Pushing Through the Negative to Find the Positive in Myself

So, my first round of the 21 Day Fix I did AMAZING!   I lost something like 9lbs and 18 inches in just 3 weeks!!! 

And while I have managed to keep it off, this second round I have barely lost anything.  Between birthdays, our anniversary, and a head cold that will NOT go away….my motivation has been lacking big time and I am falling back into some of my bad habits.

A bad habit isn’t always physical….meaning binge eating, not wanting to workout, eating junk as I watch TV.  Infact, my eating has stayed pretty consistent, a splurge here and there.  And I workout when I can and feel up to it.

But bad habits are also mental.

Yep, I am mental! 

See, it is more so the frame of mind I fall back into that really brings me down and can be SO hard to get out of.

I get down on myself and focus on the negative.

“How could you let yourself become 100lbs overweight?”

“You still have so far to go.”

“You don’t have time for yourself, you have a family to take care of.  There isn’t time for you.”

“You lost 30lbs and your smaller clothes still don’t fit, you are never going to do this.”

Those are just a few of the thoughts that run through my head.  Perhaps I am a bit dramatic.

But after YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS of dealing with my weight and thinking about weight. And food and binge eating. And what you think other people are thinking about you….it wears on you.  It is hard to break that way of rationalizing when things don’t “go your way”.

I was being all pitiful and mentioning this to a dear friend (also my beachbody coach) and she reminded me that I didn’t put this weight on all at once and it is going to take time to get it all off.  And that I can do this. 

I agreed and cherish how much support she gives me, but still stayed in this funk.

I read how well other people are doing in our challenge group and for a minute got mad….not at them, but at ME.  I kept thinking, that could be you Jenn and you didn’t give it your all.

Then my mom said this week she wanted to help me become a coach because I am doing so great and she wants to help so I can keep going.  I appreciated this beyond words, but of course I was like…well I haven’t done so great the past few weeks. (turned it to a negative)

Then today.  I was listening to this coach meeting and she said “You are more important than giving up.” 

I think, after a week of people telling me over and over what I was failing to hear and remember, I finally heard it ALL at one time.

It all resonated with me and sunk in.  (I know, takes me a bit longer!!)

You guys, my biggest obstacle in losing weight isn’t the amount of weight I need to lose or even if I can do it. 

It is ME. 

It is getting past these thoughts in my heading that are stopping me from moving forward.  These thoughts I have had for years and years.

It is remembering that I. AM. IMPORTANT. 

That this is going to take time. And be hard. And not always go my way and be frustrating BUT I can do this.  And that I have SO MUCH support around me right now if I just open up and accept it.

I CAN DO THIS.

I have to keep that in the back of my head.

I am worth it.

If I want to take care of my family and SHOW them how amazing eating whole foods is for your body and the benefits of working out, then I need to lead by example.

I need to get out of my head.

That may be my biggest challenge for me during this journey.  It is not easy.  Some people may be able to set their mind to something and just do it.  And in some ways I can.

But most of the time I am in my own head.

Questioning everything.

I realized early on this journey is far more than just losing weight.  There is so much more that has brought on this weight then just sitting on the couch and eating.  There are these mental blocks I need to push through.  I need to change up the way I think and view things.  I need to address WHY and HOW I got here and what is stopping me from moving forward.  The answer always come back to me.  I am stopping myself.

It is "funny" how that works, no?!

So today I am trying to refocus.  To take away the negative and focus on the positive.

“How could you let yourself become 100lbs overweight?”  It doesn’t matter how you got here, what matters is that YOU want to change and you CAN change.

“You still have so far to go.”  But you are closer today than you were yesterday!

“You don’t have time for yourself, you have a family to take care of.  There isn’t time for you.”  If you want to take care of your family you MUST take care of YOU first!  There is always time for YOU!

“You lost 30lbs and your smaller clothes still don’t fit, you are never going to do this.”  This will come, but it is more about how you FEEL right now!

I must get out of my head if I want to succeed. 

I am going to try to stay positive.

So, in an attempt to do this I have wrote down some of my thoughts and motivational quotes that I will repeat when I start getting down and falling back into my “bad habits”....

Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must but never EVER give up.

Focus on how far you have come and not how far you have to go.

When you feel like quitting, think about why you started.

I want to be a before and after. 

(This is something I keep saying to myself.  I want to have those before and after pictures that make people gasp....I want to show how much I have accomplished!)

Weight loss is not just a physical, but mental.

Don’t stop trying just because you have a hit a wall.  Progress is progress, no matter how small.  (This sounds very Dr. Seuss like….this pleases me)

This is a slow process.  Don’t make it slower by quitting.

I am WORTH this.  I CAN do this.  

YES.

I am worth it and YOU are worth.  We can do this.

What are some things you tell yourself to keep going?  



*I will becoming a beachbody coach in October.  If you are interested in more information, please let me know.  I want to help people just like they are helping me!!  I want to do this together!

Meal Planning on the 21 Day Fix

I have been meal planning for a long time, especially meal planning on a budget.  But I admit, I was slightly overwhelmed right before the 21 Day fix started.

How much food do I need? 

What meals should I eat? 

How will I divide these containers over the course of the day? 

Will I be hungry?

So the Sunday before my first day of Round 1, I spent THREE hours in the kitchen prepping food. Seriously, who has three extra hours?!?!   I was stressed….and I am a planner and LOVE to meal plan. And when it was all said and done, I didn’t use some of what I prepped as it was just TOO much.

So the next week I simplified and over the past 5 weeks have come up with some easy tips on meal planning for the 21 Day Fix.

It is crazy HOW simple this can be!!  Though I think part of it is accepting this as a life style change and getting use to it!

These are "tips" (using that loosely, more like the things I do!) that worked for ME. Everyone is different, but thought I would share in case one or more helped you!

1. SIMPLIFY! 

See above! Seriously, do not over plan meals. Especially if you are new to the program. Yes, the planner is saying don’t plan too much. I am a walking contradiction in SO many ways. I would, for the first week or two, keep your breakfasts and lunches simple. Maybe even the same with slight variations until you get use to the program, containers, how much you will eat, and proper portions.

So I did hard-boiled eggs or steel cut oats in the morning, salads for lunch, and yogurt and fruit or cottage cheese and fruit or hummus and veggies for snacks. My dinners I explored a little bit, but still kept it simple…maybe only trying one or two new recipes a week.   I also tried to incorporate "normal" food we always made before, just adjusted slightly.  I also picked only two different fruits and veggies for the week and that is what you use.  Unless you know you will use them, don't buy all the fruits and veggies.  It is more to prep and may go to waste.  Wait and see how the program works for YOU and then start adding more each week.  But to start, simplify!

Simple mushroom cap pizza!

2. Eggs are an EGG-cellent idea! 

These are my go-to food. TWO eggs = ONE red container. AWESOME. I always have hardboiled eggs to add to a salad or grab as a snack or breakfast. I also keep plenty of eggs to add to a meal or make as an meal! I have omelets at least once a week. And of course, being on a budget, eggs are fantastic. Go get those eggs!!

Spaghetti Squash "pasta" w/ poached egg

Baked egg in mushroom cap

3. Take shortcuts when you can.

Sometimes meal prep and cutting up all those veggies can be a lot.  I try to take short cuts. I buy a rotisserie chicken on Monday and shred it all up and put it in a bag for the week. I add this to salads, omelets or make meals out of it. Again, very cost effective and saves so much time.  My friend just introduced me to using steel cut oats, some water, yogurt and fruit and mixing it and putting in the fridge overnight for breakfast the next day*.  Takes literally two minutes and DONE.  Huge time saver, you know instead of cooking the oats and storing them and measuring the next day. As my son says...boring. I also buy baby carrots...I know, some are against them.  But Henry and I eat them and it is SO much easier.  For me sometimes spending a little more on individually priced items that save time is better.


4. Plan Snacks. 

Now, I think when you eat whole/clean foods you get more food and feel more full. BUT, if you are a snacker (is that a word), like I am, then making sure you always have 21 day fix approved snacks is key. Cottage cheese, apples, grapes, yogurt with peanut butter to dip your apples in – yum, veggies and hummus are a few of my go-to snacks. I am actually going to start exploring new snack ideas for the second round to change it up a bit!!  Just make sure you have options so if you DO get hungry, you are not gravitating towards the unhealthier snacks!

Just found this...21 Day Fix Buffalo Chicken Dip!  Cant wait to try it!

INGREDIENTS

1/2 red container Greek yogurt

1/2 red container shredded chicken

1/2 blue container shredded cheese

1 green container veggies

Tapatio, Franks Red Sauce or favorite hot sauce

DIRECTIONS

*Preheat oven to 350

* mix yogurt, chicken and 1/2 of cheese and hot sauce

* scoop into oven safe bowl 

*Bake for 15 minutes until heated all the way through

1 red container, 1/2 blue container and 1 green container!

5. Write it down!

Every night I plan my food for the next day and pack it and write it in my journal. Yep, no app for me, I hand write. I actually plan our dinners for the entire week on Friday, but lunches and stuff I go day by day, but always one day ahead.  I can do this because I keep my lunches and breakfast simple and consistent.  The dinners are the ones where there is more of a chance to have higher calories or the need for certain container amounts. So if I know what we are eating for dinner and how many containers I will need, I can adjust daily for my other food based on what we have and sounds good. But write it down! You will forget how much you had if you don’t. Plus, it is nice to go back for ideas!!

6. Have fun!

Enjoy the cooking or prepping of food.  For me, three hours was not enjoyable, but an hour or so is!  Let your kids help and wash items or pack your lunches...my son loves putting items into the containers to measure out.  I am embracing the food.  Appreciating the preparation I put into getting my meals ready each week.  I am now trying new foods and meals and exploring all the options out there!!  I also am having fun with how I take my food to work (bento boxes are great - i use these), but that is just me :-) Remember, this is a lifestyle change, NOT a diet.  So if you do not love it and embrace this or appreciate how this food fuels your body, it is going to be harder to stick with it.  So have fun with it!!

And to help out, here are some of my favorite things to eat! 
All simple, easy to prep, budget friendly and 21 Day Fix approved!

Shrimp kabobs

Pita Pizzas/Mushroom Cap Pizzas
Spinach, chicken, feta whole wheat quesadillas

Fajitas

Omelets 

Grilled Chicken/Fish with veggies

Spaghetti Squash with spinach, turkey bacon, feta, & poached egg 

(used THIS method to cook the squash, but made my own recipe how I wanted)

Mushroom caps with baked eggs inside - HERE

Anything IN a pita!

Taco bowls

Greek nachos 

(baked whole wheat tortilla slices, feta, tomato, cucumber, lemon, and maybe so fresh herbs!)

Yogurt (1/2 R) with peanut butter (2 tsp) and apple slices (1P)

Chocolate, Peanut Butter Banana "ice cream"

(blend a cut/frozen banana until creamy.  Add a tsp cocoa powder and 1-2 tsp peanut butter)

Salads!

And just because I have salads every day doesn’t mean they have to be boring. I have gotten great at making AMAZING and different salads every day!! I cut up the lettuce and wash it the beginning of the week. Let it sit out and dry completely then bag it up so I have lettuce for the entire work week!  I fill my salads full of veggies and make it a pretty large meal so I am not as hungry in the evenings!  For me, evenings is when I am the hungriest so I try to curb that by eating a lot and more frequently the first half of the day!

So what do you do for your meals?  Any other tips to share?

*Overnight steel cut oats - 1/2 yellow oats raw, 1/2 yellow water, 1 red yogurt....mix and top with fruit.  Put in fridge covered for 4-6 hours or overnight.