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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Squat like you mean it

Ah... it's Wednesday. Hump day for most people, the crucial mid-week obstacle to tackle before it's smooth sailing to the weekend. For me, Wednesday is the day after. The day after what you might ask. The day after leg day.

I absolutely love to train my legs. They are super-strong, but I haven't gotten completely comfortable with them yet. I still loathe shorts season, though I'm hoping this year might be better. Putting in the work like I did yesterday is only going to help.

Here's what my leg workout looked like:

Warm-up: 5 minutes of jumping rope followed by leg swings, inchworms, lunges
Exercise 1: Good ole' fashioned squats - 12 reps x135 pounds, 8x165, 3x195, 3x165, 5x135
Cardio: 100 jumps on the rope
Exercise 2: Straight-legged deadlifts - 12x95, 10x115, 5x135
Carido: 100 jumps on the rope
Exercise 3: Barbell step-ups - 3 sets of 10x75
Exercise 4: Single leg good mornings (ain't nothing good about them) - 3 sets of 10x65
Exercise 5: Leg extensions - 3 drop sets, 10 reps per set, total 30 reps per drop set, 90 reps total...phew!
Exercise 6: Single leg calf raise - 3 sets of 8x35
Exercise 7: Seated calf raise - 3 sets of 10x50
Cooldown: Yoga complex - runner's stretch, right angle pose, twisting right angle pose, downward dog, upward dog; splits

One of my gym "friends" stopped me today and mentioned that I squat more than a lot of the guys in the gym. We had a brief conversation about how not enough women squat. And I feel bad for those women. There is something so empowering about moving a lot of weight with your body. The easiest way to do that is by using your legs since they are your biggest muscle group.

I guess this post is my invitation to women to start squatting. It's really not that hard. Ask a friend who knows how to squat or hire a trainer to teach you. There are tons of You Tube videos, too, that might give you some assistance. Once you get the basics down, it's a piece of cake. And after squatting, think of all the cake you could eat. Only kidding.

Do you squat? What variations of the squat do you like to do?


What do you eat after a really hardcore workout? 

Monday, February 6, 2012

Cleaning up my kitchen

I was so excited when I found this 5-pound bag of blanched almond flour (nuts.com - great resource for baking ingredients) waiting for me on my front steps last week:


I know, I'm nuts. But I've been so excited lately to start cleaning up my baking recipes. I've always loved to bake, I get that from my mom. She used to be the family cake lady, baking and decorating really elaborate cakes for family functions. She even dabbled in the naughty cake business for wedding showers, but I'm sure she'd rather I didn't talk about that here. In any case, she always let us kids in the kitchen to help her out, though now that I have 2 daughters of my own I can imagine what kind of havoc we used to wreak! 

Cooking and baking for me is relaxing, and aside from going to the gym, it's really the only thing I do for myself. It's my creative outlet so to speak (in addition to writing this blog). And I've given myself a new challenge lately: to cook and bake gluten-free. In the past, I've switched from regular flour to whole wheat flour, and from oil to applesauce, and from sugar to agave nectar. I think this switch, though, is going to be the most important. 

Gluten is found in tons of food products, and often surprisingly so (a great resource for going gluten-free by The View's Elizabeth Hasselbeck: http://www.gfreediet.com/). An intolerance to gluten can lead to serious intestinal issues and can contribute to a laundry list of health conditions (chronic headaches, skin conditions such as eczema, bowel issues and so on). I get a lot of headaches, always have. Years ago I kicked wheat products out, felt better, and then went back to eating wheat. Needless to say, I still get headaches. 

So about two weeks ago I decided enough was enough. Time to try again to get rid of gluten. And this is what I've been rewarded with so far:



Delicious banana-pecan muffins fresh from the oven this morning (will post the recipe later). Not to mention some awesome pumpkin pie muffins and vegan chocolate chip cookies made over the weekend (Fantastic recipes --elanaspantry.com). Along the way to eliminating gluten, I've also started using more local honey as a sweetener, which I've heard can help ease seasonal allergies. 

It's now the morning after a Superbowl party filled with gluttony--pulled pork nachos (which I made, with gluten-free tortilla chips!), buffalo chicken dip, jalapeno peppers stuffed with cheese and wrapped in bacon. I'll be honest, I indulged and was not vigilant about sticking to no gluten. I know, I'm weak. 

What I realize, though, is committing to a lifestyle change is not easy, and that's what going gluten-free is. And that's the approach we should all take toward eating healthy. It shouldn't be about dieting or restrictions. It should be about making the healthiest choices for our bodies and once in a while enjoying the things you really love. Food shouldn't be about deprivation or gluttony; it should be about nourishment. 

And on that note... I'm going to go nourish myself on another banana-pecan muffin and have a second cup of coffee. 

Is there anything you eliminate completely from your diet?

What sort of recipes would like to re-create to be healthier?