Believe, persist, and it will happen

Ok babes, time for Coco to get on her soapbox.

Tonight, we had a full studio of clients in Zumba class. You could barely fit any more people in there. It was so much fun and I treated everyone to follow a coy, sexy dance with the towels!! We also gave mucho props to Meagan, one of my personal training clients, who excitedly broke the news to me today that she has shed 22 pounds since January!!! I’m sooooo proud that I don’t even know how to express it.

So, today I want to talk to you about “believing in yourself”. Yes, let me say it again, BELIEVING IN YOURSELF. Whatever you are striving for, when everyone else says you can’t do it and that you are crazy, loco, will totally fail, the most important person you need to listen to is yourself. I don’t care how trite my statement is but it’s sooo true. I love getting feedback from others — and I think it’s important to hear other people out. So you can listen, but don’t follow what people say if you don’t want to!! Not even if what they say makes sense!!

I’ll tell you three short stories. One is about me, the other is about Meagan, and the last is about Wendy. Well, there are many lessons learned to tell about me!! But let’s totally narrow the scope down to just my transition to CocoFitness as a Zumba Instructor and Personal Trainer in Arlington, VA.

Everyone thought I was insane when I was changing careers and leaving behind my cushy, white collar, benefit-laden, top-secret clearance, international travel, desk job for the fitness floor. My mom even said I was “throwing away” my college and graduate school education. Although people thought (and still think) what I do is a risky way to earn a living, especially living in an area like Arlington, I utterly believe that serving everyone as a personal trainer and Zumba instructor is a great vocation and brings so much meaning to my life  – and success has followed. I’ve never looked back since.

Now on to Meagan. Meagan started training with me in March and not once has she ever doubted that she would lose the weight and fat she wanted to lose. She persisted…always came to training sessions, always grunted her way through the workouts with me, never complained about the utter fatigue her muscles were experiencing..and she has come out a winner!! She was like a maniac, pounding out those hours and hours of cardio and resistance training, and I love her for it.

Lastly, Wendy. Wendy is a mother of two who weighs over 200lbs, exactly how much, I don’t know. In March, I instructed a free Zumba class at the Gates of Ballston, and she is the only one from that class that has been with me ever since. Others really started off strong with me but were not able to continue with the Zumba workouts like she has. Wendy has several sisters who also have similar size and build as her. They have told her she was out of her mind for exercising so much and watching her diet — that she was obsessed about changing her body and that she should stop. WTF!??! So Wendy kept on believing in herself anyway that she can get the body she wants. Wendy faces many other obstacles, and I barely know what’s going on with her. Wendy’s son is going through a very stressful and time consuming medical issue, it is hard for her to get babysitting, and yet she still takes Zumba classes with me around Arlington. I’ll keep you up to date on her progress, and so far she has lost 40lbs!!!

You need to know that success comes from not just about believing in yourself and having that desire to get what you want. One other major part of it is that you need a great plan of execution — and with fitness, that is what a personal trainer/instructor is for. So BELIEVE IN YOURSELF….and persist even when you doubt yourself….and when you’re having trouble believing in yourself — find your friends and family, whoever you need, your online friend, your therapist, your admirers, your pets, and your trainer to help believe in you!!!