My Beachbody Ultimate Reset 21 Day Challenge

Hi friends!  Brace yourself and grab a glass of water.  This post might run on for awhile.  Today I started my Beachbody Ultimate Reset.  I'll talk about why I am doing this is must a minute, but first I want to say that this is a big step for me right now.  I have had some trouble with follow through...with finishing what I start...with seeing things through to completion.  I am determined to see this through my 21 days without giving up.  I hope you'll share in this experience with me - cheer me on, hold me accountable, and maybe gain some motivation or inspiration yourself.  THANK YOU for being here with me.  I'm so grateful!

I decided to do the Rest for several reasons.  First - well, to be honest, I am not quite a Fit & Healthy Mommy right now.  I have gained some weight since last year, have yo-yo'd a bit, and am finding myself in a place where I'm not comfortable.  I don't like the way my clothes are fitting and I don't like the lack of energy I've been experiencing for the past few months.  I have made poor food choices, but my weight gain and energy loss are due to emotional eating - eating when I am not really hungry, but rather to fill a void, soothe an angry heart, or temporarily forget what's hurting me.  The thing is, I internalize everything.  I'm super sensitive.  I have been all of my life.  I'm 35 now, so if you can imagine (maybe you do this too?) holding onto hurt, anger, guilt, sadness, frustration for that many years, letting it build and grow - without release (I am still working on HOW to release the emotions in a healthy manner)...it's a breeding ground for storing body fat.

When people are feeling weighed down by stress, with symptoms similar to the feelings that I posted above, the chemical processes in our bodies result in fat storage.  Our bodies are not able to digest food as well when we are harboring negative emotions.  Everything slows down inside of us and the fat accumulates.  Of course there are many other factors that cause us to store fat in our bodies but my focus, for me, is the internalizing.  I have been feeling much more stress since last summer.  At that time, I was at my lowest body weight - which felt good to me at the time, but in retrospect, it wasn't that healthy for me.  A series of events, which might not affect other people the way they affected me (again: internalizing and holding onto all of this without moving past it or letting go), led me to fall back into unhealthy habits - both via eating and via harboring those negative emotions for so long.

And for me - that negative energy goes right to my belly.  Combine that with having three children in a short period of time, my body does not need any extra fat in the middle.  Many people carry their stress in their neck & shoulders or upper back.  Some carry it in their lower back.  Are you one of those people with pain or tightness in those areas?  Me, I carry my stress in my belly.  I kind of knew this before, but after a dear friend who is a healer helped me to realize that this is indeed the case, it opened up a whole new understanding for me.  It's not just nutrition!

So, while I am doing the reset to release some weight and stored body fat, I am also doing it to find some peace within myself.  I want to follow this program as best I can, without straying or faltering.  That will be a HUGE accomplishment for me.  Not only will I prove to myself that I can complete something that I start, but I will be focusing on overcoming my sugar addiction (that's a WHOLE other blog post!), working on finding alternatives to grazing on food when I am struggling with my emotions, and taking the time to appreciate my body for all that it does for me.

This program is not only about what I'm eating, although that's certainly a huge part of it since I'm going to be making a lot of nutritional changes for the next three weeks.  There's a big emphasis on breathing, stretching, body movement, self-care, hydration and sleep.  There are many tools via the program and the support on the website & FB groups that will help me to take better care of myself by focusing on peace & gratitude, breathing (I'm going to start practicing Qi Gong) and movement (I'm going to start doing short yoga sessions each day).

I want to talk more about the aspects of the program - what's included in the kit, what my grocery bill was for this first week, the support that's available - and the three phases of the Reset...but that'll be in my next blog post.

I have been taking pictures of my food, my groceries, the kit & all that's included, and (gulp) my day 1 pictures today.  Stay tuned for several blog posts and Facebook updates!!  If you're not currently following my Facebook page, here's a link to Fit & Healthy Mommy on Facebook.