Where do you get MOTIVATION?

So, there I am at 154 and 125 pounds. The beginning of my journey (when I got cleared to exercise) to yesterday.

When I first starting taking an interest in before and after pictures I will be the first to admit that they were fake. That is, until I started my own journey to weight loss 3 TIMES. These pictures represent the struggle, the excitement, determination, hard work, and MOTIVATION.

The girl on the left never thought that she would see the girl on the right again. I was SO scared that I was going to be stuck with my "mom bod." I came from a place of negativity because I was self conscious and did not come from a place of confidence. I was SO insecure and DEVASTATED that I was back into my "old jeans." I saw reflections of me in the mirror and legit felt sad about how I looked. You can tell me all day that I just had a baby and I should enjoy motherhood but this "mom weight" was a struggle and while some women are all in the mom-ness I am just not one of those women. I did however know that it was going to take time to get close to where I wanted to be and I had the tools AND experience to get it done again so I DID grace myself with time.

The girl on the right has waited almost 9 months to get the weight off. It was not without struggle. December to February was TOUGH for me! I plateaued I was doing Body Beast and I got BIGGER in the arms and my hips were not moving. I took it upon myself to stop doing Body Beast and added in cardio with T25 and played around with 21 Day Fix workouts for strength and the cardio I believe was the KEY to my success. MY body needs cardio just as much as it needs strength training to get results. I listened to myself and I just did what my gut told me to do.

As a health coach people ALWAYS ask me where I find motivation to succeed AND to keep going once I had reached my goal. I have a few tips that may help you out!  

1.) Believe in the end result! 
I can't stress enough that even though there were plenty of days that I was not convinced that I would be the girl on the right, I believed OVERALL that I was going to get there. One day, I would get there. You may have your bad days but keep the end result in your mind. Visualize it! 

2.) Define short term goals and hit them! 
Saying that you want to lose 50 pounds is going to be a hefty goal. So break them down into scale and non scale victories. I made goals that I was going to go up in weight every week, or that I would eat clean for a whole week without cheats and that set my focus on being healthy which should be the end goal with a side effect of health being the vanity of losing the weight. 

3.) Remember your why!
WHY are you doing this? Write it down and keep it with you! When you make a goal to lose weight you should know exactly why you are doing it. There are going to be days when there is pizza (or insert not healthy food here) in your face and you are going to "forget" why you even started to try and lose weight because you are thinking about the now. THINK ABOUT THE END GOAL it can be either your big or small goal but think about how happy you are going to be when you get there and ALWAYS have a reason to start the thing. You need to have a vision of where you want your life to go and find a way there!

21 Day Fix Extreme Week 2

So since doing my do-over I feel GREAT! I feel as if the first few days before my really bad cold was prep to do this thing! I actually would recommend it to people who are just starting out with the 21 Day Fix to have a prep week or a teaser week to play around with the idea of what you are doing for the next 21 days.

Some people starting can feel overwhelmed because the way of eating is SUPER clean and if you don't eat that way already I would suggest by starting out by measuring what you eat for a few meals and starting to try out recipes that you enjoy and portioning them out with some kind of regard to the rules so you get a feel but you can EASE into the program.

SO week 2. I loved it. The workouts felt easier in the sense that I knew what was coming so I was able to adapt and follow along better than week 1 where I was still trying to figure out what was going on and also finding my groove so to speak. Week 2 was where I noticed changes and the ultimate motivation to keep going to week 3.

I have not really felt hungry at all through the plan with the exception of between lunch and dinner but some of that is just from boredom because that is when I am wishing the work day to end and then my real day starts because I am up and about with house stuff, homework, feeding my little, bathing them and then getting them to bed so my mind is occupied on other things which is good because it gears me up for dinner. I have let go of my steel cut oats and focused on doing the paleo thing for the last two weeks.

This is starting to feel like a normal eating plan and I have enjoyed week 2 way better than week one probably for the simple fact that I wasn't "fighting" it, I started to embrace the whole program. I am starting to see results which is crazy to me! 2 weeks in and my stomach is flatter I notice more tone in my legs too!

I can tell you that I am scared that I will eat a little more food and I will gain the weight back because it just happened so fast I am afraid I am going to lose it just as fast which freaks me out a bit. I have not heard of anyone having that happen to them but when you see some changes my first thought is WOAH I love this and hope it sticks around.

My measurements/weight starting were......

129.6
Arms 10.5
Waist 27
Hips 37

Week 2

125.2
Arms 10.25
Waist 26.25
Hips 36.5


AND finally a picture so you are able to see my results!

How I lost the baby weight!

How I lost the baby weight.

I think that when most women get pregnant one of their biggest fears other than the health of the baby is how their body is going to change and how much weight they are going to gain.

If you have been on a weight loss journey before the pregnancy I feel that the feelings and fears are far worse. When I had my first two pregnancies I gained 65 and 70 pounds and no one told me different with my first pregnancy. People just let me be with my first pregnancy and I honestly, I PROMISE YOU I HONESTLY THOUGHT that I would go back to 105 pounds after the first baby. I was pregnant by myself meaning I was the first of my friends to get pregnant so I was riding this one solo. My mother told me that I was all water weight and I had no reason not to believe her she to me, was an expert. She was right but not completely. I was left with 30 pounds after I lost the water, baby, etc. My second pregnancy went back down to 135 within 6 months of beating my butt at the gym doing the Body For Life program and eating a ton of chicken and broccoli. I actually hate chicken and broccoli now that I am more educated on healthy choices.

With my third pregnancy, I was well educated on health and fitness and had my healthiest pregnancy. I gained 45 pounds and had to work for 10 pounds of weight loss. I was scared that I was going to go back to my old ways and that I was going to get to 135 again and stay there. My body set point must be 135 because when I lost the weight that is where it stopped and I had to start fighting my body to get the weight off.  I can tell you that it was a journey and it was frustrating but worth getting back into my pre-pregnancy jeans. I am now at my pre-pregnancy weight 127 but I would like to get back to my 120 pounds that I was before I went on this binge at a wedding I went to the year I got pregnant with Molly. I never bothered to lose the weight because I knew I was going to get pregnant and that I did 2 months later.

How did I lose the weight??? 

I ate real food. I am not one to label myself to anything but I ate mostly Paleo. The only times I strayed was for my weekly pizza happy meal habit with occasional breadsticks.

So what did my meals consist of?

Chicken wings, chicken thighs, steaks of all kinds, seafood, homemade broth, all kinds of vegetables, sweet potatoes, potato, rice occasionally, pork of all cuts but mostly tenderloin it’s the most juicy cut and an occasional chicken breast thrown in there but I am not kidding when I tell you I hate chicken breasts. I did also eat chips and candy but in moderation and NOT every day. I also threw in some popcorn there. **I would have rather lost weight eating the things that I enjoy than depriving myself for however long and being miserable** That my friends is the secret to weight loss slow and steady = stress free long lasting weight loss

I did Beachbody workout programs. I did do Crossfit as well but only for about a month. I was getting exertion migraines and had to stop. I did Body Beast right after but, my arms started to get REALLY big (I am a super petite person and my arms were nearing 11 inches while the rest of my body was shrinking LOL) and I didn’t like that so I started the 21 Day Fix Extreme recently and I am loving the portion control and workouts and for the first time doing the 21 Day Fix I am not hungry! I feel that I am fine tuning the last bit of my weight loss.

I allowed myself time.

There were moments when I got really frustrated. Here are a few memorable ones! 

I couldn’t do all the moves to my workouts because of my Diastsis Recti.

My running sucked, I started back at a 12 minute mile from running a 9 minute mile.

I couldn’t lift 20 pound weights anymore.

I was doing Body Beast and my inches and weight were stuck for three weeks. With the exception of my ever growing arms I was stuck at a plateau.

**I didn’t realize what pregnancy did to a fit body because my last 2 pregnancies were lazy**

After you have a baby you must remember that inside things are happening and your body is healing. As much as we would all like it to happen losing the baby weight is not as easy as some super celebrities make it out to be. I wanted to have all the weight off by Christmas but I found that to be too soon for a goal time even though I was close, I was putting too much pressure on myself and changed it to a year after the baby was born. I did that because realistically that’s how long it takes for the body to recover from pregnancy. Now here I am at 8 month post fitting into my pre-pregnancy jeans but also knowing that I am not finished yet. I need to create the buffer I had of 120-125 to better suit my body.

This is pretty much how I succeeded. I took my time I was patient for the most part with plenty of impatient days and when I least expected it………last night, my pre-pregnancy clothes fit. No matter what journey you are on patience is the key and keep remembering why you are doing this which I hope is optimal health.

I realize this was a long post but I certainly hope that you read through it and if you need help please ask. I would love to help you out in any way that I can as long as you have the motivation to push through.

Snack Ideas for on the go

This is probably the easiest but most challenging meal of my day.......snacks. I mean there are so many things that you can eat but at the same time holy crap what the heck do I eat? SO I am dedicating this blog post to snacks! The tips on what to eat when you are stumped or on to go! I am also going to provide a recipe or 2 :)

Fruit - I mean it's pretty obvious, you just either cut it up or throw a piece of fruit in your bag and you are ready to go out the door and on your way I usually buy a bag of grapes take them off the stem and bag them individually. I don't count them I just throw enough in the bag to carry me over to my next meal. Typically though I eat a banana or an apple because they are so portable.

Nuts- These are great to have you can put them in the car already portioned out in a bag or you can buy the 100 calorie packs (they are never enough) I don't usually do nuts though because I tend to over eat them and then hate myself afterward so I usually don't do this but hey, it may work for you.

Yogurt - This is pretty portable too but you need to keep it cool so if you are in a rush this may not be the best option

Vegetables with hummus - This was one of my go to snacks for a long time. I would bring my cut up vegetables and my spicy hummus and would just eat it up at my desk. I REALLY enjoyed having these around and didn't feel guilty at all. Carrots, peppers, broccoli, snap peas. I mean you could also bring veggies only with you and those are a great filling snack without the hassle!

Shakeology - I usually use this as a snack replacement not a meal replacement so it is quick all I have to do is add water shake it up and drink it. It can't get much easier than that can it?

Energy bites - These are great and they are super easy to make and very portable. To make them all you will need is

1/2 c nut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 honey
1 scoop of chocolate shakeology or chocolate protein
1 cup coconut flakes
1/2 c flaxseed
1 c oatmeal
3/4 water

Mix all together roll into a ball and refrigerate. 

1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter) 1 tsp vanilla 1/3 cup honey 1 scoop chocolate Shakeology 1 cup coconut flakes 1/2 cup ground flaxseed 1 cup oatmeal 3/4 cup water - See more at: http://iva-young.healthcoach.integrativenutrition.com/shakeologyno-bake-energy-bites#sthash.SDSlFaqF.dpuf

1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter) 1 tsp vanilla 1/3 cup honey 1 scoop chocolate Shakeology 1 cup coconut flakes 1/2 cup ground flaxseed 1 cup oatmeal 3/4 cup water - See more at: http://iva-young.healthcoach.integrativenutrition.com/shakeologyno-bake-energy-bites#sthash.SDSlFaqF.dpuf

Hopefully these options will make things a little bit easier for you to make some healthier choices this year :)

21 Day Fix FAQ

Recently I posted on my Facebook page about a 21 day program to lose 10 pounds. Here is what it said; 

If I could provide a 21 day workout program that's 30 minutes long, a meal plan with a way to deal with portion control so that you know what you will and won't be able to get away with, and in turn you lose 10 pounds would you be interested in doing it?

The response was overwhelming and I was totally surprised that so many people responded to my post that I had to take a minute and write a post about it so that I could answer general questions about the product! First here is a short video on the program! Check it out!

If you are interested in joining my support group on either Feb 10th or 17th or buying this program please click HERE to sign up and receive an email notification when it becomes available for purchase.


All about the 21 Day Fix Workout and Eating plan due out 2/3/14

Background:
The 21 Day Fix is a Beachbody program created by Autumn Calabrese. She is a Mom, fitness model, blogger at modernmom.com, and is a quadruple certified fitness trainer. She created the program for people that are struggling with their weight no matter what they do. It is a 21 day straight program that focuses on portion control. The best part is that you can essential eat whatever you want….the catch? It must fit in the appropriate container. You must workout 7 days a week for the 21 days and her tests groups the average weight loss was between 10 and 15 pounds.


It is bundled so that anyone can do it. I am pregnant right now and I am going to do the food part of the 21 Day Fix so that I can be the healthiest I can for me and my child. I know the workouts aren’t tailored for pregnant women but I will take a look at each one to see if I can manage any of them   I love love love that things are portioned out. This can be used by ANYONE men, women, breastfeeding moms, vegetarians; there is something in it for everyone!

Packages:
The challenge pack that includes Shakeology and the program is bundled at $140 with $2.00 shipping a savings of about $70 if bought and shipped separately.
The Base package itself is $60 with shipping.
The Ultimate Package is $119

In the base package you get;
2 DVD’s with 7 workouts that are 30 min each. They include pilates, circuit training, yoga, upper body circuit, lower body circuit. Most of these are made with a 60 second blitz and a 10-20 minute break which is pretty different.
Color coded Tupperware
Guidebook
Meal planner and food list

The Deluxe package includes everything in the base package PLUS;
2 additional workouts,
Resistance band
A bag to carry your meals if you are one that is on the go like I am



Additional Details:
The beauty of this plan and why I like it so much is you get a list of foods for each thing like carbs, proteins and such. If it fits in the container than you can eat it no guilt allowed and NO CALORIE COUNTING! You can even have wine and chocolate. I mean come on! This is the easiest plan I think I have ever heard of I haven’t seen it yet!

 You will get a daily limit of how much of each food you can get based on your activity level which is genius because I won’t be eating the same as you. It’s totally individualized and I love that!!! While I don’t know exactly what the food lists look like I know that there is and will be something there for everyone.

For equipment you will need either dumbbells are best but resistance bands will work too.


I hope this answers most of the questions that you may have been curious in regards to this epic program. I think that overall this is going to be a game changer. I plan on doing this after I have my baby as well to help me lose the weight which hopefully isn’t too much but I want to get back into my pre-baby shape as soon as possible as I have a weight standard to uphold in the military. I will have more information on Jan 30th about the complete program and will be able to help more.

I will be hosting a Challenge Group on Feb 10th and the 17th and hope that you will allow me to assist you in meeting oyur health and fitness goals! 



If you want to receive an email when the 21 Day Fix is released please click  HERE

Janurary 21 Day Challenge Group

I have done challenge groups before and I have noticed a trend in the participation and excitement happening in about the first 30 days of the challenge. It happens, life gets in the way and it challenges you and either you push through or you don't and sometimes having a 60 or 90 day challenge is HARD to commit to. I mean who knows where you are going to be in 90 days or what is going to be happening. SO I am going to start monthly 21 day challenge groups to help people who want to start their health and fitness lifestyle and stick with you long enough to make this a habit for you!

The challenge starts on January 20


So what do you get?


21 day meal plan
Grocery list
Recipes
Tips/tricks
Motivation
Support Group 
Free coaching by me
Private group to voice all your concerns, ask questions, and communicate with others with the same goals as you.

Here are some pictures of people that have participated in challenge groups 

If you are interested in joining a challenge group please email me at jeannettealverio@yahoo(dot)com and I will email you with more information! I only have 5 spots available and they fill up fast so don't wait!! 

2013 and into 2014

Wow let me say that 2013 has been a very very fast year! It seriously just FLEW by. I wonder sometimes why that didn't happen while I was stationed in Alaska. Ha ha. It has been a wonderful year for me and I must say that I am very excited for 2014.

I am sitting here in my room with a glass of water and my candle burning and bringing me calm and I can't help but think of the possibilities that there can be in a persons life in a year but even so much as a day. People go into the New Year thinking about these monumental things that they want to do with their weight, person, and life in general and we start with this HUGE flame to succeed to be better people with a fresh slate that often times by Spring we have forgotten all of those resolutions and we start fresh every month. I hope that makes sense to you.

I hope for you that 2014 will bring a year of JUST doing it. Just go out there and get your dreams. While some of the things well most of the things that happened to me I didn't necessarily have to work for I stayed positive this year and had the most fantastic fun year! Make this year great and be A POSITIVE LIGHT!!!

This year was amazing for me.

I ran the Disney Princess Half Marathon something that I just looked at the Running Times magazine and thought was impossible.

I went on my photography retreat and met some of the most wonderful talented women in photography.

I watched my oldest son give his life to God.

I watched my youngest start his school years :(

I also saw my oldest start his middle school years :(

I was a bridesmaid at a wedding.

I helped 10 people lose weight (goal board goal that was met)

I paid off MOST of my credit card debt. (1 more to go!)

I photographed my first wedding by myself.

I am pregnant with my third child.

I have a better relationship with God.

I saw my first Broadway musical.

Among many other things.

So what now for 2014..........I do want to make this year an adventure year but I will be pregnant for half of it LOL SO I don't know HOW well that is going to work out for me so I have a few things that I want to accomplish and I want to work more on myself. SO I will save me "Resolutions" Post for tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the last day of 2013 and don't drink and drive. Stay safe!!!

This was me..............

This was me.........165 pounds.........what I had left over after my pregnancy with my son. This is approximately 8-10 weeks postpartum. I remember being in the car on the way back from Florida telling my husband that Body for Life was the program that I was going to do and I was going to submit for the challenge whether I won or not. I needed some bait to get to the finish line and get back to my pre pregnancy weight because I had to do it to stay within the weight standards of the Coast Guard. In this picture I was about a sz 14 and was still wearing maternity clothes because I was ashamed that I had gained 70 pounds and only lost 30 after the baby.

THIS is the body that I am deathly afraid of going back to after I have my third child. NOT because of how it looks I do OBVIOUSLY understand that the body takes time to get back into shape and it took 9 months to get to where I was at the time. The fear comes from looking at this body knowing that I wasn't healthy at all, I was uncomfortable, my confidence was ZERO, and I did this all to myself. My baby didn't do this to me, I did. I gave into every indulgence and for the second time in my life I acted like pregnancy was a license to eat. That is exactly what I did.

Before this, I never really ate healthy. I was once a size 3 and 105 pounds (I am 5'3) by pure luck. I was the one that ate what she wanted and didn't gain a darn pounds......that is until after I had kids. I didn't eat vegetable (what are those?) and I didn't eat chicken breasts unless they were fried and dipped in ranch or hot sauce. I took my metabolism for granted and didn't learn a lick about health. SO I went to the gym bought the Body for Life cookbook and lost 25 pounds, made weight for the USCG and went on my merry way. I stopped exercising and maintained my weight some how but I was still a sz 10 and uncomfortable in my body.

Then I went to Alaska and was faced with being a single parent because my husband was underway for months at a time. I ate easy foods, snacked on cheeze-its and indulged in sour cream and cheddar chips (I can no longer keep them in my home) and white wine on the weekends. I went back to being sedentary (I also work at a desk) and went from 145-135 several times while I was there. THIS is the body that I earned myself while I was in Alaska..........

It doesn't look much different than my postpartum one huh? At least above I had the "I just had a baby excuse." I landed at 146 and I couldn't fit into my biggest size 13 "period" jeans. That was a deal breaker for me. I was disappointed in myself but once again I got myself right there AGAIN! You'd think that busting my ass for 6 months after the birth of my son would have given me the shock that I needed but nope that didn't work either. SO what did work???? I'll tell you tomorrow to spare you from reading a novel. :)

Being in a challenge group

This week marks the end of my first week with Turbofire. I have found my soul mate workout and it has been for some time now I just put it to the side to pursue other things. Anyhow, I am back to my workout and I LOVE that I am having fun while working out again. This time though I am in a challenge group.

I know right how crazy is it that a Beachbody Coach is in a challenge group? Well to be honest I am human and although I am an example and role model to some people I'm still me just a person like you. I go through struggles and there are times where I need support and motivation too. In order to be successful sometimes you have to admit defeat. This summer was that for me, I did not live with integrity and I followed the crowd which is turn made me neglect my body and my faith. I just walked away from it all and my body internally suffered from it. I even put on about 6 pounds, which to some is like whatever but to someone that is tiny like me it is a lot and it is noticeable. The number isn't the issue it's more the effect of all the negative things that I did to myself.

I stopped working out, I stopped eating as healthy and I reverted back to the ways that got me to the weight that I was after I had children. I was slowly climbing the ladder to being the "lazy" unhappy me that I once despised. SO I recently joined a challenge group.

It has probably been one of the best things that I have done for myself. I have eaten healthier this week than I have in months, in just one week I have more energy and my little fitness fire is back on which helped light the other fires in me that were dimming out. I was losing balance of who I was because I was paying attention to something that was getting me off track if you can understand what I mean.

I completed all of my workouts for the week and I am looking forward to week two. It is nice to be on the other side of the fence and see what it is like for some of you go through and how accountable the challenge makes you.

I am going to make a commitment here and now and say that I WILL participate IN EVERY challenge group that I sponsor from now on so that we can go through our things together and I will hopefully never fall off the wagon and sabotage and live a life without my integrity again.

My meal plan and workouts for the week

Starting today I thought that I would start posting a weekly meal plan and my workout plan for the week to 1 let you all know what it is that I do in my life and 2 to be accountable to myself.

I usually meal plan because it helps me save money when I grocery shop as I always buy garbage that I don't need or think that I want to eat and then never do...speaking of which I kind of need to clean out my pantry. That darn thing is so small I can never truly see what's in it but I digress. It saves me money, I buy only the things that I need and I have a HEALTHY plan of what I am going to eat rather than eating pancakes for dinner like I shamelessly did last week! Yes! 2 times to be exact.

So here is my meal plan for the next week :) Of course thanksgiving is in there and we will have not healthy foods on Thanksgiving but I have already added that in as my cheat meal.

Workouts :

Monday      Tuesday        Wednesday      Thursday      Friday        Saturday        Sunday

Fire 45         Fire 30               Rest        Fire 30         Fire 55 EZ      Fire 45         Core 20
                    Sculpt 30                           Tone 30                                                   Stretch 40

Meal plan will be :)

So there it is. I am on week 2 of Turbofire and I am really enjoying it. I obviously don't see any changes but I am having fun with it and I am feeling the burn of doing the workouts.

I am running a challenge group for 5 days on the day after Thanksgiving, if you are interested please email me at jeannettealverio(at)yahoo(dot)com.

What is the #1 reason people fail?

People don't see weight loss results for many reason but it all boils down to just a few things really when they are all lumped together.

The number one reason that people don't see weight loss results is EXCUSES. Excuses come in all forms but they are still just what they are excuses.

There are internal excuses - those kinds of excuses are the ones that you tell yourself such as
"You aren't going to see results."
"Why are you even doing this anyway nothing is going to change."
"Girl, you have been this big for so long you aren't going to quit AGAIN so you might as well save yourself the trouble"

These types of excuses are toxic and can hinder your progress and even stop it if you let your mind take control over your actions. You should always know why you are doing the things that you are doing. Weight loss in my opinion should be a GOAL. When you set out to make goals you HAVE to know why you are wanting to attain or achieve that goal. If you do things blindly without focus you are going to lose the motivation and drive to complete the things that you want or you think that you wanted. Weight loss is a journey whether it is a 5 or 150 pound journey that you are taking. It is isn't easy but it will sure be worth it in the end.

Then there are external excuses which include:
I am too busy with work.
I don't have time for my family already as it is.
My family doesn't support what I am doing.
I don't have the money to eat healthy or the time to make all my meals.
I work so late there is no way I am going to fit in a workout.
I work the late shift how the heck am I going to cook and prepare all these healthy meals?

These types of excuses can be masked as REASONS why you aren't ready or willing to make the change that you think you want. At the end of the day if you can't reach your goals because of one of the excuses that you are making you have no one to blame but yourself. We are all responsible for our actions and choices that we make in this life. I am a firm believer that if you want the change in your life you should be ready and willing to give whatever change it is that you want 100% of your time and attention and not forget why it is that you are doing whatever it is to begin with.

Tips to get what you want:

Leave the excuses at the door. If weight loss is what you want than weight loss is what you will get if you leave the excuses alone.

Write down your goals for weight loss and what you are going to do to achieve those goals.

Write down solutions to the obstacles that you see in your way.

Write down WHY you are doing this.

Write down a plan to get to your goals and take it one step at a time one commitment at a time.

How to make it through Insanity

It isn't a joke when they say that Insanity is one of the hardest workouts to ever be put on DVD, but I know that if you have seen the infomercials and the results you don't really care about that right? I mean hello GREAT results in 60 days? I have done Insanity once before and I am in week 2 of it and I am already seeing the results of my hard work! 

The first time I did it I remember having to hold back my cookies because I seriously thought that I was going to get sick. I pushed through and made it about a month before my husband came back from deployment and it was then all about him :) In the beginning when you first start you are going to think this Shaun T is on the crazy train, you are going to be out of breath, you will pause it I am sure and every inch of your body will be in absolute pain especially your calves in the first week. If none of those things happen well honey you didn't push hard enough. 

SO how do you get through it.........

There are 3 levels in each circuit I like to think of them as light, medium, and bust your tail. 

Light level: This is where you would "jog." Take it slow and get to know each exercise. Go through the movement and do it nice and easy.

Medium Level: This is where you would "run" you are going to go faster on YOUR pace not the pace of the people on the TV push a bit harder than you did the last level but don't exert all of your energy. Think of it as your run you are breathing heavier but you can still maybe say a few words to someone if they were to talk to you. 

Bust your tail Level: This is where you are going to sprint. Find something to get mad at or something that is frustrating you and just GOOOOOOO this is where your all out effort is going to be. You just PUSH PUSH PUSH you will be out of breath and all of your focus is going to be right there and your goal is to go as fast as those on the TV but if you can't get there yet that is ok it is YOUR journey not theirs on the TV. 

Rest: Take your 30 second break and repeat the madness this is where I will pause it for a minute even because drinking water so fast give me the burps lol and I have to relax a bit before I drink water so that way I don't stop to burp in the middle of the next segment. 

Pure Cardio is probably the hardest workout on the damned thing just because you don't stop but what I do is pause it when I need a break and then just keep going. 

The moral of the story is that you DON'T quit. If you can't finsh the DVD pause it and catch your breath or make a goal to finish the damned thing. That's all take your time and understand that each level is like a build up and not an all out sprint for the three levels. It's pretty easy to get caught up in what is happening on the screen but you know your own ability so push yourself but not to the point where you are going to do any harm to yourself. 

If you want me to help you with your journey please email me at jeannettealverio(at)yahoo(dot)com

Good times!

I feel that since my "epic" 21 day reset I don't really have much to talk about but I guess maybe I will just be random.

I have been doing Body Beast, I am on week 5 I am taking my time with it if I skip a day I just do the workout the next day. I have never missed more than 1 workout per week so I am a few days behind but I am okay with that. I am working with my body not the calendar.

I haven't measured or taken any pictures. I am not in it for a transformation so to speak but I do have my after Reset pictures that I will use as my Day 1 since I started it then and will just take after pictures so I can get my sweet T-Shirt in the mail for completing the challenge :) I am all about those free t-shirts!

My diet has been havoc since completing the Reset, I have drank more than I would like to admit, I have eaten like a pregnant woman, and I am slowly getting back into the swing of how things used to be. I felt like that kid that moved out of their parents super strict house and was set FREE! LOL It was clearly too strict of a regimen for me.

I have also picked up running a few days a week which I enjoy. Body Beast is awesome but I am all about keeping my heart healthy too, so I put in a few miles mostly on the weekends and that seriously brings my stress levels WAY down! I also started this Squataggeddon Challenge in my office where we started with 50 squats and will end up doing 300 by the end of the month which is pretty cool. I only do Body Beast and the Squats every day when I am feeling like I have a lot of energy to burn I run and sometimes I do this work out called Buti!

Buti is SO fun and if you are wanting to feel feminine than this is the workout that you need! I know that I am a Beachbody Coach but this is one workout that Beachbody needs in their library lol. I like to do other things than Beachbody stuff and I want to show that here. I am not a robot for them or anything, I really enjoy their workouts and helping people achieve the best them possible but sometimes I need to walk away from the workouts to experience other things in addition to missing them. Anyway back to Buti!

It was created by this awesome chicky Bizzie Gold! She used to be a fitness competitor and did Crossfit and was a Yoga lover. After she had her daughter she decided to put her own spin on a workout and Buti was born. It is a pretty greta mix of dancing, plyometric circuits, and some yoga stretches in between. The workout is tough will lean you out and make you sweat! There are free downloads on Vimeo and you can stream it off of YouTube, There are three on there that you can use so that's 5 total that you can bust a move too. I love it and here is a sample......


That's pretty much what's going on in my life fitness wise. Tomorrow I will post some pictures of our trip to the zoo.

Mother's Day

Today was such a great Mother's Day for me. I didn't go anywhere, I didn't do anything and I just sat at home with my son and my husband and I did some FaceTime with my B who is in Florida. I could not have asked for a better day! I took the time to reflect on the important things like my family :) I thought about what it meant to be a Mother to my children and possible future children. While I don't have it figured out yet I am feeling a shift that is happening in my life that is going to get me closer to B. 


God will have the last say but either way getting out of debt and be financially responsible with our retirement is a win/win no matter how we look at it. So let's just say that we have plans and have been getting out of debt it is our first priority that's for sure! I certainly hope that me getting closer to him is in God's plan for me and my family :) Anyway here is a look at my day! 

My husband made me breakfast, I had Shakeology with eggs and a waffle. I opened my cards from Cristian and my hubby and of course our Doggy Kona.

He wrote I LOVE YOU!!!!!! With the help of Daddy but EEEK!

Some afternoon relaxation!!!! Teavana sweet tea!

Then I made lunch I had a Turkey Cuban Sandwich which was off the CHAIN. I relaxed on the couch with my sweet tea and HGTV magazine and loaded up on some DIY channel and HGTV TV of course!!!! Then I cooked some shrimp tacos that I have been craving for awhile now!!!! I made them super healthy and I LOVE THEM! I even managed to get my Body Beast Legs workout on!!!! I had a great day that was full of family and me time which is a great balance for me!!!!! I'll post my Shrimp Taco recipe here in the next few days!!!! Now off to enjoy the rest of Mother's Day! To all the Mommies out there I hope you had a wonderful relaxing day!!!!!!!

Ultimate Reset Final Review

I did it! I conquered it and it is DONE! I lost a total of 7.8 pounds and 7.4 inches all over my body which is pretty decent for a girl who thought she has nothing to lose.

I want to clarify that I did not do this to lose weight but to experience the process so that I could recommend it to those that are interested in doing the Ultimate Reset and to have overall good health for myself. Weight loss was just a side effect of living a 100% clean life and when you are eating fruits and vegetables for 2 and a half weeks weight loss will happen I don't care who you are.

Was I happy to see a flatter belly and the cellulite disappear from my thighs HELL yeah I would be lying if I said no. I also did this to go vegetarian and see if I would enjoy it and I will go into all of that here on this post....it may be a long one so if you aren't interested in the reset I think you should just stop reading :)

Ok so I started this thing with super high hopes. I knew that I was going to feel like crap for the first few days and my diet was going to change into a vegetarian then vegan diet. I saw and looked over the book read the material over and over and I was totally positive. So what did I like?

I loved that;

I had portions that were filling
I was able to try new foods
I was not starving
I had a schedule that didn't change
I ate healthful foods and didn't just have a liquid diet
There was variety
The options for different food choices and menu switching
the way I slept
The way my face cleared up
I was able to try new things that I never thought that I would want to try anymore.


What I didn't like;

The variety (I know I said I liked it but at the end I was eating the same foods)
Being cold ALL the time.
No leeway for a cheat meal or combining Week 1 menu with Week 3 per say
That I had to change my whole entire life for this
The emotional feelings I felt
The length of time
I couldn't workout


After the middle of week 2 I was OVER this thing. I didn't want to eat any of the food and I just wanted to rebel.This probably had more to do with the fact that my son and husband were eating fish sticks, french toast, man and cheese in my face along with sweet treats. Even though I normally wouldn't eat those things the fact that I couldn't because of this program made it a real mind game for me.

I knew everything that I needed to do prior but I hit a wall. I was tired of eating fruit every single freaking morning since week one and a freaking microgreen salad every day for lunch. I wanted flavor because the food was bland but every time I wanted to give up I thought about the benefits that I was having despite the fact that I wanted to quit. It was purely mind over matter.

I also realized that this was just TOO strict for me and being someone that was already small I didn't really need that kind of structure to a degree. I was pretty happy with the weight loss that I had achieved but am glad that this pushed me more toward a cleaner lifestyle overall. I don't crave sugar as much and caffiene either so my coffee and super candy cravings are over. The processed food cravings are also gone and I truly crave more natrual foods. Even though I didn't crave meat I wanted to eat it right away as I found out through this process that I am not mentally ready to be a full on vegetarian just yet, I need more time but have given up pork and red meat for good. To think about it I don't really want to put a label on myself anymore truthfully, I want to eat what I want to eat and be classified as JEANNETTE not Jeannette the vegetarian or vegan just Jeannette a pretty cool girl that loves her family, friends, health and fitness ;)

So enough of the Negative NancyRevelation stuff, I really did like trying new things, and learning more about the discipline that I carry on my own accord. I did miss a lot of things but I knew that this was temporary. I would recommend this to other people ONLY if they were READY like REALLY READY to start a new weight loss regimine and/or stuck on a plateau. I would recommend it to someone who wants to try a vegetarian diet and lastly I would recommend it to someone who has the support and someone to do it with them.

Doing this Reset with my cousin was a blessing for me and I totally would have quit had I not had her cheering me on the way that she did and I am totally grateful to her for that! We both agree that working out or lack thereof was the worst thing that could have come of this but we take our workouts more seriously now and have our head in the game.

Would I do it again? Simply put no. I went through it did it but I like the freedoms that I have with eating and maintaining my weight but this gave me a good solid base to come back to when I find myself not fitting into my clothes.

I will post pictures and final stats later this weekend. This week and last week was super crazy for me. I have Bible study and duty and had it last week too so me taking the time to write this was blah.....crazy!!!

So let's be real!

Ultimate Reset Week 3......ok this cleanse detox thing is LONG! I thought three weeks would be cake but I am DYING to get back into running again and DYING to eat some chicken wings. Some habits still stick I assume, but whatever I am ready to have MY life back! Seriously some people embrace this reset with so much calm and I just have to say......I'm Puerto Rican I don't understand calm, and relaxed. I am irrational and hate giving up my control. What can I say it's the truth!

Don't get me wrong though I truly love that I can sleep through the night without waking up, my belly is flatter, and I AM seriously craving more healthy foods (Other than chicken wings) than I ever have before. I guess I am so frustrated because I have not liked the food choices and I have eaten either the garlic stir fry or the Asian stir fry for 8 days now and I am looking at a future of at least eating it 4-5 more times by the time this thing is over. I mean can we say TORTURE! eh I am not going to do that to myself, really fruit for breakfast for 6 days the same salad I have had for about 18 days for 6 more days and the same stir fried veggies for 6 more days.......um I think not! I REALLY want to quit and embrace my life but I just can't do that because I have a chicky that I work with doing her own cleanse and I don't want to let her down so I need to adjust so we'll see what I do for the next 6 days.

Truthfully, I was fine before I started this darn thing LOL. I hate REALLY good I just couldn't get rid of the belly and I wanted to switch over to the vegetarian lifestyle so I made this 21 day commitment and I guess now that it is all over (almost) I just want it done. I guess I felt the same way when I went to bootcamp 6 years ago.......LOL ohhhh seeing the light at the end of the tunnel is such a mind game! I want to work out again, I want to eat what I want again and I want my life back not the life that Beachbody has set out for me ha ha. I guess you don't truly understand how big food is until you either go on a "diet" or you change your lifestyle.....it's really really life changing.

I am not saying this to be negative toward the Reset at all. I think that it is a great program but I don't do these kinds of things. This whole cleanse detox thing is new to me and I feel like I have given up a lot. So my negative thinking has gotten me to where I am but I am willing to change that :) I have to think positive and know that after 6 days I can embrace a vegetarian lifestyle or pollotarian lifestyle when I am done with this in a way that works for me. Almost done!!!! I am sure that I am not the only one who is ready to be completely done with this either, I just decided that I would tell you guys the truth with how I feel. Instead of being so informational all the time this is me and my life and how I think! :P

STATS: I am down to 116 (7.8 lbs total) and have not measured or taken pictures because I had duty and then I had Bible study and trying to do it on a weekday is not so good for me so I will update on Saturday morning with pictures and measurements.

Have a good day!!!!

Day 14! Ultimate Reset

I can tell you that the Ultimate Reset is a challenge. For me it was more mental and emotional than anything. The food was a bit of a challenge but my palette like vegetables and it was a pretty easy transition considering that I wanted to use this to transition to be a vegetarian. Oh how things change huh? I really miss chicken ha ha. I do stand firm on my decision to keep beef and pork out of my diet because of the movie Vegucated. It really hit a nerve with me.

So I am glad that detox week is over because it has been the biggest hurdle for me, I did not fancy the menu for the week and stuck pretty much to quinoa and vegetables but overall mentally it was challenging because I gave up control over my entire being for this program and it was harder than I thought. I am doing everything the way that they want me to do it and while it has been eye opening it has taken a toll on me and stressed me out as well.

SO what did I realize?

* I need to keep going with my dreams....the ones that I made for myself when I started when I got in the USCG.
* I eat very well and better than I thought that I did which is why I started.
* Being a vegetarian is something that I don't want right now I need more assimilation time because it is really different for me and I was not ready for what that encompassed but like I said beef and pork are out.
* I am stronger than I thought that I was and even though I cheated a few times to feel more like myself I was actually able to stick to something and see it through.
         I was feeling a bit bad because I had not completed a workout program in awhile but I realized that      doesn't matter and when I commit to something I truly do commit to it even though I may stumble.
* I know what workout program I want to do and I am going to get it done! BBL and Body Beast here I come! I love that Body Beast workouts are 40 minutes and BBL too!!! FINALLY I figured it out! LOL

That is pretty much all I have learned through this week but I feel that it is alot. There is more to come about all of this but I figured I would keep this to the Reset for the week :) I am so excited that I have a week left lol

Tomorrow I will be taking a probiotic 3 times a day and I think that I will continue to purchase those since they are a reasonable price on Beachbody 27 bucks for 30 days. I have also started taking Omega-3's for healthy fats, I don't feel anything different but I like to supplement with them :) Anyway that is all for today! I hope that you are all having a great day!!!! If you have any questions please feel free to ask :)

Ultimate Reset 11 - 13

Ultimate Reset......

I feel kind of bad because I don't have any real updates, this has been a part of my life for the past 13 days and I can say that I am accustomed to it already lol. I did change the eating plan and refused to eat another salad so I made quinoa pilaf for Friday night dinner and for lunch Saturday and Sunday and I ate it for dinner as well so it was pretty blah. I can tell you that I am over giving my control to this program and I am ready to eat what I want to eat. I have been craving healthy foods except popcorn and Sour Patch Kids but I think that it is because I can't have it, not because I really want it.

I have been reading other blogs and I really want to eat all the healthy foods that they post again because I can't have them on a normal day I would maybe do one recipe/week or month if it looks that good. I have also increased my meals. I was TOO hungry and just added more vegetables to whatever I was eating because all weekend I ate 2 apples for a snack when I was only supposed to have 1......OOPSIE! Not really I don't feel guilty about it at all. I was hungry and I fed my body, I want this to be a pleasurable experience and being hungry was not an option. This wasn't something that was me being dehydrated trust me I drink my gallon a day. I was truly hungry to the point where I had hunger pains. I kept everything within the plan I just ate more so I don't feel bad about it at all. :) One set way is not right for everybody because every person is different. This was MY reset experience and call it what you will but I have no regrets for fueling my body at all.

  ******CONFESSION: I WORKED OUT 25 minutes and it was not yoga******* 

I felt great and don't regret that either because I was on a HUGE verge of blowing up for no reason. It was not like my PT test of a workout it was more of a functional workout called Buti a mix of yoga and plyo. Man was it nice to sweat. I did my 25 and I was GOOD to go my mind was right and I was in the best mood of my life that day! 

That's really all I have just a rant and a tattle on myself LOL TOMORROW I finish week 2!!!! WOOT WOOT! I will post my stats on Thursday because I have duty and will not have access to my scale but I will do my measurements on Wed morning :)

I think I have decided that I am going to actually do either Body Beast or Insanity I just haven't made up my mind yet :) I have 1 more week to decide. What do you think?

Ultimate Reset Day 6

Today was a pretty eventful day! It was full of frazzle brain craziness. I woke up and felt great I still have that pain in my back but it is going away.

Baked tempeh.......it was really really dry. I used other peoples suggestion and marinated it overnight and the taste was great but wow my mouth was like the Sahara Desert LOL wow I broke the rules and I drank water with my breakfast. FYI you are not supposed to drink water with your meals because it disrupts the persons dogestive juices and messes with digestion. Anyway it was pretty okay I just didn't really like that it was dry. I have another try tomorrow at it so we shall see.


I totally worked out today.......You are not supposed to workout on the Reset BUT I am in the military and I had to do my PT test. I tried to schedule it before the Reset and no one was able to do it for me for me until today. But I did a great job on it despite feeling tired through out the whole thing. I ran 1.5 miles in 12:20, 40 push-ups, and 82 sit-ups. I felt SOOOO tired for the rest of the day and can totally understand why they say not to workout.

Second bust of the day I forgot my quinoa salad and at WAYYYYY late I had breakfast at 6:20 and lunch at 1:15 craaaazy, but I had to do what I had to do and it is what it is and I can say that I am glad that today is over lol

Dinner was rather interesting to. I ate beets for the first time, I am not really that much of a fan but at the same time it was sweet so it cured my sweet cravings. :) I thought I was going to love this meal because so many people have spoken so highly of it but eh it was ok. I would make it again just not really have it in the regular rotation. There was also a zucchini cashew soup....eh I wasn't a fan of that one it tasted like cashews, it makes me think that I did something wrong but I didn't lol.

I ended up waiting so long for lunch because of my workout and it spiked my metabolism and because I forgot 1/2 my lunch I was famished and totally ready for snack and I felt really low and hungry just really icky and I can tell you that I will never do that again with the way I felt after the workout it totally solidified the fact that I was still cleansing and will be and it is my time more than ever take a break and enjoy the rest of this process. 

So, needless to say today was not the best day on the reset but I managed to get through it, eat all my meals and be okay. I am pooped but I will be okay tomorrow is another day and this day that happened was just life! I can't wait to weigh in! I feel lighter and more alert and I know that the scale isn't everything but the whole circle of the measurements, pictures, and the weight will all be great! I can see the changes all around!

Reset Day 1 and pictures

I have to admit Day 1 of the Ultimate Reset was scary to me because so many people are having weird symptoms like huge headaches and things like that. Alkanize had gotten a bad wrap and I wasn't to eager to try that out either but hey it was part of the deal. I knew I would be able to deal with it. Anyway I have to say that I am only feeling REALLY exhausted.  I drank almost a gallon of water today which is really new for me but I still have some time to get the whole gallon down....I can totally see myself waking up A LOT tonight ha ha.

I weighed myself this morning.........123.8 I emailed myself the picture but it didn't get here at the writing of this blog post so I will post it tomorrow for you all to see :)

I fixed my breakfast and prepared my lunch last night which was a super smart thing to do because making breakfast took a little bit longer than usual. Good thing tomorrow is oatmeal, I can make that super fast. So let's talk about the good.....


1.) the food was delicious
2.) Everything is already written out for you.
3.) I felt full for most of the day.
4.) I didn't feel deprived.

Don't get me wrong I was tempted to eat everything that wasn't on the meal plan. To be honest todays meals would have been something I would have eaten on a normal day but since it was the only thing that I could have and it was already predetermined for me I struggled with the control part of my life.The bad part of it all.....I feel super tired and I was flighty today at work today and didn't make my lists like I normally do. I think that was a HUGE thing for me because typically I would pick up a 5 hour energy or a Red Bull or to perk up. Now I feel like I KNOW that I can stay awake but how important sleep is. It's only been a day and I am not claiming to know everything about myself but I have a feeling that I know what REAL tired is now that I have actually felt it and not forced some type of every product in my face. I think we as a society are really dependent on them and we really shouldn't be, it's not a good thing but I am not judging of course I only had an energy drink....yesterday lol

Anyway my day went pretty well, I am still a bit scared of what days 2-3 has in store for me and I can say that I am still nervous but I know that it is all for good reason! My health.