Wishing a Happy One-Year Boot Camp Anniversary to Joni Reese!!  We are SO proud of her and her incredible success this past year.  I’ve had the pleasure of training Joni 3 times a week – she comes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6 AM boot camp.  Her story is totally relatable and very inspiring.. which is why we wanted to share it with you.

Q: What was your life like pre – Bay View Boot Camp?

I’ve always been active my entire life (softball, volleyball, biking, sailing) but never had any desire to, nor did any formal exercise or went to the gym.

I was experiencing some changes to my body as I’ve gotten older, and although I had quit smoking 1-1/2 years prior to joining Bay View Boot Camp, which was a huge improvement, I still had a huge lack of energy, and was just feeling weak.

Q: What made you decide to sign up?

I had been complaining for several weeks (maybe months) about my lack of energy and strength – particularly one day while sailing our sailboat.  Sailing being our passion, I realized I had to do something.  Gail put an invite under my nose to join the Little Black Dress Project so I decided to try it.

Q: What do you love most about your new lifestyle?

The ENERGY I have back!  The strength I’ve regained!  And the weight that I’ve lost!

Q: What has been your results/experiences from boot camp/eating better?

I never expected to experience what I’ve have over the last year:

I used hardly ever cook.  We ate out A LOT!  I didn’t really know how to cook anything except potatoes, onions with cheese in a foil pouch on a grill, or pizza, or pasta, or rice.  I HATED making salads (which my husband loves).  Too many ingredients to chop up – ugh.

Then the recipe book for the LBD project arrived and I was not really looking forward to it, and I told myself I would try it for at least 1 week, and “we’ll see”.  Well, 1 week lead to 2, and so on.  The food was really, really, delicious.  Even my husband loved everything I prepared.  And with the meals already planned, and recipes provided it was so easy.  I still cook many of those same recipes today.

As for boot camp itself, I was not excited about it before I started the project, so I told myself it is now part of my job.  Like getting up and having going to school or go to work – you just have to do it.

But, I LOVE HOW I FEEL ALL DAY LONG, AFTER GOING TO BOOT CAMP! I go 3 days a week, and I’ve lost, and have kept off, 18-20 lbs (depending on the day).  I’ve lost an average of 2″, and 10% body fat.  My clothes fit great!  I now have tons of energy!  I love how I feel!

People have notice the changes and ask what I’ve been doing and I tell them about Bay View Boot Camp and how amazing Laura is as an instructor.  She’s motivating, super enthusiastic, and supportive.  Every class is different, and there are frequently new exercises I’m introduced to, so it keeps it interesting and challenging.

Because of Bay View Boot Camp, and with my new found skills of planning meals, preparing food and actually cooking, I’ve discovered a whole new way of a healthy lifestyle.  Thank you Laura Forte!

Q: What is your advice for others who were in a similar situation to yourself?

Most people fear change.  But change can be good!  I wanted to change how I felt.  So, (accidentally or not) I changed what I was doing everyday.  And Wow!

Congratulations Joni on your amazing success this past year!  If you know Joni and her story has inspired you, please leave her a note below and wish her a Happy 1 Year Anniversary. :)

You ready to be inspired?  I introduce to you a woman about to turn 50, but her body and spirit can do more than most 25 years olds that I know.  She has a can-do attitude about life and as she says “in training for living her life”.  It is a pleasure to train her every week and celebrate her ever-ongoing victories out on the surfboard or fishing on the boat.  

I introduce you to: Sheila… in her own words.

“I grew up in a household where food was really appreciated – foodies before that was a term.  However my parents were always dieting and never losing.  They tried every fad as it arrived.   At the same time women and girls were spending a lot of time and emphasis in their lives on clothing, fashion, looking a certain way…. Behaving a certain way.  I really just wanted to play… pretty much any sport outdoors.  When I was young, I would watch Jack Lalane and Lilias Yoga and marvel at what their bodies could do (and try to copy them) while waiting for cartoons (there was no cartoon network).   I started running in high school.  In college I fell in love with scuba diving and fishing and sailing fast high-performance sailboats.

Then came middle age!  Now it wasn’t enough to run.  I could tell when I was on vacation that I was fatiguing way to early when sailing or rowing or hiking.  Exercising was always coming after a long to do list.  So, I decided a year ago to up the muscle toning part of my life.  Yoga was just not quite enough and running was just not enough. I wanted something more total body and muscle oriented but I could not envision being in a gym.  Also lap swimming fills my ears with water and gets tedious.   My friend had just joined Bay View Boot Camp so I gave it a try.

I love how I feel after a workout.  There are sore muscles and that is what I want.  I don’t want to go into the after-middle-age life wondering where those muscles went.  I want to hear from them and know I can do whatever I attempt to do.  I recently went surfing and popped up on the long board NO PROBLEM!  That is huge because in the past I have not had the arm strength to really get paddling fast enough to catch the waves.  I sail regularly and we stop sailing because of time now not because of fatigue.  I trim the spinnaker without asking for help!   I was recently fishing and a man came across the parking lot to help me put my kayak in the back of the truck.  By the time he got to me I had already done it.  He said, “OH I was coming over to help you” I just laughed and said “I go to boot camp.” 

As for eating better, I have always had a good eating lifestyle.  And while I still struggle with replacing white things with whole grains I do have a pretty good diet.  More veggies on my plate than anything else.  I do not own a scale but I think I feel slimmer in the way my clothes fit.  In fact I have dropped a size.

What do I love most about this new lifestyle?  Basically I am in training for living my life.   I know that I can physically do whatever I want.  I will not say I am not strong enough. 

What do I say to people like me?  Use it or lose it.  Seriously, I turn 50 in January and I don’t want to go down that path of old age injuries and weaknesses.  I want to be able to do anything that comes my way.  If I can’t do it now I won’t be able to do it in the future.

How awesome – thank you for sharing Sheila!!  Just by reading this I think her ‘can-do attitude’ is contagious.  

If this impacted you in some way, please leave a note below and let us know how.  

Take action!  Follow our weekly Food Friday email so you’ll be the first to know about our upcoming October Body Transformation Challenge.