Hey guys! I’m happy to say that I will be starting the Oxygen Magazine Ultimate Oxygen Challenge TOMORROW! Eeeee! I’m really excited and more than ready for it!
I am signed up for #TeamErin and can’t wait! They already sent us the meal plan and I love it! They will be sending over the workout plan tonight. I’m counting down the minutes…..
The meal plan is pretty much what I thought it would be; lots of real, clean food with lots of protein! I can’t share the actual plan because it’s something I paid for (and they’re selling), but I will say that it includes lots of eggs, veggies, lean meat, oats, brown rice and a little bit of fruit, cottage cheese, Ezekiel bread, yogurt, protein shakes, etc.
I really love the simplicity of it. They just sent us a specific one week plan for each month (it’s three months total). We can either eat the same thing each week or use it as a guide to make up our own meal plans. I plan to add the following to my meal plan…
- Quinoa Vegetable scramble
- Grilled Chicken in my favorite marinade with sweet potatoes and veggies
- Tacos (taco salad for me!) with a side of brown rice
- Stir-fry with quinoa, lots of veggies and chicken
- Spaghetti with meat sauce on top of spaghetti squash. Veggies and some kind of grain on the side
- Steak or roast with sweet potatoes and salad/veggies (baked potatoes for the fam)
- Turkey Burgers with Green Bean Fries and brown rice
I may also mess around with some of my Oatmeal recipes and even my Protein Pancakes to see if I can make them compliant and yummy! FYI, I’m planning on having leftovers for lunch most days.
The plan allows you to have one “cheat meal” a week. I’ll probably do that, but will steer clear of sugar! Sugar derails me quicker than anything else. Sooooo, I intend to go without sugary goodness for the next 90 days! Yikes. I’ve done it a few times before (you can read about my experiences here and here), so I know I can do it again!
I know that my mental state and food prep (always having quick, easy and healthy things on hand!) will be KEY. I also have a lot of other “tools” that I’m planning to use to keep me motivated!
First off, I’m really loving all the energy and motivation that comes from just signing up for the Challenge! I spent $70 to sign up, so I have some “skin” in the game. I’m also a part of the Oxygen Challenge #TeamErin private Facebook page and I’ve already found a lot of motivation, good ideas and insight over there. The challenge will also include a lot of instruction and motivation from Erin Stern, which I’m really looking forward to.
I also purchased myself a FitBook, which I think I’ll really love!
I’m a HUGE “notebook, write down goals, reflect upon my day, keep track of stuff” kind of person and I Loooooove this book! It will help to keep me on track and will be fun to look back on my progress as well.
I also purchased myself some fat calipers (ha ha!) I haven’t had my fat tested in a LONG time. When I was 17, I had to be hydrostatically weighed for a health class in high school and I only had 13% body fat! I was the lowest in my class and 13% was the lowest recommend fat % for women. Yikes. When I was in college, they used the fat calipers to measure our fat % in my Aerobics class. I was at 15% then.
I haven’t measured my fat since then!!! Ha ha ha ha ha! I have a feeling it will be a LOT higher. Hee hee. I guess it will be nice to know what it is….I think. FYI, I bought these calipers on Amazon for about 12 bucks.
This Challenge recommends (I’m not sure if it’s required) that you take your measurements and fat percentage at the beginning and the end of the challenge….so that’s what I’m going to do!
I also got a new Fitbit that I’m going to use to motivate me to stay active AND get my sleep!
FYI, I’m going to be running The Color Run (Shine Tour) in August and will be representing Kohl’s at that race. They sent me and my friend Melodi both Fitbits and t-shirts to wear during the race.
Kev and my 11 year old are going to run with us too. It will be fun!
I just strapped on my Fitbit for the first time yesterday and so far I love it! It will be especially helpful to track my sleep since I really struggle in that department. I know that sleep will be VITAL to my success in the challenge too. If I am disciplined and get my sleep, I’ll succeed. If I slack and let myself become worn out and sleep deprived, I’ll fall flat on my face. Simple as that.
I also went to Costco yesterday with these two cuties…
I loaded up on a whole bunch of goodness!
I’m planning on doing a bunch of food prep tonight (cutting veggies, cooking meat, making a big batch of brown rice, etc.)
I’m really anxious to receive the workout plan. Supposedly, I should be able to do a lot of the workouts from home. I sure hope so! I MUCH PREFER to go to the gym, but it’s definitely much simpler for me to exercise from home right now. My plan is to make it to the gym 2-3 days a week and do the rest from home.
I’m also hoping it will include some cardio too because I want to keep running! We’ll see.
I’m going to follow the plan to a T though and WILL NOT QUIT. I’m fully expecting to have a few breakdowns from time to time, but I will not stop.
I’m also happy because this challenge could NOT have come a better time! I’m still feeling quite chubby and have plenty of weight to lose, BUT I’m going to quit nursing my baby next month and I always lose weight and fat after I stop nursing. I’m hoping that will still be the case this time! My baby is also almost a year old (sniff, sniff), so it’s a little bit easier for me to workout and get consistent sleep than it used to be. I’m also turning the big 4. 0. next year (what the??!??!) so I’m really determined to kick it into high gear before I become an old lady! Ha.
Oh, and I know I’ve only been blogging once a week lately. I’m going to try to improve in that area, but I’ll definitely be posting things more frequently on my Facebook Page, Twitter and Instagram. So if you want to follow along, I’m going to use the hashtag #MelsOxyChallenge, FYI.
Well, that’s all for today! On a less healthy note, today is Chick Fil-A’s Cow Appreciation Day! Woo hoo! You better believe I’m going to get us all dressed up like cows and get our free meals! Perfect timing before my looooong challenge! Yay.
I hope you all have a fantastic day! xoxo
I received the Fitbit and tee shirt from Kohls, but the text and opinions are entirely my own! #Kohls #Yes2You
This is so inspirational!! Thanks for this!
Thanks so much! I really appreciate your sweet comment!
Thank you for motivating us! Keep sharing!!!
Thank you so much!!! I’m very happy and excited about this challenge!
How did you do on the oxygen challenge? Im thinking about joining this challenge coming up. Any feedback, greatly appreciated.
I loved it! I did very well at first, but then fizzled out a bit at the end. I learned so much though and loved it! I’m thinking about doing it again this time around. I thought it was very helpful to get all of the specific workouts and recipes. I definitely added some of my own things in too, but it was nice to have the specific plan to follow. There’s also a great Facebook group that you’re added to and it’s really fun. I would highly recommend it!
Been thinking about a fitbit or some version of it. Would love to know your experience and if you thought it helped, didn’t help or you completely forgot about it after a week (which would likely be me). 🙂
So far, I don’t LOVE my Fitbit, but I think it’s partly because I don’t know how to use it very well yet. I love how it keeps me motivated to move and sleep well, but it hasn’t been working 100% accurately for me sometimes. It might be “user error” though. I’m going to continue to use it and then I’ll let you know what I think!!
So excited for you, sounds like you have it all planned out.
Thanks so much Abby! Yes, I think this will be a great challenge for me. I feel very motivated, love how I feel so far and can’t wait to see where it takes me!
I love reading about all of your healthy eating and fitness challenges! I am excited about this one, so keep on posting because I will definitely be reading ha ha!
Thanks so much! This challenge is so so so great! It’s tough and takes planning and commitment (of course!), but I LOVE IT!
Best wishes with the Oxygen challenge!
Don’t worry, the big 4-0 isn’t that scary.
Ha ha, every time I turn a “new decade,” it kind of freaks me out! But, I seem to get over it quickly. I’m glad Kev’s a few years older so he helps me to feel young!
I love my Fitbit. My husband and I like to compare notes at the end of the day.
Can’t wait to hear more about the workout regimen. The whole thing sounds like fun.
I have been having a few issues with my fitbit, but I think it’s probably mostly “user error.” Ha ha. So far, I’m LOVING my challenge though!
Wow, lots going on. I have been wondering about the fitbit. I am wondering if it will get old, so I will look forward to seeing how you like it.
I haven’t had my body fat percentage checked in a long time but would really like to.
Good luck with your challenge. Looking forward to following you !
I know, life has been nuts! So far the jury is still out about the Fitbit. I don’t LOVE it, but I think I’m still learning how to use it, so I’ll wait to form my opinion 100%. Thanks always for your encouragement Karen!