LeanGreenMama 6 Week Bootcamp Wrap-Up

I've been married for 8 years, as of yesterday.  It's hard to believe!  What's sometimes even harder to believe is how much I've changed in those same 8 years!  When we got married, my drivers license told the truth.  That's right!  I weighed in at right about 150 pounds.  I wore a bikini on my honeymoon.  (I didn't look great in it, but then again I didn't figure there'd be too many people in Cancun that I would ever see again!)

A little over a year later, when I got pregnant with Little Lou, I weight 175 pounds.  I thought I was HUGE!  I couldn't believe I'd let myself gain so much weight, and vowed to get all the weight off and then some.  I didn't.  And then 15 months after she was born, I found myself expecting Bugsy.  I weighed 185 pounds.  Then a little over a year and a half after he was born, voila!  We found out Stinky was on the way.  193 pounds.  Do you see a pattern here?

It seems like the busier life got, the more hectic things were, the bigger I got.  Now, I want to point out that life hasn't been a bowl of cherries these 8 years.  We've dealt with a lot...a LOT a lot...of stressful situations in eight years.  You don't need to know all the details, what you need to know is that I am (was?) a stress eater.  My pacifier when I was feeling low was a cookie (or 5), a bowl of ice cream (a big one!), a handful (or 3) of chips.  I earned that weight.  I didn't wear it proudly, but I deserved it!

The Scoop

A couple months ago I was reading blog review opportunities on a Business2Blogger email.  There were a few opportunities I knew right away I wanted to try.  Then there was the one that said something along the lines of, "I'm looking for 10 bloggers to review and give away my new 6-week weight loss bootcamp."  (I don't remember the exact words, but it was something similar to that.)  I skipped that one because I didn't want to do it.  AT. ALL.  You see, I was "comfortable" doing what I had always done.  I didn't WANT to make big changes.  Now, granted, Stinky had just turned one and I was definitely thinking about weight loss.  What mom isn't?  But I knew I'd have to make some changes if I applied and was accepted. 

When I found myself opening the email for the third time, looking for that one opportunity for the third time, I realized I was ready enough to at least apply.  I knew I wouldn't actually get the campaign, but it was certainly worth the shot!  Something about my application piqued the interest of Jennifer at LeanGreenMama, and I can not TELL you how glad I am that she chose me as one of her "bootcampers!"

 Here I am, friends.  Before.

Not pretty, but it's me.

The Good

I truly can't think of enough good things to say about LeanGreenMama! 

I'll start with Jennifer McCay herself.  Jennifer is a hard working mama of two herself who has been there.  When she first started developing her plan, she was 53 pounds overweight.  She had a lot of ground to cover, but she covered it--in under a year!  She developed a plan for her own life and found that it worked to keep her healthy.  Only after she'd had personal success on this same plan did she decide to roll it out as a way to help other mamas!  Jennifer McCay has been nothing but kind and helpful throughout the last 6 weeks.  She's answered every question I've had.  She's been a real coach!

The tools.  There are SO many videos and tools provided in the 6 week bootcamp!  I created a binder to house all of my information.  A 2-inch binder.  I printed out everything Jennifer provided, most of it 2 pages to a sheet, and still had enough to fill most of a 2-inch binder!  As a part of the program, Jennifer not only coaches you through your weight loss, but she gives you important papers to help.  There's everything from a weekly progress sheet to a cookbook!  There are just so many tools at your disposal.

The FREE videos!  If you're not sure whether LeanGreenMama is for you, check out these videos.  Jennifer has created four totally free videos to get you started on your journey!  Through these videos, you can get a lot of the same information that's included in the bootcamp itself.  The videos are great tools themselves, but sadly don't include all the tools you'll really want to get yourself going.  (She couldn't possibly give ALL of it away, though!  How would LeanGreenMama be profitable??)

The plan itself!  You all are going to think I'm crazy here, but I have already, in just 6 weeks, grown to love the (mostly) vegetarian way of eating.  Not only have I lost weight and inches, but I have seen some changes in other health symptoms as well.  I haven't had nearly as many headaches.  I don't wake up shaky in the mornings.  This month, I didn't have my typical "hormone-induced" acne issues!  I eat until I am full.  I know when I'm full!  I wish I could go into tons of detail about the eating plan, but then why would you need LeanGreenMama?  

There are so many more good things I'd love to say, but I'll leave it there.  For now.

The Bad

  

Though there are a million things I LOVE about the LeanGreenMama 6 week bootcamp, there are a few things I wish were different.

Exercise.  Jennifer at LeanGreenMama emphasizes that exercise is a vastly important part of living a healthy lifestyle.  She even has great ideas in her plan for how to execute a great workout.  What I wish were different, though, is that I wish there were more.  More information.  Specific exercises listed.  Something.  Anything!  It would be great if LeanGreenMama could partner with a fitness coach or gym and really amp-up the exercise portion of the plan.  I think it'd make it so much easier for moms like me to get into great shape if we had more of a blueprint for our workouts as well!

The time commitment.  I feel silly even mentioning this one.  I'm a busy mom of 3, who sometimes babysits or has other kids in the house for fun.  We have doctor appointments, grocery shopping, cleaning, learning time...all the "regular" mom stuff.  Some weeks the videos are a little long.  I fully understand that Jennifer McCay wants to convey all the information she can to the bootcampers, but sometimes I think the videos could be shorter.  I often have to break a video up into small segments to get it all in!

The price tag.  Again, I hate mentioning this.  I know in my mind that you really can't put a price tag on your health.  I've never priced similar programs, so I can't say how this one compares.  What I can say, though, is that as a paycheck-to-paycheck stay at home mom in a family that is making huge sacrifices so I can be here with my kids, the bootcamp would be impossible for me to afford.  That said, LeanGreenMama HAS done what she can to make sure every mom has a chance!  Don't forget, she's created an AMAZING free four-video program that you can find HERE!

The Outcome

I'm pretty sure this is the only reason some of you have even read this far.  Yep, that's right.  You want to know how well I've done.  I'll get to that in a second.  First, I want to tell you that if you can afford it, I absolutely, 100%, support LeanGreenMama's 6 week bootcamp!  There are some other coaching tools available as well, which I also highly recommend.  If you can't squeeze the cost of the bootcamp out of your budget, I highly recommend those four FREE videos!  They won't give you ALL the tools you'll really want to have, but they'll be a great start to finding your mojo again!  I am a believer.  I have already seen changes in the way I look and feel.  In fact, I emailed Jennifer McCay earlier this week and lamented that I don't live closer to her, because I'd love to work on her LeanGreen Team!  Like I said, I have become a LeanGreenMama cheerleader...and am well on my way to becoming a LeanGreenMama myself!

Alright, so you want to see the results.  Here's the breakdown!

June 1, 2011 (1 week before the official start of the program, but the beginning of my LeanGreen Journey, via those 4 free videos):  

191.8 pounds

July 20 (7 weeks later, at the completion of the LeanGreenMama 6 week bootcamp, but not at the end of the LeanGreen Journey!):

169.0 pounds!

I have lost 22.8 pounds in the last 7 weeks!  YAY!

Not only have I lost almost 23 pounds, but I have lost TEN inches from my body!  (I didn't even measure my arms.  I should have.)  Do you want to see pictures?  Here they are!  I'll post my "before" picture again, and then my "now" picture.  I'm not calling it an "after" picture yet, because my journey isn't over, but I want you to see the progress!

Front view before

Front view now

Side view before

Side view now

As you can see, friends, it's working!  I'm not where I want to be.  I still have about 34 pounds to go before I'll be where I want to be.  But thanks to Jennifer McCay of LeanGreenMama telling me it's okay if I don't do the plan perfectly, I'm getting there!  You can too!  I could go on all day about my experience with LeanGreenMama's 6 week bootcamp, but I won't.  I do, however, encourage you to, at the very least, give the 4 free videos a look!  If you can, though, take part in the next session of Jennifer McCay's LeanGreenMama 6 week bootcamp!  It'll help you make changes in your lifestyle that you won't regret!

I was provided with this service at no cost to me in order to facilitate a review.  I was not compensated in any other way.  All opinions are strictly my own.  Thank you SO much, www.leangreenmama.com, for allowing me to participate in your program!