Hello! Here we are at the end of my first round of Beachbody's "21 Day Fix" program! At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I have to say that I am undeniably watching my body composition change these past three weeks. I am immensely enjoying the nearly-impossible-to-put-into-words aspect...which is the fact that throughout each day I am feeling significantly more fit! And this continues to change and improve each day as I am freshly sore and feeling accomplished after my workouts. This trans-formative approach to fitness is accessible to anyone via the 21 Day Fix challenge pack!
The 21 Day Fix includes seven different workouts that are each 30 minutes in length, plus a 10 minute ab workout that I have added on every other day. Autumn Calabrese is the trainer and I find her to be encouraging and very practical. No fluff with her! The filming was done in a garage-type of studio where Autumn leads 6-8 others (women and men) who are at various stages with their own fitness journey. Here is a sample of the schedule with a brief description of each day:
Monday ~ Total Body Cardio Fix is a solid start to the week. Not too intimidating and really keeps you moving! Most of the 21 Day Fix workouts are done in "rounds" where you do 2-5 moves that are 1 minute in length. You do them one at a time with a 15 second break in between. Then you go back through and repeat the round. It is nice to have two chances to do each move during each workout. This is a cardio workout which uses weights.
Tuesday ~ Upper Fix is strength training where you incorporate weights to work your upper body. I began this program being able to do a set of 12 push-ups. Now I am up to 16! Back in September I could not do even a single push-up on my toes when I began with Chalean Extreme. No worries if you begin the Fix by modifying on your knees.
Wednesday ~ Lower Fix is more strength training with weights as you focus on your lower body. My legs have really changed during this program! I actually had to stop using the generic razors and go back to "Venus" like I had used years ago. My legs have become more sculpted and I was inadvertently slicing myself in new spots almost every day. All better now!
Thursday ~ Pilates Fix where "lengthening and strengthening" is the theme. I am surprised at how much I enjoy Pilates. And I have to say that it is NO JOKE! The planking exercises were brutal at first! I eventually worked my way up and it has been SO encouraging to measure my own tangible progress in this area. My core is becoming much stronger and this is something that I utilize frequently in my everyday life! Love it!
Friday ~ Cardio Fix and this one was my own biggest challenge! This workout includes a combination of moves where I constantly had to remind myself to just take it one moment at a time. Helpful, since most of the routines are built upon doing a particular move for 60 seconds. I got to where I could really push myself rather than just hang in there. Good feeling! No weights are used in this session.
Saturday ~ Dirty 30 is mostly strength training. For your entire body! This one is not a killer at the time but somehow it is the workout that I would feel for the next TWO days.
Sunday ~ Yoga Fix really is a very practical "active recovery" day. The first week I was like, "Are you kidding me? All of this breathing and stretching? Shouldn't I be doing something more active for today?" But then I came to look forward to my Yoga day and even found myself adding in an extra Yoga (and Pilates!) session here and there throughout the week. Surprise, surprise! I am becoming more flexible and coordinated. Worth it!
Many parts of my body are literally stronger and more responsive than ever before! I did not miss a single workout and was perhaps 80-85% successful with keeping my eating on track. There was a slice of my son's 5th birthday cake and a playdate cookie here and there. Not to mention a recent Silpada party with an array of chocolate decadence! But overall I am satisfied with my ability to stick close enough to what could be a perfect plan. When I really was just wanting something extra, I would grab a handful of nuts that did go above what was on my plan for the day. Bottom line, the part that I just LOVE and want everyone to realize: I have not done anything these past 21 days that is not feasible to continue with indefinitely. I was already on board with the clean eating. I tweaked my portion control and shifted around my food intake from key categories. More on that below. We are seeing the really DRAMATIC 21 Day Fix results (like losing 12 pounds and 10 inches or whatever!) as very much the norm amongst those who had not been eating very clean, drinking Shakeology and working out regularly prior to beginning the program. Personally, I am still thrilled myself to have said good-bye to 4 pounds and 2+ inches during the past 20 days!! This brings me to a grand total of 45 pounds and 27+ inches since having begun this adventure last September! For more details on what I have been doing, check out this prior entry on how I am changing my life!
I am now ready to begin a second round of the 21 Day Fix and plan to continue with this workout program into early summer. At that point I will be gearing up for "PiYo", which is the newest Chalene Johnson workout and is scheduled for a June release! But back to the present... The past three weeks have been eye-opening for me! A question had been posted in my challenge group about what are five things that we have learned during this program? Here is my response: "I
learned that I was not eating enough protein and was eating too many
nuts! I learned that I do actually enjoy Pilates and Yoga. I am thrilled to have gotten past what had been a two month plateau! I am getting better at my nemesis...planking! I
learned that meal planning truly is a powerful tool. Not only for
planning ahead purposes but for keeping myself accountable and on track
from one meal/snack to the next."
I am SO EXCITED to kick-off our "April 7th Fresh Start" challenge group! As of right now, I am planning to begin a new challenge group once each month. The groups will run for 60 days and will focus on clean eating, daily workouts and incorporating Shakeology. We are coming down to the wire on joining the April 7th group. If you have been on the fence and are ready to make the leap, do it! A thought from one of the 21 Day Fix DVD's is that strength does not come from doing what you know you can do, but from doing something that you did not think you would be able to do. Let's tackle this one together!
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