Advocare 24 Day Challenge: Day 12 & 13

I'm going to go ahead and combine day 12 & 13 since they were both centered on being out of town sticking to a healthy lifestyle. Also because of preplanned meals and eating out I'll keep it short and sweet.

Day 12

Day 12 was pretty easy. Took all of my vitamins I took on day 11. Stayed well hydrated as it was very warm out and we did a lot of walking. I had the kids to myself in the AM at Dollywood so I did a lot of walking with the big heavy double stroller. Certainly a workout! Wish I would have set my phone to record how far we walked between yesterday and today! For those who haven't been to Dollywood- it has some killer hills!

Breakfast was easy. Meal replacement shake and a spark! I skipped the AM snack since by the time we were settled in the park it was lunch time. I packed my lunch and the kids lunch and I packed an extremely light lunch so that I had enough calories to cover eating out for dinner. I also skipped an afternoon snack even though I packed on because we were on the go and having so much fun!

We drove into Gatlinburg for dinner at Mellow mushroom and so we could walk around some and listen to music. It was hard to not go for pizza! I instead picked a Greek salad with chicken and it was awesome! Felt good on my stomach and was very satisfying! I also dip my fork in the dressing instead of pouring the dressing over to keep me from eating more dressing than I need!

After dinner Evie wanted icecream. I still had a few hundred calories remaining so I got a kids size scoop of some fat free sugar free ice cream and it hit the spot. Tried Evies and it was WAY to sweet for me!

Here is my breakdown:

Breakfast: Meal Replacement Shake and Spark - 265 calories

Lunch: 1/2 Roast Beef sandwich and a cup of fruit salad - 310 calories

Dinner: Mellow mushroom Greek salad with chicken and dressing - 620

Snack: Kids scoop of ice cream- 120 calories

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE: 1,315 Calories

Pretty close to goal! :) Felt good about this day!

-----------------------

DAY 13

Today I kept everything under control and after lunch decided I would relax a little and enjoy the last night of vacation food wise! We planned to eat at one of my favorite spots in the park so I wanted to eat care free. My attempts at letting go were horrible... In a good way. I still pretty much behaved.

Again, I took my vitamins as required and took in plenty of water. I drank a meal replacement shake and spark in the AM. And for those who don't know- spark fits nicely in a normal bottle of water for on the go ease!

Again- no snacks since there really wasn't time. We ate our packed lunches and I had a 1/2 turkey sandwich and some raw veggies. Very light and low cal.

And then I stopped counting. But then again, this is a LIFESTYLE.... You don't just stop living it. Matt bought some popcorn and I took 2-3 bites- just a taste. We got a loaf of my favorite treat there- Cinnamon bread. I ate 3 small bites. Probably not even a 1/4. 

For dinner we ate at the chicken buffet. I had green beans, corn on cob (just a tiny drop of butter), mashed potatoa with a little gravy, stewed apples, and instead of the fried chicken I chose the rotisserie white meat! (What is wrong with me?!) I drank water and skipped dessert. And no bread either. I did go back again for more veggies!

After dinner Matt bought Evie some cotton candy for being good and I took a couple small bites but it just didn't taste good anymore! 

So my efforts to cheat, not so good. But that's great! I'm glad I can make good decisions without going to my phone to look for what I can have. 

Breakfast: Shake and Spark - 265 calories

Lunch: 1/2 sandwich and raw veggies, and 1/2 a banana - 350 calories

Dinner: Rotisserie chicken breast, green beans, mashed potatos and gravy, corn, stewed apples- I'm guessing around 700 calories

Snack: Bite of cotton candy, popcorn, and cinnamon bread - ??? Calories

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE: Unknown! But that's okay because I shared the experience with my kid and made good choices! :)

So vacation is tough when the foods you love are staring at you! But I made it and we still had a ton of fun!! We have one more day untit goes back to normal. I still feel good! Love that vacation no longer runs me down! 

Advocare 24 Day Challenge: Day 10

Trying to think back on Wednesday! It was a hectic day as I waited until the last minute to pack for our trip! It was also my last day on the cleanse!

Here is how day 10 went:

Woke up and drank my last fiber, yay! I made my spark and took my catalyst and probiotics. I decided since my breakfasts will be replacement shakes for the next 2 weeks I would make a nice breakfast for Matt and I.

Breakfast Breakdown:

One whole egg, one egg white, almond milk, green peppers, onions, spinich and tomatoes scrambled: 

2 pieces of bacon:

Fruit:

After breakfast I headed up to bootcamp and our teacher kicked our butts! Ended up running about 2 miles along with crazy leg workouts. Ouch! I say ouch but it totally felt good afterwards!

After bootcamp I ran to the store with Stone to pick up food for the trip. Going out of town on the challenge has made me nervous because of eating out for 4 days (5 if you include eating out on day 10!) so I decided we were going to pack all lunches and snacks. Kids eat breakfast at hotel and we have our shakes. I'm sure we are saving money and controlling our calories a bit better.

Came home and furiously packed. We had plans to eat out so I rushed and in the process, did not eat a thing. Matt came home and at that point I realized how late it was. Breakfast sustained me well (protein heavy) but I hate that I missed lunch. Just as well since dinner was a bit of a bust.

Matt and I got ready and headed out. We went to a restaurant we had not been before so I was a bit worried about what was on the menu. 

We both settled on steak with mixed veggies and spinich. I did my best to add it up and I'm estimating about 800 calories. Didn't stop to take a picture before but this is what was left. I inhaled it!

Now here is where it all went wrong...

I had two of these and 1/2 an espresso martini. I'm justifying this as the above drink- my favorite- has an egg white in it. Protein, right? But not a good way to end the cleanse. Along with some cheese and bread. And dessert. Sigh. 

But it happens. It really does. I'm impressed with anyone who goes al 24 days without any cheating. While I would love to say I'm one of those people- Matt and I had an opportunity to spend the night away from the kids- and frettingn about calories certainly makes a night out awkward and miserable. 

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE FOR THE DAY: ???? I'm guessing close to 2,000 and if that was the case with the intense bootcamp I probably didn't actually go over. 

I try not to do this very often as it makes me feel as if I wasted the hard work at bootcamp.

Day 10 is done and while I didn't do as well on my last day as I wished I had done, Matt and I had a great time and in the end, one night out will not "blow it." There usually has to be some "cheating" to keep you same, especially if you are just starting out. Matt and I went from cheating once a week to once every 2-3 weeks. (Cheating meaning you don't pull out MyFitnessPal to make a decision- even though I still did that!)

Not allowing an indulgence every once in awhile will make you miserable. It makes me feel human to have a drink or dessert.  Once my challenge is over we will have a cheat meal once a week (alternating who gets to pick) for the sake of eating with our kids or having a night out. (Still keeping healthy choices in mind!) 

So the Advocare 24 Day Challenge Cleanse is in the books and results are in! 3lbs down and much more toned! :) (Pics taken morning of day 11) I will have measurement results next week. I love the cleanse! I feel so much better and have so much energy!!

Advocare 24 Day Challenge: Day 8

Today was excellent! Felt good, got a lot done, and stuck to the eating plan! I woke up feeling a bit swollen and my head was pounding from allergies and rain. I pushed through that this morning even though I was tempted to sleep and so glad I did!

Here is how Day 8 went:

Woke up this morning and took a shower. Woke the boy up and sent him with our nieghbor for a few hours. Took my Catalyst and Probiotics. 

Day 8 means 3 more days of Fiber so I took that with just water to save the calories. (Normally I mix with OJ) It wasn't bad at all. Fixed a yummy breakfast. I was craving toast so I threw a piece of Ezekial Cinnamon Raisin bread into the toasts and put a tablespoon of Almond butter on it. Also had some strawberries. I wasn't sure how the toast would taste but the combo of the cinnamon, sweet raisins and the nuttiness of the almond butter was amazing. For those who haven't tried Almond Butter- do it! Fixed my spark and headed out.

Breakfast Breakdown: 313 Calories

Ezekial Cinnamon Raisin bread with Almond butter: 175 Calories

1/2 cup strawberries: 23 calories

Fiber: 70 calories

Spark: 45 Calories

Bootcamp was tough today! A very intense 30 min WOD. Came away feeling like I should have pushed it harder but during it I felt like I couldn't go any harder. It was pretty much a compilation of the exercises I find to be the hardest. Finished first 25oz of water.

My arms for sure recieved a workout today. I love seeing the transformation and seeing the definition of my muscles. I think the catalyst is actually helping with it!

Lunch was something new today. I ran to the store on the way home and picked up some pita and a rotisserie chicken. No "sides" for lunch but I was satisfied and filled all the requirements for lunch so I felt fine about it. I wasn't hungry after but you could always throw in some red pepper stripes for some crunch on the side.

Lunch Breakdown: 363 Calories

Pita bread with rotisserie chicken, lettuce, tomato, avacado, a sprinkle of feta, and fat free raspberry vinegarette: 363 Calories

It was nasty and rainy today and bootcamp was tough today so I took the opportunity to do some laundry and watch a movie while the kids napped. Finished 2nd 25oz of water.

Dinner was a recipe I had tried before I started this challenge (Avacado Tacos- recipe on the blog) but I tried a leaner ground Turkey and liked it just as well. We used 93/7 so I adjusted the calories accordingly. Fixed Evie a quesidilla with cheese and meat as a kid friendly option with this meal.

Dinner Breakdown: 470

Avacado Taco with 93/7 ground turkey, tomatoes, onion, pinch of cheese, lime, avacado: 470

Tonight we watched Batman with the kids and while they had popcorn I made my French toast and fruit  (recipe on site) and split it with Matt. Added a little whip cream to make it more of a dessert. Matt

approved! Finished last 25oz of water.

Dessert Breakdown: 152 Calories

1/2 serving of French toast with mixed berries: 132 calories

Fat free whipped topping: 20 

I took my omegaplex. The herbal cleanse pills are over for the rest of the cleanse. I'm super excited as my cleanse will be over on Wednesday so I'll get to see how I've done.

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE FOR THE DAY: 1,296 CALORIES

A little short but it's fine. We are eating dinner with my husbands boss this week so I'm sure my weekly calories will even up.

Overall today was awesome and I feel great. The cleanse is over in two days and then I'll enter into the max phase which I'm excited about.

Weekends are tough for me but it's nice that it's so easy to get back at it on Monday. No amount of junk eating on the weekend is worth the way I feel when I eat well. My body appreciates it and it let's me know it does. 

I think the greatest thing this way of life has taught me is that I'm a lot stronger than I thought- physically and mentally. My body is strong and feels great and I'm strong enough to withhold from things that aren't good for me. I can go out to eat and make good choices. I can go to a party and eat in moderation. I can get out and move without feeling tired and worn down. I have so much more of myself to offer now.

Until tomorrow...

Advocare 24 Day Challenge: Day 5, 6, & 7

I've decided to blog my weekend posts (Friday-Sunday) as one post in order to be able to spend more time with my family. The weekend posts may be a bit less detailed since it will include 3 days of information.

Weekends are always hardest for me when I'm watching what I eat (which is always now) mainly because we are out an about running errands or taking the kids somewhere and there are always get togethers, birthdays, other special events... This weekend alone we had two birthday parties and my husband was baptized this morning at church so we ate out for lunch for that occasion.

So here is how my weekend (Day 5, 6, and 7) went:

DAY 5

Woke up and drank my Spark and took my catalyst and my probiotics. Grabbed a banana on the way out of the door to boot camp because I was running late. Bananas are my go to when I don't have a lot of time. They really seem to get me through a short time when I can't seem to get a meal together.

Boot camp was awesome as usual. I was a bit sore from all the walking I had done last week but I pushed through it and it felt awesome.

Came home and made a very delicious breakfast. I have been craving breakfast food you don't normally associate with healthy - you know, the stuff your mom used to make you on Saturday morning! So I made a healthy version of French Toast and it was AH-MAZ-ING! It has a few ingredients (Ezekial Bread and Flaxseed) that aren't really things you think about buying but do it! SO worth it. I'm making it for the family tomorrow before they leave for work and school. Finished my first 25 oz of water.

Breakfast: 420 Calories
Spark - 45 calories
Banana - 110 calories
French toast with Berries - 265 (Recipe on my blog!)

For lunch I had the same sandwich (Turkey) I've been having mainly because I just need to eat it up before it goes bad.

Lunch: 420 calories
Turkey sandwich with Munster cheese on whole wheat sugar free bread: 320 calories
Red peppers with roasted red pepper hummus: 100 calories

We had some left over steak from the start of the week so for dinner I made fajitas. I will post my fajita recipe soon when I make it with meat that I usually do (I usually use flank steak) and can accurately add up the calories. Finished my 2nd 25 oz of water.

Dinner: 555 Calories
Steak Fajitas with veggies - 470 calories
1/2 Cup brown rice - 85 Calories

Later that night I did have a cup of strawberries on a caramel corn rice cake and a bit of whip cream which was about 100-120 calories.

Finished up my last 25 oz of water taking my herbal cleanse and my omegaplex.

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE: 1,515 CALORIES

My daily goal is 1,420 so I was over a bit which isn't a big deal considering I had bootcamp in the morning.

Not a bad day at all!

-----------------------------------------------------------

DAY 6

Saturday morning we had the color run so we were up fairly early trying to get everyone ready. We originally had not planned to bring the kids but we ended up with them which I'm actually really glad we did! They had a lot of fun!

In the morning I made a spark and a meal replacement shake because I didn't have time to fix breakfast and I wanted something I could eat in the car. Took my probiotic and catalyst.

Breakfast: 265 Calories
Advocare Meal Replacement Shake - 220 Calories
Spark - 45 Calories

Made it to the color run and I actually ran the whole race. I wasn't sure I could do it. It's been a really long time since I've run that far and I did it, pushing both kids. I'm glad I did because now I know I can.

 

 

As much as I hate running - running the color run has inspired me to make an effort to run instead of walk once a week. Couldn't hurt. I may actually learn to enjoy it... or not. :)

 

Matt and the kids ate at chick-fila on the way home (Matt later on said he did not enjoy it as much as he thought he would!) I withheld and when I got home I fixed myself a healthy lunch that made me feel awesome. The steamed edemame is a great source of protein! Finished first 25oz of water.

Lunch: 540 Calories
Turkey Sandwich with munster cheese on sugar free whole wheat: 320 Calories
Steamed edemame: 110 Calories

That evening we had plans to go to a friends house for a get together. Get together are hard for me because I watch everyone else eating for pleasure and I have to do my best to make good choices so I don't regret it later. We were asked to pick up the pizzas for the party so when we did we stopped by Dominos and ordered one of their gluten free crusts to avoid the white flour that hurts my stomach now. We ordered the chicken spinach feta. It was awesome... did not taste any different than a normal crust pizza! At the party they had salad and I brought my own dressing, fruit salad, and chips, dip and cake. (SO HARD!!!) I did have a few chips lightly dipped in dip and I had a sliver of cake since I've heard wonderful things about the woman who makes these cakes. It wasn't much - not enough to make me feel gross. I told myself I wasn't going to cheat at all on the cleanse, however, socially sometimes you have to. The need to feel normal. Thank goodness all of my friends are health conscious and understand why I'm eating the way I do. Drank 2nd and 3rd round of 25oz of water at party. Took my omegaplex and herbal cleanse when I got home.

Dinner: 618 Calories
1/2 of a 10" Gluten Free Chicken Feta Spinach Pizza: 435 Calories
Spinach Salad with Ginger Dressing: 73 Calories
1 Cup of fruit salad: 110 Calories

Snacks at the party:
Chips and dip: 270 calories
Cake: 115 Calories

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE: 1,800 CALORIES

Even though this was high, it will still within what I would be allowed to eat. I have a 1,420 calorie goal but I also ran 3 miles which would burn about 300 calories. 1,420 plus 300 burned is 1,720. So I was about 80 over my total goal. But you also have to remember my goal is 1,420 to lose. Infact, I would still lose, just slowly, on how I ate today! Remember this when you are beating yourself by eating over your goal a bit.

-------------------------------------------

DAY 7

Today was also challenging because we had plans to eat out and had a birthday party to attend. I also did used today as a rest day (first one in 7 days!)

This morning I took my probiotic and my catalyst and once again chose a protein shake for time sakes. Matt was baptized today at church (HOORAY!) and we had to be there earlier than normal. I skipped the spark this morning.

Breakfast:
Advocare Meal Replacement Shake: 220 Calories

After church we headed over to Abuelos with my parents which is my favorite Mexican restaurant. I skipped the chips and had a hard time choosing off the menu as they don't list their nutritional information online. I'm not usually one to go for soup, however I found a calorie listed for the soup and figured I would make up the calories at dinner. Finished first 25 oz of water.

Lunch:
Bowl of tortilla soup: 250 Calories

Following lunch we had to immediately head to a birthday party for Evie's school friend. LOTS of great looking food! Pizza, homemade snacks, cupcakes, chips! Before "this life" I would have loaded up a plate and not thought twice. I didn't completely deprive myself. I had some fruit and if there was something I wanted to try, I allowed it - but only one piece of that thing. Finished 2nd 25oz of water.

Snacks:
Various - I estimated that I probably ate 300 Calories.

Dinner time was easy. We made quesadillas.

Dinner:
Chicken quesadilla on whole wheat with veggies and low fat cheese - 346 Calories
1 tbsp light sour cream - 20 Calories

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE: 1,136 CALORIES... however I do plan on having a light snack (probably fruit) before bed so it will probably be closer to 1,350. And I will be taking my omegaplex and herbal cleanse with my last 25oz of water.

SO while I didn't stick to the cleanse 100% I still feel really good here at the end of the weekend. I've enjoyed spending time with my friends and family as well as sticking to my diet for most of the time. Seeing as though before I would have just eaten whatever I wanted, this is still MUCH better than how I ate before.

I know this post was much less detailed but spending time with the kids this weekend has been so great! Thank you for understanding!

This week will be super interesting as we have plans to go out of town on Thursday... so we will see how that will work out with eating well!

Recipe: Cinnamon Raisin French Toast

Cinnamon Raisin French Toast

Serving Size: 1

Calories per serving: 265

Bit of a carb heavy breakfast, however this is an awesome healthy alternative to making traditional French toast and it's wonderful. This is also gluten free!

Ingredients:

2 Slices of Ezekial Cinnamon Raisin Bread (found in freezer section of health food area) - 160 calories

3 tbsp of Egg Beaters egg whites - 25 calories

1/8 cup of Silk Almond Milk Light - 5 calories

1/2 tbsp 100% whole ground flaxseed meal - 15 calories

Pinch or two of ground cinnamon

No stick spray for the pan

3/4 cup mixed berries of choice

Directions:

Heat your pan on medium and coat pan with non stick spray.

Combine your egg white, milk, flaxseed, and cinnamon and mix well. Pour over your bread slices evenly front and back and allow to sit and absorb all of mixture. Place bread in pan and allow to brown on each side until edges are crispy. 

Top with mixed berries and enjoy!!

Advocare 24 Day Challenge: Day 4

Well today did not go that great. While usually that would mean I over indulged, today I got so wrapped up that I didn't eat enough. Eating less once in awhile isn't going to hurt you but making a habit of it will. It can actually work against any efforts you are making to lose weight as your body hits starvation mode and pulls it's resources. Don't get me wrong, today was a really good day... I just wish I had set a better example for you all!

Here's how day 4 went:

8:00am: Woke up. Took a shower. Got ready... Took the boy downstairs. 

9:00am: Made my Spark. Took my Catalyst and Probiotic. Fiber is done with until the end of the first 10 days so I get a break from that.

Had an awesome breakfast planned to show you guys but wrote down the wrong time for Stones speech therapy and didn't think I would have time. Opted for a meal replacement shake. This is an option they give you on the challenge... To drink a meal replacement shake instead of breakfast. Of course, you'd have to order more shakes to do this. They are actually very very good. I like berry and vanilla. 

I did try the Chocolate Mocha today and enjoyed the coffee flavor! They are packed with protein so you aren't left feeling hungry. 

Breakfast Breakdown: 265 calories

Spark - 45 calories

Chocolate Mocha Meal Replacement Shake - 220 calories

Matt drinks a shake every morning. He says he loves that he knows exactly how he will feel following it. No guess work to his morning.

10:00am: Played with Stone letting him color and pretend. 

11:00am: Stone had speech therapy. 

Noon: The sun came out and it was so nice out I decided to walk the neighborhood before putting him down for a nap. Walked 1.75 miles at a 3.0mph pace. Finished first 25oz of water.

2:00pm:  Finally got around to eating lunch. Those shakes really sustain if you can't tell. Lunch was a variation of yesterday's lunch.

Lunch Breakdown: 421 Calories

Honey smoked turkey breast 4oz - 140 calories

Munster Cheese - 80 calories

Deli style mustard- 0 calories

Dry roasted wasabi edemama (1/4 cup) - 130 calories

Broccoli, tomatoes, red peppers- 51 calories

1 tbsp of Ginger dressing for veggies- 40 calories

4:30pm: Momma called wanting to walk and that we did! Another 1.75 miles at 3.0mph.

6:00pm: By the time everyone got home and ready Matt and I actually needed to leave. We met friends tonight to see Gods Not Dead. So rather than cook the meal I prepared we decided to grab a bite before the movie.

6:45pm: Our typical go to place when we eat out is Panera. They have a hidden menu that is awesome. I wasn't hungry since I ate lunch so late so I opted for a small cup of soup. Matt had the better option- a Power Steak Wrap Salad with double meat. Finished 2nd round of 25oz of water.

Dinner breakdown: 270 calories

Turkey Chili in Cup- 190 calories

Apple - 80 calories

They were selling these rings at Panera for a dollar to support our local autism center so of course we got them...

7:30pm: Went to a movie. Matt once again tempted me as he got a small popcorn but I withheld and drank my liter of water! Last 25+ ounces for the day!

10:30pm: Knew I should probably have a light snack before bed so I went ahead and had my Caramel Strawberry Crunch (recipe: http://tinyurl.com/lhxfmb6) but added some extra strawberries and used a whole rice cake. I guess maybe it was around 150 calories. Took my herbal cleanse and my omegaplex.

TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE FOR THE DAY: 1,105 CALORIES

So I did not meet my 1,400 calorie a day goal. I did do well with my pie chart:

I think today is a good time to talk about "messing up." Most people would call today a win because I was significantly under my calories but to me it's not. This is about being healthy. I want to be healthy... Not skinny. If you mess up in either direction don't go fill your calories or feel bad about going over. It happens! We can't be perfect! Pick yourself up and start fresh tomorrow.

Okay folks, I'm tired! Until tomorrow...

God's Not Dead. :)