Howdy All!!

How is your Hump Day treating you? Mine has been busy busy. Last night, my little sister came in from Austin to drop a friend off at the airport and we had fun catching up and swapping stories. All of her wild adventures always make me feel a tad boring! Haha :) It was great to see her!

Since I knew I had to rush home after work, I made sure to get my strength training workout in early. Yesterday's plan included biceps and triceps. I did three sets of each exercise alternating back and forth between biceps and triceps.

- Standing bicep curls with dumbbells
- Tricep kick backs with dumbbels

- Assisted tricep dip
- Assisted narrow grip pull-ups

- Tricep pull downs on the cable machine
- Straight bar bicep curls on the cable machine

I also taught a kickboxing class and a cycle class. I think yesterday's cycle class was possibly one the most fun cycle classes I have ever taught. We had a rocking playlist, my students were bubbling with energy, and we all cycled our little hearts out!! It was AMAZING!

Since it's already 6:30pm, and I have a ton of homework to do, I am going to leave you with a cool video I came across today. This video discusses a study that looked at the antioxidant content of 3,139 different foods!! Can you even name that many foods? I sure can't! Check it out!



I'm off to read my marketing textbook. Yuck! I hope you all have a wonderful evening!

Q's and A's:
How do you break up your weight routine?
By muscle group? Upper and lower body? Or total body?

In health,

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Hello Friends!!

That's what this weekend was all about friends, fitness and fun!! On Thursday night, I had my boss from A&M and two other former colleagues over for dinner and we had the best time catching up and swapping fitness and life stories!! I also made an amazing eggplant and turkey sausage linguine that turned out deliciously (is that a word?). I will be sharing that recipe later in the week. It was so good to see them and talk about everything that is happening in the fitness industry!!  A little later on in the evening, two girl I used to teach with at UNT, Sam and Kristen, arrived to spend the weekend with me! Even though it's only been a few month since I left UNT, I miss these girls like crazy! We turned in pretty early since our first session was at 7:30am on Friday morning.

My first two sessions on Friday were group exercise management lectures and they were fantastic! Next, I took an amazing step class by one of my favorite presenters, Gay Gasper! I wish I could take her class every week! After step, I was off to a strength circuit class that my chest is still sore from. Spider man pushups into side plank elbow to knee crunch will do you in quickly! :) Then it was off to another lecture about upcoming fitness trends. I finished off a wonderful day with a wonderful step class taught by Deborah Puskarich. Gay and Deborah are pretty much the step queens, so getting to take a class from both of them on the same day is like Christmas, my birthday, and New Years all wrapped into one!! :) I was so excited to be at Mania and to catch up with old friends, that I totally forgot to take pictures! I know, what kind of blogger am I? Thank you Lizy for this picture!

We were pretty dang pooped after day one, so the girls and I grabbed a quick bit to eat, including TCBY frozen yogurt of course, and then headed home. I passed out literally before my head hit the pillow! I kicked off Saturday morning with another killer step class called Step Layer Cake. This instructor was killer at breaking down complicated combos! After that, I headed over to the cycle room for a ride with my all time favorite cycle instructor, Julz Arney!! Julz could put you on a bike and make you ride for 15 hours and you would love every second of it.

All of my beautiful Aggie ladies waiting to go into class!

All of the Aggies plus our adopted Aggie, Julz!!

I was so sweaty after this class it was quite disgusting! I continued the fun with a lecture titled Women, Weights & Results. This lecture was so informative! Dr. Josephson broke things down in a way that was super easy to understand and very easy to apply to your everyday training plan. I'll share more on this later! After the lecture, things go serious! I went to a new class called Piloxing and almost lost my mind I had so much fun!! Literally, I think the smile on my face during class stretched from California to New York! I can't wait to get certified in October so I can bring this fun, sexy, powerful class to my gym! Watch out Dallas Piloxing is coming! :)

The Saturday night of Dallas Mania is always the Aggie instructor reunion. We pretty much take over half of a restaurant in downtown and spend the entire night chatting and catching up! It's definitely one of the highlights of the conference!


Sunday started even earlier than Friday and Saturday at 7:00am. I loved Dr. Josephson's lecture so much on Saturday, that I signed up for his talk on Eating For Energy & Performance. He did not disappoint and I will be sure to share what I learned in this lecture with you as well! After the lecture, I went to another inspiring cycle class and left equally sweaty as Saturday's class! Next was a much needed yoga inspired class. It was called Full-Body Flexibility; Yoga Inspired Stretch. It was kind of like yoga meets athletic stretching. It was really really neat! I ended the conference on a fun note with a dance class with Deborah P. It was a combination of old school high low and hip hop. So much fun!!

Overall, the weekend was absolutely amazing! I walked away with a ton of new ideas, new friends, and got to see some of my best friends in the whole world that are now spread out all over the state of Texas. No matter how far away from each other life takes us, we will always have our love for fitness and this amazing conference to bring us back together. I love all my Aggie Instructors!! :)

In health,

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Howdy!!

This post is super late but I was totally wiped after Dallas Mania yesterday and then didn't get done cooking dinner until about 5 seconds ago. I had another huge plate of broccoli slaw spaghetti and it was amazing! If you haven't tried this stuff yet, you are missing out!

I have to get started on my homework, but I wanted to leave you with something crazy cool my fellow blogger, Jill, posted on her facebook wall today. It is called Marathon by the Numbers and it's pretty jaw dropping!

Brought to you by: Marathon Training Schedule


Check back tomorrow for a full Dallas Mania recap!!

Q's and A's:
How was your weekend?
What marathon statistic shocked you most?

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Howdy!

Someone was exhausted after his bath!

It's officially my favorite time of the year - Dallas Mania Time!!


Dallas Mania is a huge fitness convention where instructors and presents come from all over the U.S and even the world to share their passion of fitness in three sweat filled days!! I seriously count down to Dallas Mania all summer. Not only do I get a ton of great ideas to take back to my classes, but I get to catch up with old friends as well!




Oh these were the days!! I miss all of these girls so much. We are spread out all over Texas now, but our love for fitness and the amazing times we had at A&M will always keep us connected! I love you ladies! I can't forget one of the most AMAZING women I know and the person who is responsible for bringing me into the fitness industry, DeAun!


My Dallas Mania adventure kicked off at 7:30am this morning and lasts all the way through Sunday evening!! I will be back with a full recap of all of the fun and interesting things I learned this weekend! Have a wonderful Friday!

Q's and A's:
Have you ever been to a Mania event?
What are you up to this weekend?

In health,

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Howdy!

How are you this wonderful Thursday! This is going to be a pretty brief post because I'm running around getting ready for the company we are having this weekend! I'm having my old boss from A&M and some of my dear girlfriends over for dinner tonight and there is still quite a bit of cleaning and cooking that needs to be done. Be on the lookout for a delicious Clean Eating pasta dish recipe soon!

I'm not going to have time to get in a long run this weekend since I am going to Dallas Mania which is a huge fitness convention!! More on this later! My training plan called for a 7 mile run, so I decided to squeeze it in on Wednesday morning. I woke up super early and ran over to White Rock Lake. How beautiful is that?

source

It was pretty hot, but overall the run went really well!


I held a little under a 9:30 per mile pace. I even beat Garmina!


On Monday, I shared this homemade granola bar recipe with you. I've eaten at least one a day since Monday and gave a couple away to friends. With three days full of workouts ahead of me, I thought it would be a good idea to stock up on some more bars. This time, I swapped the 1/4 cup whole wheat flour for another 1/4 cup peanut flour to up the protein factor and swapped the almond butter for peanut butter. If you are a fan of peanut butter then this recipe is for you!


Alrighty folks, I am off to finish packing these little babies away and finish cleaning the house. I will report back on how the dinner party goes as well as give a full recap of Dallas Mania this weekend! So much fun to come!

Q's and A's:
Where is your favorite place to run?
What is your pre-workout snack of choice?

In health,

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Hello There!!

How's your Wednesday going so far? How are you going to get your sweat on today? Yesterday, I taught a super fun kickboxing class and then climbed some mega hills in cycle!! It's was a big sweaty party! My patella tendon was acting up on Monday, so I decided to take a day off from running.

I have to share a secret with you. I have a new love.....

Kim's Magic Pop with cinnamon. They are light and fluffy with a rice cake like consistency. There is just a little hint of cinnamon that adds an extra special touch. They taste great with a little bit of cream cheese or almond butter, but their delicious by themselves for a low calorie night time snack.


Check out those nutrition facts. Only 20 calories, 0g of fat, and 4g of carbohydrates. They won't win any awards in the vitamin or fiber department but sometimes you just need a little something sweet to hold you over and these are perfect!

Dinner last night was somewhat of an experiment. I was watching the hungry girl cooking tv show on Sunday morning and she was making a pasta dish using broccoli slaw. I already love adding veggies to my pasta so I thought I would give it a try! Broccoli slaw is pretty much just shredded brocolli, carrots, and cabbage. There's no sauce on it when you buy it fresh. I grabbed some at the store on Sunday.


If you want to talk about rock star nutrition facts it's pretty hard to top these!! There is only 100 calories in this entire bag, 0g of fat, 5g of carbs, 3g of fiber, 2g of protein, plus 110% of your vitamin C, and 35% of your vitamin A! Pretty dang impressive!


I poured the entire bag in a skillet and added 1/4 a cup of water. Simply stir until the veggies become soft; about 8 minutes.


It cooked down a little bit but there was still a ton. I only ate half the bag and saved the rest for later. Top with a little marinara sauce and you have one delicious veggie and vitamin packed meal! It didn't taste exactly like regular pasta, but it will cure even your strongest pasta craving.


I made a side salad to go with my "pasta;" however, after I did that, I realized if it is possible to OD on veggies I definitely accomplished that!


Sorry for the yucky looking picture, my camera doesn't take great pictures when there is no natural light! If anyone ever says you can't get full on veggies, feed them this meal and they will sing a different tune.

If you try it, let me know! I'm off now. I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!

Q's and A's:
Have you ever subbed broccoli slaw for noodles in pasta?

In health,

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Howdy!

How are you this evening! I'm sorry I am getting this post up so late, but I was here.....

until really late last night and didn't have time to get a post together. We had a blast at the game and the Rangers beat the Red Sox 4-0!

I managed to get my sweat sessions in earlier that day in the form of a kickbox class and a quick hill repeat workout. Check it out here:

1/2 mile warm up jog
400 meter climb at a 5% incline
400 meter recovery at same speed but a 1% incline
**repeat 4 more times (so 5 total)
1/2 mile cool down jog

I squeezed in this run on the treadmill before my yoga class. It took less than 30 minutes but had me pretty well whipped! :)

I came across an amazing video today! It discusses the cancer fighting abilities of various vegetables. I was shocked to find out which vegetables have the highest cancer fighting properties!! I will definitely be making different choices next time I hit up the salad bar! You won't believe what came in first! Warning it is a tad dry, but REALLY good!



I'm off to cook dinner. Check back for a new recipe tomorrow! Have a great night!

Q's and A's:
Were you shocked by which vegetable came in first?


In health,

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Happy Monday Friends!!

How was your weekend??  What did you do? Yesterday, I told you all about the shopping that I accomplished this weekend!

I also went on a great 6 mile run with my friend Katie! Running is 100Xs more fun when you are running with a friend. Thanks for joining me Katie!!

We ran around the lake and actually saw a guy doing paddleboard yoga!! I had heard of this before, but neither of us had ever seen it in real life! It looked so cool. Talk about a balance challenge!

source

After we finished our run, I took Champ for a quick walk and then headed to the grocery store (after a shower of course)! In the afternoon, I got serious in the kitchen! The first thing on my agenda was Almond Banana Oatmeal Protein Bars. I was lucky enough to win a NuNaturals goody pack from Erin's blog a few weeks ago, and I have been trying out all new ways to use this delicious all natural sweetener! As a group exercise instructor, healthy snacking is a must to keep me fueled in between classes. I spend a butt load each week on Luna and Larabars (which are both super delicious, don't get me wrong). Anybody else? I have tried to make protein bars at home a couple of times in the past, but none of them have turned out this good. Please allow me to introduce you to........

Almond Banana Oatmeal Protein Bars


Ingredients:

• 2 Cups whole rolled oats
• 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 cup peanut flour (If you don't have peanut flour, you can simply use another 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour or the nut flour of choice for extra protein!)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup NuNaturals MoreFiber Baking Blend
• 2 tbsp whole flax seeds
• 1/4 cup almond butter (or nut butter of choice)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 banana
• 2 tbsp water

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray an 8 X 8 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, mash up banana and combine with almond butter, applesauce and water.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well. The mixture will look dry at first, but keep stirring.
5. Pour into pan and spread evenly.
6. Bake for 15 minutes.
7. Allow pan to cool and then cut into bars. Wrap individually for an easy to pack snack!

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Pre-cooked

Post cooking - nice and golden brown

Wrapped up and ready to go!

Look at that wholesome nutritiousness!

These bars are absolutely amazing and so satisfying! They ended up about the size of Lunabars. The recipe can make 8-10 depending on how you slice them. Next time, I'm going to make them in a 9X9 pan so they are a bit thinner and I can get 10 good sizes bars out of one batch! You get a little hints of apple, banana, almond butter, and raisin in every bite! These might be replacing all store bought granola/protein bars in my house.

I hope you all have a marvelous Monday! :)

Q's and A's:
Have you ever made homemade granola or protein bars?
Anybody want to share their recipe?
What was your favorite thing you did this weekend?

In health,

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Happy Sunday Everyone!

How was your Friday and Saturday? This weekend was full of shopping adventures!

What do you think of the new header? Yea or Nay?

On Saturday, I met up with a friend at Central Market for some fun shopping and chatting of course! I bought some really yummy goodies!

I just thought these were so rich and beautiful!

Oh Central Market how I love you!

Then it was off to HomeGoods in search of a mirror for our guest bathroom. I love that store!! It has everything you could ever want and so many things you didn't even know you wanted but you just have to have once you get there!

Isn't she beautiful?  She will look great in the guest bath!

If I didn't already have 2 super cut aprons, I would  have been all over these!

Anybody need a rooster for their kitchen?

Colorful Pot Land!

So many random but pretty things. I could spend hours in that place just wondering around!!

On Sunday E and I made our weekly trip to Home Depot. When you live in a house that was built in 1948, you get to know the Home Depot guys pretty well. I have been wanting to plant a garden since we moved in, but now that we have Champ, and he likes to dig in everything, I don't think a full fledged garden would be a good idea. That's ok! I am going to test out my green thumb on this guy!


I've been cooking with a lot of fresh herbs lately so I thought an herb garden would be a great idea. Plus, I can keep it safe in the side yard so Champers can't dig it up! :) I'll keep you posted on the progress.

I'm headed back to the kitchen to finish up my creations! Stay tuned later this week for a full recap of both recipes featuring NuNaturals MoreFiber Baking Blend. One of them definitely takes the cake as my  favorite recipe of all time!!

Q's and A's:
Did you do any shopping this weekend?
Any gardening tips for me?

In health,

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