There comes a time in everyone’s life when your priorities get skewed. Maybe it’s caused by a new job, a new baby, moving, etc. You focus in on that big life change and lose focus of your daily activities that keep you strong, healthy and happy. About a year and a half ago I left a job with a great company that I had been at for almost five years for a challenging new job all while my husband (of a year) and I decided to become puppy parents and take on a major house renovation. After four difficult months I decided to leave the new job for a newer job that I have been at for over a year. During those four months I was in survival mode and lost my grounded center. Although the year following that was exponentially better and I was/am much happier, I hadn’t gone back to my normal routine. I got back into working out more often and eating healthier, but I wasn’t seeing the results that I knew I should be. About a month ago I realized just how long it had been since I cooked healthy meals and actually went to a full week of my planned workouts. Coincidentally, I also realized that I had gained the “freshman 15” during a year span at my new job. Eek! Something had to be done!

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I reached out to my fit friend Ansley, who has her own Extreme Transformation story after giving birth to her adorable daughter. Ansley has shared bits and pieces of her story on her Instagram feed, @ahwaggon, which is so motivating and powerful. I can’t wait for her to share her full story along with all of her tips and tricks because she has mastered the Extreme Transformation and continues to set and surpass her own goals. I noticed a “Clean Cheat” meal on her Snapchat and asked where she got the recipe. From there she explained that the book, Extreme Transformation by Chris Powell and Heidi Powell (Arizona’s famous fit couple, trainers, dieticians, nutritionists and hosts of their own reality show where they have transformed thousands of lives on TV), has a ton of great recipes and goes as far as telling you how to eat a certain way to fuel your body while also tasting great.

The book is based on a 21-day phase where they teach you how to prepare your food into five small meals a day to keep your metabolism revved up and to eat four days as high carb days, two days as low carb days, and the last day as a reset day. (They do a much better job of explaining it than I’m doing.) After reading the science behind their meal planning, it made sense.

I’m happy to report back that I have lost 7 lbs and 9.5 inches during the first 21 days.

I’ve been working out six days a week, so I’m hoping/guessing that I’ve been building muscle too. The book also goes into the psychology behind eating and keeping habits, as well as helping you to make goals for your physical activity and exercising.

If you feel like you’ve been falling behind in your healthy eating or fitness goals, I suggest buying this book to kick start your healthy habits. Even though I’ve completed the 21 day phase, I have created goals for myself during the next 21 day phase and will do so again next month. My long term goal is to lose my “freshman 15” plus 5 pounds before going to Cabo during Thanksgiving 2016. I’ll be sure to report back and let you know how I’m progressing. The first month’s goals were to be able to complete the overall mission of following the meal plan, cooking, drinking a gallon of water a day, sleeping 7-8 hours a night and exercising six times a week. Next month my goal is to figure out an easier way to meal prep, and to still follow my meal plan while I’m traveling. I have a week long trip coming up and a weekend trip.

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I will say that initially the grocery shopping list and meal prep is overwhelming. The first week was exhausting, but I really wanted to try every recipe so that I could find out what I like before making batches of recipes. Moving forward I will try to cook the same meals for multiple days or prep multiple servings and freeze them. To introduce you to one of the recipes, I’ve included a “Clean Cheat” meal of Spinach Artichoke Dip with Pita Chips. This meal is for a “Reset Day,” which is the last day of your week/meal cycle. Reset Day allows you to consume 1,000 calories more than what you would consume on a regular day. This recipe is so easy and so delicious. I ran out of spinach, so instead I used kale and it tasted great!IMG_5025 IMG_5030
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Thanks so much for reading my story, fit fam! Feel free to share yours in the comments section below. #transformationteam


Quick Stats

Phase I: 7 pounds lost (5 pounds week 1, 1 pound week 2, 1 pound week 3) and 9.5 inches lost (3.5 inches week 1, 2.5 inches week 2, 3.5 inches week 3)

Overall goal: 13 pounds to lose by November 23, 2016!


Be you, bravely.

The Foxy Kat

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