The 21 Day Fix

On Monday I started another round of following the meal plan from the 21 Day Fix. I eat a pretty healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables, but when I need to get myself back on track and focused, the 21 Day Fix is just what the doctor ordered.

So what is the fix?

Beachbody's 21 Day Fix is a meal plan that makes you portion out your food but avoids weighing, knowing the appropriate measuring cup or counting calories. The package comes with 6 color coded containers and a booklet that explains what can go in each container and how many you are allowed per day based on your current weight. It does require some planning or you might find yourself struggling to make dinner (or without any containers left), but it also forces you to be incredibly mindful of what you are putting into your mouth.

One of the big things that I learned during my first go round on the fix was that my biggest enemy wasn't my love of sweets, but rather, my mindless munching on processed carbohydrates. It was during the first round that I decided to cut pasta out of my diet entirely. My family couldn't get behind whole wheat pasta and it seemed pointless to make enough so I could have a half a cup serving. I also discovered that spaghetti squash and zucchini noodles were so much tastier and more filling, let alone being healthier.

The concept with the containers is to help you balance your food groups. For example, on a 1500-1799 calorie range, you are allowed 4 greens, 3 purples, 4 reds, 3 yellows, 1 blue, 1 orange and 4 tsps a day. As I mentioned, for me the problem initially was feeling like I didn't have enough carbs (especially since I was actually a slot down and was only allowed 2). Some people struggle to eat their vegetables, but that has never been my problem.

What does a sample day look like?

B - oatmeal and apple (1 yellow, 1 purple)

S - strawberry shakeology with unsweetened almond milk (1 red, 1/2 yellow)
L - salad with 2 slices of turkey, feta and 1/2 an orange of dressing (2 green, 1 red, 1 blue, 1/2 orange)
S - 1/2 purple of blueberries and ricotta cheese then 1/2 apple with peanut butter (1 purple, 1 red, 2 tsp)
D - Asian chicken with vegetables, brown rice, green beans (1 red, 2 green, 1 yellow)

But it isn't all about the food!

The fix also comes with 7 days of workouts, each clocking in at 30 minutes a piece. Autumn Calabrese did a wonderful job at coming up with innovative workouts that work every muscle in your body. There were some moves that I struggled with due to a bum knee, but there are always modifiers and the modifiers were easy to follow and shown on screen consistently.

I'm personally not a fan of counting calories, especially since I make nearly everything from scratch. I also struggle with general food journaling. The 21 Day Fix was a way for me to get a clear picture of what I was eating and by having a chart, somehow keeping track of my foods became less of a problem. I would highly recommend the 21 Day Fix to anyone trying to get a handle on their eating. 

During my first go round in March, I was thrilled to lose 6 pounds and 10 inches in 21 days. And the weight keeps coming off while I am in the best shape of my life. 

They say that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. Whether or not that is true, this is a great program to try. If you think you are ready to make a change, email me at healthywithmichelleg at gmail dot com.

Strawberry Green Monster

One of my favorite things to do with my shakes is to experiment with them. I fell in love with the Classic Green Monster from Oh She Glows a long time ago and have missed it from time to time while drinking my shakeology shakes. I made it once with vanilla, and then I had the brilliant idea to make it with strawberry. Heaven! The original smoothie calls for adding chia and cinnamon. Those are lovely additions that I might try at some point. For now, this is my favorite way to enjoy my strawberry shakes. Perfectly refreshing and totally delicious!

The first time I made this, I actually didn't have any fresh spinach in the house, but I did have frozen spinach. It worked perfectly and probably actually gave me a larger serving. It is an awesome alternative to always having fresh on hand.

Strawberry Shakeology Green Monster

1 scoop strawberry shakeology

1/2 frozen banana

2 handfulls of fresh spinach or 1 cup of frozen

1 TB PB2

1 cup almond milk

1 cup ice

* When using spinach in a shake, you might have smoother results if you blend the spinach and liquid first. 

Very Vanilla

When I started drinking Shakeology six months ago during a 12 day challenge, I was given 2 vanilla packets and was seriously turned off. After tasting the awesome chocolate shakes you could make, I couldn't stomach vanilla.

Fast forward a few months and I started seeing more and more posts about ways to make vanilla taste good. I used a few of my sample packs on hand and was converted. The difference between chocolate and vanilla is that vanilla isn't one of the flavors that I like to drink on its own....it needs some sprucing up. The fun part is that vanilla piques my inner foodie who enjoys playing with her food. Vanilla is the perfect blank slate to be creative with your food while also getting the healthiest meal of the day. Between picking up new flavor ideas from the coaching boards and coming up with a few of my own, I find my bag of vanilla shakeology to be my current favorite.

I am going to be posting a slew of recipes on all flavors, but especially utilizing vanilla. I hope you enjoy! Here are a few teasers, two of my current favorites!