Lets get tank top ready because ready or not, summer is coming!!! Nobody wants their arms flapping in the wind, so try these moves with the suggested repetition range and see how many sets you can do. Aim for at least two sets, but if you can do more, DO IT!!! You’ll tank me, and be even more proud of yourself, tomorrow. You might not like me today, but I’m ok with that. I’d love to hear your feedback! Subscribe to my channel so you don’t miss any more challenges!
Time to burn out our ARMS!!!
Zero weights, all on the floor, and still 100% burn. Throw away old thoughts that you have to be lifting heavy to get results! That can be the case if you’re going for Muscle Strength or Hypertrophy, but you can gain Muscle Endurance by high repetitions of low to medium weights! Trust me on this and lets get to work :) Please share your comments on You Tube so I know how it felt and what you’d like more of! I’m here to help you!
Legs for DAYS!!!
Try these moves and let me know what you think. As you start repeating them over the weeks / months to come, you could add ankle weights to make it a little harder, but please don’t start there. Master the moves first, and then we can intensify later! Message me with form questions please and leave feedback on You Tube so I know what you’d like to see next!
J. Lo Booty - YES PLEASE!!
Who knew how large our Glute muscles were? We have Glute Medius, Glute Minimus, and Glute Maximus. Plus your thighs and Hip Flexors are just as important in the “view” we see in the mirror. While you’re doing this video, don’t be afraid to grab your booty to make sure you’re feeling it where intended (YOU BUM!) plus, if you don’t want to grab your own butt, why would anyone else?? :o)
Pilates Move of the Day - Planks and Tricep Circles!
Everyone loves a good plank challenge, amiright? But a ton of people (read that as “most people”) do them wrong. If you can go multiple minutes and you aren’t shaking all over, you might want to do this in front of a mirror, or video yourself, to check your form. This is a hard move and it’s a full body workout. Your deltoids, shoulders, abs, glutes, are ALL working! Most of all, you don’t want to be a camel (with your butt in the air), or a hammock (with a saggy bottom) so think of a board resting on your back and a glass of water resting on it — you do not want to move!
How long could you go? And what about those tricep circles? This was one of the hardest pilates moves for me to learn and I still think I can improve. But the burn is serious and this moves make me think about it all day long. Love does like that!
New You Tube "Pilates" series - with a 'Move of the Day'!
I’m so exited to share something new I’m doing!!! And you benefit from it every week!!! I’ve signed up to become a Certified Pilates Mat Instructor with Studio Pilates! I’m beyond excited to help others, but I’ll start with helping myself because in the last two years, my posture has gotten lax and I’ve slowly gotten a curved back, which I am too young to have!!! So I’ll be using these moves to strengthen my core, my lower and upper back and then start helping others. These moves aren’t high impact, but THEY WORK and you will feel the burn. Trust. Me. On. This. ;o)
Let me know if there are specific ares you want to focus on and I’m happy to share some moves with you. Each day you’ll see 1-3 moves for a targeted area. Join me, this is going to be fun, challenging and rewarding!
New piece of paper to hang on my wall!!!
Big shout out and THANK YOU to everyone that pushed me, encouraged me, knew I could do it even before I believed (and listened to me complain) ... I DID IT!
Most don't know this about me, but I went to college with dreams to work for the Big 4 accounting firms (was the "Big 6" when I started at Elon University) and I did it!! I thrived at KPMG, had success, money, and passion, but was missing "helping people".
Fast forward 10 yrs, when Tyler was born, I stayed home 7 yrs before doing a complete career change, one that I never saw coming! I started a health and fitness business over 5 yrs ago, which stemmed from my mom being diagnosed with Breast Cancer. You can say my perspectives changed quite A LOT!
Then I wanted more! I didn't want to have only 1 way to help people or just be a motivational coach (although I hope I'm motivating), but I wanted to have answers for specific questions and really BE THE CHANGE for people. Personal Training seemed the solution, but it was expensive to obtain, a long process, and intimidating -if I'm being honest. But, as the saying goes, "suck it up buttercup!"
I'm stoked to announce I'm a Certified Personal Trainer with National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and am proud as hell.
I hope if you're still reading this and thinking about something you've always wanted to do, but said you didn't have time because you're a parent, caregiver, spouse, whatever... I HOPE YOU DO IT! It feels so rewarding on the other side and I still parented, honored my spouse, did all the things, but instead of TV , movies , scrolling FB or Insta , I studied . I studied a lot. My butt got sore from studying more than it did from exercise, but I'm all the wiser for it now.
What's on your bucket list that if you had more time you'd ______?
Maple Cinnamon White Chocolate Chip Donuts!
Omgggg, don’t walk, run! Or click, in this case. You want these. You NEED these. You will not regret these! How often can you say that about donuts?? And they’ll satiate your sweet tooth and indulgence desires. We enjoyed them on a Sunday before church and I was worried the kids would struggle through an hour of church and being well behaved. Anyone else get me? My belly was very happy and there was ZERO sugar spike so everyone sat still and stayed focused on the message. Yes!!! We will be having these again!
Servings: 1 jumbo donut
Macros: 145 cal, 8 g protein, 3 g fat, 20 g carbs, 1.5 g fiber, 6 g sugar
Portion Fix Containers: 1Y, .5R
2B Mindset “Plate-It”: Great FFC and add 1-2 eggs for a well rounded breakfast
Even the dough was yummy. I mean, I think it was ;) Quality control is a thing you know?
You’re supposed to let them sit 2-3 min so they aren’t too hot to eat. This was torture waiting.
Added 2 eggs for more protein to make sure I was full till lunch, but one egg would have been plenty.
Pause and Meditate
I’ll be honest, mediation can be easy for some, but it is Hard. As. Heck. for me. Which probably means I need to do it so desperately bad, amiright? It would be easier for me to spend 30 minutes doing Insanity Max 30 with Shaun T than it would to be quiet and at rest and meditate. So this channel was designed specifically with me in mind. Just kidding. But really, this is AN AMAZING resource being added to Beachbody on Demand at no additional cost, so take advantage of it as much as you can! Right now, the whole world is quite a stressful place. Elections are coming, rioting and racism is happening (how is this even possible), Covid is not going away no matter how much we hate it and try to obey the rules; now more than ever, we all need a healthy way to relax, unwind, and reduce anxiety.
Growing research shows that meditation has a powerful impact on our well-being and is proven to help de-stress, decrease anxiety, promote positive physical and emotional health, improve sleep (fall asleep faster and sleep longer), improve sex-life, renew your energy, reduce negativity, and enhance your self-esteem, focus, inspiration and empowerment. All of these things = increased quality of life; that’s our goal right? None of those sound bad to me, so why is this so hard????
Meditation can help you:
Build skills to manage stress
Gain a new perspective on stressful situations
Increase self-awareness
Focus on the present
Reduce negative emotions
Increase imagination and creativity
There’s an entire channel dedicated to this (must be kind of important) including:
4 meditations from the Beachbody Yoga Studio (most under 10 minutes) perfect for first thing in the morning, or last thing at night;
13 Themed Meditations from the Unplug app;
60 meditations from Elise Joan based on her “I AM” cards from Barre Blend (let me know if you don’t have these);
A 21-day guided program called Unstress: 21-Days of Meditation for Relaxation, Calm, and Less Anxiety, produced in partnership with the premier meditation app, Unplug, coming soon.
Lemonade Popsicles
Since it’s summer, what’s better than lemonade when you’re sweating outside or lounging by the pool? I’ve got a super easy lemonade popsicle recipe for you! And if simple isn’t your style and you want to elevate the flavor, add ¼ cup fresh herbs or seasonings wrapped tightly in cheesecloth to the water and honey mixture; boil for 5 minutes. Allow to steep for 1-2 hours and strain. Play around with this! Try ginger, rosemary, thyme, basil… you do you!
Ingredients
* 1½ cups water, divided use
* 3 tbsp raw honey
* ½ cup fresh lemon juice
Instructions
1) Heat ½ cup of water and honey in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until well-blended. Cool to room temp.
2) Combine honey mixture and lemon juice in a bowl or pitcher. Gradually add the remaining water, to desired taste.
3) Pour evenly into 4 ice pop molds; freeze for at least 4 hours, or until set.
Portion Fix Containers: ½ Yellow
2B Mindset Plate It: Enjoy as an occasional treat - be sure to track!
What’s your go-to summer snack?
10 Minute BOSU Abs
I’ve started creating some “bonus” videos for my Personal Training clients and you’re free to try them too. Abs are one muscle you can work every single day. If you need to regress the move I’m doing, put your knees on the floor, if you want to progress the move, you can flip the BOSU so the ball-side is on the carpet. If you don’t have a BOSU and have a stability ball, use that, but know it’s much harder because your stabliiation is challenged. For cardio planks - don’t use the ball please! You’ll go flying 🤪 If you try this, please comment ON YOU TUBE!!!
Pre & Post Natal Fitness is here!!!
Pre & Post Natal Channel
Did you know we have an entire channel dedicated to preparing your body for carrying a baby, labor and postpartum recovery??? Beachbody on Demand keeps adding amazing programs and all these resources are included in your membership, at no extra charge! Elise Joan, Super Trainer behind Pre & Post Natal Barre series (20+ videos), Barre Blend (Barre, Pilates & Yoga blend), and 3-Week Yoga Retreat, Autumn Calabrese, Super Trainer behind 21-Day Fix, Country Heat and Active Maternity series (5 videos), and Desai Bartlett Super Trainer behind Pre & Post Natal Yoga series (6 videos) break down workouts between 1st, 2nd and 3rd trimesters, postpartum recovery and even a Diastasis Recti 101 video.
Why perform specific workouts for this stage of life?
Prenatal and postnatal workouts are designed for the extra weight around your midsection, the increased pressure to your pelvis and back, posture and stability challenges, and omit contraindicated positions during pregnancy. You don’t want to hurt yourself or cause undo pressure or stress to your baby. These workouts improve your health while helping build strength and endurance before, during, and after pregnancy, while also preparing your body for labor too. Beachbody also has videos on breath work and ADLs (Activities of Daily Living).
If you don’t have Beachbody on Demand, message me.