Who just want to have a healthy LIFESTYLE?!

It is the last week of my 60 day PiYo journey. Wow, I can not believe how fast the time has gone! I will write the overall results and feelings about the program next week (almost there!--- but PS: this has been an incredible experience.

My post tonight is about some thoughts I had when getting out of the shower tonight. Yea, I know, random.

I thought to myself "how many people just want to have a healthy lifestyle?  No crossfit junkies, no bodybuilding-steriod pumping lovers, no hungry-angry dieters! But people who genuinely want to lose weight, be HAPPY AND HEALTHY, but do not want the time constraint of spending 5 hours at the gym and endless amounts of money on supplements and personal trainers." I bet a lot of us do!

I know I do! I want to do the minimal amount of work possible to feel and look incredible. Call me "efficient" but I want to be smart with MY time and MY life. I have spent countless hours and YEARS at the gym, trying to sculpt my body. With little to no changes. Like how frustrating!!! After doing PiYO, drinking Shakeology and following the PiYo eating plan, I feel stronger in 2 months than I have in 7 years. WHAT!!! I also eat MORE than I have EVER and I am losing weight. WHAT! (Does anyone else hear Lil John yelling "what!" or is that just me...)

I have not been to the gym once (yay no gym membership fees!) No supplements. No calorie counting. Is it too a hoax? But this is MY chance to have a personal trainer, AT MY HOME, telling me what to eat and how to workout...and it has never felt so good!

Earlier, say around 3 months ago, when I really started thinking about strengthening my body, I reached out to a old high school friend. She is a professional fitness competitor. I said to her "Hey! I am thinking about competing, could I get more information from you." Her response " This is not for everyone...it is really expensive...it takes up a lot of your time and is really tough...you can talk to my trainer if you want..." HARD PASS. Like what is that? It is expensive, takes a lot of your time and money... I mean what is that!

This is why I love Beachbody. I have only been with the company for a little over 3 months...but I am head-over-heels about EVERYTHING this company represents--the products and the profession. As a coach, I work day after day just TALKING TO PEOPLE AND SUPPORTING PEOPLE. That's right... I have an opportunity for an insane amount of income to talk to people about living a healthy and happy life through fitness. LIKE HOW CRAZY IS THAT! WHAT A BLESSING!!!!


If you want to change your LIFESTYLE, please connect with me or a coach that you know. This is an amazing feeling to have and you want to feel this way <3

email me @  andrealyss@beachbodycoach.com

Eating clean does not have to be boring! - chocolate mousse with avocado?

Truths about me----

#1 I throw out WAY too much food as it is (this is something my husband and I are really working on. Throwing out food is throwing out $$$ !!!)
#2 I am "eating clean" for 60 straight days
#3 I have a love of chocolate

So this leads to a mouth-watering experience 

I have almost been skeptical of desserts consisting of avocado. It just did not make sense to me!!!

 I do not know about you, but I buy avocados and do not use them in time so they always go bad on me! I decided to try out this recipe tonight...

It tastes just like chocolate mousse!!!! It curbed my sweet tooth! I was also able to get some healthy fat (avocado) and fruit (banana) servings into my belly! Yay for multi-tasking!!! This is a must try for ANYONE WHO IS TRYING TO EAT HEALTHY BUT LOVES CHOCOLATE!!! (YEP, THAT IS EVERYONE.)

I am so interested in finding healthy alternatives to desserts..especially since the holidays are coming up! Who is going to be busy on pinterest for the next week??...THIS GIRL.

wake up!

Have you ever had a wake up call? Not the annoying snooze button in the morning, but a wake up call for YOUR LIFE?

Maybe you had just lived through an "almost horrible" accident. Maybe you lost a dear loved one and their passing awakened you. Maybe the birth of your child made you realize the priorities in life. Maybe you lost a job. Maybe it is looking in the mirror and you are wondering where all that weight has come from...

Everybody has a story. Not everybody has a wake up call.

My grandmother recently passed in May, 2014. She put up a really good and strong fight, but the Lord was ready to take her. She had lost the battle with COPD. She taught me to live for the Lord and to love family. I was saddened by her passing... to know that one day someone is here and the next day they aren't is just something that is so bazaar to me. I like to think that her strength and fiesty-ness can be found in me. Her passing into heaven was certainly a wake up call to me.

Ok so let us move on to something not so dramatic right?!

The wake up call for my fitness journey happened about 1.5 months ago. I was participating in a coach's conference with Beachbody. And obviously (to no one's surprise) we all worked out together afterwards! We were lucky enough to try a new fitness program that is yet to be released (coming soon--it is incredible!!!).

During the workout, I felt weak. I specifically remember doing these "punching" moves and literally feeling like my arms were weak little stretchy stubs like the arms of Stretch Armstrong (reference 1980s children's toy.) I was embarrassed. I was angry!!! I have been working out for YEARS so why do I feel like this?!?! I felt unhealthy. I decided right then and there that I was going to bust my butt for a healthier me! And I decided to change....just like that!

So what has been your wake up call? 


One of my dear friends from work recently had a heart attack. He smoked cigarettes for +30 years, drank multiple caffeine drinks (not coffee), drank lots of alcohol almost daily, and surely did not eat healthy by any means. He now has 2 stints in his heart.  The doctors told him that one more cigarette could possibly burst his heart. He must attend physical therapy. I told him " I am excited for you. You have a second chance at life! You have a new beginning!!!" He agreed...not for himself...but for his children. See, his young boy was the one who had to call the ambulance to tell them that his dad was having a heart attack. The little boy could not leave his dad's side for 3 days for fear that he would lose him forever...


Everything that happens to you is part of God's plan. I have learned to truly listen and reflect on things that happen to me. If I listen and pray, I know that God will lead me.

Halloween edition: why is eating clean so terrifying?

Halloween is nearing, the candy is lining the aisles of the grocery store, caramel apples are dropping from the trees and pumpkin donuts are lining the stomachs of every human in America (Gosh, I love this time of year!!)  

Inspired by this seasonal time of year, I want to address something that people find scary... it is called...eating clean (cue spooky music now!)

A few people have voiced their concerns regarding my clean-eating and fitness journey. They say things like "brussels sprouts? Is that all you are going to eat?" or "you aren't going to get too skinny, are you? You are already tiny" along with "you probably can't work out like you used to with your new eating plan." They almost have a nervous, cautious, righteous, scared sound in their voice yet also sound supportive at the same time. Most people bring up an after-thought that goes something like this " I have just heard that when people do these types of things, they do not eat and become really unhealthy..."

I am prone to the super-sarcastic and reactive statement "ohh that fatty hamburger? Is that all you are going to eat?!??!?!" but that is not what I am here to do. I am not here to judge people or condescend their lifestyles. I am here to inspire, motivate and educate! 

I use this as an opening to speak about what I am doing. People, I am not starving myself! That can not be farther from the point. I probably eat more often than most! I do not have the "starved" feeling. I am actually putting more nutrients in my body than EVER BEFORE. And it feels incredible!!!! My body is loving this. I am not depriving myself of anything that is not beneficial to my body. Am I depriving myself from chocolate chip cookies. Hmm, yes! But really, think the next time you indulge in a 500 calorie brownie...how do you feel afterwards? Do you feel good? Did that brownie fill that empty hole in your stomach or that anxiety about that test? 

Before this journey, I ate fairly healthy. But every Friday, I allowed myself to eat a Big Mac. Honestly, after stuffing my face with a Big Mac, Diet Coke and fries, I really did not feel that great. I actually felt pretty let down that it did not taste as good as I thought it would. 

It is not my goal to become stick-thin (hello, that is disgusting. And this girl likes to eat and loves her butt!!) My goal is to gain muscle and tone it up! I am working my butt off (literally..it is not so flabby anymore but still has that bubble) to be stronger.

And this journey is not going to last just 60 days. I already plan on doing P90x after this! I may not be as "hardcore" after these 60 days (I am almost up to the half way point... what what!!)  Disclaimer: I will eat what I want on Thanksgiving (but remember PORTIONS people! Eating a whole turkey and half a pie is not on my list) and you KNOW I will be enjoying some wine when these 60 days are up  (I will admit, I miss wine every once in a while). 

If you do not want to change your fitness program, ok! It does not hurt my feelings.
 If you do not want to eat healthier, ok!  I am going to keep sharing my journey and living a healthy and happy life. 

But I believe that we can always improve ourselves. It may be the ADHD in me but I love new challenges!!! 

**I will always be strengthening my relationship with Jesus.
* I will always be growing and renovating my body, my mind and my soul. 
* I will always be a devoted wife and work every single day on my marriage with my amazing and loving husband. 

I encourage you to reach out to me to find out exactly what I am doing! Beachbody gives resources upon resources to me so that I can do this in a healthy and inspiring way!! 

My only regret.... I wish I would have done this sooner.

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My next blog will be a deeper look into my fitness program (Piyo).
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Let me just point out that I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! WHEN PEOPLE APPROACH ME TO TALK ABOUT HEALTH AND FITNESS. ( I can not say this enough about how blessed I am to have the opportunity from God to be a Beachbody coach. It is simply amazing, but is very, very hard work that just comes naturally to me! ) But honestly, the reason why I am doing what I do is to educate/inspire/motivate and hold people accountable for the positive changes in their lives. It is insanely  addicting and truly makes my soul smile.  

Day 2: If I am not feeling too hot, I shave my legs

You know the feeling you get before you get sick? Like you think tomorrow you are going to wake up with the "cold shakes" and a sore throat? Yea, that is me today.

It could be a mix of things.

I just went back to work after 2 blissful, incredible, happy, fabulous weeks off for my wedding (PS My wedding was the BEST NIGHT OF MY LIFE. I will forever be wed to the perfect man for me. I am so blessed!) During my time off, I would sleep in till 730a-8a, leisurely eat breakfast, possibly work out, watch some movies with Cooper (my dog), take Cooper on walks, go the library, and work lots and lots for my home business. Ohh yea, and actually hang out with my man. We work opposite schedules so we do not get to spend a lot of time together during the week. I love my husband and would love to spend more time with him. But I will enjoy the time that I can get! All in all, those two weeks were amazing!

Although I love waking up early (insert coffee cup into hand immediately!), I do not like waking up to go to corporate work. Call me crazy, but I would rather wake up early on a weekend day than a week day. So to say the least, my schedule is off a bit due to my Monday reality check. Do not get me wrong, I am blessed to have a paycheck!

My job is also a tad bit stressful. It is a lot of multitasking (no wait it is all multitasking). I deal with high volume, high emotions. Everyday is a struggle to keep a positive attitude. But it is a must!

Mind you, I get stressed out about everything! I get stressed out over computers, windows, cherry trees... you name it! It is one of the things I like least about myself. I have a certain way that I want everything to happen. If it does not go exactly as planned, I get so frustrated. I also have a strong desire to be the best. At everything. This is true for work as well.

What has helped TREMENDOUSLY is relying on the Lord for my troubles. I am a control freak. But I can not control everything! HE can! I have learned the power of prayer and the strength of our Lord!

My body might be in shock due to my new healthy eating habits. I let myself "enjoy" the bad foods of life last week (wedding cake, fast food, chicken wings, chocolate, brownies, pizza, you name it!) Please note: I will allow myself to eat a unrestricted meal once or twice a week during my 60 days.  But if I am going to follow this meal "to a T," my meals are very clean with little to no breads.

With my new eating lifestyle, I am "restricted" to 1200-1399 calories a day. Yes, you read that right. I can eat 5x a day of the following:
4 servings of primary vegetables
2 servings of secondary vegetables
2 servings of fresh fruit
4 servings of lean protein
3 servings of healthy fats

I was nervous that I would lack energy. I actually feel great so far (hunger-wise)! The only part that is upsetting is when I look at my little plastic baggy of 21 peanuts and realize that is all I can eat for 3 servings of healthy fats. You should see how little 21 peanuts look in a sandwich bag!!

So with the schedule change and going back to work, my body has felt a lil under the weather. So when I got home from work, I ate my Snack #2, did a 30min core workout, took a shower and shaved my legs.

I feel better already.