Day 24 - Mike & Kristen's Advocare 24-Day Challenge

Day 24 means that the challenge is over and our results have been amazing! My weight before I left for work this morning was 197 lbs, which means that my final weight loss total was 17 lbs! Kristen's final weight was 125 lbs, which ends up being a 7 lbs weight loss! I'm working a call shift at the hospital tonight, so I'm going to wait until I get home tomorrow to take my final challenge photos and to get the final measurement on my waist. Honestly, the best part of this challenge is that I don't feel like the challenge has come to an end. Let me explain...

The last weight loss program that I completed was the Insanity exercise program. I loved the Insanity program and the results were great, but I really didn't change my diet. Also, those workouts are grueling (and long) and continuing them indefinitely after the 60-day program just wasn't realistic for me with my work schedule. So when the program was over, my diet was still crappy and my exercise routine really dropped off...and you guessed it, the pounds found their way back as well.

So that brings me to the Advocare 24-Day Weight Loss Challenge. Today, I feel great and my energy level is as high as it has been since college. My dietary habits have also changed significantly. I have also worked my way into a very manageable exercise regimen (15-20 minutes on the treadmill before dinner 4-5 times per week). Also, just because the challenge is over doesn't mean that I'm going to stop using the Advocare supplements. I won't be repeating the 10-day cleanse phase for a while, but I am going to continue the majority of the products from the second 14 days (Max phase). The Metabolic Nutrition System (MNS) has become a staple of my daily routine. I am going to continue to take OmegaPlex with dinner to fulfill my omega-3 fatty acid needs. The other product that I think has made a big difference for me is Catalyst. Kristen and I both feel that the biggest difference for us has been in the waist line. My waist has decreased by at least 3 inches (I'll know the final number tomorrow morning) and Kristen's has also decreased by 2 inches. Kristen mentioned to me this morning that she definitely can tell that her abs are more defined and she feels better in her swimsuit.

As I promised yesterday, here is my final review of the Advocare 24-Day Challenge:

I'll start with the Cleanse Phase. The 1st 10 days are definitely harder than the last 14 days. The first two days were a little tough because I had a mild headache while going through what I think was caffeine withdrawal. The Spark drinks have caffeine in them, but I don't think it's quite enough to completely fend off the withdrawal if you're a heavy caffeine drinker (like I was). The fiber drinks are also a little tough to put down, but I actually kind of liked the citrus taste and and definitely "enjoyed" them much more than Kristen did. There were a few very pleasant surprises about the Cleanse Phase. First of all, I never had trouble with being hungry. Five healthy meals/snacks per day was plenty to keep the hunger cravings away. Secondly, my energy level really started picking up by about day 2 or 3. Finally, I never had a problem with excessive urination or defecation. Part of the reason might have been that I drank a ton of pop before the challenge and caffeine is a diuretic, so I was definitely not urinating any more than usual. The other notable and expected part of the challenge is that the bulk of my weight loss came during the first 10 days while I was flushing my system of toxins and waste (13 of the 17 lbs during the cleanse).

After getting used to the Advocare system during the cleanse, the Max Phase was truly a breeze. By the second half of the challenge, I had established a healthy eating plan and a stable exercise regimen. Occasionally it was a little hard to coordinate the supplement schedule for the MNS (during this phase you will take one pack 30 minutes before breakfast and 30 minutes before lunch), but really only with the lunchtime supplementation (30 minutes before breakfast was easy...just took the pills when I woke up and then ate breakfast 30 minutes later on my drive to work). The Catalyst capsules seem to be more effective when you take them right before you workout, so that part was easy and convenient. The hardest part of the second phase for Kristen and I was that the "real world" temptations started to creep in. There were dinners with friends, a trip to the casino, and a 3-day bachelor party extravaganza for me (while Kristen had a 3-day girls' weekend at the same time). But these temptations are ALWAYS going to be there whether you are in the middle of a weight loss program or not! The other thing is, I partied for 3 days straight in the middle of the max phase and I still kept the weight off!

All in all, Kristen and I are extremely happy that we took on the challenge. I still want to lose more weight and try to get under 190 lbs, so I am going to continue with the Max Phase for a while longer. Kristen is in awesome shape and feeling great, so she's going to try to maintain solely using the diet principles that we learned during the challenge.

Thank you Advocare! You absolutely helped me reclaim my body and life!!!



If you want to explore the Advocare site more for additional details, here's our link:
http://www.reclaimyourbodyandlife.com/

As with every post that I'll make, here's my disclaimer:

I am a physician and protecting my medical career is of paramount importance to me. I have researched the Advocare products thoroughly and my wife and I have chosen to use them for our own personal weight loss endeavor. However, I will not provide an official medical opinion with regards to the safety and efficacy of the products for others. I've put in too many years of hard work to put my medical license at risk. Basically, I've chosen to use Advocare products for myself and you'll have to decide for yourself or consult with your personal physician to figure out if these products are safe for you too.