What's Your Excuse?

This is going to be a short post, but mostly just to give you some food for thought! I am pretty sure I have said some of this before. There are so many reasons to become healthier and improve your quality of life. But why wouldn't you?

I have a whole list of reasons I could decide not to work out right now:

• Pregnant
• Deployed Husband
• Two science classes
• Toddler
• Tired
• Have housework
• Still feel sick some days

I'm sure if I sat here longer, I'd have more excuses as to why I could skip working out. For a while I did take a break. But now I am back on the wagon! Most days I park as far away from my class building as possible. I have started minor weights again. On sunny days, I am going to start taking my daughter to the park in her jogging stroller and walking a few miles each day.

Instead of focusing on the excuses to not exercise, I choose to focus on the reasons that I should! 

• Prevent certain ailments later in life, like heart disease
• Stay at a healthy weight, even during pregnancy
• Boost endorphins. As the chick on "Legally Blonde" said, "endorphins make you happy! And happy people don't kill people!" 
• Keep metabolism going strong
• Have a healthier pregnancy, and hopefully a quicker recovery after delivery

So really, what is your excuse to not work out? Instead of choosing your excuse for the day, chose to be healthy in spite of your reasoning! If you can say " I had a busy, tiring day, but I still found time to workout and do something for me!" then the feeling of accomplishment will be almost as uplifting as the exercise itself was!

So go ahead, get out of your chair and go pick a workout. Remember to send me a message if you need a suggestion for a program to start. 

Shakeology Recipes

One of the wonderful things about drinking Shakeology every morning was that it never had to be the same twice. It comes in powder form, so you can put it in a variety of liquids and ad a lot of different ingredients to make it interesting! After just a few weeks, I had favorite "formulas" I had tried. I could make it like a milkshake, a dessert, or even a fruity combination with chocolate.

Now mind you, most of my experience is with the Chocolate Shakeology. I didn't get to try Strawberry for long before I was pregnant, and Greenberry is not my favorite (it is all a matter of preference, of course. Some people love Greenberry).

My personal favorite was simple, and it is what I tell everyone to start with. I get about 12 ounces of milk (for me, it is Lactose Free Skim Milk), some crushed ice, and a scoop of Shakeology. I mix it all in a blender and to me it tastes like a milkshake. Simple, easy, and delicious. You can also try adding some Sugar Free, Fat Free Vanilla Pudding mix in with your shake. It makes it extra creamy and smooth.

Another favorite of mine has to be with bananas and peanut butter. I would cut up a banana and freeze it in a Ziploc bag when they were nice and ripe--not like getting black kind of ripe, but the nice pretty yellow color that means they are just right. In the morning for my shake, I would break out half of a banana, and throw in a tablespoon of all natural peanut butter. Don't use Peter Pan or Jif, please! Those have a lot of sugar and additives. I mean get the stuff that you have to refrigerate after opening and use before a certain date. I added those to the milk and Shakeology scoop. It was definitely thicker, but it was like a sort of banana split.  You can totally do banana split, by the way.

I loved adding Strawberries to my shakes when they were in season. You can freeze them if you want. I would forget to freeze my strawberries. Go figure! I remembered to cut up and freeze bananas but never the strawberries. Maybe because the bananas sit on the counter to ripen and I put strawberries in the fridge. Anyway, I digress. The strawberries and chocolate shake were perfect together.

There are so many things you can try. Some people add honey in to their shakes. For a seasonal drink, try adding pumpkin. There are a lot of different recipes on my Shakeology Site. You are getting nutritional value, a healthy start to your day, losing weight, and drinking something enjoyable. 

Take the New Beachbody Challenge!

Before today, you might have heard of the Beachbody Challenge. If you haven't, you have a chance to submit a before and after picture on the Team Beachbody site for a chance to win $500 in a monthly prize. Well now Beachbody has announced that they are saying goodbye to the old program, and ushering in a new contest!

Instead of a weekly challenge, you now have the chance to win in a Daily Beachbody Challenge Contest. Here are the details:

What 's the difference?

No more random winners. With the new contest, our expert panel of Beachbody Challenge judges will select an "inspirational story of the day" to win the $500. Real people. Real results. Real winners. How awesome is that?

What does it mean for you?

The new contest gives you more incentive to submit your results. It also means you'll have a new success story to share on Facebook, Twitter, and beyond every single day. You'll never run out of inspiration (or chances to win).

What are the benefits and opportunities?

You can win $500, be recognized on a major Web site, and inspire thousands of others just for reaching your own goals. It will also help you stay motivated and on track!

Want to see the winners from July? Click here to be inspired!

I hope to see some of you on there in the future! Contact me for Shakeology, Workout Programs, or a Challenge Pack to get started. (I highly recommend a Challenge Pack if you are just starting out, by the way!)

And sorry about the odd formatting folks! Blogger doesn't seem to like it when I copy and paste from the Beachbody Coach page. It tends to do funny things to my text.

Shakeology Change

If you have tried Shakeology before (or even if you haven't) there is some news! The company wants you to stay informed of these changes, so below I will have copy and pasted the release from Beachbody regarding the changes. Since my current doctor told me to not drink it during pregnancy, I haven't tried the new formula yet. But rest assured, if I have the opportunity to try it once I get a new doctor, I will update you on what I think of the new formula. OR you can try it yourself, there is always the "Bottom of the Bag Guarantee"--In short, if you don't like it, even after you have consumed the entire bag, you can still get all of your money refunded to you.

So without further ado, here is the information:

Why did they change the formula?

We decided to upgrade the formula with 4 new superfoods and a whole host of other improvements. The original chocolate launched 3 years ago and development started 2 years before that. In the past 5 years there have been a lot of discoveries of new superfoods and improvements made in sourcing key ingredients. We wanted you to have the very latest, healthiest shake possible. We’re in the business of making health shakes not liquid candy.

What exactly did they change in the new formula?

• LESS FRUCTOSE-Yes, fructose is natural, but bottom line: it’s sugar.  We reduced the fructose and added the sweet Superfoods Coconut Flower Nectar and Luo Han Guo. 
• MORE FIBER-Fiber increased from 3g to 6g due to the addition of pea protein
• More fiber is good news:  will help you feel full even longer, better for digestion and can also help with cholesterol
•  4 NEW SUPERFOODS-
• Moringa is rich in Vitamin C, Calcium, Vitamin A, Protein, Potassium and Iron. Moringa has antiPinflammatory and anti bacterial properties and is known to promote energy, vitality, athletic performance, and weight loss while boosting the immune system, and protecting against disease.
• Coconut,Flower,Nectar and Luo,Han,Guo are superfoods that are naturally sweet and lend natural sweetness to Shakeology.
• Coconut Flower Nectar is high in potassium, magnesium, zinc, and iron and contains 17 amino acids plus is a natural source of B vitamins.
• Luo Han Guo has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for more than a millennium due to its antioxidant properties and immunePsupporting benefits.
• Himalayan,salt is a healthy salt, containing more than 70 trace minerals
• Plus we incorporated the improvements we made from Tropical:
• More concentrated grasses. We’re using grass juice powders. The grasses are first pressed  into juices—which allows us to concentrate the nutrients more—then the juice is dried down to a powder.
• Better strain of probiotics
• No suma root or blue-green algae

Why is there brown rice protein and pea protein?

It adds fiber and helps ease digestion of protein.

The new formula has less sugar. Will it still prevent my junk food cravings?

Yes, it’s not just the sugar that kills your craving it’s feeding your body with all the right nutrients.

Why is there more sodium? What is Himalayan Salt? Why was it added into the new Chocolate Shakelogy formula?

Salt and sodium are necessary in our diets. Unfortunately, common table salt has been stripped of its natural minerals and only iodine has been added back in. Himalayan salt is completely natural, relatively  untouched, and as a result, still contains over 70 trace minerals. All these natural minerals found in Himalayan salt actually make this salt healthy for you. Keep in mind that the RDA is 2400 mg. People who follow a low sodium diet generally restrict sodium to as low as 1500mg/day. So at 150mg, Chocolate Shakeology only represents 10% of the recommended daily intake.

Is the new chocolate superfood formula gluten-free?

Just like the original formula, the new Shakeology chocolate superfood formula does not contain any Gluten-based ingredients and we make every effort to prevent any ingredients with gluten from coming into direct or indirect contact with our products.  However, because of our high standards we do not feel it is appropriate to make a gluten-free claim since Shakeology is produced in facilities that also handle gluten-based ingredients.  If you have a concern about gluten it is best to consult your doctor before making any dietary changes

Confession Time!

Well the first thing I need to do is tell some wonderful news. You probably already know this news if you know me. I am 12 weeks pregnant with our second baby! Yay for R&R babies!

So my idea during this pregnancy was to stay fit. I received the all-clear from my doctor to continue Insanity as long as I was able to do so. And for the first six weeks, it was pretty easy. I wanted to be one of those pregnant women who could say "I was active my entire pregnancy." or at least her legs and arms still looked toned! I worked so hard to get here, and while I am not in denial and know that I am going to gain about 25 pounds (if not more) while pregnant, I wanted to do it the healthy way. The doctor told me that I had to give up my Shakeology (boo!) but hey, at least I could work out and hopefully eat decently.

Well after six weeks, I started getting dizzy if I did the quick bending down motions of Insanity. So I switched to P90X--still intense, but not as much and nothing like suicide drills. Then morning sickness began to rear its ugly head. At first it was just in the day time. By evening I could eat dinner, so I at least tried to continue with my weight routines from P90X. The fatigue that occurs with the first trimester was slowly starting to hit me as well, and that did not help me to keep up like I wanted to.

Finally, two weeks ago, my nausea started lasting all day long. No sea bands, ginger gum, or lemonade could make it subside enough to eat a decent meal. My morning sickness would ebb at 9PM, meaning that is when I would finally be able to eat. Other than that, there was just no fuel in my tank to get started in a workout at any point in the day.

So here I am, twelve weeks pregnant, and my workouts have temporarily stopped. I say temporarily because once this period of extreme morning sickness finally leaves me, I am going to start exercising again. I can't get back into P90X and Insanity is definitely not going to happen for the next 28 weeks, but I do want to doing a workout routine again soon. The muscle tone in my arms and legs has greatly diminished the past couple of weeks. I have lost more weight, but only because the morning sickness has been so terrible that I have lost weight unwillingly due to my inability to eat anymore. (Not a great way to ever lose weight!)

I would be lying if I said I didn't feel like a failure at the moment. I had become so healthy, lost so much weight, and had become involved in a great routine and a wonderful program. I know that when you are pregnant, your body doesn't always cooperate with your desires. But I am so disappointed that I couldn't live up to my own expectations on this round.

So wish me luck. Hopefully the morning sickness has only gotten temporarily worse and will subside in the next couple of weeks. I am hoping to at least start Tai Cheng and walking to start getting back in to a routine. If anything else, I know that once I have this baby, I am capable of getting back in shape. I have done it once before, and I can do it again. I won't let myself reach the point I had before, where I was overweight and in desperate need of a lifestyle change, so at least I can be thankful for that. 

Beachbody Challenge Trial

So admittedly, the programs and the products with Beachbody can be a little pricey. To me, it is worth it for the results that I have seen. But to someone who is hesitant about trying it because other products have failed them in the past, the price is a good reason to hold off on trying it. And if you want to try Shakeology and P90X at the same time, well the price can be a bit daunting

But for the rest of the month of July, you can try Brazil Butt Lift, P90X, or Turbo Fire in a challenge pack for just $14.95. In a Challenge pack, a month of the Shakeology flavor of your choice is included in the shipment. You also get 30 Days VIP membership to the Beachbody site. After 30 days, you can return it if you don't like your results (which I can guarantee you will).

You have THIRTY days to try it for a low price. If you want to return it, then you have spent less than a gym membership on a month's worth of Shakeology and the ability to use a program for a month.

There is pretty much nothing left to lose. In fact, you have so much to gain. You can take back your body and improve your health.

Contact me to find out more. You can either click one of my handy links, send me a message, or comment below on this thread. I will get in touch with you ASAP.

What is Shakeology?

So if you are my friend on facebook, you have seen my statuses about Shakeology. I also have a shirt I wear that advertises it as "The Healthiest Meal of the Day." Both of these conversation starters lead to one main question: What is Shakeology?

Basically, Shakeology is a meal replacement shake loaded with essential vitamins and minerals. You drink it in place of a meal and workout three times a week at least with a healthy and balanced diet. Shakeology eliminates toxins that are in your body and at the same time helps your body to more effectively absorb needed nutrients.

Basic Nutrition

• Protein and Essential Amino Acids
• Build and Repair muscles
• Reduce hunger and cravings
• Prebiotics and Digestive Enzymes
• Aids digestion
• Increase absorption of nutrients
• Antioxidants
• Boost immune system
• 23 Vitamins and Minerals
• 100% of your daily intake of Vitamin A. Vitamin A is important for our immune systems, vision, and cell growth. It also makes an individual more energized, one of the many benefits of drinking Shakeology.  
• 300% of your daily requirement of Vitamin C! Don't worry, Vitamin C is water soluble, so any extra your body does not need it will get rid of easily. 
• 50% of your daily requirement for Calcium. Let's prevent that osteoporosis ladies!

Personal Experience

So now I can tell you what other people say about Shakeology, or even what Doctors have said about it. But you can find all of that just by looking at my Shakeology link on the top of this page. Instead, maybe I should tell you what Shakeology has done for me personally.

Before January, I was losing weight. I was doing P90x four or five times a week and losing weight. But I still felt bloated most of the time. I wasn't eating like I should have been as often as I needed to. In January, my Beachbody coach Kari got me to try Shakeology for a month. (After all, there is a bottom of the bag guarantee, so what do I have to lose?) In just one month, I noticed a huge difference.

I lost a lot of the bloated feeling that I had before. Ladies: That pooch in your tummy that just feels like it won't go away no matter how hard you try? Mine became smaller.

I was more energized. It is hard to get up and workout when you don't feel like you have the energy. Yes, exercising itself helps to give you some energy. But I just felt like it gave me the extra push I needed to work out.

I ate breakfast! Okay, I am going to confess that I hate breakfast, usually. I wake up and I just don't want to eat. Eggs make me feel nauseous. And how many breakfast foods are loaded with sugar and bad carbohydrates? So first thing in the morning, after I have gotten my daughter's breakfast ready and fed the cat, I put 12 ounces of milk, crushed ice, and the shakeology in a blender and mix it all together.  It tastes like a chocolate shake. And it's light. I think that is my biggest problem with breakfast food. I wake up and I do not want a heavy meal first thing in the morning. 

I lost a lot of my cravings. Somehow, I don't want an unhealthy snack the rest of the day. It's like somehow, the cravings for things like chocolate and snack cakes was just gone.

I lost weight more efficiently.  Maybe it was the increased energy that let me work out as often as I should have. Maybe it was the reduced cravings. But somehow, I was steadily losing weight. And people noticed! It was amazing how well it worked for me. I didn't need the bottom of the bag guarantee: I wanted to keep using it. Even though I had lost 12 pounds already, I lost about 15 more from January to May.

Every morning, I know what I am having for breakfast. I might not always make it the same way. Sometimes I throw in some strawberries and banana. Other times I can put in some Fat Free and Sugar Free pudding mix to make it extra creamy. There are so many recipes that if you want, you can have it a different way every day.

If you want to order it, visit my Shakeology site and put in an order. There is also a lot more information on the site that I cannot even begin to explain to you. It really does work and is worth every penny. If all else fails, there is the bottom of the bag guarantee. That means if you have it and drink it for the full month and do not get good results, you can contact Beachbody and let them know, and the will refund your money.

So what do you have to lose? Try it! I'm down to a size six for the first time in five years.