A recap of the 30-Day Challenge I did with Go Fit Mom
It’s been about two weeks since I completed my 30-Day Challenge with Joy, A.K.A. Go Fit Mom. I learned a lot over those 30 days and I thought it would be helpful to share what I experienced in case you want to do something similar or you plan on participating in one of Joy’s future programs.
Keep in mind, this is MY experience. I’m not a doctor. I’m not a dietitian. I’m not a certified trainer. I’m a consumer following the advice of someone who is certified in health and wellness.
I’ve never participated in one of these challenges before. I’ve always been too afraid I wouldn’t be able to do it and who wants to fail? I was looking at it all wrong and it took Joy to make me understand if I go into something already thinking I’m going to fail, I’m probably going to fail. It’s about changing your mindset and that’s one of the aspects of the program Joy focuses on.
Here’s my takeaway from the challenge:
The first 3-5 days of the program was a cleanse. You chose the cleanse that made the most sense for your lifestyle and you paired that up with a cleanse of no caffeine, alcohol, bread, fried foods, fast foods, and packages foods. I chose the “Dessert Cleanse” because I typically eat something sweet after every meal. Even if it is a piece of dark chocolate, I needed to wake my body up and force it to realize I didn’t need it. The absolute hardest part for me during those 3-5 days was the caffeine withdrawal. I didn’t realize how hard it would be and it was a little alarming to me that my body reacted the way it did from not having it. I had major headaches. I was cranky. I felt out of it. I kept thinking; I only have one cup a day! How is this affecting me so badly? Then I remembered all the dark chocolate I eat and how it contains caffeine. I really did think I was going to try and eliminate caffeine from my diet all together, but I haven’t. However, now I only drink my coffee with a little bit of almond milk and no sweetener. One thing that helped me in the morning during those first 3-5 days was a detox tea Joy recommended. I added a lemon slice to it and I tricked my mind into thinking it was drinking coffee. Every now and again, I will have a cup at night when I'm winding down from the day.
The next difficult part of the challenge and honestly it wasn’t that difficult, was clean eating for the rest of the challenge. It was more about educating myself about clean eating and knowing how to read labels on pre-packaged foods. Ideally, when you eat “clean”, you don’t have a ton of pre-packaged items in your house, but the pre-packaged items you do have in the house should all contain ingredients you can read and understand. I asked Joy LOTS of questions about the pre-packaged items she buys at the store and if she would start taking pics to provide to us newbies. I am still new to reading labels and ingredients, so I will reach out to Joy when I have questions, but I'm getting much better! I’m a chips and salsa girl and I also like to have snacks that resemble chips. I found these items that meet the criteria of “clean” and I’m loving them:
I’m definitely cooking a lot more now because of the quarantine, but also because clean eating requires more cooking. It doesn’t have to be extravagant. It can be super simple! You know me, I have to follow a recipe, but I’ve been learning to play around with the items that meet the clean eating criteria and making meals out of them, which is a first for me! An example, this Mexican sweet potato dish. I roasted sweet potatoes, bell peppers, and onions. I took black beans and put on top of the potatoes and veggies and then topped with homemade pico de gallo, avocado, and green onions. It was very tasty and very fulfilling.
The easiest part of this challenge was drinking 100 ounces of lemon water daily. I’ve always been a water drinker, so I knew adding more ounces to my daily intake wouldn’t be too difficult. I continue to log how much water I drink daily so I know I am on track. I lost a VERY small amount of weight during the challenge and I did get discouraged when I didn’t see the scale move as much as I thought it would. Joy and I had a good conversation about that and she reminded me these challenges are about more than losing weight. She reminded me this is about a way of living. She’s 100% right. That's why she's the expert!
Since I started the challenge, I’ve worked out more than I have in the last couple years. Whether it’s yoga, long walks or one of Joy’s workout videos, movement matters. Lastly, I’m proud to say I haven’t gone back to my old ways of not moving my body and not paying attention to what goes into my body. I’m excited to keep working on a strong, healthy body.
To follow along with Joy and see how she can help you, click HERE.