Monday Motivation

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I woke up today with zero desire to exercise. I hadn’t slept well, it was 5:45AM, and I just wanted to go back to sleep. Part of me said – “Go back to sleep. You can do this after work.” But the honest part of me knew that wouldn’t happen, and if I procrastinated further I wouldn’t exercise at all.  I’m sure you’ve been there too.

Some of my tips for working out when you have zero motivation:

  1. Sleep in your workout clothes. I’m serious! I work out in leggings and sports bras/tank tops. I sleep in leggings and sports bras/tank tops. I started going to sleep in my workout gear, and when I woke up I was able to roll right out of bed and get going without having to struggle with changing/finding my gear/etc.
  2. Stop snoozing. If you hit that snooze button, you will go back to sleep. Just don’t do it. It’s that easy! When the alarm goes off, get out of bed. I will either put my phone/alarm on the opposite side of the room or just outside my room – somewhere where I can still hear the alarm, but I need to get out of bed in order to turn it off. I also use the most annoying alarm possible so I can’t just put a pillow over my head and ignore it 🙂
  3. Remember your goals. Will your fitness and health progress if you don’t work out today? Think about this: if you avoid working out today, it will be easier to avoid working out tomorrow. Those excuses will pile up and soon you will be back where you started.
  4. A bad workout is still better than no workout at all. Even a half-hearted routine provides more benefits (burning calories, improving cardiovascular fitness, increasing your strength) than staying in bed.

I hope that these tips help! Let me know what tricks you use to push yourself when you need that extra “kick.” I’d love to hear from you!

xo – Fitmiss in Progress – Jennie

Five Friday Favorites #1

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Hi everyone! Today I’m going to be writing about my top five favorites from this past week. Let me know in the comments below what your favorites were! I’d love to hear from you.

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  1. Favorite meal – Skinnytaste’s Asian Beef Zoodle Soup! I’ve made this multiple ways – with and without ginger; with ‘real’ beef and with Gardein beefless tips; with noodles and with zoodles. I actually do prefer this with zucchini noodles instead of regular noodles! I always use vegetable broth instead of beef broth.
  2. Favorite workout – ChaLEAN Extreme Get Lean Intervals. This was a fantastic 43 minute workout. I burned 400 calories , and my average heart rate was 142 BPM. That means this routine was just like a high intensity spin class! Do you want to learn more about this program? You can contact me anytime at fitmissjennie@gmail.com or purchase a Challenge Pack here to become a part of my June Challenge Group! We’re going to have a ton of fun (and make a lot of fitness progress while doing it).
  3. Favorite shake – Definitely this morning’s recipe. This was my first time trying Café Latte Shakeology and it was incredible. I blended it up with 8oz unsweetened almond milk, 1 tbsp. cocoa powder, 4 drops caramel flavored Stevia, 1/2 frozen banana, 1/2 cup butternut squash, 1 cup (green container) spinach, and ice. It was so good – it tasted just like a caramel mocha Frappuccino!
  4. Favorite blog post – I’m reading Fran’s post about packing for Ireland and reminiscing about our time there – we spent a week in Dublin in 2015. This post is also making me want a red raincoat…may need to go shopping this weekend…
  5. Favorite clothing item – Nickel & Suede’s Gunmetal Glam Leather Earrings! So pretty, and they are practically weightless. I also have fairly sensitive ears, and these do not bother me at all (no nickel in them, despite the brand’s name).

I hope everyone has a wonderful Friday!

xo – Fitmiss in Progress – Jennie

Meal Plan Monday #1

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Another week, another meal plan! This time, I’m sharing my plan with all of you.

As part of my May Challenge Group, I am following the 21 Day Fix food portion guide. If you want to learn more about this program, contact me here or via my coach website. At my current weight (171lb), I am in the 1500-1799 bracket. That corresponds to the following number of containers: 4 green, 4 red, 3 purple, 3 yellow, 1 blue, 1 orange, 4 tsp.

I know some people are super strict on this meal plan. I do allow treat modifications sometimes (you will see that on the days I swap 1 yellow for wine). I will also sometimes swap 1-2 yellows for a “super treat” (my husband likes to get doughnuts on Sundays). Often, I go over the number of allotted green containers because I put veggies in my shakes – I don’t stress about that at all. The hardest part for me is consuming enough protein – if I don’t make the conscious effort to have a protein as part of a snack, I will be short.

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On Wednesday, I will share some of this week’s recipes.

Let me know in the comments what you are eating this week!

Have a beautiful Monday –
xo – Fitmiss in Progress – Jennie

 

Fitness Friday

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Happy Friday, everyone! Today I will be taking some time to detail the workouts that I completed this week. Right now, I am aiming to complete the ChaLEAN Extreme 30 Day Burn Phase, so my strength training is focused on that program’s workouts. If you would like me to help you figure out what the best workout program would be for you, just let me know! May’s Challenge Group has already begun – but June is right around the corner. If you would like more information on how to join, please let me know either with a comment below or an email to fitmissjennie@gmail.com!  🙂

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Just a few screenshots from my Apple Watch this week!

Saturday
9:30AM – 35:58 min Burn Circuit 1 – I decided to try the first ChaLEAN Extreme workout before my official Challenge Start Date. I didn’t know what to expect – and this workout did not disappoint. Heavy weights + slow, controlled reps = serious burn! I made sure to write down the weights used, and especially admitted to myself when I could have used a heavier weight.
10:10AM- 32:38 min Indoor Cycle – 20 min Tabata Ride with Jessica King (from Monday 5/1/17 @ 2:30PM), plus extra time to get to 15 miles. Damn that woman makes me laugh. She’s so crazy, but in a fun way! 
Sunday
8:45AM – 45:07 min Indoor Cycle – 30 min HIIT Ride with Robin Arzon (from Wednesday 5/3/17 @ 1:30PM). Robin’s smile is infectious. I love her shorter rides. I finished this ride on my own with 15 minutes of speed work to get up to 20 miles. 
Monday
6:00AM – 38:20 min Burn Circuit 1. Monday was officially Day 1 of my second Challenge Group – and my first as a coach! I increased my weights per my “test workout” on Saturday. I need to work on slowing down my reps. 
Tuesday
6:00AM – 47:45 min Indoor Cycle. While Day 2 is a rest day on ChaLEAN Extreme, I love my Peloton classes. This one was a 45 minute Hip-Hop class with Ally Love (from Monday 5/8/17 @ 8:00AM). She is my favorite Peloton instructor, by far. She chooses the best music and her workouts always give me a high calorie burn. 20 miles complete!
Wednesday
6:00AM – 38:31 min Burn Circuit 2 – this one was harder, mentally, than Burn Circuit 1. Again, my primary goal moving forward will be slowing down my reps and avoiding swinging my weights to create momentum – that does not generate the resistance necessary to see Extreme results! 
Thursday
6:00AM – 46:54 min Burn Intervals. When Chalene said she was going to use 5lb weights, I laughed and thought…this is going to be too easy! Well, by the end of the workout I was sweating and wishing the weights were lighter. This is a great cardio-strength hybrid workout, and breaks the usual low rep pattern. 
Friday
6:00AM – 33:46 min Burn Circuit 3. I think this one was my least favorite of the Burn Circuits. I have to be super careful with lunges since I have a bad knee, so programs that are lunge-heavy tend to turn me off. I will say that I did a much better time slowing down and controlling my reps this time, so that’s a success!
6:00PM – 45:00 min Indoor Cycle

Highest calorie burn – Tuesday’s Peloton class with Ally Love (451 calories/103BPM)
Lowest calorie burn – Wednesday’s Burn Circuit 2 and Friday’s Burn Circuit 3 (both were 200 calories/~90BPM)
Favorite workout – Tuesday’s Peloton class with Ally Love 🙂
Least Favorite workout – Burn Circuit 2. I was tired and didn’t feel like workout out. I got through it, but not with perfect form.

Goals for Next Week
1. Take a rest day – a real rest day! I’ve been doing “something” every day, and I need to give my body a day to recover.
2. Work on slowing down my reps and controlling my form, especially with the heavy weight/low rep combination.
3. 3 indoor cycles – average 15 miles each.

Treat Yourself Thursday – Horchata Shake

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Today was just one of those days. You know the kind – a stressful day at work; a tough day at home with the kids; the day you find out you need to spend an unexpected amount on a car repair; the day you eat an entire box of Tastycake cupcakes because you just can’t seem to stop yourself.

Treating yourself after a hard day isn’t the worst thing in the world – though, of course, viewing food as a reward could be problematic and lead to an unhealthy relationship with food in general (though that is a post for another day). So today, after my own stressful day, I found myself with some calories (and 21 Day Fix containers!) to spare for a treat.

I’ve been a fan of horchata – a delicious, spiced agua fresca made with rice, almonds, or other nuts – ever since experiencing a horchata latte at an airport a few years ago. For a while, I purchased these cartons of horchata-flavored rice milk to make the lattes at home – but there is a considerable amount of sugar in this dairy-free milk, and I’ve come to enjoy unsweetened vanilla almond milk over the sweetened versions.

This almond and vanilla flavored treat is sure to cool you down after a rough day! I hope you enjoy this first installment of Treat Yourself Thursday and that you come back tomorrow for Fitness Friday, where I will be reviewing the workouts I completed this week!

Horchata Shake Recipe
Serving Size: 1
21 Day Fix Containers: 1/2 Yellow, 1 Red, 1 Blue
Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients
8 fl. ounces unsweetened vanilla almond milk
Optional 8 fl. ounces water – add this if you enjoy a thinner shake
1 serving/1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology or Vegan Vanilla Shakeology
1/4 tsp. to 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract, to taste
1/4 tsp. to 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, to taste
2-3 drops liquid Stevia – either sweet cream or caramel flavor
12 almonds or 3 tbsp. slivered/sliced almonds

Directions
Blend all ingredients together in a high-speed blender until well combined. Pour into a glass, and enjoy!

Notes
If I were going to adapt this recipe for my breakfast shake, I would make the following changes: increase the amount of almond milk to 16oz and add a frozen banana and 1-2 big handfuls of spinach. This would change the 21 Day Fix containers to 1 Yellow, 1 Red, 1 Blue, 1 Purple, 1 Green.

Recipe adapted from BeachBody on Demand.