Tag Archives: Diet

Shakeology Cleanse 2012 – Day 3 and Results

Well…it’s official…I’m DONE with the cleanse!

Yesterday was day 3 and I changed things up a bit. My husband was off from work and wanted to go out for lunch so I had my salad and grilled protein then, instead of for dinner. I actually felt better doing it this way and had even more energy throughout the day than I did waiting until dinner time to finally have some real food.

My morning started off like usual. Glass of water, iced coffee (black of course) and a shake. Lunch was a grilled chicken fajita salad and water. I did indulge in some fresh chips and salsa, I have zero guilt about this as they are my favorite and it’s not everyday that I get to have them. Dinner was another shake as was dessert for the night.

I definitely slacked on my water intake yesterday and I think it showed on the scale this morning with only a 1 pound loss, although I have ZERO complaints about my results from this cleanse. I can honestly say my sweets cravings are almost gone, my impulse urges to eat have diminished and I don’t feel as bloated and gross as I did on Sunday after the holiday cookie/food binge that took place this year.

My final results are as follows:

I lost a total of 6.5 pounds, half an inch lost 2″ above the belly button, 3 inches lost at the belly button and 1 inch lost 2″ below the belly button for a total of 4.5 inches lost.

I plan on sticking with two shakes a day for the rest of the week and then settling in a new workout routine on Monday.

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Shakeology Cleanse 2012 – Day 2

I know I’m a little late on this blog and I had full intentions on doing it last night but I had something come up.

Yesterday was Day 2 of my cleanse and it honestly wasn’t that bad. I woke up and headed for the scale to see what impact Day 1 would have on the number. I was down just about a pound and somewhat disappointed because the first time I did this, I lost 2lbs the first day. I quickly got over it and realized a pound is a pound and got my day started. To my surprise, when I took my measurements, I was down on all three numbers! This further proves that the scale does not tell the whole truth.

Meal one was a glass of water, iced coffee and a chocolate Shakeology. I was very full after this and had to force myself to have “lunch” today. I drank a ton of water again which resulted in me spending most of my day in the bathroom, but I think my body just adjusted quickly to what was going on. I was very hungry around dinner time but once I was around food, my appetite went away so my meal was actually very small.

While I didn’t do a workout today, I had plenty of energy and didn’t feel as tired as I did on day one.

I’ll admit, I totally forgot to drink my two cups of green tea and I might have had a teeny, tiny piece of Entenmann’s Ultimate Crumb Cake, which my husband brought home the night before not realizing I had started the cleanse. However, upon stepping on the scale this morning, that teeny, tiny piece of cake didn’t matter anymore as I lost 4lbs! Crazy right?! I also went down again on all three of my measurements!

Day 3 has already kicked off for me and I’m sipping my first shake of the day as I type this. Hopefully if time permits, I’ll have another blog post tonight…if not, Day 3 and my results will be a joint blog tomorrow.

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Shakeology Cleanse 2012 – Day 1

I woke up this morning and decided to move my Shakeology cleanse start date up one day.

If you do not know what Shakeology is or what the Shakeology cleanse is, please click here. You can also check out my first experience with the cleanse and see what my results were.

I am not sure why I decided to do this and as the day progressed, I regretted the move more and more.

You see, it’s Sunday, and Sunday equals beer, pizza, some form of salty snack in a bag and usually some ice-cream during the 8pm game. Not the ideal health food, but hey, I like certain things and I understand that I’m holding my progress by indulging in them. Don’t judge me.

I started my cleanse with my usual cup of iced black coffee, a glass of water and then my first of three chocolate Shakeology shakes. I felt great after this meal and I was grateful I slept late because it meant a shorter day and hopefully less hunger.

Shortly after this meal, I went into my fridge and remember there was a whole entire pizza pie in there. PIZZA! If you know me, you know my love of pizza. I was officially miserable and tried to avoid the fridge for the rest of the day.

I busied myself with a 20 minute workout on the stationary bike, taking down all of the Christmas decorations both inside and outside of the house and watching football. The problem with watching football was that it made me want pizza….sigh…it was like the book “If You Give A Mouse a Cookie”…and an obvious sign that I was once again hooked on foods I shouldn’t be hooked on.

I decided the cravings meant it was time for lunch so I prepared my second shake of the day and I had a banana with it. It was good…but it wasn’t pizza. Can you say one track mind?

In between shakes I drank tons of water which meant I went to pee about a million times. At least it gave me something to complain about besides the fact that there was pizza in my fridge. *sigh*

Dinner time meant food. REAL FOOD! I prepared a pork roast, steamed veggies and potatoes for the family. I had my green tea at this time along with a large helping of steam broccoli and lean pork, a long with some spinach. It was heavenly, mostly because I couldn’t sip it through a straw.

As for shake number three? I’m currently sipping it as I write this pity party blog. It’s another chocolate shake (I loathe the greenberry stuff) and I added some frozen black cherries to it.

Be sure to keep out for my blog tomorrow! I will report any weight loss, if there is any as well as any measurement changes.

If you have done the Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse before or if you are doing it now, I would love to hear about your experience.

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So Long 2011!

I have never been so happy to say goodbye to a year as I am to say goodbye to 2011.

This past year has been a downward spiral for me.

I started off really strong with Round 3 of P90X, meeting Tony Horton and plans of studying to become a personal trainer. I am ending this year with sporadic workouts that I can count on one hand over the past 60 days, no personal trainer certification and a feeling of failure.

I’m not sure what happened, where I went wrong or what caused me to derail in the manner I did. All I know is that I have the power to correct it. I just have to get my head cleared and focused.

I am heading into 2012 with hope and determination. I am hopeful that I will find my passion for fitness again and I’m determined to get myself back on track.

My plan as of right now, is to do a Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse (which sucks and I’m gonna blog each horrid day of it) starting January 2 and then settle into a 3 day a week workout routine. I don’t want to jump in a commit to a 90 Day program right away. I need to ease back into the disciplined mindset and take baby steps like I did when I first began this journey.

So, farewell 2011….you sucked and I won’t miss you at all. There were very few good moments to you and you will not be missed.

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All I Want For Christmas Is…Motivation.

…..is MOTIVATION.

As you can tell by the lack of blogs here, Yes, I am still in my fitness rut. I guess after going so strong, for so long it was bound to happen. I burned out and lost focus.

After a month of not doing any workouts at all, I finally started back up this week...but not with any particular program…I just can’t seem to decide on one. However, my nutrition has been pretty good...not stellar…but good enough to maintain what I have achieved and even notice some fat loss around the midsection.

So…Santa, if you read this blog, all I want for Christmas is my motivation back…and a Mophie Juice Pack Plus for my phone.

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‘Tis The Season For Lots O’ Drinking!

Office parties, family get-together’s, dinner with friends and stress….these all sound like perfect reasons to have a few drinks to me. Then again if you know me, you know that #BeerMe is a popular phrase of mine *wink, wink*

The truth of the matter is, alcohol is one of the quickest ways to pack on the pounds and a hefty cocktail will double-cross you by cancelling out that fat-burning workout you enjoyed earlier in the day. Now don’t get me wrong…I’m not saying you can’t have a few drinks over the holiday season, while watching football or just because holiday shopping at the mall sucked. I just want you to make smarter choices when doing it.

If you are a beer drinker try to opt for light beers.You could save yourself over 100-calories per drink considering most regular beers have around 180-calories per bottle. Brands like Corona Light, Heineken Light, Bud Select and Miller Lite all have around 100 calories per bottle. Brands like Michelob Ultra, MGD 64 and Bud Select 55 all have even less. (To me, the latter taste very watered down.)

If you prefer mixed drinks try to have them made with diet soda or “light” juices if available. I know soda is normally avoided in the fitness world, but then again alcohol is too. Here are some figure friendly mixed drink options under 200-calories each to consider: Gin and Tonic, Vodka and Sprint Zero (you can add a splash of cranberry juice – I had this over the weekend and I am a big fan), an Appletini, Mojito (without the simple syrup), White wine spritzer (diluted with water or club soda), or a Mimosa Lite.

Harder liquor such as 90-proof alcohol contains about 110 calories, and when you add carbonated sugar-filled sodas, juices and Redbull, you also add-on the calories. Just this weekend I indulged in some Jager bombs and opted for sugar-free Redbull instead of the original. It wasn’t as good, but I appreciated the calories I saved.

Red or White Wine contains anywhere from 109 calories – 129 calories per 50z serving, depending on the type of wine you are drinking.

My advice during this holiday season is to be aware of what you are drinking and go for the low-calorie fun. Drink plenty of water between your cocktails, and remember that alcohol adds empty calories and interferes with your bodies ability to burn fat.

*If you have a favorite low-calorie cocktail or beer you would like to share, please feel free to do so below in the comments section.

Happy Holidays and Drink Responsibly!

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Raspberry Cooler
Ingredients:
1 1/2 oz Raspberry vodka
3 oz Sprite Zero
1 splash of lite cranberry juice
1 wedge Lime

Mixing instructions:
Fill a highball glass with ice. Add Raspberry vodka, Sprite Zero and a splash of lite cranberry juice. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

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The End of Month 1

The end of Insanity, month 1 has arrived and I am on day 3 of my “recovery week”.  Anyone who has ever done Insanity knows why I put recovery in quotes…it’s not really a recovery, it’s just torture at a slower pace.

I have to say, I feel great this round. Month 1 flew by and I am noticing plenty of change in my body already. My last week of workouts was a little sketchy due to work, but I doubled up when needed and switched my rest day around to accommodate.

This week I have also incorporated some weight lifting into my routine. I love lifting and it’s the one thing I miss most when doing Insanity.

Now to be honest, I am not looking forward to month 2….Max month. Those of you who have been following my blog or my tweets know that I struggled viciously with Max month during my last round of Insanity. I cried. I cursed. I threw temper tantrums. In the end, I completed it and felt like I accomplished something huge, but once again I am filled with dread and self doubt as I prepare to face it again.

Insanity is a mental game and this time I hope to be stronger than the demons in my head. Afterall, I’ve done this before and I survived it…I really have nothing to fear.

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Stealing Time


I didn’t have time to type up a blog this week so I stole a little time and decided to vlog instead….enjoy!

As always, thank you YouTube for using the worst possible freeze frame. SMH.

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Back to Diet Basics

This week I realized that while I eat healthy, I allow myself a few too many cheat meals and don’t eat quite as cleanly as I should. Granted, I eat a million times better than I did before I started working on getting healthy, but there is still room for improvement.

I decided it was time to start logging my food into MyFitnessPal again and that I need to set my goals and make a check-list like I did when I first started out. I’ve noticed small things like stealing tastes of ice-cream at work, having soda at the movies and my new found love of “3rd degree burn” Doritos sneaking in here and there and THAT is not good….as a matter of fact it down right scares me.

Here are the goals I have set for now:

1) I will eat vegetables 5 times a day with every meal (assorted colored vegetables, green salads, fresh, steamed and grilled vegetables) in a  portion size of about 2 hands cupped together.

2) I will try eat complete lean protein 5 times a day with every meal (chicken breast, turkey, egg whites, low fat dairy, whey protein, lean red meat) in a portion size as big as the palm of my hand.

3) I will eat every 2-3 hours. This will require lots of  pre-planning and prepping, but I used to be great at it.

4) I will eat carbs other than veggies (oats, potatoes, pasta, whole wheat bread, legumes, etc.) for breakfast and or within 2 hours after my workout.

5) I will drink green tea with every meal and I will also drink at least 2 liters of water a day. I love to drink coffee but I will try to cut back to 1 cup a day (no cream). No soda, sugary drinks, fancy flavored coffees, etc (I’m pretty good at this but I have allowed soda while at the movies to creep back in). I will also cut back on alcohol.

I am curious to see how my body will react to this change. I am hoping for more energy and to shed a little more of the stubborn belly fat my body refuses to shed. Regardless of it all, I am happy I have maintained all of the goals I have achieved despite my slip-ups.

Also, I’m very happy to report that I am making progress in the area of accepting my body. I no longer look in the mirror and immediately look at the areas that need improvement (I eventually gravitate there, but I’m a work in progress, people!). I now see the hard work I have done, how far I have come and think I’m pretty effin awesome.

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Experimenting with Sport Beans…


During the past week of Insanity, trying to find balance between meals and workout times has been a challenge. I’ve found that I have to wait at least 2 hours after a meal to begin my workout or I will puke. The problem with this, is that I’ve been eating every 2-2.5 hours since beginning this program, so I end up running out of energy halfway through my workout and struggle to finish.

While talking with my #insanecrew the other day my beloved coach brought up Sport Beans. I had never heard of  them before so I instantly started asking questions. I found out that there is this whole group of energy aids out there that runners like ranging from Sport Beans to some stuff called GU. Apparently you take them before a hard workout and they give you the energy that you need to make it through without a big meal…SCORE!

Of course I hunted down these beans and bought a few bags in various flavors, along with some GU to test them out and see if they actually worked.

Last night was the big night…I decided to test out the Sport Beans! I flipped over the bag, read the directions and started chomping away on them 30 mins before my workout as directed. Some of the flavors were quite icky (yes, I used the word icky) while the fruit punch and berry were actually quite good. I grabbed some water since you are supposed to hydrate while using them and started my workout.

Fast forward to the halfway point were I felt the beans sitting in my chest and I was as jittery as a junkie who took too much speed! I had TONS of energy but couldn’t hold a plank pose to save my life cause my arms were shaky and I felt sick from the sweetness of the beans.

Of course when my workout was over I told my #insanecrew about my experience and found out that I shouldn’t have followed the package directions. It seems that eating 3-4 beans as I’m waiting for the disc to load is all I should have done…..can you say oops?! (Or should I say “Thanks for the heads up tweeps!”)

Lesson of the Day: Don’t eat a whole package of Sports Beans to do an INSANITY workout unless you want to be a jitter-iffic mess for the rest of the night/day.

Today I tried them again for Pure Cardio and I only popped 2 beans as I pressed play. I had plenty of energy for the workout, didn’t feel hungry at the halfway mark and didn’t get jittery at all. (Insert the “SCORE!” I was searching for.)

By following this modified way of using them I give them a huge thumbs up and thank my coach for telling me about them. (Even if I wanted to kill him last night for not telling me this sooner to ignore the package directions.)

For those you interested in Sport Beans here is some info or you can go to their website. I also found out that they make Extreme Sport Beans with caffeine. I guess I should be grateful I didn’t chomp down a whole pack of those last night!

Sport Beans™, from the makers of Jelly Belly® beans, are specially formulated to fuel your body before, during and after exercise.

  • Simply explained, Sport Beans are Jelly Beans formulated with carbohydrates, electrolytes and vitamins B and C
  • Eat one packet with one to two cups of water about 30 minutes before exercising
  • During a long workout, eat one packet every 45 minutes
  • Eat after a workout to replenish muscles of depleted carbohydrates

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