Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #14

Confession: I am not nearly as hardcore as I would like to think I am. I just got back from a nearly month-long vacation. I had intended to get a workout in every day. I intended to drink my Shakeology every day. I had intended to keep my nutrition closer to my ideal. However, none of these intentions were realized. While I was pretty active most days with hiking, swimming, carrying my son in a carrier while pushing my daughter in a stroller and walking tons, etc., I only did actual workouts a few times. Only on days when I felt like my body was mad at me for not doing a better job. I did drink my shakes several times, but not every day. They fill me up and there was lots of other stuff I wanted to eat. I ate mostly healthy stuff, but not balanced. And then there was the nightly ice cream when I was staying with my parents and sister. And that Cheesecake Factory cheesecake. Oops! And really, while I was visiting with my family and friends I was really just more focused on spending time with and enjoying them than sticking to my fitness goals. I gained 3 pounds during those 3.5 weeks. I'm not the best example I guess. But you know what, I'm okay with it. I've come to terms with the fact that I don't love working out and probably never will. I am not a gym rat. I usually feel pretty good whether I exercise or not. I feel better when I do, but the difference isn't drastic for me. Same with eating balanced, I feel better when I do, and I do feel gross when I've eaten lots of fat or sugar, but since I generally eat healthy things I feel fine most of the time. But, I'm also a researcher. I know from the research I have done that regular exercise is good for me - for my body and my brain. Same with eating balanced, clean foods. Same with Shakeology. These things are all good for me,. Whether I feel hugely different when I do them or not I know intellectually that they help me be healthier now and are an investment in my future health. So, MOST OF THE TIME, I will keep doing them on a daily basis. But once in a while, like when I'm on vacation, I may not be 100% faithful, and I'm okay with it. I don't think I will have any long-term negative affects as a result. But that's just me :). What do you think? But, FYI, I'm back in the game now :).

#confessionsofabachbodycoach #vacation #threeandahalfweeksoffun #familyandfriends #fitnessfail #worthit #yourhealthandfitnesscoach #wholesoulfitness #abalancedlife

Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #13

Confession #13: I take Sundays off! I take seriously the commandment that the Sabbath should be a day of rest. And I need that day to recuperate. When I was in middle school I started making sure I never left my homework to Sunday. I remember one time in high school I was given a HUGE packet of math homework to do one weekend. The problem was, it was the same weekend that I had church activities all afternoon and evening Friday, and all day Saturday. I did not have any time to work on the packet. My plan was to wake up early Monday morning and do it all. I had two close friends that not only had the same math teach (and thus the same homework packet) but also had the same church activities over the weekend. They both worked on their packets on Sunday, and they each called me to see how mine was going. When I told them my plan of waking up early Monday morning to do it they both voiced their concern that there was no way I would be able to do it, that they had already spent several hours on it and still hadn't completed it. Now, they are both much more intelligent than me and better at school, so they scared me. But still, I was determined to have that 24 hour period of rest from all labor. So I went to bed around 8 and woke up at 1. I expected it would take me until 5/5:30, at which time I would need to get ready for seminary and school. I GOT IT DONE IN ONE HOUR! The entire thing! And so I went back to bed. My testimony of the importance of using the Lord's gift to us of the Sabbath as a day of rest grew that day. And I still feel confident that when I abstain from all labor on that sacred day I am blessed.
SO, I never do workouts on Sunday. I may go for a walk with my family and/or dog, but that's as strenuous as it gets. I don't do anything that would cause someone else to have to work. I do as little work around my house as possible. And I don't do any business work on Sundays either. My Sundays are all about my God and my family. So if I post anything on Facebook those days it will be about one of those things, God or family. I won't respond to business texts or messages. It's my day off folks. I do, however, stick to my meal plan :).
In what ways do you honor the Sabbath?

Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #12

Confession: I AM CHEAP!!! Like, I may be the cheapest person I know. Both of my kids are clothed almost entirely of hand-me-downs, and so am I. I hate having to run the a/c or heater so before we had kids the thermostat was set yo 60 in the winter and 80 in the summer (now it's between 68 and 78). I keep my curtains closed all summer to keep the heat down, so we live in the dark. We rarely go out to eat because it's cheaper to eat at home. I've reused ziplocks. I clip coupons and do all my shopping at Walmart so I can price-match. I won't tell you any more of my money pinching gimmicks because I don't want to embarrass myself too much. You get the idea. I have a hard time spending money. I am fine with giving money away when I see a need, but spending money is hard for me. I have already confessed about taking a year before coming around to buying Shakeology and explained some of the reasons I was reluctant and what things helped me resolve my concerns. (If you missed it and are interested you can read about it here: http://wholesoulfitness.blogspot.com/2016/05/confession-4.html

But the clincher for me to trying it (besides the money-back guarantee ;) ) was doing some research and finding out HOW GOOD IT IS FOR ME! I didn't do all my resaerch before trying it, but I did enough to know it was going to be as healthy as it claim.s But I just got through going through ingredient by ingredient to see what the health benefits of each ingredient are. And let me tell you, I was blown away. It helps EVERYTHING! Or at least it seems to. You are welcome to do the same as I did to find out for yourself. Or, if you don't want to take the time, you can just check out this list of all the things it helps with!!!

Anemia; Anti-bacterial, antiviral, anti-fungal; Antidepressant/anxiety; Arthritis pain; Brain Health (including dementia); bone density; breast milk production; cancer; cardiovascular health; cholesterol; cellular health; chronic fatigue syndrome; dental health; diabetes; digestion (and digestive disorders such as Chron’s disease); boost energy; erectile dysfunction; fibromyalgia; reduce food allergies; headaches; HIV/AIDS; hormone balance; immune system; infertility; inflammation; kidney functioning and other renal health (e.g. bladder infections); liver function; menopause symptoms; muscle growth and toning; respiratory health (including asthma and allergies); prevents seizures; sexual support; skin and hair health; stress; thyroid function; sleep and sleep; vision; weight loss

Isn't that incredible!!! So, for me, $4 a day is worth such an investment in my health, not just my current health, but my future health as well! What about you? Are you ready to try it? Even for a month? Remember - money-back guarantee! Try it, you'll like it.

If you are ready to try it email me at amandacolbyfitness@gmail.com and I will get you hooked up!

Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #11

Confession #11: I bought a scale. I now actually own one, for the first time in my life. I still don't think weight is a good measure. I don't think people should define themselves by their weight or obsess over it. I don't think a decrease in pounds is the best indicator of increase in fitness our progress made. And I still don't use it often. But when you do a Beachbody program you can always get a free t-shirt and possibly win money by entering the Beachbody challenge. But you have to know your starting and ending weight to do it. And I'm a sucker for free stuff. So I needed a scale :).
#howdoyoufeelaboutscales#confessionsofabeachbodycoach#notdefinedbyweight #freestuffsucker

Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #10

Confession #10: I am a terrible food photogrpaher (you've noticed I'm sure.) Really, I'm not a great photographer of anything, but I look at the pics of food I take and I'm so disappointed every time. I can't seem to get the hang of it. The food never looks as appetizing as it is and the pics just aren't pretty. What am I doing wrong? What can you teach me? Please share your tips! I need help! ‪#‎helpmepeople‬ ‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬ ‪#‎foodphotographyfailure‬

Confessions of a Beachbody Coach #9

Confession #9: This past January I was the heaviest/chunkiest I had EVER been. I wasn't grossly overweight. Most people probably would have thought my body was just fine. And it was fine. It functioned well and I could do pretty much everything I wanted to do with it. And I wasn't miserable - I was actually happy. I had a great life and nothing really to complain about. The problem wasn't that I was unhappy or didn't like myself, and it wasn't so much the size that I was (although I hated seeing my body and had a hard time getting dressed because almost none of my clothes fit and I refused to buy more because I wasn't ready to resign myself to the size I was). The problem was that I kept getting bigger, and I didn't know what to do about it.
I knew how to eat healthy, and I did. I would say about 90-95% of what I ate would be considered healthy. I rarely ate "junk food", rarely ate out at fast food or any restaurants, rarely had dessert. Most of the packaged food I ate were things like PB with nothing other than peanuts, Shredded Wheat, Grapenuts, Lara Bars, cheese, nuts, etc. I ate lots of fruits and regularly ate vegetables. My point being, I didn't have a lot in my diet that I could recognize as harming me or that I thought I should cut out. So I didn't know what to do. I wasn't sure how my weight had become something I could control.
Multiple times I had tried looking up recommended daily servings for reach of the food groups, but for some reason that never helped me. It was too complex for me to think about all the time and so I'd only make it a day or two before getting overwhelmed and giving up. I've also never been good at sticking to an exercise schedule for more than a few months at a time.
I decided in January I needed to do something different. I had known about the 21 Day Fix for over a year but had always been intimidated by trying to figure out how to follow the meal plan. But I decided it was time to get past that. I spent a week or so coming up with a 3 week calendar and planned it all out. I also enlisted 3 friends who were ready to make some changes in their lives to do it with me. And I was off.I have now done 21 Day Fix 4 times. I have lost around 20 pounds, I don't know for sure because I don't know my starting weight. But so much more importantly than how many pounds I have lost is that I now am able to eat balanced. I learned that I had been way to high on healthy fats and fruits (and some other carbs as well) and too low on vegetables and proteins. I now know how much of each type of food to eat a day to stay balanced, even without actually measuring. Eating more balanced I feel better, I have more energy, my stomach doesn't cramp, I don't get bloated. And I have established a regular exercise pattern. I'm setting an example for my kids and helping my whole family eat more balanced. And I'm able to help others take control of their fitness.
I'm going to move on from 21 Day Fix now, not because I've mastered it or because I don't think I can get more out of it - I'm sure if I did it more I would keep seeing results. I'm just ready to try something different, just change it up a bit. I haven't decided for sure what I will do next, but I'll let you know wink emoticon.
Do you have a goal you are working towards? If so, is there anything I can do to help you reach it?
Do you feel like your health or fitness are not where you want them to be but aren't sure what to do? Let's talk.
Comment below, PM me, text, call, whatever.
#Imhereforyou #confessionsofabeachbodycoach #yourbeachbodycoach #helpmehelpyou

Confession #8

Confession #8: I cheated BIG TIME yesterday! At church they gave us each a Nothing Bundt Cake, and then there was homemade carrot cake at dinner that my husbands parents brought, and I had some of both, not to mention the vanilla Blue Bell ice cream. I at all of that, and I didn't even feel guilty. Not even a little bit. I enjoyed every single bit of it. That is all.‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬ ‪#‎eathealthyMOSTofthetime‬‪#‎indulgesometimes‬ ‪#‎mothersday‬ ‪#‎theyweredelicious‬‪#‎workoutwasalittleharderthismorning‬ ‪#‎worthit‬ ‪#‎iddoitagain‬

Confession #7

Confession #7: I have struggled with body image my entire life. I have never been skinny enough or pretty enough in my mind. I hate any amount of fat on my body. When I was younger I had barely any. I was told by multiple people that I looked anorexic (I have never had an eating disorder, thankfully.) It didn't make me feel good to be told this - to me they were just saying I didn't look good, and I could still see fat. When I was a sophomore in college my sister needed a blood-transfusion. I wanted to donate blood for her. To do so I needed to weigh 110 pounds (I am 5' 6", by the way). I didn't weigh that much. I ate a ton of sugar and salty stuff and drank a ton of water (sugar and salt help you retain water) so that I could increase my weight. I barely made it. By the time I got married at 24 I had gotten up to 120 pounds. My body had changed over the past few years. While I was more curvy I also felt super fat and couldn't stand seeing my body. Most of my married life my weight has fluctuated between 120 and 130. When I was 28 I took an anticonvulsant medication to try to control my migraines. While I was taking it I lost a lot of weight. I got down to around 110 again and was wearing size 2 pants. This picture was taken during that time. We were in Hawaii. I had to buy a new swimsuit while we were there because the two I had brought were literally falling off me. I was freezing all the time. I was so skinny, yet I still didn't like my body. I could still find fat. Anyway, I've struggled.
Before I started this fitness journey my weight had reached an all-time high. I don't even know what it was because I stayed away from scales. I am guessing somewhere around 140, maybe more. I wore the same 2-3 outfits pretty much every day because none of my other clothes didn't fit me. I was disgusted with myself.
Now, after almost 4 rounds of 21 Day Fix Extreme I've lost a lot of weight (around 15-20 pounds I'd guess), lost lots of inches, and gained a ton of muscle. I still have fat I wish wasn't there.
But the thing is, even though my body still isn't perfect, and even though I have more fat than I have had at other times in my life, I feel more confident in my body than I EVER have. I'm getting stronger and I feel better. I don't think the confidence I am gaining is all due to changes in my physical appearance. I think it has just as much, if not more, to do with the fact that I'm taking care of my body better than I ever have before. I have always been a fairly active person and have eaten fairly healthy, but I have never been as consistently exercising and eating a healthy, balanced diet as I am now. I believe all our bodies are gifts, and I am grateful that I am not only doing a better job caring for that gift, but also that I can better appreciate that gift now.
 ‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬ ‪#‎thetruthistrue‬ ‪#‎realstruggles‬ ‪#‎feelingconfident‬ ‪#‎idlovetohelpyougainconfidence‬

Confession #6

Confession #6: I'm a sucker for money-back guarantees. If I am at all intrigued by something and it has a money-back guarantee I'm going to try it. Shakeology happens to be one of those things. 100% satisfaction guaranteed, or your money back. When I ordered my first bag I decided to take a gamble and try greenberry since none of my friends had personally tried it. While it wasn't gross I didn't really love it either. So, I returned it. No problems, no questions asked. They even paid for the return shipping. I ordered a different flavor and am enjoying it more now. So, know that if you are considering Shakeology, and wondering if it will really work for you, that if you try it and find you don't like it for any reason it's super easy to return it. I know from experience.  ‪#‎guaranteesucker‬‪#‎shakeologyisawesome‬ ‪#‎beachbodycoach‬

Confession #5

Confession #5: My son may be a vampire. At least, he is getting top teeth on the side before his middle ones come in. IN other words, fangs. And with adoption and not knowing his genetic history you never can tell for sure...........

My Vampire Baby

Confession #4

I knew about Shakeology for over a year (probably around two years) before I decided to try it. I had lots of concerns. Here I explain what my concerns were and how I resolved them. What are your concerns about Shakeology? Why haven't you tried it yet?

Confession #4: Some things take me a while. One of those things was deciding to try Shakeology. I've known about it for over a year. And to tell you the truth, I used to be totally opposed to it! I can distinctly remember having conversations with at least 5 friends about why I was opposed to it. I'm a pretty healthy eater and I think it is a good idea to get your nutrition from eating healthy foods. I supplement with vitamins, but I try to get lots of vitamins by eating lots of fruits and vegetables. And I get my protein from veggies, legumes, nuts, dairy, meat, seeds. I am not a fan of protein shakes, I don't really think they're healthy. I am also not a fan of most meal replacement shakes, again because I don't think they're very healthy. They tend to have lots of sugar, low nutrition, and many have soy which is bad for your body for lots of reasons. So when I got into a regular exercise phase and healthy eating cycle last year I looked up recipes for homemade protein smoothies. They were good and healthy. But they had raw eggs in them for the protein and I have since learned that most of the protein in eggs is not digestible when the eggs are raw. I also didn't really feel any difference when I was drinking them verses not. And with all the fruits and veggies and eggs I was putting in I was still spending around $3/smoothie.
Once Mikey joined us I stopped worrying about exercise and eating super healthy and focused on sleep. Well, when I decided to start exercise and healthy eating again and started the 21 Day Fix program I was still opposed to Shakeology. The cost was a big deterrent and I wasn't convinced that it was even healthy. One of my friends that did 21 Day Fix who also felt the cost of Shakeology was prohibitive told me she drank IdealShake and really liked it. I did some research and saw that it didn't have has much nutrition as Shakeology, but was half the cost and was supposed to be more filling. So I decided to try it. I was fine with the taste of it but it didn't fill me up, I didn't feel any better drinking it, and it still had sugar and other things I didn't think were great and didn't provide much nutrition. The protein content was less than my eggs scramble, as was the nutrition, and it didn't fill me up any more, so I decided it wasn't worth it. Egg scrambles were better. It was time for me to address my concerns about Shakeology.
I had heard that one of the ingredients in it, moringa, had some link to infertility and miscarriages. This was a HUGE concern for me. So I did a lot of research. I searched every article I could find on moringa in both Baylor's and TCU's library. There have been very few studies on moringa and fertility. In fact, the only ones I could find were for male fertility and moringa was found to protect fertility when males were subjected to things like radiation and other fertility challenging things. The articles I found that did indicate moringa had some effect on female fertility showed that it was only a specific subspecies of moringa and when the women ate the root - so high quantities and a different part of the plant than what is in Shakeology. I also prayed about it and felt peace in regards to moringa.
My next concern was green tea. I don't drink coffee or tea. I never have. I also rarely ever drink caffeinated sodas - I don't like them. I know there are lots of health benefits to green tea but I generally still avoid it. So, I did some research into the green tea content in Shakeology. It is small enough that it only contributes 1.23 mg of caffeine. There are 35-55 mg of caffeine in most cans of caffeinated sodas (and the caffeine in them is extracted from tea or coffee), 37-75 in 12 oz of most tea, and 150-260 mg in 12 oz of most coffee. The caffeine is not extracted from the tea leaf in Shakeology, but since they use the whole leaf you get the health benefits as well. I decided that for me the amount of green tea in Shakeology was acceptable.
I then was concerned about the real health benefits of it. Why was it so expensive and was it worth it. So I spent a day doing research. I looked up every ingredient one by one to find out how it would benefit my health. It is impressive. These ingredients are correlated with increased cognitive functioning, defense against cancer, decreases in the effects of aging, boosting the immune system, decreasing chronic inflammation, improved digestion, and a bunch of other stuff I don’t remember right now. And it is chalked full of amino acids, essential fatty acids, fiber – all the nutrients that my body needs. After my research I was convinced that it really is good for me. It is not just a protein drink. It is not just a weight loss drug. It is a meal replacement shake that provides me with an entire days nutrients in one low calorie smoothie!
I was concerned that it wasn’t really worth the hype. But all my friends that drink it only have good things to say about it. They get sick less, they have more energy, they have improved digestion, they have less arthritis pain, etc. Everyone was a fan! 
Shakeology comes with a satisfaction money-back guarantee – so I WAS SOLD! I figured I may as well try it and see if it lived up to its reputation. 

‪#‎whynottryit‬‪#‎shakeologyconvert‬ ‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬

Confession #3

Before I became a mom I studied the brain. (This image is from one of the studies I did back then.) I love learning about the brain!

Confession #3. I’m a hypocrite. Well, that might not be exactly the right word, but I can’t think of a more appropriate one. Let me explain. I’m a neuroscientist. After I graduated I did a post-doctorate at The Center for Brain Health. When I interviewed there one of the lab techs told me about a book about the Nun Study. It’s about this study done on a bunch of nuns from one convent where they looked at different factors and how they correlated with dementia. I was fascinated so I read the book. It is “Aging With Grace” by David Snowdon and is one of my favorite books. He looked at several different factors such as education, socializing, exercise, diet, faith, linguistic ability, community, and attitude correlated both with symptoms of dementia and senile plaques (markers of dementia seen in the brain upon dissection). Now, we all know that a healthy diet and regular exercise are important for our hearts and bodies in general, but this study showed that these things are important for healthy cognitive functioning as they had a strong negative correlation with dementia (meaning the more they exercised and/or ate healthy the less likely someone was to have dementia). Also, one of the perks of working at The Center for Brain Health was that at least once a week we had lunch catered and got to hear people talk about their research findings. These were all talks about brain health, as you could guess. Well, a few of the talks showed correlations similar to what was found in the nun study, that exercise was correlated with better cognitive performance, as was healthy diet. These studies weren’t just with older adults like the nun study, many of these participants were young. I did my post-doc from 2008-2011, so it’s been a while since I learned these things. And since then I’ve taught them to other people. So the somewhat hypocritical aspect is that even though I know the importance of exercise and diet for both a healthy body and a healthy brain, I have never been consistent. Well, I’ve eaten healthy but not as healthy or balanced as I should. And I have never exercised consistently over more than a few months tops. But I’m determined to mend my ways and be living proof of this knowledge I have.  ‪#‎eatyourveggies‬ ‪#‎exercisematters‬ ‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬‪#‎recoveringhypocrite‬

Confession #2

Confession #2. When I first started doing 21 Day Fix I was so weak I couldn't really do push-ups, not real ones. Embarrassing, I know. But I have always had wimpy arms, and I was okay with it. When it came time to do push-ups I just did them on my knees. Abby used to ask me why I was doing them wrong - I told her I wasn't strong enough. But I have gotten stronger and the past two times (including this morning) when it came time to do push-ups I did real ones - on my feet. I take them slow, but I do them. Now, Abby tells me "You can do them on your knees, you're not strong enough." Haha. Well, she isn't ALWAYS right. And soon she will know her mama can do hard things and get stronger and I CAN do push-ups. ‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach ‬‪#‎icandohardthings‬ ‪#‎strongereveryday‬

Confession #1

I have a confession. It is hard for me to keep to my fitness plan over the weekend. My schedule is different so it's hard to always find the best time to fit my workout in, sometimes I go out to eat with my family or go to social events with lots of tasty but forbidden treats making it harder to really stick to my eating plan, and being out and about makes it harder to drink all my water. I did get my workout in this morning but I just went out to eat with my family. I did decent with my food choice but it wasn't fix approved. I haven't drank as much water as I usually do by this time of day. But I'm still doing better in every area than I would have if I weren't trying, so...

‪#‎confessionsofabeachbodycoach‬ ‪#‎thetruthistrue‬ ‪#‎keepingitreal‬