I've been wanting to share this for a while now. It's been on my heart but for some reason I have been holding off doing so -- but here's the thing. I always say that I'm going to be 100% HONEST with you guys and so not sharing this with you would be me not being true to myself so I say FUCK THE FEAR and here goes.
Hi, my name is Amanda Loy. I'm a Wifey, a dog mom, an actor, a Tone It Up Girl & a Beachbody Coach with #TeamInspireJoy , and THIS is my story.
When I started my health & fitness journey in 2012, I had no idea it would lead me to where I am today. That it would be such a vital part of my day to day.
All I knew was that I was desperate for a change. Tired of feeling like who I was inside wasn't being reflected on the outside. Tired of looking in the mirror and not liking what I saw. Tired of going into store after store and just settling for clothes because "well at least they sort of fit" or with the "well this covers up my tummy, so I'll wear it" mentality. Most of all, I was just tired of being tired. Tired of being the unhappy and uncomfortable version of me.
So, I started looking around for something -- anything -- that could help me.
And that's when I found Tone It Up on Youtube.
I was immediately attracted to Karena and Katrina's energy. They were silly and the rays of light that I needed and they reminded me so much of the version of me I hadn't seen in years. I wanted to be just like them. They had just started Tone It Up (yup, I was an Original TIU gal), and all I could think was -- if I could look just like them, I will be able to get my groove back.
I mean, have you seen them? They're freaking bombshells.
So that's how I got started. I started picking one of their workouts and doing it every single day. A month later, I purchased the nutrition plan, officially became a part of the community, and decided to go in full force.
And man oh man did I do that. I stuck to their workout programs and their meal plan to a tea. As in, I never ONCE "fell off the wagon".
For those of you unfamiliar with Tone It Up, their nutrition program focuses on eating mostly lean proteins and vegetables, with some fruit and healthy fats sprinkled in there. Carbohydrates were occasionally incorporated, but the serving size was usually pretty small and often it was optional. So for 6 months, I ate, as my husband likes to say, bunny food. And their daily workouts usually incorporate a cardio start to your day and then a toning workout in the afternoon -- so I started running every morning (for those of you who know me now know how much I hate running hahaha, but I thought I needed to be a runner to be fit!) and I would do their badass super fun toning workouts in the afternoon.
And 6 months later, I had gone from 172 lbs to 145 lbs (this coming from a 5'10" girl).
WOOOHOOOO, right?! Well, my EGO said HELL YES. I was growing out my hair, abs that I never thought could possibly appear were starting to show up and I was finally going to get to be skinny, just like K&K! That was the goal, right? To lose the weight and be happy!!
But here's the thing... I wasn't happy.
Sure, I was skinny. (And now that I look back on it, I can honestly say that I was too skinny, although at the time I wouldn't admit it) And I was sooo excited to be a part of an amazing community of women (some of whom are some of my best friends now) and to have the bright energy of Karena and Katrina in my life. But I was so focused (read: obsessed) on BECOMING THEM that along the way, I lost myself. And I went so extreme in one path that I went from being slightly overweight and unhappy to underweight and unhealthy.
And the summer of 2013, everything that I thought I knew came crashing down around me and within two months, I had put back on all the weight that I'd lost and then some. I spent my days binge eating pints of ben & jerrys half baked, double stuffed oreos, jars of nutella -- you name it. I couldn't control myself.
And once it was time to pick up the pieces, I knew that I had to figure out what would work for ME.
I tried joining a yoga studio, which really helped combat my anxiety.
I connected with TIU girls in the Chicago area and on Instagram who are truly some of the most gorgeous souls I have ever met on the planet -- and who just GET me.
I stopped running and stuck to doing workouts that made me HAPPY, like the TIU toning routines, dance based workouts and strength training.
I started trying to reframe my mind that healthy didn't have to be an all or nothing mindset and that carbs were good for me :)
**Picture from my first TIU Chicago meetup**
I LOVE Tone It Up, for so many reasons. It introduced me to some of the best women I know. It empowered me to take a step towards my own health & fitness journey. And holy balls am I obsessed with some of their recipes. Nomz. And I continue to do their workouts because I loooove them and their energy! And I have finally figured out what works for me and am in a GOOD place :)
But for so long, I would tell people that I owed all my success to Tone It Up. That if it weren't for Karena and Katrina, I wouldn't be where I'm at.
So often in life, we attribute our own success to other people.
Do you ever catch yourself doing that? I know I do.
All the time, the amazing women in my Live Your F*ck YES Life Challenge tell me things like "You're the reason I feel so amazing." or "Because of you, I'm at my goal weight for the first time in 5 years." and I always step back and say -- no, it's because of YOU. YOU are the one who got your butt up every morning and got your workout in. YOU are the one that made healthy nutrition choices. YOU are the one who did the work.
And when I hit my quarter life crisis a year ago (yuppp that shit is REAL haha), I kept thinking to myself -- how can you pay everything you've learned on your OWN journey forward? How can you help other women show up for themselves in the way that works for THEM? How can I do what K&K are doing for other women but on my own terms?!
And that's when I thought of my TIU gal pal Anna.
I officially met Anna at a TIU Chicago meet up in February 2015. We had been friends on Instagram for a while, and I had been loving on her blog posts. She was so REAL and not scared to just SHARE her heart and I found that so fucking inspiring.
I didn't even realize for the first 6 months of our friendship that she was as Beachbody Coach and I will never forget my first thought: "How can this amazing, super real chick be a Beachbody coach? They're scammy and superficial and just not genuine people."
And I realized that I must be missing something, so I asked her to coffee (because I'm the kinda girl that just needs to hear it from someone's mouth directly) to basically sit her down and be like how can you be doing this thing when you're so .... normal? And nice? AND A TONE IT UP GIRL!?!?
(To say that I was confused and suuuper skeptical is putting it nicely.)
And that's the day when my entire life shifted.
Ask Anna, and she will tell you that I put her to the test. I asked her every fucking question under the sun. She's probably laughing reading this right now because I was a SHIT HEAD, you guys. To say that I was skeptical is putting it suuuuper lightly.
And the more we talked, the more I thought to myself, wow, this is really cool. You mean becoming a Beachbody Coach would help me share my passion for health & fitness with others and actually be a BUSINESS? Like a my OWN version of K&K? I could slowly start to fade out my 5 super draining day jobs and actually spend time doing things that light me up? I could have a job that allowed me to work from home, work when I chose, post inspiring things on social media and empower others to be the best version of themselves?!
I was stunned. Why had I been so RUDELY opposed to Beachbody for so long? Because associating with another company would make me a traitor to Tone It Up? Because I had built up this notion that Beachbody coaches were terrible people?
Well, let me tell ya, was I ever fucking wrong.
My gut kept telling me that this was the right step for me and so I took a leap of faith and I said YES. And it's hands down the best decision I've ever made in my entire life (except marrying Kevan, that was a pretty stellar choice.)
Am I still a TIU girl? Heck yes.
But I can also add Team Inspire Joy Leader, Girl boss and Beachbody Coach to my resume and I am SO DAMN PROUD of it.
I've spent almost a year of my life doing this. I've worked with some of the most incredible women who inspire me on the freaking daily, I've built a team of women (aka my TRIBE) who have become like family to me, I've seen the company up close and personal and am more sure than EVER that this is exactly where I'm supposed to be, I've traveled to beautiful retreats and I've become my very own Entrepreneur, building a path to financial freedom for my family.
Everything is piecing itself together. I am quickly and gracefully and fiercely building a business, supporting women to rise into their role as leaders and supporting people to improve their physical and emotional health with state of the art workout programs, Shakeology , accountability groups and some major self care and daily 1:1 coaching with me.
So from this super grateful gal, here's what I have to say:
Don't judge a book by it's cover.
And just SAY YES to the the things that light you up AND THEN FIGURE IT OUT.
Please. For the sake of your soul. Even if it scares the shit out of you. Ok?
And one more thing:
I am so deeply passionate about what these programs and Shakeology.
Over the past almost year, I have watched myself become the healthiest and happiest version of me that I've ever been and my anxieties have completely disappeared.
If you're curious about what I do and would like to learn more about how to become the healthiest and happiest version of YOU, just click here to schedule a chat with me. I would love to support you.
Here's to Living Your F*ck YES Life.
Xo Amanda