Body Beast Days 1-3!

One of my favorite things about Beachbody is that they have programs for literally everyone. No matter what fitness level you are at, your background, injuries, strengths, etc- there is a program for you.

I'm so thankful to have had the opportunity to do so many different programs. Every time I open up a new program, study the book, and go through the workouts, I learn so many different new things and my body changes in miraculous ways. It's so fascinating to me!

I knew going in that Body Beast was going to be a brand new, exciting challenge. I am prepared for my body to change in ways that it never has before. I'm prepared that by the end of the first 60 days, for the first time, I'm going to be bigger and heavier, rather than leaner, from where I started. It's going to be scary and uncharted territory for me, but I will just be proud to have made it. Then I know by the end of the 3rd month... if I do this right... I could quite possibly have the body I've always dreamed of.

I am currently going through Day 3 and can barely move any part of my body. LOL. Even with lots of water, stretching, and a TON of food, this program is TOUGH stuff! 

I am doing 35-50 mins of hardcore strength training each morning when I wake up, and eating 6-7 meals a day to total 2,200-2,400 calories. (I'm calculated to eat 2,300 and Sagi says to round up, so I  just fluctuate between the two calorie brackets depending on how I feel). 

This is my glorious meal plan. Yes, yes it is a LOT of food!

Thank goodness I can still drink my Shakeology or else I don't know what I'd do!

My healthy lean ground turkey burritos. Mmmmm. This whole eating a lot of carbs thing may not be too bad...

Leg day! The HARDEST workout I have ever done so far!

Post workout. One thing I learned: immediately after a workout you should only have carbs and protein at a 2:1 ratio! It fuels your muscles and recovery like crazy!

Chicken, veggies, and brown rice lettuce wraps. :)

Another Shakeology FULL of calories, of course! Shakeology has never been more crucial to a fitness program! The vitamins and supplements are essential to my muscle building.

More meals throughout the next day...

This was from Day 1, Chest & Tris! Loved it!

Alright, and here go the BEFORE pics & stats!
Biceps: 11.5
Waist: 28.3
Hips: 33
Thighs: 22.4

So excited to see where this journey leads me! If you'd like to join, Body Beast + Shakeology are still on an amazing sale for the rest of this month! Click on the link to join me and let's go through this ride together!

With love,

Amanda James

Time to BEAST UP! {For the ladies, too!}

As y'all know, my third round of 21 Day Fix came to an end on Sunday. It was pretty bittersweet as I said goodbye to my challengers and turned off my last workout. 

But, it was also a moment of excitement as I opened up a new door to a whole new challenge, unlike anything I've ever committed to or attempted before: BODY BEAST!

I have now completed two rounds of P90X3 and three rounds of 21 Day Fix. I absolutely love both programs, but I feel like my body has just kind of hit a plateau, and needs something really different and challenging. I have loved my results, but I want something new.

Body Beast can definitely be daunting for those who have never done a weightlifting regimen before or tried to track their nutrition. It is hardcore strength training for 35 mins-1 hour every single day, and a crazy amount of food for the first two months to build and bulk before the lean phase. I have to admit, I'm really nervous about this. Even as a female who wants to stay lean, I'll be consuming 2,300 calories a day for the first two months. But, that will still be consisting of clean, whole foods, so no junk. Therefore, I don't expect to literally "bulk" that much (since us females don't produce the hormones to do that naturally, anyway).

The whole premise is to seriously build muscle with the strength training exercises. If I was to do the workouts, and then not eat very much and not the correct foods at the correct times, my body would burn from fuel sources that I wouldn't want it to, and break down the muscle building components. So, while I won't be losing weight at first, I will be building lean muscle. The third phase, the Lean Phase, is where the fat scorching weeks will come in. It will consist of much more cardio and way fewer calories. This is when everyone gets seriously ripped and falls in love with the program. I know it'll be hard to undergo such a drastic change, but I'm seriously ready to challenge myself in ways I've never done before!

Before I go into more about Body Beast and my first day, I wanted to share the results from my previous challengers this month and how incredible they did. I am so in awe of their dedication and hard work. Seriously, my job brings me to tears most days as I get to watch women (and men) transform their lives from the inside out. I think these images will speak for themselves. By the way, these pictures are the results of just 21 days in our group together doing whatever program they chose and replacing one meal with Shakeology a day!

Jackie, a coach of mine, who has been in love with 21 Day Fix and Shakeology for quite some time now... I think it shows!!!

My sweet friend who joined me on her 21 Day Fix journey just this past month. I am over the MOON excited for her!

And umm.. this is her husband. OMG, right?! If you thought this program was just for women, you are so mistaken! He blew me AWAY!

This girl just brings me so much joy. She has worked so hard and has left me speechless. Do you see that tummy?! Truly amazing. Nutrition is EVERYTHING, y'all.

The bottom is before and the top is after, on this one! Can you believe the differences from EVERY angle?!! Amazinggggg!

Another coach of mine, Sandi, who has not only been extremely dedicated to her programs, BUT is also breastfeeding and ADDING calories onto her meal plan! And STILL look at her results!

There were even MORE incredible results than this, and I will continue to add them as they come in! You guys... the time to start is NOW. Don't wait for the perfect moment, the perfect day. That's what I had to learn. Who care's if it's on a Wednesday in the middle of the summer? You deserve to do this for YOU. You are worth this life change.

{If you are ready, sign up here and we will talk about the different options!}

And as for my FIRST day of Body Beast... I'm currently dying from food overload just in the first half of the day. haha!!! But, I'm pushing through and hoping for the best!

My first workout was Build:Chest and Tri's! 45 minutes of chest and tricep strength training exercises. Post workout meal was eggs, turkey sausage, and bread! Here we goooo!

Forgot to take a photo til I was halfway done, lol! This was a burrito: lean ground turkey, homemade taco seasoning, refried beans, cheese, whole wheat tortilla, lettuce.

Shakeology snack! 1 scoop shakeo, 1 banana, ricotta cheese, peanut butter, ice, almond milk.

No joke... I still have 1,300 calories left for the day. Y'all pray for me as I go through this crazy ride!!!! :O



With love,

Amanda James

A Year of Blessings!

It's my fourth week of P90X3 & Body Beast hybrid, and I realized in disbelief that as the beginning of November, this week officially marks one YEAR since I joined my first Bombshell Fitness Challenge Group, and ordered Turbo Fire and Shakeology. I was terrified at the thought of putting down that money on an at-home fitness program and some weird powder beverage I had never heard of, especially as a broke preschool teacher. But, there was just something inside me saying that it was what I needed. I had people telling me I would never finish the program, and that Shakeology was stupid, but in reality- it was one of the best things to ever happen to me! I am so thankful I invested in something I was so skeptical about.

Not only am I now in the best shape that I have ever been, but that seemingly small decision ended up completely changing my life! Beachbody coaching is now a business for me. I get to earn money by helping change the lives of others like my coach did for me a year ago- finding a program that fit my needs and that I would love, finding the right Shakeoloy flavor for me, and then giving me the accountability and fun support I needed to finish the program in my challenge group. Sometimes it's hard to believe that this is my "job"- doing something that I am so passionate about, and that is so much fun, and I get to literally watch people transform their lives! Not to mention, that as an active duty military family, it is totally free. How many businesses can you begin for FREE!? Pure craziness!!!!

So now, a year later:

The Workouts

Oh man, I have been LOVING the mixture of P90X3 and Body Beast more than ANYTHING! I have typically been using P90X3 workouts for an added mixture of cardio, and using Body Beast workouts the majority of the time for lifting sequences. Because of how fast-paced Body Beast is, I'm thinking it already gives me the cardio balance I need, because I am huffing, puffing, and dripping sweat the entire video! However, sometimes our bodies just need a break from pumping iron, so I enjoy P90X3 for MMX, Yoga, Pilates, Agility X, Dynamix, Isometrix, and lots of other great workouts.

I might be a bit of a freak, but having sore muscles is one of my favorite things in this world! There is something about pushing yourself past your limits each workout... lifting a muscle group until it feels like you are about to bust through your shirt and can barely move your arms or legs anymore. Then, the next day, the pain of the work you accomplished and just knowing the definition of muscle that will soon be there!

Of course, with harder weightlifting exercises comes more of an importance of nourishing your body correctly. Before, I would always workout first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. With Body Beast, I have been drinking a protein shake or eating a protein bar prior to exercising, and then immediately either drinking my Shakeology for breakfast, or having a different protein supplement directly afterwards. I know how much strain I am putting on my muscles with this program, so I want to make sure that I am properly feeding them to repair the tears and help them grow stronger and bigger with each workout!

I am also SO SO close to a pull-up... I am waiting for the day that I can post my first real pull-up on here!

The Meal Plan

I have started to pay more attention to my carb intake than any other food group, because I want to skip the "bulk" stage of Body Beast straight to the "cutting" stage, since my wedding is only two weeks away! No bulking necessary for me right now!

I am trying to consume 2g of protein per pound of body weight, and only about 1g of carbohydrates per pound of body weight. Of course, some days are better than others. Like, last night (Saturday is ALWAYS my cheat night), I probably ate my body weight in blueberry biscuits and sausage and biscuit casserole at a pot luck party... BUT today I will use that to my advantage with heavier workouts and more carb cutting than before! I want these muscles to be out and about more than ever in my wedding dress.

Stephen has been enjoying eating healthier too, and with our hectic lifestyles, I've been enjoying making super easy, big meals and snacks for us to pick on throughout the week and that I can easily pack for him when he goes to work!

Basil Pesto Chicken and fresh steamed broccoli

Celery slices with fresh canned chicken mixed with red pepper hummus

Cucumber slices with mustard and garlic hummus

Steamed mixed veggies- sometimes, frozen is the only way to get them in, and that's ok!

Ready made pot roast from Walmart. Throw it in a crock pot with some water, and you have a healthy family meal!

"Skinny" Taco Salad: ground lean turkey with homemade taco seasoning, mixed with lettuce, plain greek yogurt for sour cream replacement, shredded cheddar cheese. Delicious!

Healthy breaded chicken from Team Beachbody recipe book!

The Business

October is over, and with that comes the end of the Fall Classic, a little fun competition between us coaches! My coach Carmel and I were on a team together, and ended up coming out winning two tier prizes for our accomplishments! Our accomplishments were really just a reflection of how many lives we changed this past month, so it's incredibly rewarding and inspiring to be congratulated and rewarded on something we love to do. We are getting a really neat Team Beachbody shirt and stadium bag!

I am so looking forward to helping those that really want to push through the holidays to a better lifestyle. As I mentioned before, although it may seem crazy to try to start a health and fitness journey around the holiday season, this is the time that I started last year, and it was the best decision I could have ever made. YOU CAN DO THIS! I remember traveling to Pompano Beach, Florida for the holidays and getting my challenge group posts done in the hotel, and squeezing in my workouts in the little floor space there, as well!

Hotel workouts with my niece last Thanksgiving in the hotel!

Luckily for you guys, the most AMAZING program is on a MAJOR sale with Shakeology for this month only, and it is absolutely PERFECT for holiday travels!

You may have heard me rave about PiYo before, and for good reason! It is extremely low impact, but still HIGH intensity! Meaning... no, you won't be jumping up and down and all around, you won't even need one single weight to finish this program. You will use your body and your body only to get you in incredible shape. PiYo, like its name suggests, is a mixture of pilates and yoga inpsired moves- meaning it's not exactly pilates and yoga, but you will get that amazing, relaxing feel to it that you get from those sequences. However, you will be sweating so much without barely leaving the floor that you don't even know how Chalene Johnson is doing that to you!

Take my word, it is incredible. And for right now, you can the PiYo Challenge Pack, an entire month's worth of Shakeology (your nutrient dense meal replacement shake) and the PiYo program for only $140! That's a savings of well over $50, guys!!! Just think... a month of meals and a program to keep forever, for about the same cost of only two months of a gym membership or one month of Crossfit. Does it get much better than that?! I think not!

To get in on this amazing deal and join my upcoming free challenge group, apply below and I cannot WAIT to work with you!!!


With love,

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P90X3 Week 3, and a little something NEW!

"BY FAILING TO PREPARE, YOU ARE PREPARING TO FAIL!" -Benjamin Franklin

The Meal Plan

Image from declutterhome.com

I'm going to start off  by saying that this week has been FILLED with so many foodie temptations, and I have given in a few too many times. From my Pure Romance party, to nights out with friends, junk food has been slowly creeping back into my everyday routine and filling my fridge and pantries. Therefore, I took today to literally throw away ALL of the junk food that was in my house! If there wasn't much left, it was trashed. If there was, I distributed it to Stephen, his work, and other friends. But, I HAD to make sure it was gone. That's the first thing I do every time I decide that I need a fresh start- the bad must go out for the good to come in! Plus, I am the worst with food temptations and I have virtually no self control whatsoever, haha! So I know if it's in the house, no matter how good my intentions are, I will probably fail.

I am also usually a sucker for buying the super high sodium flavor packets for any recipe, so I'm going to try to turn a new leaf and really follow either the seasoning recipes from the 21 Day Fix meal plan book, or ones that I find online! I found this recipe for taco seasoning yesterday, and it was honestly delicious!

Taco Seasoning Recipe

1 tablespoon chili powder

½ teaspoon garlic powder

• ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

*If you want it without any spice, remove the red pepper flakes!*

The Workouts

On my yoga day, (of all workouts days, right? lol) I really injured my neck. It was the rolling from boat to plow move that did it for me. I'm learning I just need to stay away from plow because that was not the first time I have hurt my neck from pulling it during that move! Anyway, it was pretty painful to do much, so I resorted to more weight lifting exercises (that didn't involve a ton of running and jumping around).

Image from howdoigetfit.com

I whipped out the one program I have yet to do more than a few workouts from, this week:
 BODY BEAST! (which is actually on a BIG sale right now). I have absolutely LOVED it so far. If you are like me, and more of a weight-lifting kinda gal or guy and not much of a cardio lover, you would definitely love this program.

If you check out these results, you can see that Body Beast + Shakeology does amazing things for men AND women!

Image from teambeachbody.com

My workout schedule for this week looked like this:

Monday: P90X3 Synergistics X & Dynamix X

Tuesday: P90X3 Yoga X and Cold Start

Wednesday: my rest day from neck injury

Thursday: Body Beast Back/Biceps

Friday: P90X Plyometrics X (an extra in the Body Beast program- I actually really loved it this time around!)

Saturday: Body Beast Abs/21 Day Fix Yoga

Sunday: Body Beast Shoulders/21 Day Fix 10 Minute Fix for Abs

I know my schedule was pretty all over the place, but I did really enjoy waking up each morning, sorting through my DVD's, and picking out the workout that I was really in the mood to do. I'm starting to rack up enough workouts to be able to do that, lol! And, honestly, nothing is better than rolling out of bed, heading downstairs, doing a little work, and getting an incredible workout on my living room floor with my own personal trainer. Next week, I just need to make sure I get a bit more cardio in there! Plyo and Synergistics were really the only ones with a cardio mix to them.

3 Day Refresh: Round 2!

Our wedding is three weeks out, so I'm going to start doing a bit of carb cutting, more intense workouts, and throwing in a 3 Day Refresh closer to the day! I'm actually doing a FREE 3-DAY REFRESH GIVEAWAY! So if you're interested in finding out more about that, GO TO MY FACEBOOK PAGE, follow the rules, and your name will be added to the pool of contestants! If you'd like to go ahead and purchase the Refresh yourself, read more about it HERE and purchase HERE.

The Business

In my business, I am more thankful than ever that I will get to have our wedding day off and week for the honeymoon to cruise through Jamaica and Haiti, without having to beg for the days off from my boss... because, well, I AM my own boss! We are having an upcoming 21 Day Smart Start for NEW Beachbody Coaches in just a couple of weeks! If you would like to start YOUR journey to financial, physical, and family FREEDOM, apply below and I will contact you right away!

With love,

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