Hello! Welcome to my blog. My name is Jeanette Paradis. Today I would like to tell you a story. This is something that has been circling my mind for a while now. If you are a personal friend of mine of a follower of my blog, you are familiar with the big life changes that I have had over the past 16 months. I used to weigh well over 230 pounds and that was a lot on my 5'4" frame. I am not of a "petite" structure and I have always had strong shoulders and legs. Lots of time riding horses and works with them has contributed to that! But I was not at all healthy. I was headed for trouble. I had a visit with my doctor and was cautioned that if I did not lower my cholesterol through changing my lifestyle, I was going to wind up on meds for it. Yikes! Other than a prenatal vitamin during both of my pregnancies and a handful of antibiotics in my adult years, I have never been on a daily medication and thinking of that possibility is part of what gave me the desire to REALLY make a change. Plus I did not have enough energy to keep up with my kids the way that I would have liked. My husband has always been a great fan and never for a moment made me feel self-conscious about my shape. He has always had that twinkle in his eye when he looks my way! :) But I wanted to be healthy. For myself and for everyone else in my life. I had tried things here and there in the past but I would never lose more than 5-8 pounds and nothing stuck. I began in September 2013 with clean eating, daily 30 minute home workouts and Shakeology. I was part of a secret FB group where my coach led the way and I was supported by a group of friends who were working on their own health. Looking back now, it is STILL mind-boggling to me that I lost 19 pounds and 11" that first month! Oh my goodness. It was not easy but it was also not excruciating. I found new habits and gave up my old ways. What a difference! But how did I come across this approach in the first place? It was through my youngest sister Rachel.
Rachel is 6.5 years younger than me. Rachel had always been petite but was having trouble losing the weight from her own baby #2. She kept thinking of a former co-worker who had really been having some success herself. Rachel was intrigued and wanted to learn more. Rachel wound up following her friend's example and joined a "challenge group" (a secret FB accountability group) in May 2013 and she began making some excellent progress! This group was led by a coach named Melanie Mitro.
Melanie had been coaching for less than two years at that point in time. Melanie herself became a coach after having her own big transformation with Insanity, clean eating and Shakeology. Melanie is a mom of two little boys. After her 2nd son was born, she was having a hard time losing the baby weight and was adjusting to the world of being a SAHM. She posted on FB something about eating celery and trying to lose weight but not making much progress. A coach named Nikki Minton read that post and reached out to Melanie. Nikki's husband was a friend of Melanie's husband. Nikki started telling Melanie about challenge groups and how they worked. From that point, Melanie began making her own changes and did wind up becoming a coach on Nikki's team.
Fast forward less than two years later and Rachel joins one of Melanie's challenge groups. Melanie was a 5 Star Diamond coach at that point in time. In 2013 she ended the year as the #2 ranked coach in the entire company! A few months after Rachel began her own transformation, she began coaching. Our middle sister Bethany was one of her first challengers. Bethany went on to lose 50 pounds. I couldn't help but notice all of this and I got my own start about 6 weeks after Bethany.
Melanie had been coaching for less than two years at that point in time. Melanie herself became a coach after having her own big transformation with Insanity, clean eating and Shakeology. Melanie is a mom of two little boys. After her 2nd son was born, she was having a hard time losing the baby weight and was adjusting to the world of being a SAHM. She posted on FB something about eating celery and trying to lose weight but not making much progress. A coach named Nikki Minton read that post and reached out to Melanie. Nikki's husband was a friend of Melanie's husband. Nikki started telling Melanie about challenge groups and how they worked. From that point, Melanie began making her own changes and did wind up becoming a coach on Nikki's team.
Fast forward less than two years later and Rachel joins one of Melanie's challenge groups. Melanie was a 5 Star Diamond coach at that point in time. In 2013 she ended the year as the #2 ranked coach in the entire company! A few months after Rachel began her own transformation, she began coaching. Our middle sister Bethany was one of her first challengers. Bethany went on to lose 50 pounds. I couldn't help but notice all of this and I got my own start about 6 weeks after Bethany.
I became a coach in 2014 and Rachel and I led my first challenge group together that March. In April I was up and running with my own groups. Rachel and I now lead a team of coaches ourselves and it is AMAZING to see all of the individuals and families whose lives have been changed for the better through what we do as our everyday work! Melanie ended 2014 as the #1 coach in all of Beachbody. Our larger team is called the Dream Team and I am thankful to be a part of it! We were just down in Pittsburgh this past weekend and had a big celebration and lots of practical training as we closed out 2014 and welcomed 2015! It was amazing to gather with 1,000 other coaches and our CEO Carl Deikler plus Autumn Calabrese who created the 21 Day Fix program.
So... what if Nikki hadn't reached out to Melanie in 2011...
What if Melanie hadn't made the decision to change her own health?
What if Melanie hadn't become a coach later in 2011?
What if Rachel hadn't found Melanie to begin her own transformation in 2013 and then went on to become a coach that year?
What if I hadn't jumped in with making my own changes in September 2013? WHERE WOULD I BE TODAY?? I am afraid to even ponder it. Probably weighing in well above 200 pounds and facing who knows what as far as meds and health conditions?? And I would have missed out on so many fun things that I have been "up for" these past 16 months.
And, what if I hadn't become a coach 10+ months ago?? What about the 100+ people that my team and I have been able to help in 2014? Not to mention the fact that this "job" is amazing and it an excellent fit at this point in my life!
So, what could you explore in 2015? If you say yes to beginning improving your own health and fitness, imagine the ripple effect? And what if you also became a coach on my team? Think of the individuals and families who could be impacted as you join this movement to combat the obesity that is taking over our society??? SO many of the current health problems that are plaguing our country could be remedied through eating clean, eating the right foods and portion sizes and spending 30 minutes a day doing a home workout! It really is an incredible thing to imagine all of what 2015 will hold! It is hard to describe how amazing it is to be part of something like this. I LOVE it. Leading my challenge groups, mentoring my team, working with my peers and learning from Melanie herself has been incredible. And I feel like this is really just the beginning. Plus I have been able to make a significant contribution to our household's monthly budget.
I am thankful. I am thankful for my own health. I am thankful for the success of my business. I am thankful that everyone mentioned in this story decided to take the plunge! I can't imagine what life would be like otherwise. I am thankful for God's plan and how He brings people together at just the right times and places. It is a lot to ponder, isn't it?? Most of all, I am so glad that who I am now is a person who is able to be my own best for my family. This means more than I can say. No matter your starting point, let's make the most of today! Join me and be a part of this amazing thing.
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