Products to Gain...Products to Loose...all the same ones...Crazy eh!! :)

Gains or losses....it's all about ABSORPTION!!

I wanted to give some awesome information about some products that I use ALL The time!...they are essential in my diet and aid in body function.

If you are trying to gain weight or loose weight the key is absorption. If you are not absorbing the food you are eating, your body will not gain the weight you are looking to gain. Same goes for losses, when loosing weight it's very important to absorb everything, so your body doesn't think you are starving!!

My FAVORITE Products :)

Above is a picture of me gathering all my Favorite products at Popeye's. I'll give a brief explanation about each product, what they do and why I love them!! :)

My Favorite Protein EVER!

Why do I love Magnum Quattro Protein soooo Much?!? It is Pharmaceutical grade through and through!!...what does that mean?...Super high quality Product superior Absorb-ability!! :)

Quattro offers the following: 

*2 Isolates for post training gratification 

*Pharmaceutical grade CLA, Flax Seed, Casein, Egg Protein, and Cane Sugar.

*30g of Protein per serving

*It tastes UNREAL

*Made in Canada (very important to me)

*lactose Free

Quattro is my choice of protein because it satisfies so many of my needs. Post work out...breakfast because of the combo of proteins...and bed time for the same reasons.

It's an awesome product that will aid in quality gains, and feed my muscles when it's time to lean out.

Amazing product!

Progressive HCP-70 is an awesome product for EVERYONE!!...It is sooo important to have good flora in your digestive track. Absorption happens most in the intestines, and good intestinal health is key or absorption doesn't happen...no absorption, go gains, no losses!!

Here are some of the benefits of this product!

• Supports immune function
• Increases absorption of vitamins and minerals
• Healthier skin through the reduction of acne, eczema and psoriasis
• Prevention and treatment of vaginal and urinary tract infections
• Reduced symptoms of Dysbiosis (imbalance between good and bad bacteria)
• Reduced fatigue
• Reduced Distention, bloating and flatulence
• Reduced constipation and diarrhea
• Improved digestion
• Reduced Hypoglycemia
• Reduced food allergies
• Reduced lactose intolerance
• Reduced Leaky Gut Syndrome
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  So much Energy!!
  
  Progressive Veggie Greens is one of favorite products!. I start my day with this in my morning shake!. Veggies green's does several things for the body. It has most the nutritional benefits of 5-7 servings of veggies (minus the fiber) Most important thing about this product **PH Balance** Most of us are Acidic...an Acidic body is an unhappy body. Progressive uses a unique combination of veggies that help to Alkalize the body. Again, this aids with Absorption!
  
  

  
  

  
  

  Here are some of the things this product offer!

  
  

  • Restores a healthy pH
  • Supports liver function
  • Detoxifies the body
  • Cleanses the colon
  • Increases energy and renews mental clarity
  • Stimulates and enhances brain function
  • Strengthens immune system
  • Supports cardiovascular health
  • Balances blood sugar
  • Boosts metabolism
  • Improves digestive function
  • Promotes clear, healthy skin
  • Acts as an anti-inflammatory
  • Helps to relieve allergies
  • Tastes great!

  
  

  
  

  
  

  

  
  

  Progressive Fish Oil is an awesome product...my vanity product so to speak ;) Fish oils do for your insides, what they do for your outsides :) Progressive fish oils is my choice of oils because of the taste, the quality and the DHA (550mg) and EPA (1000mg) levels. fish oils help to lubricate your joints, your arteries and help keep things moving! they are the vanity products because it also helps keep your skin, hair, nails healthy and strong.

  
  

  Here are some of the benefits of this awesome product!

  
  

  • Supports cardiovascular health
  • Improves focus, concentration and mental acuity
  • Assists with healthy mood balance
  • Strengthens immune function
  • May reduce occurrence of asthma and allergies
  • Reduces inflammation
  • Promotes healthy skin and hair

That's all for this blog post...I hope you learned a little!!. Remember that if you want to loose weight...or gain weight you need to make sure your digestion and absorption are working! :) 

If you want to know if your digestion and systems are in working order, Alyssa can help you figure out what's up!!. When she did my body analysis my digestion was GOOD :)...why??...because I use high quality products that allow me to absorb what I'm eating!

If you have any questions about these products, head on into any of the local Popeye's location...we are Non Commission so anyone is happy to help you!. We have a store in Kitchener, Waterloo and a new one in Cambridge:)

When Opportunity Knocks....

Opportunity is Knocking....and I'm going to Answer it! :)

I believe that things, people and opportunities happen for a reason. I often look back and think...OHHH that's why this happened when it did.

Well I have an opportunity and I feel it's been presented to me for a reason, a lesson and a great learning experience.

Most of you know I work at Popeye's Supplements in Kitchener. I really enjoy working at Popeye's, My fellow employees and employer are awesome, it's a great environment. We are constantly encouraged to grow.

Upon arriving to work I was greeted by my boss Terry...he said...Oh Man do we have a contest for You Sheryl!...of course I was very interested to read the details of what was on the table. Here are the contest and prize details!!

As staff we all enjoy a healthy lifestyle and we are encouraged to make changes and push yourself in ways that will aid our customers. So This is a competition between 11 stores.

Popeye's is having a HUGE HUGE Competition...up for grabs is a total of almost $15 000 in Prize Money...YEAH...it's an amazing contest!! :)

Contest Starts September 5th!!

*Fist Place for Best Female Transformation in 11 Weeks $2500.00 (there are 2nd and 3rd prizes too)

*First Place for Best over all Female Physique in 11 Weeks is $1000.00 (there are 2nd and 3rd prizes too) 

**Grand total up for grabs for the First place winner of the Female category is $3500.00

Of course this contest was right up my alley...I thought....Yeah I could win over all physique, that would be great!...so I went and spoke with Craig and Alyssa :)

Both of them said...forget the $1000.00....Lets go for the $3500.00!!...I was a little confused at how they thought I could win best over all change in 11 weeks....so here is the plan, and the rationale behind the plan.

As everyone read in my last blog I have Food issues...I have major issues with the Scale and the numbers on it. I've been working with Alyssa for a good 3-4 weeks and as I mentioned I feel AMAZING...my weight is headed in a positive direction and my energy is back, I'm killing my big lifts at the gym! What all this means is  I trust in the process and have started to let go of the scale...YAY!! :)

So Craig and Alyssa are proposing that I put on some "Fluff" before the weigh in and measurements...well a good amount of Fluff. YIKES was my initial reaction-haha. They both feel this contest is an amazing opportunity for the following reasons...and after taking the weekend to think about it...I totally AGREE!!

*Doing a good, quick gain will help me realize I do NOT need to fear the scale, My weight...is totally MY control. 

*Dieting PROPERLY over 11 weeks is something I would love to know how to do...how to cut down, keep the muscle and my energy up will be an awesome much needed experience!!.

*MOST IMPORTANT POINT-Coming OFF the diet...Seeing myself shredded down is something I have wanted to do without having to get on a stage. I haven't done it for lots of reasons, #1 being the rebound post show.This is where Alyssa and Craig will be there for me the most!...They will not let me Stay in "stage shape" nor will they let me blow up!

How do I feel about this??...well I kinda feel like Craig, Alyssa and I just got on a roller coaster...I wasn't able to get my seat belt done up in time...so the only thing holding me on this ride....is Alyssa and Craig!!

This is ME :)

So that's what's next for this Girl...Alyssa has changed my diet for a quick GAIN...YIKES!...but she is so amazing and sensitive to my mental issues. She has asked me to up everything I am doing...and add in 2-3 cheats.

Example of stuff I'm upping....I now Add coconut oil to ALL my shakes, I have 2 HUGE shakes per day instead of just one...I eat way more fruit...and I have the fatty Almond milk. I'm also supposed to eat one crappy meal or snack per day...yikes!

I'm also trying to eat as often as possible...but with my body used to NOT eating it's been a real challenge for me...but I get a text now and again from my Diet coach and Trainer reminding me to eat...I've got a sick team behind me!! Craig has also made me a new program to make me..."Work out Wasted"...haha!...I love that saying...it's a steal from Alyssa...you will see me post that often! :)

Why am I posting this for the public??...After all the pressure I felt after my last change???....Simple...I received an INSANE response to my last blog post. So may people are struggling with what to do post weight loss...how to find a happy place...unsure how to deal with weight coming back on, or for those that did what I did..."live" in deprivation....for the competitors that can't find a happy place post show.

I hope this next part of my Journey is helpful to Everyone. There are people out there that can help like Craig and Alyssa....diets like IIFYM that allow you to LIVE and enjoy your amazing new health! I hope this shows that weight gain and proper diet can be amazing...that a beautiful muscular physique is just that ....BEAUTIFUL...no matter that the scale tells you!! :)

Ok....I gotta go EAT...Then Train....I have a contest to WIN!! :)

My hands are UP :)

What have I been up to??...New Goals...New Diet...New Start :)

"It's not about what you've done, it's about what you're doing"

Well it's been a long long time since I blogged...I have never been very good at this. I have some things that need to be shared...this is a VERY honest blog. I hope you get something from it.

Anyone that knows me knows my story. My weight loss and my new love of training and all things fitness. I love to train...lift heavy and see changes in my physique. But sometimes...more than sometimes I stumble. 

I struggle with the scale. I've been fighting numbers on a scale for my entire life. 

I put my journey out in the public for accountability and to hopefully inspire  others to make good changes. Doing that has accomplished both of the above, but it also put a TON of pressure on me to stay looking super lean. I have been living very lean for a good year an a half, staying on what is like a contest prep diet...but the contest never came...so the diet never ended. I apologize publicly for living a lie. I pretended to be healthy when I was really hurting myself with an ugly cycle....really a sickness. 

I started to see great lifting progress with Craig, about 5 months ago... he had me eating more and I was hitting all kinds of max's. The Max lifts felt great...but the scale started to look a little high....and I kinda freaked out-Huge! :(

I stopped eating the way Craig had asked me to eat...I started to see the scale go back down and I looked great!. He had put some muscle on my body and it really showed when I stopped eating to perform, and started eating next to nothing!... Extreme Diet is really all I knew...high protein, next to no carbs.

Finally this caught up to me, I was moody...distracted, lifting poorly. Craig would ask me what was up, why were my lifts were sucking and I would just blame lack of sleep, or the kids are keeping me busy. Craig is no fool and he could see me loosing more and more weight.

Soon Craig sat me down and made me tell him what I was eating...I felt sick as soon as the conversation started. After we calculated my daily intake of pretty much a breakfast shake...chicken and cucumbers it was clear to both of us I was hurting myself. Living on 700-800 Calories per day for about 2-3 months and training 6 day's a week was destroying my mind and body. I hit an all time low on the scale of 107lbs. That was NOT a healthy number!!

So after seeing the disappointment in his face, and knowing in my heart I needed to STOP this crazy cycle and dependence on the scale I thought long and hard about what I wanted, and I knew I wanted to change for real this time!

I was out shopping and an Usher song gave me My AAAAHAAA Moment. The lyrics were "It's not about what you've done, it's about what you're doing" That hit me like a TON of bricks!. I stopped dead in my tracks and thought.. Everyone knows you have lost weight, it's an old story...so the question is...What are you doing NOW?...The answer was living in the past and not creating the Athlete I wanted to be, I wasn't living, or growing, I was regressing!!

So I swallowed my HUGE pride and asked for help! I'm not one to trust...Anyone...EVER! To trust someone with my Diet is a HUGE leap of Faith...and I mean HUGE! 

Everyone knows who Craig is...but not to many know who Alyssa is. She is a great Friend to me and happens to be Craig's girlfriend and someone I look up to as a strong, beautiful woman. Alyssa has a degree in kinesiology, She has numerous nutrition courses under her belt and she has struggled with her diet and growth for years! She understand the battles of weight loss and gains. 

Alyssa sat down with me and asked if she could be the one to help me...I got a little nervous at the idea of letting her take over my diet. I have control issues and giving her control was VERY hard...but it really was the BEST BEST thing I've done for ME in a LONG time!! :)

Alyssa gave me what seemed to be a mountain of paperwork to fill out...this information was going to allow her to analyse my entire system. When she met with me to discuss her findings, I knew right then and there that this new Journey with her was going to Kick ASS!! I finally felt I had a livable solution!

Alyssa noticed that a few of my systems were lagging, She was able to give me food lists and suggestions to boost those systems and help me get my body working again. She then suggested I try something called "If it fits your Macro's" ...she explained it was like weight watchers points but a much more in depth version. My ears perked up...WW points?!...I rocked that system!!...I got more excited than ever!!

Alyssa calculated my exact maco needs for lean growth...she set me up with My fitness Pal for easy tracking...YES tracking!!...I do love to track!! :) It was all to good to be true.

I've been working with Alyssa and on IIFYM for 2-3 weeks, Alyssa has access to my account and she monitors my eating, makes suggestions and texts me to eat if she notices I've been lagging!. I have to say in Caps...I FEEL AMAZING! I have energy...my muscles are Full and look GREAT, I can concentrate and my mood swings have stopped. I feel like a person again!! 

I Do :)

What Alyssa has done is give me confidence in food again!, she has allowed me to grow but kept me lean, a healthy level of lean!!...I honestly haven't felt this good in a very very long time! I'm starting to grow and the scale isn't an issue for me anymore because I TRUST THE PROCESS! ***HOORAY!!!**

Alyssa, Craig and I are about to start a great journey together, I feel totally blessed to have them in my life!.**Stay TUNED for all the exciting things we are going to be cooking up :)**

If YOU are looking for something NEW, something livable, something CUSTOM designed for just you, A PERSONAL Diet Coach!... I encourage you to contact Alyssa. She truly is a life saver!!...She knows her stuff, she understands the struggle and she has all the tools to help you hit goals and stay healthy!!

I hope this blog was helpful to someone, I hope you can appreciate the good and the bad of weight loss...The constant struggle with the drug called FOOD. I've been struggling for far to long...scared for far to long. 
I'm excited for the choices I've made!!

For more information on how to start an AMAZING journey of your own...contact Alyssa Coppolino at
alyssacoppolino@gmail.com OR connect with her on Facebook :) 
https://www.facebook.com/alyssa.coppolino?fref=ts