Disney World with a Toddler --- Planning ahead with the new MagicBands and FastPass+

Every now and then, I like to deviate from the "Fit Mom" aspect and just focus on the "Mom" part of who I am and what I like. :) I know there are probably hundreds of thousands of posts on the web about tips on travelling to Walt Disney World with a toddler. I just returned from a fabulous (but short) trip to the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando with my family --- it was my husband and I with our 21 month old daughter, my parents, my mother-in-law, and my sister.

Planning a trip to Disney can be stressful if you don't know all the ins and outs. As a former Cast Member (I completed the Disney College Program there 10 years ago this May) and a frequent Disney traveler, I consider myself somewhat of a Disney expert. This trip was a double whammy for me though: it was my first time travelling with my daughter (though I had travelled there with my nephew several times, he's now 17 and I think I was too young at the time to realize everything that travelling with a small child entailed), plus I was planning the trip for my family travelling with us, AND learning all about the new MagicBands and Fastpass+. That being said, I wanted to share my thoughts and tips for those who may be looking for some insight on the new systems in place, as well as if you're travelling to the resort with a little one for the first time.

Photo Credit

Planning Ahead is KEY! If you're not aware, you can make your dining reservations 180 days out, and reserve your Fastpass+ experiences 60 days out. Take advantage of this! If you have a Smartphone and/or tablet, download the My Disney Experience apps on both. To be honest, I thought the My Disney Experience website itself was a little slow (particularly for dining reservations) but the apps seemed to move a lot quicker for me. You can always change things along the way, but if you suspect you might want to eat somewhere in particular or there's a must-see attraction (or must-see characters), book it ASAP to ensure you can get to it on your vacation.



Photo Credit

I initially wasn't a huge fan of the Fastpass+ system when I learned about the changes. Having now completed a trip, I think it's a wonderful concept. I was able to plan our rides each day strategically (the older folks travelling with us weren't all as physically capable of doing a lot of running around, so knowing where our next ride was going to be and at what time made things so much easier). A down side to this system: you cannot make any Fastpass changes on your app for the current day (which would make everyone's lives so much easier). You need to visit one of the kiosks in the parks where they will have a Cast Member assist you with changing times. After you've used your 3 Fastpasses, they will allow you to add another (only one at a time though), but you do need to wait at the Fastpass+ Kiosk to do so. And just like the old system, the most popular attractions may not be available as it gets later in the day. So plan your Fastpasses strategically! It sounds like such a small amount of Fastpasses (to only start with 3) but when I think back to how many Fastpasses I really ever used in one day in the past, I can't imagine that it was ever more than 3 since you could only get them one day at a time, so the fact that you can get 3 to start with, pick the times you would like and potentially get more after you've used the first three really is wonderful --- so try to think of it that way. Hopefully Disney will figure out a way to allow you to reserve Fastpasses in more than one park each day since you can currently only reserve the first 3 Fastpasses daily in one park. We started one day at Disney's Hollywood Studios and then went to Epcot in the evening. We arrived around at Epcot at 4pm but the Fastpasses for Soarin' and Test Track were already gone (I even tried to split the group up into pairs and that still didn't help).

My biggest tip to making the most of your time in the parks while utilizing the Fastpass+ system: Get to the park EARLY, but don't plan your Fastpasses for first thing in the morning. One of our days in the Magic Kingdom, the park opened at 9am, and I would say it was about 9:30am when we made it into the park. We ventured to Tomorrowland, walked right onto Buzz Lightyear and the Peoplemover, we had a 10 minute wait for Space Mountain, a 5 minute wait for the Tomorrowland Speedway, and still made it to Adventureland to ride the Magic Carpets (which was our first Fastpass of the day --- it was scheduled for 10:45am-11:45am, and we made it there around 11:30am, then headed over to Pirates for our 11:50am-12:50pm Fastpass). I wish I had thought to do this on the previous days we had been in the parks because it really helped us get on more rides in less time while utilizing our Fastpasses, which helped to make sure my daughter got her midday nap so we all were happy!

Speaking of making the most of your time... do not forget to utilize the My Disney Experience app to also see the current wait times!! It will tell you what the shortest wait times are, which rides are nearest to your current location, as well as if any rides are currently closed (whether it's for refurbishment or if it's temporarily down). You can see park maps, find whatever you're looking for, check out different restaurants (and their menus)... it's a great app for before AND during your visit! If you are travelling with children who have characters that they absolutely MUST see, I cannot stress this enough: you might want to consider using a Fastpass for this. I was astonished to see the wait time for the Frozen characters in Fantasyland were 150 minutes one day I was in the Magic Kingdom, and 180 minutes another day! If you don't want to use a Fastpass for this, I advise getting there as soon as the park opens to minimize your wait time.

Another way you can make the most of your time (if you don't mind spending a little more money): Character Dining. My daughter loves Disney Junior, so breakfast at Hollywood & Vine at Disney's Hollywood Studios followed by the Disney Junior Live on Stage show were absolute must-dos for us. The lines for the characters outside of the show looked a little on the long side (at least they looked long for a toddler that you knew wouldn't be patient waiting in line). I was a little nervous about this breakfast since I had read some not so spectacular reviews about the food, but I must say, it was awesome! If you plan to attend this breakfast (or any for that matter), try to book the 8am time slot so you're in the restaurant before it fills up. We were the first family of the day (so cool!) so we had some extra time with the characters, which truly made for a magical experience for my daughter. She got to meet Sofia, Jake, Doc and Manny right when we walked in and then they came right over to our table before we even hit the buffet. Our server told us that the best times to book character dining is right when they open (so for this restaurant, it was 8am), or the very last time slot they serve that meal at --- since the restaurant will be emptying out, it allows for more quality time with the characters. I am going to be honest: If you're looking for a really fancy breakfast, this isn't the place for you... the foods here are fairly basic, but there's lots of options and it's all delicious --- remember, they're catering to families with small children since it's a Disney Junior breakfast! I will say, the French toast was amazing (not your normal French toast, it was almost like a beignet with cinnamon and sugar on top), and they do have an omelet station as well as some desserts (if I recall, there was an apple crumb as well as bread pudding... plus ice cream). If you want something fancier, breakfast at a deluxe resort may be the way to go for you.

Photo Credit

Another character breakfast I've got to recommend if you're pressed for time and want to meet some popular characters: Chef Mickey's at Disney's Contemporary Resort. This is a great way to see Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto all in one place. The food was great and the characters are awesome as always (though it did feel a little more rushed than Hollywood & Vine, however, I think the only reason it felt less rushed there was because we were in there before the dining room filled up). Chef Mickey's is tough to book if you miss the 180 day advance booking opportunity. I did book it 180 days out but wanted an earlier time (not easy with a party of 7!) I tried to reserve an earlier time EVERY day, and finally got an earlier time the day before our reservation when people started to cancel. So don't give up --- and I cannot stress enough, make sure you have that app on your phone!!

Photo Credit

Take advantage of the online check-in on the My Disney Experience website. You are able to "check-in" online 60 days prior to your arrival date --- if I remember correctly, they ask for your estimated arrival time, they ask for your credit card info... and I think that's basically it! When I arrived to check-in, they literally handed me a packet of info that was already prepared for us, showed me where our room was on the map, and explained that the way to activate the MagicBands was for each person to use it to unlock their room. So easy - I think I was at the check-in counter for all of 60 seconds! The MagicBands really did make everything so much easier. I didn't need to worry about walking out of the room without a key, grabbing the key (or cash) to buy anything, fumbling with tickets at the gate of the parks. It was a wonderful overall experience.

A side note... we stayed at the Art of Animation Resort in a Lion King Suite. The resort was amazing --- the grounds of the resort are similar to the other value resorts, if you're familiar with the All-Stars and Pop Century). Since my husband, daughter and I had my mother-in-law with us, the suite setup was perfect for us. There were two full bathrooms and plenty of space. The fridge in the room made it easy to have some snacks readily available for my daughter (there was also a microwave though we didn't use it). I would absolutely recommend staying at this resort!! There's room to sleep 6 (or 7 if you have an infant/toddler in a pack and play). The suites are all interior halls unlike the other value resorts where the rooms opens up to the outside. I think this helped minimize outside noise. As usual, Disney paid attention to all the fine details of the resort, and I loved that there was a bridge across the lake to Pop Century so we could walk around and utilize both food courts. The food court had delicious food (we had breakfast and lunch there a couple days). We even experienced a surprise visit from some characters in the main building one day --- something I'd never seen before that they apparently do at the spur of the moment from time to time. I think it's wonderful that Disney started to do this and hope it becomes something they can schedule in advance to make it easier to see some of the characters (it was Mickey, Goofy, Chip & Dale). A feature I loved about this resort is that the buses are exclusive for this resort --- they don't stop at any other resort. I'm not sure if the All-Stars still stop at all three resorts since it's been awhile since I've stayed there but last time I was there, there were multiple stops).

Photo Credit

One last thought: Disney's Memory Maker. Remember the PhotoPass cards they gave you when you had pictures taken in the parks by the pros? They now allow you the opportunity to purchase the rights to ALL of your pictures in advance. If you purchase your Memory Maker at least 3 days prior to its first use (it was $149 for advance purchase - regularly $199), you can link it to your MagicBands and you will be at ease knowing that any pictures taken of you in the parks (including most rides and character experiences!) will all be saved and YOURS to share or print however you so choose. We only spent two and a half days in the parks but managed to get nearly 50 pictures taken and I love that I can post them online and get them printed at home. I can add them to a photo book I make online. I can create any photo project I want (I love Shutterfly) with these pictures. It's a little on the pricey side, but if you were to consider how much you spend on only one print, it seemed worth it to me to splurge on this, and I'm so glad we did.

I hope you've found this to be helpful --- if I can answer any questions, I'm happy to do so, just leave a comment below! :)

I'm Excited to Co-Host "Wine'd Down Wednesday" This Week!

Welcome to the 34th Week of Wine'd Down Wednesday!!

Thank you SO MUCH to everyone that has been linking with us so far, we are beyond thrilled to have you coming back week after week and just love reading all of your posts! We were all so excited and overjoyed that so many of you want to come and share your awesomeness with us. Keep on sharing and spreading the Wine'd Down love :)

Also, during the month of May, we are sharing some of our best #realmomreallife moments on Instagram and would love for you to join us! Michelle from Our Three Peas is giving away a gift card to Starbucks at the end of the month too!

So follow us on Instagram and check out this post for more info!

Michelle- Our Three Peas

Kristin- Dizzy Busy and Hungry

Chastity- My Rays of Sunshine

Are you interested in joining our fun? Why not co-host with us! We are looking for co-hosts to help spread our wine'd down love! Join us, it's free! :) If you are interested, email Michelle at Michelle@ourthreepeas.com.

Without further a-do, on to the party!

<div align="center">
<a href="http://ourthreepeas.com" title="Our Three Peas"><img src="http://ourthreepeas.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/WDW_button_new.png" alt="Our Three Peas" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

We are so excited you have joined us for a girl’s night out, blog style! So…why Wine’d Down Wednesday? Well, what’s the best kind of party? The kind where wine is served of course! Since we can’t meet our fellow blog friends in person we thought we’d throw a party every week. So grab your wine, link up a recent post, and mingle. Your post doesn’t need to include wine, linking up while drinking wine is completely acceptable and encouraged! We want any of your funniest, heartfelt, absurd, crafty, or delicious posts. As an added bonus, we will also be rotating a different social media outlet each week so you’ll get minglers at all your hangouts.

Our Wine'd Down Wednesday Pinterest board is brimming with all of your amazing posts. Each week we look at all the link ups and each choose the one we like the best! It's always difficult to each choose just one, but we did and here are our 3 top Wine'd Down favorites for this week:

 

1. Teacher appreciation poem by Just a Touch of Crazy

2. Despicable Me Minion Party by Life Made Sweeter

3. Skinny 3 Cheese Penne by Love, Pasta and a Tool belt

Congrats to all that were chosen! We have pinned these in our Wine'd Down Wednesday Pinterest Board.

Follow The Best of Wine'd Down Wednesday Link Party Board by Kristin (Dizzy Busy and Hungry!) on Pinterest

 

If you were featured, don't forget to grab our "I've been featured on WDW" button!

<div align="center">
<a href="http://ourthreepeas.com" title="Our Three Peas"><img src="http://ourthreepeas.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/New_featured_WDW.png" alt="Our Three Peas" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

 

Now come meet and follow your hostesses with the mostestesses!!

Michelle from Our Three Peas

Bloglovin, twitter, Facebook, google+, Instagram, pinterest

Chastity from My Rays of Sunshine

Bloglovin', twitter, Facebook, google+, Pinterest, Instagram

Kristin from Dizzy Busy and Hungry

Bloglovin, twitter, Facebook, google+, instagram, pinterest

Please welcome our amazing co-host this week!

This week we are super excited to have Aly from Fit Mom Aly as our co-host! Aly is an fitness blogger who started writing about her fitness journey after she became a mom! Come give her some wine'd down love and visit her on Facebook and pinterest!

Now for the rules!

1. Follow your hosts and co-host in any way you can.

2. Visit 2-3 other blogs. It’s not a party if you’re not mingling!!

3. Link up ONE recent post. No posts to other linkups, reviews, or giveaways please. {pretty please!}

4. Help us spread the word about this party by displaying our button on your post or sidebar.

5. Tweet and spread the word, if you feel so inclined

6. Use the hash tag #wineddown when sharing about us!

Tweet

Got your wine ready??? Not yet? Ok, we'll wait.......Got it now? Great! Let's get our links on!

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

The "Ultimate Workouts" - Plus a Dose of Reality

So the ultimate challenge pack for the 21 Day Fix includes two additional workouts: Flat Abs Fix and Barre Legs. It's suggested that you can swap out Pilates Fix for the Flat Abs Fix, and swap out the Lower Fix for Barre Legs. I'm actually surprised it took me this long to do these workouts --- and I think it was fate because if I started these when I first started the program, I probably would have hated it because they're both SO HARD!!!!

Ok. Let's get real here. I don't want to intimidate you and tell you these are quite THAT hard, but they certainly do make you feel the burn. I started with Flat Abs Fix. This workout hits more than just your abs. You do use a weight for some of the moves, which means it works your arms and shoulders quite a bit, plus since some of these moves are done standing or in plank, it works your legs too. And in true Autumn Calabrese fashion, just when you think you can't do any more, she throws in a bonus round at the end, which, if you've done the bonus round from 10-Minute Abs Fix, you will know what I mean here... same exercises, only you do them LONGER and you REPEAT! You could see almost everyone doing the workout struggle too (including the guys) so it made me feel better knowing these are just hard workouts!

Though the Flat Abs Fix left my body feeling a bit shaky and like jello, I was determined to get in a second workout. I was initially thinking of doing some TurboFire to incorporate more cardio but didn't think I could muster up the energy to dedicate myself to that. So I went for the kill: Barre Legs. I figured since the entire upper part of my body was mush, I may as well work the lower part. Oh my goodness! Just when I thought I couldn't get any more sore, Autumn gets you again! After the traditional warm-up, she introduces you to the pattern of which you will be doing for each of these moves. You do each move in full motion 20 times. Then, you pulse 20 times. And as if that's not painful enough, then there's a 30 second hold. I don't think there was a single move I was able to complete for this entire workout. I had to break the position more than once to regroup and then get back into the groove. This is no joke... which means that it's REALLY going to get my legs in awesome shape. So I will most definitely be incorporating Barre Legs into my weekly routine (perhaps I will do this instead of the Lower Fix for a few weeks --- and maybe throw it into another day too for some extra leg work). I can't wait to see the results I get with Barre Legs! Let's hope I'm able to walk tomorrow. :)

I want to leave you with a dose of reality, and proof that we are all human. I slipped off the eating plan this past week. I was doing so well sticking to it, and then my daughter and I both got sick this week. I kept up with the workouts but found myself snacking Cheerios, extra pasta I made for my daughter... I thought the carbs would make me feel better. CLEARLY not the case. So I restarted my Round 2 today and am sticking to those containers!! I picked myself back up and am ready to do this again... after all, summer is just around the corner!! I actually just finished my favorite lunch...



Eating on the eating plan doesn't have to be challenging and it doesn't starve you if you plan ahead. This salad is 2 green containers (my local supermarket sells a value size container of the Dole lettuce mix which is called 50/50 since it's half spring mix and half spinach), 1 red container (I stock up for a week or two at a time on the Purdue Short Cuts chicken to make my lunch super easy), and 1 orange container (I love the Dijon Vinaigrette dressing from the 21 Day Fix eating plan book --- note: this dressing also make a wonderful veggie dip if you don't want to make on of the creamier dressings). When you have the dressing prepped ahead of time, making this salad literally takes less than two minutes.

If you need more suggestions, feel free to refer to my (very basic) template I created when I started the Fix last month. I created this as a starting guide as I got use to what my daily intake should be, and I've tweaked it along the way depending on my mood. To see my template, view my previous post: Eating on the 21 Day Fix.

Let's lose some more inches and pounds with "The Fix"! :) Stay tuned for my results!! And I would LOVE to hear about yours too!

~ Aly

My 21 Day Fix - Round 1 Complete!

It seems like it was so long ago that I received my 21 Day Fix package from Beachbody. Though I started the workouts in early February, I started my first round of the 21 Day Fix Program (the workouts in conjunction with the eating plan) on Monday, February 24th. I was hopeful that this program would deliver, and let me tell you... it sure did!

If you've been following my posts, you know a little bit about the workouts and have seen the outline of my eating plan that I started with, along with some pictures of some of my meals so that you can tell that the portion sizes are actually quite substantial. The hardest part of this eating plan (at least for me since I fell into the category that consisted of the least amount of containers each day) is just making sure you're spacing out your meals properly so you eat all your food throughout the day... in other words, don't eat all your containers too early in the day!! I learned that I need one of my yellow (carb) containers in the afternoon so I make sure I have that saved... and maybe that was more mental than anything else. I'm a girl that loves my carbs (and wine!)

Photo Credit

I'm going to be 100% honest with you. There were days I "cheated" a little. I know... SHAME ON ME!!! I stuck to it so well the first week. And then the second week, I wanted to see what happened if I tried to play with the meals a little bit (instead of cooking my meat separately for dinner, I made a meatloaf one night, which of course did have some egg and bread in it, but I justified that it wasn't a substantial amount and had a little less rice to account for part of the carb and a little less of the meat to account for the egg in it too. It didn't seem to effect my progress, thankfully, however, I did have a celebratory dinner one Saturday night before my parents moved to Florida, as well as a baby shower to attend one day... I tried to stick to it the best I could. And despite veering a little off the eating plan a couple days, I still saw progress that I'm SUPER happy about.

21 Days Later...
* I'm down 5.3lbs
* Down 1.5" around my chest
* Down 0.75" around each bicep
* Down 1.25" around each thigh (YAY!)
* Down 1.75" around my waist (double YAY!)
* Down 1.0" around my hips (triple YAY, especially since I've had a baby... need I say more?!)

That's a total of 8.25 inches lost in 21 days just by cutting "crap" out of my diet and exercising 30 minutes a day. That's it!

Photo Credit: Janet Dick - I love her daily posts!

I also want to mention some non-scale victories too... because I think we often focus so much on the numbers we see on the scale, but that really isn't a sign of if someone is healthy.

* I've stopped using Splenda. No more chemicals. I started on Splenda several years ago (and I don't really remember how that started). Since I was tracking calories post-baby, I was loving a zero-calorie sweetener for my morning coffee. The 21 Day Fix suggests a packet of Raw Sugar or Stevia. I HATED this day one, but my taste buds actually adjusted to this pretty quickly and now I'm perfectly content with one Sugar in the Raw plus a little skim milk in my coffee (skim milk is suggested over a creamers or other milks).

* I stopped drinking diet soda. Do I miss it? Eh. I realized halfway through the 21 days that I could drink flavored sparkling water as long as it had zero calories. Dasani started selling new sparkling waters (in a can) so I picked up a case. Some days I drank it, some days I didn't. But I really don't miss it as much as I thought I would.

* I feel my body getting stronger with every single workout. I realize this sounds so cliché but I swear it's the truth. I'm not going to tell you that the workouts are easy because I would be lying (and let's be honest, who really thinks an EASY workout will give you results?!) The moves aren't challenging, and there are modifications to help you along if you need to make it a little easier to begin, so this workout is great for anyone at any workout level. What makes it hard? You're doing each move for a minute straight in most cases with the 21 Day Fix. What seems like it's not too hard initially can really become a challenge by the time the minute is up. As you start to get stronger, you can feel yourself pushing harder. Need more of a challenge? Up your weights! I will probably continue into Round 2 using my 5lb and 7lb weights, but will probably buy a set of 10lb weights soon for my heavy set and use the 7lb weights as my light set. Autumn says in one of the workouts, "If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you", and I remind myself of that daily. Moves I struggled with on Day 1, I found myself almost able to make it through this week. You've got to keep pushing... you can do this, and the harder you push, the better the results.

* I've been having a "breakage" problem with my hair for probably 4-5 years now. This one section just breaks more than the rest, and my hair stylist and I have come to the conclusion that it has to do with the way I've been sleeping since moving in with my husband (who moves a lot in his sleep... I have dodged flying arms from time to time). Drinking Shakeology for 6 weeks has actually reduced my breakage drastically!! I was so excited when I went in to see my stylist last week and she asked what I've done differently because it was looking great (and she asked if I'd lost weight... SCORE!) I told her about Shakeology and she said, "Keep doing whatever you're doing, because it's obviously helping you in more ways than one".

* I have been sleeping better at night. Especially since having my daughter over a year and a half ago, I have been waking up most nights 2-3 times. I don't know if it's the workouts, the Shakeology, or maybe I'm just more tired these days chasing a toddler around the house, but I've been sleeping through the night most nights the past 3 weeks. It's wonderful -- haven't done that without Advil since before I got pregnant in 2011!

The 21 Day Fix does have a great workout program overall, but Autumn stresses that you really need to following the eating plan to see results, and I can definitely understand that. She explains in the eating plan guide how to calculate how many containers to eat daily on the Fix, as well as how many you should eat if you're just looking to maintain your weight. I want to stress that this isn't a crash diet. It's a lifestyle change.



Photo Credit

My suggestions on being most successful on this plan...
* You need to be ready and willing to commit to the eating plan. It takes a little planning but I promise, it's worth it.
* Stick to the plan as closely as you can.
* Get the junk out of your house ahead of time so you're not tempted.
* Drink Shakeology. It can be a snack. It can be a meal. I drink mine after my workout. It counts as a red container (I get 4 red containers daily in my eating plan) and then depending on what you use to make it, you need to take those foods/containers into consideration too. But I truly believe this stuff helps tremendously. It has given me energy (note: there's no caffeine. There's no nuts. There are no common allergens in Shakeology, but definitely check before buying if you have any allergies). I love the chocolate flavor... blending a scoop of chocolate with a cup of cooled coffee, a half teaspoon of vanilla extract and ice is my favorite on the fix since the coffee is a "free" food. There are so many recipes for Shakeology, the possibilities are endless. I've pinned some on Pinterest if you want to get some ideas.
* Make sure you exercise EVERY DAY. It sounds like a lot but it's a half hour. I actually added the 10-minute abs workout three days a week so some days it might be 40 minutes... and if you choose to double up the third week like Autumn suggests (which is entirely up to you), it could be as much as an hour. Most days, I only did the one workout (or the one plus the abs) because I just don't always have time to workout for an hour.
* Join a challenge or accountability group on Facebook. Whether you are new to Beachbody and would want to work with me, or if you already have a coach you're working with, I cannot stress enough how helpful the challenge group I participated in was for me. These ladies kept it real. We posted pictures of our meals, pictures of our progress, sweaty post-workout pictures, questions we had, struggles we were faced with and supported one another. It's like having a whole group of friends to workout with. And no worries about anyone in the Facebook world seeing these pictures --- these challenge groups on Facebook are "secret" so only the members in the group can see them. (Like you want all your friends seeing a sweaty post-workout picture of you??) :)

I have before and after pictures from Day 1 and Day 21. I'm going to be honest - I'm still self-conscious about posting them for the world to see but if you're interested in seeing my progress to help encourage you to take the plunge, I would be more than happy to send them your way (you can message me here or on Facebook if you're following me there). Maybe I will be more confident after Round 2 to share them on here.

Questions? Concerns? Interested? I'm here to help however I can. Thanks for reading!
You can check out more on the 21 Day Fix at www.beachbodycoach.com/alyhirst

One week down... along with my scale and measurements!

Sorry this post is a day behind, my daughter ran the show yesterday. :)

It's been 7 whole days on the 21 Day Fix with the workouts and eating plan combined. If you've been following my blog, you will know I was a little intimidated by the containers. They look small when you're looking at them (at least they did to me)... until I filled them for the first time. Ummm in most cases, the food I was putting on my plate from the containers at meal time was actually MORE than I was usually putting on my plate!

I've lost 3.3lbs and 4 inches in the first 7 days on the eating plan with the workouts (I'm doing one workout a day plus adding the 10-minutes of abs at least three days a week).

Just a quick recap on how many containers I'm allowed daily for you to understand the examples I'm about to show you...
4 red containers (protein)
3 green containers (vegetables)
2 purple containers (fruit)
2 yellow containers (carbs)
1 blue container (healthy fats like cheeses, nuts and avocado)
1 orange container (dressings)
2 teaspoons (oils and nut/seed butters)

A few examples for you of breakfasts I've had this first week... note that the coffee has one packet of raw sugar and a small amount of skim milk, which is a freebie!!

Oatmeal with blueberries and raspberries (one yellow and one purple container);
I planned on having a Greek Yogurt too (one red container), but this left me full so I saved the yogurt for later

2 eggs scrambled (one red) with crumbled feta cheese (one blue container);
One slice of whole wheat toast (one yellow container ) with one teaspoon of natural peanut butter

These breakfasts have left me feeling full and satisfied (I've basically rotated through these, sometimes making my eggs over easy and saving the cheese for my salad for lunch). Having my coffee is key. I was so sad the first morning on this plan because I hated the way this coffee tasted. However, in a matter of 2 or 3 days, my taste buds adjusted to having my coffee this way.

Speaking of lunch, I've been a big fan of making a salad with protein (usually either chicken or hard boiled eggs). Filling two green containers with lettuce and mixed veggies makes a HUGE salad. Depending on if I save the cheese for the salad, I can add that, and usually use half of my salad dressing container for the salad too... here's my kale salad that I added broccoli slaw to (I have a toddler at home so I need quick and easy options to prep something sometimes), 2 eggs, feta cheese, and half an orange container.

I think dinner has surprised me the most. Look at all the food on this plate --- note, this is just ONE green, ONE red, and ONE yellow (plus half of an orange --- I used some salad dressing to give the chicken some flavoring).

 

 

I even survived a dinner out at Olive Garden (of all places!!) this past weekend. I knew where we would be going ahead of time so visited the website to see their Lighter Fare Menu to plan my day out so I was saving the proper containers (including a yellow for a glass of wine!!) Dining out doesn't mean you can usually follow the plan to a "T" but it felt like a success for me!

Being a part of a challenge group right now is really helping me stay on track. I think I would have splurged over the weekend with a second glass of wine and who knows what else if I didn't see everyone posting their meals and workouts, plus words of encouragement. If you wanted to join the next Challenge Group with this program starting on March 17 with my coach, Kristina @ Racing and Saving Mama, don't forget to pick up your 21 Day Fix Program! :)

I'm loving these workouts and feeling stronger every day. Autumn is right... it doesn't get easier, I'm just getting better. Thank you, Autumn! I can't wait to see how my results at the end of this with the successes I'm already having!

21 Day Fix: Yoga Fix

I would like to start by telling you I've never been a big Yoga fan. I've tried a couple of DVDs (one of which was several years ago when Yoga Booty Ballet first came out --- yes, this in fact is a Beachbody workout, long before I really knew what Beachbody was). I guess I just never felt that it did anything for me.

Given my past experience, I was skeptical when I finally gave the Yoga Fix workout from the 21 Day Fix  a try this morning. But then again, maybe I just never gave Yoga a good chance. I'm so use to being on the go and feeling that I constantly need to be doing something, that I don't like to slow down much. I was seriously contemplating turning the DVD off and doing the Pilates Fix in it's place, merely because I just didn't feel like doing Yoga. But I knew I needed to give it a try. About halfway through, I was feeling a really good (and much needed) stretch in my muscles... especially in my legs. In the last few minutes, I found myself thinking, "wow... this is a really good way to just unwind and take a bit of a time out from all the hard work I've done this week". And I actually started to wish there was an abbreviated version of this Yoga Fix to perhaps use as a stretch after each workout.

I'm no Yoga expert so I can't really give you a ton of feedback about how it compares to other Yoga workouts I've done. I recognized "Sun Salutation", "Downward Dog", the "Warrior" poses, and "Child's Pose". It overall was a really good workout and I look forward to starting to feel the burn again tomorrow!




Photo Credit

My Fitness Journey to Becoming a Beachbody Coach!

I don't think you can find someone who will tell you that being/staying fit is easy. Maybe some people are naturally slender (especially in their younger years), but once you have a baby, everything changes. Nothing is quite in the same place it was before. One of my sisters warned me that this would be the case, but I didn't believe her. At least in my case (as with many other friends and relatives who have had babies), this holds true.

I've always struggled with my weight. In my twenties, I can remember hitting the gym to spend up to an hour on the elliptical after work, but I never really was overly careful about what I ate. I used the excuse that I worked out to make it OK to splurge more. Not the case!! That will just completely undo your entire workout (and them some, in some cases). Of course, splurging from time to time is expecting and OK, within moderation. But overall, we need consistency in our diet and exercise. Before I got married in 2011, I went on a total workout kick, waking up early every day to bust my behind to my favorite workout DVDs in my living room. Naturally, that all went down the tubes on my honeymoon, I got pregnant a few months after that, and then this reality set in about living a healthy lifestyle for my family.

In February 2013, I started this blog to hold myself accountable and to share my journey with you. I know I'm not the only one that has struggled with eating right and staying active. I've never gotten my weight below 140lbs as an adult. At 5'3", I would ideally like to weigh around 130lbs but I know that it's not about the number on the scale but about how I feel. Inches lost mean more than pounds lost (seeing as muscle does weigh something too, right?)

I started getting into the Beachbody workouts through friends I made through a Facebook challenge group of bloggers. My first program was Brazil Butt Lift. I enjoyed it but it wasn't challenging enough for me at the time, so I stepped it up with some TurboFire: an amazing program that I quickly fell in love with. I felt guilty cheating on Jillian Michaels with Chalene Johnson but they both gave me such amazing workouts. As my daughter got a little older, her schedule became a little inconsistent (she's currently unable to decide if she wants to nap once or twice a day so I never know how much I can accomplish when she goes down for a nap), and working out for 45+ minutes on some days with TurboFire just wasn't feasible some does. Enter the new love of my life: the 21 Day Fix.

If you've been following my blog recently, you will see that I've been posting all about the 21 Day Fix workout program from Beachbody. I've been on the fence about becoming a Beachbody coach for nearly a year now and decided it was time to take the plunge... to fully commit to a healthy lifestyle and to inspire others to do the same. I've been so touched by those of you who follow my blog and Facebook page and have told me that I've inspired you --- so I'm hoping I can continue that trend and inspire others as well.

What I love about the 21 Day Fix so far is that it's a half an hour workout each day. It comes with an eating plan to follow to help guide you with portion control and to cut out the processed foods (at least for the 21 days).  I started the eating plan this week with the challenge group I'm participating in with my coach, Kristina @ Racing and Saving Mama. I will be completely honest: I was totally intimidated by the eating plan. It seemed like a lot of planning and the containers looked so small. When you actually figure out the eating plan, it's actually pretty simple. And once you fill those containers and empty them onto your plate... they are anything BUT small! If you plan your meals ahead of time and eat all your containers, you will not be hungry (I'm shocked I haven't been hungry). Three days on the eating plan and I've already lost nearly 3lbs. I assume the initial weight loss may be quicker than once I get further along. It's amazing what eating healthy foods, drinking water, and exercising only a half-hour a day can do for your body!

Back to the challenge group... it has helped to hold me accountable, offers plenty of advice from fellow participants on the same journey as I am, and continues to motivate and inspire me every day. This group is keeping me on track and I've never felt more motivated and excited. There's no excuse to not get in 30-minutes of exercise... it's just 30 minutes. This isn't a "dancey" workout. The instructor may be a female but this workout can really be for women AND men. There are always guys doing the Beachbody workouts I've tried but this workout is easily made more challenging for men but using heavier weights. It's all intervals. Guys, I dare you to try this workout!! :)

One more thing I do want to mention with Beachbody. When I purchased my 21 Day Fix Challenge Pack, it came with Shakeology. I've never believed in shakes... I just never found that they worked for me. They never curbed my appetite, made me feel more energetic... or anything that they claimed they would do. They had the vitamins and minerals that the bottle said, and that was about it. Well, after much contemplation, I decided I had nothing to lose in trying Shakeology... and I'm SO glad I did. I love these shakes already (and I'm still playing with the different flavors). These nutrient dense shakes DO fill me up and do help with my cravings for sweets (probably because my favorite combination is the chocolate Shakeology with dark chocolate almond milk and PB2). If you know me personally, you know I have a mega sweet tooth so the fact that something can actually help with this is amazing to me. I was so hesitant to try these shakes but they are worth every penny! I drink mine after my workout... yum! And (while I was not a happy-go-lucky pregnant woman in 2012), it's refreshing to know that whenever I do venture down that road again, I will absolutely be getting plenty of nutrients during my pregnancy that I probably didn't get when I was pregnant with my daughter due to my nausea (and constant cravings for pasta!)

Want to know more? Want to try some of these workouts or Shakeology? Feel free to ask any questions you may have (whether it's here on my blog, on my Facebook page, or by visiting my Beachbody website). I would love to help you along your journey to living a healthier lifestyle along with me. Interested in picking up your own 21 Day Fix Challenge Pack? The $140 sale (which includes a month of Shakeology --- valued itself at $130!!) ends tomorrow (2/28/14). Don't miss out! If you do purchase through me, make sure you send me a note so I can get you added to the next Challenge Group on Facebook!

Thank you for following my journey! :)

~ Aly