First, let me tell you how much I love this program- "I LOVE this program!"
I really do, it has changed the way I look at food, it has drastically changed my portions of the foods I was eating too much of, it has led me to try (and like) new foods, it has helped me and my family already!
But with that being said, let me tell you that it's not always easy.
The whole premise of these little portion boxes is to show you just how much a portion really is, and to get you to eat the right foods throughout the day. If you're like me and
How about a little overview on this box system:
In your package you get 7 colored boxes of different sizes.
The purple box is for fruits, pretty much any fruit you can think of can go in here. You just fill the fruit to the top (make sure you can close the lid) and voila! there's your portion. Depending on what calorie category you're in, you get 2-4 of these each day. 2 if you're in the 1200-1499 calorie category, up to 4 if you're in the 2100-2300 category.
The green box holds the most veggies. You get 3-6 of these each day, again depending on your calorie category.
The red box is for the proteins (meats, eggs, tuna, cottage cheese, shakeology and protein powders, etc). You get 4-6 of these each day.
The yellow box is for carbs like oatmeal, breads, tortillas, sweet potatoes, rice, corn on the cob, pastas, pancakes, beans, etc.) You get 2-4 of these. I'm in the category where I get 2, and oh how I wish it was four, but it okay.
The blue container is for things like avocado, raw nuts, hummus, cheese, coconut milk, etc. You get just one of these a day.
You get two little orange containers that hold chopped raw nuts, raw seeds, olives, coconut, and 21 Day fix dressings. You also get one of these a day.
And lastly there are "teaspoons" (you just use your own teaspoon for these measurements). These are for EVOO, coconut oil and other healthy oils, nut and seed butters. Depending on your calorie category, you get 2-6 of these each day.
So, like I said this has helped me so much limit the food I was eating too much of (carbs), but it also helped me eat more of the foods I wasn't getting enough of in my diet (veggies).
My diet on the 21 Day fix is balanced now.
Can I also say that not every food you may be used to eating should you continue eating. For example Doritos aren't considered a whole/real food (and that's what you ought to be eating is the whole and real foods). So you won't be filling up your yellow container with Doritos (sorry).
The following list helped me to buy the right kind of foods at the store:
You may have questions like, what about coffee? with my favorite creamer? or what about treats? what happens when I go out for dinner? how do I cook in this new way?
I had these same questions, plus more. This is why I researched this program before I bought it, I wanted as few surprises as possible- I wanted to fully know and accept what I was getting into.
You should do the same thing.
And keep in mind that everyone is different, so everyone will have different goals, and everyone will do things a little different. That's okay!
For me, it wasn't necessarily about losing weight.
I wanted to take part in something that:
*helped my family eat healthier for the long run,
*I wanted to get my tummy toned,
*and I wanted to just feel better.
Already, after only a week I feel better, I'm eating healthier, and my tummy is on its way to get toned.
Having said that I will also tell you that I'm not perfect in this new endeavor. Whether you call it cheating or not, there are things I allow in my new diet that others may not allow, but remember that I don't have a lot of weight to lose either. If my main concern was losing weight then I would probably limit my "cheats", but for me I want to do this the way I will continue to do it for the long haul- which for me means drinking my coffee in the morning with my creamer. I will tell you however, that my coffee consumption has gone way down. I now drink about 1 1/2 cups of coffee in the morning, and sometimes a cup in the afternoon. Whereas we used to have our coffee pot going all day long- seriously. I'm trying to decrease the amount of creamer I add to my coffee, slowly, and we'll see how that goes.
The other thing that I've done a few days this past week is allow myself one extra carb a day. Instead of 2 yellow boxes, I've had 3. To me, it's not the end of the world because before this program I would have triple, or even quadruple the amount of carbs I eat now- so I've decreased it by a lot. And again, it's because I'm not doing this for the weight loss, if I was then I would stick with the 2 boxes a day like they suggest.
This is really why I like this program so much, they've given these guidelines for you to follow, but you know what you can take and what you shouldn't. I've drastically changed my diet, and this program has helped! Let me also say that if you're doing this for weight loss, then once you've reached your weight loss goal you will then go to a maintenance calorie category, which may up your box portions.
This program is really a life-changer, because it's truly changed my life. But the nutrition portion goes hand in hand with the exercise portion, and that's why this works so well.
If you have any questions about the 21 day fix then please feel free to ask!
Next time I'll show you some of the things that have helped me in this endeavor, so check back soon!
