The 21 Day Fix Diet and Exercise Program Day Zero - From a Couch Potato's Point of View

As it so often happens, late one night after having a bit much to drink, I saw an infomercial for a program that I "just had to have" - 21 Day Fix from Beachbody (yes, I have previously purchased both Slim in 6 AND P90, two other Beachbody programs, on two totally separate occasions, while drunk). Thankfully, this time around my husband was there to stop me from making an impulse buy, and told me we could think about it. 

Before I get any further - I am not a big drinker usually, I just so happen to like watching infomercials the few times I actually do drink. ;) True story. Also, I have basically no alcohol tolerance, so I only need one drink to get drunk. Another true story. 

Anyway, so I thought on it some more the next day, and the day after, and decided to look into it more. I really wasn't interested in the workout program, just the eating program (I refuse to use the "D" word - diet - because just thinking of that word makes me hungry. But I'm sure we'll talk more about that in a later post.). I scoured the internet trying to find a way to purchase just the containers, and thought I had a solution - a website that promised they'd be available on July 15th. However, when I returned to the website the date had been changed to September - and since I'm the type of person that once I make up my mind, I'm ready to buy, I decided I'd have to buy the entire program. At the time, I couldn't find any guides out there that told me what the sizes of the containers were (apparently it's "proprietary" information). 

I received the kit earlier this last week, and eagerly read through the food guide after swallowing my disappointment at the teeny tiny container sizes - they look a lot bigger in the infomercial! I thought the container lists were pretty comprehensive, but the "recipes" were a HUGE disappointment - telling me how to prepare Quinoa isn't a recipe! The only true recipes were the shake recipes, and due to my gluten allergy and the fact that I pretty much HATE protein shakes (having never found one that I liked) those weren't of any use to me. 

An internet search yielded some interesting recipes, and I came up with a couple on my own based on things I already like to eat. I also stumbled upon the container sizes, now that I've already purchased the program! So if you decide to try this program at some point but don't need the fitness dvd's, here's the conversion chart: 

Why am I sharing this with all of you? First of all, I wanted a review out there that wasn't from a Beachbody coach! Everywhere I look there are Beachbody coaches with annoying chat pop-ups on their blogs trying to get me to pay for coaching or buy more programs, etc. and frankly, it's annoying. I am NOT a Beachbody coach, nor am I particularly interested in a fitness career... ok, let's face it - I'll choose snuggling into a couch with a good book over working out ANY day! Hence, why I have a book blog. And a Goodreads. And the people at my local Half Price Books store know me by name... ;) 

Secondly, I'm sharing this with you because I figured it's more helpful to learn about something from someone who isn't already fit, who doesn't already work out every day, and who doesn't already eat in a healthy way. I do work out about twice per week with a personal trainer, but it's mostly as a way to avoid going back to physical therapy after a couple of rounds of surgery and as ongoing treatment for a joint inflammation disorder. I'm overweight, love junk food, and make poor choices on a daily basis which leads me to having a harder time losing weight. 

Finally, I figured it couldn't hurt to just put it out there so that I would have to be held accountable by my friends here on the internet! It's a littler harder to give up when I know people are following up on me. 

Today is day zero - the day BEFORE we start the program. It took me roughly 5 hours of work to develop a menu and grocery list - yes, it was a LONG process! Mostly because I had to dig around on the internet to find recipes that I liked that worked with my container allotment. Below you will find my menu plans and grocery list, as well as links to the recipes that I used. The only thing that is missing on here are the guides - if you do a search, I'm pretty sure you can find a pdf version of the 21 Day Fix guides (I just don't want to post it and get in trouble with the internet police or whatever). 

So far the biggest down side has been the increased cost of groceries - normally we spend about $80-$100/week on groceries. With the list and menu I made, and even using some things we already had in the house, our grocery bill was a whopping $143.13! I shopped at Baker's, so at least I got to rack up some fuel points, but yuck. Next week we might try hitting the farmer's market for some of the produce to see if we can bring the cost down a little. I also subbed in some canned/frozen foods for fresh, and one of my pounds of ground beef I went with a less lean selection to help cut back costs. 

Wish me luck - and feel free to join in and share how it goes for you as well! 

Breakdown: I am allowed 5 Green (Veggies), 3 Purple (Fruit), 5 Red (Lean Protein), 4 Yellow (Carbs), 1 Blue (Nuts/Dairy), 1 Orange (Seeds/Fats), and 5 Tsp of oils per day. My husband Chris will be adding an extra Green, Purple, Red and Tsp to his daily allotment.

Sorry the days are all over the place - I'm not used to using my scanner yet lol! To the right of Day 1 is the grocery list I used, you would probably need to modify based on what you have in your home currently. 

Recipes:

Mexican Salad, Chili, Chicken and Mushroom Marsala, Cheese Quesodilla, & Steak and Sweet Potato Fries - http://kendrafletcherfitness.com/2014/03/14/21-day-fix-recipes/

Strawberry Oatmeal & Apple Pie Breakfast: http://fitssimple.com/21-day-fix-meals/

Asian Meatballs: http://www.alwaystime4fitness.com/21-day-fix-recipes-asian-meatballs/

Burger and Fries: http://brookenorman.blogspot.com/2014/02/who-says-you-cant-have-burgers-and.html?m=1

Asian Salad: http://amyallenfitness.wordpress.com/2014/02/11/21-day-fix-asian-salad-with-homemade-asian-dressing/ **NOTE: I'm not making her dressing, just sticking with the dressing I have to make for the Mexican Salad for the whole week to save time and money**

Tostadas: http://techifitness.blogspot.com/2014/04/21-day-fix-recipe-tostadas.html