Can you keep a secret? For those of you that have been following along on facebook and instagram, you’ve probably heard all about the Rock Your Jeans Challenge Sasha and I designed and released this year. Missed it? Then let’s bring you up to speed:
It was a female-focused challenge with the goal of having participants drop two jeans sizes in eight-weeks. Or was it? Without a doubt, we wanted that for every woman who signed up – feeling strong and confident is something we support -and we also not-so-secretly wanted them to walk away with the knowledge of how to get pumped, get nourished and get their minds right. We tricked them into believing this was an eight-week challenge when in reality our mission was to build sustainable habits they could use for the rest of their lives. Sorry, not sorry. So, how’d we do it…?
Get Nourished
Our nutrition program taught the challengers how to balance their meals to support fat loss, boost energy, fuel for their workouts, and key strategies on timing to ramp up their results and get them feeling AH-mazing at the end of the day. With the internet so full of competing opinions, our goal was to distill down the key steps that actually make a difference, without sucking all the fun out of food.
You might be surprised to know that, unlike quick fix challenges, we actually encouraged mindful treats and there was no ban on eating out or savoring a glass of wine. The whole crew even enjoyed mimosas and a fun brunch to wrap and celebrate their wins! Mindfulness, meal planning and clarity around hunger ensured the nutrition program would be sustainable long past 8 weeks, and helped everyone conquer cravings and contain V-Day indulgences.
For the first time in my life, I feel like food has been simplified. I did my first diet when I was 17 and have tried every “quick fix” since. I lose weight on some incredibly restricted diet and gain it all back as soon as I try to go back to normal life. During this challenge, I ate real food and became more conscious about eating good amounts of protein and larger amounts of vegetables than I had previously. I’m feeling organized. I became better at planning ahead and carrying good options with me. I learned to eat so I could exercise the way I wanted to.
Get Pumped
Sasha created a strategic training program for women designed around learning how to prioritize workouts (strength, metabolic conditioning, cardiovascular and active recovery). Too often, women decide they need to make a change and immediately start doing more cardiovascular workouts like running, biking, or the elliptical. The problem with this is two-fold: the first ain’t nobody got time for that and the second is prioritizing a workout with the least bang-for-the-buck if fat loss is your goal.
As the women in the challenge learned if fat loss is your goal your priority should be two to three strength workouts per week, one to two metabolic conditioning workouts and last but not least, a cardiovascular workout. Learning how to prioritize their workouts based on this goal gave the women in the challenge the ability to stay consistent with their training regardless of what was happening in their lives. Because the unsexy truth is, consistency gets results.
“My feelings around exercise have shifted drastically. Previously, if my husband had to be out of town I might shift my gym time but often I’d cancel the session altogether finding it too difficult to re-schedule around my children’s activities. I’m now working harder to make sure I get my workouts. I’ve prioritized me. I’ve branched out and now attend 1-2 metabolic classes each week. I’ve loved the classes and no matter how hard the class may be, I love how good I feel after. My workouts have become a priority and my family, even my parents, are supporting me in my journey.”
Getting Our Minds Right with a supportive community of kick-ass women cheering each other on (seriously, we had THE best challengers!), was key. A key part of the success of the women in the challenge was the support system they created for one another. They shared their stories, struggles, solutions, recipes and offered encouragement to one another to keep going on tough days (or during tough workouts). They brought life to the private facebook group, energy to the group metabolic classes, and gratitude to myself and Sasha to be part of their journey.
There you have it. Michelle and I feel so much better telling you our secret. We’re excited that all of our challengers now fit into their jeans, but we’re most proud of how they learned to get pumped, get nourished and get their minds right so they can have the confidence to keep rocking their jeans well past these eight-weeks.
Here’s to loads of laughs, real change, and some new friends. Until next year…
“Excited to say “THE JEANS FIT” but more importantly the things I learned will help me to continue on this path. Thank you.”
If you or someone you know may be interested in the Rock Your Jeans Challenge we have good news, we’re already excitedly making plans for #RYJC2020 coming soon to a gym near you.
