OPERATION: Fall Into Fitness

Happy Sunday!  I cannot believe we're half way through October, and TOMORROW is my BIRTHDAY!  I feel so much better in my late 30's then I did in my 20's. I'm stronger, eat better, and just feel like I have things together (most of the time). But you know, even the most consistent and dedicated of people can lose their motivation at times and benefit from having an accountability partner (or several!).  That would be ME!!!!  I have been running and using my in-home workouts (Body Beast and 21 Day Fix Extreme) consistently every day other than the occasional rest day.  I can see visible changes in my arms and shoulders and just "feel" stronger overall, but like so many of us, I feel I can always improve with my nutrition.  I just don't feel as good as I know I can, when I don't get enough water, or eat too many sweets, carbs and peanut butter. I seriously think I need to stop buying the nut butter for about 21 days so I can "detox"! Haha. 

When I don't drink enough water and my eating isn't on track, I just plain can't sleep, I lack energy, I am not feeling my usual determined and motivated self, and I can totally feel it in my running and workouts.   When your body is used to eating clean, and then you have a little backslide, your body fights you back in not-so-pleasant ways!! 

So what did I do about it?  I decided last week to commit myself to using the 21 Day Fix Extreme, to a "T", containers and all. But with anything, progress is progress, and there is no such thing as failure when you don't give up. I had a slip up yesterday with the Apple Crisp my mom brought over, but I'm not allowing that to get me down. The only way to fail is to quit. And I'm not a quitter. Today is a new day, and I'm back in it to win it!  

This is my FOCUS:

1.  Use my 21 Day Fix containers for every meal, every day, for the duration of the 3 weeks.

2.  Ensure I get in my daily recommended water intake.  1/2 my body weight in ounces, every day.

3.  I know from experience when I follow my meal plan and drink my Shakeology, I will rid my body of sugar cravings to help me achieve my goal. TRACKING helps me stick to my plan. So therefore, I will take time to track my intake every single day. I love Sparkpeople.com, so that's what I'll stick to. 

4.  Although it is so hard to take a rest day, I will take one once per week on my Yoga days. 

5. I will not skip a workout, and will use my 10 minute ab workout every other day to work on my core strength. 

This is public accountability at its best, and what helps me keep pushing myself to be the best I can be!  I'm hoping that together we can keep each other accountable.  I truly believe that no one is perfect, but rather it's a lifelong journey that we are always working towards. By sharing my own personal struggles and successes, I hope to inspire and motivate you to keep yourself going in the right direction!

So because jeans and sweater season is here I want to give you EXTRA accountability too!  Do you dread going into your closet to see if last year's jeans still fit? There's no worse feeling than to go into your closet and have a hard time finding clothes that fit like they should. Or feeling your muffin top bulge over your jeans, or have a huge stack of clothes in your closet that doesn't fit. It's an instant BAD MOOD for sure. Or have you ever used the pregnancy trick (when you're not expecting) and used a rubber band to hold your pants together? That feeling SUCKS. No better way to put it.  Or only wearing baggy tops so that the belly bulge isn't as noticeable? I used to do that, and it made me feel terrible about myself!  But after really buckling down, and focusing on my nutrition, the pounds seemed to melt off.  I could wear nearly anything I wanted to and feel confident, and my mood was so much better, and I was just overall so much more confident! No more shying away from the cameras :)    

I know it takes dedication and effort, but I would love to pay it forward and do the same for you by offering you my help and support in a 4 week focus group online. 

I am kicking off the plan and prep week to my 4 week Operation Fall Into Fitness group on Monday October 19th.  This is a 4 week, closed online support and accountability group.  My goal is to teach you how to meal plan, how to make healthier, higher quality food choices, help you to manage your cravings for sweets, deal with the temptations of the approaching Halloween Holiday, how to handle eating out, traveling and everything else life throws our way!  

WEEK 1:  We will not be using workouts (unless you would like to), as there is a strong focus on your goals and getting you in the right mindset for the work that lies ahead.  Together we will set realistic and achievable goals, learn about nutrition and healthy choices, give you sample meal plans, snack ideas and more.  

WEEK 2: Here starts the FUN!  Applying what you learned in the first week, while adding in your in-home daily workouts (you have the choice of any Team Beachbody Fitness program.  I help you choose the one that is right for you based on your own fitness level, goals, and current needs).  The 21 Day Fix or Fix Extreme is by far my favorite, especially if you need an overhaul on your nutrition.  Plus the workouts are great, and there are modifications at each and every level for you to follow as you work your way through the program. 

WEEKS 3-4:  A continuation of week 2, we continue to use our daily workouts, follow our meal plans, share our accountability each day in our private groups, and support one another to our goals by helping one another celebrate successes along the way, and strategize any challenges or obstacles. 

So at this point you might be asking yourself what the requirements to join are?

REQUIREMENTS to JOIN: All you would need is to have me as your free Team Beachbody coach and complete the below application! It is 100% free of charge, and you would just create an account on my site! Then, I would walk you through the next steps to get started and get you added into my online accountability and support group.

Lastly, each person is required to replace 1 meal a day with Shakeology for the duration of the group. The reason is simple - for your health benefit, and I want to offer you the complete solution to healthy living. Shakeology is not "just" your typical protein shake.  It's not comparable to Slim Fast or any other shake on the market. I'm totally guilty of not checking the label on my shake. I used to use some cheap generic protein shake, that is until I took the time to educate myself on what I was REALLY putting in my body. Comparing that label to the list of ingredients of Shakeology was a game changer, and so eye opening. When you look at Shakeology you are seeing high quality ingredients that are not processed, there are no artificial sweeteners or flavorings and it is going to help you lose weight because it's portion controlled and it has the right carb to protein ratio that your body needs to make up a complete meal - therefore no cravings!  

You can choose any meal or snack during the day to replace with Shakeology.  I always suggest you choose the meal that you struggle with the most (or skip all together). For some, that might be crazy mornings with getting the family off to school and yourself off to work. Others might use it for their lunch at work so that they aren't going out to eat and resorting to other less healthy options. Give it 30 days so you can decide for yourself how it helps you stay on track, and how it helps you FEEL!  It will also help the transition to your new healthy routines easier, it will help you get better results because your body is getting proper nutrition and can recover faster, and at the end of the 4 weeks we can re-evaluate to see where to go from here!

Coconut Dream Shakeology

What does joining a Support Group entail?  Each day you will log in to the closed online accountability group and read the daily post from me, as your coach.  You will find either a tip on clean eating, a recipe, motivation or accountability.  Each person is required to check in each day and report their day for accountability (usually in the evening, or report for the day prior).

This is a private, safe place for us, as we are all doing this together. REAL people just like you, to help get you through any obstacles that come with reaching your health and fitness goals.  Having each other's support and encouragement is so invaluable, and will help us stay on track!

To reserve a spot in my Fall into Fitness Group, please complete the application HERE!  There is a limited number of spaces and its first come first get! Hope to see you in the group, get to know you and together become fitter and healthier versions of ourselves!!!  I cannot WAIT to ROCK OUT OUR SKINNY JEANS WITH YOU AT THE END!!!