Transformation Testimonials

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What inspired you to begin your weight loss transformation? 

Growing up, I was never the skinny girl and averaged on the heavy side. When I was pregnant with my first child, my weight spun out of control. I gained a whopping 75 pounds! Needless to say, losing the baby weight was a struggle. Then for my job, I had an opportunity to work with Shaun ‘T’. After training with him, I dropped to the lowest weight I had ever been in my adult life, but I didn’t go about that weight loss transformation correctly. I was starving and felt exhausted! I was limited to only 1,100 calories a day! Yes, I lost weight, but also lost muscle and had NO muscle tone at all! A few months later, I was pregnant with my second child. This time I gained about 50 pounds. Coincidentally, a friend of mine needed a partner for a 6-week weight loss competition. I jumped at the opportunity! That’s when I discovered Inspirational Life and started to date my healthy lifestyle! After the first class, I knew this was going to be something different… something amazing… something life-changing. For the first time, I truly felt alive and amazing! Thanks to Brian and Cathie, I finally understood what a healthy lifestyle was. Even though the scale showed a similar number from my experience with Shaun T, this time around I achieved my goals the healthy way. I was 100% stronger and healthier and, best of all, not starving my body! 

How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your goal and how have the results affected your life? 

I owe everything to Brian and Cathie and the Inspirational Life family. Inspirational Life is not just a gym. It’s not just strength training. It’s not just typical fitness classes. It’s a complete lifestyle ‘makeover’ with two people who genuinely care about helping you achieve your goals. There hasn’t been one class since I started where Brian or Cathie hasn’t pushed me… pushed my limits… made me stronger… and that is instrumental to my success. 

Over my life, I have used every excuse in the book: “I’m not meant to be thin”, “Working out is not effective”, “I’m big-boned”, etc. But now, at 34 years old, I feel the BEST I ever have in my entire life. I’m a mother of two, I work full-time, and I travel a lot for my job. With the help of Brian and Cathie, I learned it’s all about MY decisions and MY choices. Even when I travel, I get up early and workout. I choose my meals wisely and skip that 2nd glass of wine at dinner. I have found the reward – the feeling of being a happier wife, mother, friend, and worker. That feeling greatly outweighs anything else. 

Describe Inspirational Life in one word. 

Insatiable

What inspired you to begin your healthy lifestyle transformation? 

For the past 3 ½ years, I was walking 4 miles a day, 5 days a week. During the last 18 months, I noticed that I was barely maintaining my weight. In fact, the reality was… I was gaining weight. So I knew I had to do something MORE but didn’t know what! One evening over the summer, my husband and I got together with some friends we hadn’t seen in a while. One of them was Jeanne Daubner. All I can say is …WOW… what a transformation. I asked her what she was doing. She started talking about this place called Inspirational Life, boot camps, and 5:15am workouts. From that evening on, I kept thinking about what Jeanne had said about her fitness program. Being in a bathing suit this summer was so uncomfortable. I had never been at this weight. I was physically miserable. Jeanne’s words kept running through my head over and over again. Then Jeanne called to say she was forming a team for a weight loss transformation challenge at INSPIRE Fitness, and she knew I was looking for a change in my exercise routine. THIS was it… THIS was my answer to lose some weight and change my exercise routine. So on September 27, 2012, I weighed in for the weight loss challenge and have never looked back.

How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your goal, and how have the results affected your life? 

The boot camps, nutritional meetings, and learning the importance of journaling and weighing/measuring what I ate, along with inspirational newsletters, videos, and great recipes, are just some of the ways Inspirational Life has contributed to my success story of losing weight and feeling better physically. But besides the nutritional and physical aspects, Brian and Cathie have helped me mentally. They emphasize consistency, patience, and goal-setting. They’ve taught me that a healthy lifestyle isn’t just about the physical—exercise, losing weight, and the dreaded 'scale.' It’s also about nutrition, who you surround yourself with, staying positive, and asking yourself “Why.” Brian and Cathie’s amazing knowledge, support, and motivation have proven to me that ALL this works. It’s really pretty simple! I look better, feel better, and eat better. I have a more positive attitude (and the funny thing is… I’m already a pretty positive person). It’s a pleasure to walk into a boot camp workout and see all the smiles from the other people in the classes… the positive attitude is contagious. I’ve set goals, reached them, and then set more goals. There’s no question in my mind that because of what I’ve learned at Inspirational Life, I’ve lost over 20 lbs, and my life is forever changed.

Describe Inspirational Life in one word.

ENERGIZING

What inspired you to begin your healthy lifestyle transformation?

I was invited to join a contest at Inspirational Life and immediately got hooked. The positive atmosphere, intense boot camp, nutritional meetings, and inspiring daily emails made this decision a no-brainer. I was at a point in my life where I was at my highest weight. The typical gym workouts (elliptical and treadmill machines) were not doing anything for me. I was seeing a chiropractor at least once a week for neck and back pain. My cholesterol was very high, and medication was the next step. Also, my nutrition was not the best.

How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your goal?

Brian and Cathie have been instrumental in my success stories! Here are some of them: 1) Modifying the exercises made it possible for me to build up slowly to a point where I could do all the exercises. 2) Positive encouragement during the classes by Brian and Cathie keeps me coming back! 3) Cathie’s reminders not to “eat your face off” resonate with me during the day when I am tempted to make poor choices. 4) I look forward to Brian’s daily emails. They are so inspiring that I often share them with my family members. 5) The nutrition emails are very motivational and help me focus during the week. 6) The exercises strengthened my back and neck, so I no longer have to visit the chiropractor.

Inspirational Life is not only about working out but also teaching you about a good nutritional diet. My diet has greatly improved. I’m eating salad because I enjoy it, not because I have to, and I eat more organic produce while staying away from processed foods.

How have the results affected your life?

I have experienced so many life changes; I feel the BEST I have ever felt in my life. 1) My cholesterol dropped over 40 points, and no medication was needed. In fact, my doctor asked me what I did to lower my cholesterol, and I told him about the boot camps at Inspirational Life, and he said, 'Just keep doing that!' 2) Thanks to Brian and Cathie for showing me modifications to the boot camp workout, I was able to build up my neck and back muscles slowly. As a result, I have not been to the chiropractor since I started at Inspirational Life, and now I can do almost every exercise without modifications! My neck pain was so severe in the past that I couldn’t even enjoy a hair wash when getting my haircut. Now, I look forward to getting my hair washed with no towels needed and can sit back and relax. 3) My nutrition knowledge has grown tremendously, and my habits have improved significantly. 4) My eating habits have improved greatly; I actually crave fruits and vegetables for the first time in my life. 5) I have lost some weight, but more importantly, many inches, and my clothes fit so much better! 6) My leg muscles, which were the weakest part of my body, have become so strong that I was able to hike the Grand Canyon this past summer and keep up with my family.

Describe Inspirational Life in one word.

Life-Changing!

What inspired you to begin your lifestyle transformation?

My “why” – Over the last few years, my mother struggled with heart disease and was hospitalized several times, with the latest episode starting in October 2012. After witnessing her struggles with health and not enjoying her time with family and friends, I realized that I had put on some weight and gotten out of shape myself. I was headed in the same direction if I didn’t make a change! That change came in February of 2013 when I started my journey at Inspirational Life. Tragically, my mother passed away in March at the young age of 69, which pushed me even harder. I wanted to grow old with my wife and see my children enjoy their lives, perhaps even watching a great-grandchild on a soccer pitch someday would be amazing.

How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your goal, and how have the results affected your life?

I started by attending boot camps and quickly realized I was out of shape; however, both Brian and Cathie continued to encourage me to do more and keep striving for my healthy lifestyle. I attended a couple of nutritional meetings, where I kept hearing about the need to change my eating habits. It took some time for me to buy into this, but I’m happy to say that this was probably the biggest factor in my weight loss transformation.

Well, I feel a ton better. I’m working to remove blood pressure and cholesterol medication from my daily routine and should have that accomplished shortly. I have more energy and genuinely enjoy the healthy food I’m eating now. Going to the gym is now a habit and not a chore – I actually look forward to my time there. My biggest success story is that I’m now down 30 pounds. My wife and kids tell me I don’t have as big a gut as I had before. Check out that before picture – ouch!

Describe Inspirational Life in one word.

Epiphany, Spectacular, Boundless, Complete, Enthusiastic, Unmatched, Amazing – I could go on – take your pick!

What inspired you to begin your healthy lifestyle transformation? My weight has always been a challenge for me, and I became the classic yo-yo dieter. I tried every kind of diet out there to lose weight. I would lose, but then gain back twice as much. By the time I turned 55, I had high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and my knees were starting to cause me a lot of pain. I realized that at 250 pounds, I would probably not be able to live long enough to enjoy my grandchildren and see them grow up. So, in 2007, on the advice of my doctor, I had lap band surgery. Over the next year, I was able to lose 100 pounds. After the surgery, I tried to maintain my weight, but I fell back into some of my old eating habits and before I knew it, I had gained back 30 pounds! Obviously, I still did not grasp the nutrition component of losing and maintaining weight, even after the surgery. I tried to lose just 10 pounds, but it never happened. I thought it must be because once you reach a certain age, in this case 60, you just can’t lose weight anymore. Then my daughter showed me a picture of her childhood friend, Kristy Pinand, and I saw how much weight she had lost. She mentioned going to a place called Inspirational Life. I checked out the website and initially thought I would never actually join, but I decided to give it a try. Wow, was I wrong! Cathie and Brian made me feel so comfortable and were incredibly knowledgeable about helping me do the workouts correctly. That was August of 2013. Since then, I have lost almost 20 pounds, and now at age 72, I know that it’s only a myth that people my age can’t lose weight. They just need to get 'inspired'! How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your goal and how have the results affected your life? I was working out, but I certainly wasn’t using the correct form, and I wasn’t pushing myself because when I didn’t want to workout, I would just slack off or stop completely. Someone is always there 'encouraging' you to get lower in your squats or to add more weight, and that is exactly what I needed. I couldn’t believe I had been trying to lose 10 pounds for over a year, and then with a few small lifestyle changes, I was able to lose that 10 pounds within about 8 weeks. At age 72, I can attend the 5:30 am class three times a week and come home to take care of my four grandchildren, all under the age of four. I feel stronger and healthier now than I did in my 30s and 40s, thanks to Brian and Cathie. As you get older, building muscle is so important, and fortunately, no matter how old you get, muscle is one thing in your body you can still control and improve upon. My life now is so much better. I am happier, have more energy, and I am willing to try things I’ve never tried before. I am making better lifestyle choices and will continue to do so. I feel like I am finally on the right track, and that each day I will be a little bit better. Describe Inspirational Life in one word. Lifechanging.

What inspired you to begin your healthy lifestyle transformation?

For over 20 years, I was constantly trying different diets, but none ever lasted, leading to a frustrating cycle of weight fluctuations that ultimately saw my weight increase. I struggled to find a sustainable way to control my weight over time. Additionally, I faced ongoing lower back problems and was becoming increasingly sluggish. There were days I could barely get out of bed when my back acted up. I knew I needed to strengthen my back, but despite trying various methods, nothing seemed to work, and I found it hard to stick with anything. In May of 2013, Patti invited me to join the team for the Inspirational Life CHALLENGE. Although I was hesitant, I decided to give it a shot.

How did Inspirational Life help you achieve your weight loss transformation?

Inspirational Life marked the first time I participated in an organized exercise regimen. More importantly, I discovered their unique emphasis on proper nutrition. The approach was straightforward—eat right and make healthy choices without feeling the need to overindulge every night as I had been doing. Brian and Cathie taught me that experiencing hunger was actually a good sign, indicating my body was burning fat, which was a natural and healthy process. The realization that being hungry was acceptable for a period of time was a groundbreaking concept for me, and it truly resonated. Another significant change was that attending the workout sessions greatly strengthened my back. My previous episodes of pain were significantly reduced, and they were never as severe as before I joined Inspirational Life.

How have the results affected your life?

I finally feel equipped with both a mental and physical strategy for maintaining a healthier and more fit lifestyle every day. No matter what challenges arise, I now possess a mentality and approach that truly works. I owe a huge thank you to Brian and Cathie for their unwavering dedication to their Inspirational Life family and their ability to help me achieve my health goals both in mind and body.

Describe Inspirational Life in one word.

Sustainability!