Shakeology- the Unbiased Review

There are fads in the diet industry...we all know that. I've tried so many of them- I've lost count. Some have worked.. most haven't.
I was leery about trying yet another one of them, but I have a lot of friends that have been using this stuff and have REAL results. So I decided to give it a try. Knowing that I just finished my first tub of powder (yes... it was seriously a tub lol) it couldn't hurt to try another one. I had results with the protein powder and it didn't bother me that it was a meal replacement. In fact- I enjoyed it.

During my day- I have a food routine. I have 2 meals I like for breakfast, I have very few things I like for lunch, and I enjoy a really good meal at the end of the day. So I opted to replace my lunch- since I don't like it anyway. Most of my snacking takes place between lunch and dinner- so if I can replace a meal and have it fill me up... then I"ll eat less.

On to Shakeology. Having it replace a meal is perfect. I get so full from drinking it, that I literally have NO DESIRE to eat for at least 3-4 hours. It's amazing.
So here's my review:

I don't appreciate that you have to "sign up" to be a participant in the beach body program to get this stuff. You can pay $15 in shipping (which is ridiculous) OR, you can opt to do the auto ship program where it takes the shipping down to $2. Just be careful if you only want one month- make sure you cancel the autoship before the next month so you aren't charged. You are then assigned a "coach" that will be in contact with you to help you on your beach body journey.
Now.... For most people- it's probably not a big deal. But for me... I want to simply try a product. I don't want to be sucked in to any program or be accountable to anyone but me (and my husband lol). I don't want to have tips and tricks sent to my email. So it's been kind of annoying- although... it hasn't been excessive- so I guess it's not all bad.

When I got the package (which came in less than a week)- I was so excited to try it! I had read reviews, I had read that people thought it tasted horrible and that you have to  use "recipes" to make it drinkable lol. So that was exciting. I wasn't about to try it without blending other things in it.

The recipe I decided to go with was mixing it with 1 banana and 1 tbsp of natural peanut butter. I got excited, put it all in the blender and what happened? MY BLENDER BROKE!!! Luckily- my grandma stepped in and let me borrow hers until I could get a new one.

Finally got it all mixed and it was gross! Seriously... I almost had to gag it down. But because I've heard good things, I'm willing to stick with it.

Day 2: I changed it up and did the banana, about a tsp of vanilla, and then some cinnamon. That was my magic right there. It was good! It covered up most of the yucky taste and I didn't have to gag it down this time.

Since then- I've used the same recipe- I've added a little but of sugar to sweeten it up a bit- but it's acutally good and I look forward to having it every day.

NOW- the results haven't shown me anything spectacular yet. (I've been doing it for a week) I have lost another pound (yay!) but that's been my average since I started this thing anyway.
However.... it is delivering what it's promised. I feel better. I have more energy. I'm eating less crap. And that has to say something.

Actually... now that I think about it- it has helped more than I thought! I've had to go through 2 birthdays in the last week and through eating all that cake- I've still lost weight! So there!!! lol

I'd recommend trying this if it's something you want to commit to. It's expensive. So I'd say save up and try it for the 30 days (which is one pack). If you feel it's worth it.. then continue on. For me... Although I enjoy it and I feel results- I can't justify spending the money for it.

I'll stick to what I've been doing so far- because so far... it's been working :) And this is truly how I feel...

Last Weight: 160

This week: 159.6

Down 13 lbs total!!

Resolutions

I forget what day I'm on....let alone what's happened the last couple months.

I can't believe how fast time flies when you get swamped. Seriously- it was just Halloween right?

ANYWHO-
I've decided that after a couple months' hiatus- that posting every day isn't conducive with my life. I do want to keep track of my progress and keep this up to date for those who need something to laugh at ;)-
So I'm going to have the goal of posting at least once a week- which should be doable.

To sum up what has happened since my last post- I have had my ups and downs.

The downs:
*I've hit another rut. I have lost more weight- but now I'm stuck at the same number for the last 2 weeks.
*I discovered that my will do exercise is completely based on having someone else who'll do it with me. I totally suck and doing it alone.
*No matter how few calories I eat (I'm almost ALWAYS under my daily calorie count), my weight won't change unless I add exercise and/or eating the right kinds of foods.

The ups:
*I've lost more weight!!!!
*My energy is up- I don't feel so lazy anymore and have a drive to get things done.
*People have noticed a difference in how I look
*MY JEANS ARE TOO BIG!!!
* I got me a "new to me" Eliptical machine!

Ok- so I'm way excited for the up's apparently. Yes- one of my jeans is too big. My husband commented on it before I admitted it- and that is always nice lol
I took a nose dive into a fashion thing that i've always wanted to do but never had the nerve to do it.....leggings. I am now the proud owner of 2 sets of leggings and i wear them proud!

I think with the new year, i always get high hopes and dreams of doing something- but I never follow through. It usually lasts a couple weeks and then falls by the wayside.

So this year- I made 2 simple goals. One- I won't bore  you with. The other... to exercise everyday. I think that's something completely doable- esp since I'm not putting any pressure on myself of how long I need to do it, or what i need to do etc.

Every night when the kids go to bed- husband and I trek down stairs and workout together. We put on a funny movie and go at it.I do my eliptical, then lift weights, then run the treadmill. then I make my way to the floor for situps, crunches, squats, and if I'm feeling adventerous- planks.

I was very sore at the beginning- but now it's "normal" to just work out every night. My body is used to it. even though I haven't seen a whole lot of difference in weight yet- I'm very optimistic that changes will come the longer I stick with it. The fact that I feel better about myself because of working out is good enough for me right now.

I think the biggest lesson I've learned so far on this journey is that it takes time. I can control what i eat. I can control how active i am. And if I choose to not do either one of those- then I won't see results. So I focus on what I can control and give it time.... and then the results will come. And I'm content with that.

So here is my "before" picture- taken when I started:

And here is my "now":

And yes- you better believe I'm "sucking in" in both of those pics! lol. HOWEVER- you can tell the difference!

So i started out at 172 something and am now 160! I have lost a total of 12 inches body wide. My inches really haven't changed, but I'm OK with that for now. 

So there ya have it. I'll do better and I'll keep my goal of posting at least once a week. So get ready to hear all my shenanigans again :)