[Naomi]

I would not recommend subbing, it throws off the macros. Try to find whole meals that Nicole has put together for you in order for the macros to match up. When you start swapping things, it can throw all your numbers off. There are 12 meals to choose from, so try to just stick with the meals as they are 😉

[Naomi]

Yes, absolutely 🙂

[Naomi]

Hi Kim- I haven’t tried using the recipe with this as a replacement, but I think you could easily replace the yogurt with coconut CREAM (not milk, but cream). You could order the coconut cream, or find it at a place like Whole Foods or Earth Fare depending on where you live, or you could buy a can of full-fat coconut milk and put it in the fridge overnight (without shaking the can, that is a very important part) and as long as the can hasn’t;t been shaken, the cream should solidify at the top, leaving the liquid (or coconut water) at the bottom and you just use the cream at the top.

I hope this helps! Let me know how it turns out 🙂

[Naomi]

Hi Mary- definitely give it more time and definitely try not to compare yourself to anyone else. You have no idea where other people are starting from or what their exercise and nutritional history is. Everyone who has embarked on this Muscle Up Challenge started at completely different places (metabolism, exercise history, nutrition, etc), so your body is responding how it needs to respond in the time frame it needs to in order to get stronger and gain more muscle 😉

Some people respond more quickly while others may take more time to respond. But please know that just because you may not necessarily be able to SEE it doesn’t mean that the magic isn’t happening 😉 I promise you that it is! Sometimes we just need to really have faith in he process and trust that if we hold out just a little longer, we will see the hard work come to fruition. No matter what, keep going! It’s only been two weeks, so you really need to give yourself the opportunity to see what changes can happen in weeks 3, 4 and 5! You will be so happy you did 😀

I hope this helps, and PLEASE keep up the good work, try to think positive and let us know how you’re doing!! You’ve got this!

[Naomi]

Hi Kelly- Nicole has recommended not weighing during this challenge because when the body recomposition goal is muscle gain, your actual body weight can be all over the board due to both muscle gain and possible fat loss.

As far as the water, bone density and muscle %, I have a hard time trusting the accuracy of most scales that measure those (I have a Garmin scale and have used many other different ones in the past, all with varying degrees of inaccuracy).

All of that being said, the best way to measure your progress during this challenge is:
1. weekly progress pictures (the number one best way in my opinion to ever measure progress no matter what your goals are)
2. how you feel (you mentioned this above with feeling stronger & lifting heavier, etc)

I hope this helps! Don’t focus too much on numbers to measure progress, but what you actually see in the mirror and in pictures from week to week 😉

[Naomi]

Hi Lindsey- there are a number of threads in the nutrition section of the forums as well as the general chat sections.

Here’s one about cooking chicken to be more moist, but just scroll through the discussions, as there have been quite a few cooking tips! 😉

Good luck, I hope this helps! 🙂

[Naomi]

Hey there- the meal plans and workouts are as-is for the entire five weeks of this program, there will be no additions to the meal plans for this challenge.

[Naomi]

Hi Kim- yes, I just looked up 40g of uncooked oats and the calories/macros are about the same as 40g of uncooked quinoa flakes 😉

[Naomi]

Hi Elisa- you can if you want to but it isn’t necessary 😉 You can just plan to do them the next time you do that workout! I hope you’re enjoying the challenge and are ready for some great workouts next week!

[Naomi]

Hi Wendy- for the best results, I would recommend you follow the workouts and meal plans as indicted in the challenge program for your height. Nicole created everything in t his program for optimal muscle-building and while everyone’s body will respond differently, you never know what kind of results you’ll get unless you follow everything as closely as possible for the full five weeks 😉

Just do your best to follow everything as it is written out – plan and prepare your meals for the week during the weekend and have meals on-hand with you as best you can while you’re on the go so you can always be ready with your food 🙂

[Naomi]

Hey there- you should be fine with what you’re doing now, even if there are BCAAs in your protein. BCAAs are branched chain amino acids, which are the building blocks for proteins, and anything your body doesn’t use – any “extra” – will likely just be discarded out of the body as waste 😉

If you are just taking one serving of each per day – or 24g – that is not overdoing it at all 🙂

[Naomi]

Hey there- the material will be up for about a week after the challenge is over (you can read details by going to the “Program Availability” section in the Rules).

You can download ad save all of the PDFs (workouts/nutrition) so that you can access them after the challenge is over for as long as you need to! You just won’t have access t the video demos after the material is take off the web site.

I hope you feel better SOON!! Please keep us posted!

[Naomi]

Awesome!! Yep, I think there is nothing more motivating than seeing results! 😉

For training with Nicole or her team, email: [email protected]

[Naomi]

Hi Jen- just pure maple syrup.

As for variety, if you’ve been eating the same things every day, try mixing things up a bit! 😀 There are 12 meals to choose from for your meal plans for variety. Try choosing some of the other meals on the meal plan that you haven’t yet eaten.

We are almost halfway through the challenge, which means you don’t have much further to go, hang in there! 😉

[Naomi]

Hi Siu-

1. Olive oil will add fat and calories to your meal so you will go over on your total daily intake of fat and calories by adding olive oil. Salt and pepper is fine.

2. Some hot sauces have added sugars and calories, some don’t. Salsa will add some calories, carbs and fats to your overall daily intake.

For the above, try to look at the back of the food label and see if there are additional calories, fat, carbs and/or protein. If there are, then anything you add will add to your daily intake so you won’t be eating according to the meal plan and total daily recommended calories and macros for this challenge.

3. Almost any grocery store should carry 99% lean ground turkey so ask someone in the meat department if they carry it and just ran out of it or where you can get it. If you can’t find it, opt for another one of the 12 meal choices in the meal plan. 93% lean is not a substitute for 99% lean since there are more calories and fat in the 93% lean turkey. When it doubt, just choose one of the meals that you can find all of the foods for 😉

I hope this helps! Good luck 🙂

[Naomi]

Absolutely! Yes you can 😉

[Naomi]

Hi Jolanda- I would just follow the meal plan as-is and don’t eliminate anything from the meal plan. MFP is not always going to match up. I’ve been food journaling for a little over four years on MFP and when I eat my set macros, the calories don’t always match up, or if I eat the set calories then the macros don’t always match up but it is close enough.

If you follow the meal plan as Nicole has written it, you should be fine! 🙂 It sounds like you are kicking butt and doing awesome!!! KEEP IT UP GIRL!! 😀

[Naomi]

Ok great! 🙂

[Naomi]

Hi Michelle- you can use a barbell or dumbbells in place of the Smith Machine lunges, or you can do the lunges on the Smith Machine but lessen your range of motion. In other words, don’t go so deep into the lunge (stop half way, or just before the point that it hurts your knees).

Cable stiff legged deadlifts work different leg muscles than the lunges will so it is not an alternate exercise to sub for the Smith Machine lunges 😉

I hope this helps! Good luck and please keep us posted!

[Naomi]

Hey there- the closest replacement would be 93% lean turkey, but even then it would throw your macros slightly off since there are some differences. Your best bet would be to choose a different meal (there are 12 to choose from) so you don’t have to try to find a sub for bison 🙂

[Naomi]

Hi Monica- if you click on the recipe here it calls for two over-ripe bananas (240g)

[Naomi]

Hey Alison! If you click here on the Program Overview then scroll all the way to the bottom to the Weekly Prize Giveaways, you’ll see what the weekly social media hashtag prizes are all about 🙂

It’s not a weekly challenge, it’s just a fun way to see what people are posting on social media about their experiences with this challenge 😉

[Naomi]

Way to go Brenda!!! We love hearing these kinds of stories and awesome feedback! Keep up the incredible work, you are doing amazing!!! So inspirational 😀

[Naomi]

Hi Sandra- if you’re doing cardio immediately after weight training, wait until after your whole workout is complete (cardio and all) and then have your post-workout meal 🙂

[Naomi]

I think that’s a great idea! I hope you have a wonderful Week 2! 🙂

[Author]

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