Swiss Ball Trifeca

am not a fan of exercise machines.  I hardly use them myself and I definitely don’t use them much with my clients.  I do think they are a great tool for my clients to use when I am not around to take thinking out of the equation for them.  However they are what I call the lazy man’s workout.  Your whole body goes into relaxation mode except for the one muscle the machine is working.  Stop doing the lazy working and get ALL of your muscles working at once!

A great way to burn extra calories and get multiple muscles working at the same time is to incorporate more muscles into each exercise.  From things as simple as a biceps curl into a shoulder press is more effective in increasing the heart rate and effectiveness of the muscle burn than the two exercises alone.

A couple exercises I love to do with my clients who are at an intermediate level involves a swissball aka exercise ball.  For the first series all you need is a swissball and for the second series all you need is a swissball and a set of dumbells (you have to wait for my second installment to see those excersies-so stay tuned!).  How simple is that?!?  Basically no gym required.

Pike. Push Up. Bear.

Grab your swissball and place your hands on the ground and your feet on top of the ball.  The more stabilizing position on the ball will be to put more of the front of your calves on the ball.  The most unstable position is having your toes on the ball.  Now that you are set up, get ready to move.  All three moves are done in order with no rest.  Keep in mind that you want to keep your core nice and strong to help with the balance.  DO NOT SAG YOUR HIPS.

Start in Plank.

Pike

Plank

Push Up.

Plank

Bear.

Then just shoot those legs back out and you are back to your starting plank.

Try to accomplish 10 rounds of the 3 moves without falling off to be an advanced Swissball user!

Simple Breakfast.

I also want to take a moment to address breakfast.  Breakfast does not have to be complicated.  There is nothing worse than someone not eating breakfast.  Trust me you are doing the worst thing you possibly could by not eating breakfast.  Breakfast does not have to be complicated.  You can honestly throw odds and ends together in a bowl and just mix.  For instance, my breakfast this morning was completely just odds and ends.  No prep time required, no cooking required, no thinking required.  If you still don’t think you have time then take that bowl with you in the car and chomp at a read light.  Please please do not skip breakfast!!!!  Here is a sample of a simple odds and ends breakfast I whipped up this morning in a crunch.

Two Degree Odds N Ends. (dairy free, gluten free, meat free, but full of protein)

1 serving coconut milk yogurt-plain (you can use any plain 4 oz yogurt)

1 scoop plant fusion chocolate protein powder (any chocolate protein powder will do)

1/4 cup erewhon brown rice gluten free cereal (any rice krispie cereal of your choice)

1/2 Two Degrees Bar (freebie from whole foods) 

Finished Result

318 calories, 23g protein, 24g carbs, 10g fat

Say It Anit So!!!!!!

How dare you starbucks!!!  How dare you take away from me the best thing you have done to my life thus far.  Don’t make your sugar free peppermint syrup only seasonal!!!!!!

It wasn’t until half way through the christmas season that I even found out that Starbucks had Sugar free Peppermint syrup.  Typically I am not a sugar free syrup kind of gal or any syrup for that matter.  Sugar and Fake Sugar are my enemy.  Also I am not really a starbucks fan.  A trenta?  Are you trying to kill the human population from caffeine overdoses.  I already rock the venti no need for an additional temptation.

Peets, yes please!

However, I will buckle at the knees for peppermint…sorry for the minor cheat, Peets, but peppermint makes my world go round.

Ah short lived though, I guess it is good that everything should be kept in moderation.  To my dismay Starbucks are no longer stocking their stores with sugarfree peppermint syrup and whatever is left is just want they overstocked.  Peets close your ears…”Please, please, please starbucks bring back sugarfree peppermint for the next holiday season!”  Trader Joe’s already disappointed me this year from not stocking their peppermint coffee.

Where O where art thou Peppermint Coffee!?!?!?!

If anyone else can suggest peppermint coffee and where I can buy it I will forever owe my life to them!?!

Anyway I should plug in some sort of educational piece of literature instead of my whining rant.

Remember how I said Sugar and Chemical Sugar and I are not friends.  Well this is my go to for sweeteners.  Good ol’ stevia!  I have tried many different brands but I am stuck on the taste of this one.

Kal Pure Stevia!

A little goes a long way!  Get rid of the Chemical and GO RAW!!!!!  Do your body good and add a little good sweetness into your life!

www.talentztraining.wordpress.com/about

Hey All!

 

I just completed my About Page.  Until I figure out this layout and see where there is a short cut to read about my life summary through healthy and fitness I encourage you to just type in ‘about’ in the search box and it will take you straight to the blog!

I can’t stop

Wow, lately I just feel as though I want to eat ALL day long.  Is it because I am around the house more since I have a puppy to take care of and the frig is right there, or is it legitimately hunger attacks!?!?  I feel as though it is a little of both  Mental note: keep away from the frig since you are forced to be home more now than you are used to!  The problem though that I am just not in a snacky mood, I am in a sweets mood!  hmmm…

Well since I am experiences these food craziness I thought I would share with you some ‘sweets’ that I have been digging into.  You know me I have to make it healthy so here are some healthy twists on some not so healthy snacks/sweets.

1.  Chocolate but DARK DARK DARK.  I specifically enjoy raw gnosis chocolates!

2. Raw Almond Butter!  Now I know these can be pricey but honestly the taste is soooo worth it.  I eat it by the spoonfuls!

3.  ‘Healthy Rootbeet Float’

I made a batch of Hungry Girls No Nonesense Eggnog using Coconut Milk.  Pouring a ratio of 1:1 I combined it with Diet A&W Rootbeer…yummo!

4. Ice Cream- Arctic Zero …Never lasts more than a day in my freezer because I eat it by the pint!  I have had some days where I have devoured two in one day…oops 🙂

My two favorite flavors are Vanilla Maple and Cookies and Cream.  Mint Chocolate Cookie comes in a short third place and when the season comes around I enjoy Pumpkin Spice.  Let me say that it was very hard to find this past season.  I only saw it once and snagged the last once in the grocery store freezer.

5. Chocolate Protein Pudding!  Now I do need to put a disclaimer on this one.  I don’t eat dairy except eggs if you count that…(I don’t but most do).  I mix raw egg whites with a serving of vegan and gluten free chocolate protein and a pinch of cinnamon to create my protein pudding.  It comes out in a nice pudding consistency and is heathily delicious (minus the whole eating raw egg aspect-I risk it but I’m not telling you to.  Mixing it with plain nonfat greek yogurt is a great way to make chocolate protein pudding too)

And yes I did consume all of these things today!  I told you it was a bad day!?!

What are some of your go to snacks when the craving hits hard?

Are you a salty snacker or a sweet snacker?

Cable Plank Triceps Extension

Each week I will be showcasing at least one exercise that I do with my clients.  I will make sure to add which type of level the exercise falls under and the equipment needed, etc.

Burn and Transform!

This workout move is legit!  I warn those that are new to weight training to not try this exercise yet.  It is for advanced clients only!

With a cable machine you need to position the cable at the bottom of the pole.  You just need one simple handle with a grip and you are ready to go.  In a plank position (on your hands and toes) position yourself with your head near the base of the pole.  With one hand stabilizing yourself on the ground and your two feet behind you shoulder distance apart, this will be your solid base.  With the other hand grab the cable.  Make sure your elbow is glued to your side (the elbow never moves while performing the exercise).  With one fluid motion pull the cable back to your hip.  Make sure your wrist stays strong and straight, as well as your hips staying parallel to the ground.  Your body is going to want to tip to the side to help pull the weight.  This is not ideal.  Use your core and keep your hips still.  Perform the exercise 15 times with one hand before switching to the other.  For my female clients I have them perform this exercise with 20lbs for the stronger men I have them do it up to 40lbs.  Immediately after the second hand is done, stay in your plank position and bust out 15 push ups for the extra burn!  My client really loved that this morning 🙂  A great exercise to superset this with is another triceps exercise on the cable machine to really get the triceps burning!

Start

Finish

 

A special thanks to my client for being a great model!

Christmas Baking

Over the holidays while I was home visiting my family in Michigan I was able to do a little baking.  Just a little though.  As soon as Christmas hit all baking was out the window due to the arrival of this guy…

Before the wonderful addition into my life I was able to throw together some EZ Peppermint Bark.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE peppermint…can I say that enough?  Peppermint and Chocolate together!?!  YES PLEASE!  And the best part is, it is supa simple.

When it comes to baking with simple ingredients that are mostly all of the flavor in the goody it is important to splurge some extra money to buy the good stuff.  While we were shopping for the chocolate my mom even asked me why we had to spend the money on the Ghirardelli baking chocolate when some of the other brands were so much cheaper.  Trust me, it is worth it!

For my EZ Peppermint Chocolate you will need 3 simple ingredients: chocolate, coconut oil, peppermint

1 bar 100% cacao baking bar

1 bar 60% cacao backing bar

2 bars white chocolate baking bar

1tsp coconut oil

6 chocolate peppermint candy canes

I chose to melt 100% and 60% cacao together for a healthier alternative.  The purity of the 100% cacao makes this a recipe contain less sugar but also adds more bitterness.  Mixing the two creates a nice balance.  Plus don’t worry you get enough sweetness from the white chocolate and candy canes!

Microwave the dark chocolate bars together in a microwave until melted (I did 30 second intervals 3 times).  Once melted add in 1/2 tsp coconut oil.  Place aluminum foil on a pain, pour chocolate and place in frig for one hour.

After the hour is up do the same thing with the white chocolate.  Since the white chocolate is hot after melting, pouring it directly on the dark chocolate could essentially melt the dark chocolate again.

To avoid this use this time to crush the candy canes.  I placed mine in a ziplock bag and waked the heck out of it. Thats the fun part.  After the wake attack the white chocolate can be poured over the dark and then dusted with the candy cane pieces/dust!

My mom had the joy of brining this to one of her holiday parties and it was a huge hit.

For me I am pickier in my sugar intake and wanted to reduce it even more.  For my batch, I just did one bar of 100% cacao.  After it was melted I added in some creamy almond butter to cut down on the bitterness!  It was delish.  A great snack full of antioxidants.  OO as well as the wonderful peppermint which can be very good for a healthy stomach!

When I bake I am always keeping my mother and her waistline in mind.  I know she loves to enjoy her food but also likes to keep her waistline in check.  The most difficult part though is getting her to TRY new things.  Getting the idea from Hungry Girl on the food network, I decided to whip up some of her no nonsense eggnog but with the talentz twist!  This is a tradition that is always around the house for christmas and I have always loved it…pure nice and thick eggnog.  This is the smaller waist line, just as thick and tasty eggnog!

Serves 4

In a blender add:

1 carton no sugar added original coconut milk

1 packet sugar free fat free vanilla pudding mix

1 tsp rum extract

and as much nutmeg as your little heart desires (my mother is a huge fan)

Blend on high for 1 min

Place in frig for a few hours to thicken up!

Pour 1 serving in a glass and garnish with more nutmeg 🙂 sip and enjoy!

Saving calories but not taste!

New Years Resolutions

Hello and thank you for joining me in the year 2012!  I just moved to wordpress from blogger and looking forward to starting off on a new journey this year with you all.

For my first post it is going to be short and sweet.

My New Year Resolutions!

1. Blog at least three times a week!

2. Keep in touch with important people from my past that I want to keep in my future.  Even though they are far away, I want to stay in constant close contact with each and every one of them!

3. Instead of sticking to really strict rules on what to eat and what not to eat.  I am ready to use this year as the year that I am going to be completely comfortable with food and eat what I feel my body is craving.  Whether it be meat here and there or dairy here or there or a sweet.  Currently I am a gluten free vegan with a heavy influence in a raw diet.  This will still be my baseline which I think is very important but have the freedom to branch out a little.  Not because I can’t do it because you can ask anyone, I can!  I just want to make sure my body is getting all the nutrients it needs and continually keep it guessing and explore food happily!

4. Be the best mom I can be to my new puppy that I got for Christmas!  Say hello to King Romeo IV, my 10 week old french bulldog!