Fixate - Another 21 Day Fix Tool for Success

One of the biggest challenges many of my clients come to me with when doing the 21 Day Fix or the Fix Extreme is recipes. And I know I have struggled with this as well. I have clocked many hours in the kitchen trying to fit my standby recipes into those Fix containers. Many times they end up being a big old failure but sometimes they totally rock. Either way it still adds up to lots of time in the kitchen. Now that I am juggling two kiddos my time to devote to such activities has been cut way
way down.

I was super pleased to wake up this morning to an announcement that will really change the game when it comes to the 21 Day Fix (and take A LOT of the work out of meal planning.) Autumn is coming out with a cookbook to work with the 21 Day Fix. She has taken 101 of her family recipes and made them container friendly. AND there are recipes in there that are vegan, vegetarian, paleo, and gluten free. 

"This book is for everybody," says Autumn. "You don't have to be graduates of 21 Day Fix or 21 Day Fix EXTREME^®. You also don't have to be a chef or great in the kitchen. It's for anyone who wants to make healthier versions of the foods they love."  In addition to all of the recipes, Autumn also included a detailed checklist for her must-have kitchen and pantry staples, as well as the basic utensils and tools that every cook needs. So if you aren't familiar with cooking at home, this is a great tool to add to your healthy eats arsenal. 

Fixate will include sections for breakfast lunch and dinner, as well as snacks, desserts and even some Shakeology recipes. For a free sneak peek at some of the recipes click here.

Can't wait to get your hands on it? Fixate is going to be available mid-July.

Can it get any better?

Of course it can! Purchase one of the following from me this month and I will send you a FREE copy of Autumn's cookbook once it is released.

• 21 Day Fix Challenge Pack
• 21 Day Fix Kickstart Challenge Pack
• 21 Day Fix Extreme Challenge Pack
• 21 Day Fix Extreme Kickstart Challenge Pack

• OR sign up as a coach with ANY challenge pack

To join my June 21 Day Fix accountability group fill out the application below. 

Preseason begins begins June 22st with our official kick off date on June 29. I will be providing accountability, meal prep tips and tricks, recipes and MY 21 Day Fix and Fix Extreme meal plans including a 7 day Countdown to Competition plan.

I am so excited to help you achieve your goals! 

Fill out my online form.

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Clean Crock Pot Pork Roast with Pineapple Slaw

I like to make a lot of barbeque stuff in my crock pot and I am always drawn to recipes that include liquid smoke as an ingredient. This is something I never really heard of so I figured I would throw it on my list and check it out in the store. When I did, I decided that it was not something I was comfortable feeding to my kiddos. It was full of corn syrup, caramel color and a bunch of other stuff I try to avoid as much as possible. I figured I would just make do without it. Because I never really used it, I never really missed it.

But lo and behold another thing I was dying to make and there it was again. Liquid smoke. Ugh. So I decided to first figure out if it was possible to get liquid smoke that wasn't just chemicals made to add smoke flavor to your food. I stumbled upon this little clip (skip ahead to 9:07 for the bit about liquid smoke) showing how Alton Brown actually made his own. So if it can be made....it can be made without chemicals and gross stuff right? In theory. So since I didn't have a smoker to collect smoke drippings from, I set out to try and find a liquid smoke that didn't make me gag reading the label. The stores here really only carried one or two options so to the internet I went. After some searching I ended up ordering some Cedarhouse liquid smoke from Amazon. It only had three ingredients: water, mesquite smoke and hickory smoke.

It turned out pretty awesome. The smokey flavor was really subtle and didn't overwhelm the flavors of the dry rub.


Here's what I did:

For the pork--

1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 cups stock (I used homemade chicken stock)
1/2 of my pork dry rub mix recipe (or your favorite dry rub)
Pork Roast (I used a 2 lb roast)

For the slaw--

3 cups of shredded cabbage
1 cup of broccoli slaw mix
1/2 cup of homemade mayo (or a clean mayonnaise)
1 1/2 TBS apple cider vinegar
2 cups finely chopped pineapple
salt and pepper to taste

Rub the pork roast down with the dry rub. Place in slow cooker. Add stock, vinegar and liquid smoke. Cover and let cook 8 hours on low or 4 1/2 hours on high or until pork is cooked through.

Combine cabbage,slaw mix and pineapple in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix apple cider vinegar and mayonnaise.  Add to cabbage mix until it is evenly coated. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I served the pork alongside the slaw but it really and truly would make a really awesome sandwich.

21 Day Fix Containers used:

1 red
1 blue
1 green
1 purple

My Very Favorite Pork Rub

Before I started reading and learning about food and where it comes from, my spice cabinet was pretty basic. Salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, basil maybe some paprika or rosemary. In the summertime, maybe some cilantro. I didn't branch out too much and I rarely used enough of a spice before it was brown and sad looking in its little jar.

Since then I have discovered things like that I love turmeric, cumin and coriander and that I would much rather have fresh herbs then dried. BUT those dried herbs do have an awesome place (other than being super handy when I can't find fresh ones or am feeling too lazy to mess with chopping them.) They can all come together to make a killer dry rub.

I have typically use this dry rub on pork but have used it on everything from pork tenderloin on the grill to a pork roast in the slow cooker. It is killer and totally my favorite.


Plus if I am following the 21 Day Fix I just cut the salt way back.

Here's what I did:


1 TBS coriander
1 TBS cumin
1 TBS ground fennel
1 TBS ground mustard
1 TBS garlic powder
1 TBS dried oregano
1 TBS onion powder
1 TBS salt (I use pink himalayan salt)
2 TBS paprika
1/2 TBS black pepper

Mix all spices together in a small bowl. Rub all over the meat.

This blend usually makes enough that I can halve it and store the rest in an airtight container for next time.

Being My Own Inspiration (or how I am getting my postpartum sh*t together)

Four Five Six weeks.

Of newborn stuff. Sleep deprivation. Middle of the night feedings. Night and day confusion.

Four weeks  Five weeks Six weeks of postpartum recovery.

For me that meant c-section recovery. Which was lot of sitting terrified that everything that can go wrong with my incision would. Again. Because last time that happened. All of it. I don't think I felt "normal" again for at least 3 months. So suffice to say I am babying this recovery as much as I can.

And four weeks five weeks six weeks of not really worrying (or caring) about what I was eating.

Some Easter candy here. A pizza or two there. Whatever was easy and available that was what I ate. To be totally truthful, I did balance this a little bit more than I thought I could. Shakeology is super easy so at least I was getting that in every day. AND thanks to some amazing and wonderful ladies we had some dinners dropped off too. Otherwise I am pretty sure we would have had takeout EVERY night for the last month. Because newborns are hard. And recovering from a c-section is hard too. I spent a lot of my time sitting. Not allowed to go up and down steps multiple times a day. Not getting up and down from my comfy chair too many times a day. More worried about making sure everyone was getting what they needed in terms of much more basic needs (like food, water and bathing although the bathing was sometimes overlooked) than making sure I had a very balanced, color coded happy Fix meal plan on the fridge. AND considering it has taken me an additional two weeks to even start to finish this little blog post I started, it is suffice to say that I have been more than overwhelmed.

In the last three months we bought a house, moved, had a second child, attempted to unpack and live in the new house, dealt with the stomach flu, newborn night confusion, constipation and general fussiness on top of normal crazy springtime stuff (and when your husband works in the construction industry springtime is FULL of crazy stuff. Crazy stuff we call normal.)

I am in fact sitting at my dining room table, looking at my neighbor's gorgeous flowering trees and wondering where in the world did the snow go? Because through the bleary eyes, midnight feedings and projectile vomiting springtime officially sprung. I made it through the requisite "recovery period" and am trying to come up with a plan to get myself and two small children to my 6 week postpartum appointment. While I sit in the midst of my half unpacked boxes, the weather has changed, preschool is wrapping up and I am waiting for inspiration to hit me.

Except it won't.

I know it won't. Because it didn't hit me last time.

Truthfully, I don't know that I had a good night's sleep in the first year of my daughter's life. With two I am guessing that is an ever rarer occurrence than seeing a unicorn prance down my sidewalk. Waiting for me not to be tired, to have the TIME and the ENERGY, waiting for someone else to inspire me to get my postpartum shit together is NEVER going to happen.

Because the only person who can make it happen is me.

I was trying to remember the last time I felt good. Felt great. Felt super awesome like I could do anything and I came up with two instances.

This past November between 20-25 weeks prego. Working out like crazy. Eating well. All the first
trimester yuck had been gone for long enough and the third trimester of aches and pains and nothing fits hadn't yet started. I was proud of how much I was able to do in this pregnancy compared to my first pregnancy. I had awesome energy and felt pretty damn amazing.

And

A little less than a year ago from today. The day we went outlet shopping and I bought some bright obnoxious hot pink workout pants that I absolutely loved. And I could pull them off. The day I really came to terms with accepting what non scale victories were and how important they were.

I know without a doubt I want to get back there and the only person who is going to get me there is me.

Six weeks until I know I am ready to start the well traveled road back to where I was with a little extra baggage. (Because now I have two girls and we don't pack light!) I know I will have to start slow. I know I will be frustrated because things won't move as fast as I want them to. I know I will have to keep myself from pushing through until I am really and truly recovered from this surgery.  I know that I will struggle to look at this as a recovery, doing a little more each day than jumping in headfirst.

So I am starting now. This week with a brand new 21 Day Fix approved meal plan and whatever the doctor clears me for after my appointment later this week.

And accountability is something that has to happen. So along with my super awesome, Insanity certified, now expecting and due in October sister, I am co-running a 21 Day Fix accountability group. 21 Day fix veterans, beginners, 21 Day Fix extremers or even 21 Day Fix dropouts (and we both fall into that category!)

Not only will we be there for accountability but you will have access to all of my Fix meal planning tools including my 3 weeks of meal plans and recipes.

We are kicking off on Monday May 11th!


To join us fill out the application below:

Fill out my online form.

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Beachbody On Demand - Now Available

One thing many people don't know is that when you join Team Beachbody, there are two options for membership. The free account and the Club Membership. Most people opt for the free account and why wouldn't you? You get access to your coach (me!) and can contact me at the click of a button, access to the message boards in case you have a question or need some help from other team members, and you can use the supergym to log and track your workouts. I always tell my customers that the biggest benefit to the Club membership is the access to custom meal planning and recipes. BUT if you are like me, you may enjoy perusing Pinterest and cookbooks and coming up with a meal plan for the week. If that is the case there really isn't that much more to the Club membership besides the 10% discount on products. If you order supplements or things regularly, the discount may be worth it (but when that is the case, discount coaching typically is the most bang for your buck there.) Truthfully, I never really encouraged joining with the Club membership because I didn't see the benefit. 

Well that has all changed with the rollout of Beachbody On Demand. 

What does Beachbody on Demand Even Mean?

It means that Club membership that was kind of blah before is now worth it's weight in awesome. Now any workout that is in the Beachbody Member Library is available to stream to any of your devices. All you need is an internet connection. 

The digital versions of the program guides and workout calendars are also available. 

And the programs available for streaming in the Member Library aren't just the old workouts no one loves or uses or has never heard of (because that would be tricky and mean) but includes some of the biggest workouts available like P90X and Insanity. It also has two of my very favorite programs, TurboFire and Chalean Extreme. (No more having to pack those when I travel. Yay!)

Plus it offers a sneak peek into some of the newest programs Beachbody has to offer through the New and Noteworthy section so you can check them out BEFORE you commit. Curious about the new 21 Day Fix Extreme or PiYO? There are sample workouts there for you to try.  

There will also be a Purchased Programs section available soon. This will give you digital access to programs you have already purchased through TeamBeachody.com or Beachbody.com as they become available digitally. So there really is no need to pack all those discs anymore (unless you are headed to somewhere without internet connection.) 

Is Beachbody on Demand for me?

• If you are on the fence about a program and like to try it before you buy it, the Club membership might be for you. 

• Or if are you like me and you have a little bit of workout ADD and want to be able to switch it up between programs 

• If you are someone who travels a lot and doesn't want the hassle of packing a program to bring along (or have to make the decision about WHICH program to bring!)

• Or you want to be able to switch between programs to help keep your body guessing and maintain results 

How Much Does it Cost?

For what Beachbody is providing through the Member Library, I would expect the cost of this to be quite a bit. But the breakdown of this is about  $2.99 a week. This is billed quarterly for a total of $38.87. Your membership can also be canceled or changed at anytime so you aren't locked in for any set period. There are no contracts.  Plus you get all the additional Club membership benefits: the customizable meal planning (including printable grocery lists), celebrity trainer chats, access to me as your coach and my support groups, AND 10% off all Beachbody products including Shakeology. 

AND this month there is an extra special way to try the new On Demand feature, through a challenge pack. This will give you a month's supply of Shakeology (a $129.95 value) and THREE months worth of Beachbody on Demand (a $38.87 value) for $140.00. If you currently drink Shakeology or have been wanting to try it, this is definitely the way to go. 

How Do I Sign Up? 

Easy. If you have a free Team Beachbody account, log in and go to the Beachbody on Demand tab and select upgrade. 

If you don't have an account, no worries. You can sign up for one here. 

And always feel free to contact me with any questions! 

Molly's 21 Day Fix Transformation

I decided I wanted to start doing a new series that features REAL people. My people. My coaches and challengers who have worked their tails off to change their lifestyles and achieve some pretty impressive transformations.

I know there are lots of articles and things out there that show you how to "fake" a transformation picture when it comes to weight loss. And that just makes me so sad (and angry and annoyed but the rollercoaster of emotions is the name of the game at 33 weeks pregnant.) We should be celebrating people's hard work and dedication to make their live's better not trying to fake something to get social media attention or sales. It is just terrible to take advantage of people especially preying on their weakness and insecurity. It is THOSE posts that really inspired me to make this as REAL as possible. Not using pics with professional lighting and celebrating the people I have walked this journey side by side, talking about their reasons, their struggles and how to keep going. (Because there are struggles everyday. Cake may be one of them.)

Now I firmly believe that transformations are WAY more than just the picture of what happens in someone's physical appearance. There is a shift in our attitude, the way we think and the way we feel. Some people are naturally small (and I may hate them a little bit...kidding!) but not healthy. Some people have a lot of weight to lose but are generally healthier than others. We ALL have our different struggles and this isn't a place to judge but to encourage and inspire.

So this is Molly's story:

"Since college I have always been about 150 no matter what changes I made to my diet. In my eyes I wasn't 'fat' but I was uncomfortable and lacked confidence. I found out I was pregnant with my first son in May of 2012 and my starting weight was 150, by the time he was 6 months old I was down to 140 without diet or exercise- just by not eating cookies and milk (my weakness) and I'm sure nursing also helped. I was happier with my body but I was tired all the time!!

When he was 9 months old we found out I was pregnant with our second son!  By the end of my pregnancy I was almost 195 and had a tough time walking or doing any sort of activity. I knew I was pregnant but my weight gain was excessive and all I wanted to do was eat. Once he entered the world I knew I needed to do something to lose the weight. 

I heard about Shakeology and saw amazing transformations of people who I am friends with on Facebook. So I decide to take part in a 7 day shakeology and clean eating group to see what it was all about. Clean eating was something I had never heard of before and really this whole realm of  nutrition and fitness was foreign to me. I decided to get the 21 day fix and sign up as a coach. I was still a little skeptical but it didn't take long for me to become a firm believer it the whole system through Beachbody. Once I discover a recipe that I loved with my Shakeology I was unstoppable! I love the workouts and how not only my body but my mind was changing. 

I have always had back pain ever since I was in my teens, and have been seeing chiropractor for a very long time but working out changed all of that and I was virtually pain free and only need to see a chiropractor once a month as apposed to 3-4 times! My craving dropped significantly and I notice that my mind was clearer and I felt happier and less tired and frazzled all the time! I'm 21 short days I lost 14 lbs and 13 1/4 inches of my body! Since I joined Beachbody on September 27, 2014,  I have lost 32 pounds and I am happy to say I am back down to 150! I still have a way to go until I reach my goal weight and the body I want but with the different workout programs shakeology and the challenge groups I know I will get there very soon."

You can follow Molly and her story on Facebook 

I you have any questions or want to learn more about the 21 Day Fix or 21 Day Fix Extreme please feel free to comment below or contact me on Facebook. 

Why I am Super Excited to Get Extreme

So today I had a little bit of the can't-sleep-super-excited-ness going on. Because finally (FINALLY!!!) the 21 Day Fix Extreme is available. Whoo hoo! I can not wait to get my hands on this. (Even if I can't actually do it for another month or three. Welcome to the middle of the third trimester, when just getting out of bed and putting on your shoes can be really hard.)

But the reality is that the next five weeks are going to FLY by and this baby is coming whether I am ready or not and the typical six week waiting period for exercise post baby is going to be a total blur. With B I remember writing down the details of every feeding, nap, diaper change, medication (for me not her) and anything else that required me to remember something that happened at a certain time with a certain amount. That little system was a lifesaver because I'm not sure I remembered my name during those weeks (let alone the last time I took a pain pill or changed the baby.)

SO...ordering a new program and coming up with meal plans aren't going to happen post baby (at least for a while). That can be HARD. Especially when you are trying to meal plan with a whole new set of rules. It took me a good 3-4 weeks to get my 21 Day Fix meal planning to run smoothly. And quite frankly, I am not going to have the energy or the patience to go through that again.

My make it happen plan? Having those things ready to go so when May gets here, I can hit the ground running. I am planning on getting my meal plans and grocery lists ready to go. I may have to start with the 21 Day Fix workouts but I will be following the Extreme meal plan from the get go. Having a baby in the spring does have the unfortunate downside of summer being right around the corner so I want to be as ready as I can be.

What exactly is the Fix Extreme? 

It's amazing to think that a year ago Beachbody launched one of the most successful at home workout programs of all time,  The 21 Day Fix.  30 minute workouts (with modifications) were paired with an absolute fool proof container and portion system and the RESULTS did not lie. 

With the 21 Day Fix Extreme, Autumn is back with a brand new set of moves and is taking the meal plan to the next level! 

The goal with the 21 Day Fix Extreme is to create killer results, more muscle tone, definition, tightened up nutrition plan and advanced moves. This worked is truly meant to get you shredded. Autumn actually shares her competition meal plan with you to help you finally lose those pesky pounds that many of us hold. (I for one am super excited to try the countdown to competition plan!) 

At the beginning of January, I was able to attend a Beachbody event here in Pittsburgh, meet Autumn and get to hear her talk about the Fix Extreme live (which was really cool.) We even got to do a live Fix Extreme workout with Autumn and let me tell you....it was no joke and isn't something I would recommend for beginners (especially when the Fix is so great!) But if you're like me and need to start out with a major challenge (because I am the girl who went from the couch to doing Insanity as her first workout in many years) and go ALL IN to really commit to a change, the Fix Extreme might be the ticket.

I was also super geeked to find out that EVERY workout uses weights or resistance. (I LOVE LOVE LOVE weights.) 

The Fix Extreme is still 21 days. 7 days a week. (I like to double up a day and still take a day off. I just tack yoga on a morning I have the extra time, like Saturdays.) The seven workouts include: Plyo Fix Extreme, Upper Fix Extreme, Lower Fix Extreme, Pilates Fix Extreme, Cardio Fix Extreme, Dirty 30 Fix Extreme and Yoga Fix Extreme. Plus when you order through a coach you get a bonus workout. 

And you still get the awesome portion control containers that make meal planning a little tricky at first but once you get the hang of it I swear it will change the way you look at food. I used to look at food and evaluate it in my head as healthy or not BUT the big piece I was missing was making sure I was balancing my food groups. Sure fruit and complex carbs are good for you but if that is all you are eating....you probably aren't getting the results you want. At least that was my problem. I did great choosing clean and healthy foods but not balancing them....the green and red containers (veggies and protein) were a lot harder to fill for me than my purples and yellows (fruits and complex carbs). Planning so I had all of these in balance made a HUGE difference in my nutrition and results. 

To take the meal plan up a notch, there are no "treats" allowed on the Fix Extreme. No allowances for wine or chocolate this time (unless you are drinking chocolate Shakeology!) BUT if you want the best results possible this is going to get you there. You can do anything for 21 days. I know I am planning on going Extreme with the meal plan for the first 21 days and then adding back in a glass of wine or two for the second round. Life is all about balance after all. 

Ready to get Extreme? 

The Fix Extreme is available now! You can check it out here 

And if you want to be a part of my Fixin' in February group fill out the application below. You get to do YOUR choice. Dust off your copy of the 21 Day Fix and rock that or choose to go Extreme. Either way you will get my 1:1 support, meal plans, recipes, shopping tips and a crash course on clean eating to make the most of the 21 Days. 

And as always if you need any help reaching your health and fitness goals I would love to be a part of your journey! Contact me on Facebook or click here to make me your FREE coach. 

Fill out my online form.

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