Welcome to the Breathe Chile blog, a safe place to discuss mindfulness, physical fitness and receive positive motivation. 

Disclaimer: The topics discussed in this post are not intended to diagnose or cure any condition. Please consult with your personal physician before implementing anything new into your life. I am not affiliated with Beachbody and am a paid member with a Beachbody On Demand membership.

Two years ago, I decided to take control of my life and change the things I didn’t like and that no longer served me. One of the things that bothered me the most was how much weight I gained. At my heaviest, I was 220 lbs. Even at 5’10”, that was too much weight to be carrying. My knees would hurt so bad with every step I took, and walking up and down the stairs was a nightmare. I hated looking in the mirror because I didn’t recognize the person staring back at me. I had this vision of myself in my head of how I looked, but when I looked in an actual mirror, that person I imagined wasn’t staring back at me. On September 5, 2020, I decided enough was enough. I went down to my unfinished basement, set up a TV and DVD player, and began the journey to take back my life. It took me a year to lose 30 lbs. When I was in my twenties, it only took me 6 months to lose 30 lbs, but that is neither here nor there. The moral of the story is never give up because if you do, you definitely will not achieve your goals. So I lost 30 lbs the first year and about 10 lbs I’ve been sustaining ever since. I continued to maintain my exercise schedule, but I haven’t been as focused on my goal to eat healthy 80% of the time. Everything in moderation, right?

Internally I know that the only way to get what you want is to actively work at it. For years I have been saying I need to lose weight, I need to eat healthily, I need to do this, I need to do that. Talking and doing are two different things, and I knew I needed to do more doing and less talking. I am excited to start this new journey, and this time I am NOT going back. I know, if I want to see change, then I need to change. 

I have been a Beachbody member for over 10 years. After I had my twins, I joined because it became harder to force myself to go to the gym consistently. I had three kids under the age of three (3 under 3, lol) and worked full-time so focusing on my needs wasn’t always easy. So I bought a couple of DVDs and some Shakeology and didn’t make any excuse. I put in the work and saw the results, so I always knew what I needed to do in the back of my mind, but I just didn’t do it. As a result, I was the biggest and unhealthiest I have ever been in my life. I was literally killing myself, and it was all preventable. I realized this is what my parents did and why they were no longer here. My dad’s motto was Eat, Drink, and Be Merry, for tomorrow we may die. Uh, no thanks. I want to live!

What BB program did I choose for the 30-Day routine 

Beachbody has a new diet [The 4 Week Gut Protocol] and an exercise plan [4 weeks for Every Body]. This program supports gut health and stress management and eliminates foods that have been proven to disrupt the gut. Regularity is crucial to me, and I am starting to notice that I am not as regular as I used to be. When I do go, it is not as satisfying. I know it may be taboo but come on, everyone loves a satisfying poop. I’m just being honest. The total program costs $59.95 for both the diet and exercise access and $49.95 for only 4 Weeks for EveryBody. The price may be different for new members.

Why I decided to go with this program 

I continue to work out 20 – 30 minutes 5 days a week to maintain my current weight. I have not been consistent with maintaining a healthy diet. As a result, I still have this nagging “Mummy Tummy” that I would like to tighten and flatten. I am willing to try something new and completely different to see if it will help me achieve my fitness goals. The diet plan has some things that I like about it that including:

– Coffee is allowed in moderation. I can live with 3 8-oz cups a week. Having a cup of coffee is part of my usual morning routine, but I can swap it out for matcha the other days. Change is good!

– The plan has both vegan and meat options.

– The plan suggests I set a goal to include 30 different plants a week in my diet. That should be very interesting, but I am up for the challenge. Being positive is the first step to achieving any goal in life.

MY GOALS FOR THE NEXT 4 WEEKS

– Aim to include at least 30 different plants in my diet each week

– Limit coffee to no more than three 8-oz. cups a week. 

– Drink a gallon of water a day

– Pair The 4 Week Gut Protocol with the 4 Weeks for Every Body™ fitness program 

– Work on managing stress with techniques that I have found to help me including meditation, and self-care.

Rules of the plan – Six foods are known to cause gut issues in some people and must be eliminated for the 4-weeks: 

– Gluten – makes sense, but this will be a hard one. I love bread, lol.

– Dairy, 

– Corn, 

– Highly processed soy

– Alcohol 

– Artificial Sweeteners

The idea is to remove them for four weeks and slowly introduce them back into your diet one at a time after the four weeks to see if you notice any changes. The plan has you replace all those foods with natural organic whole foods provided on a food list you can download once you have access to the program. And, of course, there is the Shakeology, a protein shake with probiotics for overall good health. You also replenish microbiomes with BB supplements to restore health to the gut. When I bought this new program, the supplements were sold out, but I will keep going back to the BB site to see if they have been restocked before I start. BB has the slowest shipping on Earth. I feel like everything is shipped pony express from California. So if you live on the East Coast, be prepared. Next, rebalance the mind-body connection with stress management tools. This is right up my alley. And lastly, follow the exercise program for 4-weeks for Every Body.

Exercise Plan – Week 1: In addition to my regularly scheduled workouts.

– Monday – Back & Bi’s

– Tuesday – Legs

– Wednesday – Rest

– Thursday – Chest, Shoulders, Tri’s

– Friday – Cardio

Meal Plan

The Gut Protocol includes a meal planning toolkit to give you ideas on what to eat and how much. For week 1, I want to keep it simple. I don’t want to spend a lot of time trying to follow a recipe, and I don’t mind eating the same thing for the week. One less thing to think about. Salad is not recommended for the first week because raw foods can be heavy on the gut but are okay in week 2. My plan for the week is to make a vegetable soup for the week and just eat that for dinner. This will help me get in those 30 plants. I’ll do Shakeolgoy with added fruit and veggies for lunch, and matcha tea for breakfast. This is only for four weeks and will be a good detox as well. 

Lastly, I also plan to use this time to do some self-reflection and to get my mind right. I will commit to a daily meditation which will keep me mindful of the goals I’ve made and to make a daily commitment to this process. I hope you will join me for the journey.

Everything I discuss here is something I have used to help me. Breathe Chile is a movement to help the world through mindfulness, physical fitness, and positive motivation. I hope you will join me on the journey!