Raquel is 54 years old. She has been married for 36 years. She is a mom, grandma, accountant, and credit manager for the past 25 years at a desk job in the same company. She’s been overweight most of her life, but she’s working on that now. She loves to eat, crochet, and loves to workout (that’s a new one)! 😄 She loves getting her butt kicked and she loves sweating! She had never shed one drop of sweat until about a year and a half ago, after she started training at LyonStrong and she loves it and thinks it’s awesome.
Lyonel started inspiring Raquel over a year and half ago when she walked into the gym. The reason she walked in was because she had everything set to go to get gastric bypass surgery because she needed to improve her health and didn’t think she had any other options. Raquel says, “All I had to do was schedule the date for the surgery but I was hesitant to do it, and then some crazy ad showed up on my Facebook page, and I figured I’d make the call because I wanted to find a different way besides surgery. I showed up here, and you (Lyonel) changed my life – you really have!”
She had Type 2 diabetes for 7 years, and with eating properly and exercising, she’s been able to reverse that. She was taking 2 different insulins before starting at LyonStrong but last July, within a year of starting, she was diagnosed pre-diabetic with one of the medications she was on eliminated. then 6 months after that, they started weaning her off the second one. Now she is med free – just exercising and eating properly! She’s still pre-diabetic, but without medication and it’s getting better. That’s why she says that Lyonel totally changed her life.
Her biggest whys for being at the gym, was getting her son involved in doing something about his health. He was with her last Christmas and he started making better food choices with the family, and he actually lost 35 pounds in a month! He’s still doing it. He’s back in school in Savannah and he’ll send her pictures of what he’s eating. So now Raquel, her son, and her daughter are exchanging recipes back and forth. She’s very happy that she got him on the right track because she made the decision to improve herself.
Her life is completely different now than when she joined LyonStrong. She still can’t roll around on the floor with her grandkids because her knees are still improving, but it’s a lot easier for her to get down and then back up from her knees now, and she’s doing so much more with them then she used to.
Her health has had the biggest improvement since joining LyonStrong. She’s now able to control her diabetes. Before, she had no control. It was either too low or too high – almost hitting 200, and she wasn’t eating right. LyonStrong has showed her how to take care of herself so that she can be around a lot longer to mess with her kids and her grandkids.
Raquel says that she hasn’t lost that much weight, but she feels healthier. She initially lost 50 pounds, but then put some back on because she started eating a lot of unhealthy things again. Once she started eating right again, she dropped most of what she had gained. She’s still not where she wants to be, but she feels great because she’s going in the right direction..
In the past, she might have lost 10, 20 or 30 pounds but then would gain it all back a few months later. With LyonStrong, she lost 50 pounds, gained some back , then lost it again and it’s a year and half later – much better than she’s ever done before, and that’s all without dieting, simply eating right. So now she’s feeling better, moving better, and getting stronger.
Raquel says that when her and her husband go to put her mother-in-law to bed, he will say, “Let me carry her.” and Raquel replies, “Dude, C’mon I’m stronger than you!” So she’s the one that carries her and puts her in her bed. 💪
Raquel agrees 100% that going to LyonStrong is not just an exercise program. You are going to change everything about your life – your mindset, the way you look at things. it’s not only about the physique.
Raquel is constantly referring people to LyonStrong and sharing information with them. She’s always telling them about her story and how she has changed with Antuan’s, Danny’s, and Lyonel’s support and how they push her. If she’s struggling, they’re always there to cheer her on. But it’s not only them, it’s the girls who workout with her in the mornings. They all push each other. It’s awesome, it’s family. She’s referring people every chance she gets. Her water bottle at work even has the LyonStrong sticker on it so everyone knows where she goes!.
RAQUEL’S FUN FACTS:
One thing about Raquel that people may not know: She is a big Emo-Rocker! She loves My Chemical Romance, The Killers, and Elvis to name a few. She actually got to see Elvis 6 months before he died. She had 5th row seats (Row E, Seat 5) and it was awesome! She remembers it well – and that was 42 years ago. She is so excited that she is going to be able to see My Chemical Romance again. She spent her lunch hour on Friday getting tickets. She says, “I might get into my first mosh pit! BUCKET LIST!!” 😄
Favorite music to workout to: The Killers – It pumps her up to keep going!
Favorite quote: “Live and Let Live” – She doesn’t mess with people and she doesn’t want people messing with her.
Favorite book: Anything by James Patterson – She’s read every single one of his books.
The first thing that comes to Raquel’s mind when thinking about LyonStrong, is the support, the camaraderie, and family.
“Lyonel makes people feel at home, like we’re family.. because we are!” – Raquel Gonzalez
Watching Raquel’s progress has been so incredible for all of us here at LyonStrong!
Her health improvements and positive attitude have been contagious!
We are so grateful to be a part of her journey.
Lyonel Lumarque
P.S. IT IS ABSOLUTELY POSSIBLE! You can do this, just like Raquel did. Let us be part of YOUR transformation story … LET’S SET UP A DISCOVERY SESSION TO HELP BREAK DOWN YOUR GOALS AND FIND OUT HOW OUR DNA SPECIFIC, CUSTOMIZED NUTRITION COACHING, TRAINING AND ACCOUNTABILITY PROGRAM WITH GUARANTEED RESULTS CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE. CLICK HERE AND SET UP YOUR SCHEDULED CALL TODAY!