Working Out with an Injury

A few years ago, I got in a minor fender bender and got delayed whip-lash.  After the accident I felt fine, I worked out and thought nothing of it until I woke up with severe pain in my neck and shoulders two days later.  I went to the doctor and sure enough I had delayed whip-lash, which I had never heard of.   Ever since then, I’ve had issues with my neck and shoulders.   It’s annoying and frustrating because when it starts hurting is usually when I’m feeling progress with my workouts or close to a goal.

It happened again!  I started my new hybrid with Chalean Extreme and I had my training for Turbo Kick and PiYo.  Going into the training, I knew my neck and shoulder were sore but I was so excited I just pushed through.  After the training, my neck and shoulders were in almost the same type of pain as my whip-lash, not as severe, but it hurt to get out of bed and I knew working out would not be an option.  So, I took a rest day, iced it, took Alive, and put heat on it.  Then I decided I had to workout, but I’d focus on my lower body, just doing Brazil Butt Lift.  I added standing ab work once I felt better.   I continued to use ice, heat and take alive daily.  I also used my husbands foam roller (this is a must for any injury.  It helps work out the kinks and massages the muscle.  I swear it helped me heal faster).

This week, my neck and shoulders feel better but I know better than to think it’s all set and ready to go.  I’m back at Chalean Extreme but I’m doing the workouts with no weights.  This has been awesome for me.  It’s helped me really concentrate and focus on my form, while I’m still sweating up a storm.  When dealing with any type of  injury, listening to your body and modify your exercising is key to healing faster.  So what if you can’t lift as much as you did, as long as you keep moving your body you will get to the goals you want.  It just takes patience, which I have none of, but I’m learning it’s better to nurse the injury than constantly be in pain.

If you have any questions on how to modify your workouts due to an injury, please feel free to email me at getfitwithstacy@hotmail.com.

Meal Plans for Success- Breakfast

Meal plans seem to be a hot topic and there is good reason.  It’s tough to be good all the time with eating.  It’s summer time and that means cookouts, ice cream and vacations that let us go on our diets!  So, I’m dedicating this week and maybe next week to meal planning.  In my newsletter on Saturday, I gave tips on creating meal plans (if you are not on my newsletter and want to be, just email me at getfitwithstacy@hotmail.com).

Each blog post this week will break down each meal.  This one is dedicated to breakfast, the most important meal of the day!

EVERY ONE of you should be eating breakfast.  And I do not want to hear any excuses. No, I don’t have time.  No, I’m not hungry.  Just stop!  Here is the deal if you are not eating this important meal, you are causing more harm than good.  You are literally slowing down your metabolism and causing yourself to hold onto your weight.  You need food to fuel your body and work.  If you stop eating 2 hours before bed and then sleep 8 hours, you have gone 10 hours without food.  Your body is starving for it to get energy.  This is why I talk about eating every 2-3 hours, but that is another post.

Watch the video below for info on how to make a healthy breakfast on the go, how to make your breakfast healthy when your family is picky and I share what I normally eat for breakfast (besides Shakeology:)).

Now plan tomorrow to include a healthy breakfast.  Post here for what you typically have for breakfast or what you are planning.  I love to get new ideas so please comment!

Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse

Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse was a success! I feel energized, lost 3 pounds and am ready to continue my clean eating to get to my goals!

I tried the Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse a while ago and I couldn’t do it.  I felt horrible, weak, and had headaches.  So, this time around, I made a few adjustments because I knew deep down the cleanse is what I needed to reboot my system and get me back on track with my eating.  So, what exactly is this 3 Day Cleanse?

Here’s a snap shot of what the Cleanse entails:

• 3 Shakeology shakes a day with only water and ice (can add fruit if needed)
• 2 snacks- 1 shake and 1 a piece of fruit
• 1 Salad w/ 40z of grilled white protein (fish or chicken)
• Only low fat dressings or 2 tbsp olive oil/vinegar
• Easy on salt/pepper.  No sugar, no dairy, no chemical sweeteners.  NO ARTIFICIAL ANYTHING
• Drink tons of water and 2 cups of green tea
• Calories should be around 800- 1200

Here is my version of the Cleanse day by day:

Day 1 (7/4/2011- yes I started on a holiday)

• Breakfast: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack:  15 cherries and 15 almonds, iced green tea
• Lunch: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack 2: 1/2 protein bar and Chocolate Shakeology w/almond milk, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Dinner:  3 cups of salad (mixed greens, tomato, cucumbers, scallions, red peppers, and 3 olives w/balsamic vinegar only) and chicken w/hot sauce baked. (NOTE: I had a cookout and took my Shakeology and a bottle of water with me so I would not eat the food or drinks that were there.  Instead I drank my Shake and came home to make the dinner I described)
• I drank water throughout the day and after dinner I had a soda water
• Calories around 1300

Day 2

• Breakfast: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack: 15 cherries and 15 almonds
• Lunch: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, 1/2 banana, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack 2: 1/2 nectarine and homemade carrot cake protein bar
• Snack 3: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, frozen strawberries and 1 tbsp PB2
• Dinner: 3 cups of salad (mixed greens, tomato, cucumbers, scallions, red peppers, and 3 olives w/balsamic vinegar only) and halibut grilled w/lemon juice and spices.
• Drank tons of water throughout the day and after dinner had soda water
• Calories around 1100

Day 3:

• Breakfast: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, frozen strawberries, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack: Large ice green tea, 15 cherries and 15 almonds
• Lunch: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, frozen strawberries, 1 tbsp of PB2 and ice
• Snack 2: homemade carrot cake protein bar
• Snack 3: Chocolate Shakeology w/coconut water, frozen strawberries and 1 tbsp PB2
• Dinner: salad w/dressing on the side and chicken with broccoli rabe (NOTE:  It was my mother-in-laws bday and we went out for dinner….I did this at a restaurant- just proves when there is a will there is a way)
• Drank tons of water throughout the day and soda water with dinner
• Calories around 1300

I increased my calories because I know my body.  My blood sugar is super sensitive and my body needs to eat at certain times throughout the day.  I’ve trained it!  So, from my experience with doing the last cleanse, I knew I needed more calories to prevent the headaches and keep be going through the day.  I added fruit and the PB2 because I knew the carb/protein combo would work for me.  I added coconut water because I love the stuff and it’s extra hydrating.   The extra snack was to keep my blood sugar even so I wouldn’t feel weak.  Lastly, I did not do any Beachbody workouts during this cleanse.  I walked once and that was it.  This was my time to work on my eating and I wanted all my attention to that.

The point of the cleanse is to help you eat efficiently and healthfully; the goal is to rid your body of undigested foods and toxins and bring your hydration levels into homeostasis.  The result after the cleanse is not necessarily weight loss, (but it is likely to lose weight.  I lost 3 pounds!!!!), but for your body to be running more efficiently.  This cleanse is to make you feel lighter and more energetic.  This time around, the cleanse worked for me!  I feel lighter, clean, have energy and don’t have any desire to eat junk food.

Cleanses aren’t for everyone and I thought they weren’t for me.  Making the adjustments  worked for me.  When doing a cleanse try it the way it’s suppose to be and if it works, great!  If not make small adjustments.  If it’s not for you, that’s okay too.  You need to listen and know your body to get the results you are looking for.

If you have any questions or want more info about the Shakeology Cleanse, email me at getfitwithstacy@hotmail.com or leave a comment below.

Change of Plans

I took my results from Asylum and there was no change in my before and after pictures.  Then I took my measurements and I gained a pound and 1 inch in my thighs..ugh!  How could this be?  I thought about it and I know my eating could have been better.  I had 2 events that caused me to travel and leave food up to others (this is an excuse because if I really wanted results, I would have been more prepared).

I love Asylum and it got me to challenge myself mentally.  It also helped me get stronger and I know the extra inch and pound are from muscle because I’m solid.  Even though muscle is awesome, this is not where I want to be so instead of doing another round of Asylum, I’ve decided I need to do what I know works for me right now.

My eating has been off for a while and I need to get it back on track, so I started the Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse yesterday.  I don’t do well with Cleanses because my body craves food so I decided that this week will be another “rest” week.  I will only do long walks and maybe a run after work.  I want to really focus on my food this week.  I’m on day 2 of the cleanse and I’m feeling great (don’t worry, I’ll let you know how it goes after the 3 days).  The plan is Monday-Wednesday is the Cleanse and then document everything I eat down on Thursday-Sunday.  I feel focusing on just the eating this week will help me when I incorporate the workouts again.

So, what workouts will I be doing since I’m going to give Asylum a rest?  I’ve decided to do Chalean Extreme and Brazil Butt Lift with a little bit of TurboFire mixed in.  Last year, I got my best results with Chalean and BBL and I haven’t done these programs in a while so I figured it was worth a shot to try it again.  I’m excited to incorporate more weights and see how much stronger I can get.  I think BBL will lean out my lower half and I’ll get to my goals by the end of the 3 months.

Sometimes you need to step back and really think about what will work for you.  A lot of people had great results with Asylum and I know I will too but it’s not for me right now.  Right now I need to focus on what I know works so I can get to where I want to be and then maybe add Asylum in after I complete CE/BBL hybrid and before P90X2.  I’ll keep you posted on my progress!

If you are struggling with what workout to do, I’d love to help.  Just email me at getfitwithstacy@hotmail.com and we’ll figure out the right plan for you.

Greenberry Shakeology Recipe that I’m Loving!

It’s no secret that I love my Chocolate Shakeology!  I have one every day for my breakfast…sometimes I have it with natural pb, other times with fruit, but I always have one.  I’ve been drinking Shakeology for over a year and I have tried to like the Greenberry.  I mean I really tried…I did everything, added orange juice, skim milk, fruit, peanut butter, but I could never find a recipe that worked for me.

A few days ago, I saw a post on Facebook about the Best Ever Recipe for Greenberry.  I was skeptical and asked the person if it really was the best.  She told me she was a huge fan of Chocolate until she tried this, so that was it…I was on the hunt for the ingredients (well, only one because I had all the rest)!

Yesterday morning I woke up, did a few things, and then I was ready to make my Shakeology, with Greenberry.  I put in the ingredients in the blender, blended it up, and took a sip and another and another, looked at my husband, and said, “wow, not bad.  Not bad at all!”

So, of course I have to share it with all of you because I’m drinking another Greenberry Shake while I write this (don’t worry, Chocolate will always be #1).  Here are the ingredients and recipe:

3/4 c Almond Milk Unsweetened

3/4 c Orange Mango Juice

1 tbsp natural peanut butter

1 tsp natural honey

1 scoop or packet of Greenberry Shakeology

Ice

Blend well and enjoy.  I can’t figure out what it taste like but it’s yummy!  TIP: with any Shakeology recipe make sure to add ice and blend in a blender…this will make the shake delicious and more filling than just shaking it!

I have some customers who try Shakeology and don’t like it right away and I always tell them you have to find the right recipe.  This post proves it…it took me over a year to find the perfect Greenberry recipe and now I can switch between Greenberry and Chocolate and never get bored.  And I bet this recipe will be great in the new Tropical flavor coming out soon.

If you need ideas on different recipes for Shakeology because you are bored or want to try a different flavor than you’ve been drinking, just email me and I’ll help you out.

Have a healthy, fit 4th of July!

Rest & Recovery

When you are working towards your fitness goals, you just want to keep going.  But sometimes you need to stop and take time to recover.  Recovery is just as important to your daily workouts as the strength and cardio workouts.  As you know, I just completed Asylum and the program had very little rest days.  I think there were a couple but mostly the rest day consisted of stretching, which is exactly what I needed at the time.

Now that I’m taking a rest week, I can feel a difference in my body.  I know it’s only been 2 days of rest but I was super tight from the workouts and felt like I was retaining a lot of water (probably because I was drinking so much of it).  Now, I can feel muscle soreness and know that my muscles are developing and getting ready for round 2.  My body is recovering so I can be stronger, faster, better for the next workout!

So, keep the workouts coming but remember to take a rest day or two or a week.  Your body will thank you for it and you’ll be better than ever!

Day 30 Asylum Completed!!!

Thirty days have come and gone and I have finished Asylum! After today’s fit test, I didn’t think I really made much improvements until I started to YouTube about it and then I realized….wow, I really have come a long way after 30 days!  I remember getting Asylum in the mail and thinking…it’s here?  It’s too soon…I’m not ready!  I had no idea what to expect…would I quit? Would I be able to do the workouts? Would I injure myself since I’m not very coordinated?  But I knew this was going to be the workout that would break me through my fitness plateaus and get me out of my comfort zone.

And getting me out of my comfort zone it did!  I hated jumping and now I find it’s not so bad and I can actually do it.  I was scared of push ups because of my shoulder injury so I only would do them on my knees until this workout and now I can do regular push ups (even if it’s only 4).  And there is nothing better than knowing you can do a regular push up with perfect form!  I thought I couldn’t do these type of high intensity, ploymetrics workouts but I pushed my negative thoughts out of my mind and I did them….I might have had to take breaks every now and then but I pushed through!

Below are my results from the fit test on day 1 and on day 30:

Pictures will follow soon…I have to get my after pics taken and play around with photo shop, which could take a while but I promise to post as soon as I figure out the technology!  So, my advise to you is challenge yourself because once you do, you will find that it was worth the sweat and the soreness…I promise!  You just have to be in it to win it!

Focus in on Your Goals

After attending Summit, I’m feeling more focused than ever on my goals.  I’ve been able to look at the whole picture better and I’m beginning to recognize what’s been working and what has not.  When I left Summit, I had around 45 to do items and the list is continuing to grow.  I realized that I had to get organized and I mean super organized by writing everything I need to do down daily.  And I mean everything, even blocking time to get do things for me!  Yep, eventually I’ll do it automatically but right now I’m so focused on my goals all I want to do is go, go, go and that will only lead to me being burnt out, which won’t be good.  Doing this is helping me creating a habit that will become automatically.

Speaking of habits, isn’t that what goals are about?  Creating a habit whether it’s eating healthy, working out six times a week or writing down your affirmations and reading them daily leads you to success.  Doing something daily will accumulate over time and make you get the goals you want. You won’t see it at first but one day it will be there and you’ll say, “wow, I did that!”  This just happened to me when I attended the Diamond Reception last week.  At the beginning of the year, I  set a goal to be Diamond by Summit so I could attend that reception.  When I got to the reception last week, I looked around the room and  thought to myself, yep I achieved one of my goals and I felt so happy and I had the best night that night (danced the night away after working out twice.  Needless to say my legs and feet were killing me the next day, but it was well worth it!)

Making a habit has to do with looking at your BIG goal and breaking  it down to a smaller goal that can be done daily.  It could be adding 10 crunches a day to your workout till you can build up to 100 a day to get a six-pack.  Or it could be drinking water instead of soda and cutting out junk so you get to the point where you only want to eat healthy foods.  Whatever your goal is, you just have to start!

Start with me today to make your life bigger, better and more successful!  Comment below and tell me what you are going to start today (let’s make it happen)?

Beachbody Coach Summit 2011

I’m back…did you miss me?  I missed you guys.  So, let’s get down to business….Summit was AMAZING!  The energy was so positive and on fire that you couldn’t help but want to go to every event even if you were dead tired.  It was non-stop, literally, I did not stop learning, working out (now I know what Biggest Loser contest feel like), and meeting new people from the time I arrived on Thursday to the time I left on Monday morning.  There are so many exciting things coming down the pipe line from Beachbody.  I’ll be sending out more details around each one through my newsletter but wanted to list a few for you here:

• P90X2 due out in the fall
• New Shakeology flavor Tropical due in the fall
• New online tools to help you with your workouts and tracking
• New Beachbody Challenge where you could win up to $500 in WOWY daily and win the grand prize of $100,000
• 21 Day Detox Plan
• Tai Chai DVD series coming soon
• And much more…

It was great to be the first of over 2,000 coaches to hear the happenings at Beachbody, but that was only the beginning of the events and fun.  Friendships were developed, bonds were created, and I grew more personally that I ever had imaged.  I now have the tools to be an even better coach to you.  I’m so excited to continue coaching you every day so you can get to your goals.  I’m fired up to get you in the best shape of your life, as well as myself.  Want to know my plan?  Okay…I will be pre-ordering P90X2 in August (you should to if you want it…email me for info).  And in-between now and when I get P90X2, it’s Asylum all the way.  Round 1 is almost done, Round 2 will be starting up and then I’m going to create a hybrid of Asylum and ChaLEAN Extreme.  I feel this plan will bet me ready for this insane new workout they are calling P90X2.

So, if you want to get in amazing shape, prep for P90X2, or just stay accountable, email me at getfitwithstacy@hotmail.com anytime.  I’m here for you and I know you can succeed!

Countdown….to Beachbody Coach Summit

Three more days!!!  Three more days to what, you ask?  Till I’m in sunny California with thousands of other Beachbody Coaches!!!!  As you know, I have been waiting for this event for almost a year.  I remember reading about it on my Coach’s Facebook page and thinking, one day I’m going to be there and guess what my one day is coming so soon.

The travel is booked, I have a great roomie for the week, I mentally know what I’m packing, and I’ve been working out to be in great shape.  I didn’t reach my weight loss goal, but I’m okay with that because I am lean and fit the way I wanted to be for this event.

So, why is this event so important to me?  Where to begin.  In July of last year, I started my journey as a Beachbody Coach.  When I signed up, I had no idea how my life was about to change.  I thought I would take advantage of the discount and help others get fit in my spare time.  A few weeks into being a Coach, I was addicted.  I loved being a coach and I was good at it…I found myself (I know it’s crony but it’s true).

I have always loved working out (I’m the girl who watches Biggest Loser and turns to my husband to say, that is so awesome…they work out 24 hours a day.  I wish I could do that.   I know, I know, I’m crazy and maybe I wouldn’t want to workout 24 hours a day but I wouldn’t mind working out more than I do!).  Coaching has allowed me to share my passion through this blog,  in my articles for Lipgloss Culture,  posts on Facebook, and tweets.  All while meeting tons of amazing people who want to get healthy and fit!

Coaching has also helped me  grow and learn how to make myself better and push myself to my goals.  Don’t get me wrong, I have had my struggles with coaching, but I’ve had some huge accomplishments through this process and those outweigh the struggles by far!

So, Summit is my time to celebrate almost a year of being a coach.  It’s my time to continue to grow and learn how to be a better coach to you.  It’s my time to meet face to face the coaches I’ve met online and had great conversations over the phone.  It’s a time to reconnect with my coach, who inspires me daily and encouraged me to take the leap and become a coach.  It’s a time to spend time with a friend, one of my coachees. And I’ll get to work out live with the trainers (yes, I finally get to meet Chalene Johnson and Shawn T and you better believe pictures will be taken), which is something I’ve only imaged in my head while working out with them in my workout room.

Get ready for me to spill the beans on all the great stuff happening at Beachbody (new Shakeology flavor to be announced and new P90X coming< so stay tuned to my Facebook and Twitter updates).  And don’t worry, when I get back, I may be a little jet lagged, but you know I’ll be super pumped to get to our goals for the last half of 2011 (I’m already thinking of new challenges and motivation for you guys)!