Here are some tips for reaching your fitness goals or for those doing the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge!
*Keep a food journal! You'll learn a lot about yourself! Write out everything from portion sizes to sauces you added to your food. It will help you see where you are making great choices & where you are adding unneeded calories or where you're weaknesses are. For example maybe you eat pretty healthy but always add creamy dressing to your salad...it adds up. Or maybe after a long day you indulge in a treat. Its not a bad thing but you could be on a cycle of using food as a reward which is an unhealthy cycle.
*Stay hydrated! & Drink your water!! 8-10 ;(8oz) glasses a day
*Go out and buy one of these from Target! (See photo below) No seriously ;) I LOVE this thing so much! Its a BPA free cup that locks when the straw is removed making it amazing for shakes & spark or fruit infused water (or just as a to go cup for water). Its so convenient & cute, it makes keeping up with drinking water fun! Seriously! Love it!
*Base plans around active activities rather than around food! For example my husband & I take our daughter for a long walk for the afternoon as something fun to do instead of going out for ice cream. Or if we are out to dinner downtown, before heading home, we stroll around town & get a cup of tea at a local coffee shop rather then go out for dessert or grabbing calorie filled lattes.
*Go out and buy one of these from Target! (See photo below) No seriously ;) I LOVE this thing so much! Its a BPA free cup that locks when the straw is removed making it amazing for shakes & spark or fruit infused water (or just as a to go cup for water). Its so convenient & cute, it makes keeping up with drinking water fun! Seriously! Love it!
*Base plans around active activities rather than around food! For example my husband & I take our daughter for a long walk for the afternoon as something fun to do instead of going out for ice cream. Or if we are out to dinner downtown, before heading home, we stroll around town & get a cup of tea at a local coffee shop rather then go out for dessert or grabbing calorie filled lattes.
*Don't eat with your eyes & recognize your body's cues of when you're full. We often overeat because a meal looks & tastes so good. Slow down, take smaller bites and savor your food. Then when you are starting to feel full, STOP eating...if you're still hungry you can take a few bites but you'll be surprised that you don't really want any more...you were just eating it to eat.
*Develop a better relationship with food. Food can be delicious, but its main purpose is to fuel your body....use it for that! Do not allow food to simply meet an emotional need or response. Enjoy what you eat, but don't over eat just because it tastes great. Which is why savoring each smaller bite satisfies your taste buds and craving, but provides just enough food for your body. Plus you can always take leftovers and eat it again for lunch the next day ;)
*Don't Give Up!! A "bad" day is not the end of the world & if you indulged in a small treat you're not "cheating" on your diet. Again this goes with poor relationships with food, just try & better decisions. Try to JUST SAYING NO next time...saying No I'm not going to eat this right now, it is not worth it at this time.
Or tell yourself..."I'm not going to have a cupcake now, I know what a cupcake tastes like, this isn't anything new. I can have one when I reach my goal because, right now my goal & health are more important than a cupcake right now."
*A Pound is A Pound! Rejoice the small victories & accomplishments! It's not going to all come off in one day, it is going to take time to reach your goal, celebrate the small wins...they add up!
*Create a basic grocery list & meal plans (see my post on my Clean Eating grocery list)
*Stock your kitchen with what you will eat on your diet or 24 day challenge...if you don't have healthy snacks readily on hand you're more likely to over indulge or eat junky foods....trust me! I've been there! When you're super hungry you'll eat just about anything even though you have the best intentions not to!
*Clean out your kitchen of junk food! No seriously! DO NOT keep an extra bag of chips or cookies as an emergency "I'll just have 1" stash.... when you have a strong craving, that bag will be empty before you realize you opened it.
*That being said....stock healthy alternatives to your favorite things.... if you have a sweet tooth reach for a piece of fruit! No really! I didn't believe it until one day I really was craving a cookie & my friend had made some and left them at my house, instead I ate a few grapes and a strawberry or two and it curbed the craving! If you're a chocoholic like me...Advocare has amazing Chocolate Meal Replacement Shakes that honestly curb my chocolate cravings!
*Before you start....take your measurements & weight to be able to compare after the challenge.
*Take before photos
* THOSE ON THE CHALLENGE...On day 10 you can do a progress report by weighing yourself, take your measurements & photos of your progress.
*Dont forget to take "After" photos of your results & hard work! :)
*Make a kick butt play list to give you that added push during workouts
*Make a motivational board with mantras for inspiration & motivation (see my post below with some of mine)
ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR THOSE DOING THE 24 Day Challenge...
*When ordering the fiber drink...order the Peach! I repeat DO NOT ORDER the citrus one! From what I've heard its super gross and nothing like the Peach one. The peach one is tasty and easy to drink! You can add it to orange juice if you want which makes it even better! Just be mindful of the sugar in the juice ;)
* Look through everything! Make sure you understand it all before starting!
*In the Guide book that comes with the Challenge...I went through a few days ahead and marked out with a marker (you can use white out or pencil) covering up the products I was not using. For example I didn't use the Carb-ease, so where that was listed I covered it up. It was SO much easier to read the check list of things I was actually using!! Also I only did a few days ahead at a time in case it changed...like I started using Catalyst 2 times a day instead of one.
*First thing I did when I got my package was set it up and lay it out on my kitchen table. I loved seeing it all laid out. It keeps me organized & motivated!
*Rubber bands or hair ties around a bottle or to go cup makes it easy to keep track of water intake. Place 4-5 bands around 16oz cup and remove one each time you finish and refill :)
*Do it with a friend or group of friends! Whether it's the challenge or another fitness goal...set it, do it together, help each other meet your goals!
What do you do to help motivate yourself to reach your goals? And if any of you have done the challenge what tips can you recommend to myself and others?
ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR THOSE DOING THE 24 Day Challenge...
*When ordering Spark...do not order the citrus. I learned the hard way it is not the best flavor. Its not horrible just really not great. The watermelon is my favorite so far!
* Look through everything! Make sure you understand it all before starting!
*In the Guide book that comes with the Challenge...I went through a few days ahead and marked out with a marker (you can use white out or pencil) covering up the products I was not using. For example I didn't use the Carb-ease, so where that was listed I covered it up. It was SO much easier to read the check list of things I was actually using!! Also I only did a few days ahead at a time in case it changed...like I started using Catalyst 2 times a day instead of one.
*First thing I did when I got my package was set it up and lay it out on my kitchen table. I loved seeing it all laid out. It keeps me organized & motivated!
There are two options to organizing you can try:
1) Lay everything out in order of the 24 days which I can explain further on & then the night before lay out what you will use in the morning (see photo below).
2) The second option is to prepackage everything before you start into bags labeled by day which I plan on doing the rest of the challenge and may do for friends trying it :)
2) The second option is to prepackage everything before you start into bags labeled by day which I plan on doing the rest of the challenge and may do for friends trying it :)
Photo below...everything laid out in basic order of the 24 Days. Any questions on how to lay it all out or other questions just comment below!
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