Interval Playlists: March Fo(u)rth!

Hey everybody!  Did you know today's date has a special meaning?  It's the only day of the year that is also a command.  Well, I don't like to be bossy, so instead I'd like to challenge you to march forth on March fourth and every other day this month :)

So whether you're marching, running, sprinting, or walking, this playlist will be a good accompaniment to your workout.

1. All I Do Is Win (feat. T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg,& Rick Ross) - DJ Khaled

2. Saleswoman of the Month - Hank Whitaker (click here to hear song)

3. Waiting On a Saint - Hank Whitaker (click here to hear song)

4. California Gurls (feat. Snoop Dogg) - Katy Perry

5. Waking Up in Vegas - Katy Perry

6 Songs Like This - Carrie Underwood

7. She'd Be California - Rascal Flatts

8. I Want You Back - Jackson 5

9. Bouncing Off the Ceiling - A*Teens

10. I Wanna Dance With Somebody - Whitney Houston

11. Shoot To Thrill - ACDC

12. Money Talks - ACDC

13. Walk This Way - Aerosmith

14. One Time - Justin Bieber

So Hank Whitaker, mentioned above, is my big brother so that's worth checking out ;).  He's a talented dude and is a songwriter out in Hollywood.  That's why there are a couple California-related songs in this list --- I'm going to visit Hank soon so this playlist is getting me amped during my pre-California workouts!  

I find this playlist really fun and upbeat and I hope you do, too!  March forth! ;)

National Peanut Butter Lover's Day

Hello friends!  I hope you’re as excited as I am about today.  It’s National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day!  It’s like the creators of this day had me in mind.  It’s so difficult to name your favorite food because I’m not sure we all have just one, but if you were to ask me, I’d still probably say peanut butter/almond butter.  I eat it on everything.  I eat it any time of the day and I eat it on toast, muffins, protein pancakes, in shakes (like this one), in desserts (see below), oatmeal...everything!  And by itself :)

Interval Playlists: February!

I apologize that February is almost over.  What a crazy, short month!  But you get an extra day of February this month, so why don't we combine some of this month's playlist with March's?  Sound good?


Great :)

The theme of this playlist is STRONG.  You'll notice three of the song titles are "Stronger" and that's because I have been pushing myself more than usual in interval training and cross training this February.  I've been spinning, doing lots of HIIT (high intensity interval training), and much more strength training than I have been doing in the recent past and have liked hearing the word "stronger" as I workout. 

 So with that being said, enjoy February's playlist!

1. Turn Me On (Feat. Nicki Minaj) - David Guetta - Nicki Minaj
2. Domino - Jessie J
3. Young, Wild & Free (Feat. Bruno Mars) - Snoop Dogg & WizKhalifa
4. Stronger - Kanye West
5. International Love - Pitbull Featuring Chris Brown
6. Stronger - Britney Spears
7. Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson


Y'all know that usually I just keep my playlist on shuffle. While the order is ultimately up to you, here are a few suggestions I have for when to listen to the songs:

• I think that "Young, Wild & Free" should be either a warm up or cool down song - or definitely when you are on the slower side of your interval training. 
• "Turn Me On" and "Domino" are faster songs and better for a faster pace.
• "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" is a great song for the end of your workout because I think the message works well when you're trying to push through and stay strong as you finish your run.

Have a happy and fun workout!

Spectacular, Scrumptious Super Bowl Recipes

Hey everybody!


What, to you, is most important about the Super Bowl?  For me, it's the the 5 Fs:  Football, Family, Friends, Fun, and Food.  The 5 Fs are often implemented in many of my favorite activities (and probably yours, too!)  With a recipe like that, how could you go wrong?  Today I'll share some of the recipes I used for this year's game. (See below for recipes).

This year's Super Bowl involved every one of those aspects, but let's talk about the food!  This was by far the healthiest Super Bowl I've had yet.  While in preparation for planning this year's feast, I ran into some friends at the grocery store.  They asked what I was getting and I said just some things for the game.  They looked at my cart and then back up at me with confused expressions. "Tofu?" they asked. Yes.  My cart was filled with vegetables and other healthy items.  Everyone loves soy at a Super Bowl party, RIGHT?


In all seriousness, my party didn't involve tofu.  That was for another day.  But I did use Gardein brand meatless chicken tenders (per Tone It Up's suggestion) and boy were they good!  I also made mango salsa, hummus, sauteed mushrooms, low-fat guacamole, and carob balls that I'll provide the recipes to.  On top of that, I set out low-carb tortillas from La Tortilla Factory, cut up some red, yellow, and green bell peppers and some celery, and made some kale chips (because what's a party without chips?)  ;)

I thought I'd also include last year's Super Sandwich for the Super Bowl.  It weighed 10.0 lbs on the dot and stood about one foot tall.  Thank you to my boyfriend for baking bread in my football-shaped cake pan and getting 3 kinds of meats, 3 kinds of cheeses, and different greens and bell peppers to make this edible monstrosity.  It took an army to eat it, but it was a well-fed, happy army :)

I hope your Super Bowl was as great as mine was and for those of you reading in future Februaries, I hope these recipes and ideas help you create a fabulous football feast!  Enjoy!  xxo

Mango Salsa
1 mango, peeled, pitted, and diced (about 1.5 cup)
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeno chile, minced 
1 small cucumber, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
3 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
3 tbsp fresh lime juice 
Salt and pepper to taste
(mix together in bowl and enjoy!)


Low-Fat Guacamole (From Womens Health)
1.5 cups frozen green beans, thawed
1 small avocado, cubed
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbs lemon juice
1 tbsp jalapeno, chopped
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
(Put all but the last two ingredients in a food processer until smooth, then stir in peppers and cilantro)


Hummus
 Lots of flexibility with this one---I threw it together how I saw fit at that moment ;)
Garbanzo beans (amount is dependent on how much you want! Shoot for 1 cup)
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 shakes paprika
1 shake garlic powder
QUICK shake onion powder
(Put everything in a food processor)


Carob Balls on a Time Crunch
Another flexible recipe, and one of my favorites!
1/2 cup carob chips (or however. many. you. want...within reason).
1/4 cup walnuts
1/8 cup almonds
(Put everything in food processor until you make a dough that you can roll balls out of, then stick in refrigerator until ready to eat!)
(There are many variations of this recipe but since I was out of some other normal ingredients for this kind of dessert, like dates, this was the best I could do.  And it's still delicious!)


Kale Chips
1 bunch kale
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
(Preheat oven to 350.  Rip kale into chip-sized pieces in a bowl.  Add salt and olive oil and mix with kale.  Put kale on baking sheet and cook for 8-12 minutes).

Interval Playlists: January

Welcome to 2012, everybody!

I hope your new year is excellent and that it'll be your best year yet.  Mine is great!  It's January 26th so far and I've been feeling extra inspired as far as working out/health and hope to inspire you to be the healthiest and happiest you can be!  It really is a pleasure to motivate you all and I thank you for the positive feedback!  It means a lot :)

Part of that motivation, of course, involves MUSIC!  Here is my most recent playlist.  Most of this month I used my December Playlist that I love, but I find this month's list to be a lot more versatile for strength training, cardio, and conditioning whereas my other playlists were more for cardio.

1. Bananza (Belly Dancer) - Akon
2. Gold Digger - Kanye West and Jamie Foxx
3. Drop it Low - Ester Dean and Chris Brown
4. Crazy in Love - Beyonce feat. Jay-Z (of course, because we all know I love Beyonce)
5. Stronger - Britney Spears
6. Le Freak - Chic
7. Love Will Find a Way - Christina Aguilera
8. Dirrty - Christina Aguilera
9. Electric Avenue - Eddy Grant
10. Unbelievable - EMF
11. Who's That Chick - Heartclub
12. Whine Up (feat. Elephant Man) - Kat DeLuna
13. Saleswoman of the Month - Richard Flemming (my big brother's old band!! Click here & press "see all songs")
14. 4 Minutes (feat. Justin Timberlake) - Madonna
15. Like a Prayer - Madonna
16. Material Girl - Madonna
17. Music - Madonna
18. Don't Tell Me - Madonna
19. Country Grammar - Nelly
20. Break it Off - Rihanna & Sean Paul

So yes, it's a long playlist.  But I typically keep my music on shuffle so I don't get 5 Madonna songs in a row (though that's fine if it turns out that way).  Mixing up your music/workout/running route keeps things fun.  Keep up your hard work and enjoy the music!


Need New Year Advice for Motivation & Tips? Click here for New Year Cheer

New Year Cheer

Like many of us, I am trying to stick to New Year Resolutions.  My resolutions don't stray too much from year to year (they typically involve doing my best in fitness, school, spending more time with family, and being a better human being in general).  Rather than getting off track during the year, I do my best to make sure every now and then that I'm keeping up with my goals.  Although, I added a new goal to the list: to do my darndest to eliminate procrastination (which is why I finally went to a Pure Barre class after buying a deal from livingsocial.com months ago ;) see here for Pure Barre post). So instead of starting all my resolutions from scratch, the New Year essentially acts as a "keep it up" check-in moment that has to be mandatorily put into place at midnight on January 1st of each year because, ya know, everyone else is doing it, too.  (Sure, sure peer pressure is a powerful thing.  If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it?  In my case, yes.  But it wasn't a bridge, it was a lighthouse.  Picture to follow).  I'm joking of course about peer pressure (but definitely not about the lighthouse.  That totally happened.  And I was totally eleven-years-old).

But I digress...

I enjoy this time of year whether I've kept my resolutions or not.  It's sort of like going back to work on Monday after a long weekend or walking in to the first day of school because it's a chance to make sure you're doing your best and I like that.  I'm sure everyone setting resolutions does, too!  No matter what your goals may be this year, do your best to make them habitual.  By doing so, not only will you achieve the goals you set, but by next January you won't need to add that same goal to your resolution list because it will already be a part of your life.  They say it takes 30 days to make an action habitual and there are 31 days in January .  That means you will already have your goal be a regular part of your life before the month even finishes!  Then you're all set for 2012 and for life, right? :)  If you didn't keep last years resolutions, now is the time to reassess your goals and tackle them.  If you did keep your resolutions, then keep on going!  

So be positive and realistic about your goals.  For example, if your goal is fitness, don't start by running a marathon.  Start by walking, then jogging, then running.  And have fun with it!  You are probably thinking that this goal will ultimately be pleasant in your life, so enjoy the process of getting there!  Have New Year Cheer, not New Year Fear.

Best of luck, everyone!  And let me know your New Year resolutions.  Have a blast!

As promised, a picture of jumping off the lighthouse.  That would be my brother in mid-air while my cousin and I were in the water...seconds before the Coast Guard came ;)

Pure Barre

It's 5:35pm on January 3rd and twenty-five minutes ago I finished my first Pure Barre class!

What a sweet addiction this is about to become.  

 This workout is a perfect example of a fun, effective, and difficult workout but not difficult in the sense that you dread doing it.  In fact, it's quite the contrary.

My videos mentioning Pure Barre: click here and also here :)

Pure Barre basically is a mixture of ballet and Pilates that exhausts your muscles and then stretches them out, creating long and lean muscles.  It's toning without the bulk.  The music was upbeat and fun and the classes are small so you don't feel the anonymity of being in a gym.  Now, even though this was my first class, I was SO surprised at how hard it was for me.  When I first walked in, my instructor told me to use 2 lb dumbbell weights.  I politely said I would, but inside I was thinking "oh I'm much stronger than that.  I'll go with 5 lbs."  I'm so glad I didn't.   Lighter was better, but in a week or so, I may attempt the 3 lbs ;).  Also, my legs were shaking during this workout and not even towards the end of the class!  They started shaking maybe 10 minutes into the workout.  It's MUCH more difficult than I had imagined but I haven't exercised to fatigue like that with my own workouts in a long time so it was GREAT to push myself.

Check here to find a Pure Barre near you.  I promise you won't regret it!  I'm going again tomorrow.  And the next day ... :)