Week one - done!!!

Whelp!  Week one of the 21 Day Fix Extreme is completed, survived and in the books!  I will be honest, I had a couple of adjustments I had to do - both physical and with my attitude!  Everyone knows how much I LOOOOVED The 21 Day Fix and was so excited for The 21 Day Fix Extreme!  But when I went to push play, I was not, let's say, thrilled.  I don't know - maybe it was the format.  Maybe it was that it just wasn't my old love.  Maybe it was the darn pink band!  I felt like I was spending too much time with a crooked dog's head watching and not doing (HUH?).  Then I remembered - THIS IS WHAT IT'S ALWAYS LIKE WHEN I START A NEW PROGRAM!  Phew, for a minute there last week I was kinda sad.

Let's talk about the Format.  Still actually, kinda the same.  4-5 rounds, 2 exercises each round.  (I think I just channeled my inner Autumn...)  The exercises each last 1 minute - technically.  See with the extreme, the first 30 seconds is always with weights, the second 30 seconds, with..weights, albeight lighter ones!  Or the pink band!  Sometimes we dropped them.  Don't let this scare you like it did me!  The routines are awesome, you feel the burn.  It goes by quickly!  You have bloopers  trying to wrap the band correctly - see?  Her workouts are fun!!!  But they're also tough.  That's why it's called the EXTREME!

The meal plan seemed to be my biggest hurdle this time - I wanted to do the Extreme workout with no treats - no chocolate.  Alas - that meant no Godiva Chocolate I was given for Valentines Day.  Didn't happen.  I tried to limit myself to one or two pieces each day, but it was GODIVA for Pete's sake!  Here was my solution and I am so sorry...

It's really not as bad as it looks - we ate (by we I mean me) all of the really good ones.  And that's the little bit of butter toffee that I had left but it all had to go because I gave it the good college try for a week and failed daily.  I'm actually kind of glad to learn that I'm human.

I did the workouts religiously every day and felt the burn every day - I loved it!  When your muscles are sore from a new workout it's your body telling you it's working!  That's what I LOVE about all of the Beachbody programs!  I had just finished Insanity Max 30 and totally thought I was going to kick some ass but nope - they decided to kick mine!

I only lost one pound but with seriously not following the eating plan all week I am SO GOOD with that!  Look above what 1 pound looks like!   I think too many times we become slaves to the scale and starve ourselves into weight loss.  If I can still eat, workout and continue to go downward on the scale I. am. happy!  I also lost 2 inches in my body so it is all good here!  The recipes, as usual are very good!  Enjoy this one for Hearty Beef and Butternut Squash Stew!

Stay tuned for more progress next week!  I'm doing the more difficult meal plan countdown to competition to REALLY dial in my meal plan to make up for last week!  Wish me luck!

3 Day Refresh Recap

I did it!  I took three days out of my busy schedule to concentrate on me!  And you know what?  It was easy!  I didn't need to take 3 days off - I went about my busy schedule like I normally do.  No having to hang around the house close to the bathroom.  NO being held up in my bedroom away from the kitchen because I was starving.  Nope - life went on as usual!

I wanted to lose a little weight and feel great.  I wanted to lose the bloat and eliminate animal products from my system to give it a break.  I wanted to lose the "heavy" feeling I had in my gut and that's just what I did.

This is not a system where you can't eat - in fact you start your morning with lemon water, then your Shakeology.  It's a dense, super food nutritional meal replacement that really keeps you full and satisfied.  I also was able to eat a serving of fruit with it.  The Shakeology has a vegan friendly, plant based protein in it and is really delicious!

Mid morning I was able to have a fiber sweep.  It wasn't bad tasting but was fiber none the less.  No running to the bathroom but it did keep me full and prevented me from having a mid morning sugar crash!  Mix it with COLD water and drink it QUICK - otherwise it gets too thick!

LUNCH!  For lunch I got to start with a veggie serving (the refresh guide tells you how much), another helping of fruit and a healthy fat like hummus, almond butter, avocado.  I switched between hummus with my veggies or almond butter with an apple.  The healthy fat helps to give you energy and keep you full.  I also got to drink a vanilla fresh shake for dessert - yum!  Loaded with another plant based protein!

Afternoon snack:  Another vegetable serving with another healthy fat.  One day it was veggies & hummus,  one day it was almond butter and celery sticks and one day it was a spinach salad with olive oil, sea salt and pepper.  All very good!

Now I'm ready for dinner!  The 3 day refresh gives you 9 different recipes so you don't get bored.  Yes, it was veggies and yes it was delicious!  I also got a vanilla fresh again.

I drank plenty of water throughout the day to help flush out toxins and keep me hydrated and full.

A couple of tricks:  cut back on your coffee intake before you start since you can't drink caffeine on this plan.  Drink plenty of water between all of your meals and snacks to keep you hydrated so you don't get a headache (I did get a slight one on day 2).  Drink Fiber Sweep as fast as you can!

I know I only lost 2.4 lbs but I am happy with that.  I am a pretty clean eater to begin with but could NOT get past all the holiday binging.  I just needed this to get me back on track and I have been able to make healthier choices ever since.  Yes, I do indulge and I'm perfectly ok with that - I wasn't ok with not being able to wrap my head around not indulging multiple times throughout the day though!

I love this program and will probably continue to do it every other month just to keep my body fine tuned.  They are machines and remember everything we plug into it.  I'm just going to look at it like an oil change!