By Rebecca Swanner – from the Team Beachbody Newsletter
Losing weight and keeping it off isn’t always easy. Just ask Jessica and Andy, the two $100,000.00 Grand Prize Winners of the 2012-2013 Beachbody Challengeâ„¢ Contest.
Though their journeys and the workout programs they followed (Andy worked out regularly with INSANITY ®, while Jessica became a LES MILLS PUMP devotee) were different, they each lost nearly half of their body weight and won $100,000 for their efforts.
Of course, getting great results like this requires more than just buying a workout program. (If that were the case, it wouldn’t really be a challenge, would it?) It takes hard work, commitment, a healthy eating plan and a few secret weapons.
Here are a few of the tricks that helped push our winners across the finish line.
They Had a Support System
Whether it’s your family, a workout buddy, friends on the Team Beachbody Message Boards, or your Team Beachbody ® Coach, having someone you can lean on when you’re struggling can make all the difference between making it and giving up. Ideally, you can rope in your cousin, sibling, or BFF to take the journey with you. That way, you’ll support each other.
You can also log on to the Team Beachbody Message Boards, where you’ll find FREE advice and inspiration. In addition to the inspiring board community, our expert Advice Staff is available to answer all of your fitness or nutrition questions.
Finally, there’s your Team Beachbody Coach, who will always be there when the going gets tough. Jessica’s Coach is also her best friend, so you can imagine how integral she was to her success. And, Andy’s Coach, even though he lives over 3,000 miles away, made sure to check in on him regularly and made sure that he was on the right track. “My Coach Hiram S. is an example of willpower,” says Andy. “Nothing is impossible, and he has proven that. He pushed me to reach my goal.”
They Kept Track of Their Habits
How many calories do you think you ate today? 1,500? 2,000? 3,500? No idea? When you don’t follow a meal plan or track the foods you eat, it’s hard to pinpoint how many calories you’re eating and if you need to adjust those numbers to gain, lose, or maintain your weight. Consistently, studies show that when you log your food, you are up to twice as likely to lose weight.1 Measure your portions and record everything you eat, and you’ll see results soon enough.
The same goes for your workouts. This might be as simple as tacking the calendar that comes with most of our programs to your wall and crossing off the days as you go. Or if you want get serious about it, the SuperGym ® allows you to track your workouts whether they’re P90X, INSANITY, LES MILLS PUMP, or another workout including running, yoga, tennis, and many others. Why does logging your workout matter? As Jessica explains, “Logging my workouts daily on the website was a great tool. It made me feel so accomplished when I could hit the ‘submit’ button.” The positive feedback and the accountability helped keep her moving toward her goal.
They Added Supplements to Their Diet
While a solid, nutritious diet including fresh fruits, veggies, lean protein, and “good” fats goes a long way toward helping anyone reach their fitness goals, sometimes you need to hedge your bets a little. That’s where supplementation comes in.
When you’re eating at a calorie deficit, you might not be able to get all the vitamins and minerals you need in a day. A good multivitamin such as ActiVit ® (as taken by Andy) acts as a nutrient safety net, making sure you get what you need to stay strong.
And then there’s Shakeology, which serves triple duty as a safety net, a meal replacement, and a healthy way to teach your sweet tooth who’s boss. Andy, who used to “spend long hours eating,” found that Shakeology helped him gain control over his overall eating habits. For Jessica, Shakeology came first. In just 11 days, she lost 11 pounds and that gave her the jump start and confidence boost she needed.
