Happy Monday it is time to get your workout on! Our workout posts are such a hit on the blog so I decided to enlist an expert to give us her favorite total body workout (more about her in a minute). What I love about this workout (I tried a modified version cause I am not currently running) but it has a great mix of cardio AND weights. Which is something I really look for in a total body workout. One thing to keep in mind if you don't have access to a kettlebell at your gym you can use a dumbbell. It will be a little awkward with the swings, but my gym doesn't have kettlebells so I use a dumbbell all the time. Just make sure you hold on to it:)
I'm an avocado girl, always have been always will be! I eat an avocado most days, but as I was researching some new breakfast ideas for summer I decided I should try an avocado out in a smoothie. I love smoothie's for breakfast in the summers. My house doesn't have air conditioning so a cold and icy drink is exactly what I crave in the mornings. I spent some time searching pinterest to find good avocado smoothie recipes, this one was my favorite of all the recipes I tried. I'll share with you my top two favorites as well as my other go to breakfast containing avocado.
Cheers and happy Monday, Jess It was sunny and lovely here in the Northwest this weekend and it’s time to get outside and get your workout in. I hate going to the gym in nice Portland weather, I try my hardest to be outside as much as possible. This means creating workouts that are outdoor friendly. Over the past year one of our top viewed post was this “Outdoor HIIT Workout” so with the 80 degree weekend we had in Portland I decided to head outside and create a new one for you!
Our friend Corrie recently posted a great workout on Instagram; Ang and I decided to test it out when we were in Indy. We both were sweating and loved the structure and the intensity so I decided to take some elements from that workout and build upon it (i.e add in some running). I made my husband do this workout with me to make sure it was hard enough. I can successfully say it was equally as challenging for him. It was so nice to go outside and be active together. This workout took us about 18 minutes so if you are looking for a little more cardio you can add more rounds or go on a nice little jog afterwards. So you want to have nice toned arms for your wedding? Well duh…all girls like to have good arms, especially on their wedding day. You’ll be extra glad you worked your arms out when you decide to pose like this for your professional wedding photos. I think the champagne had been flowing too freely at this point…
A lot of you are probably hitting the gym these days working on those resolutions, I know my gym has been packed. For me getting a good workout is hard enough but I really have to make myself set aside time for stretching. A lot of people over look the importance of stretching, but it really is vital to prevent injury and general aches and pains. My husband can stretch for literally hours on end, I use to think he was crazy but after he pushed me to do it more often I started feeling a lot better physicaly. I now have made stretching a part of my regular routine and I have really started seeing the benefits.
Great legs are something I know I strive for, I turn green with envy every time I see Carrie Underwood take the stage. This girl has the best legs and the reality is these comes with good workouts and clean eating.
I have the most sensitive skin since I was a little kid I have gotten get eaten alive by mosquitoes and every other bug. In Austin a few months ago we got to find out what chigger bites were all about, now that was fun. At Andrea’s wedding this weekend I also fell victim to more bug bites. My entire arm swelled up the next day it was red, itchy and hot. So since summer I’ve been seeking major bug bite relief I thought I would share with you what works best for me and what a very handsome doctor that I know has to say about how to treat bug bites as well.
As you know I’m a lover of Crossfit, spin and kickboxing (btw kickboxing is the most amazing workout ever). It is all high intensity interval training and it works! Here is an article that explains more about HIIT for any of you that are interested. I personally do HIIT every time I workout, unless I’m on a long run, but even then I’m changing my pace between miles. I’m a HIIT addict, I am the type of person that doesn’t feel like I’m getting a good workout in unless I feel like I’m about to puke and drenched in sweat. So yoga, barre3, pilates, just don’t work for me… in a perfect world I would try to incorporate some of those types of exercises into my life, but that hasn’t happened yet. I find that you can turn any workout into a HIIT workout. I was home recently and only had 20 minutes to get a quick workout in, so I hopped on my parents exercise bike and did 20 minutes of Tabata’s (20 sec working at 80-90% 10 sec rest and repeat), it is an easy way to get a efficient workout in on a stationary bike, elliptical, stair stepper (my fav) or even a nordic track ski machine:)
Is it really only 8 weeks until summer?!
Living in Canada I feel like summer always sneaks up on me. Just the other day I got an ear full from my mother for still having my Christmas wreaths on my front door haha. But, when you’re still getting snow well into April it’s easy to stay in the winter mindset! Now with the holiday wreaths put away and May just around the corner it’s about time I really kick it up a notch and start getting in the summer spirit (well at least get out of the Christmas spirit). With vacations, bachelorette parties and long days of boating on the agenda I’ve realized it’s time to get back on track with my clean eating! Whenever I feel like I need to reset and get back on track health wise, I start incorporating green juices and smoothies in to my daily routine. |