Week 1 – 21 Day Fix Meal Plan

I’ve been posting about my love for the 21 Day Fix meal plan on my Facebook page a lot!  I just can’t help it, I’m love with the whole thing.  It just makes a ton of sense to me!

It’s not that I wasn’t eating healthy before…I just wasn’t eating the correct portion and balance of foods for me and my body’s needs.  This program is basically fool proof.  If you follow the guide book and stick to the list of foods, you can’t lose!  You WILL see results.

What I like most about it is NO MORE MEASURING and NO MORE COUNTING!!  I really hated logging into MyFitnessPal each day and manually typing in every. single. thing. I. ate. that. day.  Boring.  I have nothing against MFP, I think it’s a wonderful site, but to keep that up for months at a time gets to be a bit much.  Instead, I just fill up my containers with the approved foods and I know that it’s exactly how much I should be eating for my calorie range.  Simple. And I’ve noticed that my body has a much better system of regulating when I’m full.  I know exactly when to stop eating.

DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY: 21 day fix meal plan week 1

I get asked all the time about what a grocery list should like; what types of foods should you buy.  While I can’t list EVERYTHING you need here, I’m going to give you some suggestions based on what you should be eating on a daily basis for the Fix.

Proteins:

lean chicken or turkey breast
fish like salmon and tilapia
eggs
lean ground turkey
pork tenderloin
tempeh
plain Greek yogurt

Turkey bacon is on the approved list, but I stay away from meat like that is it’s very high in sodium and you can retain a lot of water when you eat it.

Vegetables:

spinach
broccoli
asparagus
beans
carrots
cucumbers
celery

Of course there are many more, but these are some of my favorites.

Fruits:

berries
watermelon
orange
apple
grapes
kiwi
1/2 banana

Notice it says 1/2 a banana??!  Bananas are higher in starch, so that is why a little goes a long way.

Complex Carbs:

yams and sweet potatoes
beans
brown rice
quinoa
corn
rolled oats (NOT instant)
whole wheat bread
whole wheat tortilla

There are also things like whole wheat waffles, pancakes, crackers, etc.  For me, these are not part of my diet as I prefer to eat Ezekiel bread as it’s lower in carbs and easier to digest and I also like brown rice tortillas.  However, if you are just starting and want to include those things, go ahead…baby steps, right?!

Healthy Fats:

avocado
raw nuts
natural nut butter
hummus
goat cheese
coconut oil

This is the category I would usually eat too much of in the past!  Cutting down on these foods and also eliminating cheese and dairy from my diet has helped me tremendously.  Cheese makes me really bloated, and I’ve noticed that is gone now since eliminating it and also since switching to a vegan protein drink.

A list of other ingredients I use frequently:

Shakeology! My clinically proven daily dose of dense nutrition!

chia seeds
unsweetened almond milk
lemons
herbs/spices
lemons for my water
raw honey

If you would like more support in your 21 day fix journey or you would like to start your 21 day fix journey please leave your name and email address for info on my next 21 day fix challenge!

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3 day refresh to a better feeling you

 

The 3-Day Refresh can help you lose weight and kick-start healthy eating habits in just 3 days. The Refresh is a short reboot program aimed at prepping someone for a path to better nutrition. This simple 3 day program, can be done at any time, for anyone looking to lose weight quickly, to feel lighter, to feel cleaner and healthier, to improve digestion, to curb cravings for junk food and/or to improve mental clarity. #3DayRefresh

http://bit.ly/3DayRefreshKits

 
Here’s a quick clip!

For more info on the next 3 Day Refresh Cleanse Challenge leave your contact info:

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Carl Daikeler talks with Chalene Johnson about PiYo

PiYo is the athlete’s yoga! Low impact stretching that makes you burn calories and build lean mass muscle! Eeekkkk Can’t wait to get started!!

Here’s an awesome ingredient!

Awesome thought: When you drink Shakeology® daily, you’re getting superfoods and minerals that health nuts like Shakeology creator Darin Olien spend their lives searching for!

Recovered Addict: The truth behind how I kicked Diet Pepsi

Hi, my name is Tawnya and it has been 542 days since my last DIET PEPSI!!!

It is NO EXAGGERATION to call myself a RECOVERED DIET PEPSI-AHOLIC! I was the girl that drank one or two with my meals… I was the girl that had to crack one by noon or I would have a migraine by 1pm! I was the girl that fantasized about the BURN that you get in the back of your throat from drinking it! LOL! (I KNOW my fellow DP’ers know what I am talking about!!!)

It was ridiculous and completely out of CONTROL!

Sooooo… HOW WAS I ABLE TO KICK IT FINALLY???

I was introduced to Shakeology and at the time I had 15 pounds to lose and was going to try it for 30 days to see if it helped me lose weight. I still in the back of my mind though, eh, I’ll still drink my diet pepsi. Others before me stated they just kicked it. But I knew that wasn’t me. I NEED MY CAFFEINE and ASPARTAME! (LOL… SO RIDIC to me now looking back!)

Little did I know, starting my fitness journey would be the END of my DP ADDICTION! Strangely enough, I haven’t had ONE SINGLE CRAVING SINCE!!! Wait… I will admit maybe one! I was briefly distracted during a treat meal and thought I’d have a sip of a friends and lo & behold IT DID NOTHING FOR ME!

ANYWAY! If any of you are dealing with this same addiction, I would HIGHLY suggest giving 30 days to Shakeology some consideration! Not only will you lose weight and feel INCREDIBLE at the end… You just may kick some BAD HABITS at the same time!!!

Sooooo THANKFUL I did!!!

Sincerely,

A RECOVERED ADDICT!!!
Comment here or Friend me on Facebook for how to get started!

Do You Foam Roll?

Excuse me, you are doing WHAT with that Foam Tube??

You have seen it right? You are in the stretching at the gym, minding your OWN business, and someone sprawls out next to you and starts rolling their sweaty body up and down this big Styrofoam tube thing.  You have NO idea what they are doing and surely you are thinking “what type of new exercise gimmick is THIS?”  I mean, how can rolling up and down on a piece of foam be of any benefit, right?

What exactly IS a foam roller?

Well, it isn’t a “gimmick” and it is actually one of the greatest introductions to the world of functional fitness and rehab.  A foam roller is basically a piece of foam, or a piece of foam wrapped around a solid tube (harder and more advanced) used to ‘roll’ the body.

To begin, you can use a foam roller to help release tension from those over-active or ‘tight’ areas before a work out.  When you use your own body weight and apply pressure along muscles and tendons, you’re increasing blood flow to those areas.

You know that feeling when you go and get a massage where the masseuse finds ‘a spot’ that makes you jump, and they just dig in on that spot until it ‘releases’.  Well, the same thing is happening here. When you find one of those areas while “rolling” you want to keep moving back and forth over the area for a good 20-30 seconds.  Doing this will often cause the tension to release.

It can get pretty complex scientifically, but I’m going to keep it simple for you.  With applied pressure you’re stimulating the muscle spindles and Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO) to effectively release tension and while increasing the circulation of oxygenated blood to the soft tissues.

More oxygenated blood prepares you to work hard and helps you to perform better much faster, often with much more intensity.  Following your work out, a foam roller can definitely help you accomplish a faster recovery by helping to release tension from tight muscles and stimulate blood flow to aid in recovery.

In addition to the muscles, we all have soft connective tissue just below the skin called fascia.  Applying pressure with a foam roller helps to break down adhesion’s as well as scar tissue between skin, muscles and bone, while softening and lengthening the fascia.

For example, after an intense leg session, I concentrate the foam roller on pressure points in my IT bands, quads and calves. I won’t lie – it’s an intense practice at first. But with some practice, you quickly figure out the areas where your body benefits most from this form of pressure therapy.

Similar techniques called Muscle Activation (MAT) or Active Release Therapy (ART) are used by athletic trainers everywhere.  Professional sports massages have the same goal of recovery, lengthening and release, and involve long, steady pressure applied to the soft tissues while traction is applied to the fascia and specific pressure points.

While I certainly can’t claim that a foam roller should take the place of a sports massage (I love getting mine!), I can highly recommend this as a part of your daily workout routine.  I believe that it closely mimics some of the effects of massage, and really helps me recover even faster with less pain and injury.

Injury prevention

And since you’re regularly using the foam roller to warm-up and/or recover, you’re addressing smaller injuries as soon as they happen and lessening your chance of injury, which is what everyone wants! A proper warm-up prepares the body to work and keeps you from over-exerting unprepared muscles and joints. A proper stretch and recovery enables you to keep fascia and muscle tissue from becoming stuck together (adhesions), increase total flexibility and range of motion, and reduce pain and soreness.   Better flexibility and range of motion leads right back to increased coordination and balance, which in turn improves your workouts. See the full circle?! It’s amazing right?

Which Foam Roll should I get?

I’m sure you have seen many different kids and colors of foam rollers.  What I am going to share with you today, is 3 of the most popular foam rolling options.  Click on each picture for a more in depth description (will open a window for Perform Better)

Option 1  CLICK HERE – The “Softer” Foam Roll

This basic roll is perfect for beginners and those that are more sensitive to pressure.  This is a great place to start as the foam roller is inexpensive and it is one you can always use for certain muscle groups.  It is ALWAYS good to have one of these around, especially if being used by only 1 or 2 people.  It isn’t very durable in a commercial gym situation where it is getting used all day long, but it is perfect for at home.   I still have my white foam roller and use it when I’m SUPER sore or just want a more comfortable roll.

 

Option 2 CLICK HERE – The Black “Molded” Foam Roll

This black foam roll is made of a denser foam that will last about 3x as long as a basic foam roll.  It will help you get into some of those harder to reach muscle groups (the psoas) that need a bit more oomph to get the muscle to release.

 

Option 3 CLICK HERE – The RUMBLE ROLLER Foam Roll

 
Used for self-myofascial release, an intense form of sports massage. Because of its uneven and raised nodules, this premium foam roller works like a deep tissue massage to get even deeper into the muscle tissue than ordinary rollers do.

You can easily get all 3 of these tools for under a hundred bucks…or about the cost of a good massage.  I think it is worth it 100%!

 

Foam Roller Recap

I love discovering simple (and inexpensive!) ways to boost my workouts as well as improve my overall strength and health. Using the foam rollers at your gym and possibly investing in one for your home (watch some boob tube and become more flexible at the same time!) will absolutely produce improvements you never even imagined, as well as help prevent injuries you’d much rather avoid. So get rolling!

PS- You can get foam rollers at most sporting goods stores! You can also find them quite inexpensive by clicking the pictures above to shop at TEAM BEACHBODY, my online store for training equipment and programs.  I’m sure you could also find plenty of options on Amazon.com

Shed some light on Salt

THE SALTY TRUTH – Himalayan Pink Rock Salt

 

Are you human? If you are, then there are definitely times that you crave something sweet, and then there are times when you want something truly salty.  Does that mean you should mindlessly indulge in ice cream and potato chips alternating sweet and salty?  NO WAY!!!

You invest the effort in making smart choices and sticking to the healthier side of cravings (no regrets that way!).  Where to start when you need the salt? Himalayan Pink Rock Salt.

Ironically within my weight loss programs, one item I actually ask you to limit/eliminate from your diet is one of the “whites” – refined white table salt.  And maybe you thought it was simply because of the extra sodium, but really it has much more to do with eliminating nutritionally empty foods from your diet!

 Why do I consider refined white table salt nutritionally empty?

I consider ‘table salt’ nutritionally empty because it’s a random add-on that’s been stripped of the full spectrum of minerals (more on this later).  White table salt is not a food that serves to enhance your health, it’s been industrially processed and is simply sodium chloride in its simplest form.

Doesn’t that sound appetizing? SODIUM CHLORIDE?

To metabolize these crystals, your body has to expend tremendous amounts of energy; this is completely counter-productive to establishing a healthy balance. Your body requires salt to function – it’s responsible for helping to control blood pressure, aiding our nervous system in transmitting messages (electrical impulses), and carrying nutrients into our cells.

Unfortunately, the sodium your body requires and is able to metabolize is probably currently obtained from whatever natural food sources you have in your diet, and often in inadequate amounts.  The bottom line: the salt deposits in our bodies are isolated and dead.

But what about SEA SALT?

Maybe you’ve gone grocery shopping and seen “Sea Salt” on the shelves as an alternative to table salt? In the interest of improving your nutritional habits, you may have bought it to replace what’s usually in your salt shaker.  Unfortunately this too is another marketing trend that doesn’t necessarily add to the nutritional value of your meal. You’re not getting anything but a higher price tag in switching to Sea Salt. The first clue is to look at the color. Full spectrum salt isn’t naturally white. The more refined it gets, the whiter it gets, and Sea Salt is no exception. Sea Salt may contain more vital minerals than table salt, but those minerals require a tremendous amount of energy from the body to be absorbed, and the nutritional gain is eliminated.

MOST sea salt today is processed. And, the ocean is becoming increasingly polluted which is ANOTHER reason this “sea salt” is not ideal.

The better choice is Himalayan Pink Rock Salt.

This is a pure and unrefined salt option that contains 84 minerals and trace elements that are easily metabolized by the body.  Typical table salt has most all of the beneficial minerals stripped away.

Himalayan Pink Rock Salt provides you with the salty effect that you’re craving and releases energy into your system at the same time! If you’re going to use ingredients in your cooking, make sure that they are all worth it.

This is a product that has a years-long shelf life (as long as it’s kept cool and dry) and that provides your body with the minerals it needs to keep both cravings for salt and cravings for junk food at bay.

Check out http://www.phreshproducts.com/phresh-salt/  under “pHresh Salt” for a terrific option. You’ll read about how it enhances the immune system, supports respiratory function, helps to stabilize heart rate and blood pressure, helps to restore cellular pH balance, helps increase bone strength, promotes sinus health, extracts excess acidity in the body, and promotes natural electrical conductivity in the body. I love some of the additional suggestions offered on this web site, including bathing and nasal washes.

An important note: Our body NEEDS neutral, unrefined salt with minerals to function properly. Salt is essential and you can’t live without it.

Some benefits of Himalayan pink rock salt include

• Helps restore cellular pH balance
• Extracts excess acidity in our bodies
• promotes sinus health
• helps increase bone strength
• helps stabilize heart rate and blood pressure

If you’re using a seasoning, understand WHY you’re using it and HOW it makes you feel. Try substituting Himalayan Pink Rock Salt for regular table salt and see if you notice a difference.

 

I hope that helps to shed some light on the differences between the 3 most popular kinds of salt.

Find the Opportunities

Opportunities: Find the opportunities in difficulties and not the difficulties in opportunities. No matter how bad a situation appears, there is always a positive resulting opportunity if you look for it. It is up to YOU, not someone else, to find that opportunity and decide to make things positive.

Solutions: There is a solution for EVERYONE. You can live with your excuses or you can find solutions. It IS black and white. There is NO grey area. There is a working formula for everyone and there is no exception to the rule.  There is always a solution. You may  just need to think outside of the box or ask for help to find it.

Choice: It is no one else’s fault that you are not where you want to be in life. You make choices every step of the way and you decide every moment to go left or right. No one force feeds you junk food. No one makes all of your decisions for you all of the time.  No matter how bad your situation is, you can control your reaction to things or your attitude about them. This is all up to you.

Success: Sure, it may be harder and more difficult for some and easier for others. Life isn’t always fair but get over it! Figure out a way to make things work for you. There is ALWAYS a formula for success. The stories go both ways. There are stories of those who seem to have black clouds follow them around all of the time and chose to be miserable and there are stories of those who beat the odds and wow the world despite misfortune and bad luck. Be the second one.

You chose every single day to be optimistic or pessimistic and you can always control your attitude. It is no one else’s fault. Stop blaming, start working for things and get over yourself and get over your excuses. If you need help, don’t be miserable, don’t complain, don’t put down and insult others for living their best life. Congratulate them and ask them for help.

Excuses or solutions… you decide. ❤

Your diet isn’t working…

Your diet isn’t working. You are exercising, you are counting calories, you are pre-measuring your food but it just feels like it isn’t happening fast enough! You are tempted to listen to that advertisement you just saw and drop big dollars on pills that are promising fast fat loss! You are considering signing up for that costly spa treatment that promises to “melt fat” and get you “thin quick!” You may even pick up a jar of that expensive cream that promises to “rid your body of cellulite” Before you decide that your diet isn’t working and sign up for those expensive treatments take a look at these facts:

It is all MATH and this is a fact. It takes 3500 calories to lose one lb of fat. In order to lose 2 lbs a week you need to burn or deplete 7000 calories. 2 lbs a week may not seem like a lot but that is 104 lbs in a YEAR! WOW… when you lose more then 2 lbs a week you are tapping into water and muscle and it is not a long term solution…

Starvation and severe calorie restriction will not work. If you eat too little and too infrequently you will slow down your metabolism and train your body to STORE fat. It is best to spread out your meals into 5-6 mini meals to feed your body and rev your metabolism regularly. It is very dangerous to go under 1200 calories a day ever. Eating this little puts your body in starvation mode and teaches it to store fat.

Output must exceed input! If you eat more calories then you BURN you WILL GAIN weight… If calories in exceed calories out you will gain weight. PERIOD. YES you should be eating protein, healthy carbohydrates, and healthy fats but PORTIONS still matter. Too many calories of ANY type of food will cause you to gain weight.

LIES. If it sounds too good to be true then it IS too good to be true. The only way to LOSE FAT and to keep it off is to WORKOUT HARD and EAT CLEAN. Body wraps, cellulite reduction cream, gimmicky food restriction diets, juice fast, pills that promise things will all help you lose WATER WEIGHT and MUSCLE but will NOT help you lose fat….!

You have to SWEAT. I know what the magazines say. Long walks in the park, doing laundry and household chores, lifting your groceries are all exercise. I call BS. Unless you are working out with intensity and sweat you will not make changes to your body.

You have to do the work! Excuses or Solutions…YOU Decide

Are you ready to JUMP START your weight loss in a healthy, safe, long-term way? Then look HERE for women, HERE for men… all it takes is a good college try!!

Be In The Balcony

What do you see?

What do you see first when you look at this image? 

Do you see the beach?
The boat?
The equipment?
The model?
The ocean?
Do you notice the photographer taking the image?
What sort of feelings does this image create?

Does it make you relaxed, happy, or motivated? Or does it make you angry, annoyed, critical that YOU can’t be relaxed, happy, motivated, thin… whatever..?

Do you feel inclined to say “great shot” or to write something mean and hurtful?  If the latter, why?

It is JUST an image.

A funny thing happens with social media and other online avenues. Pictures get posted, statuses and descriptions get written, and EVERYONE views the image, statement, hashtags differently.

Some people get inspired, while others feel the need to blast away with mean spirited words they would NEVER say to someones face.

 

Where do you reside? Balcony or Basement?

Personally, I choose to seek out and associate with ‘balcony people’ in this world.

There are more than enough people who want to climb to great heights, support others and cheer them on along the way.  These people are in stark contrast to those that only want to drag others down.

It’s up to YOU whether you decide to be in the BALCONY to those around you, or in the BASEMENT.  Just realize that that whatever you choose to be, you will attract more of the same.

Be Positive, Be Happy, Be Supportive