There was a great comment in our support community today from Paul, who said, “I am really impressed by the variety of people following the Xtreme Fat Loss Diet on the forum, and the ways we all have different challenges, but are making this regime fit into our different lives.”

I totally agree with Paul. It has really impressed me to see how everyone is overcoming their challenges and making the necessary modifications to suit their current level of fitness or work around any problem areas such as a bad back.

What’s really been exciting to me is to hear everyone share the moments when they typically would have caved into junk food temptations or stayed in bed and skipped a workout, yet they pushed forward and excelled!

During the first two days most of us had a very similar experience. We loved starting off with a cheat day and the fast day surprised the heck out of us, because we all felt fine and managed to get through the day feeling great. There was only one person who felt faint at one point and had to grab a piece of fruit to get through the day. It was great to see that she listened to her body and didn’t feel bad about making that small modification.

I forgot to mention in yesterday’s journal entry that on the fast day, in addition to the workout, the HIIT session, and the 30 minute bike ride, I also mowed the lawn and did various other tasks around the house in addition to my work day. Remember, Angie said she would kill me if I was in bed all day I ended up doing more than normal and it helped to stay busy.

The only weird part about the fast day was not eating after exercising. That’s usually a time when I love to eat and refuel my body. I felt compelled to eat, but that quickly passed as I reminded myself that today is the only fast day during the cycle where I won’t be eating after a workout.

So as I mentioned, the first two days we all seemed to have a similar experience. Today, however has produced a variety of different experiences. First, I’ll share my experience…

Today is a shake day where I will consume 5 protein shakes throughout the day. I actually woke up and didn’t feel hungry. That surprised me because I woke up hungry after the cheat day… go figure. One of the members Stacey said that she had the same experience.

So although I didn’t feel hungry I wanted to get a shake in me right away because I knew I would be working out soon and after going all day fasting yesterday I didn’t want to feel light headed during my workout and I wanted to give it my all!

The shake was delicious! I use Prograde Protein as my powder of choice. My first shake included some raw honey and oatmeal, which was super yummy and satisfied my sweet tooth and daily craving for oatmeal.

Other shakes included blueberries, strawberries, one with mint and a delicious one with Peanut Butter and Jam. I hope that Joel doesn’t mind me sharing this recipe on my blog, but my wife and kids demanded that I make them each a shake after they tasted mine…

PB&J Protein Shake

1 – 2 scoops Vanilla Prograde Protein®
1 Tbsp. organic heavy cream
1 Tbsp. all-natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp. sugar free strawberry or grape jelly
1 cup water
4 ice cubes

My energy dramatically increased throughout the day. I felt absolutely amazing! On top of the world actually, and totally certain that I will be achieving my goal. In fact I kept visualizing myself on the beach with my totally ripped 6 pack abs.

The strength workout today was totally awesome! I am loving the variety in this program and it’s completely different from what I’m use to. The workout lasted 40 minutes, which is longer than normal for me, and I went for a 30 minute bike ride later in the day.

It’s been great to have the support of the members of our super spectacular support community. Reading each others victories has been very inspiring and it’s been wonderful to share this journey with so many great people.

I mentioned that the shake day produced different responses from the members of our community. Some people opted not to have a shake prior to their workout and it seemed to increase their hunger throughout the day. It will be interesting to see how consuming a shake prior to the workout in the next cycle impacts their hunger differently.

In addition to the shake you are allowed to have as much vegetables as you need or want. This helped a lot of people who couldn’t get by with just the shakes alone. I was more than fine and didn’t require the veggies in addition to my shake. I have a feeling that it was the variety of shakes that I consumed throughout the day that gave me loads of energy and didn’t require the need to eat veggies.

If I didn’t mention, I’m following the deluxe plan which includes meal plans, more spread sheets, recipes, and shake recipes. Having a large variety of shake recipes has been a real treat.

There were a few people who felt tired today and required the veggies, but I’m not quite sure what they had put in their shakes, if it was just plain water and powder or if they added some substance like those of us following the deluxe meal plan.

The great news is that all of us made it through the first three days and are onto the forth day, which includes moderate amounts of carbs and protein. I’m so excited!!!

Once again, thank you for sharing in this journey with me. It’s really helped to document my journey and to celebrate in your successes too.

To achieving your full potential,

Scott Tousignant