24 Day Challenge - Day 1

Advocare 24-Day Challenge

Day One 

Let me start this off by first introducing how I got involved in this 24-day challenge.  My husband was intrigued by the company, Advocare, and their values.  He also had put in some research into their products and compared them with other similar companies.  So, now he is an Advocare distributor (here's his site) and started his 24-day challenge 6 days ago.  He has already lost 2" off his waist and 4 pounds, has enjoyed the food and is feeling great.   

The largest misconception I have seen with the challenge is that most people think it's one of those meal replacement shake diets.  Actually, it's not!  You learn to eat clean food at regular intervals to stabilize your metabolism.  You eat plenty of food, and take supplements for the other nutrients your body needs.  It's a great plan and will help me and my husband begin eating better for the rest of our lives.  So, keep reading to see how I have progressed through the first day of the 24-day challenge.  The key to this challenge's success is preparation and planning.  I'll do a separate post on how to prep to be successful. 

The first day can be pretty intimidating, especially if you're not used to eating breakfast or having much liquid in the morning.  Luckily, I am used to making breakfast, but still drinking water and lots of it is difficult for me to do that early.
With that said, I was pleasantly surprised with Advocare's products as they were tasty and easy to stomach.  Here's how it went:

Morning Schedule:
4:30 a.m. - Got up to get ready for work.

5:30 a.m. - Drank Fruit Punch flavor Spark.  It was delicious and is my favorite flavor so far.  (I've tasted Cherry and Watermelon so far)

6:05 a.m. - Took fish oil supplement and drank the fiber drink.  It actually wasn't gross or hard to drink.  I may sound surprised because it looks like a gel with malt-o-meal in it.

6:35 a.m. - Ate breakfast.  This consisted of a fried egg (used coconut oil, butter is a no-no at this stage), whole wheat toast with a thin layer of peanut butter, and half a sliced up apple.  Drinking the Spark and fiber drink, I already felt full, but I managed to eat all but a little of the toast and a couple slices of apple.

Snack 1:
I had a small snack around 9:30 a.m. that consisted of homemade trail mix.  I picked up bulk walnuts, almonds and raisins from the grocery store and mixed in high-quality organic dark chocolate that I chopped up.

Lunch:
Salad with clean chicken fajita mix (recipe made from the 24-day challenge cookbook) and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. 

Snack 2: 
I had packed celery and carrots, so I had a serving of the veggies with a tablespoon of Adam's peanut butter. 

Dinner: 
I had prepared the chicken breasts the night before so they could marinade all night & day.  I used the Zesty Chicken Marinade in the Challenge's cookbook.  THIS WAS SOOO GOOD!!!  I had cooked up some quinoa and steamed broccoli on the side.  I love to drizzle balsamic vinegar over the broccoli and quinoa. 

What I noticed today:
The Spark left me alert and more awake than my 1 - 2 cups of coffee do.  I had a morning full of meetings and was able to stay awake and was able to think through issues, hold deeper conversations, and focus more on my work.  I had no crash, which would normally happen right after lunch. 

I also was pretty full throughout the day.  I normally get shakes every 2-3 hours and am starving.  This was not the case today.  So, for day 1, I am pleasantly surprised and pleased.