How I Failed at the 21 Day Fix

You read that right. This is the story of how I failed at my attempt at the 21 Day Fix six weeks after having a baby. 

I started off the week strong. I had my meal plan all ready to go, and what I thought was enough food in the house. Hillary kept her cool during my workouts, making the perfect little cheerleader!

By the middle of the week, she would stay napping after our afternoon walks long enough for me to breeze through Autumn's 30 minute videos.

Towards the end of the week, I started having problems. I couldn't eat all of the food. Say what?! Yeah, it was too much food. I wasn't getting in my allotted intake, which left me feeling like a failure. It's not that I wasn't hungry, it's that I was trying to manage a fussy baby, while trying to eat almost every 3 hours just to get all of the food in. Overwhelmed was the perfect way to describe how I was feeling. 

Then Hillary decided she didn't want to let Mom have her 30 minute sweat sessions. I was being interrupted constantly, turning a quick workout into a constant try to workout-pause-try again-pause.

Even though I struggled with my food and continuous exercising, I still managed to lose 4 pounds in that first week!

The following week I tried. Really, I did! Exhaustion and a deep feeling of being overwhelmed got the best of me, though. I gave up. 100% honesty here! I'm not perfect (just in case any of you are thinking I am). I have my ups and downs, and motherhood is getting the best of me. I had every intention of going back to work being almost at my pre-baby weight. Not even close, and I start work Tuesday. But I'm not going to let that initial failure keep me down! 

This time I have an easy meal plan in place. All foods that I've prepared ahead of time and are easy to eat with one hand. A busy mom has to learn how to adjust with a finicky infant in her arms! My first attempt was a learning experience. Just because I'm home with Hillary doesn't necessarily mean I have time to cook fantastic meals. But it does mean I can still eat healthy, easy, quick meals that are good for both of us! 

Here is my meal plan for the coming week. It's very boring, but I know these foods will be super easy for me to stick with. I have my egg muffins, chicken, venison, and quinoa bars already made. Some days I don't get all of the allotted food in, but I'm not letting that stress me out. I'm plugged in to a higher calorie bracket due to the fact that I'm nursing, so I feel like there's a little wiggle room. I'm also "splurging" and eating a serving of lactation cookies every night. I'm trying to amp up my milk production since Hillary will be in daycare two days a week and my body doesn't respond well to the pump. 

So there you have it. I lost a grand total of 7 pounds in 21 days. (Thank goodness for breastfeeding.. what I'm chalking those other 3 pounds up to.) I'm not going to get down on myself, though. I'm only human. And I have this tiny human to care for (while keeping my sanity), who is far more important than losing X amount of weight in 3 weeks. My new goal? Successfully complete the 21 Day Fix, feel more confident, and don't be too hard on myself!

Reality Check

So here's the deal. I've been MIA. So much for being a source of motivational support. If I couldn't motivate you via Facebook, it wasn't going to happen. How crappy of me is that?! Then I realized…

My reality check was like a kick to the head. How am I suppose to be the best person of influence/coach/source of accountability if I'm not present? NOT POSSIBLE! But here's what's going to go down in the next few paragraphs: updates about how I've been, what I've been doing, and my promise to NOT be a slacker. Sound ok?



1) The 21 Day Fix while pregnant: I SUCKED at it. Yup, totally admitting it. My intolerance for a lot of foods took control over me. Pregnancy is HARD. I never expected it to be like this. I thought I would be able to continue eating right, working out, and keeping slender while ONLY my belly grew. Why didn't anyone slap me on the forehead like they do in the V8 commercials?  I honestly try my hardest, but man, sometimes a girl just needs a bowl of honey nut Cheerios! I also am unable to exercise daily, especially now towards the end. Some days after being on my feet for 8-10 hours , wrestling giant dogs and grumpy cats non-stop, I would just shut down. On the other hand, I consider all the walking I've done while at work to have helped GREATLY!

How I felt during every workout

2) Pregnancy status: At almost 36 weeks pregnant, I am still feeling pretty decent. I tend to get swelling in my feet if I sit for too long (they look great when I'm up walking/moving!). Today marked the day where I officially had to remove my wedding and engagement rings. I think I did pretty well with that one! The baby has been trying to bust out via elbowing and kneeing my sides. That's fun. Not. We are getting to the point where the baby's room is almost done which is exciting! The best part was doing all of the laundry. That smell + a room full of clean diapers = heavenly :)

An awesome onesie a fellow coach sent me. Couldn't be any more perfect!

3) Beachbody business: A couple of weeks ago I officially made the status of One Star Diamond. What does that mean? It says that not only am I helping individuals achieve their health and fitness goals, but I am also helping other coaches grow their businesses. It's a HUGE accomplishment that makes me SO proud to have such an amazing team. Definitely couldn't do it without them!!! I'm getting ready to start another 21 day challenge group on Monday, as well as a coach basics group. What is a coach basics group? It is a close Facebook group where myself and a few other coaches teach new coaches how to be rockstars. I've never hosted with other coaches before, so I'm loving the prep for it in the mixing of different mindsets and leadership skills. We are going to produce some STELLAR coaches!

Two One Star Diamond Coaches + Two Diamond Coaches = Kick Ass Coach Basics Group

4) Why I'm not going to be a slacker anymore: I realized that more than even though I'm pregnant, I'm still a coach! I still REALLY want to inspire, motivate, and help people achieve their health and fitness goals. Even though I feel like I'm being pulled a million directions at once right now, nothing is more important than making people feel better about themselves. I can put my emotions on hold to help people realize that achieve their dreams IS possible, and I SO look forward to being someone's positive role model. My goal for the month of July is to help at least 15 people start with their journey towards a healthier lifestyle. Want to help this mama-to-be achieve her goals? Shoot me an email, comment below, or find me on Facebook! I'd LOVE to help, but remember… no quick fixes, no magic pills, no weird wraps. It's all about hard work and dedication, but I PROMISE to keep you on point :)

Mid-Week Update

A few days ago I wrote about how I was planning on doing a modified version of the 21 Day Fix to avoid excessive pregnancy weight gain. I made some changes based on how my pregnancy has been going, as well as to keep myself sane. So how have I been doing? I'd give myself a 5. That's right, a 5. 

Before the tiny human started growing inside of me, I was on point with my nutrition about 90% of the time. My husband and I would always have one date night a week where all rules went out of the window, and then we would go get ice cream! I stuck to my exercise plan and made no excuses. Sure, I'd have slip ups, but I had pretty good willpower for being a self-diagnosed emotional eater with absolutely NO control.

Now that the tiny human has taken up residence in my abdomen (sometimes it feel like it's sitting on my bladder, other times it feels up in my ribs…), it's like all of my willpower has evaporated. There's no better word to describe it.

So here's what's gone down:

Monday was great. Stuck with the meal plan 100%. My only probably was choking down the vegetables. Since Day 1, the tiny human has not approved of plain vegetables or chicken. If the veggies are on a sandwich or covered in ranch dressing, it's happy. If the chicken doesn't taste like chicken, it's happy. Otherwise, the gag reflex is on point. So I choked down the veggies and made the best of gagging through my meals.

Tuesday wasn't so bad. My coworker turned 50, so another coworker brought in her famous homemade cake. I ate a piece. Yeah, remember me talking about my willpower evaporating? While most folks went back for two pieces, I stuck with my one. That has to count for something, right? 

Wednesday was TERRIBLE! Absolutely nothing sounded good to eat. I had my meal plan sitting in front of me, food already prepared, and I gagged at the thought of it. Seriously. What the heck?! What did sound good? Hummus. I ate small portions of hummus throughout the day and survived. For dinner, I had some oatmeal with cinnamon and a glass of milk. 

Today? Well, today isn't quite over yet, but I'm still in the phase where nothing sounds good. I thought pregnant woman were suppose to be wanting all kinds of awesome food? For me, it's racking my brain for something that the thought of doesn't make me ill. I'm calling bullshit…

So what would you do in this situation? Choke down the foods or find something relatively healthy that is tolerable? I'm at a total loss!

As for my exercise schedule, it's been pretty good! On Tuesday, I crashed as soon as I got home from work, so I made Wednesday a double day. The modifier with the program is excellent! I try to keep up with the trainer as best as I can, but I don't have the stamina to be hardcore 100% of the time. I'm chalking that one up to decreased lung space and 20 extra pounds lingering kind of all over. At least that's one thing that I KNOW I can finish every day. Or at least have a double day if I accidentally miss a day.

Post workout glare

Since I am still struggling with eating well, it makes me beyond thankful that I no longer have to take heparin injections so that I may now enjoy a daily Shakeology. I pair one shake a day with some extra folic acid, and I'm set! This way, I know I'm getting one AMAZINGLY healthy meal that's like eating SIX salads. Choking a salad down is tough. There's no choking Shakeology down. It's liquid gold!! (But not like that crap they talk about in the Velveeta commericials.) Shakeology is a huge blessing for me right now, and I am so thankful that I found it six months ago!

Enjoying snuggles and Shakeology

Pregnancy and the 21 Day Fix

Let me just stop and take a moment to reflect on how HORRIBLE my eating habits have been for the past month. 

It all started when I went to Florida to visit Mike's dad. Talk about amazing food! I let everything slide and ate whatever I wanted. Returning to Indiana meant coming back to reality, but now I had tasted the sweet, sweet temptations… and all hell was about to break loose!

Huge Ice Cream Sunday in Florida

So after we got home, Mike went right back to his healthy eating of loads of veggies, fruit, and protein. I, on the other hand, kept wanting all of the yummy splurge meals we had while away. Sure, I'd snack on fruits and carrots while eating a turkey sandwich. Those healthy meals weren't as frequent as they should have been, though! Indulging in pancakes, ice cream, pizza, and french fries got pretty common!

Healthy vs. Unhealthy Dinner

Realistically, I'm pregnant. Who cares if I gain weight?

Umm… me?!!!

I had been on a gradual incline at all of my previous OB appointments. I felt ok but large in the belly. Go figure! Now I am getting to the point where my face looks fuller, my arms aren't as tone, my pants are tighter in my thighs, and I'm getting my saddlebags back. Oh hell no! This has to STOP before it gets any worse!

This ridiculous weight gain is what lead me to do the 21 Day Fix while pregnant. While the program is a diet and exercise plan, it's main focus is helping folks deal with portion control. Basically, it's screaming my name! I have been doing some of the workouts on my own (pretty much when I'm not exhausted) but thought the nutrition portion should best be left until post-baby. I mean heck, this is my time to let loose. 

21 Day Fix Program

Except I let loose a little too much.

Therefore, tomorrow I will be diving in to this awesome program! 

So how does it work, especially considering I'm pregnant? When you purchase the program, you are given an exercise schedule to match up with the dvds that you received. You're also given an eating plan that tells you how many containers you can eat per day based on your caloric needs. The containers are color-coded which makes meal planning super easy. 

21 Day Fix Containers

After calculating how many calories I should be eating a day, I figured out how many containers I get. It really is WAY less intense than it sounds.  For the program, I get to eat between 1800-2099 calories a day. That's right, loads of HEALTHY calories to help this tiny human grow! 

This means:

5 Green containers

3 Purple containers

5 Red containers

4 Yellow containers

1 Blue container

1 Orange container

5 Teaspoons (for oils, peanut butter, etc)

That is a LOT of food folks!! Plus, it's all nutritious… something the tiny human will thank me for!

I made my weekly meal plan to help break it down even more.

21 Day Fix Meal Plan

You might notice this doesn't follow the allotment to a T. While I do get 3 Yellow containers a day, one is to limit their milk intake to three times a week. The tiny human has me going through about a gallon a week, so I had to be realistic. I am knocking it down and replacing some with water, but I want that daily milk intake. If my body says I need it, I'm going to listen! That's why I'm mixing it with my Shakeology every day.  The orange containers are dressings, nuts, etc. Three times a week, you are allowed to replace them with something small and sweet, like chocolate covered raisins. Since the tiny human has intensified my sweet tooth, I'm allowing a small daily snack to keep myself at bay. I would much rather allow myself a small splurge than go nuts and eat a pint of ice cream. Which has been my usual routine. I am also not eating all of my teaspoons, as I usually never cook in oil. (Mike hates it, but I throw that stuff in a dry skillet and pray for a small amount of smoke!) 

So there you have it. That's how a pregnant lady plans on doing the 21 Day Fix! I will also add that most of the exercises will have to be modified, as I cannot do any ab work. If it calls for me to lay on my belly, I'll do some yoga stretching instead. That should help me in a few more months!

I will definitely be sure to keep my progress updated. And just to avoid confusing/criticism, I am NOT doing this program to lose weight! I am doing this program to get myself back on track, watch my portions, limit my sweets, and eat more veggies! What I've put on is what I will have to deal with until post-tiny human. However, if I can keep it from piling on, I am sure as hell going to try!