Happy Halloween!!!

Today is Halloween and I woke up (sorta didn't sleep well last night) in major pain.  My tooth that was hurting me so bad the other day was killing me. I went to the er because I'm so broke and don't have insurance.  I wasn't sure about going to the er because I was afraid they would think I was a pill head looking for pain meds but I didn't care.  I was sobbing and in so much pain that the lights were like daggers to my head.  Well of course they couldn't do anything to help but write me a prescription, but I was still so sad that I had to leave just as miserable as I came in.

So I took my pain meds and antibiotic and went back to bed and slept till 3pm. I woke up again in tears from the pain but its Halloween and I'm a mother of 3 and I can't be down, or knocked out on pain meds.   So right now as I write this post my husband is making a day of the dead doll of my 5yr old, a zombie prom queen of my 9 year old, and an iron girl of my 3 year old.  I haven't eaten anything today and just chugged a spark.  Fingers crossed I make it through the night.  Plus side is all I have to do is drive across town to visit my grandparents then come back home hit one street and them back to my bed.  I'm hoping and praying that all this mess doesn't negatively effect my challenge but if anything it shows that I'm human and not perfect.  

EEEEEEKKKKKKK!!!  Almost to day 10 and I'm kinda nervous and excited to see what's happened in the first 10 days. 

PLEASE BE CAREFUL OUT THERE TONIGHT!!!

Day 7 down

Oh man today has been rough!!! I lost a filling a few years ago and every once and awhile it flairs up and hurts sooooooo bad.  Today was one of those days.  When it flairs up I start up on garlic.  Its a natural antibiotic and works wonders in our house.**

                                     Pictured bulb of garlic with cloves visible 

  **To use garlic as an antibiotic: take a bulb of garlic and pull out one clove.  Get out a chefs knife and crush the garlic with the flat side of the knife.  Remove the paper/skin from the clove.  Let the clove sit for 10-15 min.  The sitting phase is the critical antibiotic phase which is why garlic pills don't have the same effect.  Then you can chew (ewwww spicy) it up and swallow with a tall glass of water or just swallow it whole. If its a big piece you can cut it up smaller. Take the garlic 2-3 times daily.**

We have used this method a lot and have avoided regular antibiotics several time.  We are usually better by the next day.  Of course if your not better at all by day 2 I would recommend seeking medical attention if needed.  

So like I said rough day today. Breakfast was multi grain English muffin and yogurt. Lunch was 2 slices of thin crust pizza leftover from last night.  Dinner was whole wheat spaghetti with garden vegetable sauce with lean beef. No snacks as I felt crapy and it was hard enough to eat the foods I did. No workout either because movement was super painful and caused double vision.

  **not a doctor or medical professional**

A post about poop

The number 1 question I have been asked about the herbal cleanse is about #2.  People keep asking me if the cleanse gives you cramps or diarrhea.  For me no it hasn't.  Everybody is different so I can't give a 100% guarantee that it doesn't happen.

My whole life I have only pooped maybe once or twice a week.  Its just how my body works and I'm ok with it. I guess your supposed to go after every meal or something like that but I'm not a Dr.

Here's a video from Dr. Oz about poop.  He's great with stuff like this.

http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/poop-primer

So back to the cleanse.  Its an herbal cleanse and with a fiber drink, herbal supplements, and a probiotic.  When I first started it ill admit I was worried about poo too.  For me it just made me poop everyday.  Not runny but not hard.  That's different then what I'm used to but its a cleanse and supposedly what my body should be doing already.  I was a little gassy with most of it being inside gas. You know like you can feel the fart bubbles popping before they come out.  Mind you my diet also went up in dark leafy greens which I blamed for the gas.  It wasn't stinky which is a plus.  I highly recommend the cleanse phase of the 24 day challenge if your not ready for the full 24 day.  I think that's why I'm feeling so great! Having all that junk cleaned out to start fresh it sooooo awesome!!

What's your favorite app for workouts or calorie counting? I use my fitness pal but need a good work out one.  

Here's some workouts that were posted in our 24 day challenge group today. 

Wanna join the group and get great helpful tips all the way through the challenge.  ASK ME HOW!!!

Breaking addiction

Yesterday was a rough day with the challenge.  My friends we having a Halloween party and I couldn't hang out and party with them because I wanted beer soooooo bad.  I also didn't eat much yesterday.  My problem is having snacks or foods that I can throw in my purse for crazy busy days out of the house.  Do you have any suggestions?

One of the things I have really noticed during this challenge is I have felt awesome the whole time.  You know normally when you make a lifestyle change you feel crapy for a few days.  I have had none of that.  No headaches (unless I needed water), no upset stomach, and no crazy cravings (well sorta). I mean I really expected to feel sooooo deprived and cranky and hungry and crapy.  I quit drinking diet dr. Pepper and tons of beer that alone should have gave me horrible headaches.  

Even though I have said a few time that I wanted beer its nowhere near as strong of a want than it used to be. I really can't put into words how strong of a hold beer had on me.  I mean I guess you could say I'm an alcoholic.  Honestly though this week has been so huge in breaking that hold and I'm not looking back.  This feeling of greatness and the fact that I can start to see greatness too is worth way more to me than the feeling of drunk.  I look forward to having an awesome future being a better me for my kids!

This was my Facebook post this morning. So happy!!

I bought this game last year and played it a few times. Its actually a great work out and kicked my butt several times.  The problem I had was my kids not letting me do it.  Every time I busted it out I would be covered in kids making it near impossible to do. 

So today I have brushed off the dust and this is gonna help me rock out this 24 day challenge.  

Day 4 down

I'm not gonna get into all the details of what I ate today it wasn't anything spectacular.  

This afternoon I was so happy to write a post about how I'm not craving any of my old junk but sadly that took a turn for the worse. Right now I want a Whataburger number 2 whatasized with an unsweetened tea.  I also want a 6pack of bud light lime.  Sooooo what am I doing with all that is just drinking tons more water. Yep lots and lots of water. 

So for the challenge your supposed to ditch the scale till the end. Wellllllll today I kinda cheated and weighed in.  Lets start the guessing game!  Comment with your guess on how much I lost so far.  Yes LOST!!

I love how the challenge comes with this easy to follow guide.  It really makes it to easy.  Plus right now there's a Facebook challenge group where you can get all the help you could ever need.  If you order a challenge let me know and I will get you added to that group.  Its nice to have support when making a change.  

Today is a new day, lets make it count!

Day 3 down

Today has been such a crazy day and my brain is shot so I'm gonna keep it short. 

For breakfast I had my first meal replacement shake it was soooooo yummy and rich.  I chose chocolate in my 24 day bundle.  Then I missed morning snack of course :( Lunch was 5 strawberries, a handful of diced chicken, and half an avacodo.  I mixed up everything but the strawberries. It wasn't until typing this that I realized I didn't eat my yogurt with lunch.  I missed afternoon snack :( Well I missed snack at snack time but at a snack bag of pretzels at dinner time.  I just finished dinner which was tacos.  I mixed taco meat, lettuce, cheese, avacodo, and one wheat tortilla in a bowl and ate it like a salad. It was like eating 2 tacos with one tortilla.

So that was day 3 in food.  I didn't exercise yet but I might before bed.  MIGHT is the key word.  

Day 2 down

Today was a super busy day with doctors appointments for my oldest, trying to find a working printer, and parent teacher meetings with lots of other misc random errands thrown in.  I totally fudged day 2 :(  I took catalyst but not the omega, drank a spark then had my fiber drink with breakfast.  **fiber drink disclaimer** mix it then chug it, don't let it sit for a min because you will need a spoon to "drink" it**. I mixed my fiber drink then sliced my apple when I came back to drink it it was like like apple sauce.  For breakfast I had a apple with peanut butter and half a whole wheat mini bagel.  

Doctors appointment went great and for lunch my daughter wanted chicken tenders.  It just so happened to be Kidds Kids day and Raising canes was donating 15% of their net profits to the awesome charity.  So I justified the 700+calorie lunch with it benefits a charity.  I was proud of myself for only eating half of my meal, but later in the day started kicking myself in the butt over it. 

More about Kidds Kids here  -----  http://www.kiddskids.com/

More phone calls and conferences, and snack was missed.  Dinner was already planned before I decided to do my challenge and it just so happened to be 400 cal of creamy chicken and noodles.  I was already bummed about my lunch choice so I made myself a plate of steamed broccoli, baby carrots and hummus, a handful of diced chicken, and a handful of strawberries. I am extremely pleased with this dinner choice.  It was yummy and I'm so full of broccoli and carrots! 

*not pictured the handful of diced chicken I munched on while the broccoli cooked

With this busy day exercise hasn't fit in yet.  As soon as all my kids go to bed, which will be after I publish this post, I'm taking the dog on a 3 mile walk.  We just might put a tiny jog in there I don't know yet.

What is Advocare's 24 day challenge?

What is this 24 day challenge?  Its a 2 part system that helps first cleanse your body to prepare it for the second

part which it taking in nutrition. Its super simple to follow everything is labeled and it comes with a guide book that 

lays out every day for you. What do you have to lose besides pounds and inches?

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-Citrus: helps to cleanse and detoxify your body.*
• OmegaPlex®: essential fatty acids for increased overall wellness.*
• AdvoCare Spark®: 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!*

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

+ Compared to MNS Max 3

Wanna know more watch this video

http://youtu.be/tBw3W-FKdvI

This is a great video too!

http://youtu.be/KXsT15LQmoY

Still wanna know more? Feel free to contact me anytime and I can help get you started.  

Are you ready to start your own challenge go here:

https://www.advocare.com/13108987/Store/ItemDetail.aspx?itemCode=99050&id=search&flavor=b

Day one down

So day one was not as hard as I thought it would be.  I woke up super stuffy this morning which was no fun.  The herbal cleanse fiber drink was scaring me yesterday.  Ill be honest I had heard it was awful so I was terrified of it.  Well its not bad at all.  The flavor said it was citrus but I got a grape/apple flavor.  Maybe it was the stuffy nose.  The texture wasn't that bad either.  I mean what would you expect from a fiber drink? Smooth and silky?  It was kinda like watered down apple sauce.  I look forward to taking it again in the morning.

For breakfast I had a homemade breakfast burrito with whole wheat tortilla, egg, and spinach.  For lunch (see post) I had Kristin's garlic tuna on cucumbers.  For dinner I had chicken quesadillas on whole wheat tortillas and for snacks a banana and some pretzels.  Honestly I need to work harder on my water intake.  Its something I have struggled with my whole life.  I'm just not a thirsty person. Unless its beer then I'm dying of thirst ;)

I didn't get to do any exercise today for millions of  reasons. Ultimately it just didn't happen.  Ill try to put in an extra 30 min tomorrow to make up for it. So far this 24 day challenge hasn't been much of a challenge. I dunno maybe its the snot talking.  Goodnight!!!

Day one lunch

I saw on Pinterest a recipe for hummus on cucumbers with ham.  Well I decided to put my own spin on it.

Kristin's garlic tuna on cucumbers

1 can of chunk light tuna in water (drained)

2 tbs of sabra roasted garlic hummus

1 tbs sweet relish 

1 diced whole boiled egg.

1 lg cucumber peeled and sliced

Pepper to taste

Mix the tuna, hummus, relish, and egg in a bowl. Then arrange sliced cucumbers on a plate.  Top cucumbers with tuna and sprinkle with pepper if desired.  

When I added all this in my fitness pal it said it was 294 calories.  

I love tuna and I love hummus and when I had discovered the 2 together I was in heaven.  I usually eat it with whole wheat ritz crackers but decided to use the cucumbers today for the challenge.  It was delicious!! I will defiantly be making this again.  

DAY ONE!!!

This is so beyond scary posting my pics and info for all the world to see but here goes.

How about a little more about me. I have been married to my tattoo artist husband for almost 8 years.  I'm a stay at home mom of 3 beautiful, sassy girls.  They are 9, 5, and 3.  I have worked very hard to teach them that beauty is from within.  A few years ago my oldest was being bullied for her short hair.  She was so sad saying that they were calling her a boy.  So I shaved my head to show my girls that hair is not what makes us girls or beautiful.  Ill admit some days were rough having no hair but for the most part I loved it.  I have struggled with my weight since I was 18 and now that I'm 30 and a role model to my girls it is time to get healthy. Beer is my biggest weakness.  I drank 10-12 beers a night for about 2 years and now I have a nice beer belly, or beer baby as my 5yr old calls it. I have tried calorie counting and working out and lost a little weight but I was just so tired.  A friend of mine kept telling me about the energy I would get from Advocare.  I finally gave in and tried it and WOW it is awesome.  I'm the kind of person that needs like 12 or more hours of sleep just to function and I would still be tired. When I started taking Advocare I wasn't tired and wouldn't nap or sleep all day.  It was an instant hit with my husband too.  After a few weeks I decided it was time to take the challenge and so here we are. 

I will post progress photos at day 10 and at the end on day 24.  Every night I will recap my day with how things went. Let me know if you want to know more.

Detox bath

I love a good detox bath.  I first learned about them last year when I started power walking 5k's.  I was super outta shape and whenever I finished them I hurt hurt so bad for days.  A friend of mine suggested I try one and now I take them at least once a month.  Not only is a nice long soak in the tub relaxing but add the health benefits and it makes it even better.  

Now I'm not a doctor so I'm adding a link from Dr. Oz that has a great video on the benefits of a detox bath in Dr. words for those that need that extra information. 

http://www.sharecare.com/health/wellness-healthy-living/what-is-detox-bath

There's many different detox baths out there but the main core is salt.  I use Epsom salt for my detox baths.  I also add baking soda and occasionally a few drops of lavender oil.  For tonight's soak I bought a new kind of salt and it has pepermint oil, spearmint oil, and rosemary oil in it.  I LOVE IT! A cold front blew in today and I was a little stuffy and all these oils just opened me right up.  

I bet your wondering how can I make a detox bath?  Its simple, run a bath with the hottest water you can handle.  While the tub is filling add your salt, 4 or more cups, and any other stuff you want.  I hear ginger is very good and really gets your body heated up and sweating.  You can also use apple cider vinegar, essential oils and bentonite clay just to name a few.  Once your tub is full get in and soak for at least 30 min the longer you can stray in the better.  I usually do 45 min.  When you get out don't rinse off just jump right under the covers and keep sweating as long as you can.  I usually just go to bed and rinse off in the morning.  Make sure you drink TONS of water like at least 3 tall glasses before after and during the bath.  If you don't drink enough water you won't feel as great in the morning. Trust me on this, DRINK WATER!!!

Please share your detox bath stories with me.  Tomorrow starts the cleanse phase of my Advocare 24 day challenge.  I'm hoping that my apple cinnamon water and nice soak in the bath helps me on my journey to inches and pounds lost. 

Preparing for my challenge

All day today I have been preparing to jump into this 24 day challenge full force.  I decided I would start the detox process today with some homemade remedies.  I have been drinking tons of water with apple slices and a cinnamon stick in it.  I found this on Pinterest a few years ago and I just love the flavor.  I can't say for sure that it has worked because I have never noticed any difference besides lots of peeing which would happen even if I drank just plain water.  There's so many variations of detox drinks out there if you were interested in trying one of these homemade remedies why not check out Pinterest.

Here's a link for detox drinks on Pinterest
http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=detox%20water&rs=ac&len=5

Have you ever tried any detox drinks? What did you think about it?  Please share your experience with me.  
Later I will be taking a detox bath and sharing that with you .

Welcome!

Hello welcome to my blog!  I have decided to try the Advocare 24 day challenge after signing up as a distributor 3 weeks ago.  The first products that me and my husband started were the MNS (Metabolic Nutrition Systems) and Spark.  In that first week me and my husband were hooked.  Not only did we have more energy then we have had in years but we felt great.  We originally signed up just to get a discount on products but now we want everybody to feel as great as we do.  I have lost 5lbs in the few weeks that we have been taking Advocare.  Now I'm super excited to start the 24 day challenge and bring you guys along on my journey of pounds and inches lost.  If you want to join me on this challenge you can email me at soypermom@gmail.com or check out my website https://www.advocare.com/13108987. Here I will post workouts and recipes that I'm trying and some that I'm not but I thought you might be interested in.  Everyday I will post an update on that day of how I feel and any inches or pounds lost.  Please let me know if you have any other ideas.  All comment are appreciated, except spam :(