Halfway Point of Brazil Butt Lift

Alright guys, I'm super pumped to share my journey now that I'm halfway through my Brazil Butt Lift workout program!!

Adding Some Weight

I am loving the results I am seeing from this program! My jeans are fitting better and I'm actually starting to get some shape in my booty. For anyone that has known me in the past, I have always been much more, how should I say this, endowed on the top half of my body. As for my lower part, not so much. I started this program five weeks ago with a little bit more than what I started with just from previous programs like the Fix and PiYo. But only four weeks into BBL, which focuses so much on the lower part of your body I have seen TREMENDOUS change, especially in the clothes I've been wearing! Leonardo (the creator of the BBL) has come up with some really cool, innovated, moves that target areas of your hips, butt and thighs to get the muscles you wouldn't normally hit with just regular ole squats.

Even more, while 4 out of the 6 workouts are using your own body weight there is still some that you use weights to sculpt the rest. As well as, an AWESOME ab routine that is giving me awesome definition. When I started this program out I was using 5lb and 10lb weights to workout with and it was doing the job for sure! Now I have been able to move up to using 8lb and 12.5lb so I am DEFINITELY getting stronger!!

Check Out Those Guns!

I have been doing pretty well with my eating by incorporating some of the yummy recipes that are provided when you purchase the challenge pack. But most of all I am still consistently drinking my Shakeology every single day. These workouts are pretty intense so I love that instead of chugging my three redbulls a day I am able to drink my chocolate Shakeo and it gives me all the energy I need to get through them! Plus it is keeping me out of all the holiday snacking I am quite fond of this time of the year!

Can't Go Without My Shakeo!

Here is an example of the meal plan I have been using every week. I tend to stay pretty consistent with most of my meals and snacks except my dinners every week. For me its much easier on me and my pocket book when I'm grocery shopping. I have also been trying my best to stick with slow cooker meals for dinner since Adam is working nights and he's able to take what I'm making to work for lunch every night.

Weekly Meal Plan

Strawberries, Greek Yogurt, Unsweetened Cocoa Powder!

Now for what most of you are really interested in, how about a progress picture?! I didn't go all out with the picture taking just because its only the halfway point and I want it to really be a surprise when I take my final after pictures! But here is a little sneak of my progress so far!

Halfway Transformation

Pretty good so far I'd say!! Now as we all know, Thanksgiving is on Thursday! I know I myself have ALWAYS had such a hard time with all the yummy food that will be at your fingertips all day. Here are some of my tips I am going to be using this week! 

*DO MY WORKOUTS!! Maybe even an extra one the day before and after

*USE MY PORTION CONTROL! Your eyes tend to always be bigger than your stomach but yet you feel compelled to eat every thing on your plate. On your first round try to get just a little bit of all the things you want. Eat that. Then if you think you still want a little bit more go back BUT JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE

*Try to substitute out some things for healthier options (I have a bunch of healthier options for some staple Thanksgiving food recipes on my Facebook page at Facebook.com/ShimmerMeFit)

*Don't graze the appetizers, instead focus on just enjoying the company of your family!

Obviously we are not trying to lose weight during this holiday season but we definitely are not trying to throw all our hard work all year long out the window either! If you are interested in some more one-on-one coaching and motivation to get yourself through the holiday season so you can start the new year off on a GREAT HEALTHY foot! Fill out the application below to be considered for my next challenge group that starts December 1st!

There are tons of Wufoo features to help make your forms awesome.

Eating Clean: 21 Day Fix Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

I am seriously DIGGING all these crock pot meals for the Fix!! I am so sad I didn't have these around in my beginning rounds!! Here it is folks:

So YUM!

21 Day Fix Crock Pot Chicken Tacos:

Ingredients:

*1 lb of Chicken Breasts

*1 Jar Clean Salsa

*1 Pack of Low Sodium Taco Mix

*Corn Tortillas

*Shredded Cheese

*Greek Yogurt

*Romaine Lettuce

Directions:

1. Place chicken breasts, salsa, and taco mix in the crock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours.

2. Heat corn tortillas on stove or in the oven (I did mine for about 5 mins at 350 degrees)

3. Add your toppings 

For two tacos this will measure out for 1 RED(chicken), 1 BLUE(cheese), 1 GREEN(Lettuce), 1/2 RED(if you choose to use Greek Yogurt).

ENJOY!!!

Eating Clean: Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I have been on a slow cooker kick lately. I mean who doesn't love a meal that practically cooks itself while you go about your day?! Its also convenient for us because Adam works nights and it allows him to have something besides a turkey sandwich to take with him for his "lunch break" Thus I present to you: Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches! Which are most definitely 21 Day Fix approved!

Um, YUM!

Ingredients:

* Pork Loin

* 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

* 1/2 cup water

* 1 cup of chopped onions and mushrooms

* 1 tsp cayenne pepper

* 1 tbsp garlic powder

* 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

* 1/4 cup yellow mustard

* 1 whole wheat bun or roll

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients except the red wine vinegar and yellow mustard.

2. Cook on low for 7-8 hours

3. Shred the pork and stir in the red wine vinegar and yellow mustard.

4. Serve on whole wheat bun and enjoy!

 

Brazil Butt Lift Week 1

Working on that Brazil Booty!

Alright so if none of you have heard on Facebook, I started the Brazil Butt Lift about four weeks ago. It was on sale a few months ago and I had always wanted to try it out so I snatched it up.  After finishing an additional round of the 21 Day Fix, going out of town to Minnesota for a wedding, and jumping back on track with the 3 Day Refresh I needed something new to get me motivated again! 

When you get your Brazil Butt Lift (BBL) you get your workout calendar, five workouts, a "secret weapon" workout, and a recipe booklet to help you stay on track with your fitness, as well as note cards of all of your workouts for easy, on-the-go workouts so you don't have to worry about figuring out where to get your DVD to play when you are on vacation or something! 

First things first, I drew up my menu plan for the week:

What I ate for Week 1

The dinners and some of the lunch I have laid out here are pulled out of the recipe booklet I got with my challenge pack. They were quite delicious!

Healthiest Meal of the Day!

When you get started there are four different workout calendars to chose from that will focus more on certain parts of your lower body depending on what you need. There's Classic (for all butt types), Volumizer (to make your booty bigger), Lift (if you need a little pick me up), and Slim (if you need to whittle down a little bit!) Since its a 8 week program I decided to go with Volumizer for the first 4 weeks and then move to Lift for the last 4 week because we all know homegirl over here needs a little more junk in the trunk!

First workout of the entire program, Bum Bum. I am going to be 100% honest here, IT SUCKED!! Oh my gosh it was awful! I was almost to the point of being 10 mins into this half hour workout and calling it quits and returning the whole program, IT WAS THAT HARD!! The idea of the workout is a lot like the Total Body Cardio Fix that is the first Fix workout it busts your booty and the rest of the week is not nearly as bad as that one workout. So I pushed through. Guys, I am four weeks into this and I still have to pause this workout every 10 minutes and take a break. But I get it done, that is the main point!

High & Tight is the next workout, this workout involves using the small yellow band that comes with the program to really zone in on all parts of your butt! This one is probably my favorite because it really works parts of my lower body I have never worked before.

Sculpt is the longest workout, its about 45 minutes long. This is the one that uses weights to hit all the muscles in your body I enjoy this workout too just because I like weight training. The length does get kind of tedious though, I got spoiled with the Fix workouts all being only 30 minutes long.

Cardio Axe is BY FAR my favorite cardio workout of all the programs I have tried out this far. Its a lot like Zumba which I love. You learn different dance segments and then put it all together at the end. It's a lot of fun and I don't hate it like I usually do. I actually get super excited when I see this workout on the calendar for the day!

Tummy Tuck gets added in a few times a week. This is a solid 20 minutes of pure ab work and let me tell you it KILLS! I am super pumped to see the difference in my abs when it comes time to take my after pictures!

Since this program is a 8 week program you are allotted a rest day every week. I like to bust out my Fix yoga workout on this day just to keep things moving!

All in all, only 4 weeks in I can already tell a difference in how my lower body and core are looking. This program makes you do the work, but you get a good sense of satisfaction because only a week in and you can start seeing results!!

If you are interested in trying out this program or any other and joining into one of my challenge groups please fill out the application below and we can start chatting about how to get you to reach your goals!

There are tons of Wufoo features to help make your forms awesome.

Eating Clean: Tex Mex Sweet Potato Skillet

Okay so I've been slacking on my blogging game! No worries though, I have a few ideas up my sleeve to hammer out some posts over the next few days or so! In the meantime I wanted to share this new recipe with you! I love trying out new recipes, its actually rare that I'll cook the same thing twice because I just like experimenting. This stuff though, I will be making it again, and again, and probably again. Introducing: 

Tex Mex Sweet Potato Skillet

Sweet Potatoes for Mexican Food?! Oh yeah! 

Ingredients:

1 lb sweet potatoes, cubed. I used 1 and 1/2 medium sized and it was plenty!
1 small onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 large red bell peppers, diced
14 oz can black beans, drained & rinsed (I don't like beans so I skipped this)
1 cup corn (frozen or canned is OK)
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 tbsp cumin, divided
1/2 tbsp all-natural taco seasoning, divided
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 lime, juice of
1 cup (4 oz) Cheddar cheese, shredded
2 medium avocados, diced
Non-fat Greek yogurt & salsa, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat large deep skillet on medium heat and add coconut oil, spreading with spatula. Add sweet potatoes, 1/2 tbsp cumin, 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add onion, garlic, bell peppers and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add black beans and corn, cook for another 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add diced tomatoes, remaining cumin and salt, black pepper, taco seasoning and stir. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook covered for 15 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Squeeze lime juice on top, sprinkle with cheese and broil on high for 5 minutes or until cheese turns golden. 

I added chopped up some avocado and threw that into it and put some dabs of Greek yogurt on top!

This makes a ton of food that will easily feed the whole family! I actually made it Sunday night and threw it in a tuberware in the fridge and ate it for dinner all this week! Adam even had some of it as well and it lasted me 4 days! As you noticed there is no meat in it so of course there's always the option of cooking up some chicken in the oven and chopping it up and throw it in after its cooked! I loved that it was a quick meal I made after I put Ryken down for the night and it saved me time throughout the week for dinners!