What is this and what do I do?

So basically the 24 day Challenge is a jumpstart to weightloss or breaking through a plateau.  It consists of the following:
http://www.advocare.com/products/trim/99038.aspx
Days 1-10 Cleanse Phase
The first ten days are about cleansing your body of toxins and preparing for optimal nutrient absorption, and you may enjoy weight loss as well!

• Herbal Cleanse (pills and Fiber Drink)-Citrus: helps to cleanse and detoxify your body.
• OmegaPlex® (pills): essential fatty acids for increased overall wellness.
• AdvoCare Spark® (drink): nutritionally-advanced energy

Days 11-24 Max Phase
Give your body the best tools you need to achieve your next weight management goal during days 11-24! This includes supplements in the form of pills (Vitamins and Amino Acids)

• Metabolic Nutrition System (MNS®) (pills): Your choice of Max C+ (appetite control), Max E+ (energy), or Max 3 - for weight management, appetite control and overall wellness.
• Meal Replacement Shake (drink) - your choice of chocolate, vanilla, or berry: Complete nutrition in a great-tasting shake!
• AdvoCare Spark® (drink): nutritionally advanced energy

We also bought Catalyst® which we definitely felt helped lean us out.

• Helps maintain muscle mass during exercise & weight management*
• Aids in preserving muscle and energy levels during times of calorie restriction*
• Helps repair & protect muscle tissue*

So, that's it in a nutshell. If you want to jumpstart your weight loss (the easy and healthy way), you can order here:

https://www.advocare.com/120333025/Store/ItemDetail.aspx?itemCode=99038

You will need to decide which MNS you would like to do (I suggest either MNS C for appetite control or MNS3 for an overall wellness.) You also need to choose a flavor of Meal Replacement shakes (Berry and Chocolate are both good). Catalyst is not included, but I definitely recommend adding it on.

You can buy all this at a retail price of about $215 OR sign up as a Distributor for $79 and you will get 20% off all your products! (I signed up as a Distributor and we have placed several orders for myself and have covered that $79 in discounts alone). Totally up to you!

Once I get an email that you've purchased, I will send you all my tips, tricks, grocery list and checklists to make this the easiest thing you've done!

Open faced Tuna Sandwich-when you're in a hurry

This one really isn't a recipe per se, it's just something I threw together when I was in a rush. But nonetheless figured I'd share it.

1 slice Whole Grain Bread
Can of Tuna
Some Daiya Mozzarella Shreds
Lettuce, Tomato, Sprouts, Cucumber and any other veggies you have on hand

Drain the Tuna and place it on top of the bread. I then took Montreal Chicken Seasoning (or whatever other seasoning you have on hand) and sprinkled some on top of the tuna. Then added my veggies on top and the cheese and drizzled Fat Free Balsamic Vinaigrette from Trader Joes. This took all but a few minutes to make and it was so good!

Buy this!

So below are my staples that I used the most. I had never tried any of these before but we almost included most of these daily.

Flour=Bad. Flourless=Good. Especially stay away from anything that says Whole Wheat. I know, you've been taught Whole Wheat is the best, but it's so processed it's super high in Gluten! Look instead for Flourless or Whole Grain.

Our favorite snack: Brown Rice Cake, 1 TBSP of Almond Butter (MEASURE!) and 1/2 sliced banana. Seriously this is heaven and curbs any sweet tooth. By the time you are done chewing this thing your jaw is tired of chewing and you feel so satisfied. Try it!

Look for these in your store!
Bread-7 sprouted grains (Flourless) I found everything below at Vons or Trader Joes
Organic Brown Rice Cake- see above
Bulgur-It's so good on anything. Adds great texture and is a great alternative when you are tired of Brown Rice or Quinoa..
Almond Butter- see above (Make sure you only use 1 tbsp!)
Pastajoy-AWESOME Brown Rice Pasta that tastes exactly like the white stuff but better for you! (Low Glycemic Index is what we are going for not necessarily less carbs)

Shrimp Cucumber Taboulleh

I made this about 5 times. Our entire family (including my 6 and 1 year old DEVOURED this). This is quick and easy and so good. We had enough to save over for lunch. Remember measure out 4 servings! Don't overeat!!
Here is the recipe I found and below is how I tweaked it
http://www.womenshealthmag.com/nutrition/shrimp-and-feta-tabbouleh-salad

1 c cooked bulgur (next to the rice in most supermarkets)
1/3 c fresh lemon juice
12 oz precooked peeled or thawed frozen shrimp, coarsely chopped
3/8 tsp black pepper
1 c diced cucumber
1 pint grape tomatoes (I just chopped up about 2 tomatoes as it's what I had on hand)
1/2 c chopped red onion (I omitted this as I don't like onions)
1/2 c chopped parsley (I used about 1 tbsp parsley flakes)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1 avocado diced (I added this and it gives it GREAT flavor)
We also added a dash of Tapatio for extra flavor

1. Place shrimp in large serving bowl. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Let stand for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in cucumber, tomatoes, onion, parsley, avocado and oil. Add salt, remaining lemon juice, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper and toss.
4. Stir in cooled bulgur. Divide evenly into four salad bowls.

AMAZING Flavor

Seared Mahi Mahi with Grilled Mango-Pineapple Salsa

This one took some preparation but this was one of our favorite recipes. So much so that we made it for our parents one night. This has AMAZING flavor. This is the recipe and see how I tweaked it to make it cleaner..

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/saras-secrets/seared-mahi-mahi-with-grilled-mango-pineapple-salsa-green-rice-and-black-beans-recipe/index.html

Ingredients

Black Beans:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
• 1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
• 3 (12-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 teaspoon Splenda
• Sherry vinegar, to taste (I used about 2 tsp apple cider as that's all I had)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Salsa:

• 1/2 pineapple, cored, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch rings
• 1 mango, peeled, pitted, and chopped
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
• 1.5 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon peeled, minced fresh ginger ( I just used 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger)
• 1 jalapeno, or to taste, chopped
• 1 to 2 limes, juiced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mahi Mahi:

• 6 (6-ounce) mahi mahi fillets
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 limes, zested
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Make the Salsa: Preheat a grill pan over high heat. Grill the pineapple rings, turning once, until charred, about 2 minutes. Transfer the rings to a cutting board and chop.

In a bowl, combine the pineapple, mango, bell pepper, onion, cilantro, olive oil, ginger, jalapeno, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. (The salsa can be prepared up to 2 days in advance.)

Make the Black Beans: Heat the oil in the saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the cumin, bell pepper and onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 8 minutes. Stir in the black beans and Splenda. Bring to boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Set aside, covered, until ready to use.

Make the mahi mahi: Arrange the fillets in baking pan, season with salt and pepper, and rub with the zest. Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Raise the heat to high and heat the oil (I used Pam instead). Working in batches, if necessary, sear the halibut fillets, turning once, until well browned and just cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. (Don't do more than 3 min per side. It continues to cook once you take it off and overcooked Fish is not good!)

Divide beans (I only served about 1/4 cup to keep the calories down) among the center of 6 plates, top with the fillets, and spoon some the salsa over each.

Stuffed Bell Peppers (adapted from Emeril)

Make sure you measure out as best as you can. Portion size is important! This makes 6 servings...

Ingredients

• 6 green bell peppers, tops cut away and seeds removed
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped yellow onions
• 1/2 cup finely chopped green bell peppers
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves (I used parsley flakes)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 cup cooked bulgur
• 8 ounces tomato sauce
• Water
• Daiya Mozzarella Shreds (Check here on where to buy http://www.daiyafoods.com/our-products)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pot of boiling water, parboil the peppers until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and dry on paper towels.
In a large saute pan or skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and chopped bell peppers and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the turkey, garlic, parsley, salt, black pepper, and pepper flakes. Cook until the meat is browned, stirring with a heavy wooden spoon to break up the lumps, about 6 minutes. Add the bulgur and tomato sauce and stir well. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning, to taste.
Pour enough water into a baking dish to just cover the bottom, about 1/8-inch deep. Stuff the bell peppers with the meat mixture and place in the baking dish. Bake until the peppers are very tender and the filling is heated through, 25 to 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before taking them out, sprinkle each with Daiya shreds until it's melted or close to.
Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving

Other achievers

Here are 2 other friends who did the challenge with me.  Look at all the inches melted away!

http://24dc.blogspot.com/

Challenge Complete!

Well, like they say, the results speak for themselves. On the morning of Day 25, here were my results:

Weight: 139.7
Total weight lost: 7 pounds
Total inches lost 10.25!!
My 6 year old took the final pic at 6:30 am so it's not the best but she did pretty good, I think!

Day 22

Well, it's been a while since my last post. I didn't want to get too repetitive and honestly, there were some days that were highs and some that were lows. I fluctuated between 141 and 142 the past few days. (Remember, I started at 146.7) I won't lie. I had moments where I just planned to throw up my hands and give up but I promised to stick through it until the end and so I'm proud to say I didn't give up!
As I have been struggling with the scale moving, my advisor set up a meeting with our Diamond, and he had mentioned when he did his challenge, he didn't see anything until about Day 22 or so. Funny, because after a little falling off the wagon Saturday night (not terribly, just corn tortillas, baked chips and guacamole!), I sort of expected a gain this weekend. I went running yesterday, tracked what I ate on the Lost It App, and I'm SO happy to say I woke up to a 2 lb loss this morning!
I can totally see it in my stomach (I was wearing a fitted tank top yesterday and my husband was like, "Wow you have lost a ton of weight!" so the products are working and so am I!)

I know this is a 24 day challenge but I'm not stopping after 24 days. I've learned to make some GOOD food that is good for you, I'm back into working out and I am really starting to like the way I look again. =). I can't wait until Wed. for the final inches tally because I know that is where my big numbers will be.

Today's weight: 140.6
Today's weight on the new body fat measuring digital scale: 139.8 (I really like this one!)
Starting weight: 146.7
Total weight loss: 6.1 lb.

I am taking Thermoplus 30 minutes before each meal and that has tremendously helped me stay on track and give me the extra energy and appetite suppressant I've needed.
I finished Week 1, Day 3 on the Couch to 5 k app and also tracked my food on the Lose It App. I realized the 24 day challenge is a little too many calories for me and that's why I haven't been losing. I should've added one more snack of fruit but didn't have a chance to.

Breakfast: Green Glowing Smoothie: http://www.kimberlysnyder.net/blog/2009/07/11/green-smoothie-recipe/
Lunch: 3 oz shrimp, 1/4 cup bulgur, Avocado, Tomato, Cucumber (yes I measured it!!)
Snack: Rice Cake and 1 tbsp Almond Butter
Dinner: Veggie "Omelette". Had tons of veggies I need to use so I threw together Spinach, Asparagus, Eggs, Egg Whites, bulgur and some Daiya melts.

Day 15

Well, I wasn't going to blog today because I had a terrible day. I felt so guilty because I felt like I need to be the strong one of my friends and husband since I got them all into this program and here I felt like I was failing. But I decided to blog after all. Because no one is perfect and maybe I can help someone else who goes through this and has a rough day. I don't feel guilty anymore because for the past 14 days I have not cheated one time. I have drastically changed my eating, I have started to workout again and my clothes are starting to fit me. We aren't perfect and everyone is entitled to having a bad day! Today was definitely my bad day...

I was so irritable all day; like woke up grouchy. I didn’t feel good about myself, the Spark did nothing, I was annoyed at being at work..just like a terrible day. I was starving all day and seriously craving carbs. When I got home I just said forget it. I’m done, and I ate like 5-6 handfuls of tortilla chips and like 2 handfuls of Pub Mix (that stuff from Costco that’s all carbs). Afterward, I then I felt totally guilty..So for dinner I had a salad; so obviously I ate too much.

Everyone keeps telling me that I need to not focus on the weight. (It hasn't moved at all) that I really need to focus on the how I feel overall. But after a while, I really want to see that scale move! But then I had to remember, I've only been on this for 2 weeks. When you don't have much to lose, a HEALTHY diet should only be 1-2 lb a week and more importantly, I have felt so energized and getting into clothes that haven't fit me in a long time!  I think I've just done so many crazy diets where I've lost pounds in a day that I'm just used to seeing that.  So, I admit, yesterday I sort of fell off the wagon, but the important part is, that's okay.

Today was  a good reminder that we are all human and it's OKAY to have a bad day. You just have to pick yourself up and remember tomorrow is a new day and you have to try again!