Shakeology: The Best Meal of the Day

Having a hard time finding enough time in the day to eat? Want to lose weight? TryBeachbody’s  Shakeology!   Each shake helps you increase energy, become more regular, lose weight, and feel great. Chose between the chocolate and Greenberry shakes. no matter the flavor, each shake mixed with skim milk only totals up to 240 calories and fills you up. When you choose Home Direct, our monthly autoship program, you get FREE basic shipping every month, plus 2 FREE gifts.

Why you need Shakeology now

Shakeology can help you:

• Lose weight
• Reduce cravings                  
• Increase energy and stamina
• Promote healthy digestion and regularity
• Lower cholesterol¹

Tastes delicious, too.

How Shakeology works

• Ingredients derived from whole-food sources deliver the daily vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients your body needs to curb cravings, allowing it to shed stored fat.
• More than 20 different antioxidants and phytonutrients help reduce free radical damage that can lead to heart disease, heart attacks, high blood pressure, and stroke.
• Fiber, prebiotics, and digestive enzymes help your body gently eliminate toxins more efficiently and promote better absorption of nutrients.*

What’s in Shakeology

• Protein and essential amino acids help build muscles and reduce food cravings.

• Prebiotics and digestive enzymes aid in improving digestion, regularity, and nutrient absorption.

• Antioxidants and phytonutrients help counteract free radical damage that can lead to degenerative diseases.

• A daily dose of vitamins and minerals provides your body what it needs to function for optimal health.

Choose how to purchase Shakeology

• The Shakeology Convenience Pack contains 24 single-serving packets you can take anywhere.
• Choose the 30-day supply in a bag to keep in your kitchen.

FREE gifts when you sign up for Home Direct, the monthly autoship program

• FREE shipping every month†
• 2 FREE Workout DVDs in your first shipment†
• FREE Shakeology Shaker Cup in your second shipment

Click Here To Order Shakeology

Should I Buy Stretch Bands or Dumbbells?

Quite honestly it is a tossup between the two. There advantages and disadvantages to each, but what it ultimately comes down to is which one better fits your lifestyle. Most traditionalists will tell you that dumbbells are the only way to go. I used to think that dumbbells were the best and only choice but then I realized that I had never really used stretch bands correctly.

When I used to have a gym membership all I used were free-weights. Dumbbells are nice because they give you constant resistance from the moment that you pick them up until you put them down. You can get a really good, consistent workout from dumbbells.

The bad part about dumbbells is that they are a set weight. If they are a set of 25 lb. dumbbells then they will always be a set of 25 lb dumbbells. Then there is a storage problem. Where do you put them? Do you leave them in a set place on the floor where they are easily accessible for workouts or do you store them away? Leaving them on the floor could be a hazard for your toes/feet. Putting them away and getting them out can be a bit cumbersome.

The next important question is: Do you have kids and if so do you want them using/messing around with them? I have a young child who loves to play with everything so staying away from the dumbbells was an easy choice for me.

The last piece is the cost. Dumbbells can be expensive, especially if you keep buying heavier ones because the advancements in your workouts. Don’t be surprised if you spend around $150 for a set of dumbbells weighing 20, 30, 40, and 50 lbs.

Now lets discuss stretch bands. Just like the dumbbells there are good and bad things associated with the stretch bands.

The first nice thing about stretch bands is the cost. Beachbody bands are the nicest on the market and are quite affordable. Beachbody offers a set of three bands (20,30, and 40lb.) for $39.95.

What is nice about the stretch bands is that they come in varied resistances and you have the ability to increase or decrease the resistance of each band by simply shortening or lengthening each band. You can shorten or lengthen them by winding them into a circle while you work out.

What is also great about stretch bands is that you can store them away and transport them easily. It doesn’t take a lot of effort to hang them in a closet after a workout. If you are a businessperson who is always traveling, having stretch bands are perfect for allowing you to workout on the road and not having to worry about lugging around heavy weights.

Stretch bands do have a drawback. That one drawback is that they tend to stretch out and lose their elasticity. My bands have made it through 2 rounds of P90X and are just now starting to lose some of their elasticity.

There are both good and bad things associated with both dumbbells and stretch bands. You need to decide which one better fits into your life and go from there. Stretch bands are cheaper than dumbbells but may need replacing if you use them excessively. However, stretch bands are very easy to store and travel with. You decide.

My P90X Fit Test

My P90X fit test was quite short. It was only 5 exercises long and took me only about 15 minutes.

1. Pull-Ups – These are done with palms facing the wall and grasping the pull-up bar a bit wider than shoulder width. I was a bit surprised bu t I managed to crank out 10 complete pull-ups.
2. Push-Ups- For these I used my push-up stands and kept my hands shoudler width apart. I managed to do 26 push-ups.
3. Wall Squat- Sit up against a wall and keep your legs at a 90 degree angle. Sit in one position for as long as you can. I managed to sit for 120 seconds before failure set in.
4. Bicep Curl- For this I used my Beachbody 40lb stretch band . I stood with my arms at my side and curled both arms at the same time. I think I need to get new stretch bands because I did 20 reps at 40 lbs.
5. In/Outs- Ab Workout- Sit on your butt with your hands on the floor next to your rear end. Elevate your feet, bring your knees into your chest and then back out again. All while keeping your feet off the floor. I did 50 of them before my abs gave out. I can already tell that doing these for 90 days will give me ripped abs.

Restarting the P90X / Insanity Challenge

Today I am restarting the P90X / Insanity workout challenge. For those of you who are new to my blog, abut six week ago I began this challenge and got about 17 workouts into it when pneumonia landed me in the hospital. So fast forward six weeks and here I am. I have been cleared by the doctor to resume “normal” life.

Some of you may be wondering if doing both workouts contributed to me developing pneumonia. I was wondering the same thing so I asked the doc. He said that it would be highly unlikely that this would occur. His exact words were that ” I would have to be beating myself into a pulp for this to occur.” Maybe I should have told him more about the workout…

I have decided to restart my workout adventure today. I am going to take it slow though. I have discovered that by not working out for 6 weeks, along with having pneumonia, has really set me back. I am really out of shape. I am going to begin by doing the P90X workouts for two weeks and then insert in the Insanity workouts. To insert the Insanity workouts I am just going to take out the P90X’s cardio workouts (plyometrics, yoga, kenpo x, and cardio x) and insert the Insanity workouts. I will burn around 1,000 calories more per week by doing this. I feel that I will get a completely ripped body by doing this workout for 90 days.

Check back tomorrow to see how my workout went!