Oh my goodness, y'all. I put my midriff out there for you and held my breath. Thank you so much for the questions and comments that you've forwarded my way! I've had lot of questions about the food plan, which is also the #1 topic that my friends have approached me with.

So, there is no great secret here. Portion control and clean eating are key. The advantage of this plan is that the authors have laid out a solid 28-day schedule of food and exercise for you. You don't have to think about a thing! And the recipes are really, really delicious. Here are a few of my family's favorites (no time for food styling!):

Doughettes... just like eating cookie dough. Peanut butter, dark chocolate, oatmeal... gah!!! I want to eat them all.


Fitnana Split, plus dark chocolate granola...


Brunch for dinner...


Sushi Undressed...


So, you may be thinking, "That's a lot of kale, Rachel. Um, no, thank you!"

Three-fourths of my family happens to like kale, but you could sub it out for whatever green works for you. All of the recipes are customizable based on your preferences. Don't let ingredients hold you back.

This is where the Instagram community shines. It's inspiring to see how the women in my "tribe" customize their menus to their tastes. I have a lot of "ah-ha" moments.

One major advantage to clean eating is the amount of time you save in the grocery store. You spend so much less time on the aisles because your best food comes from the perimeter of the store - dairy, meats, produce... I'd never thought about before. I've always hated grocery shopping, but I find that I don't mind it as much anymore. I feel good about what I'm loading up my cart with.

One more accolade - the food is so good that my parents wanted in. So, I prep their lunches with my own 5 days a week. They were grabbing takeout most of the time and this one small change has made a huge difference. My mother told me recently that she's lost 8 pounds! Just from eating the lunch I'm packing her... how crazy is that?

Fit Girls Guide offers a free app that includes their entire 28-day exercise plan and sample recipes for you to check out. No reason not to download that immediately.

Again, I'm not affiliated with Fit Girls Guide. I have nothing to gain by sharing my experience. I just hope that the right person might be inspired at the right time to take control of their health and that he or she will have the same awesome experience that I've had so far.

Next, I want to tell you about the running. Ahhhhh!!!! The running story is awesome!!!