New Year New You!

I decided to go back and dig out my very first before picture from my start of Focus T25 in January 2014. I remember joining my first challenge group completely blind, having no idea what I was doing, had never done a home fitness program before the whole way through, and I had never even heard of Shakeology or clean eating! But I was definitely at the breaking point where I had to do something and I had to do it now! I was absolutely miserable; I felt horrible all the time, I constantly had to buy new (bigger) clothes to replace the ones I was outgrowing, and I had a horrible attitude about everything.

 
Though I had a gym membership, living so far away from it wasn’t working for me to get there consistently. I knew myself; I knew I would stick with it for a week or two at most and then quit! So I figured this was a better bet because I also didn’t have the confidence to work out in front of other people. I was afraid I would be judged for being so overweight, when in high school I had been so very thin. We didn't have a designated area for workout space but I made room in our living room, pushing the coffee table to the side.
Every morning at 4:30 I would drag myself out of bed and press play! It was ugly. I was out of shape, I cried, and I wanted to quit! But the one thing I kept saying is this, "I wanted to change more than I wanted to stay the same." My husband and I want to be parents some day, and I needed to make this change to a) make getting pregnant a little easier, b) have a healthier pregnancy once we do conceive, and c) lead the kind of healthy life we want for our kids some day. I don’t want them to grow up seeing mommy crying when she looks into a mirror. I don’t want them to have the same kind of negative feelings about themselves that I did. I want them to be healthy, and be able to run around and play like kids should do.
So every day I pushed play, and I had faith in the process! I knew that if I followed the workout calendar and the nutrition guide I would get results. It was tested and proven! For me going to the gym meant wandering around aimlessly doing random machines hoping what I was doing would produce results. Then I would come home and eat back all my burned off calories because I had “earned it”! I had no idea how nutrition played into my results.
So 60 days later, 20 lbs gone, faith in the process, a genuine love for challenge groups and coaching I became a believer! I was skeptical that a home fitness program would work but honestly when you make fitness, nutrition, and accountability the way that Beachbody does it, the only way you won't succeed is if you don't follow the plan!!!!!
I am a believer! The cool part is that I get to inspire hope and change in others now too!
January 5th------> It's your time! ARE YOU IN???? It's time to believe that you are meant for CHANGE, HEALTH and a life FULL OF ENERGY!
New YEAR, NEW YOU!!!!! 

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Clean Eating

The core of clean eating is consuming food that is in its most natural state (or as close to it as possible). When I go grocery shopping, I try to buy foods with 5 ingredients or less; all things I can pronounce and that are not artificially made. Clean eating is NOT a diet; it's a lifestyle approach to food and its preparation, leading to an improved life - one meal at a time. Remember, 80 % of your weight loss is dependent upon the food you eat.  If you workout every day and eat unhealthy, you cannot expect to get great results.  Your results come from the time, energy, and dedication you put into exercise and eating! Your workout cannot undo bad eating habits!

Basics of Eating Clean:

• Drink at least a gallon of water a day (8 cups).  The generally accepted guideline is to take your weight and divide by two to get the number of ounces of water to drink per day. For example, for a person who weighs 160 pounds, take 160 / 2 = 80 ounces of water daily. It sounds like a lot, and you’ll find yourself going to the bathroom a LOT until you get used to it, but drinking this much water really helps to flush our your system and hydrate you.
• Eat five to six times a day, approximately every 2-3 hours.  Three meals and two to three small snacks. Include a lean protein, plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, and a complex carbohydrate with each meal. This keeps your body energized and burning calories efficiently all day long.

• NEVER miss a meal, ESPECIALLY breakfast!! This will help give your metabolism a boost so you’re burning calories all day long.

• Carry a cooler loaded with clean-eating foods to get you through the day (if you have the food handy, no excuse for stopping at fast food, soda machine/candy machine or eating other unhealthy food).

• Get label savvy- Clean foods contain just a few (pronounceable) ingredients. Any product with a long ingredient list is human-made and not considered clean.

• Avoid processed and refined foods, including white flour, sugar, bread and pasta. Enjoy complex carbohydrates such as whole grains instead. Or, try something new! If you’re a pasta junkie, try using spaghetti squash instead. Once the sauce is on there, you can’t even tell the difference!

• Know thy enemies- Steer clear of anything high in saturated and trans fats, anything fried or anything high in sugar.

• Avoid calorie-dense food that has no nutritional value.

• Shop with a conscience, consuming humanely raised and local meats. If you eat meat, check our your local butcher.

• Depend on fresh fruits and veggies for fiber, vitamins, and enzymes. When possible, buy organic. Your local farmer’s markets offer lots of options in season.

• Consume healthy fats- Try to have essential fatty acids, or EFAs, every day. Coconut oil and olive oil are two examples of healthy fats. Use in moderation though; don’t drench your foods in any type of oil.

• Learn about proper portion sizes- Work towards eating within them.

• Reduce your carbon footprint- Eat produce that is seasonal and local. It is less taxing on your wallet and our environment. Learn from the Europeans, who make an event out of each meal. Dinner lasts hours, as they sit together, chat, and truly enjoy the food on the plates in front of them. Slow down. When you rush through a meal, your brain cannot signal to you quickly enough that you’re full, which can lead to over-eating.

• Make it a family affair- Food is a social glue that should be shared with loved ones. Improve the quality of your family's life along with your own by sitting together at the table, with no television or other distractions.

 What to Avoid:

• Avoid all over-processed foods, particularly white flour and sugar.
• Avoid all chemically charge foods.
• Avoid foods containing preservatives.
• Avoid artificial sugars.
• Avoid artificial foods such as processed cheese slices.
• Avoid saturated and trans fats.
• Avoid sugar loaded beverages, including colas and juices.
• Avoid or do your best to limit alcohol intake.
• Avoid all calorie dense foods containing little or no nutritional value. I call these anti-foods.
• Avoid super sizing your meals.

Meal Planning:
Failing to plan is planning to fail. Take one day a week (mine is Sundays) to plan out your meals for the rest of the week, and then go grocery shopping based on what is on your menu. If it's not on the list, don't buy it! When you don't buy junk food, it isn't in your house for you to eat when you get a craving for it, so...don't buy it! Stick to the plan!

Helpful Hints:

This section will help you understand the types of food to eat, and how much of it to eat. Just because you are eating clean, does not mean you can gorge on these foods. It is possible to overeat healthy foods. Our society has gotten so far away from what actual serving sizes look like, so use this as a guide to understand how much we should actually be eating.

Complex Carbohydrates from Fruit and Vegetables:
6 portions each day.  A portion is:

• 1 cupped handful or a piece of fruit such as berries, grapefruit, melon, apples and mangoes.
• 2 cupped handfuls of vegetables including broth based/vegetable puree soups.

Complex Carbohydrates from whole grains and starchy carbohydrates: 
2-4 portions each day.  A portion is:

• 1 scant handful of high-protein, sugar-free cold cereals, such as clean muesli or granola
• 1 handful of cooked cereal
• 1 piece of whole grain bread or wrap
• 1 handful sized serving of sweet potato, yam, banana, corn, carrots or squash

Lean Protein
6 portions each day.  A portion is:

• 1 cup or handful of dairy products such as low fat soy, almond, hemp, rice, or skim milk, cottage cheese, kefir, yogurt cheese or plain fat free sugar free yogurt.
• 1 scant handful of raw, unsalted nuts (also a healthy fat)
• 2 tablespoons of all natural nut butters such as almond or peanut butter (also a healthy fat).
• 1 palm sized portion of lean meats
• High-quality, sugar- and chemical- free protein powder (hemp, soy or whey).

Beverages

• 2-3 liters per day of fresh water with no added chemicals
• Clear herbal tea (unsweetened)
• Black tea in moderation
• Black/green tea

Sweeteners:  Use in moderation.  Avoid Artificial Sweeteners.

• Agave Nectar 
• Stevia
• Maple Sugar Flakes
• Rapadura Sugar