My 21-Day Fix Review

As many of you know, I decided about a month ago to try a new Beachbody program called 21-day Fix.  For those of you not familiar with Beachbody, they are the company that brought you P90X, Insanity and T-25.  I did P90X back before it was the thing to do and really did like it.  The workouts were tough and the recipes were pretty tasty.  I eventually quit doing it because I ran out of space in my living room.  Since then, I hired my own personal trainer, began running again and lost 25 pounds without any of those fancy programs.  As a result, I haven't had much use for Beachbody or any of the other companies that put out those videos. 

However, as a personal trainer, I get asked about those programs a lot so I decided to give one of them a try.  I also figured that it would kick-start my return to healthy living post-op.  Several of the women in a Facebook group I am part of were doing 21-day fix so I figured I would give it a whirl.  My 21 days ended on the 19th but I was out of town so I am just getting around to my review. 

The program was designed by a bikini model which initially turned me off to the program but ever the open mind, I proceeded.  The way the program is set up is that you get 7 DVD workouts as well as several colored containers for your food.  The whole premise is that you get a certain amount of servings for each colored container based on your current weight and your caloric intake.  Here's the breakdown of the number of servings of each container you get per day (and what each color container represents):

Green = Vegetables

Purple = Fruits

Red = Protein

Yellow - Carbs

Blue = Fats

Orange = Other

 

 

I was using the 1200-1499 calories which meant I got 3 veggies, 2 fruits, 4 protein, 2 carbs, 1 fat and 1 other.  I will admit that when I first saw that list, I thought there's no bloody way that will keep me full all day.  And, for the first two or three days it didn't.  But then I got the timing right and rarely was very hungry before it was time to eat.  The main issue I have though is that I don't normally eat 4 servings of protein a day and in my professional opinion (as both a certified personal trainer and certified fitness nutrition coach), veggies are "free" meaning you can have as many servings of those as you want.  Because of that, I struggled to get 4 servings of protein (I usually got 3) and when I would get hungry I'd snack on veggies.  That generally helped.  And I managed to cut back on my Diet Coke consumption.  I won't lie...I still had them despite what the plan says about drinking soda.  But, it really was in the best interest of everyone for me to have a soda when I felt I needed it.  It made everyone happier :) 

So I wasn't thrilled with the eating plan.  However, I will say that these programs are generally designed for those who don't already eat healthy.  Since I do, it wasn't that much of a change but it was interesting to force myself to stick with that plan. 

The workouts, though, I highly recommend.  I really did enjoy the workouts as they were very challenging and I found that I had to modify the exercises sometimes.  I definitely got stronger through out the program as well.  And I am much better at keeping my abs tight regardless of what type of workout I am doing.  Better yet, I have taken many of the exercises and incorporated them into my classes and my personal training sessions.  The best part of the workouts, though, is they are only 30 minutes.  At the beginning of the 21 days, that 30 minutes seems to last FOREVER.  But by the end, they were flying by. 

I don't have any post 21-day pictures to share because when the 3 weeks was over, I was in L.A. and was NOT eating according to the meal plan so I decided it was best not to share.  I will share, however, a picture of me last week in Las Vegas riding a mechanical bull.  Normally, I wouldn't share a picture such as this but a friend of mine commented on how good my triceps look so that's why I am sharing. 

If you want a pre-set plan to help you kickstart your fitness and you don't have time or money for a personal trainer, I would recommend 21 day Fix.  However, I must fully declare that this was not the only workout I was doing for the 21 days so I can't honestly say what type of results you will get.  If you have poor eating habits, this will definitely get you in the right direction as will the workouts.

BE BOLD! BE YOU!