Shakeology Recipes

I know some people haven't yet tried Shakeology and there are some that find it to be the biggest and easiest win in their daily healthy lifestyles. I fall in the latter group. Shakeology gives me energy and eliminates the need to think and plan for at least one meal a day. Depending on what I put in it, it can hold me over for 2-4 hours.

Below is a collection of my favorite Shakeology recipes! Feel free to send me one of your favorites and I'll add it here. Know that the more stuff you add, the more calories you're adding. Pay attention to what you put in it so that you can count it on your tracker.

To learn more or to order Shakeology (they have sample packs!), click here.

SHAKEOLOGY EQUALS ONE RED 

Vanilla Shakeology Recipes:

Minty Watermelon

1 Cup of cubed watermelon (purple container)

6 fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup of water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Apple Pie

1 Cup UNSWEETENED Apple Sauce

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 Cup water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Peaches & Creme

1 Cup sliced peaches

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

3/4 Cup of water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Vanilla Almond

8 oz Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

1 TBSP of PB2

Totals: 1 red

Chocolate Shakeology Recipes:

Chocolate Minty

1 tsp peppermint extract

1 Cup water

Totals: 1 red

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

1 Cup Strawberries

1 Cup water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Chocolate Raspberry

1 Cup Raspberries

1 Cup Water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Choconana

1 medium banana

1 Cup Water

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Chocolate Avocado

1/4 Avocado

1 Tsp of PB2

Totals: 1 red, 1 blue

Greenberry Shakeology Recipes:

Strawberry Peach Paradise

1 Cup Water

1/2 Cup Strawberries

1/2 Cup Peaches

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Strawberry Lemonade

1 Cup Water

1 Cup Strawberries

2 TBSP lemon juice

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Tea-berry Zinger

1 Cup brewed unsweetened green tea, chilled

1 Cup raspberries

Totals: 1 red, 1 purple

Peachie Green

1 Cup of Greens (Spinach or Kale)

1/2 Cup Froz Peaches

1 Cup Water

Totals: 1 green, 1/2 purple, 1 red

Strawberry Shakeology Recipes:

Strawberry-Watermelon Surprise

1/2 Cup Water

1/2 Cup diced watermelon

2 Tbsp chopped fresh mint

Totals: 1 red, 1/2 purple

Agua Fresca

3/4 Cup of water (or club soda)

1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, chopped 

1 TBSP fresh lime juice

Totals: 1 red, 1/2 green

Strawberry Chia

1 Cup Coconut WATER

1 tsp. chia seeds

Totals: 1 red, 1 spoon

Our Foreward

A "Foreward" is often something that precedes the first chapter of a book. If you're 100% committed to this challenge and to making a change in your life, then this truly is the "Foreward" to your next book. It's not just a Chapter. If it were a Chapter, then it implies short term. This is ongoing. This is a long-term commitment. This is the rest of your life.

Also, let's play on the word and make it FORWARD. That's the direction you're heading. Monday you will leave behind the decisions that have made you enter on this path. You will leave behind the crap food, the excuses, the I Can'ts, the I Quits. There's no room for those in your new novel. The only person you quit on, is yourself. You deserve better.

So over the weekend, take the time to eliminate all the things that can trip you up. Empty the pantry of temptation. Take all the soda, chips, and processed crap to that graduation BBQ or birthday party you might be heading to. Get rid of it. Don't tell yourself that the kids need their Goldfish crackers. They don't. There are much better things you could be giving your kids for snack. If you need ideas, let me know.

The biggest thing to remember is that you don't want to set yourself up to fail. By getting rid of the crap now, it will make it a lot easier when you get hungry to make a better choice.

As your coach, there is only so much I can do. I can show you the results when you stick to this program. I can send you the shopping lists and recipes. Do we live near each other? I can work out with you! If not, I can still cheer you on, and pick you up when you trip: which you will. We all do. What I can't do, is do it for you. I can't do your meal prep. I can't pack your lunch. I can't do your shopping. I can't stop your husband from saying, "Let's just get a pizza tonight".  I can't stop you from getting a 600 calorie Starbucks drink. There's a lot that I CAN do, but there's also a lot that's on you. The commitment is yours. The Beachbody slogan: Decide. Commit. Succeed. Without the first two, you can't get to the last.

Let's write our Forewards together. It starts with the decision to move forward. Are you ready?

21 Day Fix Kitchen Hacks

When you first receive your 21 Day Fix Meal Plan Guide in the mail, it's so easy to freak out. I did it. I almost quit before I started! But this is why you have a Coach (hi!) and this is why you're part of a Challenge Group on Facebook! In that group, there are currently FOUR other coaches! If you ever have a question or need a venting session, that's the place to do it. Judgement free zone. Use us! We want to help and we want nothing more than for you to succeed.

Part of that success will be knowing just a few hacks and a few staples that can get you over a hump or get you through a particularly busy day when you might not have access to your kitchen.


Red/Protein:
Shakeology (because Duh. Shakeology is the best way to not have to think!)
tuna in packets or can
pre-cooked grilled chicken
pre-cooked shrimp
Greek yogurt
Cottage Cheese
Pre made hard boiled eggs (2 whole eggs or 8 egg whites equal 1 red)
frozen turkey, grass-fed beef of fish burgers, they cook in under 8-minutes.

Green/Veggies:
pre cut veggies
bag salad - I do this all the time and I don't count it
frozen broccoli to pop in microwave - daily for me

Yellow/Starch
canned beans
pre-cut sweet potato
Trader Joes frozen, cooked quinoa or brown rice (one packet equals two yellows)
frozen waffle
Ezekiel bread

Blue/Healthy Fat
Nuts
Hummus
1/4 avocado

Orange/Seeds
pumpkin/hemp/chia/flax/sunflower seed
and if you don't like these, just use 2 blues, I won't tell and do this myself often!

This is My Quest

Today's post was written by Michelle A., a Beachbody Coach and member of Team FitU. Michelle's story is amazing. Read on. You won't want to miss it. ~A


My weight has been an issue for as long as I can remember. While I was never an obese kid, I can’t say that I was really ever thin, either. Sure, I was moderately active, but I wasn’t a sports player. I was not athletic. I just was who I was, and for me that was always feeling awkward.

I remember not being able to find a well-fitting communion dress when I was in 2nd grade. I remember crying that I couldn’t find a decent Easter outfit in 5th grade. Again, I was not obese, but the sizing standards didn’t quite work with the body I was given, so it’s no wonder I had a body image complex at an early age.

In high school, I had joined Weight Watchers with my mother and lost a decent amount of weight and, for my height at the time, I was at the lowest weight I would ever see in my adult life (130lbs). I remember feeling confident and amazing. All of my confidence was completely cosmetic-based, however. It was never about health. It was always about how I looked.

Cut to the college years, and it was my second year away that I hit a depression that had me eating my feelings away and the scales tipped 190, the highest weight I had ever been in my life (at least, so I thought, but more on that later in this post). Realizing that I was once again miserable about how I looked, I tried Weight Watchers for the second time in my life and shed 30+lbs rather easily. I got my weight down to 155lbs. I met a guy. I had a great job. I was comfortable in my clothes and my physical appearance. I never exercised, save for the walking I did daily to commute to my job.

A few years and a breakup later, I found myself living in my home state, single, without my kickass city job. But I was okay. I maintained my healthy eating habits, but again, for cosmetic reasons, and I still didn’t exercise. A few months later I would meet my now-husband, and over the course of dating and getting engaged, I would see the scale slowly creep up.

I never let it hit 190, but it sure got close. I kept my weight around 170 during our wedding. I hovered there through buying a house, getting new jobs, and being a newlywed. Life, of course, led me to another challenging time in my life and lo and behold, the scale went above 190. Sure, I was upset about it, but I was also more active at this point in my life, and while the number on the scale wasn’t where I wanted it to be, I did join a local roller derby league as a referee and started to enjoy being active versus obsessing over the scale.

A few years later, I was pregnant with our first child, and while I wasn’t exactly the healthiest person nor at the healthiest weight, I had a healthy pregnancy. I delivered healthy baby boy. And then post partum depression hit, and I found myself at the second highest weight I would ever see in my life: 215lbs.

It wasn’t until my son was about 9 months old that the depression started to fade, and instead of joining yet another weight loss program, I decided to cut out sugar and carbs for good. Within weeks, 21lbs melted off and I started to exercise regularly. I wasn’t as obsessed with the scale, but rather how healthy I wanted to feel and exercise combined with cutting out the bad stuff put me in a fantastic place mentally and physically.

And that is when we found out I was pregnant with our daughter.

I was petrified. Petrified because this was a rather big surprise, but I remember fearing the weight gain, feeling unhealthy, and enduring two kids under the age of two while battling the postpartum hormones. I had a very stressful pregnancy, but I delivered our daughter rather seamlessly. A few weeks after I had her, I suffered yet another bout of postpartum depression, this time it was worse than before. I once again ate my feelings away, and the scale hit what would be the highest weight I would hit in my adult life: 225lbs

 
(me at my all-time high of 225lbs.)

 I was miserable. In fact, miserable doesn’t even encompass what I was feeling. It was physically evident on my face, the way I held myself, that I didn’t even feel like I belonged in my own body. Even though I knew I was capable of getting healthy, and even though I was aware of how to do it, I couldn’t muster the energy to do it. My depression hung onto me, and I physically wore it daily with the weight I had gained.

Thankfully, I knew that therapy was absolutely needed, and so I found someone to work with me to give me the tools I mentally needed to make myself better. Once I was able to get my mental state in check, I knew it was time to focus on my physical self, but it would still be just over 2 years before I even attempted it.

Cut to present day, and I can say I’ve successfully lost 31lbs. How did I do it? Well, first I started with just exercising and cutting out the carbs. That was working well for me, but I still felt I was missing something.

I was out shopping with Allyson and was talking how a friend of mine was a Beachbody Coach and piqued my interest in doing a 21 Day Fix with Shakeology. As luck would have it, Allyson was also starting her 21DF quest, so we sort of banded together and had that common denominator. We rooted for each other and for me, I was kind of liking the program.

While my 31lb journey hasn’t all been about Beachbody, the majority of it has. I managed to get the last 19lbs off with Beachbody products; 21DF, the workout programs, specifically Brazilian Butt Lift, and of course, Shakeology. The difference with Beachbody is that it isn’t about a cosmetic change for me the way it was in the past. This program has allowed me to feel good about myself, sure, but more importantly, feel healthy.

I can honestly say that I am in a better place because I started this quest and I am really happy that Allyson not only became a coach, but convinced me to do the same. I more than kind of like this program, I LOVE it.

This isn’t rocket science. This isn’t starvation. This isn’t just about looking good. This isn’t a fad. This is honestly and truly a way of life. I finally get it now. All those years of trying to achieve a certain look failed because I was doing it for all the wrong reasons. Now? I am doing it to feel good. Sure, I don’t mind that I just happen to be wearing smaller clothes and feel more like myself in my own skin, but because my reasons have grown, so, too has my desire to adopt this as a permanent lifestyle.

Join us on this quest! You won’t be disappointed.

(225lbs then, 31lbs lighter now!)

The Beachbody Difference

When I think about what I've been through with my quest to personal health and fitness, it's exhausting. EXHAUSTING. The "I can'ts", the "No time", the "Whatever, I'll just be fat" -- those quotes echoed over and over and over in my head for YEARS.

There are so many diets out there. Hundreds of books on how to live without sugar and eat all the bacon and grapefruit you want (but no dairy!). There are fitness programs that will have you in a wheelchair by the time your 4-year-old graduates from High School. But you know what? As ridiculous as they sound, they'll all work. They'll all work for the short term. And why do they work? They work because they're extreme. Anything extreme will work. And then when you're done with the extreme and realize you can't drink your meals for the next 40 years and you can barely bend over to tie you shoes let alone dead lift a small Volkswagon, they stop working.

Here it comes.

What if I told you that it doesn't have to be extreme. What if I told you that you can eat food. All the time. Eat. Food. Constantly. Multiple times a day. EVERY DAY. No juicing or blending or choking down green smoothies. What if I told you that you can workout 30-minutes a day, maybe 5x a week if you want (but you don't have to), and you can still lose weight, feel fantastic, and gain all kinds of health benefits.

I'll take it up a notch. What if I told you that you could still eat carbs, drink wine, not have to give up your coffee. What if I told you that you can have peanut butter and chocolate chips and CHEESE. FTLOG, CHEESE! You can have ALL of these things. And you're not going to die. You're not poisoning your body. You're actually eating real food. Food that is perfectly fine and safe to eat.

While I'm extremely cautious of body building and just general body image talk, I have to say this. Do you honestly think that bikini competitors starve themselves for days before they get on that stage? Do you think that they never eat a potato? Refuse every dessert? I PROMISE you that they don't. For a period of time before they compete, they cut back a lot of calories and eat lean, green, and clean - absolutely. But I promise you that every bikini model in this world has tasted the wonderful blended flavors of a Reeces Peanut Butter Cup. Probably more than once in their life. It doesn't have to be so extreme.

Being a Beachbody Coach has given me the platform to share what worked for me. It's given me the ability to talk about my story - how I lost 30-lbs, have kept it off, changed my mental state, toned and sculpted my body and have kept moving forward for almost a year without going back. Being a Coach keeps me accountable to myself and to the people I coach.  Finding the thing that stopped all the "I can't's" and "whatevers" and "I give ups" in my head has been life changing. The thing that lets me have the things I want to eat without making me feel like a failure. The thing that has provided me with workouts I can actually do instead of laying on the floor watching the DVD thinking, "Well, those people are nuts". The thing that makes me look forward to getting dressed every day and feeling good in my clothes instead of squeezing myself into them and counting the minutes until Yoga Pants. I found it. And I want to share it with everyone!

Before, May 2014          After, May 2015

June 22, 2015 I'll be starting another Challenge Group and I want it to be bigger and better than the first, which, well, these people have set the bar HIGH. Check out what some of them are saying:

I have loved this! Completely has changed my eating and way of thinking about diet and food. Eating clean and feel awesome! I've lost a little over five pounds but definitely feel a hell of a lot skinnier and way more healthy and energized. ~AH

I've learned so much and I'm in a great exercise groove, and it doesn't have to be PERFECT to be WORKING. Picking up some heavier weights today - not for everything, but for some exercises I'm ready. And that feels AWESOME! ~BB

I hated working out at home until I purchased some Beachbody workouts. The programs are fun! I love the eating plan because it's not a gimmick. It provides a healthy relationship with food, not starvation. I tend to fall flat on other fad programs. This? Makes me want to keep going. ~MA 

Is it easy? Not out of the gate. Nothing is. There's an adjustment period. It's like switching from a PC to a Mac. Takes a few days to get used to it. But once you do, you hit a point where it becomes easy. And you can't ever see yourself going back.

There are tons of great workout programs available as part of a Challenge Pack and you can choose one that will work best for you with your schedule and fitness level. They all come with a nutrition plan and meal ideas as well. Talk to me about these options and lets get you started on your Quest! Beachbody Challenge, Group 2, June 22nd. LET'S ROCK.

DAY TWO: Goals for The Challenge

Congratulations on making it through Day One of our Beachbody Challenge! By the posts on the Facebook group, it looks like most of you are kicking ASS and staying on track with food and getting the workout(s) in. I'm psyched!

I want to talk about goals. I had intended to post this talk as a video in the group, but instead, I posted about stress and its effect on our bodies. Case in point, my back is out. And it had nothing to do with my workout or pushing myself beyond my skill level. It has everything to do with the amount of stress in my life and how I carry that stress. I'm resting today and hoping tomorrow I can do some light Yoga to re-center myself and focus on the WHY instead of the NOW.

Anyway! Goals!

Someone once told me that in order to gain confidence, we have to meet success. With that in mind, I want you think about your goals for this challenge and perhaps re-word them a bit so that they become 100% dialed in and achievable.

Here are some examples:

1) I want to wear my favorite jeans without them digging into my sides.

2) I want to get dressed in something other than yoga pants and a T-shirt on the weekends because I'm worth that effort.

3) I want to complete this 21-Day Challenge. I signed up for it because I need a change and I'm not going to quit.

4) I want to feel better about what I'm putting into my body.

5) I'm going to workout every single day no matter what. Maybe it's not one of the DVD's that came with my program. Maybe it means I go for a 30-minute walk around the neighborhood or I drop in on a local Yoga class or hit up Zumba with a friend. Whatever it is, I'm going to move for 30-minutes a day.

Switch the focus away from how you look and more to how you feel. Switch the mindset from "I can't eat that" to "I choose not to eat that". Switch the focus away from your weight and more to your WHY.

So! NOW tell me your goals for this Challenge. GO.

Week 1: 21 Day Fix: Approved Breakfast Meal Ideas

Here are 5, 21DF Approved, Breakfast Ideas

IDEA 1
Shakeology! But of course! Shakeology tastes great on its own, but why not add a few things to it that make it taste even more awesome? I shared my favorite Shakeology recipe on the Facebook group, but here's another!

Strawberry Shakeology - One red
Frozen Mixed berries - One purple
Water & Ice as desired

Shakeology is awesome in the morning when you're on the go. It keeps you full until snack time, it's a super healthy meal replacement (not just a protein shake!) and it will help you to make better choices for the rest of the day.

IDEA 2
Oatmeal with nut butter and chia seeds

This is a GREAT make-ahead idea (although I rarely ever do make it ahead). The hack to remember is that 1/4 cup of uncooked, dry, quick cooking oats equals one yellow. Measure out your oats the night before, add the milk and let them sit in a bowl in the fridge over night. By morning, the oats are nice and soft. A quick zap in the microwave and boom. Hot, filling, energy infused, oatmeal.

1/4 Cup Quick Cooking oats - One yellow
1/2 Cup Unsweetened Almond Milk (It's only 30 calories, do an extra push-up and don't bother to count it) - Freebie
Chia Seeds - One orange
Nut butter (almond, cashew, peanut - whatever your fancy) - One spoon

IDEA 3
Egg white "omlette" with veggies and goat cheese

I get the little container of organic liquid egg whites from Trader Joe's because it's far easier than cracking eggs. (Guys? This is how lazy I am. This is why I failed over and over and over again at "dieting". Finding things that made this easier quite frankly just eliminated the excuses. This is why I'm sharing it all with you!)

8 Organic Egg Whites - One red
Veggies of your choice (I like peppers, mushrooms, and spinach) - One green*
Goat Cheese crumbles (or feta!) - One blue

*TIP: Don't count your leafy greens. Dice the rest of the veggies and fill the green container with a nice mix and then add to the egg whites.

IDEA 4
Homemade blueberry yogurt

This is a fave, but a little labor intensive and best done the night before. When I first started, the adjustment to plain yogurt was tough. I found it bitter and just generally unpleasant. However, the fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt is full of preservatives and garbage, so it's much healthier to have plain. I found a way to make my own fruit yogurt! This will work with any fruit, but blueberry is my fave.

Plain Organic non-fat (or 1%) yogurt - One red
Frozen blueberries (or strawberries, or raspberries, or blackberries - whatever!) - One purple

I dump my purple container of frozen blueberries into a Ziploc steam bag and put it in the microwave for 1.5 minutes. This softens them and makes them easier to blend. Then using my food processor (the little bowl attachment at the top), I add the yogurt and the blueberries and mix until fully blended. Stick the blended, homemade, blueberry yogurt into a tupperware (or even the purple container!) with a lid and you have a grab-and-go meal for the morning.

IDEA 5
Grab-and-go Hard Boiled Eggs
(and yes, you CAN eat the yolks!)

2 Organic, hard-boiled eggs - One red
1/2 banana - One purple

There you go! FIVE breakfast ideas for Week 1 of 21-Day Fix. Happy, and healthy, eating!

21 Day Fix Shopping List

Here you go! The long awaited shopping list. Since so much of 21DF is clean eating, I didn't want to send you to the store too early knowing that things will spoil before you get a chance to eat them. So shop wisely! I've categorized the list as best I could. You will notice that I'm a huge Trader Joe's fan. If there's one by you, I highly recommend going. Not only because of prices (which are FAB), but because the food is fresh and most of it is organic. When buying organic at the regular grocery, you will find a HUGE increase over non-organic stuff. Sadly this is one reason why people keep eating non organic food and claim it just costs too much to eat healthy. I find that's one big giant (lame) excuse, but I'll save that post for another day. Since you're all here to make changes, here's your first step. Shopping.

RULE #1: Don't go to the grocery store hungry. Suddenly the ice cream aisle will be the only thing you think about. Eat, then shop.

Staples 
These items should ALWAYS be in the house. If you run out before your next food shopping date, it'll be worth stopping quickly mid-week to restock. These are must haves to keep the convenience level of this meal plan in check. Should you run out of these quick snacks and grab-and-go items, the temptation to eat ALL OF THE CEREAL IN THE HOUSE DIRECTLY FROM THE BOX will be way too easy. Don't let that happen. Remember, YOU are in control of your success.

Unsweetened Almond Milk (30 calories)
1-doz organic eggs (hard boil 6 of them for easy grab-and-go)
Organic Hummus (try to get plain. Don't get crazy with flavors)
Plain organic greek yogurt (if you absolutely cannot deal with plain, vanilla is okay. No fruit. It's not real fruit!)
Natural Peanut Butter (unsalted is ideal, but gross. You won't die using salted. My favorite is Trader Joes Creamy Valencia)
Organic leafy greens (whichever you prefer - spinach, 50/50 blend, romaine, whatever. This will spoil quickly if you get the bagged kind so be sure to check dates to make sure you can get at least 3 days worth)
ORGANIC Green Apples (please don't even buy non-organic apples)
Fresh lemons
Coconut oil
Organic dark chocolate chips (TraderJoe's are awesome!)
Raw honey (if you can get raw LOCAL honey, bonus.)

Weekly Items
I'll be presenting a few different meal plans and you can go through and pick what you'll be eating. This is not EVERYTHING that's allowed on the plan, so be sure to read your meal plan book when you get it. You won't need everything on this list for week one, but pick enough of it and buy it so you have it to fix your meals for the week. This is where the planning comes in. Depending on the meals you choose for Week 1, you will need:

Meats (Red container):
Boneless, skinless (organic), chicken or turkey breasts
Ground turkey*
Frozen shrimp
White fish
Grass fed ground beef (I recommend staying off red meat for the first 21-days, but if you absolutely MUST have it, be sure it's grass fed and at least 95% lean)
Ham slices
Turkey slices
Canned Tuna
*Trader Joes has frozen burgers - turkey, veggie, chicken - these taste great and heat up quickly. They're a great quick meal that you won't have to think about. Highly recommend!

Veggies (Green container):
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Brussels Sprouts
Beets
Asparagas
Tomatoes
Peppers

Fruits (Purple container):
Frozen berry medley (this is perfect to mix with your Shakeology!)
Cherries
Grapes
Banana
Melon
Strawberries

Carbs (Yellow container):
Quick-cooking oatmeal (in a canister) I have a great hack for this that I'll share in the group this week.
Sweet Potato
Quinoa**
Brown Rice**
Beans
Corn Tortillas 6" (2 of these equal one yellow)
Whole wheat pita
Whole grain bread (1 slice is one yellow)
*Trader Joe's has pre-cooked frozen quinoa and brown rice. There are four packets in each box and 1 packet equals 2 yellows.

Healthy Fats (Blue container)
Avocado
Almonds
Hummus
Feta or Goat cheese
Shredded low moisture mozzarella

Seeds (Orange container)
Pumpkin seeds (raw)
Sunflower seeds (raw)
Sesame seeds (raw)

Seeds are great toppings on salads. You can substitute one orange for one blue so if you prefer to skip the seeds, that's no big deal.

Over the weekend I'll be posting meal ideas for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and snacks - all 21DF approved. You can us this to plan what you'll be eating this coming week! Any questions, you know how to find me!

Getting Selfish: The WHY

There's a lot of negativity surrounding the word "selfish". Many things can be construed as "selfish" and the interpretation is very subjective. Some people will say that investing in your health and fitness is selfish. Some people will say that spending time at the gym takes away from time with your family. And in turn, that's selfish. I have a hard time with this on a daily basis. Besides the regular Mom guilt, I'm also a practicing Catholic and THAT comes with a whole array of guilt built right in. Because Jesus was a self-less man and we as Christians are to follow Him and His teachings, once we divert from that ever so slightly, we feel selfish and guilty about it. Overcoming this is a daily battle.

It has to change. I have to change the way I think about my ME time. Getting healthy is more than about how my clothes fit and how toned my arms look. For me, this has been about getting off of antidepressants and anti-anxiety medication for the first time in 5-years. It has been about letting my husband (a very talented photographer) take photos of me in my daily life and letting him post them without me freaking out that I look fat. It has been about the skin on the backs of my arms clearing up for the first time since, well, ever. It's been about my confidence level. My ability to stand up straight and carry myself into business meetings like I matter instead of hiding in layers of clothes and long scarves. THIS is more than just weight loss and muscle mass. This makes me feel like I can be a better mother, a better wife, a better person overall. THAT is why.

I want you to think about your WHY and I want you to dig deeper than "For my kids" and "For my family" and "So I can live longer". I want you to, well, if we must use the word, then I want you to Get Selfish! Are there a pair of pants in your closet that you wore years ago and you felt HOT in them? And what you wouldn't give to get back in them and have that feeling again. That confident, untouchable, catcalling, wolf-whistling feeling? THAT's what I want to hear about. We are ALL doing this to change bad habits, to be able to chase our kids around the back yard, to live a longer life, BLAH BLAH. I've heard all that. I KNOW all that. Those are my reasons too - you know, the ones that DON'T make me feel so selfish. Dig deeper.

If I Can Do It, You Can Do It

When I decided to finally drop the wall (the wall of excuses, the wall of blame, the wall that basically had me standing on top of it with my fingers in my ears and my eyes screwed shut screaming LA LA LA LA LA at the top of my lungs) a sudden clarity appeared. A clarity about ownership and control. A clarity that came with personal strength and will power. Something that made me see the door open and the light appear.

Eating right has been beaten into my head from a very young age. There was never junk food in my house, but in the 1980's, what we knew about "junk food" was limited. It was basically candy and potato chips. No candy. No potato chips. We've evolved only slightly since to realize that among other things available to me then, Fruit Roll-ups aren't exactly health food and canned cheese, while super fun and entertaining to squirt onto crackers, doesn't contain anything remotely even close to resembling cheese. Still, at that time, these processed foods were balanced out by the fact that more people sat down to dinner every night as a family. My Mom or my Grandmother cooked every night. I remember roast chicken with broccoli and rice, spaghetti and meatballs with a huge salad, burgers with ripe tomatoes (that we grew in the back yard!) on top, and plenty of other meals. I remember my grandma slicing green peppers and shooing me away from the counter because I kept stealing the raw slices and running away. Because of this (and the fact that I never stayed still), I never had issues with my weight as a child or young adult.

Today in 2015, it's just too easy to fail at making good food choices. And to think, we're better off now than we were at the turn of the millennium! The organic, natural food movement has taken a slight hold, but not enough of one. Even fast food restaurants offer low calorie options. But we as a society are busier than ever. We schedule ourselves to the brink of exhaustion, work multiple jobs, enroll the kids in multiple activities, drive here, shlepp there, etc. etc. It's easy to hit the drive-thru between stopping at Target and picking up the kid at school. And I don't know about you, but I will pass over 10 fast-food restaurants while driving from Target to my house. Temptation right there in a red and yellow sign. And! As a bonus! You can probably get something that will hold you over until dinner with the change that's scattered on the floor and in the cup holders of your car.

Discovering Beachbody through my Pilates teacher (See? I was even going to the gym regularly and STILL battling the number on the scale!) and doing just one round of 21-Day Fix changed my life. I have control over food that I've never had before. I no longer suffer from stomach pain and guilt after eating a huge meal. I know how to order in restaurants. I know how to prepare my food at home. I know what I have to bring with me to get through the day. My workouts take on a new meeting. I workout to actually sculpt and change my body -- not to undo whatever the hell I ate. I opened my eyes. I saw how to make the change. Things became clear.

I want to share this with all of you. Over the course of the next 21-Days, I'll be sharing with brutal honesty what my life was like before and after 21 Day Fix. I'll be stressing out with all of you when it comes to not having enough hours in the day. I'll be moaning and groaning about having to fit a workout in. Because it's not easy. If it were easy, the world would be a size 4 and bikini body ripped. But it's possible. With such a small commitment from you - 21 Days - you can change how you relate to food. You can DO THIS. Because if I can do it, YOU CAN.

21 Day Fix Challege Group: Memorial Day 2015

Challenge Group 1

Beachbody Programs:
21 Day Fix
21 Day Fix Extreme
Brazil Butt Lift
Shakeology

Start Date: Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Participants:
Coach: Allyson
Challengers: TBD

Meal Plan:
21 Day Fix