I’m excited to share my experience and results from combining 80 Day Obsession with 2B mindset and running!
Emotional Eating in Quarantine
During the quarantine, I had been using food and alcohol to cope with my emotions – more alcohol, LOTS of sugar, baking cookies weekly with the kids as a “fun activity,” busting out some old comfort food recipes that I hadn’t made in years (green chile chicken enchiladas, yum!!), justifying indulgent take out to support a local restaurant. At times it was an emotional roller coaster dealing with all of the unknown, the fear of how the virtus would impact so many lives,
And it caught up to me. There were some nights that I couldn’t fall asleep, my stomach upset and my head starting to pound. I had been eating too much, til I felt stuffed at times. I’ve been justifying ice cream or chocolate most nights and drinking more nights than not. In the moment it somehow made me feel better – comforted. But then I paid for it with my digestion, energy level, sleep, mood and how I feel during my runs.
It was not easy to admit. I have struggled with emotional eating much of my life and I have come very far. But the emotional turbulence and anxiety I experienced due to uncertainty around the pandemic has brought back some old habits.
At one point, I was on a run listening to an inspiring podcast, and I contemplated making a change. But then I talked myself out of it. Would I be able to cope in quarantine without as much alcohol and comfort foods? What if I told you and my clients that I was going to commit with them but I wasn’t strong enough to stick to it?
But, I pushed that voice aside because it IS worth it to feel great,to sleep better, to have more energy and be in a better mood for my kids! I want to feel good in my skin and run faster!
And when I mentioned this to a few other women, they were all feeling the EXACT SAME way. I knew I had to create an accountability group that was nutrition focused and I had to go all in myself and be the leader for my clients!
2B Mindset
Although I had lost 30 pounds with the color-coded portion containers from Portion Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix, I was ready to try something new. 2B Mindset is a nutrition program from Beachbody that utilizes principles rather than measurements or portion control. Principles include drinking 16 oz of water before each time you eat (“Water First”), not eating after dinner (“Dinner and Done”) and veggies filling most of your plate at lunch and dinner (“Veggies Most.”) I found 2B Mindset more simple to understand, prepare for, and follow than Ultimate Portion Fix.
I can’t say how my weight loss would differ using the two programs since this time I was not needing/wanting to lose a significant amount of weight. I will say that since the rules are “looser” I went off plan more often than I would with Ultimate Portion Fix. As a runner, I find 2B Mindset better since I could eat more food on days when I ran harder and not worry about “going over” my containers. It felt more flexible and was less time consuming as well.
Our accountability group last month had more of a focus on nutrition, which meant that many of us were following either 2B Mindset or Ultimate Portion Fix. In addition to making the content in my group more focused on nutrition, I posted a daily check in where people could post their food log (we have a free app called the Nutrition + app that allows you to track!). This extra accountability really made the difference for me in moments when I wanted to eat the kids mac and cheese or goldfish! I knew if I ate it, I’d have to log it and share it. And of course there were times that I had treats like pizza and ice cream – I want to maintain balance! I just ate fewer of these things than I had been.
Cutting Back on Alcohol
One thing that helped a lot was drinking less. I had gotten into a habit of drinking most nights – after long days of parenting 3 kids 4 and under with no childcare in sight – I turned to alcohol to relax. While I didn’t want to cut it out completely, I tried to set goals of nights/week that I would drink -usually 3 nights.
A couple things that helped me. First was to exercise in the afternoon just before dinner – this dramatically reduced my cravings, but was also a tough time to fit in a quality workout unless my husband could watch the kids.
The second thing that helped me reduce alcohol cravings and drink less was a tea called Sobrietea! This organic tea has all natural ingredients that suppress alcohol cravings and help you relax and it tastes good! I usually drink it hot but for summer I plan to brew some iced tea!
80 Day Obsession
I chose 80 Day Obsession as my workout program of choice for a few reasons: it is VERY leg and glute focused which is great for a running “off season” . With no races in the near future (besides my next virtual race!) and plan to run a full marathon as soon as I can, I want to build a strong foundation with my legs now to set me up for future success. I’ve been wanting to do 80 Day Obsession again but because Beachbody keeps coming out with other programs I want to try, I’ve never been able to find a window that I could get it in.
I finished up 10 Rounds in May and the next new launch of the new MBF program (Muscle Burns Fat) isn’t until July so it felt like now or never!! Unlike the first time I did 80 Day Obsession, I decided NOT to skip any workouts this time last time I skipped the two cardio workouts) and complete the entire 80 workouts along with 3 runs per week. If you’d like to see the schedule I previously created for modifying 80 Day Obsession with running, go to that blog post here.
Doing 6 hard, and often 1 hour, workouts per week AND 3 runs has been a challenge but one that I feel ready and excited for. There have been days where I am tired but drinking my post workout supplement, Recover, has been key to helping me recover for my workouts and Energize helps me give each workout my all (I am loving the new Mixed Berry flavor!)
2B Mindset & 80 Day Obsession Phase 1 Results
After 4 weeks, I was amazed by the change in my body!! I feel fantastic and as fit as I’ve ever been!
I lost 3 inches (1 inch from waist, 1 inch from hips, ½ inch chest, ½ inch thighs) and 3 pounds in 4 weeks. I noticed a significant increase in my endurance and strength in 4 weeks – I was lifting heavier weights, push-ups felt easier, and I was less winded. I would even say that Cardio Flow felt like an active recovery day to me rather than a workout (which helps since I do it on Sundays after my long run!).
Join an Accountability Group & Work With Me
I host monthly accountability groups specifically for runners who want to include Beachbody programs in their running routine. Whether that is 80 Day Obsession or a program with shorter workouts like Morning Meltdown 100 or fewer workouts like LIIFT4, I can help you find the best fit for you. If you need support with your nutrition, I can help you choose between 2B Mindset or Ultimate Portion Fix based on your goals.
If you’d like to get information on the next group, please fill out the form below!
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