Maureen
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For the past couple of days I’m been totally wiped, especially while lifting. I’m getting enough sleep and water. My question is would a refeed meal help or should I just push through it since I’m going to keep cutting for a couple more weeks until the next challenge? It’s weird because I’m not hungry, but feel totally beat.
Thanks!
Honestly, you killed it for 60 days! This is the homestretch….last week. I would stick it out and do what you can. You take pictures and then you can decide what you need to do. I am sure Nicole will have some further instructions on how she thinks you should proceed. Hang in there. By all means…if you feel sick, need food etc….then trust your instinct. If you think you are just beat because you have been working your butt off, and in the last push of a challenge…then chalk it up to being a bad ass that you have made it this far. You killed it! Let me know if you have any other concerns about this.
i’m doing phase 2 for a while longer and would really appreciate anyone who has come up with the figures of approximately what the macros are for each meal… I have tried and I seem to be off somewhere and its getting to be very frustrationg, especially the meals that we make from recipes even with fitness pal im having difficulties like the sweet potatoe mash and the shrimp meal
Please and thank you
The macros can be off for a few reasons….
1. the brand you are choosing could be different than the brand that Nicole has specified.
2. It might be a food that looks right but it’s actually one that someone else has added to the database. I am sure you have noticed that you can pull up some foods that the macros are way off…ie boneless, skinless chicken breast I have seen that listed with 9g of fat. That obviously isn’t correct, so I know not to choose that.
You can rely soley on MFP…you sometimes have to do your own research to know if some of those numbers are in fact, accurate. Picking up a pocket food guide is always helpful as well, then you can double check what’s in MFP.
This is the most difficult part of fitness in my opinion. Learning what foods fall into what category and what are they made up of…carbs, pro and fat. It’s an ongoing process. Your knowledge base will grow the more you look things up on your own to double check etc. YOu got this…you are almost done with this challenge.Hey guys! I’m just curious if anyone else has been experiencing brain fog recently? I feel like over the last several days I’ve been making a lot of little dumb mistakes at work, or I have to really stop and think about what I’m supposed to be doing next or what today’s date is… not so bad that I would be medically alarmed haha but I do seem to just have this cloudiness in my head!! Can being near the end of the challenge really have that sort of effect on someone? I feel like the calories/carbs aren’t restricted enough to cause it but maybe they are….? Especially after being restricted for this amount of time? Or I just need to suck it up? Haha. Just curious if anyone else is having a similar experience
Hi there,
Sometimes you can get that “fog” with a decrease in carbs. If they dip lower than what you are used to….a drop in the calories as well. The program was designed to put you at a deficit during this period so it might be a big enough change for you that you are feeling some effects.This thread is hilarious, lol! Nicole were you serious about throwing it on the floor? I literally put a large knife into it and then bang it on the counter trying to get it to split. This is after I have microwaved it for 5 min. Does this count for arms? Which muscle group am I working?
I need to buy an instapot!!!
It counts as your cardio acceleration workout 🙂
Just wondering if anyone else is experiencing this? The last two weeks of phase one brought about the most change that I can see. I began phase two and had no more weight or inches lost. Nicole’s post was encouraging to basically keep on “like a robot.” I was hoping to see more change before next week.
I noticed this happened last year. I had the most weight loss and change with phase one and then when phase two began, I did not see much change. Since I had a few extra sressors last year, I did not see the challenge through.
However this year, I have been 90-95% compliant all the way through with the nutrition. I am curious to see if anything will happen the last week and if my body will jump out of the plateau. I have done all of the weight lifting but not as much cardio as suggested due to time factors. Thats okay though, I am happy with the results so far. My legs stay in perpetual soreness lol.
Have others seen more change currently or with the last phase? I am wondering of others’ experiences with this.
Hi Christina,
Try not to let this frustrate you. This is a tough challenge. You need to ask yourself “can I do more?” “am I doing what the challenge instructs me to do?” From reading your post, there is still more you can do in order to be more compliant. Life happens, it gets tough. It’s hard to do EVERYTHING that comes with this challenge. You have to compromise alot. Do what you can….if you think you can push harder, do that. When this challenge is over, you don’t want to have the feeling that you could have done more. No regrets! Now let’s finish strong!I know in phase 1 we were allowed to have any of the meals we wanted (with the exception of the post workout meal). Is this the same for phase 2 or is it best to pick one meal option from each group?
Currently I eat 2 of the same meals per day for the ease of meal prepping purposes (and because I like them lol). I’m wondering if this is why my progress has stalled a bit?? I do check my macros on MyFitness Pal as well……
Just wanted to double check before our final week! Thanks so much!
Hi there,
Nicole designed the program so it’s easy like that. All meals are roughly the same macros so you can interchange them however you like. BUT…like you said, the post workout meal is the one you need to keep the same. Keep working hard!First off, I want to say this challenge has been nothing but amazing. From the great workouts, delicious food, and help from everyone!
I am just curious if anyone else is experiencing what I am experiencing:
My metabolism is on fire. I am 100 percent on plan with food, workouts and water. I am full of energy all day long, and then sleep really good at night.
I have started to weigh myself morning and night. I have found that at night I weigh in at a good weight for my body. In the morning, I am 5 pounds lighter. But, every morning I am noticing the weight dropping more and more…this morning I was 8 pounds less when I weighed in. I do not want to lose anymore weight. I am already petite enough and want to remain healthy! Any advice or other members experiencing this?Hi there,
I agree with Wendy. Stay off of the scale. The weight will fluctuate daily. Once a week at the most…if you must weigh. How do you feel? How are you looking? Are you meeting your goal? Do you have energy? Don’t worry about the scale. Take a progress photo…compare it to where you started. Are you where you want to be? (weight aside)So when this is said and done can the cardio b kept up….this challenge got me to do cardio which I nvr ever ever no ally do….I dnt want to do too much or not enough and cause muse loss however I do want to keep building…..would I do some for say 4 to 6 weeks then switch it up….please help I need my cardio already laid out for as this is…..
Hi there,
Just hang tight til the challenge is over to figure out the next step. Number 1, Nicole will give you some guidance as to “what is next”…Number 2, you will want to assess where you are at the end of the challenge. That will help you figure out what’s next as well. You may want to sit in phase 2 for a couple more weeks (or not) depending on what your goals are….Just finish this out strong and watch for some advice from Nicole 🙂Hi everyone !
So yesterday during my progress pics, measurements and Weigh in, i guessed my weight and my mom confirmed it. I could Kinda tell where I was by how my clothes fit and muscle definition.I’m officially down 17 pounds today. I’m very happy with my progress as most of you know I’ve had some tough situations. I’m doing the best i can With where i am Not giving up. 3 weeks left to go !!!
Nice work! Probably felt good to not look and then see how far you have come 🙂
Hi. I’ve bssm beginning my workout week o. Sat bc i like My rest days during the eeek. This Monday would. S a rest day and it’s. Holiday for me. Would it be ok to move phase 2 lower body to Monday ? And have tues as a rest day ?
Schedule would be as follows
Sat; day 1 lower and SS cardio
Sun: day 2 upper and HIt plus ten
Mon: day 3 lower and SS cardio
Tues off
Wed upper body plus hit and ten
Thurs: cardio accel
Fri. OffNot sure if it’s ok to put two lower body days so close to each other. That’s really the question. lol.
Thanks !
You might want a little more rest between those days if you can at all help it. Your training may suffer a bit if you haven’t allowed your body to recover enough. You can try it….just pay attention to the weights you use, how you feel. If you feel your performance is suffering, then you may need to rethink it.
I traveled to Mississippi from California a couple weeks ago. I froze all my food in individual ziploc bags (1 serving in each bag) and carried the food on to the plane. I did not have any problems with security. Security told me that you can carry anything on as long as it is completely frozen when you go through security, even a completely frozen water bottle. The food was still frozen when I arrived in Mississippi.
Nice work! Where there’s a will there’s a way 🙂
Yeah I am having some major bloating issues. It occurred to me yesterday that it might be all the artificial sweeteners I have been having. I have the sugar free syrup, BCAA’s, protein powder, gum,etc. I am gonna try and knock them out for the next few days and see if it helps. If it’s not that, then i am in trouble.. I don’t feel good at all.
The artificial sweeteners will do it for sure. Gum is a huge culprit…between the sweetners and the air you bring in while you are chewing…you are asking for a bloated belly. lol. Trust me, I have lived that life before. If you also aren’t used to it, a bump in fiber from food (vegetables) can be a little shock to the system as well. Hope you get some relief soon.
UNFORTUNATELY I GOT OFF TRACK WITH THIS CHALLENGE (MY OWN ISSUES) I AM PLANNING ON DOING IT AGAIN IN APRIL/MAY…. I HAVEN’T GOTTEN TOTALLY OFF TRACK ON MY NUTRITION HOWEVER AND I HAVE NOTICED SOME CHANGE SO I FEEL IF I FOLLOW IT RELIGIOUSLY THEN I CAN GO EVEN FURTHER… ANY TIPS FOR THOSE WHO DID IT CORRECT THE FIRST TIME WOULD BE APPRECIATED…..
It’s ok. It’s called a challenge for a reason. You chose to do something that most wouldn’t attempt. Just know going into something like this or making any type of life change, that it’s going to be challenging……and there’s got to be change. YOu can’t expect to get somewhere different if all of your habits and hang ups are the same. When you give it another try…or just pick up where you left off now and keep going, realize that change can feel uncomfortable. When you exit your comfort zone that’s where life can change and the magic can really start to happen. You’ve got this….:)
PROBABLY GONNA SOUND DUMB LOL BUT WHAT IS THE OLIVE OIL FOR IN THE SPAGHETTI SQUASH… I JUST SPRAY THE PAN WITH OLIVE OIL SPRAY AND BAKE IT….AM I SUPPOSE TO ADD THE OLIVE OIL TO IT…SORRY IF THIS SOUNDS DUMB
Not dumb at all. You can drizzle the olive oil on the spaghetti squat when you reheat it….or when you prepare it….some sea salt and pepper and it’s yummy!
Does anyone know of an easy way to cut and remove pulp from spaghetti squash? Lol, it takes me 30 minutes just to cut two of them and remove pulp. Any help would be appreciated.
HI there,
I cut it ahead of time….then put it in the oven. Then it easily scrapes out with a spoon 🙂Hi!
I need some advice, I’ve been doing all of the workouts , and only 1 day of cardio should I cut back the meal plan (meal plan 1). I have been caring for my mother along with everything else , I know we all have things in our lives we can’t control , but I’m overwhelmed , but I also don’t want to give up!Thanks
UrsulaHi Ursula,
I am sorry that you are handling alot of tough situations. It’s hard to handle it all for everyone else and find some left for yourself. I would just continue and do the best you can. If you have fit in another day, do it. The most important thing is that you are taking care of yourself in the end. I am sure caring for you mother is not easy. I would keep your meals the same, you definitely need the energy in order to take care of all of things going on in your life. I commend all that you are doing. Take care of you and do the best you can with the time you have. We are all here for encouragement.I wasn’t sure where to post question since it involves both nutrition and workout. This is my first time doing one of Nicole’s challenges. At the end of this challenge, do we get some sort of guidance or suggestions on food intake and workouts to maintain our results? I definitely plan on doing another challenge. I just know they are typically a few weeks apart and would like to keep the positive gains I’ve made. Thanks!!
Hi Susan,
Nicole usually gives you guys some suggestions on “what’s next” when the challenge is over. 🙂I’m so upset. I prepped at least 7’of the spaghetti squash meal for meal 3 of my plan. It’s written to add 2tbsp of olive oil which i thought sounded high and after i are the meal I enter it into my fitness pal and holy crap I was way over my macros because of it. Now what do i do I’ve peeped all of those meals with 2 tbsp. It puts me at 70 fat rather than 55 where I’m Suppose to be.
Hi there,
Yes! Thank you for catching that. It should be 1 Tbsp. Take the fat from another meal and and you should be fine. Considering all the meals are the same you should be good. I am so sorry that you prepped it all that way. Let me know if you can just take something out. If we need to help you further let me know.I came up short as well. I think the # of intervals is supposed to be 30…unless I’m missing something too!!
Ok. So there are 5 rounds. set your timer for 35 seconds for “work” 35 seconds “rest” (which you aren’t resting. On the work you are doing the strength exercise and the rest you are doing the cardio portion. Then move on to the next strength exercise and it’s the same cardio again after that.
in round 1 there are 6 strength and 6 cardio.
same with round 2-5 but ONLY the CARDIO changes the strength portion stays the same with all 5 rounds.
I hope that makes sense. IT’s a different set up for sure. Once you get the flow it’s pretty great and challenging. You are NEVER resting….remember that. Even between rounds…there isn’t a rest. YOu are just continuing to go.Good day, I have a question regarding the Npower Nutrition Apparel, does Nicole offer hoodies or leggings or even long sleeve tops? I love the racerbacks I have bought and I love the T-shirt I bought when purchasing the stack for the challenge so I was just wondering if there were more clothing items to available?
Lastly I would like to say Thank You Nicole and to the folks who helped to create the Isolates. Prior to this challenge I only used Beverly International products but I love these products, super clean and no after taste. AND….I know this will sound a little strange but I was dying for coffee the other but the only way I drink coffee is with creamer, knowing I cant have the creamer, I mixed the Isolate Vanilla Cupcake shake (SOOOO GOOD) with 8oz of black coffee and it was absolutely amazing. It actually tasted like a French Vanilla and it was YUMMY. After the challenge I will be sticking with these products they work for me and so pleased with them. SO THANK YOU for the supplements you provide.Hi there,
That’s some awesome feedback. I know Nicole put her heart and soul into creating a product that she truly believes in….so to get feedback like that. Well, that just lets her know that she is doing the right thing. I believe she only has a 3/4 sleeve shirt as well. As far as other items, I haven’t seen any…..yet 🙂Splendid. With what?
Chicken. BUt to be honest, your best bet is to choose one one of the other meal options if at all possible.
Thank god i was not the only one who had this question because i was afraid to ask , but the is the oat bran like oat meal ? I am unable to find it , can i replaced it with oat meal , it looks like oat meal , or is the oat bran the cereal ?
Oat bran is like oatmeal. It’s very fine….almost like cream of rice.
I usually do my cardio in afternoon and mornings my lifting , before i do lifting i eat my meal 1 then when iam done i eat my post meal, my question its if i do both at the same time morning , should i eat meal 1 before my cardio and lifting or should not eat because be doing cardion also my other questions is if i get to do both at same time what do you recommend doing first , cardio o lifting ?
Hi there,
Always eat before strength training. 🙂Thanks Maureen. That was a second modification in addition to adding the step, actually. I forgot to mention. So, I’m definitely not creating any abrupt load by stepping side-ways with each rep; Legs start in position and I just focus on a slow and controlled eccentric movement, returning to the top. Feet don’t move.
Again, it’s not really a lot of muscle engagement, but it’s the best I could think of in keeping somewhat close to the movement. Ideas? Thanks so much!
yep, and sink into that heel of the knee that bends so you can fire up that glute.
Is there an alternative for oat flour? I’m having trouble finding it.
Red Mills has oat flour..it’s usually in the baking isle.
