Today we are joined by Red Leaf customer, Beth Rener, from Jacksonville, Florida to share her fitness journey and body transformation. We became aware of Beth through a vendor relationship and watched as she began to train with a kickboxing gym and put in the hard work to improve her health. She began buying Red Leaf products a couple of years ago and we have been so impressed by her story and her commitment that we just had to share it. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Beth Rener!
Red Leaf: We’re so pleased you are with us, Beth. Tell us a little about yourself.
Beth: My name is Beth Rener and I was born in Jacksonville, Florida nearly 40 years ago! When I was 2 years old, my dad took a job in Indianapolis, IN where I grew up in the Broad Ripple area and lived until 2011. As I got older, I was utterly sick of the snow and cold weather, so I followed my heart back down south and ended up back in my beautiful beach town. I am married to a handsome prince of a husband and we have a 9 year old drama queen. (Literally she LOVES theater and dance, and she lights up the stage).
Red Leaf: We’ve been blown away by your body transformation this past year. Tell us about your fitness journey.
Beth: I have been overweight since the womb. I was an 11 pound baby! I have always struggled with my relationship with food. I went through a few years of being “in shape” playing Rugby in High School, but I tore the ligaments in my knee in a game, and the surgery and post-op recovery at 16-years- old was enough to make me hang up my cleats.
For most of my career I have worked on my feet and always just thought that was enough. I struggled with an eating disorder in my late teens/early twenties and it further crippled my terrible relationship with food.
My brother suffered through a multitude of different issues with gastric bypass surgery and I knew that I would never follow that path, but I could not continue to watch my health dwindle as I made poor lifestyle choices.
In 2015 I met a lady named Pam, who quickly became my friend and mentor. She was an athletic instructor that saw the drive in me before I saw it in myself. I used to take the exercise classes that she taught and she constantly pushed me a little harder than I thought I had in me. She was my “go-to” for many things, but most importantly she was an amazing coach. On January 12th, 2021 she lost her brave fight against breast cancer and it broke me down to the core. I knew her voice would never leave me and I had to find the fire in myself that she had seen in me. Once you become a certain age, it is your responsibility to unlearn behaviors that hinder your growth as a person. That age for my weight loss journey was 36.
On February 13th, 2021, I took my first steps on to the red and black mats that have changed my life. I was completely out of my comfort zone, I struggled with every minute of every exercise, but the support in that place was unmatched. I was encouraged by people I had just met, dripped sweat, but was proud of myself for making it through that first class.
I took the time to write down real goals on paper, and started a 6-week weight loss program through I Love Kickboxing. I lost 25 pounds that first 6 weeks and knew I was hooked.
Red Leaf: You have really done well with kickboxing. Tell us more about that and what you love about it.
Beth: Kickboxing is thrilling. I have only done kickboxing through www.ilovekickboxing.com so I do not claim to be
an expert on it universally, but for my studio, the constant changes to the exercises, the varying routines, and the instructors are what really made me fall in love. There is accountability you don’t find in a lot of other exercise options. We do a 15-minute warm-up with everything from running, high-knees, burpees, jumping jacks, crunches, leg lifts, etc. Next we stretch then get ready to hit the bags. By that time, your adrenaline is pumping and I am ready to dig in! I love having a release for the stress of my day and nothing quite beats throwing a mean hook! After 6 rounds of bag drills, I am beat down and a sweaty mess but that feeling of accomplishment is like none other! Let’s be real, I just love punching things!
Red Leaf: What challenges are you facing in your fitness journey and how are you addressing those challenges?
Beth: My biggest challenge thus far is staring back at me in the mirror. Excuses. Doubt. Failure. Laziness. Dieting.
I could go on for days about the challenges I deal with and continue to deal with. As I said, my relationship with food is not the best, but I’m always working to improve. The thing you have to remember about fitness is that it is never about being better than someone else. It is about being better than you were yesterday. I have to constantly remind myself to get out of my own way. Try to be 1% better every day. Change doesn’t happen overnight and it rarely happens in your comfort zone. Step out of it, you may surprise yourself.
It is also critical to remind myself to celebrate the small wins. One more roundhouse, one more punch, one more minute. When you give yourself achievable goals, you have to celebrate them along the way even when they seem silly. That desire to always be just a smidge better keeps me motivated.
Red Leaf: We are so thrilled you are a Red Leaf customer. What is your favorite Red Leaf product and why?
Beth: This is a tough question for me, as I love BOTH pre-workout flavors AND use the Omega 3 Fish Oil supplement every day! If I absolutely had to choose I would have to go with the cranberry lime pre-workout. The Recovery Balm is amazing too though! You can’t go wrong with RedLeaf products!
Thank you, Beth, for sharing your inspiring body transformation with us. You are crushing your health goals and inspiring all of us to do the same. We can’t wait to see what the next chapter holds for you!
