Transformation Tuesday: John’s Story

Hi Everyone!  It is our next installment of Transformation Tuesday.  I am SO excited to share with you John’s story, as HE tells it.  John is such an inspiration to everyone (including myself) and is an awesome addition to our boot camp family.  He always gives 110% in class and is extremely supportive of everyone.  He joined us back in January, completely changed his lifestyle, and has been kicking butt ever since.  Here is John’s story.  Please make sure to congratulate and encourage him below. :)

“In December of 2011, a neighbor of mine (Teyka Steh) was telling me about her boot camp experience and was encouraging me to join. I had a gym membership but hadn’t used it in almost 2 years. After SEVERAL conversations and some convincing, I decided to join the Bay View Boot Camp Partner 6-week Challenge. She had told me all about the different exercises, how welcoming everyone was, and how inspirational and motivating Laura was.

On January 9 at 6 am (yep, 6 AM) my bootcamp experience began. I don’t remember exactly what we did that day, but I couldn’t walk on Tuesday. Instead of sleeping in on Wednesday, I crawled out of bed with parts of my body that I didn’t know existed aching and made my way back to Bay View Boot Camp for more ‘fun’ and I did it again on Friday! After class the following Monday, I texted Laura and told her I didn’t think I was going to be able to do this. I’m not sure why I thought I could lay around and eat whatever I wanted for 2 years and not exercise and be back in shape in 4 days, but I did!! Thankfully, she texted me back and encouraged me to stick with it and I’m so glad I did. Each day I got stronger and could run farther. As the days wore on, my clothes began to fall off of me, I felt better and people around me noticed and encouraged me to keep going.

In addition to exercising, Laura provided us with a meal plan. I think I ate more vegetables in those 6 weeks than I had in the previous 2 years combined. I drank green smoothies, ate protein bars, and drank tons of water. The meal plan did not allow for fast food, soda or french fries–this was huge for me because I ate fast food previously 3-4 times a week. The meal plan taught me more about portion control, introduced more fish into my diet, and taught me different ways to prepare vegetables–did you know that brussel sprouts can be delicious?! While I don’t follow every piece of the meal plan now, I have not had french fries or soda since January!

At the end of the 6 week challenge I had lost 20 pounds and went from a 38 waist to a 34. I’ve had more energy, have enjoyed life a lot more and have clothes that fit again!!

I’ve talked to several people about my experience and some questioned the cost, and said it was cheaper to belong to a gym. That is only true if you actually use it. You see, I did belong and stopped going. Nothing there motivated me. I knew I needed something different. I look at this as an investment in myself and my health. The long term effects of the way I was treating my body would have been far more costly than what I invest in at bootcamp and it’s a lot more fun.

If you’ve thought about doing this, give it a try. Laura provides a free week for you to see for yourself. The best things about bootcamp are how wonderfully respectful and supportive the other class members are, the fact that you are able to work at YOUR own pace, and honestly how terrific Laura is. She truly cares about each person and she does all she can to make sure that the program is tailored to work for you. Give it a try.”

Laura here – John – thank you SO much for sharing your story and inspiring others to make the lifestyle change like you did back in January.  If you are reading this story and it has inspired you to make a change, give me a call today so our next story can be about you.  Call me at 727.754.0111 or email me at laura@laurafortefitness.com.