NEW Beachbody 21 Day Fix Support Groups Coming in September!

Hey guys!


I'm excited to share that this September our team will be hosting TWO online support groups for 21 Day Fix with Shakeology in September (AND two MORE in October!)This is HUGE for us and I can't wait to get started!

The groups will be starting Sept 7th and 21st and will last 28 days!  

Seven days will be a "pre-game" where you'll:

• learn how to meal prep

• get some tips and tricks for buying healthy food on a budget

• get healthy, tasty, and FAST recipes to make for you and your family

• learn how to use the container system since there's NO CALORIE COUNTING!

What you get:

• 21 Day Fix work out DVDs 

• Workout calendar (no guessing of what to do which day)

• Nutrition guide and meal plan (no guessing what to eat each day)

• The container system

• One month supply of Shakeology

• A dedicated coach, ME!

• An online support and inspiration group to help you through the program

• Concept of the group Video

Who is this for:

• ANYONE at ANY fitness level!  Every workout has a modifier so don't worry!

• People who want more ENERGY

• Those who are short on time, the workouts are only 30 MINUTES

• Anyone that doesn't want to go through a program alone

Why does this work?

• You're NOT starving yourself to lose weight!  You're eating A LOT of food!

• You're challenging your body differently in each workout so it never has a chance to get used to an exercise

• You're FUELING your body with sound nutrition!  A properly fueled body will get results A LOT faster than one that isn't!

• You're NOT ALONE in the process!  You'll have me, your coach, to reach out to on those especially difficult days, and a group of 10 - 15 people to connect with!  We're a tribe and we'll succeed together!

Does this sound like something you'd be interested in doing?  GREAT!!  Then fill out this form HERE to get started and I'll contact you!

I can't wait for you to join our army!  Together we'll conquer ALL of our GOALS!

Marquita

How To Build Your New Beachbody Coaching Business

Today I wanted to give you a sneak peek into how new coaches on my team will grow their business.  These techniques are 

• Attraction Marketing and Internet Marketing
• The idea behind these marketing methods are to bring people TO YOU.  Less going out and messaging others, the initial interaction is started from people coming to you.  Your responsibility will be to contact these people in return.
• For example, if someone leaves a comment or is added to your lead collector you HAVE to follow up with them!  
• Connect with people and ADD VALUE through TWO social media platforms
• I have two platforms that I have started focusing on.  I made the mistake of NOT focusing on only two in the beginning and I stretched myself too thin.  Find two platforms that will get you exposed to new people, not just your family and friends.  
• My media platforms: YouTube and Blogging
• Facebook is something I'm consistent on, but prospecting my family and friends is not something that I'm keen on, so I add people to my Facebook.
• Follow Through with Your Personal Action Plan
• Together we'll create an initial getting started training that's 30 days where we'll:
• Establish what your goals are
• What mediums are going to suit your personality
• Make a plan to grow your business without using use family and friends (your warm market)
• Follow Through with the Information Provided in the Training
• Beachbody does weekly calls where top coaches share what they've learned when growing their businesses.  
• My team does online training two to five times a week via Instant Presenter and Zoom.  Some of these trainings are Q&As for new coaches to gain insights from me or other coaches, some are trainings with experts in the MLM industry.  
• Get Your Mind Right With Personal Development
• I provide and recommend eBooks that are crucial for developing into a business owner, which is what you are!  These books give you insights into topics from running an online business to shutting down negative self-talk to personal growth.
• Live the Three Vital Behaviors of Beachbody AND Recruit Coaches That Will Do The Same!
• The Three Vital Behaviors of coaching are:
• Connect with people and invite them
• Be a product of the products to prove that they work
• Do your personal development daily
• People that tell me they do not want to even try the products I do not allow on my team.  It feels wrong to me ethically for someone to be representing a company and product they have never even tried.  This is just my opinion and I have lost some potential coaches this way, but I feel in my heart that it is for the best.  You don't have to continue buying products but you need to at least TRY the products.

Now that you know some of the tools to build your business, would you like to join the team?  You can fill out a quick 1 minute form HERE

Why sign up NOW?

Take a moment to think about your life right now.  Would creating your own business and getting extra income improve your situation?  How about the prospect of leaving your full-time job?  Or making enough extra money to be able to take a vacation or buy new clothes.

Before I became a coach I wasn't buying new clothes regularly.  A pair of jeans would have to be falling apart before I purchased a new pair and my shoes would have no soles left before I dragged myself to the store.  Why?  Because I honestly didn't have the money for new clothes.  And by new, I mean new USED clothes.  I didn't have the money to pay all of my bills.  I was deciding which bill wasn't getting paid and then ignoring the collection calls that would come in.

Being able to buy jeans that actually FIT ME after I lost my last 20lbs with Focus T25 was an emotional experience for me.  They weren't even new jeans!  But they were new to me and that feeling inspired me to do more, to push more!

Again, if you want to join, go HERE

My Experience With Focus T25

Let's get the first, and most popular, question out of the way.  Did it work?!

YES!!

Hahaha!  Yes, it worked.  It worked better than I ever thought that it would work.  I'm back in clothes I haven't worn in a DECADE!  A decade you guys!  Clothes that I've held on to because I kept telling myself "One day I'll wear these again!".

So, where did I start and where did I finish?  Let's talk stats.

On the left are pictures taken before I started Focus T25 and before I pushed myself too hard and had to stop the workouts.  In these pictures I weigh 158lbs, I was a size 12/13 pants, a size large in everything, a shoe size 9/9.5 (this is important), 35% body fat, and I was aching all the time.   My feet were constantly swollen, my bones hurt, and I was sick ALL. THE. TIME.  If it wasn't a cold it was a migraine, if it wasn't a migraine it was my Lyme disease, if it wasn't my Lyme disease it was my depression, if it wasn't my depression it was just generalized pain and aches.  

Ok, enough about the past!  Let's talk the present!!

So, in the after photo I am 140lbs, 27% body fat, a size 8 pants, a small or medium in everything, and a shoe size...8/8.5!  That's right, I even went down a shoe size!  I still need to buy replacement heels!  :D  It's crazy!

Inches lost:

Waist = -3"

Hips = -1"

Arms = -.5" each

Thighs = -2.5" and 2"

Chest = -1"

Total inches: 10"

TEN INCHES you guys!  That's almost a FOOT of ME that's gone forever!  Thank you!  Good bye!  I won't be seeing you again!

Did you JUST do Focus T25?

Technically, no.  I also drank Shakeology everyday.  I really feel that is a part of why it helped me soo much!  I'm not going to run through the whole reasoning why here, that'll be in a different post, but I'll provide a video I made about it.  :D

So...That's It?

Pretty much!  I just followed the instructions really.  I ate the 25 foods, drank my shakeology, and pressed play.  Now, I did have some cheat days here and there, I'm not perfect.  But I didn't get crazy and I found ways to keep my calories within the range when I did have a cheat meal by tracking everything that I ate.  And I mean EVEYTHING and I tracked it BEFORE I ate it.  That is KEY!  

So, Now What?

Now I'm going through P90X3!  I'm two weeks in and I'm down 1% in body fat percentage and 2.5" overall and I'm fitting into size 6/7 pants!  XD  No weight change, I'm still 140lbs, that means MUSCLE GAINS!  

Join Me!

Message me, comment below, or find me on Facebook!  I have a fitness group that starts every month to create a supportive environment for your transformation!  I also coach you along the way, helping you to achieve the body that you want.  

Much Love,

Coach Marquita

Fitness and Nutrition Information that Sparks!

I'd like to talk to you about an amazing website I've been using for years: SparkPeople.com!   This website has been around for several years and offers a wide variety of information for anyone trying to improve their health, not just lose weight.  You can access the sites information from any mobile device or PC through a web browser but they also have a app that you can download on an Android based phone or an iPhone.  No matter the device, when you first see the site you're greeted by a deceptively simple layout that highlights the main stories, recipes, or exercises of the day and any new challenges the site has started.  It's a very inviting home page to a site that has a lot to explore!

My favorite, and most used, section of the site is the nutrition tracking.  You can use this tool in three different ways.  It can be a place where you actively track the foods you intake throughout the day under the categories of: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and Snack; it can be used by you to plan out a meal plan you've made on your own; or it can be auto-populated by the site itself based off of one of Spark People's meal plans.  No matter how you track your food the magic really happens at the bottom of the page.  Here, you can see how on target you are with your macronutrient (carbohydrates, fat, protein, and fiber) and energy intake (calorie) goals.  These values are based off of information you provide the site while making your personalize profile, which includes your health/weight loss goals.

Another great feature of the site comes in the form of graphs.  The visual learners will love these because you can see almost every aspect of your nutrition and fitness life in graph form.  For example, you can track energy intake, inches lost, and even your mood over time!

Outside of the tracking portion of the site lies the fitness component.  There are hundreds of free workouts in video or text forms for you to use!  They have videos on weight training, cardio kick boxing, stretching, and more.  No matter your fitness level or the type of equipment you have (I started with no equipment!), they have a video or exercise for you that you can quickly add into your tracker.  If you start a workout program using Sparkpeople let me know!  I'll support you with their system too for free! 

While the food tracking and exercise are a huge part of this site, an equally large side comes in the form of education.  They utilize a blog format and have several nutritionists and dietitians who write blogs for them on a regular basis, as well as motivation coaches and fitness experts.

The most surprising aspect of this site is the community.  It's amazing how supportive everyone on this site is.  You can find community groups set up for almost every faith, age, gender, and sexual orientation.  No matter how you feel in your day to day life, there are people who can very well become your second family in the Spark People community.   I can safely say that I love the Spark People community and I'm happy to see it growing!

I think I would find a way to include this site in every nutrition training I do, and I have in the past.  As a Beachbody coach and I have my clients get an account here.  It's a great tool for them to track their meals so they can see they are meeting their nutrient goals.  It's also a great tool for them to find even more support outside of me and our (bi)weekly check ins.  I also have them use it for the reports.  They post a copy of their meal report and their progress reports to the group so that everyone can encourage each other and share their accomplishments.

Even when I have my own practice (that's my goal), I'll likely have clients sign up for this site because it has motivated me through my weight loss more than a measuring tape ever could.  It gave me ideas of things I could do in my house and outside of the house that would get my heart rate up and put a smile on my face.

(I am affiliated with Sparkpeople.com in NO WAY.  I just really love their site.)

New Shaun T Workout Program Coming This Summer!

Hey guys!  Marquita here!

I just found out about a new workout coming JUNE 20th!  It's called Cize and it's the latest workout program by Shaun T, the man behind Insantiy, Insanity:Asylum, Hip Hop Abs, and Focus T25!  

Cize is an all new dance based "workout" that's designed to not feel like exercise.  You'll be using REAL dance moves, yes real dance moves, to build muscle and take your fitness to the next level!


So, what do we know so far?

Workout DVD length = 30 to 40 minutes
Total program length = 4 weeks (28 days)
Beachbody On Demand = Yes!


Beachbody On Demand?

This Netflix for Beachbody!  Any program you buy, PLUS a bunch of workouts from programs you don't own, you can stream as part of the premier Beachbody.com membership service, for $2.99 a month.  I love it because I don't have to remember to pack my DVDs when I go visit my parents.  And, since I own six Beachbody programs, I can switch it up on the fly!

Want more info?
Click the banner below and sign up by giving me your email!  You'll also be entered to win a FREE COPY when you sign up!

The Power of Visualization

"If you can't see it, then how are you going to get it?!"
That is a thought that was running through my head when I first decided that I wanted to lose weight.  Waay back before I actually understood my "why" behind my desire to lose weight and get back the physique I once had.  So, this thought has been in my mind recently, since I just discovered my why not too long ago.

The art of seeing what you want to achieve, and I do believe it is an art, is called visualization.  I'm sure we all know what visualization is, but just to ensure we have all of our i's crossed and t's dotted (=P) let's throw a definition out there:

Visualization is "...a cognitive tool accessing imagination to realize all aspects of an object, action or outcome".  In a sense it's kind of like day dreaming, but with a purpose behind it, because you (re)create a scenario using most, or even all, of your senses" (Baumgartner, 2011).

I use visualization on an almost daily basis now because if I can't see myself with a four pack in a bikini for the first time ever, then how am I going to know what to aim for?  How am I going to know when I reach my goal?

Visualization has many uses outside of helping you get the body you want.  Psychologists use it in their practice to help patients exercise specific reactions to situations; athletes use it before a match; actors use it before they perform.  It helps because the brain is being trained to perform the task, it's like practicing a practice match.

Angie LeVan, MAPP, (2009) goes over a great way to get started with visualization.  I've included the excerpt below:

Begin by establishing a highly specific goal. Imagine the future; you have already achieved your goal. Hold a mental ‘picture’ of it as if it were occurring to you right at that moment. Imagine the scene in as much detail as possible. Engage as many of the five senses as you can in your visualization. Who are you with? Which emotions are you feeling right now? What are you wearing? Is there a smell in the air? What do you hear? What is your environment? Sit with a straight spine when you do this. Practice at night or in the morning (just before/after sleep). Eliminate any doubts, if they come to you. Repeat this practice often. Combine with meditation or an affirmation (e.g. “I am courageous; I am strong”, or to borrow from Ali, “I am the greatest!”).

So, what is your highly specific goal?  Can you see it happening yet?  If not, keep practicing!

Reference(s):
Baumgartner, J. (November 8, 2011). The psychology of dress, the doctor is in...you closet! Visualize it. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-psychology-dress/201111/visualize-it.

LeVan, A. (December 3, 2009). Flourish! Seeing is believing: The power of visualization. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/flourish/200912/seeing-is-believing-the-power-visualization.

The Benefits of Working on Myself...I Know My Purpose

I just realized tonight that it's been 60 days since I became a Beachbody coach.  I'm not where I want to be with the business but I have had success and I'm holding on to that because success means that I've reached out to people and they've taken strides to change their health for the better.

Anyways, during the first 60 days as a coach I was supposed to go through a "coach basics" course led by my mentor coach.  I got about a week in when my life decided that I needed to focus on something more important.  I know!  What could've been more important than following my life's dream of helping people through nutrition and exercise?  That dream is why I'm working two traditional jobs to get out of debt enough to pay to go back to college and get my nutrition degree.  That dream plays a huge part in my commitment to improve my own health.

However it turns out getting myself emotionally in the right mindset was what was more important.  It's something that I'm still working on, overcoming trauma and managing depression.  I've come a LONG way in the last 60 days.  I'm no longer relying on two medications, I understand myself and my mind more, I can talk to myself like I talk to everyone else (positively!!), and I can issue a self pep talk like no one's business.  I'm on the verge of...dare I say it, feeling truly happy on a regular basis!

My mind feels more focused and my drive is even stronger than it was for getting my body back.  I dug deeper below "I want to lose weight." and found soo many reasons that drive me so much harder, most of them selfish but I've come to realize that the honest reasons are what drive me the most.  I was treating wish to get healthy like...a wish.  As an after thought or something that I would like to have happen but probably won't happen.  I was mentally priming myself for failure, even though I wanted success.  Now, I NEED success.  It's a hunger that I haven't felt before, it's true motivation.
This same level of drive hit me tonight in regards to helping others live healthier lives.  It struck me so hard that I got choked up, I'm still getting teary eyed.   I wanted to make a video explaining why I want to help others and why I am a Beachbody coach, but I think I would just cry the whole way through, which is why I'm saying it in a blog instead.

I want to help others because that's what I'm supposed to do, I can feel it in my soul.  When I'm offering advice and helping people pick out workout programs (even free ones on here or bodybuilding.com) I feel complete.  I feel like I'm actually living my life instead of it just passing me by.  All of my life I've felt like time was slipping through my fingers and for the first time I have found something that negates that feeling.  I am not alive if I am not able to coach and guide someone through a lifestyle change...even though I'm still going through one myself.
I feel like a switch has been flipped in my head.  Everything makes sense because I not only know, I understand my life's purpose!  This is a glorious feeling!

(Originally posted on my Sparkpeople.com blog)