Tone It Up Nutrition Plan: First Impression

Ever since the beginning of the year I have been putting a lot of effort into working out regularly and also eating better.  I was able to lose 10 pounds before my cruise in April, but I am still hoping to keep losing weight and continue getting healthier.  

In an effort to keep up my momentum, I recently purchased the Nutrition Plan from Tone It Up in the Vegetarian version.  I had been thinking of buying  for awhile, but the hefty price tag of $150 kept me from doing it right away.  Ultimately, I decided that the price was worth it when I realized that this could be the tool that pushes me to successfully changing my life.  So I made the plunge on Saturday and spent all day Sunday printing the plan and getting organized in order to start today.  

First of all, here's a list from the Tone It Up website of everything that is included in the plan:

• Tone It Up™ Nutrition Plan. (Regular, Gluten Free, Vegan & Vegetarian)
• Lifetime Access to the Members Only Group (no further cost)
• Lifetime of Free Updates to Plan & New Recipes (no further cost)
• Measurement Guide and Chart to track your progress.
• Our Grocery List to help you make the best choices ~ no matter where you’re shopping
• BONUS 5 Day Slim Down ~ a tasty way to get Beach Ready
• BONUS 7 Day Slim Down our program for photoshoots and events
• Bridal Edition & Wedding Slimdown tips for that special day! Great for bridesmaids, brides and guests.
• All New Editions (past & future) including Fall & Holiday Editions (no further cost)
• Beach Babe Edition ~ a team favorite that’s sweet & tropical!
• Exclusive member coupons & weekly Members Only motivation emails where we share special recipes, tips and featured members.
• Comes as a PDF file for immediate download. You’ll receive all future bonuses & updates as well!  (no further cost)

I was happy that the plan comes in a PDF because I was able to start reading right away and didn't have to wait for a shipment to arrive.  The first thing I did was to save all the PDF's (9 total) to my computer and also put them in Dropbox so I can access them from my iPhone or iPad at any time.  

These are the 9 documents that I received with my purchase:

• Tone It Up Nutrition Plan - Vegetarian
• Beach Babe Edition
• Bridal Edition
• Holiday Update
• Tone It Up Fall Update
• Tone It Up Workout Guide
• Summer Sizzle Plan
• Love Your Body Edition
• Bikini Series Grocery List

So far I have mainly focused on the first two documents because they make up the main plan along with the "Five Days to Beach Babe" plan, which I started today.  They recommend using the 5-day or 7-day slim downs to prepare for a special occasion or to kick-start the plan.  I compared the two and the 5-day one seemed more manageable to begin with.  The last thing I wanted to do was try the harder one and give up after a couple of days because it was too hard!  

Because I am on the 5-day Beach Babe plan, I will describe that plan for now and then take some time to give an overview of the main plan when I start it on Saturday. The "Five Days to Beach Babe" plan mainly consists of eating lots of protein along with a ton of fruits and vegetables.  You also work out twice a day for 30 minutes each time, for a total of 1 hour of workouts a day.  

This morning I went to the gym right after waking up and did interval walking for 30 minutes.  I use an interval timer on my phone to keep track of time as I switch between 1 minute of high intensity walking (a 3.5 on the treadmill) and 1.5 minutes of lower intensity walking (a 3.0 on the treadmill).  I start with a 5 minute warm-up and end with a 5 minute cool down, so in between those I do 8 cycles of high/low intensity for a total of 30 minutes all together.  It might sound complicated, but the interval timer on my phone does all the hard work.  All I need to do is increase or decrease my speed on the treadmill as I follow along!

Later today I will do a couple of Tone It Up toning workouts, either from You Tube or the Beach Babe 2nd Edition workout DVD.

Here are the meals I am eating today so you can see what kind of food is allowed on the 5-day slim down:

• Pre-Workout: Bombshell Spell drink consisting of pineapple juice, apple cider vinegar, honey, and lime juice.  It was actually quite refreshing!
• Breakfast: Slim Down Scramble made with spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, and egg whites.
• Mid-Morning "One Piece": For this you can eat any piece of fruit.  I chose a banana.
• Lunch: I was supposed to eat a wrap made of veggies and protein, but I made a salad out of some broccoli slaw and a fake chicken breast with some homemade almond butter/soy sauce dressing.
• Mid-Afternoon Juice or Smoothie: I am going to make the Slim Down Smoothie, which is made from protein powder, almond milk, water, ice, and cinnamon.
• Dinner: this will consist of tofu for protein along with stir-fry vegetables.  I am debating on whether or not to use a sauce.  I probably shouldn't, but it's going to be very boring without anything on top!
• Evening "One Piece": I have some fresh mango that I'm going to cut up for my evening fruit.

As you can see, I get to eat plenty of food on this slim down!  I don't feel like I'm being deprived of food, but my protein options are pretty limited due to not eating meat.  I have a feeling I will be sick of fake chicken, tofu, and eggs by the time these 5 days are done!

All together I am very excited about starting the Tone It Up Nutrition Plan!  I feel like the plan makes a lot of sense and is regimented enough to get results but not so much that it's a recipe for failure.  I like that I am starting with a 5-day slim down so that I can kick-start my progress.  I am also hoping that by starting out with a strict plan the main plan won't seem so bad!

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I will check back in a day or two from now and let you know how things are going.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them in the comments section.  I was grateful to find reviews online before making this purchase, so I'd be happy to help anyone else who is debating on whether or not this plan will work for them!