once you see the light, you don't go back.

So that's what I did - I reminded myself of the light. What were the essential "goods" that drew me to this company? What made me turn my head and leave the ditch-life for good?

1. Community
You mean to tell me I can easily connect with thousands of other people who are also starting their fitness journey and are possibly having the same struggles / fears / successes / excuses that I am? Sign me up!

2. Accountability
Beachbody does an amazing job providing a framework for coaches to have support with their business, as well as aiming to hold consumers accountable through fun challenge groups and of course the coaches themselves.

3. Effectiveness
Um, hello. The products work. This isn't some ice-cream flavored protein shake mixed in with weirdo chemicals you can't pronounce. This isn't some snore-fest DVD series that might loosen your pants if you starve yourself along with it. These are the best of the best. World-renouned nutritionists mixed with health and wellness experts to bring top-of-the-line products. Boom. And I would know, because I have the transformation story to prove it.

In order to crush my biggest excuse ever, I just had to be reminded of those three simple things. I needed a refresher on WHY the heck I even joined to begin with, and I also needed to have a particularly delicious chai tea with a local rockstar coach who offers wisdom like a freely flowing wisdom-offering fountain. (Seriously, she rocks - go like, follow, stalk, whatever).

It's not that Beachbody isn't for me - in my opinion, a company that strives to improve lives with wellness and community is for everyone - but it is especially for me. If you're entrepreneurial minded and looking to build a community out of good vibes and chia seeds, then it's especially for you too.

So cheers to me for pulling that seedling out of the ground and making room for some future-building vegetables, because this garden ain't got room for excuses.