So Sick!

So yesterday was B and C's third birthday. I cannot believe they are three already. I also thank God that they are so healthy and happy after their rough start.

So for their birthday dinner they asked for hot dogs and mac and cheese. Since Brian's grandmother cannot have any type of milk she asked for baked beans. She also brought a fruit salad. I stayed within my calorie and portion limit for dinner.

But then after dinner out came the cake. The girls were so excited for cake. There was also vanilla lactose free ice cream.  I had a small scoop of ice cream, but a decent sized peace of cake.

After dinner the girls opened their presents and then they put on a princess show for us!

We tried to put them to bed, but they were on a complete sugar high! It took us over two hours to get them asleep. All three woke up and complained their tummies hurt and they felt sick.

I woke up at 3AM and my stomach was aching. I felt horrible. I could not believe how one piece of cake. could completely make me want to throw up. I spent all morning with a sick to my tummy feeling. We drove the 1.5 hours back home and everyone couldn't wait to get back to cleaner eating and our normal schedule.

Over the last 12 weeks I cannot believe how much my cravings have changed. Before eating that much cake and a lot more ice cream wouldn't have even phased me. Last night and this morning I never wanted to eat another piece of cake again my stomach hurt so bad.

This morning we didn't have enough Shakeology to make breakfast so we decided we'd eat yogurt and berries as our morning snack and have our Shakeology for our afternoon snack. My body missed the vitamins and nutrients from the Shakeology. By 1PM I felt like I needed a nap as I didn't have this extra pick me up.

I did my workout and then drank my Shakeology. Now everything is right in the world. My stomach doesn't ache. We are back on our own schedule and we are home.

I am so glad to have become a Beachbody coach. I love showing others they don't need all the extra sugar and salt in their diets. I love showing others how to become healthier. I'm so glad my friend invited me on this journey with her. Who would you like to invite today to join you in my next challenge group? I'd love to have couples or best friends. I'd love to have you join me for any of my upcoming groups. Message me for more information or leave a comment with your email or Facebook name and I'll be happy to contact you.

What song totally pumps you up?

So hat song pumps you up? What song when you here it makes you want to dance? What song makes you want to praise God? Lately I have been loving Shake by Mercy Me. Every time I hear that song I want to dance. One day right before Easter our church had painted our rear windows with the Easter service information. The song Shake came on and we were at a red light. All the girls were dancing in their seats, I was clapping, we were all singing. A guy pulled up next to me and when I put down the window he said "wow that is some worship you got going on in there."

If you've never heard the song here it is on you tube:



We can teach our kids to worship anywhere, anytime, and in any manner. There isn't a right or wrong way. Our main goal for our kids is to point them to Jesus.

How do you do this on a daily basis? I know that we allow the girls see both Brian and I doing our devotional every morning. They see us pray together. Then I do a family devotional with them during breakfast. We read from the bible at dinner time. We pray before meals. We also pray before nap and bed time.

To train up a child we must model correct behavior.If we want our child to be patient we need to be patient our self. If we want our child to love others we have to show we love others. If we want our child to not be judgmental than we should not be judgmental. 

What is one behavior you will change today to ensure your child(s) future? Hope you have a blessed Sunday.

Shakeology vs. Other Products

I wanted to end out the week by comparing Shakeology to some other commonly available protein shakes. Again please remember that Shakeology is a meal replacement shake and not a protein shake, but most companies only have protein powders to compare it to.

What I wanted you to see from this chart is how many vitamins and nutrients Shakeology includes that no other replacement shake contains.

Also look at this chart:

Lastly I wanted to share a video with you. Over 100 doctors were asked to try Shakeology. None of them were paid by Beachbody. They all were videotaped and these results can be found on you tube. Here are a few of these videos:







I hope that you learned a lot about what Shakeology is this week. If you are interested in learning more or purchasing Shakeology please feel free to contact me. I'm on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/simpkinskl) or go to the right hand side of my blog and leave me a voice mail. Hope everyone has a great day!

Shakeology verse Body by Vi

I am continuing with my series that is comparing Shakeology with other products. Today I am going to compare Shakeology with Body by Vi (TM).

Body by Vi (TM) is created by a company called Visalus. It is a weight loss shake not a meal replacement shake like Shakeology. It comes in a few flavors. The base kit is $49 and includes 30 servings of their weight loss shake and 5 servings of the Flavor Ad In. From their website you'd use "1 ViSalus Vi-Shape® Nutritional Shake per day for a healthy meal or after a workout to support lean muscle" and "ViSalus Shape Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins for flavor variety and healthy benefits".

Per their website "The program provides two full meals, and all the nutrition you need to be healthy and help transform your body." Therefore you need to double the base kit for the 60 meals needed for this program. The cost is now $98 per month.

They claim to help control appetite but I've had a few friends mention to me that 30 minute after drinking these shakes they were hungry again. I can go 2.5-3 hours before being hungry after my Shakeology.

Here is the ingredient labels for what is included in the base pack:

Vi-Shape™ Nutritional Shake Mix

Shape-Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins
Banana Energy Charge

Shape-Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins
Peach Complexion Care

Shape-Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins
Orange Everyday Defense

Shape-Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins
StrawBerry Phyto-Power

Shape-Up™ Health Flavor Mix-Ins
Chocolate Cardia Care

By looking at the labels you can see that Body by Vi (TM) has many artificial flavors and sweeteners. It also contains caffeine, milk and soy.  Shakeology has no artificial sweeteners or flavors. Also Vi Shake (TM) doesn't give you 100% of the daily vitamins and nutrients that you need to operate at optimal capacity. Shakeology gives you many vitamins and nutrients at 100% of the daily value.

Here is a comparison of Shakeology vs. Vi Shape (TM)

 Again Shakeology as a meal replacement shake is much more robust that the weight loss meal replacement shake of Vi-Shape (TM).

Shakeology verse Herbalife

So as you know this week I've been highlighting other companies and discussing the difference between Shakeology and other companies products. Today I am going to discuss Herbalife.

Before I jump into the discussion on what Herbalife is I wanted to give you the ingredients list for Shakeology.

Shakeology Ingredient Chart

As you can see from this document all the ingredients is Shakeology are all natural. There are no artificial sweeteners or fillers.

So now what is Herbalife? From the company's website it says that Herbalife is a company that is dedicated to fighting obesity. They sell nutrition, weight-management, energy and fitness and personal care products. These products include sports drinks, fitness drinks, supplements, enhancers and protein powders.

The one I will examine of the Formula 1 Healthy Meal Nutritional Shake Mix as this is probably the closest product they have to Shakeology. I just choose the Dutch Chocolate label as that is my favorite flavor of Shakeology so I wanted to see how it compared.
3107 Formula1 Dutchchocolate Label Us

    Notice the second ingredient. That's right it is fructose! It has guar gum which is a natural filler. It is a bulk forming laxative. It has low digestibility so it can actually help remove your body of vital nutrients that it needs as they don't have enough time to spend in the body to fully absorb. Look at how many other things on this list you cannot pronounce or not naturally occurring.

To get full benefit from their system you'd not only purchase the shakes, but you'd also purchase 2 other products for weight loss specifically. This would be the Formula 2 Multivitamin Complex, the Formula 3 Cell Activator (R) and the Herbal Tea Concentrate. A quick look at these labels also shows many artificial ingredients and many things you cannot pronounce.

Just the formula 1 shakes cost I was quoted from an independent distributor was about $100 a month. For the entire package I was quoted $150. Shakeology costs $130 a month. This means that Shakeology is still cheaper than their concoction of supplements, shakes, and drinks. But after examining the ingredients of 10 separate products I wouldn't want to put that stuff in my body.

I hope by comparing the two above pdfs you can see the difference between Herbalife and Shakeology. Shakeology is all natural where Herbalife isn't. Shakeology uses natural sweeteners where Herbalife uses fructose. The cost of Herbalife is more expensive than Shakeology but you don't get all the vitamins and minerals that are included in Shakeology in the Herbalife mix.

I leave you with this comparison graphic.

 

 

Shakeology verse Advocare

With so many options out there I wanted to do a post on why I feel Shakeology is superior to other products out there. This is just my opinion and based on my research. I am not a medical professional but have a master's degree in bioengineering.

First let me say Shakeology is a meal replacement shake. It isn't simply a protein shake as many think it is. It includes all the vitamins and nutrients you need for an entire day. It keeps you full 2.5-3 hours and curbs cravings. To see why I love Shakeology so much please see Monday's blog post here.

The first product I want to talk about is Advocare.

Advocare is a product that has two phase according to their website. The first phase is all about "cleansing your body of toxins and preparing for optimal nutrient absorption, and you may enjoy weight loss as well!" It includes three products. Herbal Cleanse-Citrus, OmegaPlex (R) and Advocare Spark (R).

The Herbal cleanse use fillers and binding agents like guar gum which have been shown to dins to essential nutrients and carry them out with the waste products your body produces. The Omegaplex(R) is a fatty acid supplement. The Spark (R) energy drink is a B-vitamin cocktail that has Sucralose as its sweetener. Sucralose is an artificial sweetener that has been shown to have adverse effects  due to elimination of it. The Spark energy drink also will only work for those people that are B vitamin deficient.

The second phase is all about giving "your body the best tools you need to achieve your next weight management goal during days 11-24!". It contains Metabolic Nutrition System (MNS(R)), Meal Replacement Shake and the same AdvoCare Sprark (R) from the first phase.

The Metabolic Nutrition Systems (R) is a system of supplements to help speed weight loss, increase energy and suppress appetite. The meal replacement shakes are again full of fillers, artificial flavors, and artificial sweeteners.

These may aid in weight loss short term, but in the long term you've made no real life style change and you will gain back any weight you lost. Also with all the artificial fillers and sweeteners you are actually putting junk into your body instead of healthy items.

The cost is $190.25 for 24 days. This is even greater than Shakeology which is $129.95 for 30 days. Here is a breakdown of the difference between the meal replacement shake in Advocare and Shakeology:

(obtained from http://www.livewellwithmel.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Shakeology-vs-Advocare.png)

Bottom line Advocare isn't natural. It contains many fillers and artificial sweeteners. It contains chemical and is not healthy. Shakeology is all natural and contains less carbohydrates, sugars and calories. It includes more vitamins and nutrients. Are you interested in trying Shakeology please contact me.

Tranformation Tuesday -- Lauren Keene

Today is another transformation Tuesday. Today I have my friend and soon-to-be bride Lauren Keene.

Tell us a little about yourself -

I'm a teacher and I tutor in the evenings, which means that I typically get home late. I stepped on the scale recently and realized I have gained 30 pounds in the past few years! The late nights meant that I never made dinner (I typically just ate a bag of 98% fat free popcorn) and I was always tired so I stopped exercising. My upcoming wedding made me take my weight loss a little more seriously, but it wasn't until I saw your Facebook post that I decided to do something other than Weight Watchers.

Why did you decide to do a Beachbody program? 

I've been on the Weight Watchers program for about 10 years, and I had great success with it in the past. The last few years, however, I noticed my body wasn't responding. Although I was always within my points range I wasn't losing weight. I really think it was the lack of exercise and my enjoyment of processed foods that slowed me down. When I saw your information about Beachbody and looked at the price I realized that the DVDs and food containers were almost what I was paying for my monthly membership to the gym (which wasn't being used) and my WW membership. I thought "oh well, may as well try it." 

What was the thing that surprised you the most?

I was so excited to get my Beachbody package but when I opened up the box and saw the size of the food containers I almost fainted. I didn't think there was any way I could survive on so little food. But, to my surprise, I end each day full! I also didn't expect to love the DVDs as much as I do. I really like the fact that you do a different one each day of the week, which has helped me avoid burnout.

What would you tell others that are thinking about these programs? 

To anyone who is trying to decide whether to invest all I can say is DO IT! I lost 6 pounds in 3 weeks, which I know doesn't seem like a lot but really, for me that is a lot of weight. Additionally, I lost 7 inches and my "food belly". As soon as I finished the second week I had people coming up to me and asking what I had been doing.  I enjoy Autumn, too. She's inspiring, looks amazing, and I love her little quotes. My personal favorite has stuck with me and keeps me going because it rings true for my dedication in the past and how I want things to go: If you're tired of starting over then stop quitting!  

Here are the pictures of her transformation:

Congratulations on your success Lauren! I know you'll look awesome in your wedding dress.

Interested in starting your own transformation please contact me.



Benefits of Drinking Shaekology Everyday

So another common question I get is why do you like drinking Shakeology everyday? First let me tell you a little about my first Beachbody experience. Back in September my friend Jeanette was going to do a Beachbody program with her sister Rachel who was a coach. I was interested in joining and had Rachel message me. As soon as I hear there was a shake component to it I said no way. I didn't believe a shake could make that much difference.

Fast forward to April of this year and Jeanette was now a coach. I had watched her since September loss weight, gain confidence, tone up and get healthy all around. She approached me about her 21 Day Fix challenge group and I was thinking about it, but Shakeology came back up. I really didn't think it would help.

I remember asking Brian if we could do it and he did his usual research before we take any supplement. He ended up telling me I could go ahead and purchase it as it was everything they claimed it to be. Secretly he thought we were wasting $160 but he didn't tell that to me until later.

Our first bag of Shakeology was vanilla. I remember that first day. I remember how yummy it was. It tasted like a milk shake.

Me drinking Shakeology yesterday morning

We continued to drink it everyday for the 15 days that the bag would have lasted as two of us were using it and we ordered more. We have been ordering two bags every month since then and don't think we will go back to not drinking it.

 

Shakeology definitely curbs your cravings. It feels like you are drinking a cheat meal when you are not. It gives you all the vitamins and nutrients you need for your day. Many people have taken the bag to their doctor and their doctors have told them the can quit taking their multivitamin. It keeps you full for 2.5-3 hours.

 

Before Shakeology I wasn't very regular. Now I am definitely more regular. I have energy to combat my day and feel like a million bucks.

Shakeology is a meal replacement shake not just a protein shake. It has more than 70 natural whole food ingredients in its formulation. It is packed with antioxidants, proteins, amino acids, adaptogens, prebiotics, and digestive enzymes.

 

It is certified gluten free and contains 23 vitamins and minerals. It has a low carbohydrate level while having a high amount of natural protein. IT is all natural with natural sweeteners.

 

The biggest complaint I get about Shakeology is the price. Take a look at this graphic:

Shakeology costs you $4 a day. It will be your healthiest meal of the day. We will pay for McDonalds or coffee that gives us hardly any nutritional value and are not willing to purchase something that will truly make us healthier.
 

I ask you to try Shakeology. Buy the sampler pack. It is four servings. Once you purchase it from my site ( http://www.teambeachbody.com/shop/-/shopping/ShkTasteSampler?referringRepId=381910 ) I will send you some recipes and suggestions on how to properly make Shakeology. Please contact me if you have any questions.
 

I'll leave you with my favorite recipe:



Social Media and Me

I just needed to put this out there. I'm in a love/hate relationship with social media. I love it because it gives me contact with people I don't get to see very often, allows me to keep in touch with family that is far away, run my challenge groups, see my friends kids grow up, run my business, etc. Lately though I feel like I want to check it 1000 times a day. Any one else like this?

Maybe you children are fighting with one another for the thousandth time today (maybe I'm exaggerating but today this is what I feel like it has been and it is only 8:30 AM). You've tried separating them. You've tried time outs. You don't want to get angry but you can feel your blood boiling. I want to give myself a time out. As soon as I do I end up on my phone scrolling social media.

A said to me today I am going to take my phone outside in case I get a text. Uh oh. What am I teaching here? That that little ding is more important than our play time. That that email is more important than one on one time with them.

Look at these statistics:

From: http://kiwicommons.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/obsessed-with-facebook11.jpg

I love seeing all of your pictures and learning about your lives. I just need to spend more time paying attention to that which is right in front of me.

So here is my new plan. I am only checking my email and social media sites three times a day. I've been checking once in the morning, once at nap time and then once after ABC go to bed. That is it. I have to schedule all my things on my to do list during that time and just get them done. I cannot spend hours scrolling through as there are too many more important functions to complete in a day.

I set myself a timer and cannot stay on any longer than that. Once the timer goes off I am done for that part of the day.

I'm hoping by putting time limits on myself my daughters will see that they are more important than anything else to me. That I value my time with them.

Any one else up for a challenge? I know some cannot of this because of work, but how about this. For one hour each day we will shut the ringers off on our phones and spend an uninterrupted hour playing with our kids. No surfing the internet. no TV. No radio. Just playing with our kids.

I know when I focus on the girls days go much more smoothly. There are less fights and we all have fun. Here is to a summer with more family time and less computer time.

Lead Like Jesus Quote that I Keep Thinking About

So I just finished the book Lead Like Jesus and in the book Ken Blanchard made this great quote:

"The lord never calls the qualifies. He qualifies the called.

Is there something the Lord has placed on your heart that you feel like you need to do but feel very underqualified for? Maybe he is calling you to a new job. Maybe he is calling you to be a stay at home mom. Maybe he is calling you to spend more time with your kids. Whatever he is calling you to do you need to do it.

Maybe some of the questions running through your mind are:

Will we have enough money?
Will I have enough time to get all the items on my to do list done?
How will I ever gain the trust and prestige I have now at a new company?
How will I survive eight hours at home with the kids?
Will I miss my job?

One thing I learned is to just do it. Whatever door good is asking you to walk through walk through it now. I love this saying:

This is so true. Sometimes we feel God nudging us to do something but because of all the questions we have an unknowns we never make take the first step. Then God nudges us again. Usually this is in the form of a trusted friend saying you should really do this. Or maybe it is a devotional about the exact thing you are struggling with. It could be a sermon on a Sunday morning. It could be in a book your reading. But you still choose to ignore God's nudging.

Then one day he just gets fed up and closes the door. He gave you some chances to do it on your own, but know he forces you to make his decision. At the time we may ask ourselves why did God do this to me? But if we really sat back and thought why we'd see that he wanted us to move forward.

At the time that old door closing can be heartbreaking, but much good will come from moving forward and following God's will. Has there ever been a time in your life when God has closed one door, but opened another? Let's give someone else some encouragement today an share of a time when this happened to you and tell them of the blessing the new door God opened was for you.

Have a blessed day everyone!

 

Reflections on God the Father

My ultimate father is my heavenly father. I haven't known my heavenly father for a long time. I'm so lucky my friend Loni never gave up on me and kept trying to show me more about my heavenly father. What I don't have in an earthly father God will always make up for.

God our father wants a relationship with you. He wants you to talk to him and when you spend time with him and in his word everyday he will talk back to you. He will guide your life and your life will be more rich than you ever imagined. The more I give time I give to God the more my life is blessed. When I follow his will for my life I am blessed so much I feel like I am going to burst.

God is love. God loves you no matter what. You don't have to do anything for his love. He just loves you. You don’t need to be perfect. He just loves us. This is the hardest one for me to grasp. I had no clue what unconditional love was like. I always had to perform to feel loved so this was completely new to me when Brian and I got married and then to think God love me like that but even more as incomprehensible to me. Now I now that love.

God is perfect. This is another hard concept for me as nothing in this world is perfect. People will always let you down. You think you know someone but they will turn around and stab you in the back. You think you know someone and then they turn petty and try to hurt you. God isn't like this. He is perfect. He will never hurt you. I didn't say that he won't discipline you. Remember God is also love and sometimes the ones we love need discipline to learn their lesson.

Right along with this goes god is faithful. God will always be there no matter what. No matter how many times we turn from him when we turn back to him he will be there. When we sin we can confess our sins to him and he will forgive us. He said in the bible that they way to him is through Jesus. That if we believe in Jesus we will have eternal life. He will be faithful in this. Do you believe in Jesus?

God is merciful. Again God doesn't save us because he has to. In Titus 3:5 Paul tells us God saves us because he is merciful. That God sent Jesus to die on a cross for us because he is merciful. He wanted us to have a way to him.

God is also patient. He is the most patient person. Can you imagine allowing you kids to make the same mistakes over and over again and just by saying "I'm sorry" you forgive them and move on? I know I get exasperated every time my kids make the same mistake. I finally yell or scream or get angry. God doesn't he just keeps turning the other cheek and let us hit him again. He lets us keep driving nails into Jesus as he hangs on the cross. And when we are ready to come back to him we ask for forgiveness.  The best part about that forgiveness is that he forgets all about our transgressions.

God has many other attributes.  Have you ever studied the attributes of God? It is a really great way to get to know who God is and start to really form a relationship with him. If you never have why don’t you start today and study the attributes of God. You won't be sorry you did.

A Day in the Life of a Beachbody Coach

I get asked often what a Beachbody coach does. I love my "job" because I get to help people meet their health and fitness goals while being their for my family. So today I give you my day in pictures.

This week's workout routine is T15 Alpha. Brian and I get up at 5AM to complete our workouts.

 A good old Heisman clap. T25 is much more challenging than the 21 Day Fix. I am so glad we completed 3 rounds of the fix before moving on to this workout.

Showered and ready for breakfast by 6:15. Now off to make Brian's lunch and coffee.

Breakfast and my devotional time. Loving my Berry vanilla Shakeology this morning.

Our girls usually wake up around 7AM. They play for awhile and then I get them dressed.

Next the girls have breakfast and we do their devotional time

This morning it was a little chilly out so we decided to play Just Dance Disney.

They just love to dance and have to put on their skirts to do it.

10 AM is snack time. The girls snack today was air popped popcorn.

My snack was celery and almond butter.

 

After snack we played outside some more. We played on the swing set and in the sand box. We played hide and go seek and tag. Then at noon we had lunch. I ate a salad with cheese and two eggs. I also had a piece of Ezekiel toast. ABC had a half a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and celery and hummus.

When the girls go down for nap between 1:30 and 2 it is time for me to work on my Beachbody stuff. Here is a view from my office.

 

The girls usually wake up around 4 and then it is time to play some more until dinner.

We usually try to eat dinner around 5:30 PM. Today we ate a little early as Brian had a softball game.

At Brian's softball game. Brian got a hit and made it to base!

 

Once we get the girls in bed I usually spend about 30 minutes on my personal development for Beachbody. Then I have the rest of the evening to relax with Brian. I've been going to bed at around 10 because we've been up so early. Some nights like last night I have a team call which lasts for an hour.

 

I hope this helps you see what a nice opportunity becoming a Beachbody coach can be. You can do your work whenever you have time and you are able to love on your family and focus on your "real" job when you need to. It is the ultimate flexibility and the best part about it is that you get to help people meet their health and fitness goals while you meet your own.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or may be interested in joining my team. Have a blessed day!

Transformation Tuesday --Brian Simpkins

Today I am welcoming my husband Brian to my transformation Tuesday post. When I first asked him to do this he thought I was nuts. He supported me and did the workouts with me each day, but was very skeptical. Here are his responses to my questions regarding the 21 Day Fix and our fitness transformation:

Tell us a little about yourself:
I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a PharmD. I am the Director of Pharmacy Practice Residency at LECOM. I love to spend time with my girls, read, and golf. I enjoy coaching the church's softball team. I also enjoy volunteering and helping around the house.

 

Why did you decide to do a Beachbody program?
I did this because what we were doing wasn't working and Kara wanted to do it. 

What was the thing that surprised you the most?
I had two things that surprised me the most. The first was how good of a workout I could get in 30 minutes. The second was that I was never hungry. Most time when I was put on a diet I was always hungry. 

 

What would you tell others that are thinking about these programs? 
You are crazy if you don't try it!

Any parting thoughts:
I thought Kara was crazy for wanting to do this when we started. I thought Kara was going to blow $160 on something that wouldn't work. Now I won't go back to how we were eating and being couch potatoes before this.  I also thought Shakeology was ridiculous. I researched all the ingredients and found it was all natural and didn't contain any artificial sweeteners. I also saw that all of the claims they made were valid given the ingredients. I love drinking my Shakeology each morning.

Here is Brian's transformation photos:

Great job to my husband on his transformation. And thanks to him for answering my questions! Currently we are on Week 2 of Focus T25. I cannot wait to see are results at the end of these ten weeks. Interested in joining my next challenge group? Fill out this form and I will contact you. Have a blessed Tuesday everyone.

Piyo is almost here

I am so excited for the newest workout from Beachbody. The workout is called Piyo and it will release on June 23rd. I cannot wait to purchase this workout program! All the videos that I have seen have me so excited to try this workout. The testimonials we have heard so far say that the workout is intense and leaves you dripping in sweat while not jumping around.

What is Piyo?

Piyo has many Pilates and yoga inspired moves. It builds strength, endurance and flexibility. It is low impact.  It uses no weights. This program uses your body weight to get you the results that you need. Piyo will improve your range of motion. It will allow your joints a break. Because you are improving your core it will be good in all areas of your life.

Why am I so excited?

Many of you know that I have had both back and knee pain for awhile. Most of it has went away by losing all the extra weight. If I do a lot of gardening or do a ton of stairs then my knee will hurt. During the last 11 weeks of both the 21 Day Fix and T25 I haven't had any knee pain because of the programs. They have really great modifiers when I needed to have less intense moves. I am excited to have this low impact version to put in on days when I do have some knee pain due to outside activities.

Who is Piyo for?
It is for everyone. Piyo is a high intensity low impact workout. There is no jumping. It is meant to improve flexibility. If you are a runner it will improve your time. If you have back or knee pain it should help your pain lessen. It will improve your flexibility.

Workout statistics?

The workouts are 25-45 minutes long. This workout program has modifications offered for beginners, and it’s great for advanced exercisers as well to help lengthen muscles and burn more calories.

What workouts are included?

• Align (46 mins): The Fundamentals (46 mins)
• Upper Body (35 mins): this focused workout will strengthen and stretch your entire body, while building on the movement patterns you have learned in Align.
• Define: Lower Body (25 mins) will shape and tone everything from your glutes, hamstrings, quads and calves gently, yet effectively to help you get sleek and lean legs.
• Sweat (35 mins) is a traditional PiYo Workout that is fast paced with body weight strength training and ab work!
• Core (30 mins) an ab-centric workout that targets every angle of the abdominals and back. I’ve read this will be a calorie-torcher too!
• Drench (45 mins) is a total body workout to get you sweaty, burning calories, and going to have your metabolism on fire!
• Strength Intervals (25 mins) designed to tone the whole body and burn tons of calories with no weights required!
• Sculpt (30 mins) no weights are required for this intense, full-body workout either!
• Get the full set when they go on sale by signing up for an email reminder.
• You’ll receive 9 workouts total plus get them 2 weeks earlier through a coach – sign up to get them first here.

Reserve your copy today:

You can receive your copy of Piyo two weeks prior to the launch of the program on Beachbody so make sure that I am your assigned coach and you have contacted me to reserve your copy of the workouts. Also if you are interested in becoming a coach you can receive 25% off on this workout purchase.

 

When is Piyo released?Piyo will be released on June 23rd to Team Beachbody customers.  You can be the first to score your copy of the Piyo Challenge Pack and land yourself a spot in my exclusive Piyo Test Group.  This is a select group of individuals who are committed to starting and finishing the program and getting the best results possible. In order to secure a spot you have to be willing to give it 100% commitment over the course of the program! You must be willing to invest in the fitness, the nutrition and the support.  You must purchase the Challenge Pack to be a part of this select group. If you put some skin in the game I am more than willing to meet you half way!

What is a test group and how do I join?
A Piyo Test Group is a private Facebook group where you get me as the coach.  It is a closed online accountability group in which everyone will submit their results to Team Beachbody for a chance to win the monthly and quarterly prizes plus you will have the opportunity to be one of the first people to complete the program and share your proof that transformation is possible if you follow the schedule, stay committed and are dedicated to your success.

 

Contact me today and I'll get you started on your free teambeachbody.com account with me as your coach so that you can be added to the group to receive product updates and then launch details. You will have until July 7th to purchase the Challenge Pack for my test group.

Father's Day

Father's day is a really hard day for me. The two father's I had when I was little my mom divorced each of them. I wasn't really sure what a father should look like until I got to know Brian and his family. Then I got an incredible father in my father-in-law. He is such a gentle and kind man. He will help out when you need it. He will give you advice and won't sugar coat it when he needs to be firm. He disciplines out of love and not hatred. He loves our kids, his grandgirls, more than life itself. I'm so lucky to have him.

My girls and I are also lucky to have Brian as the spiritual leader in our household.  I love how we have God at both the center of our marriage and the center of our home. This makes our house and marriage so strong.

Brian is such a great role model for the girls. He has learned balance so well and does a great job, most of the time, balancing work, extracurricular activities, the girls and house work. He loves to spend time with the girls. They are so excited to see him when he comes home. The run to the door, jump up and down and yell "Daddy's home."

I'm lucky as he helps out around the house. He loves to help me cook. He loves playing with the girls. He usually reads the girls bed time stories and snuggles them to sleep. He is more patient with them most of the time. I'm lucky that he prays for us and our family. That he enjoys running our small group. That he supports me in all my endeavors. That I can bounce an idea off of him and get valued and valid feedback. If I'm having a bad day he will just sit there and listen and not even have to offer up any advice. He'll just let me talk it out.

I'm also grateful that we can share some things like our love for leadership training and books, SCUBA diving, water skiing, and reading for fun. I love that we can play together and I think that is another part of what makes our relationship so strong. 

Happy Father's day to my Father in law Dave and to Brian the father of my three beautiful girls. Hope you bot have the perfect day. And Happy Father's Day to all the Father's around the world!

Tell me why Father's Day is special to you and your father, father-in-law or husband.

Favorite Shakeology Recipes

I just wanted to share with you my two favorite Shakeology recipes. These are so yummy and easy to make. It is such an easy breakfast and we can even grab on the go if we are leaving early. We have a huge Ninja blender that has a travel mug attachment. I love this blender. And I scored it at Bed Bath and Beyond for $130 less than the original retail price by waiting for it to go on sale and then having a 20% off coupon. I love this blender because it has variable speed so we can use it for just about anything and not just smoothies.

So enough about my favorite blender and on to the recipes:

Vanilla Berry Shakeology:

Ingredients:

12 oz water

1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology

1 cup frozen mixed berries

2-4 ice cubes

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in the blender.
2. Place lid on tight and blend thoroughly
3. Enjoy

Chocolate Berry Shakeology:

Ingredients:

14 oz water

1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology

1 cup frozen mixed berries

2-4 ice cubes

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in the blender.
2. Place lid on tight and blend thoroughly
3. Enjoy

Vanilla Mixed Fruit Shakeology:

Ingredients:

12 oz water

1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology

1 cup frozen mixed fruit

2-4 ice cubes

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in the blender.
2. Place lid on tight and blend thoroughly
3. Enjoy

Chocolate Mixed Fruit Shakeology:

Ingredients:

14 oz water

1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology

1 cup frozen mixed fruit

2-4 ice cubes

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in the blender.
2. Place lid on tight and blend thoroughly
3. Enjoy

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we do. Have a favorite recipe share it in the comments section. I'd love to try something new.


Sensory Play -- Water with glitter and beads

Time for a little sensory play. The girls always love any activity where we can get out the measuring cups and spoons and they can just dump stuff from one container to another. The other day I decided to do a little water play as it was warm out.

I bought this little blow up pool at the end of the season at "The Christmas Tree Shops" for $7 dollars last year. I bought some measuring cups and spoons, plastic cups, beads, glitter, funnels and sponges at the dollar store.

I filled up the pool with water and then added the glitter and beads. Then I gave them everything else and watched them play.

ABC enjoying the pool

C enjoying filling up a cup with a measuring cup

B pouring one cup into another

A absolutely loved the funnels

A close up of the glitter water

This activity was a huge success. They played in and around this for four hours yesterday! I will definitely pull this out again. I hope your kids enjoy this as much as mine did. Have a great day!