Thursday, September 5, 2013

Football Season is Here //

We've got our Broncos Jerseys on! We've got our Broncos Jerseys on! I've been singing that in my head since I got home to put it on. =]



Since it is the first game of the season AND the Broncos are kicking it off we decided to have a cheat day and get our favorite pizza - Barros! and Troy of course got his buffalo wings. 

I'm on a mission to make a cute football wreath of some sort. I'll keep you posted on how it turns out! 



Presley parked it on the couch with us too! =] 

What's your team? =]


Sore To The Core // Abdominal Work Out

Abs! Abs! Abs! It takes dedication to have a great set of abs! Keep up the hard work and don't let your muscles get comfy with the same ol' workout. 




Frog Sit Ups – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Toe-Touch Sit Ups – 30 Seconds

15 seconds of rest

Side Crunches – 30 seconds each side

15 seconds of rest

Reverse Crunch – 3 sets of 15 reps

Your core is compiled of 4 different parts; Rectus Abdominus, Oblique, Intercostals, and Serratus. It’s imperative to work each of these muscles in order to achieve a solid core. The following exercises will target each of these areas so you can start seeing some washboard abs!

Rectus Abdominus: 
§  Location: Covers the area from sternum all the way down to the pelvis bone.
§  Exercises: Crunch or Sit Up

Oblique:
§  Location: Side of the waist.
§  Exercises: Side Bends and Decline Oblique Crunches

Intercostals:
§  Location: Between the side of the rib cage. It comes into play when you flex the torso and twist from side to side.
§  Exercise: Air Bike

Serratus:
§  Location: Between front abs and lats.
§  Exercises: Barbell Pullovers and Cable Crunches

*Keep in mind that your diet and cardio will need to be in check in order for you to see abs.
Your core muscles repair quicker that the rest of your muscles allowing you to work them daily without muscle deterioration.



Hard Core Workout // No Pun Intended

I know we're headed into fall and winter - however that's no reason to start slacking on the washboard abs. Just because you won't be religiously spending your weekends at the pool or on the lake anymore doesn't mean that you get to start ignoring these muscles! Get busy!




Cable Crunch – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Side Bends – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Crunches – 3 sets of 15

Reverse Crunch Curl – 3 sets of 15

3 rounds






Your core is compiled of 4 different parts; Rectus Abdominus, Oblique, Intercostals, and Serratus. It’s imperative to work each of these muscles in order to achieve a solid core. The following exercises will target each of these areas so you can start seeing some washboard abs!

Rectus Abdominus: 
§  Location: Covers the area from sternum all the way down to the pelvis bone.
§  Exercises: Crunch or Sit Up

Oblique:
§  Location: Side of the waist.
§  Exercises: Side Bends and Decline Oblique Crunches

Intercostals:
§  Location: Between the side of the rib cage. It comes into play when you flex the torso and twist from side to side.
§  Exercise: Air Bike

Serratus:
§  Location: Between front abs and lats.
§  Exercises: Barbell Pullovers and Cable Crunches

*Keep in mind that your diet and cardio will need to be in check in order for you to see abs.

Your core muscles repair quicker that the rest of your muscles allowing you to work them daily without muscle deterioration.


Wednesday, September 4, 2013

4-Week Shape Up Plan // Week 1

Hi Friends! I've been receiving numerous emails from readers requesting workout plans so I've finally decided to start offering them! 6-week, 8-week and 12-week plans as well as custom personalized workout plans that fit the needs of your specific fitness and nutritional goals are NOW available! WooHoo!

I decided to put together a little mini workout plan with workouts new work outs and work outs that I've already created. I'll be releasing 7-day plans. I guess you could consider this a trial run if you will. If you like the programming I provide, you may want to consider personalized online training or one of my training packages I create.



Week 1

Day 1
Lean Legs Work Out - awesome at-home workout using no equipment
Core Workout - get ready to feel the burn!

Day 2
Toned Arms - nothing shows dedication like strong arms
Core Workout - get busy - washboard abs won't wait

Day 3
Full Body Tabata Work Out  - amazing calorie incinerator 

Day 4
Back and Biceps Work Out  or if you'd rather not use equipment  Tabata Work Out
Intense Core Work Out - that's right! Feel that burn - it's working!

Day 5
No Equipment CrossFit Work Out

Day 6
Butt, Hips and Thighs Work Out - and you don't need equipment! 

Day 7
Rest! Obviously don't park it on the couch for a full 24-hours. Keep those muscles moving and take the dog for a walk, play some sand volleyball or do another low impact activity that you enjoy. 

*If you need to make an adjustment to your "rest day", go for it! This has to fit in YOUR lifestyle in order for it to BECOME your lifestyle. 




You're Up! What kind of workouts would you like to start seeing or seeing more of?





Washboard Abs Workout




You got it! Another core work out! Abs repair quickly but they also retain muscle memory almost as fast so it's key to change up your ab work outs regularly to avoid hitting a plateau.



Barbell Twists – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Bicycle Crunches – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Crunches – 30 seconds

15 seconds of rest

Leg Raises, Laying Down – 30 seconds

6 rounds

Your core is compiled of 4 different parts; Rectus Abdominus, Oblique, Intercostals, and Serratus. It’s imperative to work each of these muscles in order to achieve a solid core. The following exercises will target each of these areas so you can start seeing some washboard abs!

Rectus Abdominus: 
§  Location: Covers the area from sternum all the way down to the pelvis bone.
§  Exercises: Crunch or Sit Up

Oblique:
§  Location: Side of the waist.
§  Exercises: Side Bends and Decline Oblique Crunches

Intercostals:
§  Location: Between the side of the rib cage. It comes into play when you flex the torso and twist from side to side.
§  Exercise: Air Bike

Serratus:
§  Location: Between front abs and lats.
§  Exercises: Barbell Pullovers and Cable Crunches

*Keep in mind that your diet and cardio will need to be in check in order for you to see abs.

Your core muscles repair quicker that the rest of your muscles allowing you to work them daily without muscle deterioration.


I love you because//

Hi Lovies! Check out these super cute printable notes off Pinterest! Where else!? I LOVE leaving Troy notes in the morning but half the time I'm in such a rush and I can't find a pen and paper to save my life that it happens...realistically once a week. Which is disappointing considering he used to get notes almost daily.



Anyways! I'm thinking that these little printables will make it much easier to grab and write a sweet little note. Not to mention that I had a dollar store haul yesterday and I bought an office pen holder - I'm trying to get more organized! =]

Forgive me, because I can't for the life of me remember where these printables came from, I just saved the photo. If you come across the source - PLEASE let me know!

Here's where you can get the free printable

I printed 4 per page and just cut them to size.

Happy Love Note Writing. =D


Skinny Snacks - Pumpkin Protein Bars



Pumpkin Protein Squares

Ingredients

½ C Xylitol Brown Sugar Blend (Ideal)
1 - 4 oz. jar baby food applesauce
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 ½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. ground clove
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 large egg whites
1 - 15 oz. can of raw pumpkin
2 C oat flour
2 scoops vanilla whey protein
½ cup almond milk
½ C chopped walnuts (optional)


Directions

Preheat the oven to 350.
Spray a 9 X 13 glass baking dish with non-stick spray.
Combine first 11 ingredients and mix well.
Add the final 3 ingredients (4, if adding walnuts), and mix until incorporated. Spread batter into a glass baking dish and bake for 30 min.

Makes 24 squares