And if you need help, just click the Contact Me button!

Our big deal for May, just in time for Mother’s Day or any day is Tai Cheng Challenge Pack! I have done this program for 8 weeks and I loved it! My flexibility increased. And even better, it was very meditative for me. It relaxed me at the end of the day in just 15minutes!

Renew your youthful energy in just 90 days through the healing motion of Tai Cheng! Developed with Dr. Mark Cheng, this low-impact program combines the 18 fundamental moves of Tai Chi with 21st-century sports science. It includes 12 workout DVDs, plus a Master Scroll reference DVD and valuable fitness tools to help you turn back the clock and feel absolutely fantastic.

Exclusive offer! Get a Bonus DVD that explains how you can improve your posture and well-being if you purchase Tai Cheng on Team Beachbody®. A $19.95 value—yours FREE!

For more info about what is included, please check out my Tai Cheng page.

The Challenge Pack includes the full Tai Cheng program and the following:

A 30-Day Supply of Shakeology—The Healthiest Meal of the Day.* Simplify your nutrition with the convenient daily shake that helps you increase energy, become more regular, lose weight, and feel great. A combination of antioxidants, phytonutrients, adaptogens, and many other rare ingredients give your body the essential nutrients you can’t get from a normal diet. You get a salad bowl’s worth of fruits and vegetables in a single glass. 100% vegan option now available.‡

PLUS:

FREE 30-Day Trial Membership in the Team Beachbody Club.**†
When you’re part of the Team Beachbody community, you have all the tools, support, and accountability you need to commit to a healthy lifestyle.

Including:
10% discount on all purchases
Meal plans personalized for your goals
VIP access to your favorite trainers and Beachbody experts, including live chats, exclusive videos, nutrition tips, and delicious recipes
Your own personal Coach for guidance and support
Access to SuperGym®, where you can win cash or prizes just for logging your workouts every day
Message boards and chatrooms to help you find new friends and workout partners, and get advice and support from the entire community
30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
We’re so sure you’ll love this Challenge Pack, we’re giving you our 30-day money-back guarantee. If you’re not completely satisfied, simply call Customer Service to return it within 30 days for a refund of the purchase price (less any S&H).

*With Shakeology Home Direct, you’ll receive this item every 30 days, shipped directly to your door and billed to the credit card you use today in the amount of $119.95 a month (or $129.95 a month for vegan Tropical Shakeology)—only about $4.00 a day!—which includes FREE shipping to your doorstep. You may cancel at any time to avoid future charges by calling Customer Service.

**After your first 30 days, you’ll be automatically billed to continue your Team Beachbody Club membership at a cost of $2.99 a week, billed $38.87 per quarter in advance to the credit card you provide today. You can cancel anytime to avoid future charges by calling Customer Service.

***Strength Band contains natural rubber latex, which may cause allergic reactions.

†Offer not valid for current paying Team Beachbody Club members.

‡These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Consult your physician before beginning any exercise program. Results may vary. Exercise and proper diet are necessary to achieve and maintain weight loss and muscle definition.

Shakeology Chocolate + Greenberry Combo available in single-serving packets only.

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Deal #2 And if you want to dance your way into fitness, for a limited time – Hip Hop Abs is just $19.95! Regular price is $59! Click below to buy NOW!!!!!!

Dance your way to hot, sexy abs and burn off the fat from head to toe with Shaun T’s fun, exciting workout program! Using Shaun’s revolutionary Absolute Engagement^™technique, you’ll “Tilt, Tuck & Tighten” your way to six-pack abs without ever doing a single crunch or sit-up.

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Deal #3 The Hip Hop Abs Challenge pack is also on sale for $140, regularly priced $160. Click below to buy NOW!!!

Your Challenge Pack includes:

• Hip Hop Abs DVDs
• Your first 30-day supply of Shakeology^®—The Healthiest Meal of the Day^®, delivered through Home Direct, our autoship program that ensures timely delivery of Shakeology to your doorstep every month.*
• A FREE 30-day trial membership in the Team Beachbody^® Club, where you’ll find all the support you’ll need to complete your Challenge.**†
• Plus FREE standard shipping!
• 

For my first bar I used black beans, avocado, honey, organic applesauce, protein powder (used Raw Protein but this time I will use Hemp Pro 70), and some cocoa powder. I think because I used raw cacao powder, I added a bit of extra honey for sweetness. In my second batch, I’m going to increase the protein powder to increase the protein content. My original bars were 36g carbohydrate, 8 g fat (healthy fat from avocado), and 7 g protein.

If you make these, let me know your recipe!!!!

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Here is another take on the protein bar formula from Team Beachbody Newsletter

Recipe: Snack Bar-O-Matic

Want to try your hand at making your own fruit and nut–based snack bar? In just a few minutes, you can create a healthy, customizable snack to help you eat right when you’re on the go.

Thanks to a date or prune base, these bars are rich in potassium, an electrolyte that is essential for healthy muscle function (including the most important muscle, the heart!). The nuts and seeds provide protein as well as good-for-you monounsaturated fats and/or omega-3 fatty acids. And the high fiber content will help keep you regular. Want to really kick up the nutritional wow factor? Add a couple scoops of your favorite Shakeology.

Total Time: 1 hr. 10 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Yield: 12 servings, 1 bar each

Ingredients:

1 cup pitted whole dates or prunes for the base
1 cup dried fruit
1 cup nuts and seeds
2 scoops Shakeology (optional)
Optional flair
Preparation:

Combine equal parts dates or prunes, dried fruits, nuts, and seeds in the bowl of a food processor.
Process for 1 to 2 minutes. Check to make sure all ingredients are breaking down into smaller pieces; scrape sides of bowl as needed. Process 2 to 3 minutes more until ingredients form tiny crumbs that come together into a loose ball.
Turn out the Snack Bar-O-Matic mixture onto a square of cellophane (or an 8″ x 8″ baking dish). Press into a flat disc.
Cover tightly and refrigerate one hour.
Cut into 12 bars. Store in the refrigerator.
Choose one or more from each:

1 CUP BINDING FRUIT (these will give your bars the best texture)
Dates
Prunes

1 CUP DRIED FRUIT
Dried apricots
Dried figs
Raisins
Dried cranberries
Dried blueberries
Dried cherries

1 CUP RAW NUTS OR RAW SEEDS
Flaxseeds
Chia seeds
Pepitas
Sunflower seeds
Almonds
Walnuts
Peanuts
Cashews
Sesame seeds
Coconut

OPTIONAL FLAIR
1/2 tsp. rum extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1–2 oz. dark chocolate chips
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

WITH SHAKEOLOGY* (per serving):

Calories Fat Saturated Fat Cholesterol Sodium Carbs Fiber Sugar Protein
151 5 g

WITHOUT SHAKEOLOGY* (per serving):

Calories Fat Saturated Fat Cholesterol Sodium Carbs Fiber Sugar Protein
124 5 g

If you’d like to ask a question or comment on this newsletter article, just email us at mailbag@TeamBeachbody.com.

Also follow me on Google+!

Shaun T’s Hip Hop Abs is a great way to ease into fitness. It is so much fun! And the one area that is important for Middle Agers to strengthen is the core. Having a strong core protects your back, gives you better posture and balance! And, Shaun T will be doing Hip Hop Abs as written starting May 6! I have been doing Shaun’s Birthday Insanity challenge and it has been so much fun doing it with him every day. He is so motivating and I love seeing him set and meet his own personal goals.

Dance your way to hot, sexy abs and burn off the fat from head to toe with Shaun T’s fun, exciting workout program! Using Shaun’s revolutionary Absolute Engagement^™technique, you’ll “Tilt, Tuck & Tighten” your way to six-pack abs without ever doing a single crunch or sit-up.

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Researchers have shown that if you work on your  fitness and nutrition at the same time, you

get faster more long lasting results compared to working on just nutrition or just fitness. If you need help with your nutrition, considering investing in the Hop Hop Abs Challenge Pack. The Challenge Pack includes Shakeology which is one of THE best meal replacement shakes on the market. You can not get better nutrition in one glass for this price. The Hip Hop Abs Challenge pack is also on sale for $140, regularly priced $160. Click below to buy NOW!!!

Your Challenge Pack includes:

• Hip Hop Abs DVDs
• Your first 30-day supply of Shakeology^®—The Healthiest Meal of the Day^®, delivered through Home Direct, our autoship program that ensures timely delivery of Shakeology to your doorstep every month.*
• A FREE 30-day trial membership in the Team Beachbody^® Club, where you’ll find all the support you’ll need to complete your Challenge.**†
• Plus FREE standard shipping!

Ask the Expert: How Can I Maintain My Results?
By Steve Edwards

Congratulations! You’re done with INSANITY®, P90X®, or another Beachbody® program, and you love the results. But you’re also sick of hammering your body every day and watching each calorie you put into your mouth. So, what now? Can you keep your new body without all the work?

Yes and no. In order to function well, you need to move and properly fuel your body. But the fitter you are, the easier it is to stay fit. This means you can maintain your fitness with much less effort than it took to get there.

The following checklist will assuage the fears you have about losing your new body or reverting to the unhealthy habits you’ve worked so hard to change, and provide you with a sensible plan to maintain your results.
Lesson 1: Take a break!

Before you worry about keeping your results, you should celebrate. You’ve earned it! Your fitness won’t fall apart overnight, and a break will give you physical and—more importantly—mental relief from worrying about training, diet, and results.

Don’t worry about losing fitness. A little time off will actually improve your fitness by allowing your body to heal microtrauma (natural breakdown of muscle and connective tissue) incurred during regimented training. If you’re in need of convincing, consider that professional athletes are forced by their trainers to take full-stop breaks at the end of each season.

Too much time off, however, will start things sliding the other way. The length of your break should be related to the length of your program. If you’ve done a month of INSANITY: THE ASYLUM®, a week off is plenty. If you completed 90 days of P90X or P90X2®, you’ve got close to a month of leeway before your fitness will begin to suffer.

You can exercise during this break and I strongly recommend it. Just make it fun and, absolutely, don’t follow a regimented program. This is the time to take your newfound fitness for a drive around the block. If you’ve ever thought there was something you’d like to try, now’s the time.

Lesson 2: Without a maintenance plan, expect to keep your results for about as long as it took you to get them.

It takes approximately 3 weeks off to fully undo 3 weeks of training, while it may take 3 months to fully lose 90 days’ worth of effort—it takes about the same amount of time to lose your fitness as it took for you to attain it.

But since starting at square one sucks (remember?), you never want to wait too long to restart your training. The break you took in Lesson 1 should transition straight into a maintenance plan. If you got in shape for something like a vacation, class reunion, or another type of indulgence-oriented function, you need a plan (if you didn’t start with one) for continuing. Hopefully your new healthy habits have been well ingrained and you’ll soon begin to miss the endorphin rush of your daily exercise sessions.

Lesson 3: Create a maintenance schedule

To maintain your fitness, you’ll need around half the volume of your training program. The two simplest ways to do this are with full workouts every other day or with half workouts 6 days per week.

For the full workout plan, pick workouts to do every other day. The workout you do can be based on what you feel like you need. The downside is that it can be boring, which is why we offer many maintenance workouts, like P90X ONE on ONE®, INSANITY Fast and Furious, Brazil Butt Lift® Master Series, and so on. You can also mix and match from other workout programs, take classes at the gym, or play sports. The key is that you push your body in the way it was accustomed to during your training program.

Doing half workouts is trickier because you’re probably going to have to abridge your workouts. Instead of “just Pushing Play,” it’s up to you to structure your workout. A good general guideline is to warm up, do one or two rounds of exercises, and then fast-forward to the workout’s cooldown (or do a cooldown on your own). About 80% of a workout’s value happens during the first few sets. And while that may put you 20% under elite fitness, it’s perfectly fine for maintenance.

With either schedule, you’ll want to make sure you’re not doing similar workouts too close to each other. Don’t do plyometrics or work similar body parts back to back.

Lesson 4: Continue to push yourself.

Just because you’re working out less doesn’t mean you can slack off. Your workouts should improve over time while you’re maintaining, the same way they improved over time during your program. Your goal during each workout is still to lift more weight, move faster, jump higher, go deeper into stretches, and mimic the trainers as much as possible. Your body needs to be pushed. If it’s not, it will regress.

Lesson 5: Eat how you did when you were out of shape and your results will melt away.

For a few days, or even longer, it will seem like you can now inhale burgers, beers, and everything else that you’ve been denying yourself without any consequences. This won’t last.

It’s a fun perk, but it’s simply your body’s new raging metabolism trying to heal microtrauma. The fitter you are, the slower your body is to show regressions. And while your new, fitter body will endure splurges much better than it did before, it is not, and will never be, immune. It’s like the saying goes, you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. At least you can’t forever.
Lesson 6: You don’t need to eat as strict a diet as you did during your program.

On the flip side, you don’t need to eat like you have a fitness competition coming up unless, well, you have a fitness competition coming up. In fact, you probably shouldn’t. Beachbody programs are “boot camps.” They are designed to be very strict. Real life should be more relaxed and include indulgences. Fitness competitors don’t stay in competition shape all the time, and neither should you.

There are a few popular maintenance strategies incorporated by fit people. One is the 80/20 rule. Keep 80% of your diet relatively clean so that you can let your hair down with the remaining 20%. Another is workweeks on and weekends off.

Whatever you do, just remember that your new body needs more calories to maintain than it did when you began your program. That’s because your muscle-to-fat ratio is higher than it was when you started, so your metabolism is higher. Food is also essential for rebuilding the breakdown caused by your workouts, all of which means you need (or get) to eat more.

Ultimately, your goal is to stop calorie counting and learn to eat based on how your body feels. If you’re lacking energy, eat more. Avoid excessive eating by stopping before you’re full and realizing that when you overeat you feel sluggish and uncomfortable. By eating intuitively, you can maintain your physique more easily than by measuring every morsel you put in your mouth.

Lesson 7: You can’t maintain forever.

A solid maintenance plan can keep you fit for a long time. However, if you want the level of fitness you had after your last program, you’re going to require a reboot every so often, as in reboot camp. There’s simply no way around the fact that elite fitness requires sacrifice, hard work, and getting out of your comfort zone from time to time. P90X2, anyone?