Today was Lower Fix.
Lunges. Squats. Different Lunges. Leg Lifts. More Lunges. Did I mention Squats? Oh, and some more Lunges. My legs were toast about a third of the way into the 30 minute program. I got through it, but only just barely and not in any of the forms shown on video.
I had forgotten just how intense Lower Fix is compared to Upper Fix. That felt hard but it was doable. I was able to make it through every exercise except push-ups (because I can’t do any real ones). But Lower Fix had me gasping for air and straining against the 6 pound weights in each hand as I lunged and squatted my way through the 60 second intervals.
The all-too-short 60 second rests is enough time for me to catch my breath, watch the instructor demonstrate the next move and slowly get into position for it before it’s time to work again. I made it through this workout before. But I’m more out of shape now. Starting back with Yoga was a good move to get the body loose and ready to work but it doesn’t prepare me for the weight work against gravity that 21 Day Fix throws at me.
My wife and I worked out early in the afternoon because we knew it would be hard and didn’t want to wait until after dinner. Even with the best of intentions, it always turned into 10pm when we don’t workout in the afternoon. After cursing my existence for saying it was time to work out, we got through it and spent the next half hour collapsed on the couch and recovering.
Then we made a quick meal and headed out for some shopping and figured out what to do about food for the week. We’ve gone through a lot of stages in our food journeys and are currently trying out Clean Eatz Kitchen. It’s a prepared meal service delivered in bulk. They have restaurant locations as well but as the closest ones are a state away in either direction, I have no experience with those.
We tried an initial batch of 10 meals. We picked five that sounded good and got two of each so we could each try them and decide if it was worth pursuing.
We were both skeptical at first, frozen food is not usually what I think about when I think about flavor and healthy eating, but Clean Eatz Kitchen delivers. The first meal I had was a chicken and broccoli dish over rice and the broccoli was crunchy after microwaving it. After eating the first five meals, we decided to order a month’s worth.
Overall, the food has all been paired well and the portions are filling. They’re about double the size of a Lean Cuisine and weigh in about 300-400 calories per meal. The meats have been delicious, if lacking some seasoning. I would recommend adding pepper as some meals need it and some are already a bit too salty. A little extra Teriyaki sauce or extra spice really adds to the meals.
With dinner already taken care of (tonight was Clean Eatz Fajitas!) we focused on lunches for the week. We like to make lunches for the week on Sundays because it takes the guess work out of the week and helps us make better choices when the laze choice instead of McDonalds or Taco Bell is reaching into the refrigerator and grabbing a meal.
Last week was sandwiches and bags of grapes, this week we repeated bags of grapes, added apples to it and instead of sandwiches, we went upscale with two different dishes.
The first is Chicken Tamale Casserole from Buns In My Oven. It’s a cornbread-based chicken tamale casserole and is one of my favorite meals we’ve ever found online and made. The second rates just as highly. Chicken Broccoli Braid with Pillsbury Crescent Rolls is an absolute stellar meal. If you could take a broccoli cheddar soup and wrap it in a warm bready hug, that would be this meal. The only problem with this is trying to resist eating the entire braid in one meal.
Tomorrow is Reunite with your Breath.
