I lost of a total of 4-pounds this time around on the Shakeology 3-Day Cleanse. I was expecting a bit more, especially considering my 7-pound loss on the previous Shakeology cleanse, but I also weighed much more during that other cleanse, so it all makes good sense.

But enough about pounds and weight loss. There’s something much more valuable I achieved:

1) I feel like I’m on top of the world! That sluggish feeling is gone. So much energy. So much clarity in my brain (yesss), and I have NOT had the need to be caffeinated in these past 3 days, either. Nope. No coffee required and no withdrawal headaches either.

2) The holiday-eating bloat is gone. I honestly didn’t think I looked that bloated from all the Merry-Christmas-carbohydrates and Hallelujah-excess-pie-slices, but the look of leanness I achieved on the cleanse is proof that, yesss, I was that bloated. Sheesh.

3) It was a discipline-recharge. I love living a disciplined fitness life, because it comes with rewards. But the holiday antics caused me to go lax. Had I not reeled myself in soon, I would’ve been on the track to weight gain and all kinds of future, uncontrolled greediness. The cleanse put me back on track because it requires structure and lots of discipline.

I did it. I am myself again. I’m stepping into 2012 on the right foot.

I won’t be blabbering on about cleansing again for awhile (won’t do another cleanse until right before summer), so just pick up your cleansing packets or reach out to me about Shakeology if/when you need to. My Inbox is always open and ready to hear from you.

Love you much,

Josie

Show that timer who’s boss in this race against the clock. Sweaty fitness funk is guaranteed. There’s some outtakes at the end of the video. Hardy-har-har-har. My legs were burning, yo.

Equipment Needed: 8-10 pound dumbbell. Yoga mat or carpeting.

Your Goal: Push to repeat the circuit as many times as you can in 12-minutes with little to no breaks in between each exercise, if possible. The exercises are simple, but get really intense when you’re racing against the clock.

3 Exercises in the Circuit: 1) wide squats with alternating dumbbell pass-throughs, 2) commando push-ups, 3) reverse lunges with dumbbell overhead

Circuit Sequence:

1) Wide squats with alternating dumbbell pass-throughs. 20 reps
2) Commando push-ups. 4 reps
3) Reverse lunge (left leg) with dumbbell overhead. 10 reps
4) Commando push-ups. 4 reps
5) Reverse lunge (right leg) with dumbbell overhead. 10 reps
6) Commando push-ups. 4 reps

Remember your goal and challenge yourself to hit this circuit as many times a possible in 12 minutes.

Happy sweating!

Josie

Despite the delicious holiday foodstuffs still lingering in the kitchen, I consider those treats not authorized for access — even those last slices of sweet potato pie ((sigh)).

I’ve had my greedy fill (how ’bout you?), but now it’s over until I come up with the next high quality excuse to chew on cookies and pies. It’s time to get our asses back in gear and end this year on the right stomach foot. Are you with me? What’s your game plan for this week? You gotta have plan.

Yesterday (Dec. 26th) marked Day #1 of my Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse, and it went well. I’m ridding my body of those delectable holiday food-fest toxins, recharging, and doing what needs to be done. booyah!

I’ll post my full cleansing results later this week, but here’s a rundown of my food choices that led to the 2.4 pound loss as of Day #1:

• Breakfast: Chocolate Shakeology (made with a banana)
• Morning Snack: Orange wedges
• Lunch: Large salad with Italian dressing, baked salmon — a very generous portion
• Afternoon Snack: Side salad, apple
• Dinner: Greenberry Shakeology (made with strawberries)
• Evening Snack: Raw sweet potato chips (I just sliced ‘em up) with light sea salt
• Drinks: Lots of water, 4 cups green tea with Stevia

In general, dropping pounds fast during a cleanse is enough to get a suspicious man’s panties in a bunch as he wonders if that’s truly a safe approach, but when you take a look at my nutritious eats on the Shakeology Cleanse, you can see why it’s genius. Calories are kept low (yet in an acceptable zone), and the food choices are nutrient-packed and smart. I can’t quite explain it, but the combination of Shakeology, salads & green tea is some kinda miracle worker for cleansing power. Plus, I’m NOT sacrificing necessary protein (that salmon was delicious).

Let me make it clear that of those 2.4 pounds lost, not all of it was 100% fat. My colon is being cleansed, toxins are being flushed and I’m releasing extra water weight as well. People I know personally, as well as other random cleansers, have reported 7-10 pounds lost by Day#3. I lost 7 pounds during my last cleanse earlier this year. I can’t wait to post my full results on this current cleanse! And by the way, I am in no way sluggish, tired or hungry. I’m keeping it healthy, baby.

Hot Links:

Chocolate Shakeology nutrition label (PDF)

Greenberry Shakeology nutrition label (PDF)

Shakeology 3-Day Cleanse Instructions

“Do good unto others” … “Love thy neighbor” … “Give and you shall receive” … These are important biblical ideals I believe in and practice to the best of my humanly-flawed ability: giving of yourself is a loving, selfless act that lifts up others. We need that in this crazy world.

But let’s just switch gears for sec and talk about what you need for YOU.

If you’re not “doing good unto yourself” and “loving yourself” and “giving (investing) in yourself“, you’re gonna end up run down, all washed up, and screaming, “I done lost my damn mind!” Or has that happened already?

The holidays can be maddening and filled with so much you are probably doing and planning for everyone else right now. And that’s great. Go on and do that. But please don’t neglect you… EVER! Don’t send yourself to the slaughter just so everyone else can be happy.

Don’t treat yourself like a piece of shitty by refusing to ever make yourself a priority; by refusing to invest in yourself in a way that will make you better and happier and healthier and whole. The refusal to do so is garbage mentality.

I encourage you to commit to the very important gift of continually caring for yourself. In whatever ways you would define it, do good unto YOU, love YOURSELF and INVEST in YOU. This is a gift that doesn’t cost any money and never goes out of style.

Happy holidays, everybody! XOXO

Josie

There it is, right there in the middle. It’s my Karoun Kefir Cheese (also called “Labne”). The judges on Chopped went absolutely foodgasmic when a chef-competitor used Kefir in his custard recipe. I desire to go foodgasmic as well, but in a different kinda way (there’s a Greedy Recipe in this post, so read on).

But what the heck is Kefir, exactly?

Pop the top. Open up your nostrils to breathe in the aroma and you might think you’re getting regular Greek yogurt, but Kefir is actually more similar to sour cream in taste and texture. It also has a more savory, decadent element to it, plus live and active cultures that sour cream does NOT.

Karoun’s Kefir is an excellent way to get in those much needed cultured enzymes to make your gut happy while keeping those taste buds highly satisfied. The combination of decadence and cultured enzymes had me very excited to whip up some homemade salad dressing and dip, because more and more I despise buying the processed/packaged kinds.

Greedy Recipe: Basic Homemade (and healthy) Salad Dressing and Dip Ingredients

Do you see those ingredients pictured above? From left to right, you have:

• Parmesan cheese (you can also use Pecorino Romano)
• Extra Virginated Olive Oily
• Karoun Kefir
• Spices (onion powder, pepper and garlic powder)

To get my Ranch-inspired homemade salad dressing, I used:

• 2 Tablespoons Karoun Kefir (approximate)
• Drizzle of the olive oily
• 2-3 Teaspoons Parmesan cheese (approximate)
• Sprinkling of pepper and garlic & onion powders
• Light dashes of saltiness

I encourage you to go by taste when you whip this up (I didn’t do precise measuring). Mix in the ingredients gradually and sample the flavor as you go along to determine the precise tastiness that is right for you.

To get my Sour Cream & Onion inspired veggie dip I used all of the above, but added just a bit more onion powder for the right taste effect.

These recipes are very foundational, so go on and get wildly creative by adding herbs, for instance. Kefir can also be used in fruit smoothies and spreads, and as a thickening agent in soups and other creamy concoctions. The use of Kefir for homemade dressings and dips empowers us healthy peeps to eliminate the evil, unnecessary ingredients in store-bought versions. I encourage you to go Kefir-krazy in your holiday recipes and all year long.

I’m still a Kefir newbie, so if you’ve used it in any other kinda way, please don’t be stingy with your knowledge – tell us about it in the comments. And if you plan to try out Kefir now, share your bright ideas!