Dedication to a Very Special Friend...

Hey there! I know it has been a few LONG months since I last made a blog post, a ton has happened in that amount of time, but I am back. I am dedicating my first post of being back into the swing of things to a very special friend of mine who I have known for quite some time from school and within the past couple years finally reconnected thanks to social media. He has always been a huge supporter of my beachbody business and my fitness capabilities even when I was doubting myself. Not only has he been a supporter of my life and so many other people out there, but he helped me through a major tough time in my life recently. He was the type of person who would do absolutely anything for anyone and would never hesitate

Jeffrey Michael Woodruff
Janurary 13th, 1988-August  28th, 2013

. I am happy and honored to say that he was a wonderful friend of mine and I will hold onto every cherished memory I have of him, he will always hold a special place in my heart. This is going to be one of the most difficult yet amazing things I will be able to tell everyone because my great friend Jeffrey Michael Woodruff passed away on April 28th, 2013 at the young age of 25, I hope to make him proud with this dedication.

He wrote that to me in my freshmen yearbook sophomore year.

Even though I didn't know Jeffrey his whole 25 years, but the amount of time I did was amazing. He was always into staying healthy and man in high school he loved wrestling! I remember going to some of the meets to just watch, a couple times I had to for cheerleading. It was definitely a great experience seeing the Spartans kick some major rear. I'm glad I got the chance to see the boys wrestle, you could tell they all had a special bond. Not only did I love seeing my high school team win, I will always remember the smile Jeff had when he finished a match whether he won or not. 

Right after high school graduation I lost touch with a lot classmates including Jeffrey. It saddens me that I didn't keep in touch with friends, but we all went our separate ways with school, jobs, and life happened. Looking back I wish I would have done a better job at staying in touch with friends.

However, I do remember seeing Jeffrey at a Halloween party in 2009. One of the most memorable occasions I think I will ever have of him and it makes me smile and laugh when I think of it because of his costume! His cousin Kyle and him

Oompa Loompa!

were dressed as Oompa Loompas for Halloween! Even though it had been years since I had last saw Jeffrey it wasn't awkward at all, he had smile on his face from ear to ear, hugged me, and talked to me like he just saw me the day before. He had that way with situations and people to make everyone feel comfortable. That night was extremely memorable because I was reconnecting with friends and of course it was the first Halloween that most of us were actually LEGAL to drink! :) Now you can see why I laughed at the Oompa Loompas by the photo!

Unfortunately again I lost contact with several people. I got married, I didn't go back to Rhodes (my hometown) very often, then my husband and I had our son. Life again got in the way, I didn't have the time like I once did to see friends like I wish I would have so I relied on social media. 

Insanity, the program he finished 

Luckily within the past year or two I reconnected with friends through Facebook! It was an awesome feeling to find the time for that. I also just became a beachbody coach in November 2012. Jeffrey of course was so supportive! He would comment on all my fitness statuses, photos, and even liked my beachbody page on facebook and was always interacting with me that way. It truly was amazing to know I had a friend who supported me and who would check in on me to make sure I was doing my workouts. Since he did that stuff for me I was also following his progress with working out too. Jeffrey actually completed Insanity not too long ago and at the time I was a week behind him. One day I asked him what his plan was after insanity, he told me he REALLY wanted to do asylum volume one, volume two, and then body beast...we both had the same end goal...BODY BEAST.

Jeffrey's goals

A couple months ago I was going through a tough personal time and Jeffrey helped me a lot to deal with it and all he did was talk to me. That's the type of person he was, he helped everyone in anyway he could. I even asked him how in the world could he be so positive all the time! While helping me he even got on my case about not working out! I know that's right, me being a coach I stopped working out and it

Always happy!

was insanity! He told me I needed to get back into the game and finish, unfortunately I didn't and all I had left was the last month of insanity to do. Instead I waited and started P90X (another beachbody program) on April 15th. My plan is to finish the last month of insanity with the last month of P90X in memory of Jeffrey. I do still plan on eventually doing body beast, have to keep my goal and word to him!

Jeffrey was also of course a son, a grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a friend, etc. He was an extraordinary person, if you had the opportunity to meet him just once his smile would be permanently tattooed in your mind. His positive attitude and outlook would make you want to be a better person and to never take anything for granted, live everyday to fullest like there is no tomorrow. Everyone who knew him we will always remember the good memories, his smile, his kind heart, positive thoughts, and everything he had to offer. Even though Jeffrey is no longer with us we have to look at his passing as a positive. It's almost as if he was showing us all to NEVER take anything for granted because you never know if tomorrow will come, life is too short. 

Until we meet again my friend!

From his funeral. 

Photographs of Jeffrey

Sophomore School Picture

Jeffrey and Chad

Freshmen Year
Left to Right
Jackie, Meaghan, Me, Jeffrey, Jessi, and Kayla

Jeff, cousin Corey, cousin Kyle, brother Jordan in the back

Ryan and Jeff

Brother Jordan, Brother Jonah, Sister Jillian, and Jeffrey

Jeffrey and his cousin Kyle...They were like brothers

Ryan and Jeffrey

After doing an insanity workout!

Jeffrey, Ryan, and Jordan...Survival Night

Song that will always remind me of Jeffrey Michael Woodruff is "Who You'd be Today" by Kenny Chesney

Click here for video.

Jeffrey Michael Woodruff's obituary.

It would mean a lot to me and those who knew Jeffrey if you would comment on this blog with memories of Jeffrey. You can also send me more pictures to add to this post. And I would love to do follow up post on Jeffrey and also visitor posts on my blog are welcome. Email me at toneyawithtonya@gmail.com

Live everyday to the fullest!

~Tonya

Label Freak!

Label freak, this is what I call myself nowadays. Why in the world would anyone call themselves such a funny name? For me I refer to myself as a label freak because every time I go shopping for food and drinks I have to look at the label to make sure it's okay for me to purchase.

My philosophy with my new healthier lifestyle.

Everything is okay to buy isn't it? The answer is no. Since turning over a new leaf and realizing a bunch of things about myself I now pay attention to EVERYTHING I put into my body....Many of you may think I am absolutely crazy, but it's the key to a longer healthier life. I realized after having my son and I was no longer toned and thin like I once was, but that I was carrying around all this unnecessary fat and had a loose body. Not only did I come realize I needed to start working out, but I needed to change my eating habits too. I am not as young as I used to be, I can't eat everything I want anymore, at 25 my life and body has changed a lot.

When I go grocery shopping, which I love I hate, and there is something on my list and I find it I will pick up the product, go directly to the nutrition label and ingredients to see if it is healthy enough for me to purchase. Of course if it's something I have already checked on previous trips and bought I don't check them again. There are so many things to look for while shopping for foods and drinks and I will share a few that I ALWAYS look for.

Circled are aspartame and sucralose on an actual label .

I will never buy anything light or diet again. Why? Majority of the time when there is "light" or "diet" on a food or drink product that usually means that it contains artificial sweeteners. The most common you will see are sucralose and aspartame. Some people think oh it's just a sweetener modified, that is sadly not the only case. Not only have they changed the sugars into what is now man-made, but they are now something your body cannot break down easily meaning that you really shouldn't be consuming it. Another horrible thing about artificial sweeteners are they can actually cause you to gain weight when used continuously. Crazy right? To have something be labeled "light" or "diet" and they tell you it's suppose to be better for you, when in reality they are worse for you! Are they completely avoidable? Not always, such as if you go to a restaurant and order something you won't always be aware of all the ingredients.

100% whole wheat

Another thing I look for while grocery shopping are what kinds of flour are being used in items such as bread, noodles, crackers, etc. If you read my post about good and bad carbohydrates, this goes along with that. When purchasing breads I look for those that are 100% whole wheat, then I check the ingredients if there is any added sweeteners or did they sneak some enriched bleach flour in there (bad carb). I definitely stay away from white bread, it's just like putting refined sugars into your body which causes an imbalance in your blood sugar. Once again it's one of those foods that cannot always be avoided for example, if you go to a baseball game for instance and you order a hot dog that hot dog will come on a white bun. Yes, white breads (sandwich bread, buns, crackers, bagels, etc) are cheaper, but are they healthier...Nope. It's all about paying attention to labels and be aware of what you are putting in your body.

Eat clean, more whole foods, pay attention to what you
put into your body!

There are more things I look for on the label, but those are my top no-nos when I am out grocery shopping. I always say to myself all-natural in the way to go and I think that is where a lot of society goes wrong when purchasing food and when they go out to eat...they don't pay attention to the food they are buying to consume. Your body is the only place you have to live, start treating it that way and eat clean, all-natural, and pay attention to the foods you are buying it will help you live a healthier and longer life.


Have a fantastic night!
~Tonya

Fell Off the Wagon, but I'm BACK...

WOW, there I went again....days without making any posts! So sorry! Time has seriously gotten away from me. Going to make this a bigger priority on my to do list.

Why have I been so busy?

Well my two challenge groups are still going strong, so I try to dedicate a lot of time to my participants. I want to be available as much as I can be for them.  Also trying to keep up with housework and as we all know my son and dogs keep me SUPER busy!

However, I do have to say I have two awesome groups going right now! Heart Racer is full of all ladies and they are all driven to change themselves for the better. Same with my Insanity group they are ready to push play everyday even when they know the workout is going to be tough. They ALL definitely keep me extremely motivated to continue with my workouts and to lead a healthier lifestyle! Man I love being a Beachbody coach!

How is Insanity?
Insanity is going great! Today is the second to the last day of week 3, I can't believe week 4 will be here on Monday already, doesn't seem possible. There have been a few ups and downs for me with insanity though.

Polar FT40

 I did order and receive my polar fitness watch, which I am totally in love with by the way! I seriously recommend getting a watch that can calculate heart rate and calories burned, but that has a chest strap transmitter for more accuracy. Now I know about how many calories I am burning after every workout and if I need to rest some to get my heart rate to drop back down. Another positive thing is I am progressing a lot in the workouts, I can go longer without needing a break which is phenomenal! Also I can tell my body is changing and I love it. My "mommy belly" is starting to tighten even more and there is more of an outline of where my abs are, I am so thrilled with the changes I see! Anyone who wants to change themselves for the better, whether to lose weight or just plain be healthier do it because it's worth it. Also to all the moms out there with that horrible "mommy belly" too, it will go away, it takes a lot of work and time, but it will happen! I can help you achieve all of this!

My sweet knee brace ;) Definitely helps my knee

One downfall recently, it's hard to even tell you about it....I had to go to the doctor this week for my knee. I had issues with it months ago while doing TurboFire then it went away and now it's back while doing Insanity. Basically what happens with my knee is during my workouts it's somewhat sore, but not too horrible because I can finish the workout it's the pain afterward. Whenever I try to straighten my leg after a workout or even sitting in one spot for awhile and I try to straighten my leg it absolutely kills because it's so tight. I finally sucked it up and decided to make an appointment to see what in the world is going on. I found out that my knee cap doesn't slide straight it actually slides crooked, so when I do jumps and all the moves the impact is hurting my knee since it's not working right. One positive thing about finding out the news is that nothing is torn, that was a huge relief. I received a few instructions from my doctor to do some exercises to strengthen my knee and also my hips, to wear a knee brace while I workout, and to take ibuprofen to help with the inflammation. I have been following the doctors orders and I must say after the last workout I did, which I did take it a tad easy because if my knee, but it actually has felt awesome since!

What else is new?
Not too much is new other than being super busy all the time, but I have definitely turned into a "label freak". My husband now hates shopping with me! haha When I say label freak I am referring to being very cautious of what we buy to eat and drink. Every time before I buy something new that I haven't looked at the label before is I have to check the ingredients. Do I hate having to check all labels? No of course not  Yes I hate it! I already dislike grocery shopping and now that I check all the labels it takes me almost twice as long to shop now! If only all foods and drinks only contained natural ingredients then shopping would be an absolute breeze. More on shopping and the things I look for later.

Fifty Shades Trilogy

I am extremely happy I found some time the other night to read a few chapters of Fifty Shades Freed. Normally books don't take me long to read; when they're good, but with having no time lately I keep putting off finishing the book. If you have no clue what book I am talking about then you're missing out! It is actually part of a trilogy; Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, and Fifty Shades Freed. The books have mixed reviews, either readers love them or they hate them and I am one of the people who absolutely love them. If you haven't read them, do! :-)

Goodbye for now! 

 As I drink a cup of green tea while I finish up some loose ends.

Yogi 100% Natural Organic Decaf Green Tea

Goonight!
~Tonya

Good and Bad Carbs

Carbs?! I know when people hear the word "carb" they automatically think, "Oh my goodness carbs, keep that fattening food away from me!" That happens so often and that is truly false. Carbohydrates are not always bad, you need the "good carbs" in your everyday diet.

Yes, you read that correctly, you need the good carbs in your everyday diet. Why you might ask...Well most of the healthiest foods in the world are carbohydrates! Some examples are fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and some dairy products. You need carbs because they are your body's fuel source that it prefers. If you enjoy to exercise like I do and want to change your body then you need to be sure you are eating enough carbohydrates. If you don't consume enough carbs then your body could fail and shut down on you during an intense workout or any type of hard physical exertion.

However, there can to be a bad side to carbohydrates. If you consume too many carbohydrates your body will then store them as fat. Also refined carbs are the bad ones to consume, they will actually act as a poison to your body. Refined carbs include sugar, added sugars, and refined white grains. Basically when you eat something from the bad carbs category they will cause an insulin response where your blood sugar will rise and then suddenly drops quickly. When your body does that you will feel lousy, tired, and in no way ready for an intense workout.

Be sure to eat the GOOD carbs! :)

Here's to 24...

Hi again! Here's to 24? Well today I turned 25! I am halfway to 50, yikes! Today was a great day to be my birthday. I am happy, healthy, in love, and just enjoying life what more can a girl ask for?! Oh that's right I have been wanting a ton of snow all winter and.....we FINALLY got a TON of snow! I am so excited we can finally take Ryder sledding for the first time this weekend.

My day was a pretty good one, of course I did my insanity workout which was killer! It was pure cardio, which was pure SWEAT, but so worth it I felt so amazing for the rest of the day I absolutely love it. The rest of the day I took my time on housework, worked on beachbody things and my challenge groups, and played with my boy and the dogs. I definitely always keep busy with beachbody work and housework and my son, but today just seemed to be awesome no matter what I was doing. Then, ended my birthday with going to my sister Randi's house for her Pampered Chef party. It was a lot of fun! Haven't saw Randi or my mom since Christmas I think so it was great to spend some time with both of them on my birthday, made it so much more special. (Of course I did spend time with my husband, it wouldn't have been great if I didn't!)

This is going to be another short blog post, sorry! I am so tired and beat, but happy I could check in and say how blessed I am to have so many amazing people in my life!

Stay happy and healthy!

Good night!

~Tonya

Day 3 and More...

Hello again! Today was day 3 of insanity and it was definitely intense, especially from being sore already. Being sore though is a good thing, it proves that the program is doing what it is suppose to...change you! I can deal with soreness because come Sunday it's my rest day so my body can repair itself. Then come next week I will be even stronger. Bring it on insanity!

It's been one of those days where it's been super chaotic. Of course got my workout in then as soon as I was done the chaos started...Chasing my son and the dogs around is a daily chore, but it seemed as if no one was going to behave! haha They definitely kept me busy, but housework got neglected I guess I will try and catch up tomorrow. I do see it as if you can't get to housework it's absolutely no biggie there is always tomorrow, but your children will only be small once for cherish those moments.

I am trying to decide how to continue with my blogs...Do my posts in sections? Maybe part be about my experience with the workouts I am doing, a section on family, a section on hobbies, etc. Who would like to help this newbie blogger?! :-)

Well that's all for now! Have a great Wednesday!

~Tonya

WOW I'm Slacking!

Hi! Wow, I have definitely been slacking on this blog since this is only my second post! There definitely needs to be more hours in the day. Been so busy lately between coaching, working out, time with my husband, son, and housework (which has been lacking, whoops!)

Yesterday my two challenges started and they seem to be going really well so far. Along with those starting, I started INSANITY! Let me tell you what it has the perfect name, it's insane. I do know it's working though I am so sore. Today was the second day and I survived! Definitely needed that extra push so I can continue to reach my goals and I know insanity will get me there. :)

The awesome Beachbody jump mat! :)

If you or anyone is considering to insanity or really any of the workout programs from beachbody I have some things I would recommend. Be sure to have a large enough area to workout in and if you are doing a program that involves jumping make sure you have enough height to complete those so you don't injure yourself. Also be sure to wear proper footwear, you want your knees and feet to last forever right? Protect them. Some people would prefer to workout barefoot, I say you do what is comfortable, but I don't recommend it. The most obvious of things to have are a water bottle, towel, and any equipment needed to do the program. Lastly, I absolutely love love love the jump mat that I purchased from beachbody. I wish I would have got it before I started TurboFire. It's not very thick, but it helps to absorb landings from jumps to that helps protect your knees. I don't think I would be able to survive the entire program of insanity without it!

Phineas and Ferb

Oh goodness, not like I don't watch Phineas and Ferb enough since being Ryder's favorite show, but we are listening to the soundtrack while I work and he plays. The wonderful joys of having my 17 month old little man. =) Love when his face lights up when he gets to watch his favorite shows. He has a ton of likes, but Phineas and Ferb seems to have always been his favorite even when he was little little. Probably pretty bad that we have watched every episode at least 10 times and even the movie they have on Netflix a few times! Let's just say I know all the songs and words! ;)

Well I am off to spend the rest of my time working with the challenges and time with my lil boy! Possibly housework? Now, let's not get too crazy!

Have a wonderful day everyone! Happy Tuesday. :):)

~Tonya