[Maureen]

Diana wrote:

Hello!!
Looking ahead at phase 2 nutrition and noticed the salad with chicken (Meal 4-option 2) in the women’s meal plan 1 are identical in both phases. The protein mug cake is the same as well? Please advise…thank you

Hi there,
If the meal remains the same, there were prob other meals cut down or changed and in the end your macros will be 5g above or below at the end of the day. Don’t stress.

[Maureen]

Hnwalker431 wrote:

I began the 40 day challange on 21 May and I am in the Women’s Meal 3 plan (I am over 5’6). I have not had a problem following the workouts or meal plans…..upon entering my 2nd week—week 2 the question I have is…is there a meal in my plan that I can substiute a protein out for some STEAK?
Top Sirloin? I noticed in Nicole’s ‘Grocery List’ it mentioned steak….but I do no see it in my meal plan (I love red meat).

Heather

Hi Heather. Unfortunately, If it’s not on the meal plan it’s not on your plan. 🙁 40 days…..you can do this!

[Maureen]

Kerri Camilla wrote:

Hi,
Hope all is good with everyone, I was just wondering if I could swap the chicken in meal 4 option 2 for a vegetarian alternative. I generally use the quorn brand.

Many thanks Kerri

Hi there, All of the meals are meant to for you to eat any of them. Eat the meals as they are written and you can have any of the meals on the plan at any time. Eat the same one for all meals if you want LOL. The only meal not included in this is the post training meal.

[Maureen]

Claire wrote:

I have a tough one for you guys….
My schedule is 3 on 3 off 12 hour shifts from 5:30 to 5:30 and we flip monthly from days to nights. Well, I flip to nights starting Thursday. My first night shift is the hardest because I go to bed the night before as normal. When I wake up on Thursday I will eat meal 1, I would guess by 9:00am. I usually lay back down around 1100 and sleep until 2:30 or so then work out. I will have my post-work out meal and get ready for work. By the time I get situated at work I will have meal 2 around 6:00. Meal 3 around 9:00 then meal 4 around 12:00. I still have 5 hours left at work plus my drive home and get ready for bed. I usually am not in bed until 7:00 am. Is it a possibility to have a lighter meal around 4:00 am to propel me through the rest of my shift and into the morning when I get up and start over? The 2nd and 3rd day I won’t have my first meal until around 2:30pm, so it times out just fine. It’s just the first night that I have too many hours awake.
(The other end of the week I usually miss a meal because I have slept all morning. I’ll get up, eat then usually just enough time left for 2 meals in the day before bed time that evening.)

Question for you…..first of all. That’s a rough schedule but I am sure you get used to it. My question is…is there any way you can train after that first meal…that might space things out a bit more. Just trying to get more of a picture of your day. Thanks.

[Maureen]

ciera.9 wrote:

Nevermind I found the answer on someone else’s post. I can’t figure out how to delete my post.

Don’t worry about it 🙂 Glad you found the answer.

[Maureen]

Cristle Jose wrote:

What’s the key to making the mug cake really good? I saw that people made them in bulk so I tried making 8 servings and it came out spongy or really dry to the point I ended up tossing it and wasting 8 scoops of protein. Help!

Hi there,
Check out more of the threads in the nutrition forum….there are a ton of ideas and tips that members are sharing with each other. 🙂

[Maureen]

kathandgreg wrote:

I love the greek yogurt, blueberry and almond butter meal. Is it okay to eat this more than once a day? Can I have it for my later meals too? I am concerned about the amount of fructose inhibiting my weight loss goal.

Hi there,
the program is designed so that you can mix and match meals however you like…except for the post training meal. Eat up!

[Maureen]

Jessica wrote:

I’m doing the workout at home, so no machines, what is the alternative to dumbbell lying Hamstring Curl? And what’s a Dumbbell Glute Kickback?

Hi there,
the DB glute kickback…..you are on 4’s and the DB is in the crease behind your knee now squeeze that DB and “donkey kick” your leg. YOu are squeezing the glute at this time. So the hip is the only part that is moving.
You can hold a DB with your feet and curl that way. OR wedge your feet underneath a weighted bar or something heavy and try and resist yourself as you fall into a push up. Actively push yourself back up. Knees are on some sort of pad. Keep your torso rigid as you push on the way up. It will get your core and hamstrings a lot more. (it’s basically a negative for the hammies)

[Maureen]

adriennehbuckley wrote:

Haha aren’t I embarrassed. I was incorporating the cooldown into the previous 5 rounds. Thank you for the clarification!

No Worries! YOu just got in some extra time…no biggie 🙂

[Maureen]

kathandgreg wrote:

We learned in camp last weekend (which was absolutely AMAZING) how to use leg bands during squats. I feel a great glute burn doing this. Is it okay to use the band for all my sets?

Hi there,
I would do it with for a couple and then do without and see if you can activate those glutes the same when the band is on. “pull those knees apart”. Good practice for you.

[Maureen]

Rebecca Schultz wrote:

I will be attending the Chicago nPower camp in June. Typically I work out in the morning then take the PWO meal with the meal #1 three hours later. With camp, when would I take the PWO meal because the whole day is working out? Thank you in advance.
Rebecca

Hi Rebecca,
I would do it after the main strength training of the day…..if you aren’t sure, ask us while we are at camp 😉

[Maureen]

atwoodbrenda wrote:

I’ve always heard if you drink coffee you need to increase your water true or false?

Hi there,
While caffeinated drinks may have a mild diuretic effect — meaning that they may cause the need to urinate — they don’t appear to increase the risk of dehydration.

[Maureen]

adriennehbuckley wrote:

So I didn’t realize until halfway through that the Step to the sky timing for interval cardio is way off. Even removing the 3 minute warm-up the time still adds up to 50 minutes. Am I supposed to 53 minutes of cardio or is there something I’m missing? Thank for the clarification!

Hi there,
I just looked at it….It equals 45 min.
3min
5 rounds of a 5 min interval=25 min
5 rounds of a 3 min interval=15 min
2 min

Take a look, it works out.

[Maureen]

Glenda Chapman wrote:

In regards to the meals, can I choose any meal at meal time? For example, can I eat a meal from Meal 2 for Meal 1 and have it again for Meals 2 & 3 or even 4; or can I eat the same meal for every meal in any particular day.

You got it! All of the meals are meant to be eaten whenever. The calories/macros are super close to each other so you can eat the meals you like the best. The only meal that doesn’t fit like this is the POST TRAINING MEAL. Happy eating!

[Maureen]

HI there,
I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s only a 40 day challenge. Going low for 2 weeks isn’t going to ruin your metabolism. Going super low calorie for a lengthy period of time is where people get into trouble.

[Maureen]

Monika Iszaly wrote:

Hi Maureen,

Thank you so much for your quick answer. I’m trying to do my best.
Anyway, this may not be the forum to tell you this, but you are a great inspiration for me and I just love your sense of humor! You’re such a bad ass girl :))))!!!!

OMG Thank you so much! You just made my day. Kick some ass girl…WE got this!

[Maureen]

rittaspt wrote:

Hi, say please if I should to use the weightlifting belt or corset during weight workouts? and wich is better then? Thank you

Hi there,
If you have low back issues….a belt can be worn for squats for example. I don’t see a need for it for every strength training workout.

[Maureen]

Ann wrote:

Hello fit people!

I tried the reverse barbell last night and aside from killing my forearms, didn’t feel it much in my biceps. I also had to drop the weight. Any suggestions on what I should concentrate on? I’m thinking about using an ez bar next time to alleviate the stress on my forearms, but maybe this is why we’re doing this exercise?

Thanks!
Ann

Hi there,
The weight will be a bit lighter. You just need to focus on the squeeze of the bicep through the Range of motion and squeeze at the top. Try not to white knuckle the grip. Have as easy of a grip as you can with this exercise.

[Maureen]

keiskowitz wrote:

Please explain the 10/10/10 dropset

A drop set is Heavy weight at 10, drop the weight a bit do 10 more, drop again do 10 more. Not rest between drops. All 3 drops is 1 set. Hope that helps.

[Maureen]

mreyesburke wrote:

for warmups–do we use just enough weight to move through the range of motion (vs using heavy weights, like in regular sets)? Thanks. I tend to use lighter weight to warm up….

I would use the lighter weights to warm and then bump it up for your working sets.

[Maureen]

mychellesharp wrote:

First time I’ve done one of these challenges and trying to read through the discussion. Brings a lot of questions.

I’ve got a silly one…trying to find the answer in the challenge information. Do we do cardio every day in addition to weights? Or, is it only a specific day each week…like this first week it’s on day six I believe?

Just needing some direction. Thank you!!

HI there,
No questions are silly. Just make sure you read all of the info multiple times. There is a lot of info in there. This is your cardio schedule for phase 1
PHASE 1
Day 1 HIIT Cardio
Day 2 Interval Cardio
Day 3 Interval Cardio
Day 4 Off
Day 5 HIIT Cardio
Day 6 Optional Cardio
Day 7 Off

Everything is outlined pretty specifically, but like I said it’s alot of info to take in. Take your time going through the info.

[Maureen]

foryou wrote:

When doing the squats should they be done using a Smith machine or just a free barbell

Use the free barbell if you feel comfortable.

[Maureen]

mpetersen1205 wrote:

Hello, I have a personal trainer that I meet with once a week on Tuesdays. As he is very busy, I am unable to move this date. He usually incorporates full body exercises (such as weighted squats, benchpress, abs, leg press machine, cable flyes etc) all within one workout. It changes up weekly what exercises he has me do. My question is what is the best way to incorporate this workout into the plans workouts? Should I be eliminating a day or start my week with him on a Tuesday and do all 5 days of plan training for a total of 6 days? I do not want to stop seeing him and lose my spot

Thank you!

HI there, Ask him to just help you do the workout that is on the plan for you that day.

[Maureen]

Constanze Sikora wrote:

Hi,
the women’s meal plan 2 states to eat 1/2 serving of the Romaine Tacos, but 1/2 a serving is going to equal less than 200 cals. Is it supposed to say 1 serving? or are we supposed to add something to the 1/2 serving??
Thank you

Hi there,
All of the macros are within 5g up or down.  It is probably structured like that because one of the other meal in the plan was a little higher in calories or macros. I would just roll with the plan as written.

[Maureen]

Monika Iszaly wrote:

Hi! I know that Nicole does not recommend cardio before weight training, but sometimes I don’t have any other options. Often I have to work late in the night, which makes my evenings unpredictable. That’s why I workout in the morning. The gym opens at 6 and I have around 60, max.70 minutes to finish with my workout and that means I don’t have time for cardio after the weight training. I thought I could do some cardio before the weight training, outside the gym. Previously are used to do 1000-1500 m walking lunges as cardio, which helped me shaping my lower body as well.
So my plan is to do walking lunges, go home, have a protein shake with glutamine, 10-15 min rest and then hit the gym at 6 and do the weight training. What do you think? Could it work?

Hi there,
It’s not ideal to do cardio prior to weight training but if you can’t make that work for your schedule, do what you need to do. It’s all about getting in the training. You got this. Make it work how you need to.

[Author]

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