Jill’s Story

 It can be easy to look at what someone else has accomplished in their life and think to ourselves, “They must have the willpower of a saint. They must have had everything they needed in life to get there. I just could never do that.” But the truth is, everyone faces obstacles and setbacks in their lives, and everyone has a story behind how they got to where they are.

Over the years, I’ve had quite a few obstacles and hardships of my own, some of which were completely life-altering. But what I’ve learned throughout my life experiences is that your past and your circumstances do not have to define who you are and what you are capable of.

For me, it was these obstacles and hardships that lead me to discover my love for health and fitness and a desire to help others become healthier and happier versions of themselves. And I am hoping that by sharing my story with you here today, you’ll gain the strength and inspiration needed to go after what you want, despite your past and your circumstances. And you’ll realize that you can absolutely get to where you want to be while living a healthy, happy and positive life.

After being abused for years throughout my childhood, I was an emotional wreck. I wasn’t confident and I blamed myself for everything that had happened in my life up to that point. Over time, I became angrier and more depressed, which led me to make some bad choices along the way. It got to the point where I no longer recognized the person staring back at me in the mirror, which is one of the scariest feelings in the world.

I eventually sought solace in exercise and it truly saved me from one of the darkest times in my life. For me, it was a means of escape. And this was the beginning of my journey into fitness. Finally, I made the choice to become a fitness instructor and my love for health and fitness grew even stronger.

I went on to become an AFFA Certified Instructor and Personal Trainer as well as a Certified Nutritional Therapist. I also became certified to teach many different group exercise formats such as:

• P90X

• Insanity

• PIYO

• Cize

• Boot Camp

• Spin

And eventually became the owner of an all women’s fitness studio.

Fast forward 20 years and I was doing what I loved while raising two children and living a very fulfilling life with my husband. But then the day came when I discovered a lump in my right breast. And after having it biopsied, I heard those 3 words that will change your life forever…

You have cancer.

I remember thinking “How could this be?” I was only 40 years old and had always led a healthy life. I was a Fitness Professional for goodness sake! But despite everything, there I was faced with the reality that I was about to go through surgery, chemo, and radiation.

The journey to remission was not easy. I’ll spare you some of the intense details, but let’s just say that this was not a walk in the park. There were setbacks, complications and once again I found myself looking for solace in exercise. There wasn’t much I could do, but I was determined to make sure that cancer would not get the best of me.

Slowly, I was able to return to fitness. But during this process, I suffered a setback with the medication they put me on post-treatment. And another surgery later, I found myself thrown into full-blown menopause. During this time I couldn’t work. I couldn’t sleep. I honestly could not function. And saying I was depressed was an understatement.

I was put on all different kinds of anti depressants, mood enhancers, energy boosters and even tried numerous therapists and doctors. I was tested and then tested again, but nothing seemed to help. I was tired all of the time, had zero energy and the weight kept creeping on. And the kicker of it all was that as a Fitness Professional, I knew what to do to make it better.

I started to ease my way back into exercise and was feeling a little better than I had been. But it wasn’t until I discovered Beachbody and the Ultimate Reset that I truly got back to feeling like my old self. And the results of this program spoke for themselves:

• I stopped taking all meds

• I lost the 20 lbs I had put on

• I regained a sense of self-worth

And I was finally able to look in the mirror and like the person looking back at me again. There was no denying that this program changed my life and my health. And once I did my homework and really researched Beachbody, the CEO, and their products, I realized this company was the REAL deal!

And since only about 15% of the entire population ever join a gym, this was a way for me to bring fitness to the masses and ultimately help even more people make positive changes in their lives. Which is why I decided to become a Coach — so I could help to pay it forward to others who were struggling like I was in the past.

Fast forward to the present, and I am now at the 3 Star Diamond rank as well as a Regional Leader within the company. I have been able to completely transform my life and my mindset and because of that, am on a mission to help other women find freedom in their lives through health and fitness as well.

There’s no doubt that my experiences have made me a stronger person. And it’s because of those experiences that when I was recently diagnosed with cancer for the second time, I was able to go into treatment with a more positive outlook.

I’ll be honest though…just hearing the word Cancer is enough to exhaust me. Let alone the side effects from the treatment. Which is why I cannot imagine what the process would have been like had I not been at the level of health that I was. During both diagnoses, the doctors all commented on how much faster recovery was and the side effects were much less due to me being is such good shape. Since I was so aware of my body and how it should feel, I truly believe that helped me realize when something wasn’t quite right.

All in all, health and fitness gave me my life back in so many respects. It has given me strength both mentally and physically and shown me that you can positively transform your life regardless of your circumstances!

For some every single day is a struggle. But if I can help just one person realize that fitness isn’t just about looking good on the outside, but that it can actually change their life for the better like it did for me, then it will all have been worthwhile ❤