Most people are excited to see my results because I have talked a little bit about associated weight loss that just naturally happens with the program since it's a cleanse and detox. And I thought I would be most excited about the weight loss too since I was in a rut before this and had gained a lot of weight (for me). But I'm actually much more excited about the way I feel and for the things I've learned throughout the process.
What did I learn and what did I like about it?
1. I am pretty damn strong. Excuse my language, but I'm that serious about this one. 21 days of being insanely strict with nutrition is hard. 21 days of no coffee. I LOVE coffee. I just drink it black and I learned that I drank WAY too much of it. I know that it was contributing a little bit to my feeling of being bloated and a little more anxious. So while I'll start drinking coffee again - I'm going to limit it to a small amount every day. But besides coffee...21 days of no wine, no sugar, nothing processed whatsoever. The only thing I drank was distilled water (with added minerals). The first week I was able to have a little fish and grains - but after that it was mostly just veggies and fruit. I had to say NO to a lot of temptations throughout these 3 weeks. I feel like superwoman that I never cheated and said "just this once". It's hard watching everyone else eat yummy snacks and treats like ice cream and wine but I just reminded myself that I'm doing this for me and I invested in the program because I wanted to see it through and to feel better. I wanted to feel like ME again.
2. It really is all about nutrition. If you want to feel better and if you want to reach your goals - your nutrition really has to be in check. While I promote regular exercise to everyone and anyone, including myself - you really cannot out-exercise a bad diet. The weeks leading up to this I felt like I was spiraling out of control with hand fulls of this and that and sometimes my emotions and stress led me to binge eating snacks at night. I am not proud of that at all - but that is the reality of where I was at. I worked out more and harder to try to make up for it but that doesn't work. The most important thing you can do for your body is to feed it with clean, whole foods and limit the crap as much as possible.
3. This kind of goes along with number 2, but what I eat directly reflects on how I feel, especially emotionally. When I eat things that are bad for me, my body feels like crap - which in turns makes me more stressed out and emotional and guilty - you get the picture. Crap food makes me bloated and uncomfortable and it's really just not worth it. I will not let myself backslide after this - not after all of this hard work to get my body to it's natural state and not when I feel so amazing.
4. I miss protein. I'm looking forward to eating fish and chicken again :) I know that once I start working out again, the protein that I'm used to eating will be very important to give me the energy I need to push through.
5. I really miss working out. But I also learned like I said above - I don't need to go super hard-core all the time because as long as my nutrition is in check, following a program and just doing those workouts is more than enough to keep building muscle and staying healthy. I'm going to re-do the original 21 Day Fix program with my new Summer Challenge group that is just starting and I can't wait to do the program again! I've decided to do the original one instead of the 21 Day Fix Extreme one because I want to start a little slower after being down for 3 weeks and I know my body will need to build back up slowly. It's a great program and I know it will be the best thing for my body right now (and my knee while we are still figuring out what's wrong with it).
One thing that was tough in the program was all the time it took to prep the meals and grocery shop. I tried to follow all of the recipes which are different most days so it took a lot of prep and timing and cooking and clean up. But it was worth all of the hard work.
So - my body feels amazing. I've slept more these last 3 weeks that I have in a long time. My body has rested and healed and I'm ready for the next step.
Now for the fun part - the results!
I went back and forth thinking about if I would share my weight loss or my actual weight. I didn't want to share my before weight because I'm really embarrassed about it. It was the highest I've ever weighed in over a year. I don't even know what happened...it just slowly kept creeping up and I wasn't making the necessary changes to stop it. But I have nothing to be embarrassed about because this is REAL LIFE. We all go through highs and low - and I am no exception, even if I am a health and fitness coach. I'm also constantly on display on social media and in my challenge groups and I think it all started to play mind games with me. I felt overwhelmed with trying to be the best I could be, that I just felt tired and gave in too much. I hope that can make sense. So I am baring it all out there so I can be real with you all like I always am.
So my before weight, when I first started this program was 146.9. Wow, right. I'm 5'7" and while I don't let the scale define me, I'm usually most comfortable around 135 lbs with my body build. I have gained a lot of muscle especially after doing the 21 Dy Fix Extreme program - but a lot of that weight was definitely not just muscle. It was all in my stomach and legs. I know the pictures and the weight can be a little hard to believe since I posted pics a few months ago of me in a swim suit after I did the 3 Day Refresh and I felt and looked much different then. But that just goes to show how fast my body can react when I'm not being diligent with my nutrition. And with my knee injury bothering me - I just let my guard down. And my body bloats and reacts to any processed food VERY fast because it's just not used to it anymore. So please remember - all the little decisions you make DO add up over time. The extra glass of wine here, the handful of animal crackers there....the emotional/stress binge eating....My weight this morning after completing 21 Days on this program was 133.5. That is 13.4 pounds in 21 days. It feels like 20 lbs though - let me tell you.
And here is my before and after pic. I had to prop the phone on the couch to take it myself so please excuse the weird angle. :) All the bloat in my belly and legs has gone down and I feel so much leaner. I lost 13 inches all around my body - which was 2 in my waist, 2.5 in my hips, 4.5 total between both thighs, 2 in my chest, and 1 in each arm.
Now what?
There is a plan that you're supposed to follow after the Reset is done. You slowly re-introduce different foods so that your body doesn't freak out. I'll slowly reintroduce some grains like oats, quinoa, and brown rice - but I'm going to limit it to that. I'm still going to stay away from dairy. But I am going to slowly bring a little caffeine back in to because I miss my E&E before my workouts (pre-workout formula) and I really want a hot cup of coffee! So this next week I'll be slowly doing that and then next week I'll be following the 21 Day Fix meal plan with my challengers.
I am SO HAPPY that I decided to just go for it and complete this program. My mind, body, and spirit all feel refreshed and renewed and it has made me feel far better than I ever could have imagined. I'm ready to build these muscles back up again!!
