2016 Year in Review

At the end of last year's year in review, I concluded by saying that I wanted to blog more, but that is actually what I did the very least of. There have been so many times where blog post has been written in my planner on my to-do list, but it's always fallen to the very end. So I'll start by saying that in 2017, I am going to write more. Let's start there.

Oh, 2016.

I know that I'm not alone when I say that 2016 was a tough year. For me personally, it was a doozy and while there were lots of really great things that happened, I'm really looking forward to a fresh start tomorrow.

When I look back on everything individually, I'm happy to report that there were definitely some good things that it's been nice to reflect on as I've sat down to write this post.

Over the course of the year, I got to travel to Nashville and NYC again, and also experienced my very first cruise. All 3 trips were amazing for all different reasons.

The cruise was awesome to take a break, see my Beachbody friends and experience something entirely different. It was so much fun to explore, partake in all sorts of activities, workout at dawn with my favourite trainers, have awesome nights out and of course, meet Stan the dolphin.

Being in Nashville again was just as much fun as the first time around. The energy at Summit is always infectious and I continue to cherish time with my Beachbody family. I loved exploring new parts of the city, getting re-energized about this biz and generally nerding out over all things Beachbody related. I also stayed in the sweetest airbnb on my last night with the most lovely host! It was a really really wonderful trip.

And NYC was exactly what I needed. This second half of the year has been rough, and I decided that a trip on my own would be good for my soul. I saw 5 shows in 3 days, ate all sorts of delicious food, visited with friends and relished the energy of my favourite city. A full recap of that trip is coming in the new year.

I continued my fitness journey, completing a variety of programs that were all very different! With all of the challenges I was facing, I found myself in a place where I wasn't feeling great about my body in this last half. I recently completed my first round of an MMA style program that re-ignited my excitement and gave me some incredible results in 30 days. I'm kicking 2017 off with round two and I'm pretty stoked to jump back in!

My work life has been awesome, but hectic. At MT, we said goodbye to a cherished team member, welcomed two amazing additions to the team, launched a charity cookbook, ran the Culinary Nutrition Expert Program and oh-so-much more. I was recently promoted to Operations Director and I am really looking forward to the things we're going to do in 2017.

Additionally, I've continued to grow my biz as a health and fitness coach and I still absolutely love it. Our groups continue to grow each month and I am looking forward to diving into 2017 with our January group. I'm looking forward to continuing to grow our team, developing myself as a leader and helping even more people feel like their very best selves in the new year.

I also got to celebrate the marriage of my best friend (& adopted little sister) Jessie over the summer. It was a beautiful wedding and I felt so blessed to be a part of her special day.

Amid all of that, I found time to ride Cecily around the city, meet Tony Horton and Shaun T, visit with friends, see incredible shows, share a post on xoJane that sorta went viral, Fringe it up, read some amazing books, create delicious meals and even perform too (videos here, here and here)

And I got another tattoo.

this too shall pass (courtesy of Aaron at Speakeasy Tattoo)

This couldn't have come at a more perfect time and continued to serve as a reminder as the year went on.

Right around the time that I got the tattoo, we went through some scary health stuff with my dad and then 2 months later, my nan suddenly passed away. I kept looking down at my arm and tried to remind myself that things would keep moving forward and that this too would pass.

A hard summer turned into a tough fall and an even more difficult holiday season. Corbin and I went through a hard time this year. After defining what some of the issues were, we went to therapy together and really tried to be a team as we faced our problems. I'm writing this post from my nearly packed up bedroom with empty walls and a handful of hangers still in the closet. We broke up a week before Christmas and I'm getting ready to move into my own place on January 1st.

It's still very raw and very sad. Our relationship was incredibly special and I will have a lot of great memories - many of which have been captured on this blog. I have a lot of love for Corbin and all that we've shared. I've also learned a lot about myself and what I need throughout this process. I didn't think it would end up this way, but I feel confident that we're both going to come out on the other side even stronger as individuals. It's so so hard, but it's the right thing for us at this moment.

So now I'm here on the 31st, feeling very ready to turn the page and begin again.

I'll spend the day finishing up packing and preparing to move into my new place tomorrow. I'm going to be living on my own for the first time and it feels very liberating, whilst also being scary unknown territory for me. I've been spending more time than usual on Pinterest and I'm looking forward to creating a space I can thrive in. Tonight I'll be ringing in the new year with friends and tomorrow I'll start a fresh page in my gratitude journal as we load my belongings onto a truck and into my new apartment.

In the past I've picked a word that would be the theme for the coming year but I'm not exactly sure what that should be for 2017 just yet. I think I need to sit with it before I make a choice (I may have just signed up for this email series to help as well). I haven't set goals or intentions either, though perhaps I need to get clearer on that, especially if I aspire to blog more in 2017. On that topic, writing this post has been cathartic - take note, future Ashley!

I feel very lucky to have had an incredible group of friends to support me through all of this. I know that I wouldn't be standing without their love and support.

While 2016 has not been my favourite year, I hope that in time I can reflect on all of the good and the fun that also happened in a year filled with tragedy, sadness and anxiety. I also now have a permanent reminder of some sage wisdom, and can look down at my arm in case I need a reminder.

Here's to new beginnings. Happy New Year, friends xo

Coach Summit 2015

This post about Beachbody Summit has been such a long time coming. Life got in the way of writing it and didn't want to half-ass it because it was such an incredible experience - so finally, months later, here is the full scoop!

The City

Nashville is an incredible city - unlike anywhere I've ever been! There is music EVERYWHERE. In every bar, every nook and cranny, even playing out of boxes on street corners. It is AMAZING. And somehow every band is better than the last band you saw. The quality of the musicians there is unreal and for me it didn't even really matter that I'm not a huge country music fan - I just loved being immersed in music everywhere I went.



Southern hospitality is REAL. I learned that during a short stay in Georgia a few years ago, but this was solidified for me while we were visiting. From the staff everywhere, servers, hotel concierge, uber drivers, men who asked me to dance while we were out to the various people that we met - southern hospitality is legit!

The night life is a lot of fun. We went to a number of different places (each with awesome music) but my very favourite was Acme. They had a beautiful rooftop patio and an awesome band on the main floor where we danced the night away.

The Community

Connecting with my team and all sorts of awesome coaches was a gift.

Being the token Canadian on my coach's team, I often feel disconnected all the way up here! I talk to these ladies every day, but I don't actually get to see them and hug them very often. It was so wonderful to hang out with them for 3 days straight and be surrounded by 24,000 other awesome coaches who are out there helping others and doing great things in their business.

The Event

Summit was nothing short of phenomenal. I was on cloud 9 from the minute I arrived to the second I got back to Toronto. We attended 2 awesome events in the stadium where the Tennessee Titans play and 2 others in the area where the Nashville Predators play - where else can you house 24,000 coaches?!

These events were full of inspiration, information and another awesome opportunity to connect with fellow coaches. We got to see some wonderful speakers including Simon Sinek, Chalene Johnson, Dewitt Jones and a whole slew of top Beachbody coaches and executives. I felt like a little sponge, furiously taking notes and photos trying to absorb as much information as I possibly could. During the closing ceremonies we got to witness some of the very best fireworks I've ever seen and it was a beautiful way to end our time there.

The Food

While we were at the conference a lot of the time, I did have a chance to try out some great Nashville restaurants in between sessions, on our evenings out and on my Nashville exploration day before I headed home! Some of the highlights included brunch at Biscuit Love, stellar peaches at the farmers' market, southern BBQ, iced tea and treats at Barista Parlor, vegan cupcakes at Khan's Desserts and an incredible meal at Avo,  Nashville's very first raw restaurant!

And what Beachbody event would be complete without a Shakeology bar? I even got to try out some of the new Shakeology Boosts when they launched at Summit.

The Workouts

We each got to pick 2 workouts while we were at Summit and of COURSE I wanted to work out with my love, Shaun T! Insanity is what started this whole coaching journey for me so that was the obvious choice, and Cize was actually coming out while we were in Nashville, so I thought that would be super fun!

My Insanity workout was nearly the first thing I did while I was in Nashville. After getting up at 3:30am a busy morning of travel and 2 flights, I arrived, dropped my things at the hotel, went to registration, stopped for a group photo and then busted my butt for Insanity. The program IS called Insanity so it seemed fitting for it to be under insane circumstances...

It was all sorts of amazing.

I also got to try out Cize the following day. The workout was PACKED because everyone was so stoked for the workout to launch! I absolutely LOVE Cize -- a workout that doesn't feel like work because you're dancing?!? YES!!

I am so thankful that I had the chance to take this trip. I earned my ticket to Summit by being a Success Starter (which means that I hit certain milestones in my first three months as a coach) which was so cool! I've already got my ticket for next summer's summit and am really looking forward to being back in Nashville with my team again!!

Do you want to join me in Nashville this summer? Become a coach on my team and let's talk about how you could earn your own free ticket to Nashville!