"I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw you"!!!

The suspense leading up to this week has been absolutely killing me. Literally, actually. Ask Alex; I’ve not slept in over a week. My bedtimes have ranged from 1:00am all the way to 3:30am (on sat night). And no, I’m not outenjoying NYC night life. Ha! I’m in bed thinking about this particular week and everything that I need to do and be ready for and be on my A game for. I started to list them out for you, but I won’t do that. I’m not the only one who has a lot of things going on in her life. But I just have this weighing anxiety on my shoulders. So many times I complained about how difficult and challenging the BBL program was… how I haven’t been able to eat or drink what I want all summer, how I’ve had to endure working out for 65 days straight, hardcore. How I’ve been hungry, and tired and up against a lot of negativity. And now all I can think about it “what will I do when it’s over”? What will I do next Monday, when Vegas is over and I have to eat based on my own decisions and play catch up on 2 months missed of marathon training. How far can I run? I have a 18 mile marathon tune-up run in Central Park in 3 weeks. I haven’t run more than 10 miles in 6 months. Will I flop? How will I fuel my body? I can’t go back to my old routine, that CLEARLY did not work. Granted, carrying around 25 extra pounds was in no way helpful to my running cause, but it takes a lot more than weight shedding to run a successful marathon. I have to become human again. I have, in a way, been a robot the past 2 months. I eat when I am told, I workout when I’m told, I even have someone tell me how to work out! I dodn’t have to think about a THING. I just had to take orders. I’m good at that, I’m not good at how to figure it out on my own. Now I have to go to the grocery store and decide what to eat. I haven’t had a carb in 2 months. Do I buy a box of cereal? Will I blow up like a balloon at the first site of any complex carb/sugar? Should I stick to 5 small meals a day? How will I have time to prepare so many meals? What about alcohol? Should I limit myself to drinking only on special occasions? I could go on and on and on… it’s nauseating.

 

Let's move on to the fun stuff!

 

Today, when I woke up, I was in a much better frame of mind. Granted, Alex caught me reading an editorial on Paul Ryan, compliments of the NY Times App at 12:30am, but I still managed to get a good 4 hours of sleep in. I woke up with a ton of energy, and excitement. I was scheduled to be at the production studio by 7:30am. I had all of my work out clothes laid-out the night before. The shopping spree that I undertook this weekend yielded me some new Nike short-shorts to wear for the filming, as well as a selection of “ bright, Brazilian” tops! I arrived at the studio around 7:15am and was blown away. What a gorgeous space!

 

Right away I was shuffled to wardrobe. I thought I had a cute outfit on, but I was informed it was not tight enough or small enough. Luckily, that had a huge array of skimpy athletic wear for to try on. After a few tries, an outfit was selected!

 

Off to Hair and make-up.

 

Now it was time to get down to business!

The studio was beautiful and had sweeping views of the city. The only problem was it was almost entirely windows and the morning sun was turning it into a sauna. We were sweating before we even started moving! They lined us up as they saw fit and it was time to roll.

 

The next 3 hours consisted of 15min of segments, where we showed off all of Leandro's signature Butt Lift moves, followed a break where we re-hydrated and fixed the makeup that was melting off of us. I was so hot, and we were barely "working out"! it was a lot of fun. Everyone's energy was high and it was cool to see how these videos are filmed. I love everyone at the Beach Body Production company. Everyone is so please had nothing but nice things to say about all the girls and the progress we've made. But I digress. At about 11:00am, after the ankle weight scene was shot, we were told we were ready to wrap it up. Great! At that point I was concerned about getting into work at a decent time. As I'm walking back to the changing area I hear Lara say "Kathleen, we need you to go to wardrobe and change outfits, you're going to do and interview with Leandro". Ummm... OK! Me and 5 other girls were asked to stay, and everyone else was told they could leave. I started to get a little nervous. But alas, I got myself into an even smaller outfit and was ready to shoot the special footage!

 

Leandro and I did 3 different segments where he said things like "Kathleen, here we 2 months from when we first met and look at your new body"!!! He then asked me how I felt about the way I look now, my self confidence, how I feel when I'm in a bikini on the beach, what my boyfriend thinks of my new body. He pointed out my saddle bags, which are no longer there, my layer of stomach fat, which is no longer there, and my inner- thigh fat, which has melted away as well. I was enthuseastic and tried to sell myself and Leandro's work as best I could (hey, listen, I work in finance, not Hollywood)!

 

Finally at 12:30pm we were finsihed it was time to go. Almost 6 hours of shooting and I was beat! Off to work I went, ready to take on the day. I got home from work tonight at 8pm and had reserved a work out with Alex at the gym in our building. I only have 2 more days before I go in front of the camera for turntables, final photos, final weights and measurements. I want to look my best! I am staying accountable and I am sprinting to the finish line! A 40 minute treadmill workout did the trick. Tomorrow morning I will workout again before getting a pedicure and going into work. After that, I am done with work for the week!!! Alex and I have been packing and prepping for Vegas over the past couple days. We're so excited. What a treat I have to look forward to. Don't worry, though, Wednesday afternoon you will get a FULL blog report of my final photo shoot, which is at 7am.

Until then!!!

 

Lights, camera, BOOTY!!!

Surprise!!!! A midweek update! I knew there would be some twists and turns as the week progressed. So here it goes!

So this is, in fact, the last week of BBL classes for me

Panic has set in

 

Leandro informed us there would be no class Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday of next week because of the filming we’re doing on Monday and then the photo shoots that are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. I am so so sad, you have no idea. I haven’t been sleeping well the past few days. I've been up at night thinking about the program and how much my body has been amazingly transformed and how scared I am to be on my own once it ends!!! I thought it was the ginger tea that my mom got me hooked on that was keeping me up at night. But I looked at the box today and see that it’s caffeine free, so now I realize it's my racing thoughts and anxiety that are keeping me bright eyed and bushy tailed throughout the night. Ugghh...

Today when I walked into class, after running a couple miles and doing some light lifting beforehand,  I was so pumped and energized; I felt electric! And then surprise: I saw the camera crew! There were 2 guests in class that day who had won and onlinecompetition through Beach Body and they were partaking in class and getting interviewed. The first half of class was cardio and dance moves. It was so much fun! It felt like we were right back in the first couple weeks of class (except now I wasn’t huffing and puffing with my 20 extra pounds I was carrying around!!!).

Tomorrow, after class, I have to go into the Beach Body offices and get “fitted for wardrobe” for the August 27^th tapping. We were told to “Think BRAZILLIAN! Bright colored, fun, sexy workout clothing” and to “come with our hair in the most flattering way for a workout”. Not sure what that second part means exactly, but my hair will definitely be pulled back, off my face. They are breaking us up into small groups of 4 or 5 for the filming. I’ve been scheduled to go in at 7:30am on Monday morning in a Chelsea Production studio. Thankfully, that means that I will have time to get a workout in after we film!!! No time to waste before that final photo shoot!

And speaking of the final shoot… I just got assigned my scheduled date and time: Wednesday, August 29^th @ 7am (first appointment of the day, which I had requested). Here are my instructions:

You should be prepared to spend about 2 hours with us. The day will be similar to your "before" photo session: you will have your photos taken by the photographer and on the turntables, and will have your final weigh-in and measurements taken.

We will have hair and makeup here for you. Please come with a fresh face (no make-up) and clean hair.

Also, please be sure you are ready to wear a bikini! Please try to be consistent with how you looked in your "before" photos.

Please bring the following wardrobe: (Don’t worry, we have extra wardrobe)

• Bathing suit/Underwear option
• 2 jean options
• 2 fun, sexy outfits
• 2 nude bras
• Nude, no line underwear and thong
• Any other options you have – there is no such thing as bringing too much!!
• Heels

Super, super exciting!!! I will be sure I am well prepared!

So, technically the program and diet ends the 31^st of August, but as you all know Alex and I are off to Vegas on the 30^th. Monica Lynn, the founder and CEO of 5 Squares, called me today about the 2 days I would be away. She was so sweet. She offered to have my meals for Thursday and Friday delivered to my apartment on Wednesday night, so that everything is fresh! Monica is such a delight and I am certianly going to miss her food. I’m also glad I get some meals to bring to Vegas. I still plan on having dinner out, but during the day it’ll be great to have healthy options.

 

Stay tunned for an update this weekend!!!

And then there was 1...well, 1.6

Happy Monday everyone!!! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Summer is quicklywinding down, but things are really heating up in my world! This is the last full week off BBL!!! Can you believe it??? 60 days just FLEW by. And of course, Monday=Weigh day! But before we get to that, here’s a little bit of what’s been going on elsewhere.

Last week, my niece Emily had her tonsils and adenoids out, so I made a special trip to Buffalo to spend a little time with her this weekend. I drove up late Friday night after work and got some QT with the family. Emily was in good spirits and is recovering well. She got lots of “get well” gifts, as well as a special delivery from one of her favorite people, Alex!!!

This is the last time I will hsee my sister, niece and brother-in-law before the NYC Marathon in November, so I was a little sad but I have so much traveling and so many events planned for the next 2 months I know it will go by fast. And of course, I’ll be seeing Bernadette next week in Vegas!!!

I managed to hit the gym both Saturday and Sunday while in Buffalo. Saturday I did 30 min of cardio and 45 minutes of strength training... Sunday I did cardio- 40 minute of running on the treadmill. I find that I am much more sore after my weekend workouts than I am during the week. I guess I am good and kicking my own dupa!

In addition to Buffalo, it was also a big weekend for Alex. He started a new job today, after being out of work for a few months. The new gig is a great opportunity for him and I’m very happy to see he is excited about this new venture. Congratulations, Alex!!!

Now, onto my Butt! As I mentioned, this week is the last full week of BBL classes. Next Wednesday I have my final photo shoot and weigh-in and then Alex and I are off to Vegas early Thursday morning. The excitement is almost too much to bare. With that in mind, I have been extremely focused on reaching my weight goal knowing that I don’t have much time left for improvement! When I arrived early at the gym for my weight in this morning, I found that Lara, one of the Beach Body Producers was manning the scale!!! Oh man…No pressure!!! I love Lara, though. She was there during my auditions and was rooting for me the whole time. She is a great business woman, but she means business when it comes to our butt’s! So I stepped up on the scale and POW: down 2 lbs to 126.6lbs!!! That is 1.6lbs aways from my revised goal of 125!!! Touchdown dance please:

There is still work to be done, and I am NOT losing focus now. I would actually like to be below 125lbs to give myself a little cushion while I’m in Vegas. That being said, this is my plan for the next 10 days:

1. 20-30 min of additional cardio a day (in addition to our scheduled class)

2. Work out hardcore this coming Saturday and Sunday.

3. Noshakeolgoy (I’ll have a small shake every now and then when I want something sweet, which really only amounts to 50 calories a pop… none for me this week!)

4. Give 110% during class… Squat deeper, use heavier weights, and use more energy!!!

The group found out next Monday’s workout is going to be filmed! We have to attend class at the production studio and it’ll be comprised of shots /cuts of group moves, individual workouts, etc. I have a feeling it probably won’t be a legit class as most of us look like real crap during the Equinox classes (sorry girls)!!!. If it’s going to be used on TV my guess is that they want us to look good. This of course will call for a new workout out-fit to be bought!

This weekend I have planned a “Kathleen weekend”: a weekend of pampering and much needed R&R. It will include the following:

A Saturday morning workout in my building’s lovely gym followed by a dip in the hot tub/sauna/steam room. Then I’m off to shop for a new fall wardrobe!!! I plan on hitting up Bloomingdales, Zara, Saks and wherever else I end up! I also have some odds and ends to pick up for Vegas. Saturday night will involve me on my couch and some sort of movie on demand, along with some hot Ginger tea, which I have just stocked up on. Sunday morning I will work out, then in the afternoon I have a 90 minute facial and a 90 minute massage scheduled at BlissSoHo. What a way to kick off the last 3 days of hard work and dedication. I cannot wait! Stay tuned for updates this week. I have a feeling there will be some BBL surprises coming my way!

Leandro, I didn't settle for less and it paid off!!!

Happy Monday everyone!

As you all know, Monday=Weigh in day in BBL land!!! I am happy to announce I have broken through the 130lb territory and am now down to 128.3lbs!!! I lost 3.5lbs this past week. GO ME!!! My initial goal was 127, but now I have pushed it down to 125 lbs, which means I have 3 little lbs to lose, for a total of 22 lbs! You can’t see it now, but I am doing my own little touchdown dance!!!

 

The clothes that I have from my “skinny days” are actually too big on me now. I have this pair of denim cut off short-shorts (which I started sporting again) and I must say they are too big on me. My guess is that I am down to a size 2 or 4, depending on the store/designer. The smallest I can remember myself being, as an adult, was October of 2007. I was working at Lehman Brothers, training for my first marathon, and went for a routine physical at the Lehman doctor’s office (yes, we had our own medical facility in the building). I was 127lb, and 19% body fat. Between then and now I ballooned up 25lbs (I was at one point 150). How gross is that? It’s not like I had a baby or something at any point over those 5 years. Totally not acceptable and not healthy! But I digress…

On Friday, Leandro told me that my body was looking for good and I had lost enough weight, but I needed to start working on building my booty by doing heavy weights and less repetition. He suggested a machine at Equinox where you stand and push back one of your legs at a time against a pedal with weights. With heavy weights and less repetition you can build the glutes and makes for a nice round butt! I must admit that since I have lost all the weight, my dupa has gotten considerably smaller. Now it’s time to firm it and lift it! So starting tomorrow morning, everyday before class I am going to so 3 sets of heavy weights on each cheek. Let’s hope that helps the cause!

Our classes have shifted away from cardio and we are concentrating exclusively on sculpting and strength training. That’s code for : squats (w/20lbs each hand: 4 sets of 20) ,spilt squats (10lbs each hand: 4 sets of 20), walking lunges (20lbs each hand:  x30), dead lifts (40lbs total: 4 sets of 20) kick backs (with 10lb ankle weights on each leg) and a slew of other booty enhancing moves. Leandro encouraged people who still had a lot of weight to lose to do cardio outside of class, on their own time as they won't see those kinds of results anymore from class.

Onto this past weekend, Alex and I spent a couple days down at the shore. Saturday morning I woke up early and hit the gym in my building to in order to get a 1.5 hour workout before we left. Saturday was rainy so we all kind of hung out in the house and relaxed. I caught up on all of Mrs. Mattielli’s latest magazine subscriptions (she gets all the good ones!!) and tried to chip away at the last book of the Hunger Games. For dinner, the Mattielli’s ordered pizza and pasta from a local Italian restaurant. I had my turkey meatballs and broccoli. Sunday morning Alex and I did a 10 mile bike ride along the beach. It was the same bike ride we did a few weeks ago. The intent is to actually go and pick up crumb cake from a bakery in Belmar for everyone to enjoy on Sunday mornings. It’s a nice treat (and is very delicious from what I can remember from last year). The weather was beautiful for the bike ride and everyone enjoyed the crumb cake (I of course had my egg whites and turkey bacon instead)!

So as of today, I have only 2.5 weeks left in the BBL program!!! I’m totally shocked at how quickly it has gone. Granted, if you asked me back in July whether it was easy breezy I would have called you crazy, but mentally it is so refreshing to know that this journey is winding down. But soon enough, a bigger challenge will be presented to me: how to maintain this new weight without food being delivered to me, and daily workouts being mandated. I am allowing for a celebratory period to take place during Labor day weekend. That’s not to say I am going to go insane with food, but I will be in Vegas, on vacation and I am going to enjoy myself. I have, after all, already made dinner reservations for the entire weekend and I absolutely cannot wait. BUT, don’t think for one second I won’t be working out every day and watching what I eat during the day. I’m going to do it the right way! And let’s not forget what is right around the corner… the NYC Marathon!!!! As soon as BBL is done, I have to get a late start on training! OK, OK…one thing at a time (I am getting a head of myself). My focus and attention is on these last couple weeks. Must take things one day at a time!!!

This week, my niece Emily is getting her tonsils and adenoids out. I am driving up to Buffalo, solo, late Friday night to spend some time with her. It’ll be a short trip, but the surgery is not a pleasant one and I want to make sure I spend some time with her while she’s recovering.

Hope everyone has a booty-full week!

"Excuse me, has anyone seen Kat-a-leen's BODY?!?!"

Hello everyone!

I’m happy to report we’ve just come back from another fabulous, fun filled summer weekend! Alex and I drove up to Buffalo Friday evening to spend a few days with my family at my mom’s lake house, which she rented for the week. We spent Saturday in Buffalo and then drove down, about an hour south, to the house on Sunday morning. Everyone was there…my mom, my sister, my neice and my brother-in-law. Everyone just relaxed, enjoyed the lake and enjoyed each other’s company. Here are some pictures from our trip!

Emily and I

Alex and Emily taking a boat trip!

Just because I was in new surroundings didn’t mean there was any time to slack! This BBL girl made sure she worked out Saturday, Sunday and Monday (yes, I was missing class on Monday morning!). As you know from my last entry, the Shakeology cleanse was this weekend so I wanted to really maximize this opportunity to have an effective outcome come Tuesday morning weigh-in. So Saturday and Sunday morning I bopped my way into World Gym (which thankfully offers $10 day-passes) and did a 1.5 hour workout each morning which included 30 min of cardio and 45 min of squats, lunges and other such booty-enhancing strength training. I felt great. And then on Monday morning, while at the lake house, Alex and I did a 3 mile run outside.

As far as the Shakeology cleanse goes, it was fabulous! The shakes were so filling,satisfying and delicious, I was never hungry. My mom brought a barrage of goodies to the lake house, including my favorite blueberry muffins, peanut butter cookies, pies, etc and I didn’t feel tempted at all! I was so happy to be with my family, I wasn’t even phased by the delicious food I was missing out on. It’s more than that, though. Now that there is an end in site, it’s approaching quickly I am so focused on KILLING it these last 3 weeks. I will not settle for less!

Which brings me to my next segment: today’s weigh-in!! I’m always nervous on my way up to the scale, but today I was especially shaken because I didn’t know how my body would react to the Shakeology cleanse and I know now that I don’t have a lot of weight left to lose I am afraid it may come off at a much slower pace. That being said, (drum roll please)….. I lost 3 lbs over the weekend!!! GO ME!!! I felt amazing looking at the number on the scale!!! This means I am only 4 lbs away from my goal weight, and now I am hoping to/aiming to surpass it. I turned around and looked at myself in the mirror and thought: Wow, I look GOOD!!! And for the first time EVER, I worked out in just a sports bra and my shorts. It felt invigorating and so refreshing not to have to worry about bulges, or my gut or my flab. That’s not to say I couldn’t stand to tighten up in certain areas, but I wasn’t self conscious about the way I looked, and I honestly can’t say that I have ever felt like that before with my midriff showing. Before class started, Leandro told everyone he a prize to award to someone who was super s*xy in class Friday’s pole dancing class and also lost A LOT of weight over the weekend. And surprise, it’s Kathleen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He came over and gave me a huge hug and a Brazilian Butt Lift T-shirt along with a gift certificate to Sephora!!! Thank you Leandro!!!

This makes all of my hard work worth it! And in the middle of class he stopped what he was doing and said “has everyone seen Kat-a-leen’s body?!? We’re going to have to lock her up Labor Day weekend”!!!!

Yes you will Leandro, yes you will!!!

So many surprises, so little time

Tuesday morning I faced the scale after a long weekend in Vegas. I was so nervous walking into class!! I took my sneakers off, hopped on the scale and BOOM! 1.5lbs down in 4 days !!!! WHUT WHUT!!! That brings my grand total so far to 13.5 lbs!!! I am 6.5 lbs away from my goal. There is an end in site and I can’t wait to get there!!!!

To make my goal even more attainable, surprise number one came in the form of finding out that class has been extended to August 31^st. That means 2 extra weeks of food delivery and workouts with Leandro. Our final photos will take place on the 29^th  of August, just one day before my second trip to Vegas!!! I was so glad to hear this news because I was getting nervous I wouldn’t have enough time to reach my goal. Now, this works out perfectly… I kick butt all the way to the end of the summer and as a reward I get to spend my birthday weekend in Vegas with Alex (and my mom!!). I have already booked a massage, a facial, a hair appointment and reservations at Nobu for the 29^th! It’s going to be a celebratory day, with well deserved treats for yours truly… that is, of course, only if I make my goal!

The second surprise we got was the opportunity to do a Shakeology cleanse for 3 days this coming weekend. They gave this option to people who were looking to boost their weight loss. Sign me up! The way it works is as follows: Day 1- 3 shakes, 2 meals (veggies and protein), Day 2- 2 shakes, 3 meals/snacks (veggie/protein), Day 3- 2 shakes, 3 meals/snack (veggie/protein), no starch, no bars and no fruit. The shakes are so tasty, it'll be a nice break from 

The third surprise we got this week was Leandro had been planning to have a world class pole-dancing instructor teach class on Friday!!! We were all instructed to dress as “s*xy” as possible, with heels, make-up and booty shorts!!! It ended up being AWESOME! And let me tell you something, the moves were not easy. I give credit to these girls, they have to be in tip top shape to perform... it's like a workout on stage! Here is a picture from class!

This weekend Alex and I travel upstate to spend the weekend at a lake house that my mother has rented out for a week. I can’t wait to see everyone, especially my niece Emily! Stay tuned for pictures from our trip!

You can take the girl out of BBL...

 but you can’t take BBL out of the girl, even when she’s in Vegas!!!

What a trip!!! Friday morning, 10 of my closest girlfriends and I embarked on a 4 days trip to Las Vegas to celebrate the bachelorette-hood of one of my closest friends Jessica (who is getting married at the end of September). I had a bit of anxiety leading up to the trip for, for many reasons. One of them was figuring out what I would eat while I was away. How would I manage to bring 4 days worth of food with me? I had emailed a few people from Beachbody to see what they recommended. Was it best for the kitchen to prepare food ahead of time for me, or should I just have shakes and bars during the day and have a “sensible” dinner? Well, I ended up getting 4 days worth of food, which was a total pain in my butt as far as travel goes! I basically had an entire checked bag of food, in addition to everything else! Another cause of anxiety was managing to get through a weekend full of dinner reservations, pool parties and club scenes without eating or drinking a thing! Oh, and managing to fit in 3 work-outs as well. This, by far, was going to be the biggest challenge of my 2 month commitment. How would I hold up?

So there I was, 5am on Friday morning with my EXTREMELY heavy carry on bag containing your standard Vegas items (high heels, tacky bathing suits, big hoop earrings, etc) and my food on wheels, equipped with a cooler pack and multiple ice packs to keep my sustenance cold! I also decided to freeze the food the night before to preserve it’s integrity as much as possible. We land in Vegas around noon on Friday afternoon. As soon as we got to the hotel, I whipped out on of my meals and took it down in the lobby of the hotel. I was famished and clearly didn’t care what any passer-byers may think of me chowing down on chicken and spinach in the middle of the check-in area!

The afternoon was spent the Encore pool, where the girls ordered food and fruity delicious cocktails. I ordered club soda with lime. We basked in the sun for hours. It was lovely. Dinner that night was at STK in the Cosmopolitan Hotel and we had a table reserved for us at the club Hyde in the Bellagio. Before we left for dinner (we had 9:30pm reservations) I ate my eggplant dinner in the hotel room so I wouldn’t be hungry that night. All the girls had a great time at STK. They ordered sliders, tuna tare tare, beef carpacio, salads and a number of other items to pass around the table. The drink theme of the trip seemed to be dirty martini’s so there were plenty of those to go around as well. For myself? Club soda and lime. Here we are at dinner:

Good lookin' crew, huh?

When we were done we headed over to the Bellagio where the table at Hyde was awaiting us. What a scene!!! The girls ordered a bottle of Grey Goose for the table and the drinks started flowing. I parked myself right on the couch and stayed for about a half hour. At this point I was pretty exhausted as we had been up for almost 24 hours (considering the time change).

Luckily, 2 of my friends were intersted in getting some Z’s so 3 of us headed out and went back to the hotel. Once my head hit that pillow I was out like a light! I was ready to hit the gym bright and early the next day! So I gathered my things while my other 3 friends slept, in what I am dubbing “the cave”, and I headed down to the gym. Shortly after I got there, my friend Shannon showed up. it was so nice to have a workout buddy! Props to her as she went out like a trooper the entire time and still managed to get to the gym I did 30 min of cardio and 30 min of squats, lunges dead lifts,etc. I felt great!

After an hour workout, a shot of wheat-grass and a coffee I was ready for the day! Today’s agenda: Pool party at MGM followed by dinner at Tao and dancing at Club XS.

Me, being a good little BBL student, having a green tea at Tao

I behaved myself, once again and stuck to my pre-made meals along with no booze. I must admit, for breakfast 2 out of the 4 days I ordered egg whites and spinach because I was short on meals (they forgot to give me food for Monday) so I decided that was the easiest and healthiest substitution to make for “out of the bag” situations. Sunday morning came around and it was off to the gym again. All in all I worked out 3 of the 4 days!!! On our way to the airport on Monday morning I was so proud of myself for not having cheated… not once… and sticking to my workout regiment! As a treat to myself, I went to the gift shop in the hotel and splurged on body scrub and body souffle that I had been wanting for a while. I had such a good time with my friends, I wouldn’t have done it any other way! Everyone was so supportive and understanding of my commitment. I couldn’t have gotten through the challenges without my girls!!!

Meanwhile, in the back of my mind, I had no idea what the scale would say come Tuesday morning (I missed Monday’s usual weigh-in). The fact that I had to make a substitution twice and missed 3 classes (even though I worked out on my own), was worrisome. Plus the traveling, the time difference, the lack of sleep all impacts our bodies in different ways. When I got home at midnight on Monday night I could only think of class that I had 8 short hours from then…would I make Leandro proud? Or let everyone down...Stay tuned to find out!!! 

30 days done; 30 to go!

Have you missed me? I know, I am late on my BBL blog updates... but alas I am here and ready to spill the beans on my 30 day progress!!!

As many of you know , last Thursday I had my 30 day photo shoot for the test group. We were all put on the green and white diet that Monday, as many people were plateauing with their weight loss and therefore not losing as much as the Beach Body team had hoped. I was excited for the change in diet as I had started seeing only 2-3 lbs coming off a week, as opposed to the 8 lbs I saw melt off the first week. I also don't really miss the carbs once the 3rd day of the diet hits... It's almost as if your body gets used to not having them. The week went well and I was crushing the workouts!

lunch: grilled chicken with greens

Breakfast- egg whites

Thursday morning (aka D Day!) I arrived at the photo shoot. It was in the west village and I had the first appointment of the day; 6:30am. The day before, there was no class as Leandro had a QVC shoot to do in Pennsylvania.

Leandro says "lift the bum bum"!!!

I made sure to substitute his class with an Equinox spin class, as I didn't want to miss a workout. When I arrived at the shoot I was told we would be doing only one outfit shot, which meant they wouldn't be shooting me in the jeans that I couldn't button 30 days ago. I was a little bummed, as I wanted to see how they would fit on me, but I guess it will be that much better a month from now when I wear them for the final shoot. So into the sports bra and banana yellow boy shorts I go (eek!). Once dressed, I look in the mirror and I can tell there is a difference in how I look. My stomach is leaner and the fat that hung over the side of shorts ( aka: the muffin top) was not gone, but was certainly less severe. I was also not as self conscious about being in the scandalously clad outfit as I was 30 days ago! Once I was prepped, the photographer mimicked the poses we did on the first day and within 15 minutes the shoot was done. Next: the scale! Drum roll please.... Total weight loss since the first weigh in: 12 lbs!!! For those of you who excel in math ( and since I am not revealing my beginning weight until the end) that is a little over 8% of my total body fat that I have lost! Since I wasn't considered overweight to begin with, the people at Beach Body were very happy with my results! Not only did I drop the weight, but I look much more toned, lean and fit which is really what I was going for. Inches have been dropped from my thighs, stomach, even arms!

Thrilled with my results, I left the photo shoot with a smile on my face, ready to face the second half of the the test group program! Now my focus was on toning the "sagging" parts of me (my upper arms, my boo-tay and my stomach). But in the short term, I had my Vegas trip to think about! I was scheduled to fly out the morning after the shoot. Relieved that I had passed this milestone in the program, I now had a chance to relax and have some fun with my best friends. Viva Las Vegas!!!

Green and White!!!

That’s right, people… Starting Monday we are all going back on the green and white diet that we were put on the very first week of the program (also dubbed the Super Model Diet). This basically means the carbs they reintroduced will disappear and our diet will consist of nothing but lean white protein (egg whites, tofu, chicken and fish) and green vegetables. Everyone who has any amount of weight to lose was instructed to being the regiment again. I still have 9lbs to lose, so you can bet I signed up as soon as I could! Plus, I go to Vegas at the end of next week so I will have a nice spring in my step when I am a few pounds lighter, walking poolside in a bikini! 

Leandro scheduled a nutritionist to come in to talk to us, before class today, about what we should be eating once the program is over and how we can assimilate back into the real world. I asked her opinion on the Gluton free/Wheat free diet and she was a strong supporter. She said people have been taught that grains, corn, etc are necessary staples in the American diet and there are political motives around the campaign to encourage those foods (I totally agree!). She said one portion of carbs (whole grains) a day is sufficient if we’re trying to keep the weight off. People had a lot of other questions about dairy, soy and fruit intake. All in all it was very informative!

Carbs: the devil himself!!!

Next update to come on Monday, when we have our next weigh in. This weekend I head to the shore for the first half of the weekend and then Saturday night we come back to celebrate my friend’s birthday in the city! I’ll be toasting her with a club soda and lime. Until then!

3 weeks=11 lbs

Hi everyone! Today marked the three week point in the Brazil Butt Lift group! As you may recall, last week they did an ad-hoc weigh-in on Friday because of the bad results from last Monday. I’m happy to announce that I was down 1.5 lbs from Monday to Friday and then an additional pound was lost this weekend. That bring my total to 11 lbs lost over 3 weeks! I am 9 lbs away from my goal!!! All of the girls in class did better this week, so the scolding we endured must have made an impact! Additionally, we got a bit of great news. We are now allowed 2 shakes a week! They are delicious… the good news is they are large enough to split into 2 portions, so really I can have a treat 4 times a week, outside of “the bag”

As I mentioned, this weekend Alex and I headed down to Spring Lake to spend the weekend with his family at the beach. Saturday, wasn’t a great day for me. Once we got to the house I went right upstairs and took a nap. I was drained and lethargic all day. I was supposed to get up and work out in the city before we left for the shore and instead I over slept. The day was difficult to get through. We spent a couple hours on the beach and then came home to relax. For dinner, Alex’s brother put together a great BBQ, consisting of skirt steaks, cheeseburgers, hot dogs, sausage and peppers, asparagus and corn on the cob. It looked and smelled delicious! I, of course,didn’t participate. But I must admit I had a few asparagus! They looked so good and I figured if I was going to cheat, that would be somewhat acceptable (although they were cooked in olive oil so I shouldn’t have had any!!!)! After dinner we all took a walk to get ice cream (my favorite!!!) but I had to opt for a diet coke. But, it was so nice to see all the kids enjoy themselves and their ice cream. That night, while enjoying a cigar on the patio, Alex and I talked about how I was feeling, physically, and the mental struggles that I really just encountered/realized over this past weekend. I told him how some days are better than others as far as how I feel and what cravings I might have. So many times over the past 3 weeks I have said to myself “when I’m done with this program I am going to go here for dinner and have this to drink and make this for dinner… I can’t wait to have XYZ”. But that rationale defeats the purpose of why I am doing this! Why am I going to reward myself with food!! I certainly don’t want to go back to how I was eating/drinking before, then all of this would be for nothing. I explained to him that so much of our social lives revolve around food and drinking, especially because we live in NYC. I also admitted that I find much happiness in planning/cooking meals and picking out places for us to go for dinner. I look forward to it! Is that wrong? Is that how I got myself 20lbs overweight? If so, I better change how I view food and how I get enjoyment out of it. For one thing, eating 5 small meals a day has been great… I eat every couple of hours, there is variety and a sense of fullness (most of the time). My meals are full of delicious vegetables and lean protein, all of which I am going to start including in my diet on a regular basis once I go back to reality. Look at the salad I had today!

I’ve gotten so many compliments on how great my skin looks (I attribute this to not drinking) and how vibrant I look. And to be honest, I don’t miss drinking at all. That’s not to say I’m not going to enjoy a few cocktails once this is done, but you start to appreciate things less when you have them all the time. Is it necessary for me to have wine every night? No… a couple times a week, yes. As a treat! I think of how much better it will taste when we have it for special occasions. I told Alex I need to stop concentrating on everything I can’t have vs. how many things I do have now because of this change in my life. But I divert...

Alex and I ended up talking for a couple hours, and it made me feel so much better! I am so lucky I have him helping and supporting me through this!

Sunday, after a good night’s sleep, I felt rejuvenated! We woke up, I had my steal cut oats for breakfast and Alex and I went on a 10 mile bike ride to go pick up Crumb cake for the family in Belmar. It was so humid out, but the bike ride along the water was fabulous. After we got back, Alex enjoyed the crumb cake and I went for a 3 mile run. Then, it was off to the beach. I read some of my book, closed my eyes and relaxed for a little bit. It was wonderful! And I still managed to get a bit of a tan, even though it was overcast for most of the day.

This week, I am focused, clear headed, and my mind is on the prize. I found out today the last class we have is August 17^th, which is only one month away!!! Enough of this sulking, it’s time to kick it into high gear and start shedding these last lbs and shaping my bunda!!!

I have set a goal of 6 lbs to lose by the end of next week. That is when we having our 30-day weigh-in, measurements and photos taken. Those skin-tight jeans that they made me wear better button this time around!!! Next week is also when I got to Vegas for my very good friend’s bachelorette party! But like I told Alex, one day at a time… gotta take it one day at a time.