• Looking for a great way to shed some pounds quickly and safely?
• Did you just realize summer is just around the corner and the thought of having to wear a swimsuit frightens you?
• Do you want to get back to (or start) eating healthy and need a little kick start?

If the answer is “yes” to any of the above, then the Shakeology® 3-Day Cleanse is for you!

The Menu

Follow this menu each of the 3 days.

Breakfast

• 1 cup green tea (can be sweetened with stevia or agave nectar).
• 1 serving Shakeology® with water, ice & 1/2 cup fruit (optional).

Snack

• 1 piece of fruit.

Lunch

• 1 serving of Shakeology® with as much water & ice as you want.
• 1 cup green tea, sweetened as preference.

Snack/Dessert

• 1 Serving Shakeology® made with water & ice only.

Dinner

• 1 large multi-greens salad with 1 serving of grilled white proteins meat (fish, chicken, tofu or white meat turkey), drizzled with 2 tbsp olive oil/balsamic vingarette dressing ONLY. No salt. No fat-free dressings.

FAQ

What is the Cleanse?

It’s a restrictive, 3-day caloric intake that will relieve your system from toxins, bloat, water gain, and weight loss. Considering the amounts of carbs, possible undigested food and other impurities in your body, this is a perfect alternative to rid the body of weighing-down factors.

Best time to do?

The cleanse should be done during recovery weeks or during the wait time for one’s workout program to arrive. Do NOT do this cleanse during a very intense workout program like Insanity®, P90X®, P90X+®, upcoming release of Turbo Fire® or other extreme workout programs.

When will I see the benefits?

Most likely on the 2nd day into the Cleanse and will be measurable on the 3rd day. You’ll feel quite energetic, lighter and pretty fine after the first day is behind you as your body gets itself used to it.

What side effects will I get (if any) from this Cleanse?

These are all normal and expected if you feel these effects: Light headache, hunger, light-headedness, or slight fatigue. In the event you feel like your blood sugar is dropping, you can have with your 2nd fruit snack, 8-10 almonds or 1/2 a banana. This’ll pick you right up and get you back on track.

How much weight can I lose on this Cleanse?

The “Body Gospel” test group (a new workout due out soon) did the Cleanse and reported an average of 11 pound weight loss for men, 6 pound weight loss for women. Not one gained their weight back. If you don’t lose weight, measure yourself and check the inches lost. Since we’re all different and fat is distributed differently in all of us and on our bodies, the measurements can show more accurate numbers. Remember, results will vary, but the more closely you stick with the plan, the more likely you will yield a significant result.

I’m going to a wedding/reunion/on a cruise/spring break/vacation/getaway weekend. Can I use the Cleanse to blast a fast few pounds off?

If you strictly adhere to the guidelines of the 3-Day Cleanse outline and get back to your regular workout schedule the week before your big event you shouldn’t have any trouble losing a few pounds–and keeping them off–to look as amazing as you plan your special event.

Can pregnant women do this?

Pregnant women should consult with their physicians.

Can I go further than the 3-Day Cleanse, say like for four, five or six days?

Not recommended. Your body, while it feels great on day three and you feel like you could go further, your body will sense it’s not getting enough fuel and begin to revert to starvation mode. Cortisol (the stress hormone used in the fight-or-flight syndrome) levels will peak, causing your body to start reserving its fat stores as best it knows how. You will no longer drop weight and your metabolic rate will slow exponentially. If you plan to do the 30 Day Cleanse, remember to seek medical advice. It might be in your best interest to gradually introduce your body to a slightly longer period as you build up to the 30 days.

How often can I do the Cleanse?

Every six weeks, minimum.

I don’t like green tea; can I have black coffee or caffeinated green tea for my drink?

Not recommended. The caffeine can counter your efforts on this restrictive a plan, and because there are no other nutrients in your system to absorb this. Besides, it’s only three days. Put your cup of joe on vacation for three days and until after your Cleanse is completed.

Can I take supplements with 3-Day Cleanse?

You can take additional supplements with it, but it may not be necessary. Decide on case-by-case basis.

Can I eat beans with the salad instead of white meat?

Yes, you can substitute beans for white meat proteins (fish, chicken or turkey) in the salad.

What about milk?

No dairy is allowed for these three days. The idea is to rid the body of bloat, constipation (if any) and substantial weight loss. This includes any milk form: unpasteurized, almond, soy and rice milks.

Can I use Shakeology® Fiber Boost with the Cleanse?

You can, but it might not be necessary, since the nutrients in Shakeology alone will do the trick. In addition, you’re having as many greens in your salad as you’d like, which are a natural fiber for your intestinal tract.

Order Shakeology^® today and look your best for summer. And, yes, I’m talking to you too gentlemen…but please, no Speedos

The very first question I ask when someone tells me they are struggling with their weight is, “Do you eat breakfast every morning?” Ninety percent of the time the answer is “No.” Then I usually hear this

“I don’t have time to eat breakfast.”

Believe me, I understand the time crunch in the mornings. I have a love affair with my snooze button. I wait until the very last minute possible to get out of bed. However, I still make breakfast a priority. You need to do the same. Even if you don’t need to lose weight you need to eat breakfast. If you want to know why you can take a look at Weight Loss Guideline #2: Eat More.

Meet the Smoothie

For me there is no better breakfast than a smoothie. They are fast, inexpensive, and with the right ingredients are loaded with nutrition. Here is a list of five of my favorite smoothies.

Once you get these recipes memorized they literally will take you less than 5 minutes to make and you can stick them in a to go cup and drink them on the way to work.

What you’ll need

• A good blender (one that will blend ice cubes). That’s about it for the hardware.

Grocery List

• Whey protein powder
  I use vanilla but you can use chocolate flavored for the chocolate recipes. I find it more economical just to use vanilla for all the recipes. You can find reasonably priced protein powder just about anywhere. Walmart carries a couple different brands (although one of them doesn’t taste very good, I think it’s the Body Fortress kind). You can also get it from GNC or Vitamin World. You can also order it online on my Beachbody Coach site (www.beachbodycoach.com/boynamedtracy). Make sure it’s whey protein. Stay away from soy protein. I get my protein powder in a 5lb bag at Sam’s (EAS brand) for around $30.
• Frozen berries
  We usually get a couple packages of blueberries, a package of strawberries and sometimes I use mixed berries when I feel like getting crazy.
• Low-Fat Yogurt
  We use plain but you can use vanilla so long as you be careful of the sugar content. You can also use Greek style yogurt, it is thicker and has more protein. If you’re lactose intolerant I don’t know what to tell you here. The yogurt is basically to thicken it. Some recipes below does not call for yogurt so you can stick with those if you need to.
• Natural Peanut Butter
  The ingredients in peanut butter should be, uh, peanuts. No salt. Definitely no sugar. I used to use Smart Balance Natural peanut butter but have recently switched to Skippy Natural Chunky. Skippy is cheaper and it tastes great. If you have a food processor you can also make your own natural peanut butter. Just put peanuts in and process until it’s a butter. Yep, that’s it.
• Quick oats
  Whether you prefer a guy from Pennsylvania to make your oats or not is up to you.
• Bran flakes
  Any brand. The less sugar the better.
• Ground Flax seeds
  We buy Hodgsdon Mills Milled Flaxseed. You can also get whole flaxseeds in a health food store or GNC.
• Honey

The recipes

All of these recipes have come from either The Abs Diet: The Six-Week Plan to Flatten Your Stomach and Keep You Lean for Life or its companion book The Abs Diet Eat Right Every Time Guide . If you want to expand your smoothie repertoire, you should definitely check out these books!

One thing to remember is when making these recipes, start with the liquid ingredients first and then add the solids (and yes, ice is a solid). Then blend it to whatever consistency you like on whichever blender setting you like.

These recipes will make two 8-oz servings, so you may want to either cut the recipe in half or save half for later.

Honey-Nut Cheery Oat

• 3/4 cup instant oatmeal nuked in water (I actually just use 1/2 cup uncooked oats)
• 1/4 cup milk (use 1 cup if using uncooked oats)
• 1 tbsp peanut butter (natural pb of course)
• 2 tsp whey protein powder (a little more won’t hurt)
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp ground flaxseed
• 6 ice cubes

The Cereal Killer

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup bran flakes
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 2 tsp whey protein powder
• 1 tsp honey
• 6 ice cubes

The Chocolate Factory

• 1 cup chocolate milk (I use Nestle Quick for the chocolate part)
• 2 tbsp low-fat plain yogurt (or vanilla)
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tsp chocolate (or vanilla) whey protein powder
• 2 tsp ground flaxseed
• 6 ice cubes

Blue Velvet

• 1/2 cup chocolate milk (I use Nestle Quick for the chocolate part)
• 1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt (or plain)
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 2 tsp chocolate (or vanilla) whey protein powder
• 2 tsp ground flaxseed
• 3 ice cubes

Strawberry Fields Marshall Smoothie

• 1 cup milk
• 2 tsp vanilla (or plain) yogurt
• 1/2 cup frozen strawberries (blueberries or mixed berries also work quite well)
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tsp ground flaxseed
• 6 ice cubes

There you have it. Five breakfasts that will literally take you minutes to prepare and will fill you up and give you all the energy you need to make it through the morning.

Shakeology®

If you’re looking for something with less calories and will take even less time, you may want to consider Shakeology®. Shakeology® tastes great, is only 140 calories and is filled with over 70 healthy ingredients. It works like a salad but tastes like a dessert.

You can find out more about Shakeology® at http://myshakeology.com/boynamedtracy.

Another option, which is what I do, would be to use the above breakfast recipes and use Shakeology® for lunch. It’s amazing how only 140 calories will fill you up.

So which recipe is your favorite?

Stay away from both!

For a time back in the last century (the 1990′s, remember them?) Beanie Babies were all the rage. People would follow delivery trucks from Hallmark store to Hallmark store hoping to score some of these rare creatures. Stores would put a limit on the amount you could buy and people were paying upwards of $100 trying to get their hands on some of the the elusive “special edition” plush gold mines.

Joshua was born in March of 1999 and I can remember us trying to get our hands on the special edition St. Patrick’s Day green bear. After battling the elements and crowded stores we finally landed one…and we got a steal: $25 along with a plastic case to store our beloved trophy in. All this hype for animals that were made from factory leftovers and retailed for $5.

Today, over 10 years later that $25 Beanie Baby is now worth about $.25. A lousy quarter! Months of effort for basically nothing. Fads are like that.

Besides Beanie Babies, remember:

• Bell bottoms?
• Disco?
• 8-Tracks?
• Parachute pants?
• The “Don Johnson look”?
• VCRs?
• CDs?
• And the list goes on, and on, and on…

Fads are like that. One day that’s all anyone talks about. Shortly thereafter they are forgotten, covered with dust (either literally or metaphorically) stuck away in someone’s closet waiting for the next garage sale.

Fad diets are the same way!

When I was my FFS (Former Fat Self) I tried the Mayo Clinic Diet (which was never even actually endorsed by the Mayo Clinic). Basically it was similar to a low-carb diet except for every meal you were required to drink unsweetened grapefruit juice. Needless to say this gold real old real fast. I felt miserable when I was on the diet (even if I was losing weight) and I felt even worse if I slacked off and “cheated” on a meal. I didn’t last very long on it.

When I finally made the lifestyle changes and set out to lose weight once and for all, one of my vows was to never, ever do a fad diet. No Atkins. No South Beach. No cabbage soup!

Why?

Because I knew that when I lost the weight I would go off the diet and then chances are the weight would come back on. Because that’s what happens with fad diets. You can only cut out carbs for so long and if you eat the same thing over and over again you will get tired of it. Then you will go back to your old habits and the weight (probably even more) will go right back on.

The way to lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle is to make permanent lifestyle changes. Fad diets cannot be maintained forever. Making better food choices for each meal, however, can be maintained. This gives you a much better chance of being healthy for the rest of your life.

So please, stay away from these diets!

There are three things you need to do when setting goals for losing weight.

1. Be realistic

"I want to lose 50lbs in one week" is not a realistic goal.

Ladies, if you wear a size 14 and want to be in a 2 by summer, this is not a realistic goal.

Gentlemen, if you are 40lbs overweight and want to have a six-pack by summer, this is not a realistic goal!

If you set these lofty expectations you are just setting yourself up for failure. Then what inevitably happens when you fail to reach your goals you give up and become even more discouraged than before you began. Now, not only are you no healthier physically you are exacerbating (I’ve always wanted to use that word in real life…woo-hoo!) the situation by affecting your mental health as well. This can lead to depression which affects both your mental and physical health which is not good at all.

There is also a greater risk that if you set too high goals that you will be tempted to try unhealthy methods to lose the weight. I implore you: please stay away from weight-loss pills! They are dangerous! There are no overnight miracle pills. It took you months, maybe years to put on all the extra weight. It’s going to take time to take it off safely. Setting realistic goals will help.

So what are realistic goals?

Although there are varying opinions out there regarding health and weight loss, one common recommendation is that healthy weight loss should range around the 1-2 pounds per week. This is a good place to start. It is quite possible, especially if you are extremely overweight, to lose more than two pounds a week, but don’t shoot for more than five pounds per week. Besides, there is no rule you can’t exceed your goals!

2. Be specific

“I want to lose weight” is not specific. Neither is “I want to be healthier”. While these are both noble goals they are vague.

If you want to lose weight, set a specific amount. If you weight 300lbs, start with the specific goal to lose 50lbs. Remember when setting these to be realistic. There are 52 weeks in a year, so if you set the 5lb per week goal you would be down that 50 in 10 weeks which sounds pretty good don’t you think?

Ladies, say you’re a size 14. Set a specific size you want to be in. Let’s say you want to be in a size 8. Go out and buy yourself a pair of size 8 pants. Keep them in plain sight so that every time you see them you are reminded of your goal. Again, remember to be realistic! I’m going to have to trust you on this one since I have no idea how much weight you would need to lose to go from a 14 to an 8.

It doesn’t matter what the goals are, just make sure they are both realistic and specific.

When I set out to lose weight my goal was to lose 50lbs. I didn’t have a specific time table but I kept that number in my head so every time I was faced with a decision that may affect that goal I was able to weigh that decision against the goal.

Now, even though I don’t really have much weight to lose, my current goal is to lower my body fat percentage to 5-7%. Right now I’m around 9-10%. Again, I’m not sure how long this will take, but I have this goal set in my mind so I am always reminded of it.

3. Keep the goals measurable

Something I have found to be very helpful is to set both long-term and short-term goals. This will help keep your goals in perspective. Take my 50lb goal. 50lbs was the big picture. 5lbs per week was the little picture. 50lbs was “out there.” 5lbs per week was “right here.” Get what I’m saying? The smaller goal of 5lbs per week allowed me to measure my results. Had I not done that I could have been two or three months into it and be completely unaware of how I’ve done. I could have only lost 10lbs over that period of time. Without those smaller goals I wouldn’t have been able to pinpoint what went wrong.

Every time I weighed myself I wrote it down. I could then look back and see the progress. I could see the weeks I didn’t meet the 5lb goal. I could also see the weeks I exceeded the goal. One thing that I didn’t do but really wish I did was take pictures! This was really before the digital photo era and I just never really thought of it. I definitely recommend this now, especially since digital cameras are everywhere.

Be careful!

One word of warning for this, especially if your goal is weight loss. If your goal is 5lbs per week there is the likelihood that the first two weeks you may gain weight, especially if you are doing an exercise program. There are all sorts of scientific reasons why that I will not include here but I do want you to know that it will probably happen. When this happens, do not get discouraged! This is a good thing! It means you have shocked your body. You have been making it do something that it hasn’t been used to. It’s revolting against it. It would rather have the Oreos and Pringles right now, not this exercise stuff. If you stick with it through those first couple weeks when you gain a little weight you will be shocked to find out that the next couple weeks after that you will have lost 10lbs per week instead of 5lbs.

My point with this is that in the end it will all level out. Don’t be concerned with the weight gain. Welcome it!

Another gotcha is the scale. Whether you weight yourself daily, weekly or monthly, make sure:

• it is the exact same time of day,
• the exact same scale, and
• wear the exact same thing (the less the better).

Also, if you weigh in daily, don’t be surprised if you gain weight one day. I have been weighing myself daily for a while and have noticed funny stuff. In the beginning and end of the week I am lighter than in the middle. You can use a website like the DailyBurn to track this, it is rather fascinating when you look at it charted out. But again, don’t be discouraged…just be cognizant of it.

Another very important reason for setting short-term and long-term, measurable goals will be covered in the next post. You should reward yourself when you reach or exceed goals! More on that next week.

So what about you, what are some of your current goals?

Previous Weight Loss Guidelines

• Weight Loss Guideline #1: Stay Positive
• Weight Loss Guideline #2: Eat More
• Weight Loss Guideline #3: Take The Stairs
• Weight Loss Guideline #4: Do Push-Aways