My 21 Day Fix Review and Results!

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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Pot Roast Sparks Many Memories!

Pot roast was on the menu for tonight's meal. Whenever our family eats this dish, we are reminded of a certain special woman. Sean's Gram made the best pot roasts ever!  We said good-bye to Gram this past June and we miss her dearly. While breathing in the aroma here in our own home today, I longed to have one more of my chats with Gram. These treasured moments so often took place at her kitchen table back in CT.   I met Gram a week after Sean and I had our first date.  I could instantly see the strong bond between the two of them and knew that this relationship was deeply significant to the man that I had just met.  Spending time with her for nine years of my own life causes me to be so very thankful. 

While prepping the beef earlier today I began to laugh as I remembered an oven roast adventure of my own!  I was in my mid 20's and had to come home to spend a few days visiting my parents. I was the first one home one afternoon and Mom had asked me to please put the roast in the oven. I admitted, with chagrin, that I really had no idea how to make a roast? She reassured me that I simply needed to add some seasoning and a bit of liquid and then place at all in the oven. Well, I have always been somewhat of an extremist! I added plenty of seasoning. Perhaps too much seasoning?? Mom had said to just go ahead and include some things from the spice cupboard. So I did! Upon her return home that evening, Mom showed me how to prepare the gravy. (To be honest, I still do not attempt gravy here in my own home!  We go the route of "Au-jus" with our beef! ) Anyways, back to 2003... the three of us sat down to dinner. Dad had added gravy to his plate of dinner. Low and behold, he was quite surprised to discover that the gravy was extremely spicy! Spicy gravy? How did that

happen? We put the pieces together and realized that I had included an abundance of cayenne pepper while adding the other more typical roast seasonings.… Bottom line, the gravy was inedible. I have not since made that mistake!  Our oven roast dinner turned out fine this evening and I will include the recipe below.  While peeling the carrots this morning, I was taken back to a different time in life. As I remembered my spicy pot roast, I began to picture so many things. I had done plenty of cooking during my early years at home. In fact, I love to open up a "Taste of Home" cookbook, choose three or four new recipes and then have my mom take me to the grocery store! I would then prepare a rather complex meal. We would invite another family over for dinner and those are some of my favorite memories. Somehow my repertoire did not include pot roast!  I was 26 years old when I met my husband in 2004. I was living between New York, Connecticut and Maryland

while working at my most favorite job of all time!  I was riding and teaching while working for incredible people in amazing surroundings. I was having the time of my life! It was this job that I left when we moved to Erie in June 2006. I was expecting our daughter and life was about to change! 

 By the spring of 2009, I found myself as the mother of two young children! Rest assured, somewhere in there I had learned the proper way to make a pot roast.  Looking back, 2009 and into 2010 was a very challenging time in my life. I imagine that all mothers of young children are able to relate!  Getting together three times a week to double stroller-walk three miles at the Peninsula with a close friend with kids the same ages as mine (Tara) is how I made it through that summer of 2009! 

 I will never forget the days that I was feeling so overwhelmed by my potty-training two year old daughter and nursing infant son. One afternoon, I sat in my living room and just cried and cried. I longed for a different time in my life. All that I could think of was how

the "good old days" were so much better than this. I used to have an outstanding job that I loved and was just really enjoying life!  Then I met an amazing man.  Now I felt as though we barely had time to connect.  Becoming a mother of two young children challenged me in ways I never could have imagined! To be honest, most days I was really not sure if I was quite cut out for the role. As resentment rose to the top of my heart one afternoon, I sat down and opened up my Bible. What happened next still gives me goosebumps and has become a definitive reminder that will be with me all of my days, through all seasons of life.

I just happened to flip open to the book of Ecclesiastes, which was by no means my go-to book for pick-me-up reading. This was the sort of day where I would have been much more at home in the Psalms!  Anyways, the pages fell open to Ecclesiastes 7:10, "Do not say, 'Why were the old days better than these?' For it is not wise to ask such questions".  HOLD ON!  I know with all of my heart that God speaks to us through His Word.  But still, the timing of all of this was just too much for me.  I began to weep tears of acceptance for that time in my life and all that it entailed.  And then my eyes scanned up to verses 8 and 9, "The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.  Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools".  Time seemed to stand still in that moment as I pondered all that had been building up within me.  My children were oftentimes "residing" in my lap and I so did not want to have my own anger and resentment right there next to them.  I prayed that day that the Lord would help me to bear these things in mind.  Then I asked Him to please change me from the inside out.  I can't tell you how many times these three verses have come back to me.  Solid truth to live by each day!

 

So there it is, much pondering of my heart today as I spent time working in the kitchen and gazing out my window. And to think that this entire journey began with the mention of a pot roast. Here is my recipe!

Oven Roast Beef with Veggies

2 Pound Boneless Beef Roast (I used a shoulder roast today)
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/2 Teaspoon Thyme
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 1/2 Teaspoons Oregano
1 1/2 Teaspoons Paprika
2 Teaspoons Minced Dried Onion
2-3 Cups Wegmans Organic Vegetable Broth (a favorite ingredient of mine!)
3-4 Red Potatoes, cleaned and cut into 1/8's (or smaller if your potatoes are very large)
4-6 Carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
3 Celery Ribs, bias-cut in 1 1/2-inch pieces
1 Onion, sliced into wedges

1) Brown meat on all sides in hot oil.  (I use my 8-Quart Pampered Chef pot for this recipe)
2) Remove from heat.  Sprinkle dry seasonings over the roast.  Add 1 cup of Wegmans Organic Vegetable Broth along either side, NOT pouring it over the roast in order to keep most of the seasoning there on top.
3) Cover your pot and place it in a 325 oven for one hour.
4) Remove pot and and carefully add your veggies.  I listed what I happened to have on hand today.  Add whatever you like!  Your veggies should completely cover your roast.  Pour an additional cup (or two) of the vegetable broth on top of everything.
5) Cover pot and return to the oven.  Bake for an hour or so, until veggies are of desired texture.  
6) Remove from oven and allow pot to remain covered for 10 minutes or so before opening it up and pulling out your beef to begin slicing.
7) This meal serves nicely in a bowl.  Place veggies in bowl first, top with some sliced beef and then spoon a bit of the flavorful broth on top of everything. 

Lemon Dill Salmon with Photo How-To!

Those who know me are aware of my huge dislike for seafood!  It was not until age 35 that I even presented myself with a regular serving of salmon or any seafood!  I would cook various recipes for my husband and kids and would eat a bowl of cereal myself.  I would force myself to try a tiny bit of the seafood and well... ick!  I just couldn't do a second bite!  This past September we made a switch to "clean eating" and I decided to get creative with salmon.  I thought of the fact that I really do not care much for chicken and how fresh lemon has always been my go-to in masking that chicken-y flavor.  So why not give it a try with salmon?  Success!!  I have now made this recipe many times and it is truly a family favorite.  And oddly enough, a personal favorite of mine as well!  Tonight I made it a point to jot down what I was doing each step and also took some photos.  Here we go!

Lemon Dill Salmon with Oven-Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients:

4 Filets of Atlantic Salmon (thawed)
1 Tablespoon of Melted Butter (optional, but I do like the crispy finish on the salmon!)
2 Lemons, Zested and Juiced 
Fresh Dill, 1/2 to 3/4 Cup
Sprinkle of Sea Salt and Ground Pepper

Heat oven to 375 and line baking pan with foil.  Later, you will be SOOO glad that you took this step!

1) Arrange salmon filets on foil-covered baking pan.  Prepare all ingredients by melting a small tablespoon of butter, tearing off sprigs of dill, using a micro-plane or zester to zest your lemons and then cut lemons in half and juice thoroughly.  You are hoping to wind up with 3/4 - 1 cup of fresh lemon juice.    

 

2) Do the following:

        1: Lightly sprinkle the salmon with ground sea salt and pepper. 

        2: Use a basting brush to barely coat the top of each filet with melted butter.

        3: Gently arrange bits of lemon zest on top of the filets.

        4: Slowly spoon lemon juice over each piece of salmon.  

                          ** Reserve 1/2 of your juice!!

        5: Place sprigs of dill on top of each filet.  ** Reserve 1/2 of your dill!!

3) Now you are ready for the oven!  Place your baking pan onto a central rack on your oven which has been preheated to 375.  Bake for approximately 25 minutes, but keep an eye on your dinner!  At this point I turn the oven setting to a "low broil" but do not move the pan.  Keep everything in the oven for an additional 5 minutes as the oven temperature raises.  For the final 5-6 minutes, move your oven rack up a notch, but still hopefully a notch (or even two!) below the highest level.  KEEP AN EYE on the salmon!  My personal preference is to have it crisp up a bit, as you will see in the photo below.  You may prefer to take your salmon out of the oven a bit sooner?

 4) I like to serve this meal with plain rice and a roasted veggie of some sort!  I will include below my super-easy and delicious approach to oven-roasted broccoli and cauliflower.  When plating the food, I begin by placing the rice and veggies on the plate.  Then top the rice with the salmon.  I add fresh dill and slowly pour a generous amount of the reserved fresh lemon juice over the salmon.  This trickles down through the plain rice and everything is now so flavorful and is ready to serve!!


Super-Simple Approach to Oven Roasted Veggies

This is a current favorite way to enjoy all sorts of veggies!  Tonight I happened to be working with broccoli and cauliflower.  They went into the oven about 10 minutes after the salmon had begun and came out as I was moving the rack up a notch for the final 5-6 minutes as the salmon finished on broil.

Ingredients:

3-5 Cups Fresh Veggies
1-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
Light Sprinkle of Sea Salt and Ground Pepper

Heat oven to 375.  I love to make these veggies on my stoneware "large bar pan".  
1) Arrange veggies on your pan.  I would have liked to have a bit more broccoli and cauliflower to work with today.  But the kids had eaten more than I realized during a snack earlier today.  Oh well!  At least they are enthusiastic about their raw veggies!

2) Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of ground pepper and a conservative dash of sea salt.  Use a spatula to toss the ingredients together on the pan to lightly coat your veggies.  Now you are ready for the oven!  

3) Place pan into your preheated 375 oven.  Bake for approximately 20 minutes on a center rack.  Pull your pan out and give the veggies a bit of a flip in order to better coat each side.  Place pan back into oven and you may want to move the rack up a notch or increase temp to 450.  Bake for an additional 3-6 minutes and keep an eye on your veggies.  Brown them as desired.  We really enjoy the slightly crisp and caramelized variation that occurs throughout the batch. 

Q&A: Breaking It Down Four Ways!

I have been thinking about this blog entry over the past several days.  Recently, more than ever, I am getting so many questions on "how exactly are you doing this?" or "so what is a challenge group anyways?" or "did you have to stop eating all carbs?" or "what is in that Shakeology drink?" and "you must workout for at least an hour everyday?"... you get the idea!  I pretty much look back on the past six months (TOMORROW is my exact 6 month mark!!!!) and there are four areas that have made the biggest difference for me.  I have said before that I never would have been brave enough to jump into this lifestyle change if it had not been for my sister Rachel as my Team BeachBody coach.  That particular aspect of my own on-going transformation plays a large role in why I decided to become a coach myself!  I know that some of you are wanting to make a change but are not sure where and how to begin?  And from there, how to keep it going to the point where all of this just becomes your "new normal"?  

1) What is a Challenge Group?

A challenge group is typically a 60 day group. This all takes place through a closed facebook group. Only the members of the group can see what is being posted.  NONE of this comes up in your newsfeed!!  What I do is help you to customize your health and fitness goals to meet your needs. Then I help you to select the best Beachbody workout to get there based on your ability level. You replace 1 meal a day with Shakeology for the next 60 days to give your body 1 meal that is supercharged with ingredients that will give you natural energy.  Your cravings will be curbed, you will stay full for at least 3 hours.  Then, I am going to teach you how to plan the other meals of the day. I will help you create a customized meal plan, give you recipes, snack ideas, tips, motivation and keep you accountable. Every day I post in the challenge group a daily mind-set, tip, encouragement or challenge! You check in and rate your date and read what is posted. We all keep each other accountable!  We will address emotional eating, eating out at restaurants, going on vacation, temptations, cheat meals, body image and more! I have an entire curriculum for my group!  Does this sound like something you would like to do?

2) What is Shakeology?

 

Shakeology is not just another protein shake. This is actually a meal replacement which means that it has the proper carb to protein ratio that you need in a meal to keep you full for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Shakeology combines the fast burning complex carbs and the slow burning fuel. Together they are what make a complete meal. Also, Shakeology is equivalent to eating 6 salads in one meal.  70 super-foods all in one delicious serving! I will be honest I was a little skeptical at first and was certainly not looking to add any expenses to the budget!  But now that I have given it a try, I will never go back. I no longer crave sweets, I have SO much more energy in general.  As a mom, this is VERY helpful!  Shakeology is quick and easy for when I'm busy and don't have time to make a meal! It has saved me in so many situations. Honestly it really is worth it.  I oftentimes suggest to people that you could use Shakeology to replace whatever meal of the day is your own "weakest link".  You will be AMAZED at the results!

3) What is Clean Eating?

Clean Eating may be described differently by different people.  But here is the gist of it! 

What to Avoid:

• All over processed foods particularly white flour and sugar
• All chemically charged foods
• Food containing preservatives
• Artificial Sugars
• Artificial foods like sliced cheese
• Saturated and trans fats
• Sugar loaded beverages(juice)
• Alcohol intake(very limited)
• All calorie dense foods containing little or no nutritional value
• super sizing your meals

So, what DO you eat AND perhaps prepare for a family while "eating clean"?  Basically, we keep it simple!  The recipes are not complex and the foods are not hard to find!  Here is a sample of my own menu plan for the week of March 17th.

4) What kind of workouts do you offer? 

BeachBody truly has a workout that would suit anyone who is interested in pursuing fitness!  No matter your starting level!  You can check out my site at http://www.beachbodycoach.com/JEANETTEPARADIS and there you will find all sorts of

descriptions on the workouts that are currently available!  I did Chalean Extreme for my workout during the first five+ months of this lifestyle change.  I switched to the 21 Day Fix not long ago and am greatly enjoying that as well!  Both of these programs involve workouts that are typically 30-35 minutes in length.  I had hit a plateau with my recent regime and it was time to make a change.  The past 10 days have been fantastic!  I am working different muscles and learned quite a few things about my own nutritional needs.

Not everyone in the Challenge Group is doing the same workout.  But we are all able to support one another and oftentimes it is interesting to hear what others are doing as you

file away ideas for what may be of interest to you in regards to future workouts!  The best way to begin is to order a "Challenge Pack", which will include your DVD-based workout, a few accessories and one month supply of Shakeology. 
 

So now you have a better idea of the tools that I have used in order to make a change in my own life!  This journey has been so worth it.  In fact, earlier today we were celebrating my son's 5th birthday with all of my family.  We were at this nifty place called "Fun Central", located in Clearfield, PA.  They offer this amazing climbing course/soft play area.  I was talking with my husband during our drive back to Erie this evening and was telling him that six months ago there is no way that I would have had the strength, agility or confidence to enter into that climbing area.  The kids enjoyed having me alongside of them and this is just one little gem that I treasure as I look back on "why" this is all worth it!  Where would you like to be six months from now?  With the right tools, you can get started in that direction!  My next challenge group begins in a few weeks.  :)  YOU could be there with me!

More Winter? What to drink?

Hello from Erie, PA.  Land of the seemingly endless winter!  Today was a long day... mostly due to the weather and related challenges.  More snow fell today, pushing our seasonal total to somewhere around 130"!  Tonight I am enjoying a cup of warm tea.  I keep finding great new flavors at Wegmans.  At $1.99 a box, you can't go wrong.  This is one of my three most treasured mugs.  Each of these mugs have one thing in common.  They were each a gift from a close friend and whenever I have my evening tea, I think fondly of these women who have played key roles in my life.  Sentimental, I know!  Perhaps this could describe me more often than not?        

 
 

As I find a few moments of quiet and reflect back on the past few days, I remembered to take a look at my phone!  The kids tend to abscond with my phone and wander around the house taking pictures and videos.  This group shot made me smile!  Back to the sentimental thing, one day I will look back on this image and will remember each of the dolls and animals that are so special to my daughter during this time in her own life.  On another note, I also just viewed some rather interesting videos that captured a bit of everyday life between my kids... perhaps it is a good thing that I am not 100% aware of all that is happening around here each moment of the day?  The constant-ness of these two kids and what already bombards my hours is plenty already!  And then I come across a gem of a different sort.  The photo that Kylee took of this Proverbs sheet was an encouragement to me.  God's Word does that!  Even when cropping up in unexpected places.  Like when you are flipping back through 137 random photos that a 4 and 7 year old have added to your phone!  Last week we had learned Proverbs 3:5, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding" and this week we continued on with verse 6.  


Something for which I have been very thankful these past six months is that I have only had a couple of borderline-migraine headaches!  For those who know my family history on my mom's side, this is huge!  It is so neat how I continue to reap the benefits of making the switch to clean eating, a path of fitness, and a few other minor adjustments.  I have always been a water drinker, but previously did not realize just how much water I should be drinking.  Following the guideline of drinking half of your body weight in ounces of water per day has been so helpful!  This tip is something that I picked up during the first "challenge group" that I had joined this past September.  A challenge group is a closed FB group where you join up with others who are working towards goals similar to yours.  I am currently involved in a super-active challenge group which is tackling the 21 Day Fix together!  This one will run through the end of March and a new group will kick-off on April 7th!!  Let me know if you are curious about more details on this.  The fact that everyday people are able to really and truly change through everyday decisions is simply amazing to me!  What a neat time in life, to be able to support others on their own journey towards their goals.

As with anything, the people and their stories are my own favorite part.  Speaking of stories... here is a photo of me with the friend who gave me the special mug pictured at the beginning of this entry.  This photo was taken around my 90 Day mark, before this dear friend had to move to Texas.  She is an example of those who encourage others!  Back when we first met in October of 2012, we talked about how I could help her to meet some awesome people here in Erie.  Our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group was instrumental in bringing this to fruition.  And she mentioned how she could help me to get back into shape!  I never did make it to the actual gym with her but she has been an encouragement to me from Day One.  These are the friends who make all the difference in our lives!      

Day 173!! or "almost 6 months" + a Family Thing!

What an interesting six months this has been!  Bottom line, I am thankful.  Thankful to no longer be where I was 180 days ago.  Beyond a drastic change in appearance, I FEEL so much better and that part is hard to describe via blog.  But some of you know what I mean!  It is that feeling of overcoming something and continuing to take strides in that new direction. Not to mention the purely physical effects that come along with this sort of shift!  

So how did all of this change come about?  And what is keeping me going these days?  Well, I am currently four pounds above my lowest-ever adult weight... circa 2001.  And I am determined to bypass that spot in time for my upcoming April 7th birthday!  Having a relatively short-term goal like this is helpful in keeping my focus in the day-to-day.  From that point I have perhaps another 35 pounds to go?  And who can guess how many inches?!  


To be honest, calculating inches lost really is the fun part!  Perhaps it is my nerdy side where I do love math?  Or maybe it is the fact that we only do the measurements once in awhile and that is so much better than the love/hate relationship that many of us have with our bathroom scale??  Or perhaps it is the fact that my husband has been SO encouraging and he is the one who helps with my measurements and photo journey... Mr. Precise who also has quite the twinkle in his eye!  Our daughter is now age 7.  I very much want to be a good example for her.  She has really been getting into our meal planning and workouts.  It is neat that we are able to make these changes as a family.  Side note: the little guy wandering off in the photo?  That is our son.  We will be celebrating his 5th birthday next week!  Disappearing at the first hint of a "posed" photo op is predictably his response! 

Yesterday was monumental.  I did the BIG sorting and cleaning out of my closet!  There were quite a few items that just needed to go.  They were too big!  Many to donate, a few to sell and I have to admit that there were a handful that just needed to be thrown away.  Progress!  And also a drawing of a line in the sand... there will be no going back!  But here is the thing that is so different from any other time in my life that I have made a change with menu/weight loss: the clean eating truly has been a lifestyle shift.  I can not imagine doing a 180 degree turn and heading back in the opposite direction.  A bonus is that this has been a family adventure and I was actually the last of us sisters to make the leap.  Combine this with the fact that both of my sisters have always been smaller than me, I am now the cheerful recipient of my younger sisters' closets!!!???  Who could have ever predicted this??  For example, just now I was looking for a photo of me wearing this gray t-shirt.  This is actually one of two shirts that I went ahead and threw away yesterday!  It was beat.  But HERE is the FUNNY part!!!!  Looking at the 2012 summer photo above, Bethany (in the middle) is wearing a navy blue shirt that is currently in my closet.  I wore it last week!  And Rachel (far left) is wearing an animal print that I debated yesterday if it would ever be "me"?  It was actually in the "sell" pile and I pulled it out at the last moment.  Perhaps I will be able to wear it by the end of the summer?  What a surprise to open this photo and see both of these shirts!       

I am excited to see what the next three weeks will bring!  I am about to officially begin the "21 Day Fix" and am geared up to work hard and stay focused!  Daily workouts that are enjoyable, drinking Shakeology for breakfast and keeping the menu clean and balanced with an eye toward portion control.  I am learning so much that it is in the small choices made each hour that we begin to alter the direction of our entire self.  While doing my workout the other day I heard a line about how it is not that things get easier but rather that we become stronger.  Whoa!  This is just so true and applies to many aspects of our lives. 

So many of the Bible verses that I have read this week have a common theme.  Obedience!  It keeps coming up each day.  In Isaiah, Malachi, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Romans, Matthew, Colossians and Job... as I am now reviewing my past week's reading history via my Bible Gateway app.  Sometimes the Lord is wanting to get a message across to us and then somehow wherever we turn we keep hearing that same theme!  Job 23:10-12 has long been a section that is an encouragement to me.  Job writes these words while feeling as though he can not find God/understand His ways while in the midst of hard times.  Then he reminds himself of this angle:  “But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold. For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside.I have not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily food."  There are so many times where we can not see what comes next but if we will just keep our feet moving forward on His path, we will come out stronger on the other side!  This week has brought about some "next steps" in an area that has been a matter of prayer in my life for quite a few months now.  This is an area completely unrelated to clean eating and new workouts!  Bottom line, I am thankful that the Lord has helped me to trust Him along the way and I am excited to see how the rest of the story unfolds.  I pray that He will help me to remain obedient to His path and gentle nudges!             

Banana Oatmeal Cookies, Broken Glass and NOT Tasting Like Chicken!

March!  The month where hopefully our weather here in NW Pennsylvania will begin to shift?  A few days ago, I had been planning to make a favorite soup recipe.  I just couldn't bring myself to make more soup!  So I mixed up some chicken salad instead!  The base included plenty of freshly-squeezed lemon juice... deep down, I really do not like chicken.  At all.  I prefer to eat chicken that does not taste like chicken!  Lemon juice is one way to re-flavor the chicken.  A bonus was that with the zippy lemon aroma and flavor, we suddenly felt a bit closer to spring or (even summer?) around here!  

I am also gearing up for a personal shift.  After five months of settling into clean eating while thoroughly enjoying my "Chalean Extreme" workouts, I am about to begin the recently-released "21 Day Fix".  There has been quite a bit of buzz surrounding this program and many are curious!  The "challenge pack" pictured here includes the workout DVD's, color-coded portion planning containers, one month of Shakeology, a cookbook and a few other handy tools!  My package arrived on Thursday and I snapped this photo.  We have been enthusiastically exploring the contents these past few days.  Time to move past my current plateau and continue to progress on this journey! 

While assembling our weekly meal plan earlier today (2nd time EVER to do this!), I began to incorporate the color-coding basics of the 21 Day Fix eating plan.  I was surprised by a couple of things right from the start!  I was eating essentially nothing from the "orange" group!  And too much from the "blue" group.  I was thankful to have a quiet hour in the middle of this afternoon so that I could make this jump without my attention going in too many other directions!  The challenge group for the 21 Day Fix kicks off on March 10th.  I am eager to get the ball rolling here and begin to put the pieces together! 

With a 7 year old, an almost 5 year old, a husband, a dog and a cat here in our household, you never know what may come up in the next few minutes.  This week has been especially eventful in the "spill" department.  Yesterday we cleaned up FIVE varying water accidents that occurred throughout the house. I would still take all of that over the bathroom light globe that was rather innocently shattered earlier in the week.  Talk about needing to fix things!  I would say that us moms are all too familiar with fixing a dozen or more things each day!  Is it any wonder that our own wellness often ends up at the bottom of the list?  This is where the support of FB-based challenge groups, top-notch home workouts and realistic "clean" recipes have made all the difference for me!

We tried out a new recipe last night.  It was a HUGE hit!  My husband came home and thought that we were baking banana bread.  I daresay that these cookies tasted even better than any banana bread that I have ever made.  And they were SO simple.  And quite healthy!  In fact, the recipe comes from the new 21 Day Fix collection.  As a side note, you could take one of your "yellow" portions and replace it with two of these cookies up to three times each week.  The cookies pictured here are actually a bit on the small side.  The batch is supposed to me made into 16 cookies.  I wound up with 23 cookies.  Anyways, here is the recipe:

Banana Oatmeal Cookies
1 Cup Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon 
1/4 tsp. Sea Salt
2 Ripe Medium Bananas (mashed)                                              
1/4 Cup Raisins
1/4 Cup Chopped Raw Walnuts
Combine dry ingredients.  Mix in mashed bananas.  Add raisins and nuts.  Mix well.  Drop by heaping Tbsp. onto prepared baking sheet (you may need non-stick spray?  I bake on stoneware and do not use anything on that surface); flatten cookies with a spatula prior to baking.  Bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes or until firm. 

There has been a pivotal line of thought that has come back to me many times these past couple of months.  I had read this statement in a book awhile back and it has shaped my days.  "Do what only you can do."  What does that look like for each one of us?  Something entirely different, of course!  At times it may feel as though even the list that "only you can do" is longer than the amount of time you have been given to work with any given day!  

Psalm 119:37 is a frequent prayer of mine ~ "Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word."

We had done a few updates on our main level last winter.  I had come across this wall text and it captured what I hope will become be the anthem of our household.  I find myself pausing to reflect here from time to time and wonder what the coming days will bring?  In the meantime, I return to my prayer from Psalm 119!