I did 21 day fix, here’s what happened…

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Food blogging is one of our favorite things in the world. We get to try new dishes, meet interesting people, and travel to new places. The one side effect of food blogging = love handles. It’s been about one year since Couple in the Kitchen was formed, and somehow amidst my active lifestyle and my philosophy to try to “exercise off” what I eat, 10 pounds slowly crept on. I knew that when I was only wanting to wear elastic waistbands that I needed to try a new approach. Oh, and did I mention at this point and time I was 5 weeks out from our trip to Rio? Yeah, Brazil, that magical land where all the Victoria’s Secret models come from.

A friend was promoting 21 Day Fix Program so I messaged her to learn more. The next thing I knew, Britt Theleman was my Beachbody Coach (I liked the sound of that), and I got a package in the mail.  Upon opening my beachbody package, my thoughts were that there were a bunch of Shakeology packets “food, score!”, 30 minute workout videos “Only 30 minutes? Easy Peasy” and a bunch of brightly colored containers “Wow those containers are hella small. I’m hungry just looking at them. Effff.”

Britt helped to teach me about the program, what to eat and helped with meal planning before this 21 day journey got started. I even convinced Gavin to join me for the first week. Here’s my story:

The Day Before The Fix: Sunday

I was sad thinking about ditching my friend cerveza for the next 21 days. So, like a true American, I bellied up to my favorite bar to watch Football playoffs, binged on a plate of nachos larger than my head, and guzzled a bucket of Miller Lites (true story). These will be the last beers I’ll taste for the next 21 days.

Day 1: Monday

Woke up slightly groggy (thanks a lot, Miller Lite), but was ready to kick butt and get fit! Today I started with the cardio fix workout and man, it got my heart pumping! Secretly, I was really happy it was only 30 mins. Tonight I also watched the bachelor without my usual red wine, this felt weird to me, but I had a shake instead.

Here’s what I ate:

• Scrambled Eggs: I usually eat egg whites in the morning so I felt pretty indulgent while scrambling up 2 whole eggs, yolk and all. 
• Snack: Raspberries – an entire pint almost filled up the purple container. Yay! These are bigger than they look! 
• Lunch: Grilled chicken fajita bowl = Chicken breast coated in cumin, chili powder and paprika, on top of refried beans, seared pepper and onions, topped with cheese. Super filling!
• 4pm: Hungry, what can I eat? I’m still learning how to do this eat 6 small meals a day thing.
• Dinner: Salmon, quinoa and roasted veggies
• Dessert: Chocolate shakeology and reality TV

Day 2: Tuesday

I pulled Gavin out of bed to do our Upper Body workout bright and early before work. This was super manageable since it was only 30 minutes long, even though I am normally not a morning exercise person. Tuesdays are also the days we meet for group bootcamp with our trainer. Day 2 and we were signing up for two-a-days. Ugh!

• Breakfast: 2 fried eggs
• Snack: Apple
• Lunch: Super yummy quinoa and mushroom stuffed peppers! Find the recipe here
• Snack: Greek yogurt with blackberries and raspberries
• Dinner: Salmon (again) as we had extra filets to cook. We paired it with lemon and garlic roasted cauliflower
• Snack: Red wine with a girlfriend, hell yeah! 

 Day 3: Wednesday

I tried to get Gavin out of bed for our morning workout, he wouldn’t budge. Looks like it’s going to be a late workout tonight.

Today was very temping to say the least. We got invited to come in and pick out a free Goorin Bros hat for National Hat Day this upcoming Friday. Upon arrival, they have Sourced Craft Cocktails teaching us how to make the perfect Old Fashioned. I needed to take a promo photo of the hat and cocktails, so here I am, holding a deliciously perfect craft cocktail just millimeters from my mouth for a good 4 minutes while Gavin is snapping away. Finally, I mustered up my willpower to give the free cocktail to a random stranger in the store who was hat shopping. I hope she enjoyed that one for me…  

Food for the day:

• Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with hot sauce
• Snack: Apple
• Lunch: Refried beans, spicy chicken, melty cheese, cilantro and grilled peppers and onions
• Snack: Cottage cheese with loads of pepper
• Snack: Apple with peanut butter
• Dinner: Leftover stuffed pepper

I feel like I always have leftovers when I’m cooking these days! Also, the dishes in our kitchen are OUT OF CONTROL.

Day 4: Thursday

It’s another two-a-day workout day. 21 day fix Pilates in the morning and our trainer in the evening. I’m hangry and grumpy today (sorry about that, Gavin). Even our trainer knows I’m a crab-ass and unmotivated, so he proceeds to make us work even harder. When will this workout end?!?

• Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with a sprinkle of cheese this time (woah, I live on the edge!)
• Early lunch: Leftover stuffed peppers
• Snack: Cottage cheese
• Snack (again): Pear
• Snack (I’m hangry, remember?): Sliced strawberries
• Dinner: Zucchini “noodles” with mushrooms and garlic topped with an artichoke pork loin
• Dessert: Half of a sweet potato with cinnamon

I realized I didn’t eat all my protein (that’s why I was so damn hangry). So I made a shakeology milkshake for a second dessert. Add a bunch of ice to a blender with a bit of water and a chocolate shakeology packet, then pretend it’s a Wendy’s Frosty. Life is good.

Day 5: Friday

Today I was super excited to make a salmon poke bowl for dinner. We kicked butt on the cardio video workout and began to make our poke. It felt like sushi night at home – be sure to check out the recipe! After the workout, we headed to Goorin Bros to make an appearance at the hat event and dodged ALL the cocktails. I’d be drinking my wine later that night anyways! We followed our ears to some blues music playing at the Continental Club and had our wine. This was the longest that I’ve savored a single glass of wine in my life. It was seriously blissful.

• Breakfast: Greek yogurt with cherry “sauce” (Zap ½ cup frozen cherries in the microwave to make a quick and 21 day fix approved sauce)
• Lunch: Sliced pork loin salad with apples, red onion and an apple cider vinaigrette (optional: add crushed pistachios or walnuts!)
• Snack: Cherry tomatoes
• Snack: Apple
• Dinner: Salmon poke – Check out the recipe here
• Dessert: Wine and Blues Music

Day 6: Saturday

Today we started by knocking out our Dirty 30 Beachbody video, then met friends at a fitness event for a free spin class (we must be a glutton for punishment doing yet ANOTHER two-a-day). We had to get creative with what to do today as most of our friends were day-drinking, So, we went to the cat café to drink tea, work on recipe planning and to pet cats. Later that night, we made a messy-as-hell cauliflower pizza that tasted amazing. Read about the shenanigans and get the recipe here.

• Breakfast: Vanilla shakeology blended with blueberries
• Lunch: 2 poached eggs
• Snack: Raspberries
• Dinner: Caramelized onion and mushroom cauliflower pizza: Recipe Link
• Snack: Sweet potato with pumpkin pie spice (cinnamon is WAY better, just so you know)
• Dinner: Wine with friends while watching the Packers lose to Arizona in overtime. I really could’ve used a shot after that loss .

Day 7: Sunday

There are free Torchy’s breakfast tacos and mimosas downstairs at my building this morning. If you are from Texas you know that Torchy’s has some of the best tacos in the country. I start to contemplate if I can fill my blue container with their queso and sip it like scotch throughout the day.

I stay strong and opt for making 21 day fix approved pancakes instead. There is no comparison to a buttery, fluffy normal pancake, but it was definitely a good breakfast option and going to make my butt jiggle less in a bikini.

My body was suuuuper sore this today. I couldn’t have been more thankful that the workout video today was yoga. It’s like the program KNEW we got our butt kicked yesterday and it needed to give me an “easy” day to recover. Thank you, Beachbody gods!

• Breakfast: Cinnamon banana oat pancakes with blueberry “syrup”, Get the recipe here
• Snack: Cherry tomatoes
• Lunch: 2 scrambled eggs with ¼ avocado
• Dinner: Smoked salmon with asparagus and a side salad
• Snack: Cottage cheese
• Snack: Tortilla chips and salsa

Week one is now complete! In seven days I am down 5 pounds. Whoo Hoo!

Here is what I learned:

• Having the beachbody coach and online accountability group was helpful, but also having a loved one join you in the program makes a huge difference. I was really thankful to have Gavin by my side pushing me in the workouts.
• You need to fully commit to see the results. I definitely would have preferred sleeping in instead of waking up early to workout, but no pain, no gain!
• Buy enough protein! We didn’t plan on needing so much protein and ended up going to the grocery store 4 times this week.

If you are interested to learning more about 21 day fix, email my coach: Britt@BrittGirlFit.com

Week 2

Day 8: Monday

Today is Martin Luther King Day, since we had the whole day to ourselves, we started with a spin class and then completed the 21 Day Fix cardio fix video.
The best part of today was treating ourselves to a 90 minute massage. What a treat after all our hard workouts!

Today was an adventure using a vintage pressure cooker for the first time to make a 21 Day Fix approved beef stew with carrots, onions and potato.

Today’s menu:

• Breakfast: Zucchini and onion frittata, here’s the recipe.
• Lunch: Oven-roasted cauliflower with garlic and leftover smoked salmon
• Snack: One pear
• Dinner: Homemade beef stew over brown rice
• Dessert: Chocolate banana shakeology shake

Day 9: Tuesday PLOT TWIST

It’s time for the ultimate challenge: business travel.

I pull my butt outta bed at the crack of dawn in order to get my beachbody workout in before needing to leave for the airport at 6:30am. Upon arriving to the airport, I am so happy that I had leftover frittata for a quick breakfast. The airport was full of diet-ruining grenades. Scones, croissants, pastries galore – YIKES! I grab a tea and scurry to my gate.

In flight, I politely decline all the snacks and drinks, eat half of a banana and toss the rest. Over my layover, I head to the Delta lounge to hunt for snack #2. Sadly, SLC is out of cottage cheese so I settle for 2 hardboiled eggs. Healthy eating is still on track, booya!

After work, I had the pleasure of joining co-workers while attending my hotel’s free nightly happy hour with free wine and pizza. I sipped my water and planned my attack for dinner. The group agrees that sushi sounds good and I am so pumped to get some sashimi in my belly. First day of work travel was a success!

• Breakfast: Leftover frittata
• Snack: ½ banana
• Snack: 2 hardboiled eggs
• Lunch: Salad bar greens with tomatoes and chickpeas, plus balsamic vinaigrette dressing
• Dinner: Steamed edamame, seared shishito peppers, and salmon + tuna sashimi                      

Day 10: Wednesday

 I pulled by booty out of bed at 5:30 am to join a crazy spin/crossfit workout while in AZ for work. The best part of my morning was roooooom service!!! I’ll take berries, 2 scrambled eggs and all those adorably tiny Tabasco bottles, thank you. 

After devouring the eggs in about 90 seconds, I was too stuffed to finish all my fruit. I stuffed the leftover berries in a plastic, ice bucket bag and took them to work. (I later forgot such berries in my laptop bag and had a nasty surprise at approximately 3pm). The evening included a happy hour with co-workers, where I enjoyed a glass of red wine. I passed up the free wine refills, free pizza, and sliders. Willpower, baby!

My food for the day:

• Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs and berries
• Lunch: Seared ahi tuna salad with avocado and chili vinaigrette
• Snack: Apple
• Snack: Wine
• Dinner: Seared scallops with roasted butternut squash

Day 11: Thursday

I log on to beachbody.com and within seconds I have the Pilates workout streaming in my hotel room bright and early. Today is the day that Gavin’s friends come to stay with us in Austin, and the day Gavin gets off “the fix”.

I was really excited to go out for a nice steak for my final dinner in Phoenix. It was recommended that we head to Durants, an iconic steakhouse that has been around for 65 years. This place feels like it came right out of a Frank Sinatra movie. Once we sat down, I discovered it had some of the most expensive menu items I’ve seen. $44 for a steak SANDWICH. $241 for the porterhouse with lobster. Holy Cow. I share some oysters and then get the petite filet with a plain baked potato. Post-dinner we head to Copper Blues for live karaoke. It is so much fun – a full, live 5 piece band serves as the backdrop for brave souls singing their heart out. I was so temped to have a beer but guzzled water instead.

• Breakfast: Room service delivery of scrambled eggs and berries
• Lunch: Greek salad with seared chicken breast
• Snack: Apple
• Snack: Oysters, 3 raw
• Dinner: Filet mignon with a side salad and baked potato

Day 12: Friday

Travel day! I know that when I get home, I’ll arrive to my place at 4:30pm to Gavin’s college buddies. I’m not really into the thought of having his bros watch me jumping around in a sports bra in my living room, so I plan on getting my workout in BEFORE my 8am flight. I wake up early, bust out some burpies and skedaddle to the airport. The Phoenix airport has slim pickings for food options. Good thing I have my shakeology packet and a shaker with me. I buy a bottle of water and beg an airport kiosk to give me a handful of ice cubes to make my shake. I get a free first class upgrade and proudly decline the free booze and meal. That is not going to be my biggest challenge of the day… it’s the proceeding Friday night pub crawl.

While at dinner with the group, I have half of the fajita platter, eating only the meat and the seared veggies. I omitted the tortilla since I wanted to use my last carb container for wine that night. The gang was slinging shots on “Dirty 6th” as I sipped water. I finally was ready to order a glass of wine and to my shock, this bar only served beer and liquor – no wine! On to the next bar, it was the same thing. Long story short, I never got my wine that night.

• Breakfast: Chocolate shakeology
• Snack: Mixed fruit cup
• Lunch: Seared tuna filet on romaine with cannellini beans
• Snack: ½ Banana
• Snack: Cottage cheese
• Dinner: Fajita steak meat with seared veggies, refried beans, shredded cheese

Day 13: Saturday

We have a bootcamp session at 9:30am this morning. I am able to convince Gavin and one of his friends to join me. Karen = hangover free. The boys = not so much. I snickered as they almost threw up during the workout. We go out as a group again tonight and the gang convinces me that I can have 2 glasses of wine tonight since I missed it from Friday. (I know, this is technically “cheating”, but hey, I’m coming clean here).

• Breakfast: Scrambled eggs
• Snack: Raspberries
• Lunch: Grilled chicken stir fry with broccoli. The sauce was made with water, red chili paste, and a splash of rice wine vinegar
• Snack: Apple
• Dinner: Sausage lettuce wraps and Khao Man Gai (Thai steamed chicken over rice with broth)
• Dessert: Wine (2 glasses, oopsies)

Day 14: Sunday

In addition to doing my 2 Day Fix yoga video, I burned calories in my favorite way… SHOPPING! It was a lot more fun shopping for my vacation now that I was already 6 pounds lighter. This gives me another burst of motivation to finish my last week of this program strong.

• Breakfast: Greek yogurt with strawberries
• Snack: Apple
• Lunch: Shakeology + One slice of delicious Texas brisket
• Snack: Pistachios
• Dinner: Grilled tilapia with steamed broccoli
• Dessert: Sweet potato with cinnamon

Here are my tips from week 2:

• You CAN still do this program and be healthy while traveling! Pack shakeology, access beachbody.com to stream your workouts and ask for substitutions at restaurants as needed.
• Hitting your weight loss goals feels much better than that cocktail you’re missing out on. It is also nice to wake up hangover-free. You can still hang out with friends at the bar, just opt for a water.

Week 3

Day 15: Monday and the last week of the fix

Our guests have departed and Gavin is back on the program with me! We set the goal of adding in the 10 Minute Ab Fix video to each of our daily workouts. Brazil a little over a week away – time to scramble like mad to try and get a six pack!

My meals from today:

• Breakfast: Greek yogurt with blueberries
• Snack: Cherry tomatoes
• Lunch: Seared chicken bowl with peppers, onions, cheese
• Snack: Three clementines
• Happy hour: Vino with some girlfriends
• Dinner: Sous vide steak over a salad of arugula, red onion and balsamic vinegar.

Day 16: Tuesday

Nothing too interesting happened on this day. We cranked out arm day, did our additional ab video, and made a scrumptious spaghetti squash bake. I’ve been making this healthy recipe for years, and I realized that it was 21 day fix approved all on its own. A giant pan of this will last us for a few days in terms of leftovers.

• Breakfast: 2 sunny side up eggs
• Snack: Clementines
• Lunch; Leftover chicken “taco bowl”
• Snack: Apple with peanut butter
• Dinner: Spaghetti squash bake, here’s the recipe.
• Snack: Chocolate Shakeology

Day 17: Wednesday

In the foodie world, something big is happening in Austin for 4 days this week. Roberta’s (aka supposedly the best pizza joint in NYC and aka one of the top 35 best restaurants in America in 2016) opened a special pop-up restaurant in Austin for 4 short days. Gavin quits the program today, waits for 2.5 hours for a taste of this pie, and proceeds to eat an entire pizza by himself… and bread… and wine. Meanwhile, I’m out of groceries and piecing my “meal” together at home. I’m VERY proud of my willpower today.

• Breakfast: Scrambled eggs
• Snack: Clementines
• Lunch: Leftover baked spaghetti squash casserole
• Snack: Apple with peanut butter
• Dinner: Cottage cheese and whole wheat crackers & ½ of a sweet potato. (Such a random meal – I told you I was low on groceries!)
• Dessert: Shakeology

Day 18: Thursday

Ballet Austin was offering a free class of their new PLOXING class today. It was a new and fun workout to try. The premise of the workout is a barre class mixed with boxing and pilates. This also landed on pilates workout day in the 21 Day Fix workout series – I’m going to be sore tomorrow!

• Breakfast: 2 sunny side up eggs with hot sauce
• Snack: Clementines
• Lunch: Spaghetti squash casserole
• Snack: Blueberries blended with strawberry shakeology
• Dinner: Seared sea scallops over a vegetable green curry & brown rice

Day 19: Friday

We almost missed our movie date night tonight because I made sure we finished our Cardio workout video prior to going to the flick. We were about 1 minute away from not being let into the theater. What a close call!

• Breakfast: Greek yogurt with fresh blueberries
• Lunch: Seared red snapper over a shrimp posole
• Snack: Cherry tomatoes
• Dinner: Sous vide cod with fresh lemon and garlic, paired with parmesan riced cauliflower
• Movie theater snack: Red wine

Day 20: Saturday

I can’t believe that this is my last weekend of this round of 21 Day Fix! I was ecstatic to weigh myself and find that I lost another pound this morning. Gavin and I had to pick up some items at Costco and I am happy to report that we ditched every, single sample lady!

• Breakfast: 2 sunny side up eggs
• Lunch: PB&J shake! Strawberry shakeology blended with PB2 powder
• Snack: Raw veggies
• Dinner: Seared pork chops and a sweet potato stuffed with diced apples, cinnamon, walnuts and goat cheese

Day 21: Sunday, the last day of the fix!

I should call it a 20 day fix because today was a mess. We got invited to a free brunch to highlight a new restaurant. I planned on maneuvering my way through brunch, but they ended up bringing out every single cocktail on the menu, four appetizers, and seven entrees…. For FOUR people! I ate one bite of each dish and have no idea how to categorize that. In full disclosure, this was the only day I cheated (besides having 2 glasses of wine that previous weekend). To make up for it, I am going to continue to program for the next 3 days leading up to our vacation to Brazil!

Here are my final results:

• Down 8 pounds and I lost 7.5 total inches!
• Tummy, down 1.5 inches (YES!)
• Thighs, down 2 inches on EACH leg (Yes x2!)
• Hips/Booty, down 1.5 inches (This makes Karen happy and Gavin sad)
• Chest/Boobs, down 1.5 inches (But why though?!?)
• Arms, no change (Much firmer that before)

I could not be more pleased at the results from the program. The 21 days flew by and I was still able to cook really delicious food and eat 5-6 meals per day! This is the perfect program to trim down for a trip, a wedding or the summer season. If you want more information, contact my Beachbody Coach, Britt Thelemann at Britt@BrittGirlFit.com