Not a bad anniversary celebration!

Had a chat today with the Beachbody community, and I am always blown away with how great it is to reconnect with people who have been a part of this family for years, and meet "newbies" who are on their way to becoming the next Beachbody stars. It was a great celebration of the sixth anniversary of this amazing community called Beachbody.

And in the midst of the chat, as I answered questions about "how do I lose the last five" or "when's the next product launch?", it occurred to me that what this place is about is not just body transformation, but a mental transformation as well. In fact I traded emails with a favorite customer later that night, and she told me how she has struggled with her results over the years, despite motivating literally thousands of people with her success in the first place. The advice I gave her might be helpful to anyone who wants to know how to not just be successful with a weightloss program, but to be HAPPY with the results:

(A) STOP JUDGING YOURSELF ON THE WAISTBAND-O-METER AND INSTEAD ACCEPT YOURSELF, IN FACT LOVE YOURSELF, SO IT WILL BE EASIER FOR OTHER PEOPLE TO LOVE YOU TOO. YOU'LL ENJOY THE WORKOUTS MORE, AND CONTINUE FOR THE LONG TERM TO GET MORE FROM THE HEALTH BENEFITS LONG AFTER THE WEIGHT LOSS AND BODY TRANSFORMATION IS ACHIEVED.

(B) STOP ABUSING YOURSELF WITH FOOD WHEN YOU GET BORED OR SAD. DON'T PUNISH YOURSELF WITH FOOD OR LAZINESS BECAUSE YOU HAVE FEELINGS. DON'T BE THE VICTIM. DON'T GIVE AWAY YOUR POWER LIKE THAT. AND DON'T LET THOSE KINDS OF FEELINGS BECOME AN EXCUSE TO NOT TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. STOP THE CYCLE OF FAILURE/FEAR OF FAILURE BY PROMOTING YOUR OWN SUCCESS WITH HEALTHY HABITS. YOU KNOW WHAT THE HABITS ARE. EXERCISE. PORTION CONTROL AND GOOD FOOD CHOICES. THAT'S THE PART BEACHBODY CAN HELP YOU WITH - GIVING YOU THE TOOLS TO MAKE GOOD CHOICES AND FORM GOOD HABITS. ACHIEVING THE MENTAL AWARENESS OF YOUR OWN PATTERNS OF ABUSE OR NEGLECT IS YOUR JOB.

And for the record, I am as guilty of these weaknesses as anyone. That's where the community and the inspiration of the people within it come into play. They will show you that you can succeed in the first place. And in the second place, you can just as easily slip back into the old patterns. And finally, these amazing people will show you that you're always welcome and encouraged to get back to "the first place", without judgment or guilt. THAT'S the Beachbody community.

The chat ended with a great WOWY session with a great group of friends. Not a bad anniversary celebration!