Day 41: Aunt Flo comes for a visit!

First off, if you are a guy or a close relative, this post might be too much information. There may be stuff in here you never wanted to know about me. That being said, I shall forge on, sharing my story in hopes that it will help others with similar backgrounds and situations achieve their goals and fight their health problems. You have been warned.

I am going to start with a little history. When I was about 11 years old, almost 12, I had my first period. Then I never had another one. I had no clue that wasn't normal. I started gaining a lot of weight. I had horrific acne, migraines, and mood swings. If you saw my school picture by the 7th grade, you wouldn't know whether to laugh or cry. I look awful. It finally occurred to my mom that she hadn't heard anything about periods or bought me products in quite some time. We went to see Doctor Condrey and she did some lab work. It came out that I had only had one period ever. They gave me a shot of provera and sent me to an OBGYN. The OBGYN put my on birth control pills. I can remember her telling me I had PCOS, but not to worry, I would be able to have children someday easily. I was about 13 years old.

I dropped from a size 13 to a size 8 that summer, and by the end of 8th grade, was a size 4. I looked like a totally different person. You would not believe the physical changes that occurred between 7th and 8th grade. I never thought about being on The Pill again until I turned 18 and started reading newer studies on PCOS. I decided I didn't want a pill to mask my symptoms, I wanted to try to correct my hormonal imbalances. That's when I saw an OBGYN and was started on Metformin ER 2000 mg daily, and aldactone 100 mg daily. At first those worked great. Then I started having a brief period every 2 weeks, then nothing. I had to cycle in packs of birth control pills to bring my hormone levels back down to normal, have a period, and control my acne. I was on Acutane. I had horrible facial hair growth. I plucked my face daily. They increased my aldactone. I tried adding bio-identical progesterone therapy. Nothing worked, and I still had to take birth control pills or provera every so often to have a period.

I got married and knew we would have difficulty having a baby. Since we dated for 5 years, we decided to not prevent having a baby, but not exactly try either. A year went by with nothing but super high testosterone levels, coupled with classically low progesterone levels. I had horrible carbohydrate and sugar cravings. I would crave chocolate chip cookies. I would double the recipe on the bag and we would sit on the couch and eat cookies until our bellies hurt. This became a weekly occurence. We did CrossFit, but I never really lost my flab. Eventually I just felt too tired to even work out. I was able to take 5 and 6 hour naps on any given day. I never felt like I wasn't exhausted. I tried to eat low carb meals to change the vicious cycle I knew I was in. I never even felt like I had eaten a meal if there were no carbohydrates or starches. There was no satiety.

I visited an OBGYN. She gave me clomid and provera. I would take the provera, then start the clomid on day 3-7. Every cycle of clomid ended with no period, despite taking provera. I had to take a month's worth of birth control in between to restart the cycle. 60-90 days would go by with nothing unless I took a full course of BC pills to regulate and restart.

I was tired, fat, miserable, and sad. Stu and I discussed how far into the fertility treatments we would go, as our insurance does not cover infertility. We decided if it came to in-vitro, we would just adopt. I prayed a lot. I still do.

I posted something on facebook about PCOS, and thankfully my friend Amanda saw my post and called me. She too had once had PCOS. Once had? Yes, it was gone now thanks to her lifestyle change and Isagenix. Would I mind speaking to another friend of hers that struggled with infertility and used Isagenix with great success? Of course I would. I would try ANYTHING to have a baby. I was so tired of feeling horrible. Tired of all the rotten parents that seemed to get pregnant with a passing breeze and didn't care about their children one iota, when I wanted one so badly to love and raise in a Godly home. I was desperate.

I started my Isagenix. The metformin started making me sick while I was on the system, so I just stopped taking it. I ran out of aldactone before I had ever started and decided not to refill it. What have I got to lose? I gave Isagenix my all. I have avoided fruit, excess sugar, and anything not paleo, including breads and pasta. I eat white meat and lots of vegetables. I did my scheduled deep cleanses. No more, no less. I gained back more energy. I started working out again. I lost 8 pounds and 16.5 inches from around my body in the first 30 days.

Today is day 41. I woke up to a period this morning. Not just any period, but the first one my body has produced on it's own with out medication since that one a long long time ago when I was 11. My first natural period in over 15 years, and the second I have ever had in my life. This, my friends, is an amazing feat. In just 6 weeks, this nutrition has reprogrammed my body. It has battled my insulin resistance. It has cleared up my skin. It has given me tons of energy, and stopped my cravings. I feel so excited about this, because a regular period is also a strong sign of ovulation. Isagenix has given me hope again! It has changed my body from the inside out. How powerful of a nutrition system must it be to undo 15 years of damage and imbalance in 6 weeks? How incredible!

I am very excited to see what the next few weeks brings. Hopefully, a sweet baby to go with my new attitude, energy, and muscles!

Think of all the amazing things this program could do for you! What if you gave up your excuses and tried it for 30 days? I am a firm believer in the Isagenix products now, and am a true testament to their value and success. If you want to start your success story, message me today! You will have nothing but good things to say!  How will you feel and look on September 25th. Will you be more energetic? Thinner? More muscular with beautiful, clear skin? HEALTHIER? Or will you still taking blood pressure pills? Dealing with diabetes?  Still be trying to find an easy fix for your fatigue, complaining about your pants being too tight and not liking your body? Join me today. You have nothing but weight, toxins, and fatigue to lose, and EVERYTHING to gain!

It's been 30 days!

I have been on the Isagenix system now for 30 days, and I still love it! I have been avoiding breads, starchy foods like potatoes, sugar, fruit, and dairy. I haven't "cheated" one time, though Stu and I are planning a couple of cheat meals next weekend. People that haven't seen me in several weeks have been telling me how great I look and commenting on the weight I have lost, and how clear my skin is.  I lost a total of 8 pounds, and shed 16.5 inches from around my body, including 3 inches from my abdomen, and 2 inches from my waist. I am very happy with my results!

I had mentioned before about writing down my goals for 90 days at a time, and achieving them. When I make progress on my goal, I write that event and the date in my goal journal. That's one of the best things about Isagenix. It can literally help you achieve almost any goal! One of my goals was to get better at Crossfit. In order to ensure my success, I signed up for a team competition in October. It is going to be tough, and I have a lot of improving to do, but I am very excited to improve and bulk up! Maybe in another 30 days I will be showing all of you my big muscles!

Stu has also done well with the program. He lost 27.5 inches from around his body, including 4 inches from his abdomen, 3 inches from his chest, and 3 inches from his waist. He lost all of this despite not being very strict with the program, and having "cheats" weekly. Above all, though, he does feel much healthier and plans on continuing the program. Let's face it, lifestyle changes are not easy! Hopefully together both of us can continue changing our bad habits for healthy ones!

My mom has started the system, and she is doing amazing! By day 5 she had lost 8 pounds and 25 inches from around her body! This includes 3 inches off her abdomen, and 2.5 inches from her waist! I am really proud of her for changing her life for the better, taking charge, and living! She has so much energy now, and already feels incredible, despite only being 1 week into the program. I cannot wait to see the huge transformation! She also hopes to lose a few prescriptions along the way as well.

I cannot say enough good things about this system and how it is changing my life. It is helping me meet my fitness goals and my financial goals. I am in awe of how easily it works and how great I feel!

If you have any questions for me, or want more information about how you can transform your life with Isagenix, please feel free to message or email me. I promise you will absolutely not regret it, and my promise is backed up by a 30 day money back guarantee!

Day 21: Feeling unstoppable!

I have this system down pat!

It is so easy to mold all my shakes and meals around my preferences and schedule. I have absolutely zero desire to cheat. I did in the beginning, not anymore! I feel like pizza would gag me, and I know I would feel horrible after I ate anything unhealthy. I am just so motivated by how much success I am having with my fitness goals!

Last night Stu and I measured each other. Weird type of bonding, I know! I am down 12 inches from around my body! I was a size 4 to begin with, so that is HUGE for me! I also weighed myself at work and am down 4 lbs! Two different people asked me today if I had lost weight and told me how good I look! They say with a diet, it takes about 6 weeks for outsiders to notice your achievements. It only took 3 weeks! Stu is down 20 inches! That is amazing! He looks fantastic! He isn't too big on sharing his progress pictures just yet, but that is ok.  His skin is smoother, face is slimmer, I can wrap my arms around him so easily now, it's just wonderful!

Tonight I had a different non scale victory as well. This is the first time in months, almost a year, that I have felt awesome during a CrossFit workout. I wanted to do the workout, I was excited to go heavier and get my strength back, and I rested less often. It was fantastic! I want so badly to be even better at CrossFit than I was before I stopped going regularly. I would love to be at a competitor's level. I don't think I would ever care to compete at the Games or anything, just local fun stuff with less stress ;) It feels so great to be back at the gym!

The last few nights I have done an evening cleanse at bedtime. I am hoping the extra cleanse, though not a deep cleanse, will help regulate my system faster and allow me to feel even better.

My team leader, Amanda got me a cute little notebook to write down ideas, goals, and dreams. I have started writing down my 90 day goals. I wrote down the bible verse I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me. I know I can achieve my goals with Christ. He has put them on my heart, and I cannot wait to work hard to make them a reality! Things like getting all A's in nursing school and getting out of debt are big dreams for me. I also wrote that I wanted to read my Bible to Samuel by 90 days. I am in Joshua now. Slowly I will cross my goals off. I will write down my praises for his blessings and my success. He will lay new goals on my heart, and I will achieve those also. Every day is a new day to make life happen! I am happy to take charge and do just that!

My mom will be starting her Isagenix journey next week, and I couldn't be more excited. She has literally been trying to lose weight my whole life. I just want her to find peace, achieve her goals, be health, and be happy. I look forward to what the next 30 day pack will bring, for us, for her, and for the others I will share with about this life changing product!

Days 9-12 Shake Days, Days 13-14 Cleanse Days, Day 15 Shake Day

We are Halfway through our first 30 days!

I apologize for being lazy about blogging! Last week I had work classes during the day and finals at night. Friday night I went down to Mom and Dad's to spend time with my niece and nephew before they go home to Alabama to go back to school. We swam at the spring, had a scavenger hunt outside after dinner (I had my delicious IsaLean Pro shake!), and stayed up late watching an old episode of the Hardy Boys on Netflix. The next morning we woke up early and went to a conservation area that keeps a well stocked catfish pond for kids to fish in. It is catch and release. Both of the kids got fish.  After that I came back home to get back to work. 

Monday and Tuesday we had our last deep cleanse of the month. I will miss them until next month, but I am glad I can workout more in the next few weeks and really tone up. I can tell I have lost inches, as I am able to wear pants I haven't fit into for about a year! I also have seen a lot of encouraging posts recently from other women with PCOS that have had normal cycles 1-3 months into their Isagenix journey. That really excites me, as I am doing this primarily to overcome my PCOS and have a baby, but also to tone up and be healthy. 

I never used to have energy. Any time of the day I felt like I could lay down and take a nap! And by nap, I would sleep 4-6 hours and then go to bed that night as normal. I was zapped. I was also very cranky and moody. I am sure Stu appreciates the nicer, better me that Isagenix has allowed me to become!

It is amazing what your body can do when given the right tools! It can repair damage, cleanse itself of toxins, and reduce inflammation resulting in weight loss, more energy, better skin, and a new you! I love that this program is tasty and so easy to follow. Everyone is encouraging. I wish I had started months ago! 

Here are my before and after pictures. Just think, I still have 15 more days left in my 30 day challenge! The picture in the white bra is day 1 and the picture in the blue bra is day 15.

The picture from the back, to me is most impressive. You can't suck in back fat! I love that I don't have extra rolls under my bra anymore!

Recently I have been trying to write down my goals so I can achieve them. The thought comes to mind, what can I accomplish in the next 90 days? And in the longer term, where will I be in 5 years? In 90 days I could still be unhealthy, exhausted, and moody, with bad skin, still wanting a baby, and depressed about my infertility.  Instead I chose hope. I chose healthiness, energy, beautiful skin, relief from my PCOS, and a chance to get out of debt for good. 

Where will you be in 90 days? Will you still be fat, sick, and nearly dead? Will you be at war with your body? Shelling out money for medications and doctors visits that will never address the real problems? Or will you join me and choose hope, healthiness, and life? There are twenty 90 day periods in 5 years. Will you be stuck in the same rut you are now? Afraid to try a nutrition system like Isagenix because you think it will cost too much, though you are buying toxic foods and paying doctors bills and buying more medications? 

Take a leap and choose hope. What do you have to lose?

Deep Cleanse- Days 6 & 7 and Shake Day 8

Stu and I had our first deep cleanse days Monday and Tuesday. The cleanse is a unique component of Isagenix's system. It does not work by depleting your system as with laxatives or as a colon cleanse. It cleanses on a cellular level and provides nutrition throughout the day to keep your body from going into starvation mode, all while burning fat! It resets food cravings and insulin sensitivity, detoxifies, and simply allows the body time to work on itself.

The cleanse doesn't taste bad like I thought it would. It sort of tastes like grape juice, but different. You drink the cleanse 4 times a day, along with the IsaSnacks 3 times a day, Ionix Supreme 2 times a day, and tons and tons of water! For those of you that assume the Isagenix system works by "starving" the person using it, you couldn't be further from the truth. People that loose weight on Isagenix have been proven to lose fat and gain muscle. It isn't water weight, and it isn't atrophy.

On day one, Stu and I did get hungry, but it really wasn't bad. The biggest battle was mental. I tried to think of it as a fast. I did start craving fried foods and anything with carbs by the end of the evening. I attributed that to the fat burning, as carbs would be the easiest way for my body to get energy, instead of making it work to burn fat.  Stu and I were both very cold, a common side effect, but we laid outside in the sun for a while and we watched movies.

On day two I had to go to work, so I packed all my cleanse portions and Ionix portion in water bottles and wrapped my snacks and accelerator capsules in tinfoil and brought them all with me. I did get a wave of nausea around portion 2 of my Cleanse for Life, but I ate 2 IsaSnacks and it went away.

The sense of accomplishment this morning was huge! It may be in my head right now, but I feel great, have lots of energy, and I'm pretty sure my abdomen is flatter! Stu looks thinner already too! He said since cleansing he doesn't get as hungry. Our next cleanse will be Monday and Tuesday, then we will have "shake" days for the rest of the month.

I would like to be back at the gym, but this is finals week, and I have had Epic training at work Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. After this week I will be much more free to focus on physical fitness. And housekeeping :/

Days 3, and 4, and 5- Shake Days

For days 3 and 4 I had to switch the Isa Shake Day schedule for night shift. I ended up throwing in an extra snack of salted cucumbers as a snack on Friday night, since I did my shakes earlier in the day. Saturday night I did the regular schedule, just at night instead of morning. For Sunday I skipped a shake and had my breakfast shake, snack, and dinner since I slept in so late. I went to bed at a normal time after that.

Friday night at work my headache multiplied after the antics of my sweet patients. I have been drinking tons of water to try to prevent headaches, but it just wasn't working. I broke down and took some Aleve. I also had a snack (the salted cucumbers), and that seemed to help a lot.  I think I just tried to change too much too fast. I have done CrossFit Wednesday and Friday and ran Thursday. I made sure to rest Saturday and Sunday.

Since then I have been headache free! 

Saturday night for my meal I had salmon, spinach, and broccoli. It was amazing!  On Sunday I made chicken cacciatore and steamed broccoli.  

The shakes taste better and better as I go along. We will be doing our first "deep cleanse" on Monday and Tuesday. I'm a little nervous, but more updates on that to come!

In other news, I have already seen a 1" loss on my lower abdomen! We will definitely keep the updates coming!

Day 2- Shake Day

I'm not going to lie to you folks. Today was rough. I woke up with a headache, and it has not gone away all day, though when I drink my shakes, Ionix Supreme, and Want More Energy it does seem to help. I have been tired and I feel sore all over from Crossfit yesterday. I have tried increasing my water and took 2 IsaFlush this afternoon to try to get my headache to stop. I took a nap as well. When I woke up from my nap I was a little hungry, and the IsaSnacks didn't cut it, so I ate a pickle.

For lunch today I had a chicken breast cooked in olive oil and 1 tbsp butter, seasoned with salt, pepper, and italian seasoning. I also diced up a small onion and cooked it in the pan with the chicken along with 2 minced cloves of garlic. To go along with that, I cooked Brussels Sprouts. I put olive oil in a sauce pan and put the sprouts in along with salt and pepper. I turned the heat up between medium and high and shook them around occasionally to blacken them. When they were nice and burnt in places I turned the heat to low and covered the pot to let them steam a little. Everything tasted oh so good.

I had a Human A&P II test this evening, and after that I ran 2 miles, since I did not go to CrossFit today. When I got home I drank a Want More Energy, which was very refreshing and tasty, and my IsaPro shake.

Today was Stu's first day at work on the system, so I threw everything he would need in a Walmart bag last night and hooked it on the door handle for him to grab this morning. He said he didn't feel hungry today and had his usual energy level. For his lunch, Applebees, which is where he works, has a menu of meal under 550 calories, so he selected one of the choices. He has the chicken freshcado.  He did CrossFit again tonight. The workout was touch and go squat snatches, then 21-15-9 kettle bell snatches and burpees.

I am up to Joshua in my Bible reading. I am glad I read through all the laws, but relieved they are over.  Tomorrow will by my first day on Isa that I am working a night shift. I am not sure how that will play out yet, but I will research some schedules online and let you know.

On a positive note, when I woke up this morning, I remember distinctly feeling that my stomach was nice and flat, not bloated or anything. I am excited to show you what I look like after my first cleanse!  Stay tuned!