21 Day Fix Meal Plan -- Simplified. How to plan your meals!

So, you ordered your 21 Day Fix program, your package arrives, you look at the meal plan, and it seems confusing...maybe even overwhelming because it's something NEW to you that you've never done before.

I have great news!!!  That's what COACHES are for!!  We are here to HELP you -- to break your 21 Day Fix meal plan down in SIMPLE terms so it's easy to understand, you feel confident that you know where to start and what to do.

If you haven't already checked out my blog post about "How to Create your own 21 Day Fix Meal Plan"...make sure you check it out!  If you have, and meal planning still hasn't completely clicked for you...read on...I'm going to show you exactly how I simplify my 21 Day Fix meal plan.

First things first...you need to figure out your calorie bracket.  I follow the 1,200 - 1,499 calorie bracket:

As you see...the colors we need the most containers for are RED (protein) and GREEN (veggies).

So, I prep most of my REDS and GREENS together and base the rest of my snacks around my main meals.

Examples:
Balsamic Chicken with Zucchini and Onion

Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms

YELLOWS! "Add ins"

I usually choose 1-2 Yellows (starchy carbs) to prep each week...I consider these "add ins" when I feel like I need a little extra energy, or if I'm feeling like I want to eat more than protein and veggies.  Great "add ins" for these meals would be whole wheat pasta or quinoa.

I choose to eat my Yellows only when I feel like my body needs them.  As a coach, I work (sitting) from my computer on social media, so my body doesn't require a ton of extra starchy carbs for energy.  Sometimes I add my Yellows in as a snack (Whole Wheat Crackers) during the day instead of adding them to my meals.  You also have the option to replace 3 Yellows with one glass of Red Wine at the end of your week.  So, choose your Yellows carefully, and make sure you eat them before 6pm! :)


GREENS!
I usually keep raw veggies on hand for the days I haven't checked off all of my Greens.  I find that unless I eat a salad during the day at some point, I usually have some Green Containers left over, so I count Raw Veggies as one of my daily snacks.  I know...not the most tempting snack...but, we are FUELING our bodies so we see results, right?! :)

PURPLES!
Purples are simple!  Keep Fruit in your house, and when you are craving energy or something sweet...eat your fruit! :)  You may also use your fruit serving to add to your Shakeology.  We always keep a mixed bowl of fruit in our fridge, and apples and bananas on the counter where I can see them!  Must eat fruit before 6pm!

BLUES!

I also consider Blues "Add ins".  Sometimes I add a Blue container of Cheese to my meal, or I add Avocado to my salad, Hummus with my Raw Veggies, or I snack on Almonds.

ORANGES!

Oranges are "Add ins" for me as well.  If I eat a salad, my Orange container for the day is always Salad Dressing.  If I don't eat a salad, I have sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds as a snack.

TEASPOONS!

I usually count my Teaspoons as the Coconut or Olive Oil I cook with.  If I cook with Organic coconut oil/olive oil spray and I don't use much...I count my Teaspoons as All Natural Peanut Butter :)  I usually eat my 2 Teaspoons of Peanut Butter with an Apple, or in my Shakeology, or maybe even on a piece of whole wheat toast if I feel like I need energy before a workout!

QUICK REFERENCE
If I'm short on containers, I prepare these things to snack on throughout the week:

REDS - Shakeology, Boiled eggs, or Cottage Cheese
GREENS - Raw Veggies (or cooked ones if you prefer)
PURPLES - Fruit
YELLOWS - I'm rarely short on Yellows (lol don't we all love starchy carbs??), but if I am I usually save them for a glass of wine at the end of the week (3 yellows)
BLUES - Cheese, Hummus, Avocado, Almonds, Cashews, Pistachios
ORANGES - Salad dressing or seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, etc)
TEASPOONS - Oils or Peanut Butter (peanut butter wins 9/10 times! ha!)

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This is how I typically plan for the week:
Add all REDS (4 proteins) and GREENS (3 veggies) to my meal plan FIRST.

Then, I pretty much pick and choose my other containers depending on what I'm in the mood for that day.  I like the freedom of being able to choose, and as long as I know I have 2 fruits, 2 Starchy Carbs, 1 Healthy Fat, 1 oil/seed, and 2 tsp of oil to cook with OR peanut butter left after my main meals are prepped and scheduled (4 proteins and 3 veggies)..those are pretty easy things to throw into my eating plan without too much thought.

Here is what my meal plan ends up looking like :)

If this STILL seems confusing...no worries...if I am your coach, I will happily walk you through it.  Once you follow the 21 Day Fix meal plan for 1-2 weeks, you will be a pro! :)

If you'd like to sign up to have me as your FREE coach, please do so here.

If you're lacking motivation, and you'd like to be included in my next 21 Day Fix Online Accountability Group...click here!

Balsamic Chicken - Crockpot - 21 Day Fix Extreme Approved

I absolutely LOVE crockpot recipes...especially super easy ones that are low in calories, saturated fat, sodium, sugar, and carbs but HIGH in protein (muscle food).

I made this Balsamic Chicken recipe in the crockpot last night, and it was a hit!  It has lots of flavor, and it's 21 Day Fix Extreme approved...yippee!

Ingredients:
6 boneless chicken breasts (fat trimmed off)
2 regular cans of low sodium stewed tomatoes
1 onion chopped in chunks
3 zucchinis
4 garlic cloves
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp: oregano and basil
1/2 tsp thyme
black pepper and salt to taste
1/4 tsp Ground red pepper
1/2-1tsp Garlic powder
1/2-1tsp Onion Powder
Organic oil spray

How to Chicken:
Set slow cooker to low setting.  Pour 1 TBS of olive oil on bottom of slow cooker.  Add chicken.  Top chicken evenly with oregano, basil, thyme, salt, pepper, and onion powder.  Sprinkle a little ground red pepper.  Add 4 garlic cloves.  Top with balsamic vinegar and tomatoes.  Slow cook on high for 2 1/2 hours or until chicken is tender and pulls apart. (my slow cooker runs a little hot)

How to Veggies:
The KEY to stir fry veggies is to start with a HOT pan.  If you put the veggies in the pan and let it heat up with the veggies...they will most likely end up soggy.  I usually set my burner to medium-high and let it heat up while I cut my veggies.  Since all veggies cook at different paces, I sautéed the zucchini first.  Spray the hot pan with olive oil spray, and add zucchini.  Spray the zucchini after adding to pan.  Let sit, and add a layer of salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Let the side of zucchini brown before flipping in the pan.  Sauté until brown on each side but still tender in the middle.  Add to individual prepping bowls.  Wipe the pan clean with water and a paper towel.  Let the pan get hot again and sauté the onions exactly the same way and add to individual prepping bowls.  Let cool and cover.  Add chicken once thoroughly cooked.

Original recipe credit goes to skinnyms.com.  I just added zucchini, onion, garlic powder, red pepper, and I omitted rosemary.

Nutrition info:
Makes: 7 Servings -- Serving Size:  1 cup -- Calories: 190 -- Fat 6g -- Saturated Fat: 1g -- Trans Fat: 0g -- Sodium 121mg -- Carbs: 5g -- Fiber 1g -- Protein 26g -- 21 Day Fix Extreme: 1 Red 1 Green