Still scared to get on the scale. One good day does not erase three bad days, so maybe tomorrow morning. It’s the second day of the week for me (since I took Monday off) and unfortunately I’m  already falling behind on my sleep. Personally I need at least 8 hours to be in peak mental and physical state the next day, and I can tell that my lack of sleep so far this week is affecting me in both areas. Physically I’m not recovered fully from my run yesterday. My knees, which don’t bother me anymore, don’t feel right today. My goal for today was to do two miles at the gym, which I did. I was home, showered, and in bed by 8:00. #adulting  

Day 7 (Tuesday)
Today is day 7 of the 24 day challenge and I can happily say I’m absolutely craving free! Pizza, chicken strips, ice cream, French fries, rolls… Everything I normally crave hasn’t even crossed my mind! I have absolutely no doubt that I’m going to be able to make it through this challenge without having a cheat meal (something I couldn’t have said at the beginning of this!). When I started, my one hope for this challenge was to lose my cravings. I didn’t care about losing weight, I didn’t care if I gained any energy, I just wanted my cravings to be gone. And it’s only day 7 and I’ve already accomplished that. It feels great to drive by McDonalds and not have to pull in and order something.
Not a lot of people knew this, but my binge eating habits had gotten really bad before I started this challenge. I found myself hitting more and more drive-thru’s and hiding the evidence. I was starting to feel really out of control. I had worked so hard for my body, but I wasn’t in control of it anymore. My cravings were taking over and sabatoging everything I had worked so hard for! For more than a year I’ve fought with cravings, and lost every now and then. But mostly, I was okay. But I wasn’t okay anymore, and that’s when I knew I had to make a change.
I can’t imagine myself any smaller than I am now, I guess because this is the smallest I’ve ever been. I can’t imagine myself being any leaner, any lighter on the scale… None of that. While I hope it happens, I can’t visualize that yet. But we will see!

Day 8 (Wednesday)
Really no change on day 8. Unfortunately, I started the day in an emotional slump. I didn’t start feeling better until after lunch. I forgot to take my Catalyst today before I went to the gym. Also today at the gym, I didn’t do cardio like I’ve been doing for the past few weeks. I gave myself a “day off” with a short workout (maybe 30 minutes) consisting of weighted arm and ab exercises. My next weigh in is going to be on day 11 of the 24 day challenge. This weigh in will mark the end of the cleanse phase and the beginning of the max phase. I can tell I've lost weight in the way my clothes are fitting, and I can't wait to see my final comparison photos!

Day 9 (Thursday)
According to my Fitbit, I got 6 hours and 30 minutes of sleep last night, which for me AINT SHIT. I am so low on energy today, which isn’t good, because I’m trying to finish the cleanse phase strong! I had an oil change scheduled for after work, which would normally mean no workout for me, but I decided to push myself. I went to the gym and ran 6 miles! What a great end to the cleanse phase.

Day 10 (Friday)
This morning I weighed in at 179.6. I am so proud of myself for reaching this weight. The last 10 days have been truly challenging, but I have stayed on my diet and worked out pretty consistently and it obviously shows. Even though I didn’t completely refrain from alcohol, I have still achieved amazing results.

Days 11-13 (Saturday-Monday)
Lots of alcohol, fried food, and no supplements. I suck.

Day 14 (Tuesday)
Today, I’m back in the swing of things. Despite my bad habits over the past few days, I did make time to prepare healthy meals and snacks for the week. Meals, snacks, and supplements in hand, I took today by the horns. I remembered every supplement and even ran 4 miles after work. I still have some crap in my system but I’m feeling better and better as the day goes on.

If you live in the south, you’ve heard the phrase “come hell or high water”. That’s how I felt on Friday, Day 3 of the challenge. I planned to stay on the 24 day challenge and update you guys over the weekend, come hell or high water. Well incase you didn’t know, I’m from North Houston. Which means that I’ve had both hell and high water over the past few days! For the sake of accountability, I’m gonna tell you guys alllll about it.

Day 3 (Friday) –
Stayed on my meal plan with the exception of 3 beers at the fairgrounds on Friday night. 3 beers when you’re dieting is WAY different than 3 beers when you’re not dieting. I was drunk as a skunk, but I turned down Bucees chicken strips and French fries in the name of Advocare. Hallelujah.

Day 4 (Saturday) –
Woke up Saturday morning and had my normal breakfast, followed by a late lunch at Salata about 6 hours later. I had a small salad and actually cheated a little by eating a few bites of my sister’s white roll dipped in the tomato basil soup, which I do not regret because it was amazing. Fast forward to Saturday night, I had a total of 9 beers and 3 Vegas Bombs. If I were keeping a list of the most intoxicated I’ve ever been, Saturday night would be in the top 5.

Day 5 (Sunday) –
Woke up Sunday morning surprisingly not hungover. But that’s probably because I was still a little drunk. Sunday was the “hell” part of the ‘hell or high water’ thing I mentioned earlier, for personal reasons. I was distracted on my drive home and I accidentally drove all the way to Tomball on 99, so I went to Krista’s house and drank some more. Because hell. Krista finally convinced me to shower and put on some clean clothes, which I did, and we set off to my house to meal prep and pack a bag so I could stay with her that night. While we were at my house I finally ate. I made my tuna and egg protein surprise, and holy hell why don’t I eat that every day? It was so delicious.

Day 6 (Monday) –
This is the “high water” part. It started raining Sunday night around 5:30 and it stormed until sometime Monday morning. I decided not to try to make it to work, which was the best thing I could have done. I slept until like 11am and spent the rest of day on the couch with Krista watching OITNB. I stayed on my meal plan for breakfast and lunch but I wasn’t hungry for my snack so I didn’t eat it. I eventually made my way back to my house from Krista’s and lounged around for a few hours before going to sleep.
So that’s it! That was my weekend. On Monday morning, I was feeling extra lean so I decided to weigh myself. Krista’s scale said 179.8. So on Day 6 of my 24 day challenge, I had already lost more than 13 pounds. And I feel every bit of 13 pounds lighter! If you remember, I started this challenge just trying to get rid of my cravings. I didn’t think I’d lose more than 5 pounds, if that! So my weight loss has come as a complete shock to me. This challenge is already worth every penny, and I’m only a quarter of the way done with it. I can’t wait to see where the rest of the challenge takes me!

Day 2 was another good day. I still got the same burst of energy about an hour after breakfast, but I didn’t feel it as intensely this time. I stayed pretty full during the day. I wanted to inhale the entire fridge as I was piddleing around in the kitchen making my lunch, but that’s more of a binge eating tendency than me actually being hungry or craving something. Today I did crave corn nuts! Of all the things. I eat corn nuts maybe once a year, I guess it’s corn nut time again! Lmao.

The chart has really helped me stay on track with my supplements. Speaking of supplements, I am adding Catalyst to my 24 Day Challenge starting tomorrow. As I was reading tips and tricks and reviews of the 24DC, I saw an outstanding number of people raving about Catalyst and calling it “lipo in a bottle”… This is one of the few Advocare products I’ve never tried (because lesbihonest, it sounds too good to be true!) but I’m excited to add it to my regimen. I’m going to take a dose before my workouts, so I will update you all and see if I notice a difference.

Speaking of workouts, I had an amazing workout today! I went to the gym and ended up doing WAY more than I planned on doing. I didn’t want to leave! This was the first time in a very long time where I was running around, trying new things, challenging myself. It was great! I left the gym feeling really accomplished. I knew I could have done more, but I was really looking forward to going home and going to sleep. So I did.

I’m looking forward to Day 3, as I will be adding my Catalyst. This weekend I am unsure if I need to still wake up and go to bed at the same times as during the week as to not throw off my metabolism, or if I can stay up late and sleep in as long as I continue taking my products before/with meals. Eating won’t be a challenge for me this weekend as I’m not having any cravings and I’ve been able to turn down food up to this point. (Today there was cake at work to celebrate a birthday, but I didn’t even have one piece!) I’m going to make time for the gym over the weekend and hopefully my workouts will remain high-energy like they were today. Will update soon!

Day 1 was overall a good day. I thought I was going to struggle with remembering to take the supplements before breakfast and at dinner time, so I set a silent alarm on my Fitbit to remind me. I also made a quick reference chart where I’ll be checking off the supplements I’m taking throughout the day. I keep that chart in my Erin Condren planner since I mess with it all day anyway. I didn’t forget any pills or doses yesterday, and I’ve walked away with some very valuable information and observations:

• The fiber powder I was so worried about… I shouldn’t have worried about at all. I mixed the powder and my spark in a blender bottle and took it with 10 oz of water at breakfast. I had to add another 2-3 oz about halfway through because I could tell it was thickening, but I think I actually prefer the fiber & spark to just spark! The spark is a little less bitter thanks to the fiber, which is technically unflavored, but it neutralizes it or something.
• HOLY ENERGY! About an hour after breakfast I got a massive rush of energy. I was saying “good morning” to everyone that walked past, I was giving high fives, I was smiling… It was weird. Lol. I’ve never had Spark affect me as strongly as it did yesterday. We’ll see if that stays the same or if I get used to it.
• The sleep at the end of Day 1 was the best sleep I’ve had in my entire life. I’m not exaggerating. I slept the entire night. I didn’t wake up and turn over, I didn’t reach for Justin, I didn’t have trouble falling asleep… It was weird. I fell asleep facing my desk and woke up also facing my desk. That tells me that I didn’t move all night. I slept so good and so hard that I woke up and had no idea what the time was. I thought I set a weird alarm that I had forgot about and it was actually, like, midnight. But nope! 4:45. I hopped out of bed with my swag on. I wasn’t groggy, or grumbly… I was happy!
• Went to HEB after the gym to stock up on supplies for shark week and I didn’t grab a chocolate bar like I normally do on this particular monthly shopping trip. I didn’t want chocolate at all. In fact, the only thing that sounded good were the Pistachios by the register, which I bought along with some Almonds and Cashews.

So my energy level and my sleep quality were the big shocks to me yesterday. Skirting the dreaded chocolate craving wasn’t as big of a deal to me for some reason. Day 1 of a new regimen, you don’t expect any change at all! Much less something dramatic like what I experienced. I’m excited to see where the rest of the cleanse phase takes me (:

... and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse… JK LOOK AT ME OVER HERE STIRRING! I’m going crazy! I am so damn excited to start this challenge. Here are my thoughts –

1. I probably should have done a little more research on the diet aspect of the 24DC. I wasn’t planning to change my diet at all while on the challenge, for two reasons; One, I don’t eat badly; Two, I’ve been seeing great results with my current meal plan. But as I’m researching and reading more and more reviews and experiences, I’m thinking that maaaaybe I should have included a bit more protein, and more snacks for sure. There’s always next week, I guess! Hashtag, learning experience.
2. Really not looking forward to the fiber drink in the mornings. Like, REALLY not looking forward to it. Actually completely dreading it. I’m not a chugger and I do vomit rather easily. But sincerely hoping it’s not as bad as everyone says.
3. I honestly don’t expect to lose much weight. I’ve been working out and dieting pretty consistently for at least a year, so I just can’t see myself achieving the miraculous weight loss that some people see with this program. I just don’t think there’s much of me left to lose! I say this with my fingers crossed and I hope I’m 100% wrong. But I’m a realist.
4. “they” aka random people on the internet, say that you should drink ‘plenty of water’ on this challenge. I wonder how much water “they” consider to be plenty. Because ya girl is getting at least two gallons a day.

Like I said, I’m accepting this challenge at this point of my journey to refocus myself. My cravings are pretty bad and my workouts are fairly low intensity because my energy level is low (which is my own fault – I haven’t been getting enough sleep). I don’t expect to lose more than 5 or 10 pounds. BUT. I’ve never gone more than a week without having a cheat meal or bingeing out of control, so hopefully I will be able to stay on track for the next 24 days and achieve results I’ve never seen before! I will post my starting photos and weight here for accountability reasons:

If you're interested in getting more info about the 24 Day Challenge, click here to learn more! There's still time to join my Challenge group, should you be interested.
Click here to send me an email! I normally respond pretty quickly, and it's one-on-one confidental where you can ask me anything your little heart desires.

Also, right now Advocare is running a promotion where if you purchase a 24DC, you get free shipping on your entire order. They are also including an extra box of Spark! This is really an awesome promotion, and in my time with Advocare I've never seen them run anything like this (so take advantage of it while it lasts!).
I will update you guys soon (:

The time is now! I've made up my mind, and I am going to do a 24 Day Challenge by Advocare. I decided to take on this challenge (although it will mean giving up alcohol for almost a month, brb crying) because I just CANNOT beat my cravings. I realized I had a problem yesterday when I was driving home listening to Ron White on Pandora and he said “Tator Tot” and my mouth started watering. Lol. It’s funny, but not really.

Cravings have always been a problem for me on my journey. It’s really held me back. I’ve had excellent weeks where I was able to stay on my meal plan and lose a good amount of weight, just to poison my body with fast food or something fried on the weekend. I always feel like total crap for several days after I eat something bad! And if it becomes a habit (which it always does) by the time Monday rolls around, I feel lethargic and lack energy, BIG TIME. On the other hand, on the select weeks where I don’t fall (or jump) off the wagon, I feel amazing. Give me 7 days of clean eating and I’m pretty sure I can complete a triathlon!

It’s not easy, by any means, to “just eat right”. Nearly every social outing nowadays involves either food or alcohol. It’s not something most people can avoid. And it’s even harder to beat when you’re an emotional eater, like I am. Between the emotional eating and the cravings, I’m basically screwed. And when I do give in, it affects me for days. I have zero energy, I break out, and worst of all – I crave even more bad food.

The 24 Day Challenge is something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. I always seem to have a reason to put it off, but I’ve gotten to a point where I won’t put it off any longer! Most people lose between 10 and 25 pounds on the 24 Day Challenge, so I’m also looking forward to being that much closer to my goal weight. Currently I’m around 80 pounds down from where I started last February, I my ultimate goal is to be 100 pounds down, overall, and then start building muscle and sculpting my body.

I ordered my 24 Day Challenge today, April 5th, and I am expecting it to arrive sometime tomorrow. I’m going to start my challenge either Friday or Sunday, depending on when the people in my challenge group are ready to start! #nochallengerleftbehind2016 Lol I actually just made that up but seriously – The challenge is 150X easier when you have people doing it with you. Accountability, for one, and you also get to share your success with people and see theirs!

I’m going to be posting regular updates on social media, of course, but I also plan on writing a two part blog on my experience. I don’t know what results this challenge will bring, but it can’t hurt!

If anyone is interested in participating in my 24 Day Challenge, leave a comment or send me an email. I will be happy to answer any and all questions you might have. Here are some common ones I get:

How do I order?
Go to chaneyshrinks.com and click the Advocare tab. On the upper left side click “24 Day Challenge” under ‘Shop Products By’. Then click “Create your own 24DC bundle”. From there you choose your flavors of Spark, Fiber, and Meal Replacement Shake, in addition to choosing an MNS system.

What is the best flavor of Spark?
Fruit punch. I legitimately got two boxes of fruit punch. Mango Strawberry, Green Apple, and Pink Lemonade are also pretty great.

How do I know what Fiber to get?
They are all the same price, but the unflavored is recommended because it contains the most soluble fiber. Meaning the fiber mixes better and there are less gritty pieces. Also, with the unflavored, you can mix it with you Spark or Meal Replacement Shake and hopefully you won’t even notice it.

What’s the difference in the MNS systems?
It basically boils down to this – All three are going to give you energy and help control your appetite. However, the MNS C and MNS E contain double the caffeine of MNS 3. In addition, each system specifically targets one area and improves it. For help with energy, choose MNS E. For help with cravings, choose MNS C. For help with both, choose MNS 3. I went with MNS 3 because I don’t want any extra energy at the end of the day!

How much does it cost?
With shipping, the 24 Day Challenge is around $200. However, consider the following:

• You get 14 days of Meal Replacement Shakes in your 24 Day Challenge. If you had been spending $5 a day for that meal, that’s $70 still in your pocket. If your replaced meal was more like $10 a day, you’re saving $140 over the course of two weeks.
• You get 24 days of “wake up” drink. For some people it’s coffee, for some people it’s soda. Let’s say you spend $2 a day on coffee or a soda from the vending machine or gas station – That’s another almost 50 bucks you aren’t going to have to spend over the course of 3 weeks.
• Consider the 24 Day Challenge to be an investment into yourself. If you were going to a job interview, you would buy a nice dress or pant suit, maybe splurge on a manicure or a haircut to make sure you put your best foot forward. That is investing in yourself! The 24 Day Challenge is also an investment. Not only does this program have the potential to give you more energy, but think about how much happier and confident you would be if you lost, say, 15 pounds. I know I’ve personally been in the situation of saying “I’d go over there if I looked sexier” or “I’d raise my hand in the meeting if I more confident”.