Tackling Getting off the Couch

Summertime has definitely arrived here in DC! The weather is hot and humid. So what do you do when you don't want to leave your house because it is too hot but you are also tired of sitting on your butt?! A home workout!! Thank goodness these were invented (lol).

I know I have mentioned kettlebells before but they are my favorite and really work your entire body.  If you have not used a kettlebell before - make sure you watch a how-to video for instruction to get the basics.  The power comes from your hips and butt, not your arms.  Make sure you don't skip this step.  Also, lots of kettlebells come with a how-to DVD (you can get them at Target, Sports Authority, etc).

                                                            (Jolie Gentry of CrossFit HQ)
Home workout:
-Warm-up (this is a warm-up award-winning DC personal trainer Josef Brandenburg did for a magazine article-it gets your body moving and AWAKE)
-Set a timer for 20 one-minute intervals.  You can also use a stopwatch and just keep an eye on the time.
-Do 12-15 reps of a kettlebell exercise of your choice (about 30 secs). Rest for remainder of the minute.
-repeat for 19 more minutes

Kettlebell exercises: (if you have never done these exercises make sure you look up the correct form!)
-one arm swing
-two arm swing
-goblet squat
-clean
-clean and press
-dead lift

Others Exercises I do in this circuit:
-incline push up
-plank
-one-legged bridge

Make sure to pick a weight that is challenging.  I use a 20-25lb kettlebell. If you don't challenge your body it WONT change.  And I don't think anyone would say they wouldn't want a body like Jolie.  Don't be scared to lift weights!

Tackling the lbs Visitors bring!

Recently I had some friends come to town lets say I weighed 130lbs (I dont)  but when they left I weighed 137! You say, "how could that happen, they were only here for 4 days?" So I had to kick my butt into gear and get rid of it.  Three weeks later it is gone! Now you might be asking, "how did you do that?"

A ton of work and focus!! That is how you get anything done- duh.

One of the reasons this could have happened was a new yogurt place called Fro Yo and unfortunately, it has also moved to my neighborhood in a very convenient place to my home.  Instead of giving in like the hundreds of people I see walking around with their cute little cups full of goodness I decided to kick my habit and create my own fruity version that will keep my ass looking oh so cute in my new jeans.  While I havent yet created over a dozen flavors and toppings that Fro Yo carries I promise this is just as good and even a bit rewarding. 

Greek Yogurt Smoothie #1

1 cup Greek yogurt  (lots of protein and good fat)

2 tablespoons heavy cream (makes it rich)

1/4 cup orange seltzer water (liquid so your blender doesn't get mad)

1 cup frozen berries of your choice (use less if you are really watching your carbs, they can add up)

2 packets of Splenda, Just like Sugar, or Fiberfit

-Throw it all together. Blend. Eat.

This is my favorite at the moment when you want something a bit more sinful...yum!

Greek Yogurt Smoothie #2   

1 cup Greek yogurt  (lots of protein and good fat)

2 tablespoons heavy cream (makes it rich)

3 tablespoons of cup cherry seltzer water (liquid so your blender doesn't get mad)

1 cup frozen cherries

2 heavy sprinkles of cinnamon (more or less to your taste)

2 packets of Splenda, Just like Sugar, or Fiberfit

-Throw it all together. Blend. Eat

Save Fro Yo for when you want a really great cheat!

Now I am off to NC, the hardest place in the world to stay on track......

Tackling Weekend Foods in Moderation

Hi all! Hope you had a  great weekend.  So I haven't made it to my goal as you might have guessed since I didn't announce it but I am well on my way thanks to keeping up with my workouts and moderation.  Yep, that old saying "all things in moderation" does seem to work.  This weekend my husband and I relaxed our eating habits more than once - let me tell you there were cheese fries, burgers - with the bun!, wings, more fries, and even chocolate chip cookies and thats just his! If you dont know him he is a guy with a lot of muscles and hardly any body fat because he works at it.

Well, all that being said he gained 4 lbs! I lost 1 lb!  I still helped him with both fries, a bit of the cookie, a turkey sandwich with chips (yum), and a few drinks earlier in the week. Not what any person on the 90% rule would say was good.  But I did eat way less than he did, which I should since I am smaller than him!  Remember ladies that you are smaller than that guy (dad, brother, husband, co-worker) you are eating with and therefore should eat less and drink less alcohol than they do.

#1 rule for me: the 90% rule.  This means simply eating right - low sugar, low carb, high protein - 90% of the time, which is what I try to go by and what Josef preaches.  This way, the scale will make you smile instead of cry.

Basically, stick to your plan and if you do fall off the wagon, it might not be as bad as you think.

And for anyone fearing Passover remember when baking you can substitute matzah meal with almond meal!

Vote for Josef!

Hi everyone! This is a bit of a different blog for me today.  The Washington City Paper is having their annual poll as to see which is the "best of" in a variety of categories.  Josef Brandenburg is up for the Best Personal Trainer!! Please go to Washington City Paper to vote for the top DC trainer!!

If you want to share the link it is:

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/bestofpoll/nominees/1136/vote 

Please help me make Josef #1 in the poll!

Tackling Blizzard Conditions

Hi Folks! Looks like I forgot about you for awhile which is just not the truth- I got a bit lazy with my writing and my eating habits while I finished up my thesis.  Now I am back on track with my eating and my workouts.  It can be hard to do in the midst of a blizzard (yes thats what happened in DC!) and not being able to go anywhere.  However, after marching to the grocery store in the storm to make sure we had enough clean food to carry us through the storm we realized after a day of laying around, it gets boring.

To save us from getting a bit soft around the middle and from being bored we figured a HOME WORKOUT to be the answer!   Here is a great  TBYW: Living Room Workout! which will get your heart rate up and break a sweat even if it is below freezing all around you!

Tackling Acedemic Stress and Bad Eating Habits

It is no secret that I am a cupcake lover.  Currently, I should be wrapping up my thesis but all I can think about are cupcakes!! I get daily emails from Fitness and Spice and she recently blogged a protein cupcake recipe.  I just took a computer break and made one. You mix it in a cup and then bake it in the microwave making eating and cleaning a breeze. It is not exactly like your favorite sugary cupcake but it has a chewy bread like constancy which I miss when cutting out gluten and sugar.  It was a real (tummy) saver for me today. Go try it for yourself!

It took all of 3 minutes to make. I enjoyed mine with cream cheese and sliced fresh  strawberries.  You could also top with a dark chocolate ganach!

Lets all thank Joanna S. for her recipe!  http://www.fitnessandspice.com/2010/01/cup-cake/

I hope it keeps you from turning into a cake monster!