June was a whirlwind in every sense of the word for our family. Moving to another state with two kids, two dogs and a bird had me pleading for sanity at times. Kitchenless and living out of a suitcase, we were literally eating out for almost every meal. I felt like a gypsy and found myself craving the stability of a not only a place to call home, but healthy whole foods. (I actually started dreaming about green juice rivers and trees with leaves of kale. That must be what heaven looks like.) The bottom-line is that I felt unbalanced, ungrounded and unhealthy. In other words, I felt like shit.
A friend of mine had recently completed the Beachbody 21 Day Ultimate Reset. When I saw her after completion, she looked amazing. Her skin was glowing, her energy was amazing, and although she didn’t set out to lose weight, she found herself ten pounds lighter. Most importantly, she was able to take an in-depth look at her relationship with food and use this information to continue her journey towards optimum health. As I was reading the stories on Facebook, I couldn’t believe that one gentleman dropped 31 pounds and another woman lowered her cholesterol 75 points in only 21 days!! Insanity! Sign me up! Right!?
Last Monday, although slightly intimidated, I began the reset. Being an avid juicer, and heavily relying on whole food shakes out of sheer convenience, the thought of preparing every single meal made me clench my jaw a little bit. Could I really commit to this? Regardless of the occasional self-doubt, I set my intentions for renewed energy, improved mental clarity, improved moods and a deeper connection with my own food and weight issues.
Sunday I did all my shopping for the week. (Thank you Billings for opening a Natural Grocers in anticipation of my move back ;) I watched the DVDs and read through the booklet. I couldn’t help but think that this reset was basically a crash course in the six-month program I offer my own clients. So cool! But enough with the logistics, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty and I will share with you the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The Program
Basically I am eating three amazing meals each day. I also take supplements that oxygenize, alkalize, mineralize, detox, revitalize and optimize my body. Because this is an “inner workout”, the program encourages you to limit your working out to 20 minute walks and stretching.
Week 1 is about reclaiming your health. Basically, you’re accessing your body’s inner chemistry and preparing it for change. You’ll slowly remove meat and dairy, which are known to place stress on the digestive system, from your diet.
In the 2nd week, you release the toxic compounds that are stored within your tissues, clogging your cells and blocking proper nutrient absorption. This phase includes a gentle colon cleanse and eating a full vegetarian diet.
During week 3, you restore your metabolism to maximum efficiency, putting nutrients, enzymes, and pre-and probiotics back into your system. You'll cut back further on grains and will be eating mostly fruits and vegetables. The good news is that you can incorporate Shakeology into the mix! I love effortless so for me that's a biggie.
The Good
During week one, I haven’t felt hungry. At all. The meals were incredible. Oatmeal with flaxseeds and organic berries, salmon with asparagus, and quinoa salad were a few of my favorites. I felt quite accomplished and satisfied preparing my own meals while still managing to cook for my family. Usually, I’m the mom who is tasting the mac and cheese or eating the crust from the peanut butter and jelly even if I’m not really hungry. I will definitely be more mindful in the future.
Because I’ve never eaten red meat, cutting it out was obviously not a problem. I chose to replace meals that contained yogurt with an organic egg, because dairy and I don’t get along very well. For those of you who are meat eaters, the reset does a wonderful job of slowly phasing animal products out of your diet.
My energy right now is amazing. No coffee. No stimulants. My mental clarity is incredible and I find my patience for my children and life in general is at an all time high. I feel upbeat, grateful and optimistic. Although my intention for this reset was not to lose weight, I am down 7 pounds in one week! That’s insane, especially considering I was eating a lot and didn’t really work out. My exercise consisted of walking to the park and playing some Just Dance 3 with the girls.
The Bad And The Ugly
On day 2 I woke up feeling like I went on a drunken tequila bender the night before. I had a terrible headache and I felt nauseas, achey and weak. My skin broke out and I wanted to sell my children on Craigslist. (Hey, I’m just being honest.) This only lasted one day and I was able to shift my mindset into viewing this experience as something positive. My body was working properly and getting rid of toxins. I did have a cup of green tea to soften the withdrawal symptoms. It's crazy how a month of eating like crap can affect your body in such a negative way!
When I started on Monday, I didn’t take in to consideration I would be doing the reset during the 4th of July. We had my little brothers and their friends over and everyone was relaxing, eating and having some beers. For a minute, I wanted to join in the fun, but instead I took a moment and remembered my intention and why I was doing this reset. I’m so thankful I stuck with it!
I can honestly say with how I feel right now, the day of utter hell was totally worth it. My skin is almost cleared up and my energy is through the roof. I know it sounds corny, but I’m high on life!
Conclusion
I’m honestly looking forward to the rest of this experience. Like I said before, in the 2nd week, you release the toxic compounds that are stored within your tissues, clogging your cells and blocking proper nutrient absorption. This phase includes a gentle colon cleanse and eating a full vegetarian diet.
I have found the Beachbody Ultimate Reset to be extremely valuable so far; even for someone like me who knows a ton about health and wellness. I know the effort is worth the results and I’m taking this time to be gentle with myself and offer the same support to myself that I would to one of my clients. I look forward to sharing the rest of my experience with you all!
