Beachbody Ultimate Reset

Day 2, Initial Thoughts

I'm a skeptic, but the eating plan is certainly effective. There's just no way you could NOT see results with the clean eating this cleanse requires. Are the supplements worth the high cost? I don't know yet, but the price tag certainly motivates me to stick to the meal plan as closely as I can manage! My reasons for doing the Reset are simple:

1. My diet has gone to total seed, and I've got to get it back on track.
2. My GI hasn't been normal and happy for some time (see reason #1).
3. I really don't like how I've felt physically: really sluggish and bloaty (see reason #1).
4. I've packed on enough extra fat to accentuate my pear-shape, and I hate both how it looks and, more importantly, how it makes me feel when I'm trying to train or race (see reason #1).

The plan is only for 21-days, and is not a horribly restrictive one. Basically, you cut out dairy and red meat the first week (and caffeine), and the next two weeks are essentially eating a vegan diet. While doing this, you also drink a lot of water, probably more than most people are used to doing.

I dropped the milk a few days out from starting the plan, but indulged in some last-chance cheese a couple of times. I also went without coffee two days in a row in a sort of "trial run". It was tough, but I survived. The plan officially started yesterday morning.

So far, here's what I've observed:

• If you drink a big-ass glass of water and force yourself to wait 30 minutes to eat, you don't eat as much.
• If you don't drink liquids with your meal, you don't eat as much.
• If you then force yourself to wait at least 2 hours before repeating this cycle, you don't eat as much.

In addition, knowing that I have a two-hour wait before the next eating opportunity, be it a snack or a meal, means I have to put real thought and planning into my day's menu. The Reset package comes with a really great little book with meals outlined for every day, but every day's schedule doesn't quite align with yours, so you have to think about it and plan accordingly.

For example, breakfast in Week 1 alternates between oatmeal or eggs/steamed kale. Factor in that you can only eat AFTER drinking the glass of water/supplements and waiting 30 minutes, and your morning routine can become a shambles. Yesterday I drank my water and went to my regular trainer session at the gym, then came home and had oatmeal. Today I didn't have any early-morning appointments, and had time to scramble the eggs and steam the kale, and prepare most of my workday's food while waiting for the 30-minutes to pass.

Because I am used to grazing pretty much non-stop, the most difficult part of this is the waiting between meals. I also realize that at least part of this struggle is due to sitting at a desk all day staring at a computer (I do better with physical distractions). Thankfully the weather has been conducive to mid-day walks, and that's going to help break up the constant "feed me" signals from the brain.

Beachbody recommends you lay off strenuous exercise for the 21 days it takes to complete this thing, due to the changes in diet/calorie restrictions. I did a nice short open water swim last night (1500 yards) and felt really good for the rest of the night. Today I'll walk some; tomorrow is a massage. Some people report feeling sluggish, but I haven't had that yet. Any fuzziness is likely due to the lack of coffee/caffeinated products, and seems to pass by early afternoon.

I'm traveling for four days starting this Thursday evening. It'll be a real challenge to stick to the plan while traveling, but I'm convinced it can be done. I'll just be eating in grocery stores more than restaurants, most likely, and ordering lots of steamed veggies while everyone else mows down on really good Tex-Mex. But it's worth it to see exactly how effective this thing is.

Now for the hard part: posting pictures. Here are some photos I took this morning (this pains me as much as it pains you). I know, it would have been more ideal to take them yesterday before starting, but I didn't have time. I don't expect any huge visible results at the end of this thing, but I DO expect to feel 100% better!