Are You Ready To Take The Beachbody Challenge?

I'll be forming groups of 5 people every month, providing support and accountability to help YOU reach your fitness goals! Contact me for details... tamara.gomez18@gmail.com

The Next X: What's New About P90X2™

Courtesy of Team Beachbody Newsletter Issue: #235, September 09, 2011

by Steve Edwards

"How can you improve on the world's number one fitness program?" is a reasonable question that I'm often asked when I tell people I've been working on its successor, P90X2. As Hollywood has quite clearly shown, sequels rarely live up to the original. But once in a while something bucks the trend, and we're fairly certain we've made The Godfather: Part II and not Staying Alive. In this series of articles, we'll be giving you a rundown on what to expect from the next P90X^®.

MC2

The working title of this project was MC2. That's for Muscle Confusion^™ 2, and of course, there's going to be more of what made the original so special. But this time around, we're taking Muscle Confusion to a whole new level, maybe even times two. To understand why requires a little bit of history.

P90X was developed to answer customer requests for a program more challenging than Power 90^® and Slim in 6^®, Beachbody's original blockbusters. So we set out to make the type of training program that an athlete would use to prepare for a season, except the sport we chose was life in general. Combining the theories of cross-training, progressive overload, periodization, and the specificity of adaptation, we began a series of test groups to try and estimate the tolerance of difficulty that the general public could handle, or more appropriately, would want to.

Turns out this was more than we knew at the time—though the fact that we cast test group subjects because they outperformed professional fitness trainers should have given us a clue. The program was so advanced that many professional athletes began using P90X instead of their own team trainers. This we hadn't anticipated. We knew we had a solid program, absolutely, but we didn't count on athletes who make millions of dollars a year ignoring highly paid professionals and working out to a video. If we had, we might have done things a little differently.

Knowing that the world was watching, we began P90X2 development searching for a consultant. We traveled as high up the food chain as possible, where we found Dr. Marcus Elliott. His training facility, P3 (Peak Performance Project), is at the absolute cutting edge of sport. Using the latest in equipment and applied science, P3's client list reads like, well, the front page of the sports section. Dr. Elliott signed on as head of our Scientific Advisory Board, ensuring we had the means to raise the bar.

That's not to say we weren't already succeeding. Anyone who ordered the P90X ONE on ONE^® workouts could see we'd been experimenting with many new training modalities. Tony's newfound love of training on unstable platforms, honed by his relationship with functional trainer Steve Holmson, became, literally, the foundation of P90X2.

Access to P3 and Dr. Elliott also provided challenges. Because our customers are not primarily athletes, we needed to do a lot of homework to determine how to best integrate P3's elite systems into our demographic. Research was done, numbers crunched, theories were applied and tested, and test pilots (often yours truly) were beaten into submission. In the end, the collaboration resulted in a program that we think improved on our wildest expectations.

The program

While it's still based around the periodizational principles of P90X, X2 has a broader scope. In short, it's more versatile, which is saying something, considering that P90X is by far the most versatile training program on the market today. Here are the three training phases of P90X2 and what you can expect from them.

1. Foundation. The first training phase is about your foundation, as in your base, or more specifically your attachment to the ground. What we mean here is not just your legs but your entire kinetic chain. There's a saying that goes, "You can't shoot a cannon from a canoe" that relates to your base, meaning that if it's not solid, you're going to wobble like the visual this saying evokes when you attempt to do anything explosive. The goal of the Foundation phase is to help you create a solid attachment to the earth so you do all other movements without compromising your form. When this happens, you'll look better, feel better, perform better, and be much more resistant to injuries.
2. Strength. Next, we take your strong foundation and strengthen it big time. This training phase will be most familiar to P90Xers because it's similar in structure to what you're used to. However, the individual workouts have evolved. You'll continue to work from instability or athletic positions, because this will help you integrate your strength gains more seamlessly into your real-world movements.
3. Performance. Finally, we take all the physiological changes we've been making with your body and focus them on pure performance. The key to this phase is something called Post-Activation Potentiation or P.A.P. (which we'll explain next time), and doing repeat series of movements called complexes. These workouts will destroy you in an oh-so-beautiful way. After a few weeks of P.A.P., your body can feel more springy, loose, and young. It almost feels as if, to borrow a phrase from King Arthur of Camelot, "You don't age. You youthen."

In conclusion, we think we've created an "Oscar winner." P90X2 is a training program anyone with a decent fitness base can succeed at. It can be done by someone who has only completed one round of Power 90 and still be challenging to the world's best athletes. It's versatile enough so anyone who sees it through to its end can achieve major increases in performance. And while it won't replace P90X (or make it feel as dated as The Godfather), it should absolutely take your results to the next level.

Pre-order P90X2 NOW for guaranteed delivery before Christmas!! P90X2

Questions, email me at tamara.gomez18@gmail.com or find me on Facebook.

I'm The Most Motivated LAZY Person Ever... And Here's My Secret...

The other day someone said to me, in reply to one of my Facebook posts, "I want to be like you one day."  This person was referring to my motivation and dedication to the lifestyle that I've chosen to lead, which is basically just to be healthier in general.  People tell me that I motivate them and inspire them and it kind of makes me chuckle, cause I don't think I view myself the way others see me.  Do we ever?  We are our own biggest critics; we can never see ourselves objectively.


Here's the truth about me (in my eye) and I would take a guess that the people closest to me would agree...


If you're at all familiar with the book Personality Plus, I am a Peaceful Phlegmatic.  If you're 
not familiar with it, READ IT, it's great!  Here's the description of a Peaceful Phlegmatic:


Phlegmatic: This is the flat-type. They are easy going, laid back, nonchalant, unexcitable and relaxed. Desiring a peaceful environment above all else. 


A peaceful phlegmatic is neutral - they tend not to actively upset people, but their indifference may frustrate people. They try not to make decisions, and generally go for the status quo. They care about people and harmony. 

This describes me to a T, I think.  I'm super laid-back; I just go with the flow.  I take things in stride; in fact my favorite saying is "It is what it is".  And that will soon be a tattoo…  I'm lazy, I don't like to exert more energy or effort than is necessary.  My moods are pretty flat; I don't get overly excited one way or the other.  I'm just calm and steady.  I love to sleep, I HATE waking up early.  Anytime before noon is early in my book.  I love to eat bad foods, I would eat tacos all day every day, and I have at times.  I love to watch TV.  I often tell Syed that in my next life I want to be a cat, so I could sleep all day (a pampered cat, not an alley cat.  Just putting that out to the universe so there's no confusion).  ;-)


So how do you reconcile all of this with the person I have become more recently?  It was a choice.  All of the above mentioned, the eating and watching TV and being generally lazy, coupled with having a desk job where all that moves for 8 hours a day is my fingers, type, type, typing away, let to me being FAT, unhappy, unconfident, sluggish, sick all the time… generally just miserable.  Was I obese? No.  Was I unhealthy, YES!  And 20 extra pounds on a 5'0" frame is a lot of weight.


I made the decision that in SPITE of the above traits, enough was enough and something had to change.  I work through the barriers.  I push past the doubts.  I tell myself that I have NO limitations.  The motivation that I have comes from simply taking action and CREATING motivation.  It does not come naturally.  Do I curse every morning when my alarm goes off and I know I have to get up and work out?  Heck yes!  I do it because I HAVE to.  It's non-negotiable.  And when I'm done, the feeling of accomplishment is worth it.  I tell myself that I have worked my a$$ off for the past 2 years and there is NO WAY I'm going back to where I was.  I have created healthy habits.  That's all it is, a habit.  ANYONE can create a new habit.  Am I perfect?  No way!  I try my best to be consistent and balanced.  I get lazy, tired, worn out; there are days when I don't want to eat right or exercise.  Sometimes I give in and that's ok, we all deserve a break, and this is a work in progress.  But for the most part I do it anyway, because it's important to me.  I don't sit around waiting for motivation and inspiration, I make it happen, cause it's not going to come along and smack me in the head.


I read personal development to keep my mind filled with positivity.  I surround myself with positive people that encourage me.  People that have what I already want and so it gives me something to strive for.  And I keep myself accountable by helping others, which has become my passion and my drive in life.  For once I AM excited about something!  And on the days that I want to just be lazy… I remind myself that I have put myself out there, people are watching, and if I were to suddenly come back 20 pounds heavier again, I would be letting people down, including myself.  That thought keeps me going.  Sometimes the best motivation is knowing that others are counting on you.


So for the person that wants to be like me…  I do what I do, not just for me and for my family, but to show YOU that you can do it too… but don't try to be like me, just be the best version of YOURSELF possible.  Quit with the excuses and just get started, now!  And if you need help and a little motivation, I'm here for you… :)

Do I Take The New Job... Even If It Doesn't Include A Raise?

In the past year I have dedicated myself to personal development, to learning new concepts from experts on topics such as leadership, motivation, confidence, personalities…  It has truly changed my mindset and the way I live my life.  One of my favorite authors has been John C. Maxwell and I recently purchased his book, The Maxwell Daily Reader.  It's a compilation from many of his different works and you read one passage every single day.  This one really spoke to me, especially his very last line.  I have recently been contemplating a job change, within my company, but it may not involve a raise.  My first instinct was no raise, no move.  But now this makes me think… if the job will teach me new skills and make me better and more marketable, isn't that worth MORE than a slight pay increase in the long run??? 

What are your thoughts?

Becoming Better and Better

By John C. Maxwell

There is nothing noble in being superior to someone else; progress is becoming superior to your previous self.  Is that something you strive for?  Do you try to become better than you were last year, last month, or last week?  George Knox was right: "When you cease to be better, you cease to be good."

                To become self-improving…

                Become highly teachable.  Pride is a serious enemy of self-improvement.  For a month, put yourself in learning roles whenever possible.  Instead of talking in meetings when people ask for advice, listen.  Tackle a new discipline, even if it makes you feel inadequate.  And ask questions anytime you don't understand something.  Adopt the attitude of a learner, not an expert.

                Plan your progress.  Determine how you will learn on two levels.  First, pick an area where you want to improve.  Plan what books you will read, conferences you will attend, and experts you will interview for the next six months.  Second, find learning moments wherever you can every day so that not a day passes without your experiencing improvement of some kind.

                Value self-improvement above self-promotion.  King Solomon of ancient Israel said, "Let instruction and knowledge mean more to you than silver or the finest gold.  Wisdom is worth much more than precious jewels or anything else you desire."  Make your next career move based on how it will improve you personally rather than how it will enhance you financially.

-          The 17 Essential Qualities of a Team Player

WHAT SPECIFICALLY ARE YOU DOING TO CONTINUALLY GET BETTER?

Isn't Cardio The Best Way For A Woman To Lose Weight?

I found this old Q&A from Jillian Michaels and wanted to share :)

 

Why does my online workout program consist of just one day of pure cardio and four days of weight training? Although I love weight training, I've always thought it's the cardio that really helps a woman like me lose the weight. Why so little pure cardio?
 

ASK JILLIAN: Okay — I love dispelling this myth. Resistance training when done in circuits with cardio intervals is the best way to lose weight for the following reasons:

1. Resistance training will help burn intramuscular fat and create lean muscle tissue, but you can't build muscle mass unless you are lifting extremely heavy weights and eating more calories than you are burning in a day. Additionally, it is VERY difficult for a woman to gain muscle mass because we simply don't have the testosterone needed to build muscle tissue the way men do.

2. Resistance circuit training burns more calories than straight cardio both during the workout and after. This is because you are getting the benefits of a resistance-training workout and a cardio workout all in one. Additionally, you will burn more calories for up to 24 hours after weight lifting than you would with cardio alone because your body has to work hard to return your muscles to a pre-lactate state (the state before training).

Here is what cardio is good for: weight-loss extra credit. In other words, you can only train your muscles so many times in a week without overtraining them, which is counterproductive. Your muscles need adequate rest and recovery time for best results, but you can do as much cardio as you want. I mean, you can't run a marathon every day, but you can jog, bike, use the elliptical machine, or swim pretty much as often as you want.

 

Long Distance Parenting - How Do You Deal?

This is Novali's 2nd year spending the summer with her dad, Sam.  At least I think it's her second, maybe third, after a while it's hard to keep track.  She typically goes to stay with him in Indiana as soon as the school year lets out and then I get her for the weekend every 2-3 weeks.  She then comes back when school is ready to start up again.  Granted it's a short summer, it really flies by.  But for a kid, it's an eternity without mom!  She was here for the long  4th of July weekend, now it will be almost 3 weeks from then until she will be back home for another weekend.  She is starting to get homesick and it breaks my heart when she says she misses me and doesn't want to wait so long to see me.  I talk to her just about every day and Skype a few times a week, so that we can at least see each other (the beauty of technology).  So when she says she misses me, I have to be strong and reassure her that while I miss her a ton too, it's good for her to be spending this time with her dad, stepmom, and new little brother! 

 

For those that don't know the background, the relationship has always been long distance.  When I met Sam we were in college, he was living in Michigan where he grew up and I was and always have been in Chicago.  So when she was born it was long drives every other weekend or so.  It's all she's ever known.  Sam is a great dad and very involved in her life, from day one he has made the effort to see her as often as possible.  So it's been a lot of miles in the past 10 years.  I am grateful that we have a good relationship, all of the adults involved are very respectful of each other, we work well together, and we put her needs first, always!  So we make it work well.  A few years ago Sam moved closer, he is in Indiana now, he bought a home with his wife and they have a son, so Novali is excited to have a little brother.  Every 2 weeks, on Friday nights we drive to a meeting place half way between Chicago and South Bend, she goes with him for the weekend, and on Sundays we meet up again and she comes home.  Now for the summer it's pretty much the reverse.  So I tell her it's only fair, during most of the year she does 2, ocassionally 3 weeks, without seeing him, now the summer is his time to spend with her.  He has her enrolled in some great summer programs and she is having fun.

 

Of course, and nothing at all against dads, but nobody can replace mami when you are homesick, not feeling well, nervous, hurt, have a tummy ache... it's when we want our moms. It's a natural instinct.

 

Do any of you have similar experiences where the other parent lives in another state, and your child goes between homes?  Did you have that experience growing up?  How do you deal with the transitions, the questions or objections as they get older?  I'd love to hear your stories and tips. 

 

 

Why I'm Earning A Presidential Active Lifestyle Award

I thought this was super cool, and wanted to share! (yes I just said super cool) :P

Beachbody^® Joins President's Challenge

Beachbody has been recognized as an advocate of the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA), created by the Presidential Council on Fitness.

How it works:
Between July 15th and August 17th, the Presidential Council will recognize:

• All customers who buy a Beachbody fitness program or order Shakeology^® 
• All current Coaches
• All new Coach signups

Each of these Coaches and customers will receive a Presidential Active Lifestyle Award issued by the Presidential Council.

We hope you'll join the mission by spreading the news and inspiring as many people as you can to get healthy and fit. Stay tuned for more info to come over the next couple of weeks.

Let's do our part to get America moving!

---

P.S. To learn more about the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award, go to www.millionpalachallenge.org. Please note that you're not required to follow their sign-up instructions. Beachbody will be taking care of everything for you.

Getting Our Parents Healthy, 10 Minutes At A Time

Syed and I have been talking a lot about our parent's health.  They are getting older, they are overweight, and are having the health issues that come along with that.  Coming from Hispanic/Indian backgrounds, our food is not the healthiest.  The foods that our parents traditionally eat are very rich, fatty, fried.  Case in point, the first thing Syed's mom asked was if she can still have her empanadas...

So Syed decided to order 10 Minute Trainer for his parents.  It's a program developed by Tony Horton of P90X fame and it's awesome because it's broken up into 10 minute segments that work all your major body parts.  For someone that has no time to workout, or has to start off really slow, 10 minutes may be more than enough!  But for someone that is more advanced, you can stack the workouts and do 20-30 minutes.  

We went to their house on Tuesday to get them started.  We did the first 10 minutes with his mom and man did she struggle.  But she got through it and we were really proud.  It gave me an appreciation for how blessed I am to be able to do what I do.  I do very intense workouts regularly and I think I take it for granted.  If I want to help others, I have to remember that for many people just doing a few jumping jacks may be a HUGE struggle.  I have to take myself back to when I could barely do a push up, on my knees!  Or when my knees used to hurt soooo bad because I was weak and out of shape.  

The next day she attempted the whole body workout and couldn't do it, but instead of giving up she did a lower body workout.  Proud of her!  We are going to support her and push her to see that as long as she is consistent and tries her best every day, she will get better at it, healthier and stronger!!!

As Tony says, "DO YOUR BEST AND FORGET THE REST"

All of this has made me decide that I want to start a 10 Minute Trainer Group on August 1, for anyone that wants to join in and we will keep each other accountable.  The biggest struggle that I hear in terms of exercise is "I have no time".  Well we all have 10 minutes.  That's one less snooze on your alarm, 2 commercial breaks, 10 minutes less spent browsing Facebook.   If our parents can do it, anyone can!

If you're interested in joining in, hit me up at www.facebook.com/tamaragomez18 or tamara.gomez18@gmail.com.

An Invitation To My Friends...

There are 2 events happening tonight and I would like to invite everyone to learn about being a rep for Beachbody, the company that makes P90X. 

 

I became a rep/coach because I love the workout programs.  I started with ChaLEAN extreme and lost 20 pounds.  I decided, why stop there?  I went on to do Insanity, P90X, and TurboFire, Brazil Butt Lift, and I love them all.  Becoming a coach made sense because I get 25% off ALL products.  So after you're done with your first program, keep going!  Switch it up and save money!  I also get 25% off Shakeology, which I drink daily.

 

Aside from the discount, people were asking me how I was losing weight.  If you've ever worked hard at losing weight, this probably happened to you too.  I couldn't stop talking about how much I loved my workouts.  Now I do the same thing, but I'm getting paid just for making recommendations.  I would be recommending them anyway!  It's awesome and in 9 months I'm earning half of what my full time job pays me.  By the end of the year I expect to surpass my full time income!  Will your current job give you a 50% raise in less than a year?  I don't think so!!

 

Being a coach is opening doors for me and making me see my future differently.  It's not about being a fitness professional.  It's about taking a step towards bettering yourself, and then paying it forward.  I'm meeting the most amazing people, making wonderful friends, and having the time of my life!

 

We all need a Plan B, but wouldn't it be nice to have the option to have your Plan B replace a job that you might not be happy with or passionate about?  My dream is to do this full time so that I can pursue interests that I'm passionate about, like becoming a personal trainer/fitness instructor.  I don't want to sit in a cubicle for 40 hours a week anymore.  I'm young and want the freedom to do what I want and have more time for my family.  Your dreams may be different, but this can be a vehicle to get you there.

 

Here's how you can learn more:

 

Tonight, 4/26/11 at 8:30 pm CST there is a special conference call hosted by Mindy Wender, one of my mentors and an Elite Coach in 2010.  This girl knows what she's talking about!  Call info is: 1-218-862-6789 Conference Code: 855529

 

Also tonight at 9 pm CST there is a webinar that talks in detail about what a coach does.  You can register here:  http://www.instantpresenter.com/AccountManager/RegEv.aspx?PIID=E954D783874E&utm_source=google_affiliate_network&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=k244266

 

You choose!  If you attend either one, please let me know so we can talk about it afterwards!

My New Favorite Meal

This is one of my absolute favorite recipes now, from the TurboFire 5 Day Inferno Meal Plan!  We had it for dinner last night and I'll tell you, I've never liked salmon, but I clean my plate when we have this.  I want more just thinking about it!!! 

I do make some small substitutions.  I'm not a fan of ginger so I leave that out.  I should try it just for the heck of it, right?  I also double or even triple the bok choy, because once you cook it, it shrivels up to nothing.  And I love garlic so a little extra doesn't hurt. J I use hot chili sesame oil to give it a little spice.  It's phenomenal.  I get my wild salmon from Trader Joe's, sometimes they have patties and sometimes fillets.  And I buy the pre-cooked brown rice from Trader Joe's as well.  Overall, the meal takes about 10 minutes to make!

Enjoy!

Two 4 oz pieces of wild salmon, without the skin

3 Tbsp. teriyaki marinade or sauce

2 pineapple rings, canned in juice, drained

1 garlic clove

1 medium head of bok choy, roughly chopped

½ tsp. sesame oil

1/3 cup of brown rice

1 tsp. powdered ginger

Directions: Marinade the salmon in teriyaki overnight, or for an hour before grilling.  Grill the salmon for 5 min on each side.  Place pineapple slices on the grill for 2 min. and sear.

Add rice, 2/3 cup of water, and 1 tsp. powdered ginger into a rice cooker or saucepan.  Cook on low heat until the rice is tender.  Meanwhile, spritz nonstick cooking spray  and ½ tsp sesame oil into a frying pan.  Saute 1 garlic clove and the bok choy until soft, yet still crisp.

Makes 2 servings.

Calories 336/Protein 27 g/Carbs 41 g/Total Fat 6 g/Fiber 2 g

Oh man, I'm hungry now!

 

Can Shakeology Replace The Protein Powder I'm Using Now?

An Excerpt from Shakeology and P90X.  View the full article at http://www.beachbody.com/product/p90x-online/newsletters/p90xnl_003.do#article1

 

How about as a protein shake?

Shakeology has an ample amount of protein. While many protein shakes on the market may have more grams of protein, the type of protein they use often digests so slowly that you can't drink them when you're active. Shakeology uses whey protein, which is one of the most (if not the most) bioavailable sources of protein. That means it absorbs quicker into the system than other proteins. Most proteins, especially when you get them in a whole food, take forever to digest. This means that eating protein right before, during, or right after exercise is generally a waste because your body is using energy to digest something that won't help you for hours, energy that it could be using to enhance your workout or recovery. But when you combine whey protein along with Shakeology's other nutrients, you have a high-protein shake that can fit into many different nutritional slots in your day, something lacking in a standard protein drink

February Weight Loss Challenge

Fight The Flab In February:

How many of you made New Year’s Resolutions this year?  Do you make the same resolutions each year?  Do they include going to the gym, working out, eating better, losing weight?  I think these are probably at the top of everyone’s list, including mine, at the beginning of the year.  But it seems that for a lot of people, the motivation and effort seems to die down as the weeks go on.  

One of the things that it really helping me maintain my weight and feel healthy is drinking Shakeology every single day.  I’m absolutely addicted at how great it makes me feel.  It’s a phenomenal product and I wish everyone that I care about would try it. Syed and I both drink it daily, as well as many of my friends.  I just got my dad on it and I’m really expecting it to make a big difference in his health and energy levels. Next up, I’ll be getting my mom drinking it too.

So in an effort to share my love for it, and give people a boost with their efforts going into February, I am sponsoring a Fight The Flab In February Shakeology Challenge. I’m forming a 30 day accountability group.  All you have to do is purchase a 30 day supply of Shakeology HD and replace 1 meal a day for 30 days.  At the end of 30 days, I will randomly select some of the participants for a raffle.  We’ll be raffling off gift certificates to some cool places, just for fun and to thank you for participating.  We start on 2/14/11.

No obligation, no risk.  If you don’t like it or don’t feel any results, you can get your money back, even if you’ve used the whole bag.  However, I have a feeling you will love how you feel after 30 days!

A one month supply of Shakeology HD is $119 + tax.  Make sure you order HD (home direct) to get free shipping.  With HD you also get 2 FREE workout DVDs.  

If you don’t want to commit to 30 days, ask me to try a 3 day cleanse!  I’ve had friends lose up to 7 lb in 3 days!  A 3 Day Cleanse includes 9 servings of Shakeology, 6 Green Teas, and a shaker cup for $40.

Check out Shakeology here at http://www.shakeology.com/tamaragomez

If you’d like to try a sample, just let me know.  

You can contact me at tamara.gomez18@gmail.com

5 Day Inferno Meal Plan

Syed and I loved our meals last week so much, we're doing it all over again this week.  Interested?  Here are all the meals in pictures...  Courtesy of TurboFire.  Just click on the pictures to make them bigger.

Inferno Day 4/5 & Results

Day 4 and 5 came and went and I have to admit I got a little lazy with the pictures.  But the meals were fantastic as they were with the rest of the week.  I ended the week feeling great.  I very obviously lost weight and I felt so healthy and energetic.  It makes me wonder why I torture myself with the fast food and crap that I eat sometimes.  It's so easy to eat well, it doesn't have to be complicated!  And you don't have to deprive yourself of great tasting food.  With a little preparation and planning ahead, anything is doable. 

At my post inferno weigh-in, I'd lost 3 lb. and 1% body fat.  All by eating 5 meals a day and no junk food. I feel so great I'm going to do it again next week!!!

Inferno Day 3

Today was uneventful as we were snowed in, schools closed!

Breakfast:
8 oz. low fat cottage cheese
2 pineapple rings, canned in juice, drained

Snack:
Apple with 1 Tbsp. almond butter

Lunch:

1 medium baked potato

1Tbsp. low-fat sour cream

1 scallion, diced

1 slice turkey bacon

1 slice low fat cheese

Snack 2: 

Chocolate shakeology with 4 oz. unsweetened almond milk, 4 oz. water

Dinner:

Grilled Teriyaki Salmon w with Ginger Rice and Bok Choy

2 4-oz. pieces of salmon, grilled

3 Tbsp. teriyaki marinade

2 pineapple rings, drained

1 garlic clove

1 medium head of bok choy, chopped

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

1/3 cup brown rice

1 tsp. powdered ginger

I have to admit, I don't like salmon.  But the combination of all the flavors was amazing!  I loved this meal.

Workout today was ChaLEAN Extreme Burn Circuit 2

Inferno Day 2

I have to admit, today was tough.  It was Snomageddon, snOMG, whatever you want to call it, it was the Blizzard of 2011.  Thundersnow!!!  That was something new for sure.  The morning started out just fine.  Breakfast was :

6 oz low-fat strawberry yogurt
3/4 cup cubed cantaloupe
1 tsp honey

I also added a cup of green tea.

Because I had a late breakfast, I decided to save my 1st snack for later, which turned out to be a good idea.  Lunch was yummy!

3 slices turkey breast
1 whole wheat tortilla
1/2 tomato
1/4 avocado
handful of mixed greens
1 tbsp nonfat Italian dressing (I actually substituted balsamic vinaigrette for this)

I forgot to take a picture BEFORE I started devouring it!

Then came the challenge.  Snow came, I left work in Oak Brook at 2 pm.  Didn't make it home till 6:30 pm.  I was hungry and SOOOO tempted to get something to eat on the road.  But I held strong.  At about 3 pm I had my snack that I had saved from the morning:

Chocolate Shakeology, 8 oz. water, 2 tsp. peanut butter.  Mixed with ice.

This kept me going.

Dinner was:

Chicken Tacos with Beans and Quinoa.  As I'm typing this I just realized I forgot to make the beans!  Oops. LOL

Two 6 oz. chicken breasts, grilled and then diced
5 tbsp. pico de gallo
1 tbsp. low fat sour cream
4 small whole wheat tortillas
1/2 avocado
5 sprigs cilantro

2 cups black beans, cooked
2-1/2 cups quinoa seasoned with cilantro, salt, and pepper, cooked

*I cheated just a little, you can see some cheese.  I just couldn't resist :-O

It was great and we ended the night full, warm, and cozy.  SNOW DAY tomorrow!!!