Long time, no write.  I’m resurrecting the Healthraiser blog!  Have you been wondering whether the results of the Beachbody Ultimate Reset are sustainable?   Do you gain back all of the weight immediately?  Do you have to forever banish alcohol, sugar, and fat from your diet?  Do you become a crazy vegan hippie after the Reset ends?  What comes next for Distilled Jill in her health and fitness journey?  This entry will answer those questions.

First off, I’m proud to say that 4 months after the Reset has ended, I have not only sustained the 8 pounds of weight loss from the Reset, but I’ve even lost about 5 more pounds.  How?  Continuing to eat healthy, incorporating some lessons that I’ve learned from the Reset into my daily routine in a way that achieves balance without depriving myself, and focusing on fitness.

Post-Reset Diet Changes

I’m a city girl.  I love going out, trying new restaurants, bars, and festivals.  My life post-Reset has made me realize that I can actually still be a foodie as long as I do so in moderation, while balancing other important aspects of health and fitness.

The Reset really made me realize how much animal protein I was consuming.  Honestly, I think the amount of animal protein that I was consuming was really holding me back in reaching my health and fitness goals.  Since the Reset ended, I’ve decided to eat a vegan diet Mondays through Thursdays, with “anything goes” on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.  While “anything goes” generally means that I allow myself to eat red meat and dairy, I find that I don’t have that much even though I do not purposely deprive myself.  I might have red meat once or twice a month now.  I’m eating far less cheese.  I think I might have had yogurt once or twice in the past 4 months.  As a matter of fact, I find the smell of some dairy (e.g., yogurt, cheese) occasionally making me feel nauseous.  When I do have a high-indulgence “anything goes” weekend, I’ve noticed sinus problems and bloating that always goes away during the vegan weekdays.  I generally gain 3-4 pounds on weekends, but I generally lose 4-5 pounds during the week with a healthy diet and exercise.

I’ve never had much of a sweet tooth, even before the Reset.  So, my diet with regard to desserts hasn’t really changed.  I’ll have refined sugar on occasion – normally for a special event.

I try only to drink alcohol on weekends now.  This has been working pretty well for me.  While I have been in social situations with alcohol during the week (e.g., happy hours), I try to either limit myself to one drink or not drink at all.  The Reset made me realize just how easy it is to refuse alcohol in a social situation.  I’ve realized that if I’m going to drink, I don’t want to waste the calories on bad alcohol.  I’d rather have a very nice craft cocktail, beer, or wine.  I also don’t want to waste those calories on just one drink that doesn’t really hit me.  If I’m going to drink, I’d rather have several drinks on the weekend where I can enjoy a good buzz.  Anything else just seems like a waste of time and calories.

I feel like I recover a lot faster from alcohol than I used to.  I think that my organs are probably functioning at a much more optimized level than they did pre-Reset.  A night of drinking generally isn’t taking me out of commission the following day.

Fitness

You cannot do any intense workouts during the Reset.  Since I generally do a hard workout each morning, like Insanity, 21 days of not working out was difficult for me.  Since the Reset ended, I have completed the Focus T25 program.  I got my free t-shirt!

I honestly did not lose much weight doing this program (maybe 3-4 pounds), but that’s not really my goal anymore.  The Reset really helped me break through a weight loss plateau, I am finally at a “healthy” BMI, and I’d like to maintain that while building muscle and becoming leaner.  That might mean that I gain weight in my fitness journey, and I’m fine with that.  Currently, I’m doing Insanity.  I’m in the middle of month 2, but plan to take a break for the…

3-Day Refresh!

Beachbody recently announced a new product called the 3-Day Refresh!  This product is very exciting because it is essentially a mini Ultimate Reset!  The 3DR consists of 3 daily shakes (including Shakeology and a new shake called Vanilla Fresh), a fiber drink (called Fiber Sweep), plenty of filtered (not distilled) water, plus a wide array of fresh fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats throughout the day to keep your energy and metabolism going.  Unlike juice cleanses that are high in sugar and low in protein, the 3DR’s shakes provide plenty of protein and fiber to help ward of hunger pains and irritability.

The format is basically this:

1.  Wake Up: Drink 8-12 ounces of filtered water to jumpstart your system.

2.  Breakfast (within 1 hour of waking): Shakeology plus a fruit option.

3.  Mid-Morning Fiber Sweep (digestive health drink).

4.  Lunch:  Vanilla Fresh (high-protein, hunger-satisfying shake) plus options from the fruit, vegetable, and healthy fats list.

5.  Afternoon Snack: From the fruit, vegetable, or juice options list.

6.  Dinner:  Vanilla Fresh plus a delicious meal made from the dinner recipes list (the dinner recipes all look like they are from the Ultimate Reset recipe book).

Here is a short video on the 3DR:

I plan to start the 3DR on Tuesday!  In the past month, I had a decadent trip to Las Vegas, celebrated the nation’s birthday, AND my birthday, so I feel ready to try this cleanse.   I’ll be taking a break from Insanity for this because you are only supposed to engage in mild to moderate exercise, and Insanity definitely is NOT that!  I’ll post here like I did for the Ultimate Reset so I can share my journey with you.  Wish me luck!

As always, feel free to contact me by commenting below if you want more information on anything contained in this blog.