P90X3 Day 1

April 13th 2014 I have started my P90X3 journey. I still have some weight to get off from my February 22nd Southern Caribbean Cruise. I had the time of my life away on vacation, a little too much fun. We ate, we drank and we celebrated. My boyfriend of 7 years purposed while we were leaving the port of San Juan.

Had to take a pic after he asked! :D

Most of you have heard of P90X. This workout came out sometime ago and in that time, Tony Horton has also put out P90X2. The second P90X was for the people who graduated P90X and looking for more. But just like its name, the workouts are 90 minutes long. I work full time, have a family and I don't think I have 90 minutes a day to set aside to work out. Actually, I know I don't.

P90X3 is not a graduate program. You do not have to have P90X or P90X2 under your belt to start this. And the BEST part, its just 30 minutes long!! I can do 30 minutes. 

Here are 4 options when doing P90X3.  You can do the classic, Mass, lean or Doubles. Classic is the traditional balance of cardio and resistance along with the typical muscle confusion like P90X.  You gain muscle, lose fat and feel amazing!  This is the choice that I am doing!

Lean is for those who prefer a more toned look.  It's not necessarily better for weight loss.  Both lean and classic can work equally well.  But instead of muscular hypertrophy you'll target functionality, mobility, and cardiovascular fitness.  You will still gain some muscle  you'll still lose fat, and you'll still get strong, you'll just stay lean.

Mass is for those looking for bulk over getting ripped. 

Doubles is another niche rotation.  It's not appropriate for everyone and it's recommended you do 90 days of P90X3 before doing this.

I am starting with the Classic. This is where Tony Horton suggests everyone starts out. I am wanting to do 2 rounds of this 90 day program. Start with the classic and then move to the Lean Calendar. I have 1 year to get in shape for my upcoming wedding in Jamaica. 

Who needs a Monday to start a new program?! Not me. The programs I have had the most success with always start on any other day then Monday. I don't know why.

Week 1 Day 1 

Total Synergistics

This workout required some equipment. A towel, bottle of water, a pull up bar or resistance band, light and heavy weights. I am not strong enough to use a pull up bar, so I used a resistance band with a over the door hook up. Light weights 5 lbs Heavy Weights 10 lbs.

Today's workout was 16 moves after a basic warm up

1.) Push-Up/Side Arm Balance 

2.) Crescent Chair

3.) Pull Knee Pull  

4.) Flip Flop Crunch 

5.) Crawly Plyo Push-Ups

6.) Releve-Plie, Weighted 

7.) Chin-Up Circle Crunch

8.) Boat Plow 

9.) Balance Arch Press 

10.) 3 Hop Press 

11.) Glamour Hammer 

12.) Branon Boat

13.) Flying Warrior

14.) Squat Rockers 

15.) Side Rise Punch 

16.) Warrior Squat Moon 

So this is just the beginning of my 12 week journey!  I plan to update you, share my progress, my struggles and everything P90X3!!  So subscribe to my blog on the left to get weekly updates and stay tuned for more fun!!!


If you would like to join me in doing P90X3 , The 21 Day Fix, T25 or any other Beachbody program, I will guide you through the entire program, we will get amazing results and you could have the chance to win $500 if you submit your before and after pictures!

To be part of my next challenge group, fill out my form 

The Scale is the Worst Way to Measure Progress, WHY?!

When it comes to weight loss, the scale can be a good measure of progress, particularly if you have a lot of weight to lose. But if you place too much emphasis on your weight and not enough on your body composition (the ratio of fat to lean muscle), you're only getting half the story. Plus, dreading your weigh-in or obsessing over the number on the scale is unproductive and can lead to unhealthy behaviors such as bingeing or starving yourself. Losing pounds doesn't always mean losing fat. Here's why the scale can be misleading.

The scale doesn't tell you how much fat you have. Your scale does exactly what it's supposed to—it tells you how much you weigh. But in addition to measuring your weight, the scale weighs bone, water, muscle, organs, and undigested food. When the number on the scale goes up or down, it doesn't represent only fat loss or muscle gain. It measures fluctuations in glycogen (stored carbohydrates) and water, and it even measures how much that breakfast you ate weighs.

You may wonder about scales that claim to measure your body fat. These send small electrical currents up one leg, through your pelvis, and down the other leg to determine your body's density. Then a formula is used to estimate your body fat. The problem with these scales is that they're notoriously inaccurate. However, they are usually consistent in their readings, so they can be helpful as a measuring tool. Even though the body fat reading might be off by as much as 5 or 10 percent, if the number trends downward over time, you know you're on the right track.

The scale can't tell if you've gained muscle. A pound of muscle is like a brick, small and compact. A pound of fat is like a fluffy feather pillow, bulky and lumpy. When you gain muscle and lose fat, your body gets smaller and tighter. Building muscle also makes it possible to drop clothing sizes without a big change in weight. Perhaps after a 90-day fitness program, the scale says you lost 7 pounds, which may not sound like much. But what if you actually lost 12 pounds of fat and gained 5 pounds of muscle? That's a remarkable improvement in your body composition, but you wouldn't know it if you only used your regular bathroom scale to track your progress.

You didn't really gain 5 pounds of fat overnight. You may step on the scale one morning and shriek in disbelief because the number is five digits higher than it was the day before. Stop panicking. Unless you ate an extra 17,500 calories the previous day, you didn't gain fat (a pound of fat is equivalent to 3,500 calories). Your scale is registering water, stored carbohydrates, and food. Also, cheap bathroom scales may have measurement errors, giving slightly different readings even when you're at exactly the same weight.

Your body's water levels are constantly changing. The scale can move up or down depending on how much water you drink, how much salt you consume, how much you sweat, and how many carbohydrates you eat. An average person can see a daily fluctuation in water weight of about 2 pounds, without any changes to diet or exercise habits. These fluctuations do not signify fat loss, and watching the scale move up and down every day can be frustrating for many dieters.

If you're trying to achieve a healthy weight and improve the way you look, you should focus less on what the scale says and more on developing the good habits that will produce results. To get lean and strong, with low body fat and nice muscle tone, there are three things you should do:

1.  Cardio plus weight lifting (or other resistance training). Cardio workouts raise your heart rate to help you improve your fitness level, burn calories, and shed fat. Resistance training builds muscle, which boosts your metabolism and helps you burn even more calories. Fitness programs like P90X®, ChaLEAN Extreme®, and Turbofire, Insanity and Slim in 6. all use cardio plus resistance training to improve muscle mass and burn fat.

2.  Healthy diet. No matter how much you exercise, you'll never reach your fat-loss goals if you don't follow a healthy diet consisting of lean protein, vegetables, fruit, and whole grains. The right foods in controlled portions will fuel your body as it shrinks.  80% of your weight loss comes from the foods that you eat.  Trust me, I did an entire month of Insanity and didn't focus on my diet.  That resulted in me losing 4 lbs in 30 days.  Talk about frustrating!!!

3. Track your progress. If you don't use the scale, you need to do something else to check your progress.

• Body fat testers can also be used regularly to track your fat loss. Monitoring your progress with tools other than the scale will give you a more realistic assessment of your weight loss success.
• Hydrostatic (underwater) testing and DEXA (X-ray) scans use advanced technology to measure your body fat with a high degree of accuracy. An Internet search can help you find testing centers in your area.
• Notice how your clothes fit. This is a foolproof way to prove that you're losing weight. If your clothes are getting looser, your body is shrinking, even if you don't see a big change in the mirror yet.
  
  
  Too many people are slaves to the scale. They can't resist weighing themselves, only to feel guilty, angry, or demoralized when the numbers don't move down quickly enough. If you're one of those people whose weigh-ins lead to loss of motivation or a feeling of helplessness, then you need to reconsider using the scale for your progress checks. Success is more than just a number.

• One of the best ways to keep track of your changing body is to use a tape measure. Record your chest, waist, hip, thigh, arm, and wrist measurements in a journal or the guidebook that comes with your workout program. Update the measurements every 30 days to see how your body changes.
• Pictures are also good indicators of progress. Have someone take front, side, and back photos of you every 30 days and keep these with your body measurements.  Watch this video for how to take your pictures accurately 

Are You Ready?

Are you ready?

* To leave your 9-5 job that you dread going into?

* Get in the best shape of your life?

* Stop living paycheck to paycheck?

* To get 25% off?

* To live the way you have always dreamed of?

If you said yes to any of those, I want you. I am expanding my team and we are quickly growing. I am now taking applications for new coaches.

Some coaches have lost over 100 lbs and some have made over $100,000 a year. Maybe a extra $500 a month is all you are looking for.

Sign up today for a new apprenticeship class starting May 7th!!

                                      https://caitstrayhorn.wufoo.com/forms/coach-application/

How I paid cash for my Wedding in 3 Months

February 22, 2014 will be a day I will never forget. This was the start of my very first "REAL" vacation. I have been to small places before but never more then 4 hours away from home. After planning for 2 years, Shawn and I are ready to board the Jewel of the Seas in beautiful San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Walking up the our floating home for the next several days, I knew I was going to have the time of my life.  I never knew just how special it would be.


The night was perfect. Dark sky lite by the beautiful lights of the city as we slowly took our time leaving Puerto Rico. The star filled sky didn't have a cloud in sight. Fort San Juan was glowing and

was one of the most gorgeous things I had seen so far this vacation. It was perfect, Shawn and I at the back of the boat, not a soul around, watching San Juan getting smaller in the distance. This was were my boyfriend of 7 years asked me to marry him. Overcome with emotion, I think it took me what felt like several minutes to say yes. It is the most stunning ring I have ever seen.

So now we plan our wedding. After long chats and going back and forth 100 times, we started to look into a destination wedding. I have been waiting for this ring for 7 years. I would get married tomorrow if I could. I don't want to have to wait 3 years to save up for a wedding. The cost of weddings are absolutely outrageous. And for what, a few hours. Why not take that money and get a week out of it.

With the help of our amazing travel agent, Kathleen McDonald, who booked our cruise, we have decided we are going to get married at The Grand Rivera in Ocho Rios, Jamaica! I can't wait. We are going Spring 2015 with a small group of family.

I will be able to have the wedding of my dreams. No more saving for 2 years just to get away. As most of you know, I am a beachbody coach. I help others reach their health and fitness goals as I maintain mine. I get paid, but this isn't a "job". It's what I love to do. I was overweight, depressed, on medication and living paycheck to paycheck. But not anymore. I lost 87 pounds, got off all my medications and now have the freedom to do what I want, when I want. Our wedding is 1 year away. But in the 3 months I have been a coach, I can pay for our trip, IN CASH! No putting it on the credit card and paying interest on it for years. Never did I think I could walk in and pay for it that same day.

I can't wait till I go and look at wedding dresses. I have some beautiful ideas in mind. And I know I won't have to look at the price tag. That is a beautiful and wonderful feeling. My parents are somewhat traditional when it comes to weddings and want to help out. I have told my parents, just get yourself there. I can take care of the rest. What a freeing feeling. To tell my parents they don't have to pay a dime, just to get themselves there.

I love coaching. I host challenge groups, give motivation to my challengers and help them crush their goals. I am here for them whenever they need me. I give them meal planning ideas, daily tips and tricks on how to stay on point. Some of these ladies I have grown close to and even great friends. This is not a job. It can't be.

Are you ready to leave your 9-5 job that you dread going to? Are you ready to get in the best shape of your life as little as 25 minutes a day? Are you ready to stop living paycheck to paycheck and start planning fa,ily vacations? Are you ready to live your life as you always wanted? Fill out my form for more information as my team is quickly growing.


Coach Application

My Insanity Results

November 10th 2013 I took a challenge. A challenge that I had feared for 3 years! I have completed other at home workouts before but the fact the informerical said "The Hardest Workout Ever Put On DVD" made me stay away. Why would I want to do it? The TV just told me it is going to be hard. So for three years, I watched the informerical and could only dream of doing it.

The first day was a Fit test. 25 minutes of going as hard as you can for 1 minute and counting to see how many of each exercise you could do. I would do this Fit Test three more times.

Fit Test Results
Day 1 to Day 63

Switch Kicks 100 - 130
Power Jacks 50 - 73
Power Knees 87- 125
Power Jumps 52- 66
Globe Jumps 10 - 14
Suicide Jumps 12 - 25
Push Up Jacks 13 - 27
Low Plank Obliques 40 - 68

So tomorrow I will submit my results to Beachbody and earn my badge of honor - My FREE Tshirt. The only TShirt I have ever wanted so badly. The Tshirt that will remind me no matter how hard it got,I still did it. 

Did I swear and yell at the TV, YEP. Did I dread doing it after working a 12 hour day, YEP. Did I sometimes just not want to hit play, YEP. But I knew I couldn't give up. I made a choice to do insanity, so I had to do it. No one could do it for me.

So here is what I am PROUD to share - My Results

Weight 131 - 118.7

Chest 33 - 30

Left Arm 10.5 - 9

Right Arm 11 - 10

Waist 26.5 - 25

Hips 34 - 32.5

Left Thigh 22 - 19.5

Right Thigh 22 - 19.5

I love the results. It was worth the blood sweat and tears. I would recommend to anyone who is looking for that same challenge I was. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have about insanity or Shakeology.

If you are interested in joining my next challenge group email me