Listen to the words.
Watch the images.
And ask yourself...
How bad do you want it?
How far would you go for your dreams?
Let me ask you again...how bad do you want it? How big are you willing to dream?
I'm doing a Beachbody coaching apprenticeship right now with my upline coach, and she posted this video this morning. And I don't know why exactly, but it struck a chord. So much so that I HAD to share! This is powerful stuff.
Listen to the words.
Watch the images.
And ask yourself...
How bad do you want it?
How far would you go for your dreams?
Listen to the words.
Watch the images.
And ask yourself...
How bad do you want it?
How far would you go for your dreams?
I'm not saying that everything went perfectly and that it was all sunshine and roses, but the results speak for themself!
7 pounds...1" off my waist...1" off my hips. Arm and ab definition like I've never had before!
But, this is a review, so I will tell you what I LOVED, where I struggled, and even what I didn't like! So, here it goes!
Struggles:
Those damn yellow containers....
I really don't know what else to say. I'm Italian. I like my pasta...and pizza...and garlic bread. And beer. Ya...the yellow containers are really hard for me! I sort of half-assed the food part of the program for the first time through, and didn't really lose a lot of weight. But, pre-challenge group, I really decided that I would fully commit to this the second time around, including the food and that made all the difference in the results. But ya, the yellow ones are definitely the hardest for me.
Also, another struggle for me was getting more creative with my veggies! I'm very much a salad girl. That's my favorite way to eat veggies, for sure, but what with only being allowed 1 orange per day, I struggled with how to get my veggies in, because, let's face it, I'm not about to eat a dressing-less salad! So, I had to come up with new strategies for getting my veggies in, since I had to get 3 greens in during the day! My favorite trick became throwing a hefty handful of chopped spinach into my shakeology for breakfast in the trust me, you can't even taste the spinach once you're done! Check out my post about green smoothies for tips and recipes ideas! Then, I would tend to have a big kale salad for lunch. And for my last veggie, I would either have a snack of veggies and hummus (I liked cucumbers, celery or tomatoes), OR I would save up that last veggie for dinner and sautee some veggies into a veggie stir-fry or my favorite Paleo Phad Thai or get another serving of veggies at dinner in one of my many chili recipes! morning--
Dislikes:
These are actually very few and far between for me because I was so happy with the eating portion of this program, and the workouts definitely delivered on their promises to get me strong and toned! You definitely feel the burn! The only thing that I maybe didn't like was the fact that there was a workout everyday for 3 weeks, but I think maybe that's part of the deal when you buy a program designed to deliver big results in 3 weeks!
The recipes are my only other complaint. The food book tells you what to eat and gives you some recipes, but I really never used them. I relied a lot on pinterest, the internet, my challenge group girls, and my coach to give me good recipe ideas.
LOVES:
-Those adorbs little containers!! Need I say more? I'm done with 21 day fix now and I still use them all the time!
- The modifications in literally every workout! You'll probably need them! I definitely did! The side plank in, I think, Dirty 30 I had to modify up until the very last day I did that workout! Yay for progress!
-The workouts. Seriously. Ass kicking at it's finest! Especially cardio fix! That one is a killer! But don't worry, it's a good kind of ass-kicking!
-The Challenge group! Seriously, I wouldn't have had the successes I did without my group! That was my first challenge group, and I'd never thought I'd needed one because I always feel like if you're going to make a lifestyle change, you can't really on other people. You need to motivate yourself. And I still believe that! But, you're going to have off days. You're going to have moments when you don't understand why you're putting yourself through it! And that's when having a team and a coach that are relying on you to commit with them is a GREAT thing! When you get in moods like that, you remember that you have these people behind you that want you to succeed too, and they want to be motivated by you, and you eventually want to motivate them too! That's the benefit a challenge group gives you and it is seriously invaluable!
So, that's my 21 Day Fix review! If you're looking for a program that's simple, straight-forward, pushes you hard and tests your dedication, but delivers on it's promises in 21 days, then you should definitely try this program out!
Note: I was drinking Shakeology while on this program! Shakeology is meant to enhance your results by providing your body with the nutrition it needs to refuel and replenish after a tough workout! If you want to know more, check out my post about Shakeology here!
Message me on Facebook or comment here if you want more information or if you want to try the program!
There's nothing better than having friends who are as into healthy, fresh ingredients as you are! Especially when it's a great friend from high school who you randomly get back in touch with! My friend Rachel from high school recently published a cookbook, called Spring Kitchen, which you can now buy in a Kindle Edition on Amazon!The very first thing that caught my eye in this cookbook was this lovely recipe -- Smoked Salmon, Asparagus, and Avocado Salad. I'm a smoked salmon fiend, what with being from the PNW and all. As I read through the recipe, I realized how long it had been since I'd had some! I had left over asparagus, spinach, and avocado from the previous week of shopping, among some other random ingredients! The only thing left to get was the smoked salmon and some raspberry balsamic vinegar for the dressing! I had to modify the recipe a little bit to meet my 21 day fix needs, but all in all it worked out great! I whipped up the dressing with lemon, olive oil, and the raspberry balsamic vinegar, and voila! Deliciousness!!
I even packed it for lunch one day, keeping the avocado and dressing in my separate, 21 day fix containers so that the salad wouldn't be soggy by the time I ate it! :-)It was so delicious, you all! I can't even begin to explain! I highly suggest being a bit more diligent in removing the bones from your smoked salmon--you won't regret it!
For all my 21 Day Fix friends, this lovely salad was portioned out each time, with the spinach and asparagus contributing 2 green, the smoked salmon 1 red, the avocado 1 blue, and 1 orange for the dressing! It is delicious! And I highly recommend you pick up the book and try it!
Other phenomenal salads and other recipes that I can't wait to try from Rachel's Spring Kitchen cookbook are:
-Date, Feta, and Prosciutto Salad -->This one is delicious too! I just had it for lunch! Though I didn't have any dates! The dressing is amazing!
-Prosciutto & Arugula Naan Pizza
-Strawberry Kiwi Parfait with Granola
-Raspberry Baked Cod
I had a couple cans or beans (black and kidney), some ground turkey, and a whole bunch of peppers! So, I literally just cooked up the ground turkey and threw everything into a crock pot with some chili powder, cumin, and red peppers flakes, and a little bit of water to make it more liquidy! I didn't measure any of the spices, but I definitely think I would use another chili recipe as reference next time because I don't think I added enough. But regardless, all of those ingredients just stewed away in the crock pot for about 8 hours--and voila! Easy, delicious, hearty, healthy meal! :-)
For all my 21 Day Fix friends, I did pre-measure all the components of my chili to see how much of each component I was putting in. So each serving, (which should give you about 6 servings) will have 1 yellow (the beans), 1 red (ground turkey), 1 green (all the VEGGIES!!).
That's all for now, everyone!
HAPPY EATING! :-)
So, I thought I would share what I've found works really well for me for making my morning smoothie, which I even have on the weekends nowadays! This post in particular is about making a green smoothie! It can me so much trickier to get that nice, smooth texture once you start adding in greens, like spinach! The first few times I made my smoothies, they tasted great, but there were these unsightly and unappetizing chunks and strings of spinach that did everything but add to my enjoyment of drinking my smoothie! So, below I have compiled a lit of things to know to make a really good smoothie! I've also included a recipe that I stole from my upline Beachbody coach! :-)
Things to Know:
-Get a Blender! The higher power of blender you have, the better your smoothie will be blended! These usually range from $50-$100 and even as much as $400, with the lower power (but still fully functional) blenders costing more in the range from $30-$70. So if you're not in the market for a new blender, that is totally fine! You'll just need to do some other things to make your smoothie smooth, which I've highlighted below!
-Liquid component first. This allows for the liquid to form a vortex and pull the other, solid ingredients into it so that they can be better combined. It's a good idea to do this for both low and high powered blenders, but particularly for low powered blenders!
-Chop up your greens! This is especially important if you don't have a higher powered blender (like me!)-Add your frozen component last! This might be just ice, or maybe you're using frozen fruit! I personally love frozen bananas to add a little bit of creaminess to your smoothie as well as a subtle, tropical flavor! This is also a good idea because it pushes down your lighter ingredients, like your greens, closer to the blade so that they'll get better combined!
-Lastly, once you've gotten all your ingredients in, pulse the blender a few times before turning it on all the way. I usually use my ice crush button to do this! This starts to get your other ingredients pulled toward the bottom so that they'll get nice and chopped up instead of pushed away from the blender blade! Once you've done that, start you blender on LOW and then crank it up to HIGH after a bit to really get those last few chunks of ice and greens blended down smooth!
That's really it! It's super easy! Then throw your shake it a portable container--I love my Shakeology bottle--and voila! You've got a delicious, portable breakfast to start your day off right! :-)
I've included some recipes below (one to start off with, and I plan to add more later!):
Recipes to Try:
Greenberry Coffee Kickstart
-1C of drip Coffee (at whatever strength you desire)
-1/2 C of nut milk (I like Almond and coconut milk)
-Handful of chopped spinach (You can use other greens if you wish, but I like spinach because it's softer and it blends well)
-1 scoop of Greenberry Shakeology
-1 tsp of PB2 powdered peanut butter
-7-8 large ice cubes
Blend and Enjoy!
Berry Delicious ShakeO:
-1.5C of almond milk
-Handful of chopped greens
-1 scoop of Strawberry Shakeology
-a handful of frozen mixed berries - add more of these for a thicker, fruitier shake
-2-3 large ice cubes
Blend and Enjoy!
Other Shakeology/Smoothie Recipes! These ones don't have green but you can totally add greens to them if you desire!
Mocha Frappuccino ShakeO:
-0.75C Almong Milk (I also have been using a delicious Almond-Coconut Milk Blend)
-1C Brewed coffee (refrigerated)
-1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
-Half a frozen banana *Optional, but adds a great creaminess to your smoothie
-1tsp of PB2 powdered peanut butter* Optional
-3-4 ice cubes
** With the colder weather I have been cutting back on the ice in my smoothie. I only add enough to make it a little bit frothy and not like a full-blown smoothie
Peppermint Mocha Shakeology:
-12 oz of STRONG peppermint tea
-4-6oz of coffee
-a dash of almond milk just to get some creaminess
-Scoop of chocolate shakeology
-4 ice cubes if you desire
Blend and enjoy!
Chai Tea Latte Shakeology
Same idea as the Peppermint Mocha but a little different
-12 oz of STRONG Chai Tea
-**Optional coffee if desired - I don't think this one needs it**
-4-8 oz of almong milk
-Scoop of VANILLA Shakeology
-4 ice cubes
BLEND AND ENJOY THE DELICIOUSNESS
Happy Blending!
Sorry for the late MOTW! I've had a few oddball weekends! My parents came to visit a couple weeks ago and we went to Niagara falls so I was out of town for a bit and didn't do as much cooking that weekend. We ate out a ton, but I tried to make sure I was getting in lots of fruits and veggies, despite it all!! It's all about balance after all people! :-D
Despite all the eating we'd done, after my parents left and headed home, I found myself with some serious craving for some carbs! How often do you crave something carb filled and just delicious? Daily would probably be my response. So, after they left, when I was picking out my MOTW recipe to get me through the rest of the week, I stumbled across a gem, which has now become my personal favorite!
Paleo Phad Thai
This was a recipe I found on Chelsea Eats Treats. I instantly new this guy would be a hit! Why? 1) Phad Thai, 2) Spaghetti Squash, 3) Sriracha, and 4) PHAD THAI!!!!
This recipe was delicious and so easy! And what makes it so healthy is that you're talking out all of that unnecessary carb and adding in some delicious spaghetti squash in it's place! Delicious!
Literally, all I did was cook up some chicken, cook a spaghetti squash, sautee a bunch of shredded cabbage (I used the store bought cole slaw mix), some green onions (I think I would do more next time), throw everything together and scramble some eggs along with them. The trickiest part was the sauce, which calls for lime juice, rice vinegar, sugar, water, fish sauce (I left this out and it was fine), oil, and red pepper flakes. Then garnish it all with some peanuts. I didn't have any peanuts, so I actually think I would melt some peanut butter into the sauce next time.
I liked to eat mine with a little squirt of sriracha on top! Yum!!
For the specific recipe, check out Chelsea Eats Treats! Gotta give credit where credit is due! :-)
Until next time,
 |
| Isn't it gorgeous?? I highly recommend you check out Niagara Falls if you ever have the chance! |
Paleo Phad Thai
This was a recipe I found on Chelsea Eats Treats. I instantly new this guy would be a hit! Why? 1) Phad Thai, 2) Spaghetti Squash, 3) Sriracha, and 4) PHAD THAI!!!!
This recipe was delicious and so easy! And what makes it so healthy is that you're talking out all of that unnecessary carb and adding in some delicious spaghetti squash in it's place! Delicious!
Literally, all I did was cook up some chicken, cook a spaghetti squash, sautee a bunch of shredded cabbage (I used the store bought cole slaw mix), some green onions (I think I would do more next time), throw everything together and scramble some eggs along with them. The trickiest part was the sauce, which calls for lime juice, rice vinegar, sugar, water, fish sauce (I left this out and it was fine), oil, and red pepper flakes. Then garnish it all with some peanuts. I didn't have any peanuts, so I actually think I would melt some peanut butter into the sauce next time.
I liked to eat mine with a little squirt of sriracha on top! Yum!!
For the specific recipe, check out Chelsea Eats Treats! Gotta give credit where credit is due! :-)
Until next time,
So first - what is Shakeology?
Shakeology is nutrient-packed meal replacement shake from Beachbody, the company that has come out with kick-ass workout program after kick-ass workout program! Need some examples - P90X, Insanity, 21 day fix, P90X3, T25!! Need I go on? It's not a protein shake, or a supplement! At least, that's not how I think of it!
What's in Shakeology?
Well for the full breakdown, I'll direct you to the Beachbody Shakeology Nutrition Guide! But, essentially, Shakeology is packed full of:
- Proteins and Essential Amino Acids
- Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Digestive Enzymes
- Adaptogens (herbs from harsh climates that help to promote a strong immune system, increase energy, and protect the body from stress!)
- Antioxidants and phytonutrients (plant-based ingredients)
- 23 Vitamins and Minerals that your body needs for optimal health
I also wanted to add a nutrition review of Shakeology that I just found looked at this website, called Whole Intentions! This one of the more thorough nutritional reviews I've ever seen on Shakeology and addresses what I feel are a lot of peoples concerns when using Shakeology.
What is my experience with Shakeology?
My experience with Shakeology has been great! I started Shakeology when I started 21 day fix and very quickly noticed, more so than anything else, that I had an increase in my energy level! Shakeology primarily functions as my breakfast, and as such has completely replaced and taken away my need for morning coffee! No more Ms. Don't-Talk-To-Me-Until-I've-Had-My-Coffee! She's gone! Heck, I haven't had any coffee for about a week! That's how good I've felt! And my cravings for junk food and sweets has been reduced considerably (though admittedly I still just flat-out avoid the candy and ice cream aisles at the grocery store!)!
Where can I buy shakeology?
Shakeology is exclusively sold through Beachbody at their shakeology website--shakeology.com. Beachbody doesn't sell through Amazon, though some Beachbody coaches will sell through Amazon, despite contract regulations forbidding them to do so. I highly suggest that you buy through the Shakeology site to be sure you're getting the product you're paying for! If you want, you can buy it directly from me at my shakeology site! Contact me and I'll give you my direct shakeology link! :-)
How could I possibly afford Shakeology?
This is a big one, and is why I went back in and modified this post. Shakeology is pricey. This is a big reason why I know a lot of people who are hesitant to pull the trigger and actually go ahead with trying Shakeology. $130/bag seems steep right. But, let me put it to you this way. Shakeology is meal replacement. It is meant to help you cut back on your grocery bill by providing you with more nutrition in a shake form than you would in a TON of other food! Also, there are 30 servings in a bag. So, that comes to $4.33 per serving! How much do you spend on a cafe lunch every day? Or getting your morning coffee? If your barista suddenly told you one day that if you gave her $130 she'd cover your morning coffee for the rest of the month, what would you do? You'd probably say no right? Well, it's the same idea! Instead of paying daily for that meal or that coffee, you're paying all at once! And, as I mentioned above, Shakeology may lead to you stopping drinking coffee, like me! And that in and of itself will save you a bundle!
If you're hesitant to try Shakeology, I totally understand! I don't want to force anyone into anything. I merely want to say that this is a great product that I love, and I would love to introduce you to it! If it's not for you, that's totally fine! If you want to try it, that's great! Order a sampler pack for $20! Or better yet, order a bag (and I recommend you order the bag instead of the packets -- more bang for your buck) and if you don't like it, there's a satisfaction guaranteed refund that you're more than entitled to take advantage of!
If you have any other questions - cost, discounts, promotions, benefits, want recipes, or just want more information in general, never hesitate to comment or contact me! :-)
How could I possibly afford Shakeology?
This is a big one, and is why I went back in and modified this post. Shakeology is pricey. This is a big reason why I know a lot of people who are hesitant to pull the trigger and actually go ahead with trying Shakeology. $130/bag seems steep right. But, let me put it to you this way. Shakeology is meal replacement. It is meant to help you cut back on your grocery bill by providing you with more nutrition in a shake form than you would in a TON of other food! Also, there are 30 servings in a bag. So, that comes to $4.33 per serving! How much do you spend on a cafe lunch every day? Or getting your morning coffee? If your barista suddenly told you one day that if you gave her $130 she'd cover your morning coffee for the rest of the month, what would you do? You'd probably say no right? Well, it's the same idea! Instead of paying daily for that meal or that coffee, you're paying all at once! And, as I mentioned above, Shakeology may lead to you stopping drinking coffee, like me! And that in and of itself will save you a bundle!
If you're hesitant to try Shakeology, I totally understand! I don't want to force anyone into anything. I merely want to say that this is a great product that I love, and I would love to introduce you to it! If it's not for you, that's totally fine! If you want to try it, that's great! Order a sampler pack for $20! Or better yet, order a bag (and I recommend you order the bag instead of the packets -- more bang for your buck) and if you don't like it, there's a satisfaction guaranteed refund that you're more than entitled to take advantage of!
If you have any other questions - cost, discounts, promotions, benefits, want recipes, or just want more information in general, never hesitate to comment or contact me! :-)
