Friday, August 16, 2013

Shaklee 180™: The Before and After {#ShakleeBlogger}

As my final month of the Shaklee 180™ blogger program comes to a close, looking back at the past six months puts my emotions through the ringer: happiness and pride are mixed with sadness and regret.

Remember how I started off so extremely motivated and on track to make this the final weight loss program that I would ever need to try?

weight loss inspiration

That first month was undeniably amazing for me, as I lost five pounds in the first week and more than 10 pounds by the end of the month overall. I tracked every calorie, counted every step, and was beyond thrilled at seeing my hard work pay off while I enjoyed each delicious Shaklee 180™ Smoothee, Meal Bar, Snack Bar and more.

The second month followed and, while my weight loss results weren't nearly as amazing, I was still on the right track to losing more pounds and inches (even though I went on two blog trips and did quite a few food reviews that month). But Shaklee 180™ was there to help me! I brought my Meal Bars everywhere to avoid temptation and I blended up my tasty smoothees as often as possible.

By the halfway mark, however, my willpower and determination began to falter. Even though I could talk my motivation up with looking at everything that the Shaklee 180™ program had taught me (and how awesome it was that my belt was far too big), real life began to creep back in. Who has time to count calories? An extra snack or two won't change things all that much, right?

I loved participating in The Color Run during month 4 and of course BlogHer was a blast in month 5, but by then my mind had already dismissed the idea of actually making it to my end goal.

Was that a fault of Shaklee 180™? Absolutely not.

While I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't disappointed that I still have more weight that I'd like to lose even after participating in this great opportunity, I am able to look back at the past six months and know that I'm extremely thankful that I was able to come as far as I did.

Shaklee 180 blogger

Overall, when I look at my complete Shaklee 180™ experience, I am excited to have fallen in love with this program and am look forward to continuing with my morning smoothees. I love waking up and getting to enjoy a fruity, delicious treat that is healthy and nutritious and have no plans of giving that up anytime soon!

Besides, there is also this, which makes me simultaneously cringe and be happy at the same time:

weight loss before and after

No, really. How many chins did I have? And yikes, how long had it been since I saw the sun?

On the one hand, you have no idea how badly I want to delete that Before picture... or at least Photoshop it to remove those love handles and extra chins and just about every other aspect of it.

On the other hand, however, the combination of the Before and After pictures is extremely motivating. Do I ever want to go back six months and add those pounds back onto my frame? Do I want to hang this up so that I see it daily and am inspired to maybe put down that cookie and take a drink of water instead?

Thank you, Shaklee 180™. Thank you.

scale with tape measure
Starting weight: Ugh.
Week 1: -5 lbs
Week 4: -10.2 lbs
Week 8: -12 lbs
Week 11: -13 lbs
Week 15: -13.5 lbs
Week 19: -11.8 lbs
Final weight: -14 lbs

I'm on my way to permanently saying goodbye to my Before and saying hello to my After with Shaklee 180™. If you'd like to find out more about the program, connect with them on their website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

You can also find out more about all of Shaklee's incredible products for healthy nutrition, home and beauty by connecting with Shaklee Corporation on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

This is a sponsored post as part of the Shaklee Corporation blogger program. I have received free products, online support and incentives for participating in the Shaklee Corporation blogger program. My opinions are my own. I am also a Shaklee Independent Distributor.

People following the weight-loss portion of the Shaklee 180™ Program can expect to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

23 comments:

BethElderton said...

WOW! What an amazing difference. You look great!

Modern Mia said...

Congrats! You look great!

Unknown said...

You look fantastic - it certainly worked for you

Jessica Allen said...

Way to go Xenia! You look great! I have read great things about Shaklee, I need to give them a try!

dannyscotland said...

I understand that you might still feel a little disappointed that you didn't make it to your goal, but holy smokey smokes, did you look at your before and afters???? You look INCREDIBLE!!! You look a lot healthier and a lot trimmer, and I bet all your clothes fit better, too. Wow, I would say pat yourself on the back because you did a great job, and I have to say how much I love that you talked about real life getting in "the way" of progress. All those TV infomercials drive me crazy. I am not going to look like those women who lost (I am making this up) 324 pounds in only 3 weeks. Or whatever. Ha. But what you did--now this is awesome!

raveandreview said...

Xenia, you look amazing!! And, don't beat yourself up for the non-loss during blog trips - I gained a whopping 5 pounds at BlogHer this year - How's that for swag? Perhaps I shouldn't have been having 2nd and 3rd dinner??

Alicia said...

You look fabulous! We have to meet at some point. We don't even live that terribly far away! Once of these days I'm actually going to attend a blog conference, LOL:)

LeeAnn said...

Congratulations Xenia! You look great! Your hard work definitely paid off, and you should be proud to show off those pictures. I have all but lost my motivation to lose more weight, but this post brought it back. :-)

slehan said...

It might not have been all that you hoped you could do, but congratulate yourself what what you did accomplish.

slehan at juno dot com

polly said...

Good for you! I've lost 15 pounds the last couple of months by changing my diet and walking everyday. I found out I have Diabetes so I had to make new choices in my everyday habits! Congrats on your weight loss...you look great!

Liz Mays said...

Nothing to be upset about here. A 14-lb loss is fantastic and should be celebrated!!!!

An Apel a Day said...

You look great!

I'm on that road as well. It's a lot of work.

Anne said...

Yay! You have reason to celebrate, for sure. I hope you can feel great about your accomplishment--you certainly should.

Gala said...

Oh my! You look great, congratulations!

Becca said...

WTG on the weight you did lose! The before and after picture shows what a difference 14 pounds can make. Keep up the good work!

Karen Glatt said...

You lost a lot of weight, and you look a lot thinner! You should be proud of yourself. Just keep up the good work, make sure to exercise which really helps.

Ashley S said...

Way to go on your weight loss!! You look great!

Unknown said...

Congrats on your weight loss.
I love your hair up, it is so cute like that! You can see a big difference in your before/after shots.

Also love the photo collage!

Keep up the great work and healthy living.

NetWorkingWitches said...

You look so great! You did a great job.

Meghan said...

Fantastic job!

Unknown said...

What a great job! You look great!

Amanda said...

Congrats - you look a lot more toned and fit in the post pictures. Way to go!

Unknown said...

Congratulations! You look awesome!

knickgirl_3 at yahoo dot com