21 Day Fix Extreme Tips
Fit Tips, My Journey

My 21 Day Fix Extreme Tips

21 Day Fix Extreme Tips

So you are ready to take the next step in your fitness and health journey and tackle the 21 Day Fix Extreme?!   That is SO exciting!  Congrats!  It is always smart to change it up, push yourself and keep your body guessing!   I love the 21 Day Fix, but I was in need of more of a challenge — this was the perfect ‘next step’ in my journey.   I have been doing the 21 Day Fix Extreme since last February when it launched.   I LOVE this program and it truly does WORK – but you also will need to make a commitment to yourself and to the program for the 3 weeks (and beyond!) if you are wanting to see some awesome results!   Change comes from effort – you have to work for it!  

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My body has never looked better – after 2 kids, I am in a smaller size pants than I have ever worn and I am in the best shape of my life – physically and emotionally.   Let me explain.  I am more confident in my skin, I smile more, I am HAPPIER and I feel GOOD.  My numbers at the Doctors office confirm my health has improved and why?  Because I am consistent with my daily workouts, I eat clean, healthy foods 90% of the time and I drink my Shakeology every day.   I made a commitment to myself that (now) goes beyond losing the baby weight – and I am sticking to it!  Am I perfect all of the time, nope.   Do I know how to fix it, yes!   This program has taught me so much about how to fuel my body and the correct formula my body needs to accomplish my goals!   I only WISH this program had been available when I was struggling with my body image back in Jr High, High School and College…such is life, I have it available to me now and the fact that I can look at a photo of me at age 16 and a photo of me at 31 and say WOW, shows me this IS possible – with a little work!  ðŸ™‚

Ok, so back to the point of this post.   I want to pass along some tips I use to take on the 21 Day Fix Extreme challenge.  When I commit to doing a 21 Day round, I go all in.   Here are some of my tips to help you succeed!

  1. Chocolate Shakeology – This one is a GAME-CHANGER.   None of the other flavors cut it for me.  I need to have my sweet fix, otherwise, I will likely turn into mom-zilla.   My happy-shake must be chocolate and it must happen every day.  No treats on Extreme means I am going to get my chocolate fix through super food nutrition!  Sorry vanilla, you just don’t cut it for me in these 3 weeks – though I do still love you.   With a 1/2 FROZEN banana blended in – heaven in a glass – seriously.
  2. Planning – Yup – you still need to do some meal planning and prep.   For me, I plan out my dinners for the week and fill in my other containers where they are needed through out the day.  I usually have the same thing for breakfast (eggs and oatmeal, yes please!) and my Shakeology for lunch.   When I know what my containers are going to be for dinner, I will adjust accordingly through out the day.
  3. Join an Accountability/Challenge Group – If you are working with a coach, as him/her if they have a challenge group starting soon that you can get in on!  Challenge groups are awesome!  Why?  Because it is a group of people coming together from all over the continent to do the same program along side you!  You can share tips, swap recipes, encourage each other and it is a wonderful resource for you to use if you have questions, want to share about your successes or if you are seeking advice.
  4. Get a Success Partner – Find someone to do the program with you!  I had a group of 3 friends who I checked in daily with during my first round.  It helped when one of us had a question about the program or wanted to share a success/failure.   This was in addition to the accountability/challenge group we were in – just a smaller chat window that we would talk in.   Accountability is KEY with this program – having someone or a group of people doing the program along side you makes it so much more FUN!
  5. Yellow and Purple Containers – Yes, you still get these!  I have found that if I eat all of my yellow and purple containers in the first half of my day, I feel better at bed time and I wake up feeling leaner each day – I try to eat all of these by 4pm.   This would also explain why MOST of my dinner recipes do NOT have yellows.  I stick to Green and Red for dinner, typically.
    1. Yellow foods I typically eat are:  Sweet Potatoes, Oatmeal, Brown Rice and Ezekiel Bread
    2. Purple foods I typically eat are:  Banana (1/2 =1 purple!), apples, grapes, berries
  6. Water – I drink at LEAST 5 24 oz bottles of water per day (this does not include coffee, Recover or Energize).  Make sure you have a water bottle – it is my best friend now.
    1. I start my day off with a bottle before I eat anything or have my coffee then make sure I get in at least 4 more through out the day
    2. Infusing your water with fruits, veggies and/or herbs is a great way to flavor your water.   Avoid the water flavorings at the store, they more than likely have sugar or artificial sweetener in them.  Besides, infused water is super easy!   Just grab a pitcher, fill it up and slice up some cucumbers and mint leaves (or whatever you are using) and throw it in!  
    3. How much water should you drink?  Take your current weight and divide it by 2 – that is the MINIMUM number of oz you should be drinking per day.
  7. Spices!!   You will see in my recipes that I utilize my spice cabinet like nobody’s business!   I DO NOT use a lot of salt because I puff up like the Stay Puft guy on Ghostbusters AND my husband salts everything regardless most of the time – besides, there are better ways to flavor your food that are low in sodium.
  8. Hot sauce and Dijon – if I run out of either of these – a store run is necessary.  Watch the sodium/sugar count in hot sauce.  Autumn loves Sriracha chili sauce, Cholula is also good – it is delicious and a little goes a long way.   Dijon helps to add a kick to your meats and the best part, they are FREE!   
  9. Stop eating after dinner – I eat all of my containers by dinner time and then only will drink water or decaf hot tea afterwards.  When I don’t have those late night snacks before bed, I FEEL better.  It gives my body time to digest dinner and to shut down properly, allowing me to sleep more soundly at night.  Try it, it actually works!  I used to be the queen of late night ice cream scoops (though, not since doing the Fix!) and I paid for it.   I learned my lesson and I want to tell you so you can avoid the same mistakes!   
  10. Coffee – I drink my coffee black now – I NEVER would have done this before – I LOVED my flavored creamers and I just don’t need them anymore!
  11. Gum – yes – I chew gum.  It helps me get through with out the sweet temptation.
  12. Get the wine out of the house!  I love (YES, LOVE) having an occasional glass of wine in the evenings when my husband and I are winding down for the evening.  Wine is not allowed on Extreme, so avoid temptation – no wine around!
  13. Performance Line Supplements – Beachbody has a wonderful Performance Line of supplements geared toward athletes in extreme programs and runners.   They are good for the Fix Extreme workouts.   I use two of them each day and they are Fix approved and do not count toward your containers for the day. (BOOM)   Do you need them, no.   Do they help?  Yes, they help me.
    1. Energize – This is a pre-workout formula that tastes like lemonade.  Basili likes it too before going to play basketball – it helps when the fatigue would normally set in OR for those early morning workouts.   This formula is scientifically proven to delay muscle fatigue, battle against lactic acid build up in your muscles, improve performance and help you push to your maximum intensity.   I am only working out for 30 minutes right?  Might as well make the most of that 30 minutes and push as hard as possible!
    2. Recover – This is a post-workout formula that you are supposed to drink within 30 minutes of finishing your workout.  Shake up a scoop with some cold water and it tastes like chocolate milk.  I look forward to this one (CHOCOLATE!!!!).   The purpose of this is to help combat muscle soreness with a combination of time-released proteins and phytonutrients to help facilitate muscle recovery while helping to reduce muscle breakdown.   Yeah yeah – it works.   Basili uses this too and can tell a difference after playing 2 hours of basketball.  Not catering to sore muscles allows me to continue going hard in my workouts all week!
  14. The workouts – They are more difficult – but do your best.  Push yourself, modify where needed and remember to do your YOGA DAY!   (No skipping yoga day like I used to – yoga is vital for muscle recovery and stretching is an essential part of fitness!

Those are my biggest tips to succeed with the 21 Day Fix Extreme!   It seems like a lot, but take it from me, when you are in the midst of re-learning HOW to eat and cook, I wanted all the help I could get.   I hope this helps YOU to succeed with the 21 Day Fix Extreme.  <3

 

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