I never thought yoga would do this for me...

            Happy Friday everybody, I wanted to share that no matter what my step meter says with zero intensity minutes measured all week ;) that I have been working out every day. This has been my first week of the 3-Week Yoga Retreat that I've been doing online from Beachbody on Demand and it's been amazing.

            Most people know that yoga can help you relax and increase flexibility- within the first four days this week I was already getting deeper into stretches and felt so much more flexible. The direction given by the trainers is so precise that I have made little adjustments to poses that I have been doing wrong for years. I've been getting deeper stretches; I've been feeling less pressure in my lower back as I'm learning to even breathe more correctly in order to support my lower back. I have always suffered from low back problems until I found PiYo but this yoga retreat has been amazing for my back: it hasn't even been cracking at all in the morning or feeling tight at all.

            Another thing I know people don't like to talk about, but yoga has helped my digestion amazing even more than the added bonus than having my daily Shakeology with the digestive enzymes and probiotics and all that good stuff. I did some Googling and I didn't realize that so many yoga poses with the twisting and the concentration on your core and your breathing really help loosen up your intestines and get everything moving so there's no stagnation or no uncomfortable feelings or anything like that.

            I have also noticed since I wear a Garmin Vivofit all the time is that my sleep graphs in the morning have been really different: it seems like there's a lot more dark blue (deep sleep) on my graphs every morning as opposed to light blue (light sleep). I am a numbers nerd, so I went through the 9 nights that I have been doing the Yoga Retreat so far and then I did the same number of nights before I started. I wrote down the amount of deep sleep and total sleep that my Garmin has telling me I've been getting.

            I had been averaging 9 hours and 15 minutes of sleep in the 9 nights leading up to my yoga program and I was spending 23% percent of that in deep sleep (2 hours, 11 minutes) each night. Since I started the Yoga Retreat, I've actually only been averaging 9 hours of sleep a night (I had bible study, girls night, and have been up late watching the Cubs in the playoffs). So I’ve actually been getting less sleep per night then before the yoga program but I have been spending 29% of my night in deep sleep, which works out to 2 hours and 45 minutes. This means I've been getting less sleep overall but I have been getting half an hour more of deep sleep at night!!

            Deep sleep is so important to your physical health, your mental health, and to your whole body because that's when your body regenerates. Deep sleep is when things get moved from short-term to long-term memory; it's when your muscles rebuild themselves; it's really where you just get reset for the next day. The fact that I have been sleeping less but been getting more deep sleep has been such an added gift that this program has given me…in addition to the better digestion, in addition to the less tightness in my lower back, in addition to the increased flexibility, in addition to not just the less tightness in my back but I feel taller and lengthened.  That is an amazing benefit of yoga: you feel just stretched out and you don't feel as so compressed and tense.

            Oh, and more deep sleep means that I have had more energy during the day it's just one of the greatest things that I think Beachbody has come out with because anyone can do this! The fact that it is free is totally amazing. If you want to try this yoga program, it takes 21 days and no more than 30 minutes a day (the weekends are actually shorter)- it's totally free with your trial of Beachbody on Demand. If you have never tried yoga before, you should give it a try! It's going to help you sleep better; it's going to help you de-stress; it's going to help your energy, your digestion…everything! It's not got some of the Eastern religion connotations or weird music to it, it's just stripped down simple basic yoga and it's going to make you feel great.

            I had been looking for a low-impact program to continue on from Country Heat and this program fit the bill for me. If you want to learn more about it or if you want to keep following my journey please stay tuned and make sure you are following my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/boeknowscleanliving

TGIF! Thinking ahead and preparing for Friday night temptations

I know it's Friday evening right now and maybe you're thinking about going out to eat, football games or unwinding after a long week. What you're probably NOT thinking about is making sure you get your workout in! 

The great thing is...my challengers THOUGHT AHEAD! They drank their Shakeology to keep cravings in check for Friday night happy hour. They logged their workouts early before work and before excuses could set in. 

I am so proud of each person in my group that is putting in the hard work to improve their health. It's so much easier to do when you know you're not alone. That's why I love hosting private accountability groups.

Keep it up, everyone! 1 week left in the month!

Sharing more than my highlight reel: getting real with you all

You all have seen my progress pics, sweaty post-workout selfies, or action pics. Earlier this week I posted how I've lost 40 pounds in the last 16 months from Shakeology and Beachbody programs like the 21 Day Fix, PiYo, T25, and Les Mills Pump. The stats and posed shots look great, but I still suffer from times of frustration because I still do not look "perfect" or how I'd like to be. You see, I've NEVER had abs, and I've had stretch marks since junior high when I gained a lot of weight but didn't hit a vertical growth spurt until a couple years later. My core has tightened a LOT in the last 16 months, but there is still a lot of excess skin on top that I'm working on, and those stretch marks don't show any sign of leaving. But you know what? I don't want to just post my "highlight reel"- I want to actually BE REAL with you. Throughout this journey I have come to love my body and the miracle of carrying a baby for 9 months and nursing for 36 months (and counting). I might never have a completely taut tummy. But I never want my daughter to think that her outward appearance is what defines her. So I'm showing you my "flab" today to show you that I'm not perfect. Looking perfect is not how I measure my success. It's how I feel on the inside.

 



Beachbody's motto is: decide, commit, succeed. My story started with a decision 1 year ago, I commit and recommit daily to making myself better, and I find little successes along the way. I want my friends, YOU, to find this life changing transformation in their life. All I'm asking for is for you to make that decision and commit to it with me. I'll help you succeed, just like my coach did with me. I would love to help you start this type of inner and outer transformation. Please reach out to me via email, Facebook, or comment below.

What is PiYo?

Summer 2014:

          After 3 rounds of the 21 Day Fix I was looking for something new to try and the buzz around PiYo was huge. The Pilates Fix workout is one of my favorites from the 21 Day Fix so I wanted to see what Chalene Johnson had cooked up in her brand new program that was inspired by pilates and yoga. I decided to give it a whirl and FELL IN LOVE. No jumping or impacts, no weight or equipment, and no holding stiff poses like regular yoga and pilates.

          The workouts range from 20-50 minutes and get your heart rate right into that medium fat burning, sweaty range without leaving you out of breath (except for those power sections!) I should add that around this time I also bought a Garmin Vivofit band and heart rate monitor so I was able to see my heart rate and calorie burn for each workout.

          It's hard to explain, but your muscles get so warm from these workouts, it's the energized high from a good workout while also being incredibly relaxing because it's pilates and yoga. I think that's why I love it so much. The program calendar felt a bit long to me at 8 weeks but I think that is because I got spoiled by the short calendar of the 21 Day Fix.

          I was totally floored by my results from PiYo. It just shaved inches off of my trouble areas! All but 1.5" I lost were from my hips and thighs- but don't let that fool you into thinking I didn't see results in my upper body. I saw increased muscle definition all over and for the first time really saw biceps start to come out. Those tricep push-ups are no joke! Don't be fooled into thinking you need anything more than your body weight to sculpt your body!

          Another thing it did was really help get rid of my back pain. I've always suffered from sciatic pain and working out started to help that, but the increased flexibility and low impact of PiYo really diminished my pain and strengthened the supporting muscles for my back. I seriously cannot say enough positive things about PiYo. I think it's my soulmate workout program!