21 Day Fix Challenge Pack

Are you interested in taking the 21 Day Fix Challenge or 21 Day Fix Extreme Challenge? Maybe you already own the 21 Day Fix workouts and need some more support or maybe you're exploring your options. Here's what to expect: 

First of all, some of you are asking "what is a Challenge or a Challenge Pack?" It is a simple solution for weight control, nutrition, and support. When you commit to taking the Challenge, you will receive: 30 meals, highly effective and convenient workout routines from celebrity trainers, a personal support group, and a person coach (me). You will also have access to recipes, meal planners, and additional success tools. Sounds expensive? What if I told you that it cost an average of $5.50 a day? Oh! You also get a free t-shirt after completing your program <-- what I am most excited about! 

Here is everything that come's in your Challenge Pack (this is for 21 Day Fix Extreme):

• Shakeology
• 30 days worth of dense, superfood nutrition to help NOURISH your body 
• Workouts- ** You get an extra workout for free when you order through me as a gift to you. 
• Shakeology shaker cup- my favorite and great as a water bottle, too! 
• Nutrition Guide 
• Quick Start
• Competition to Countdown
• Portion control containers 
• New Coach Welcome Kit 
• This only comes when you decide to enroll as a coach. The fee is waived when you purchase a Challenge pack. Great opportunity to increase your accountability, receive a discount, and possibly build a business. <-- people WILL ask what you've been doing to look so great 

When you decide to commit to a change, it's important to set yourself up for success. You've made an investment and you have some "skin in the game." Plus, you have your original goal. BUT, guess what, behaviors are HARD to change. I know this. Believe me, I know this. So, how do you set yourself up for success?

1. Make sure you have support

•  find a coach, grab a friend or a family member, join the group on Facebook or through the soon-to-be released app on your phone

2. Even when you don't "feel" like it, DO it 

• Guess what, when you finish you will NOT regret it. You'll also have more energy and feel less stressed post-workout. 

3. Plan your meals 

• You want to be prepared. Don't leave your house without a healthy snack. Don't starve yourself. Plan for success. If you know you're busy on Tuesday, plan ahead to make a grab-and-go meal or find a great crock-pot recipe. 

4. Plan your workouts

• Planning ahead gives you a vision and sets your intentions. How will you feel after completing your workout? How will you look and feel after your complete the program? Is there a day where you need to workout at a different time? How will you make sure to workout every day? 

5. Track your meals and workouts 

• We tend to over estimate what we do and under estimate what we eat. Keep track of your consumption and your workouts. It helps you to stay on track with your program and helps you adhere to your goals. Fitness trackers are great but the nutritional guides and calories counters that come with your program are also top-notch. 

6. Reward yourself 

• Do you want a new pair of jeans? How about a trip in a year? Giving yourself a reward will help you feel motivated. Word of advice, do not reward yourself with food. You are not a dog. 

7. Break your goals into bite-size pieces 

• How many workouts do you want to do this week? What are your goals for TODAY? Focusing on small goals will help you accomplish your BIG goal. The key is to take that BIG goal and break it down into daily activities. Each time you accomplish your daily goal, give yourself a hug--you're on your way to accomplishing that big, often scary, goal! 

8. Stick with it! 

• It took you more than 1 day or 1 week or 1 month to feel the way you feel now. There are years of behaviors that you have to work on changing and redirecting. This is not a quick or easy program. Psychologists have found that it takes an average of 21 days to create or change a behavior. So, focus on the process and your behavior first and the results will come. It can take 60+ days to see visible changes--now not for everyone, but do not be discouraged if you don't have a models body within a week. We are focusing on YOU and your HEALTH here. We want you healthy for life. Frankly, if you're looking for a quick and unhealthy fix, than we aren't a great fit for each other. My clients are in it for the long haul. They care about what they put into their body. They know that there is NOT a magic pill or a wrap or a juice cleanse that will give them health. Those pills and wraps, my friends, are fantasies. You need to sweat. You need to eat vegetables and lean proteins. Your cells need to be nourished. You need to build muscle to increase your metabolism. SO, stick with it. Be diligent. Do not be lazy. 

Shakeology Frappucino

Shakeology Frappucino 

Where are my fellow coffee addicts at?! This recipe has saved me from craving Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts. SO simple and nutritious! 

Ingredients: 

1 scoop Chocolate or Chocolate Vegan Shakeology

8 oz cooled coffee 

2-4 ice cubes 

4 oz. unsweetened almond milk 

Directions: Place all ingredients into a blender and combine until desired consistency is reached. Enjoy and seize the day :) 

21 Day Fix Container Equivalents= 1 red, 1/4 yellow 

Veggie and Egg Muffins

Veggie and Egg Muffins 

This dish is great for a grab-and-go breakfast or as a snack throughout the day. 2 muffins = 1 serving. They store well and can easily be reheated. Store covered and in the fridge.

Ingredients (I usually half the recipe, but here is the whole):

12 eggs
1 cup of chopped spinach
1/2 cup of diced bell peppers
large handful of diced green onions

whisk together and place into a muffin tin. The muffin tin should be sprayed with olive oil or another "non-stick" option. These buggers can be a pain if you don't spray the pan! Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees or until firm.

21 Day Fix Container Equivalents= 1 Red and 1 Green per 2 egg muffins

**Whole 30 approved

Ever wonder how to COMPLETE your workout program? This may help!

Day 78 of P90x3

Here is my first review of my progress so far with P90x3--

The good: 

• moves are incredibly dynamic and almost every single move targets your legs and core
• 30 minutes and I am done!
• average calorie burn for my height/weight per workout is 400 calories (that's a lot for 30 min)
• I can workout at home or the gym by using Beachbody On Demand 
• saw a huge increase in my muscle definition and tone (great success for me since it's been 2 years since completing a Beachbody program) 
• saw a huge increase in my endurance and strength 
• fast paced but still offered some breaks to "catch your breath" 
• lost 5 pounds so far, have not taken my measurements yet (will update on Day 90) 

The bad: 

• due to the 30 minute time limit, there is not a lot of time for demonstrations or modifiers 
• nutrition program was a bit confusing to me, I mainly focused on calorie counting 
• yoga routine is excellent but I definitely could have used more instruction :) Not the most graceful! 

Overall score for p90x3: A 

• The original P90x offers more of a calorie burn BUT you are working out anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes 
• Next time I do this, I will use portion fix nutrition and containers 
• great calorie burn for the amount of time 
• balanced program--cardio, weight training, and flexibility
• LOVE being done in 30 minutes! 

5 Things you NEED to know BEFORE becoming a Beachbody Coach!

Fresh Caprese Salad

With my basil growing like crazy, this salad has become a staple in our household. It tastes so fresh and flavorful and always reminds of summer :) The focus on this recipe is on the quality of your ingredients. The dish is so simple that having great tasting tomatoes and mozzarella is really key!

Fresh Caprese Salad 

Fresh mozzarella 

Large tomato (We've been using our homegrown, organic heirlooms tomatoes!)

Fresh basil 

olive oil 

balsamic glaze (you can buy balsamic glaze or you can easily make it by heating balsamic in a saucepan until it is reduced and has more of a syrup consistency) 

salt 

Directions: 

Chop the tomatoes and mozzarella until uniform in size. You can also chop both into "discs" and layer for a beautiful look! Dash of salt to taste. Chop the fresh basil and place on top (or layer between "discs"). Lightly drizzle olive oil and balsamic glaze over the dish until your desired amount of both are present. Easy peasy!

P.s. I added some fresh chives as well. Some folks love fresh garlic added-- just don't do so before a date!

Approx. 21 day fix containers:
1 blue
1 green
1 orange 

Lazy Lasagna

This is my lazy version of lasagna. Will it taste the same as your grandma's? Probably not... But, does it get the job done? Yes! This is delicious and is unfortunately more of a comfort food than a health food. Exercise portion control on this bad boy :) 

Lazy Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef (or ground turkey or chicken) 

1 bag of mozzarella cheese (shredded) 

2 cans of tomato sauce 

1 bag of cheese ravioli 

Directions: 

preheat oven to 400 degrees 

make ravioli according to package directions 

brown meat in separate pan and drain off all extra fat 

in 13x9 pan, spread a thin layer of tomato sauce, add a layer of ravioli, a layer of meat, and a layer of cheese. Add a second layer of ravioli, meat, sauce, and cheese. Place in oven for approx. 20 minutes or until cheese has become golden brown. Let cool for about 10 minutes and serve! 

This is a recipe I created when I was searching through my fridge and found beef and ravioli. It's amazing how working with what you've got yields creative results! This also freezes well if you'd like to make it ahead of time for those busy nights or camping trips! Just skip putting it in the oven, cover, and freeze. Before eating, you will need to thaw it and bake in oven until golden brown and bubbling. 

Approximate 21 day fix containers per 1 cup serving: 

1.5 yellow 

2 blue 

.5 green 

.5 red 

Serving suggestion- Since this is fairly high in blue containers, feel free to only put half of a bag of mozzarella cheese on top instead of putting an additional layer within the lasagna. Also, limit yourself to 1 cup/1 serving and serve with a heaping salad of greens, chopped veggies, and a vinaigrette dressing.  

Lemon-Basil Chicken

Lemon Basil Chicken 

Friends, this is a quick recipe I created to utilize my TONS of basil growing. It's so simple and so delicious!

Ingredients, makes 1 serving:
Boneless/skinless chicken breast
1/2 lemon -- juiced
3 fresh basil leaves-chopped
1 tsp avocado oil (or olive oil or coconut oil)
salt-free lemon pepper seasoning
garlic salt

Directions:
Place oil in sauté pan, add chicken on medium heat. Sprinkle garlic salt and lemon pepper seasoning on top of breast. Cook for 3-4 minutes, flip, and coat the other side with seasoning. Continue cooking until no longer pink in the middle or when it reaches an internal temp. of 165 degrees. Place on plate, squeeze fresh lemon juice on top of it, place chopped basil on top as well. Serve and enjoy!

I absolutely love this served with freshly steamed broccoli with the other 1/2 of lemon squeezed on top of it. Another great option is to serve this over rice.

If you want to be a bit more fancy-- blend the lemon juice and fresh basil with olive oil (about 1 tbs per breast), fresh garlic (1/2 clove per breast), and salt and pepper to taste. This makes a really delicious and quick sauce and can be used over chicken, shrimp, fish, etc etc. It tastes so light and flavorful and fresh. Can't wait to hear how you like this!

For 21 Day Fix folks, here are the container equivalents: 1 red, 1.5 green, 1 tsp (chicken and broccoli). If you add rice, that's 1 yellow container.

On the Go: 21 Day Fix approved healthy options for when time is of the essence!

Breakfast:

Oatmeal: follow instructions for oatmeal preparation (1 yellow container), add orange container of chia seeds, purple container of fresh berries, add to taste: cinnamon and salt

Breakfast tacos: 2 corn tortillas (1 Yellow), 2 scrambled eggs (1 red), salsa (1/2 Green)

Parfait: greek yogurt (1 red), fresh berries (1 purple), chopped almonds (1 orange)

Old faithful: 8 egg whites (1 red), mozz cheese (1 blue), 1 piece toast (1 yellow)

Tried and true: 1 scoop shakeology (1 red), 16 oz. unsweetened vanilla almond milk (1 yellow), 1/2 banana (1 purple), 1 tsp peanut butter (1 tsp)

21 Day Muffin: 1 egg (fry and break the yolk), 1 turkey bacon (together = 1 red), slice cheddar cheese (1 blue), 1 eng. muffin (1 yellow)

Lunch:

chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans = 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green

chicken, brown rice pasta, tomato sauce- 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green

brown rice, chili, cheddar cheese- 1 red, 1.5 yellow, 1 blue

ground turkey, rice, cilantro, lime, bell peppers, onions, garlic (sautée together)- 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green

chicken salad w/ fresh berries and balsamic dressing - 1 red, 2 green, 1 purple, 1 orange)

ground turkey, rice, asparagus, garlic/onion/lemon/red pepper- 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green

chicken, smashed sweet potatoes, broccoli- 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green

Dinner:

chicken, pesto, zucchini, tomatoes - 1 red, 1 orange, 2 green

chili- 1 red, 1 yellow (feel free to add toppings like green onions, jalapeños, tomatoes, etc)

chicken nuggets (almond and flaxseed coating), mashed cauliflower, green beans- 1 red, 2 green

chicken, zucchini, squash, and tomatoes- 1 red, 2 green

Snacks:

apple, celery, almond butter- 1 purple, 1 green, 2 tsp

1 greek yogurt- 1 red

Trail mix (dried blueberries, cherries, cranberries, walnuts, almonds, cashews, choc chips) --4oz - 1 orange

2 egg salad ( 2 eggs, salt and pepper, 2 tsp mayo), celery, nut crackers- 1 red, 2 tsp, 1 green, 1 yellow

apple (1 small fuji), ½ c. grapes, 10 almonds, nut crackers, monterrey jack cheese- 1.5 purple, 1 orange, 1 yellow, 1 blue

hard boiled egg, hummus, carrots, chicken- 1.5 red, 1 blue, 1 green

hummus, chicken, cut veggies- 1 blue, 1 red, 1 green

Fitness Binder

I'm in the process of creating a free fitness binder! I personally love organization and feel like this helps me plan and visualize my success. When it becomes available, please feel free to download the documents, 3-hole punch them, put in a binder and start!

My binder has become my fitness bible. I keep my favorite recipes here, log my measurements, track my containers and nutrition, workout schedules and calendars, and much more in this bad boy. Let me know if you'd like to see something in particular to be included!

To your success! 

Xo, 

Erica