Fit for Fall - 21 Day Fix Style

If you haven't heard about it yet, the 21 Day Fix is getting a lot of press. Its creator, Autumn Calabrese, is on the cover of next month's Oxygen magazine so you'll be seeing a lot of her on newsstands soon. 

I've done 3 rounds of the 21 Day Fix and love the combination of fitness program and portion control system. 

Perks of the Fix:
- lose between 5-15 lbs. in 21 days
- 30 minute workouts 
- detailed nutrition plan
- portion sized food storage containers that take the guesswork out of eating
- eating plan which includes a handy restaurant guide
- treats like desserts and wine are incorporated into the eating plan (woo hoo!)
- no counting calories

Have I got your attention? Interested? Read on!

What are the workouts like?

As a bit of a cardio junkie, it's a great, heart pumping workout. Yet it also meets my need for strength training. I love the mix of cardio and strength training in a 30 minute program. As someone who works out early in the morning before work, this is the perfect length for me. I get to sleep 30 minutes later and still get in a heart-pumping workout before my kids get up - win-win! 

The workouts are challenging but, as with all Beachbody programs, every workout has a modifier, Kat, who modifies every move for you. I know people who are doing this program who have 50-100 lbs to lose and who haven't worked out at all before and they are finding it do-able. At the same time, I consider myself reasonably in shape and it definitely left me dripping in sweat and a good kind of sore the next day. It's one of those something for everyone kind of workouts.

What's the deal with the colorful containers? 

Beyond the workouts, what I most like about the Fix is the containers, help with portion control and the whole approach to meal planning. 

I'm a planner as you may have figured out. I plan my meals so this was in my wheelhouse. But for those who are not planners already, this takes all of the guesswork out of meal planning; it lays out how many containers you get each day, gives you sample meal plans, recipes and tips and really is easy to use. Based on my weight loss goals, it told how many of each color container I could eat each day. For me that meant 4 green, 3 purple, 4 red, 3 yellow, 1 blue and 1 orange.

The Fix really has changed my whole approach to eating for the better. As those who know me know, I'm not a huge vegetable person. I hate salads and raw veggies so as someone who has been actively trying to eat more cleanly, develop healthier eating habits, getting vegetables into my diet is a continual struggle. The Fix helped me know in a measurable way how much of each food group I need to eat in a day. It forced me to realize how pathetically few vegetables I really eat in a day and just how much fruit I eat. I always thought "fruit is healthy!" Yes, it is but a lot of it is also high in natural sugars and carbs which can totally derail your weight loss goals if you're eating too much of it as I was. 

Another thing I like about this program is this is NOT a starvation plan. In the beginning yes, I was sometimes a little hungry at night as my body adjusted to eating less and as I figured out how to better space out my containers over the day. Once I figured the plan out and my body adjusted to the proper portion sizes, I very rarely found myself hungry and in some cases found myself with extra containers at the end of the day. On the rare occasion I was absolutely starving at 7:30 at night, I just added in an extra red or green container. 

This is not a quick fix diet. It's not a diet at all - it's a lifestyle change. It takes 21 days to form a habit. In these 21 days, you learn what foods you need to fuel your body. You figure out pretty quickly what portion sizes you need to eat in a day. You basically retrain your body and mind so that these become sustainable lifestyle changes. 

Although I'm not currently doing the Fix workouts, I have continued using the method and approach to meal planning. As my colleagues can attest, months after doing the Fix, I still bring in my daily oatmeal in the little yellow container and with it my chia seeds and fruit in the corresponding orange and purple containers. It's a really handy and simple system to figure out much food to eat to maintain my daily goals. 

It sounds too good to be true... You could lose 5-15 lbs in 21 days? Seriously?

Yup! I've seen it work. I've done two 21 Day Fix challenge groups myself as a participant and I have a handful of my challengers doing it right now. People are loving this program and are getting results. Just look at some of the before and afters - real people, real results.

If you're not sure home workouts are for you, this is the perfect program to give it a try. 21 days. You can do anything for 21 days! If you aren't totally satisfied, Beachbody has a 30 day money back guarantee on all of their fitness programs so you lose nothing.

Join me!

I'm committing to doing another round of the Fix and am asking 5 people to do it with me. 

• I'm kicking off on September 15th (the application to join is below)
• I'm looking for 5 committed people to do the program along with me.
• If you game for giving it a go, I'll be here to support you. 

Together we'll work through meal planning, cooking for the family, recipes, tips for eating on the go, and strategies for handling temptations.

Fill out my online form.

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