So long and thanks for reading

Thanks for reading my blog while it lasted. I am no longer a Beachbody coach. It was fun and I've made a lot of new friends who still encourage health and fitness but the financial aspect of Beachbody was just too much for me. Please feel free to use this blog as a reference for what Beachbody can do for you. If you'd like to find a coach, I have a few recommendations.

Back on the wagon

October was crazy busy and I got overwhelmed by all that was going on. Something had to go and I had ZERO motivation to exercise and eat right so I took a hiatus. An almost 2 month long hiatus... Hey, sometimes you need a break and a reset! But I'm back!

I intended to start November 1st but a week later is ok too. A ton of my friends are doing Core de Force and I wanted to do it too but I saw a preview and it's just not what I'm looking for. I need weights. I need more than just body weight exercises. I was going to do my Pure Barre videos but they're an hour long and I just don't want to commit to that much time. I started thinking and decided on 10 Minute trainer because I can commit to 10 minutes a day. There's 2 options: 1 a day or 3 a day. My goal is to do the 1 and hopefully get the other 2 in but do at least the 1 every day for the next 28 days. So here goes (again)...

I made a huge mistake when I started Beachbody

I made a huge mistake when I started Beachbody. Hind sight it 20/20 tho and you live and you learn and I'm here to make sure you don't make the same mistake that I did.

I kept looking into Brazil Butt Lift and decided if I'm looking into it this much then I just need to order it. Not having a coach or even knowing what one did, I looked at the Beachbody website and Amazon. Amazon was the same price but offered Prime shipping so guess who I went with? Amazon. 2 days later I got my DVDs in the mail and signed up for a free membership. It asked who my coach was and I just chose the name of the girl of the blog I was reading at the time because she had great results. I did the program and got pretty good results even though I didn't stick to the meal plan much. I enjoyed it and have thought about doing some of it again soon. 

You're probably thinking "what was your mistake?" My mistake was I ordered on Amazon, didn't have a coach set up, and didn't know about on demand. I paid $53. If I had known better, and had a coach who would have told me, I wouldn't have purchased the DVDs at all. You see, there's a premium club membership but it costs money and as soon as I saw that I wasn't interested anymore. What I didn't know is how much you actually get with that membership and how it's sooooo worth it! It's a mere $2.99/week and is billed quarterly at $38.87. So basically I could have had 6 months worth of this level for the price of the DVDs. I would also have gotten 10% off anything I wanted in the store minus challenge packs. AND... here's the kicker and biggest mistake... access to on demand which includes Brazil Butt Lift, Brazil Butt Lift Master Series, Brazil Butt Lift Carnivale, 29 of Beachbody's most popular programs, Beachbody's cooking show, and 5 exclusive programs with Beachbody directors. But instead I spent it on ONE lousy DVD pack. AAANNNDDD it comes with a 30 day free trial!!!!!!

If I could go back in time I would have gone straight to the premium club membership and only used on demand. But my mistake is your advantage. Don't do what I did and check out all there is to offer. Sign up here.

Flexitarian's Guide to the 21 Day Fix

Google “21 Day Fix” and you’ll find a plethora of information without buying the program (you still should but I’ll get to that later). You’ll find how to calculate your caloric needs, how many of each container to eat, what foods go in each container, and even meal plans. 21 Day Fix has been around for more than 2 years and is still one of the most popular Beachbody programs. Almost everyone I know who does Beachbody has done at least one round of it and everyone has posted amazing results.

After completing Brazil Butt Lift and Insanity Max 30 and I decided to tone it down some and started 21DF. I did Dirty 30 before going on a cruise. The exercises look simple and I grabbed my 5lb weights and went at it. O…M…G… did I sweat!! My heart rate got up to almost where it was during Max 30 and I was barely doing any work. My legs hurt for the next 5 days! Looking at stairs made me cry. I took a week off and relaxed on a long awaited Royal Caribbean cruise and gained 6 LBS!! I’m sure some of it was waste and water retention, etc but I willingly consumed copious amounts of extremely delicious cookies, fries, onion rings, cookies, hash browns, bread, cookies, chocolate desserts, a little alcohol, and did I mention cookies? The best thing by far was the peanut butter rice crispie treats. I HAVE to find a way to recreate those and make them healthy. I knew I was going to stick to the meal plan when I got home so I wasn’t too worried and wanted to get in as much junk as possible before eating healthy again.

When I did Brazil Butt Lift and Insanity Max 30 I didn’t stick to the meal plans. I tried to eat healthy/healthier and sometimes watched my calories but the plans just didn’t appeal to me. Honestly, most of the plans are the same or very similar. They’re all full of protein and have few carbs. As a carb lover and protein hater, I found this really hard to swallow (ha!). I have limited how much pasta I eat and now maybe have it once a week instead of 3 times. Looking at the 21DF meal plan had me worried too. I’m very picky (think 3 year old) and don’t eat meat often. It really surprises me when people do meatless Monday because it’s that hard for them to not have meat. I’m not vegetarian because I love chicken and burgers but I don’t want a pound of meat every day. I discovered there’s a thing called flexitarian (or semi-vegetarian) which fits me perfectly!

What is a flexitarian?

A flexitarian is simply someone who doesn't eat a lot of meat and doesn't have meat every day. According to Dawn Jackson Blatner’s website, per week beginner flexers have 2 meatless days, advanced have 3-4 meatless days, and experts have 5 meatless day. I’d safely put myself in the advanced category. I scoured the internet looking for a flexitarian version of the 21 day fix and couldn’t find anything so I decided to create my own! It’s a combination of the normal 21DF plan and the vegan plan. I’ll outline the differences between the two, show you what I’m doing, and maybe throw in a few recipes. Please be advised, I am not a dietitian. I am not a nutritionist. I am not a doctor. Use this as a guideline as you would anything else you find on the internet or in a book or pamphlet. Please seek medical attention if you feel you need to. Here we go…

Number of containers: 

The vegan plan contains the same amount of blue, orange, and teaspoon containers, more green and yellow containers, and fewer red and purple containers. It also has a category for 2300-2499 calories whereas the normal version only goes up to 2100-2300. The foods listed in each category also differ.

(To calculate your calories multiply your weight by 11 then subtract 350)

Foods: 

Green, purple, and teaspoon food lists are still the same. The vegan blue food list doesn’t include the cheeses and the vegan orange food list adds chopped nuts. Beans, lentils, edamame, peas, and refried beans are now reds and seitan has also been added. The yellow containers have been split into two categories: A and B. Yellow A’s include whole grains such as rice and quinoa whereas yellow B’s contain more processed grains like pasta and bread. You’re allowed more A’s than B’s and if you skip a B you should have an A. 

The food list pictured below has all of the vegan reds in the red list and removed from the yellow list. The yellow list is also divided in 1/2 to reflect yellow A's and B's.

Now what?

You’ve calculated your calories, have determined how many of each container to eat, and know what’s in each category so now what do you do? I initially started out thinking I was going to follow the vegan plan but add in some meat but decided to do it a little different. You could do it like that or you could follow the normal plan but with the added proteins, or do a combo of the two (one day follow vegan, the next follow normal). I like following both plans because it gives a better variety. On days I really want a lot of carbs I’ll follow the vegan plan and on days I don’t want a ton of rice, I’ll follow the normal plan with added proteins. The added proteins have really put my mind at ease when it comes to meals because I don’t have to have a ton of meat. I can now have freeze dried edamame and it’s a red container!

Why you should still buy the program even though it's all over the internet...

As shown, you can find pretty much all of the information you need in order to do the 21 day fix or at least the meal plan part of it. What you don't get is the containers, a Shakeology cup, 30 healthy meals every month!, the exercises, 24/7 support, new friends, access to Beachbody's most popular programs, challenge groups, and contests. You can try to google the exercises (I did before buying) and can find some but nothing is better than having them yourself. You can do your own exercises and eat according to the meal plan which is still good but it's not going to show you the results you want. There is no substitution to getting the program. If you order before 10/31/2016 then you also get an instant $20 savings! Ready to accept the challenge and start working towards a new, healthier you? Sign up here. Still have questions? Email me! :)

Some recipes just for fun…

3 Ingredient Oatmeal “Cookies” 

Makes 8 cookies 

(1 yellow (A) 1 purple 1 orange per 4 cookies)

1 C old fashioned oats

1 ripe banana

4T chopped walnuts

Mix together and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes. They do NOT spread so flatten them to your liking. The flatter the crispier as they’ll still be chewy in the middle.

Nutty Rice Quinoa Bowl

1 C/serving

(2 yellow (A) 1 orange)

2/3 C cooked brown rice

1/3 C cooked quinoa

2T chopped, toasted, pecans

Cook rice and quinoa according to directions. Toast pecans (careful! they burn quick!). Mix together and enjoy.

I'm back

Life has been crazy lately. I finished Insanity Max 30 and didn't get the results I wanted. Not even close. I gained 2lbs and I think some inches. My cardio improved though. I was able to get through Cardio Challenge without stopping so that's a win. I guess I expected to get really fit from seeing everyone's amazing results. Granted I didn't stick to the meal plan but I tried to eat healthier. I really think weights are needed in order to really see an improvement for me. Body weight is nice and all but not for me. My next challenge is the 21 day fix but I'll get to that in a second.

Hubby and I went on a cruise while our little one stayed with Nana. If you've ever been on a cruise then you know how much food there is at all times of the day. And it's delicious too. We started the cruise knowing we would probably gain a few lbs but that was ok because we had cleaned out the pantry and fridge before leaving and were only going to buy healthy foods when we returned. We did go to the gym a few times and stayed active (kayaking, snorkeling, dancing, etc) so all wasn't lost. I brought some Shakeology on board too for the Health Bet that Beachbody is doing right now. I swear that stuff saved me. I was so bloated and felt so gross after a few days and it quickly helped get things moving again. I looked pregnant at one point it was that bad. The last day we gorged on Johnny Rockets onion rings and fries and burgers and milkshakes. It was delicious. When we got home I had gained 6lbs and Hubby had gained 5.

That brings me to the 21 day fix! I started last Monday (a week ago) and have LOVED it!! It looks super easy but man will you be sore! Autumn will try to kill you during it. Really. It's all "raise that leg one more time" and you're over there like "but I can't!!!!" and break down crying because your muscles are all cramped up and you physically can't get off the ground. For real(z). Anyways... So far I've lost 3lbs of cruise weight and am enjoying the meal plan after tweaking that a bit. I'm working on that post now so stay tuned!

Insanity Max 30 Month 1

I have been horrible about updating my blog the past few weeks (have been super busy at work and travelling) so I'll just do a month 1 review.

I had some good meal plan days and a lot of bad ones. I need to not have cookies and M&Ms in the house or completely resist eating them because I can't have just one/some. Week 4 didn't really happen. I started it and got sick and tried to push through but my body had other ideas. I tried to start it again last week and did good until Thursday because we were on vacation. I had every intention to exercise in the mornings and even downloaded the workouts I would need but didn't do them. It's hard to find time to exercise when your toddler is with you all day and you're not at home and family is around. I did however complete a 7 day squat challenge and did the exercises for that every day so I'll count it towards something. I had my shakeo every day too. While I tried to eat healthy on vacation I indulged more than I had hoped and even had McDonald's for dinner yesterday (we were still on the road). BUT I did have water instead of soda! With missing about 2 weeks of exercise and eating poorly I gained weight and inches. I'm trying to not be too upset about it and thinking of it as being able to get even better results in the end.

Month 2 of Max 30 started today and it wasn't too bad. I also ordered Piyo (yay!!) and plan on doing that alongside Max 30 for the stretching. I am LOVING the Piyo meal plan too! There's more peanut butter and milk counts as a protein! That's huge since I love pb and hated eating so much animal protein. I WILL STICK TO THE MEAL PLAN! (if I say it it's going to be true, right?) I really want to lose the weight I gained over vacation and maybe a few more lbs before our cruise. That way I can enjoy the food and drinks without worrying. ;)

Updated Stats:
Weight 115 lbs
BMI 20.0
Waist 26"
Hips 32"
Butt 36"
Thighs 20.5"

Insanity Max 30 Week 1 Results

I started on the 4th of July because why not? I ate fairly well but honestly it's a holiday so... First up was Cardio Challenge. I maxed out at 8:10 but kept going. Tabata Power on day 2 kicked my butt and I had to stop 24 mins in. I had done CC after lunch and TP first thing in the morning so the lack of food in my stomach took a huge toll. I pushed myself too hard and paid for it. You live and learn and I started day 3 with 1T peanut butter on whole wheat toast and didn't have any problems finishing Sweat Intervals. I used the modifier because some things hurt my back but I didn't max out. Day 4 had TP again and I didn't max out thanks to pb. Day 5 was Friday Fight and I maxed out at 11:42. Day 6 can be rest but I chose to follow the ab maximizer schedule so I did Pulse which doesn't seem hard but takes a lot of mental strength.

My calves hurt all week. I followed the meal plan but added in some cookies and veggie chips because it was coming out to 1000-1200 calories and I didn't feel that was enough given how intense the exercises are. I'm trying to stay under 1500 so my body doesn't go into stress mode.

Shakes this week included:
Chocolate with 2t peanut butter (meh)
Tropical Strawberry with 3/4C strawberry greek yogurt and 1C water (yum)
Chocolate with 1/2t mint extract (YUM!)
Tropical Strawberry with 1/2C pineapple OJ and 1/2C water (yum)
Chocolate with 2T finely chopped almonds for National Chocolate with Almonds Day (can't really
          taste the almonds)
Tropical Strawberry with 5 frozen strawberries, 3/4C pineapple coconut yogurt, and 1/2C coconut
          water for National Pina Colada Day (on the 9th)

I'm going to start mixing most of my shakes with yogurt to get that extra protein and red container in. Plus it makes it like a milkshake.

I didn't lose any inches and gained a pound this week. My guess is it's from my sore legs and building muscle (hopefully). Plus it takes time to gain and lose weight so I can't expect to see amazing results in a week.

Updated Stats:
Weight 111.5 lbs 112.5
BMI 19.5 19.6
Waist 25.25"
Hips 32"
Butt 35.5"
Thighs 20"
Arms 9.5"
Calves 12.5"/13"