Fit Your Life

I cannot believe it is our last boot camp of August! This month has flown by with so many adventures and fun... Keith and I have called it "The August of Edmonton", as we have rekindled our love with this city as we have explored new trails, restaurants, festivals, more restaurants, and attractions.  Another beautiful sunny workout to end the month! The August Challenge is also drawing to a close. All participants have until August 31 to complete as many of the 30 challenges as possible. They will submit their forms to me Tuesday and I will determine the winner. We will announce next week! The Perfect 10 Workout 60 seconds each exercise x 2 rounds 1) Reverse Lunges 2) Resistance Band Bent-Over Rows 3) Burpies 4) Side Lunges 5) Push-Ups 6) Mountain Climbers 7) Squat Press (with resistance bands) 8) Triceps Dips 9) Resistance Band Side-Stepping 10) Plank Enjoy!!

Happy week everyone! I hope the cool mornings are waking you up and the warm afternoons are reminding you there is still plenty of summer to enjoy! At boot camp today, we had 9 people out and the sun was shining! It was our first workout with the new resistance band tubing. I think the group will enjoy the variety these bring to the workouts. Warm-Up 2 sets of stairs Arm Strength (60 seconds each x 2 rounds) 1) resistance band biceps curls 2) burpies 3) triceps dips Back Strength (60 seconds each x 2 rounds) 1) resistance band wide rows 2) push-ups 3) supermans Core (10 reps each, except plank) 1) supine double leg drop 2) reverse crunch 3) crunch 4) slow bicycles 5) dead bug 6) v-sits 7) russian twists 8) 60 second plank hold Enjoy!!

I was asked to create a workout to commence our team retreat for today! It was a beautiful morning and we got to enjoy this workout outside while preparing for our great day ahead... I was so impressed by these ladies and we had a blast while we did this! Team Sweat Warm-Up 20 side reach with arm extension 5 standing sun salutation series Blood Pumping (30 seconds each) March in place Walking high knees (or running for an extra challenge) Low squat shuffle (step side-to-side while holding low squat) Squat and twist (mini-squat then as you stand, bring one leg up to meet the opposite elbow) Stations (1 minute at each station - they worked in pairs and rotated through once) Alternating lunges Push-Ups (from toes or knees) Sumo squats (wide stance) Triceps Extension (with dumbbell behind head and elbows pointed up. Straighten elbows to lift dumbbell and lower slowly) Standing calf raises Biceps curls (with dumbbells) Core 15 cat-cow (on all fours, rounding the back down and looking up...

Another beautiful week in Edmonton with much sunshine and some warmth! I think this is a busy week, as we only had four participants out this week for boot camp, but one new recruit and they worked hard!! Keith named this week's workout... Pump Yo' Jam Warm-Up | 30 seconds each | 2 sets | 1)        Jumping Jacks 2)      Squat Jumps 3)      Criss Cross Jacks 4)     Ski Moguls (feet together, twisting while hopping like skiing around moguls) Tabata One | 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest | alternating for 4 full rounds | 1)        Incline Push-Ups (using bench with feet on ground) 2)      Burpies Isometrics | 1 minute each | 1)        Low squat hold 2)      Plank hold Tabata Two | 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest | alternating for 4 full rounds | ...

Happy Friday! Wednesday was a rainy and miserable afternoon, so we ended up postponing our workout to Thursday at lunchtime. It was a great turnout for an intense 20 minute circuit session! Our focus for this week's boot camp was maximizing the core muscles. All exercises involve deep core stabilizers! The August Challenge also kicked off this week with 30 healthy challenges to cross off from now until August 31! Good luck!! Maximize Your Core! Complete each exercise for 1 minute Jumping Jacks complete for entire minute. Froggers start in high push-up position. jump your legs to your hands, like the middle part of a burpie. jump them back. continue to do this without standing up. Bird Dog Crunches from all fours. stretch out your right leg behind you and left arm in front of you. bend your knee and elbow while crunching into your belly button, rounding your back, and touch your opposite elbow and knee under your tummy. switch sides after 30 seconds.  Dolphin Push-Up start in downwa...

There were a few extra things going on at the office Wednesday this week, so I decided to offer a second (or bonus!) workout on Friday. A good way to kick off the long weekend!! This is the perfect workout to do at home, outside, at the campsite, wherever!! As you do not need any equipment and you will be sweating in no time! This is what we did... Fit in In - Long Weekend Style! 15 jump sumo squats 15 wide push-ups 15 backwards lunges/side 10 up-down plank/side 15 single-leg bridge/side 15 skater jumps/side 10 leg lifts in side plank/side 10 narrow triceps push-ups 30 second v-sit hold 2 minute rest Repeat x3!! Enjoy!!

Good evening! This week, Keith and I have decided to do two-a-days! We are planning to run before work each day and complete a strength workout in the evening. This morning, we ran 5km and did this workout before supper.  Fit Your Life motto for the month of August: " do not find the time, make the time ". Thank you to Kim for inspiring me with this quote a few weeks ago! The Workout Surfers - 10 reps start on your belly with hands under shoulders. press up to push-up position as you jump your feet forward staggered (one in front) like on a surf board. stay low. arms out wide. place hands back on ground and hope back to belly. alternate front leg each time. Biceps Curl to Shoulder Press - 15 reps using dumbbells. start with weights near your legs. bend elbows to curl dumbbell up to shoulders. rotate so palm is now facing out. press dumbbells up to meet above your head. return dumbbells to starting position by reversing motions. Lunge Lift and Kick - 10...

The lovely Tone It Up girls have come up with a delicious vegetarian solution for hot wings! Buffalo Cauliflower Bites!  The recipe can be found about halfway down the page here  ... ...or below. Tone It Up Buffalo Cauliflower Bites Makes 3 servings Ingredients 1 head of Cauliflower 3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast Pinch of Salt 2 Tbsp Buffalo Tabasco Sauce Directions   Preheat Oven to 450°.Cut the cauliflower into bite sized pieces. Place in a plastic zip top bag, add salt and olive oil. Mix around until the pieces are coated. Place them on baking sheet and sprinkle nutritional yeast over them. Bake for 15 minutes or until browned. Out of the oven, place them into another zip top bag, add Buffalo Tabasco Sauce and shake around to coat the cauliflower. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Happy August Long Weekend! It has been a beautiful weekend filled with wonderful people, exploring nature in and around the city, and delicious food. On hot summer days, most of us with crave a certain delicious treat. Ice cream. It might not be for all of you, but ice cream continues to be one of my most craved indulgences. Since these cravings have the habit of coming around more often in the summer, we were happy to find inspiration for an alternative treat!  Personalize as you see fit! Yogurt and Fresh Fruit Parfait Non-fat Greek yogurt - we use plain (you could use flavoured, but contains more sugar) Fresh fruit - pile it on high! (w e like kiwi, fresh berries, cherries, or whatever else is in season) Maple syrup - a little for extra sweetness Shredded coconut - for a little extra deliciousness Enjoy!!

Last boot camp session for July 2013! Crazy!  It was another warm and sunny workout in the Edmonton River Valley. We had 10 wonderful participants who all pushed themselves a little harder than last week! I love seeing the dedication and smiles that each of these people bring!! I put them through one of my previous posted workouts -  Cardio and Core! ...with extra core at the end! 30 jumping jacks  30 mtn climbers 15 crunches 15 double leg drops 30 high knees 10 burpies 30 seconds right plank - 30 seconds front plank - 30 seconds left plank 30 mtn climbers 15 plank jacks 15 v-sits 30 russian twists 30 alt jump lunges 30 butt kicks 15 sit ups 30 bicycles 30 scissors 60 second front plank An Extra Kick of Core! 1 minute plank 20 bicycles 20 reverse crunches 30 mountain climbers 15 hip lifts in side plank/side 20 single leg lowers Enjoy!!