Stop Making Excuses

I have found that in order to REALLY make change in your life, you have to STOP MAKING EXCUSES!!!  I have done this for years and finally decided to make a change.  I am able to see that now a lot with the people I am working with on getting healthy.  There are soooooo many excuses out there and until you are serious about what needs to change in your life, you won't be able to make it happen!!!  Make a decision and work hard to achieve it without excuses!!

Transformation Thursday!!!

Had to post about my good friend Larisa that is on her 2nd 18 day challenge.  After her first round she lost 15 lbs and 23.5 inches.  She has more energy than ever before and feels great.  When she first started she was very skeptical and tired of never being able to lose weight.  Now, she is so glad that she took the first step to change her life.  Doesn't she look Awesome????  So excited for you Larisa and you continued success!!!

Family Meal Planning

One of the most frequent questions I get asked with following the Shake Days for Life meal plan is how I can make the food for myself and feed my family at the same time--while staying on a reasonable budget.
It CAN be done. I will share some of my recipes here and tell how I alter for my family so you are not doing double duty cooking.
We have spaghetti almost weekly...my kids love it!
I make up spaghetti sauce:
1.5 lbs of lean beef, bison is great, or turkey (remember you want extra protein so extra meat it is)
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 8 oz tomato paste
2 cans of water
Seasonings to taste: garlic, onion powder, basil, oregano, sometimes I add a bay leaf and let it simmer awhile and remove before eating.

Spaghetti squash:
Oven Method: cut in half, poke holes with fork, lay both halves face down in pan with about 1/2 inch water... bake at 375 for about 45 minutes.
Microwave Method: Cut in half, poke holes with fork, lay half face down in microwave safe pan, microwave approx 15 minutes.
I have found if you poke holes and microwave about 2-3 mins before cutting, it makes it easier to cut through.

Then for the kids I serve their sauce over noodles with the squash on the side. I usually give them breadsticks too and have a green salad.
One of my favorite dressings is to just sprinkle a bit of red wine vinegar or balsamic and spray olive oil using my Misto
http://www.amazon.com/Misto-Brushed-Aluminum-Olive-Sprayer/dp/B00004SPZV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432175507&sr=8-1&keywords=misto.

Easy, yummy, healthy and inexpensive! More recipes to come.

Maintaining after 1 Year

A post from one of our challengers.
What an incredible lifestyle I have now. No dieting. No counting calories. First picture is starting. Second picture is one month. This picture is one year - maintained - more muscle - leaner - even through the Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays, Valentine's, and any other event that is centered around food. Love it! Please email us with any questions misty.wood@newhomesinphx.com

This is a GREAT video!

Are you Toxic video

How Tina's 18 Day Challenge Changed My Life

Let me introduce myself:--I am April May, yes really. And no, my parents didn't do that to me, I married into it! I have three amazing kids and a wonderful husband...this is my Challenge Story.

The last year and a half of my life I was faced with some major health challenges during and following my pregnancy. My blood pressure was threw the roof, even after delivering my baby six weeks early. I was taking metformin for my PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) as my doctor informed me I was prediabetic. But, the worst of it by far was that I was experiencing major, crazy, postpartum depression. It was scary. I knew I should be happy as I held my miracle baby, against all odds...but I was miserable.

My husband planned a trip to Hawaii to cheer me up. It was planned for 9 months after my third pregnancy. The baby weight wasn't budging. I had a few friends tell me about Tina's 18 Day Challenge. I thought..there is no way. I can't pay for that right now, I have huge hospital bills and I am going to Hawaii. As I sunk more and more into depression, I realized I had to try something.

It was the best decision I have ever made regarding my health. Within 4 days of the challenge, my moods completely changed. My husband came home from work to a smiling wife and a (somewhat) clean house. I was back and better than ever!

I have now been following Tina's program for about 3 months. The inches are falling off me. My skin looks great and I am running (if you use that term loosely:) I have more energy than I have had in a decade. I am not counting down to my next "Cheat" meal...because I am not feeling deprived and craving anymore. Oh, and the best part? No more blood pressure meds, no more metformin... I am approaching 40 and HAPPY about it!

Ok! This picture is SO embarrassing but I will post my before picture for the IsaBodyChallenge. This was taken Feb 2nd.

 This next picture was 3 months later. Sorry, I need one in the same outfit, but I would really like to burn it after that first picture!