Beach Body 21 Day Fix: Week 3 Recap (and Results)

Jennifer is testing out Beachbody’s 21 Day Fix, which is everywhere lately. Read about week 1 here, week 2 here and her prep here. Get a bit of an overview of the program here. 

That’s a wrap! I have successfully completed the 21 Day Fix and have learned so much along the way. This last week on the fix, I was traveling. My family had an amazing trip, and I never felt deprived, not at all. I made sure those we were traveling to and with were aware of my lifestyle changes and this challenge I was participating in. Everything that was a part of my program was available to me, and I continued to focus on my portions with each food choice. I didn’t get to do my prepping, but my husband’s grandmother had that all handled!

The main difference for week 3 was that I had to portion as I went instead of my usual grab-and-go. I didn’t mind this but will admit, I missed my portions being already done, and my containers accounted for. I had to do more thinking and more counting and tracking. The downside to this was I didn’t know the meals ahead of time so I felt like I had to sacrifice a little towards the end of the day as I ran out of containers. I’m so in love with the proportioned meals that I felt completely out of balance. I didn’t have a plan; I wasn’t sure what meal was next. How would I fill my Tupperwares? Would I be able to fulfill my requirements? When I didn’t have my plan all drawn up and executed for the week, I worried that I’d fall into bad habits. I loved having my meals portioned, accounted for. I became reliant on it. Without it there, I felt lost and a little nervous.

Before we even got to our destination, to get me through the car ride, I made a yummy Shakeology, which held me off for quite a while before I ate my prepped meal.

One of the biggest things I have learned through doing the fix is that, believe it or not, I wasn’t eating enough. I was depriving myself of protein and vegetables and overdoing it on fruits and healthy fat categories. At first I felt really uneasy about the amount of protein I was eating, but then, as I monitored how I felt and the response I was receiving from my body, I let myself trust the process.

I have to admit that I forgot my DVDs for the workouts while I was traveling. I mean, with two kids to pack for, how in the world could I forget something for myself? Shocking, I know. I messaged my coach about it, and she informed me about the Beachbody on demand workouts, which I had no idea I could access through my iPad, phone, laptop, and basically any “smart” device and stream it. I got a sweat on with a beautiful mountain view and NO ONE KNEW! That’s the best part because I think I look ridiculous following along to DVDs. Typically, I’m not a huge fan of home workouts, but I think this program has changed my mind. I also did a lot of walking, many hills (my humps! my lovely lady humps!… so sore!). I pushed my kids uphill at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. It was nuts! I was already sore from my workout that morning, but surely I get extra high fives for this, yes?!

Jessica, my coach, has been nothing short of amazing throughout this process. She has responded quickly to all my questions and concerns, and she kept the private Facebook group active. She checked in with us and allowed us to be as vocal or quiet as we wanted to be. There were no expectations, although we are all more successful when we are loud in the group and accountable. I believe we always thrive when supporting one another. All in all, traveling with this program was not tough. However, I wasn’t in a place where I was constantly eating out. When we did go out for one meal, I ordered salmon tacos naked on gluten-free wraps and subbed steamed vegetables for the rice.

One of my favorite tricks I learned along the way were these containers. If you’re looking to kick up your food prep a notch, try these. I found them at Costco, and they’re easy to stack in a busy fridge and they slide nicely into my diaper bag!

So what were my results like by the end? Well, the scale has always been a love/hate relationship for me. More hate than love. I fall into the habit of allowing the scale to define my success and failure for the week. Not just through the 21 Day Fix, but throughout the years battling my weight. I chose to focus on feedback, release all expectations and simply focus on feedback. I took measurements before and after the fix, and I’m eager to report I lost 13 inches total. I’m giving myself a nice pat on the back. In the way back of my mind, I have the “I still have this to go” response to these results, but I’m just going to work on keeping those thoughts way in the back!

I plan to continue this plan for another 21 days — and maybe even beyond? Who knows! I’ll let you know how it goes! —Jennifer