Rest Days

Sometimes I workout like a crazy person, then I take a few days off in between..I feel lazy, but ya know what? They are very important you take them. As in anything you can over do it, take the time to allow your body to heal.

Last 24 hrs I been awfully sore, I am pretty sure I tore something in my neck from a trail ride I took days back on my horse and its progressively getting worse. Obviously not going to try to baby anything to stay away from work outs, but if you need to work out differently, and use common sense.

Shoulder and Abs Workout

Normally this is my last workout of the week before a full body workout. By this workout I am sore, tired and ready to give up. Remember to drink up, eat well so you don't get too fatigued. Getting tired and sore is to be expected on an everyday exercise program like this.

3 sets of 10, work up to 4 sets of 20, this is probably one of the shorter days of my workout days.

Arnold Dumbell press
Seated Dumbbell Press
Rear Delt cable Flyes
Dumbell Front Raise
Dumbell Lat Raise
Seated Bentover rear delt raise
Dumbbell Shrugs
Crunches
Roman Chair
Weighted crunches

Chest - Tri Workout

This is pretty much my Chest/Tri Workout I do. I used to do more Flyes exercises on the benches, but with bad shoulders I don't risk it anymore.

3 sets of 10

Wide Push ups
Incline Dumbbell Press
Bench Dips
Lying EZ Bar Tri.
Dumbbell Kickbacks
Overhead Tri Ext
Cable 1 Art Tri Ext.
Upper Cable Crossover
Mid Level Cable Crossover
Lower Level Cable Crossover
Triceps Pushdown
3X45sec Planks
55 Crunches
55 Bicycle
50 Crunches
bench press

Grilled Tequila Lime Shrimp

My number 1 way to keep from getting bored with my meals is looking for new recipes or even copying some fancy dish from a restaurant. You tweak to your liking obviously and its a lot of fun in the process. New recipe I tried comes from All Recipes. I adapted it a bit, used more tequila and a lot less salt. Not a big salt fan myself.

2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons tequila
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pinch garlic salt
1 pinch ground cumin
ground black pepper to taste
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 (10 inch) wooden skewers
1 large lime, quartered

The shrimp turned out awesome, will be making this again and most likely going to try it with other meats as well. Who knew there was other uses for Tequila?

Tuesday's workout Back & Biceps

I been awfully sore lately, not sure what I have done to my shoulder guessing pinched a nerve. The weather has been pretty awful, been bouncing from mid 40's to upper 80's. Gotta love New England weather, wait a minute and it will change some. Fun times. Anyway, for todays workout Back and Biceps. Generally I don't mind this day too much, I try to integrate some ab workouts with each day so I can build my core. But normally I dont go too crazy, because at the end of the day your diet will form your abs.

Hammer St Lat Pulldown
Wide Grip Pull Down
Seated Narrow Grip Row
Dumbell Row
Back Extentions
Barbell Curls
Incline Dumbell Curl
Alt Hammer Curl
Preacher Curls
3X45sec Planks
55 Crunches
55 Bicycle
50 Crunches

Caught in the act.

Yes, thats a burger, sweet potato fries and a coke..Seems like I am always getting caught, even if its for that 1-2 cheats I do have, my friends like to take pictures of it and poke fun. So yes I am human, sometimes you just need a greasy burger. Remember few cheat meals won't hurt, but if your eating badly all the time, obviously that will hurt your progress.

Flexin' Friday Full body workout

Fridays are normally my full body work out days, which pretty much means working each muscle to its max for 2-3 different exercises, 4 sets of 20. I also try to do at least 30 minutes of cardio right after.
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Lat Pull down
Seated Row Seated Dummbell Biceps Curls
Seated Shoulder Dumbbell Press
Standing Dumbell Lat Raise
Over head Tri Ext
Single Arm Tri Kickbacks
Walking Lunges
Back Squat
Low Crossover cable
Midlevel Crossover cable

So, you want abs? Guess what...you got them already

Thats pretty correct, everyone is born with abs, whether you can see them or not that is a whole another topic. There are layers of fat normally on top of them making it so you don't fully see them.

I am sure all of you have heard you are what you eat? Its true, 80% of what you eat is the basic formula of how you look.

So-- those 1000's of situps do nothing if your not eating well. Like anything else, combination with a well balanced, clean eating diet and exercise can make a world of difference. It was not until I fully committed myself to a clean diet, wasn't until I really saw my abs. Like most people I was getting pretty upset couldn't see them, but after I fully committed my diet, they showed themselves in weeks. At first you maybe feel the tops of your abs, or new lines, whatever the case, changes are being made, but you have to realize it took time for that layer of fat to get there, so it will take time to be removed.

Preparation is your best source to fully accomplish the ab goals. For me prepping my meals for the week on Sunday, and getting my containers out for the week, makes it possible for me not to fall off the wagon. And yes I do allow myself some cheat meals and there are some weeks I do binge after a shoot, but I got back to my regular scheduled diet with 2-3 cheat meals, which allows myself to stay sane. What can I say, I'm like anyone else. I like my candy, cookies and pies. The goal is not to fully engorge but still lead a healthy lifestyle.

Everyone has the tools for success, just depends on what is truly important. Whatever your goals, eating healthy and eating clean, helps you in the long run. Best result, who doesn't like looking good naked?

Oatmeal Protein Cookies

Now onto the good stuff. Who doesn't like a good cookies? What about a PROTEIN cookie? Yes, I know your thrilled to hear about these, thinking yup, they taste awful, but these I have found taste pretty good and help my cookie cravings as well as my small gaps of hunger in between work or whatever else I am doing. I normally load up a container or a sandwich bag for the day, so I am never without some sort of snack. I adapted the recipe from Fit Over Fat

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup chocolate whey protein powder
1 c Splenda granular
1/4 Salt
½ T baking soda
1 T baking powder
4 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 c milled flaxseed
1/2 cup raisins
½ c egg substitute
5 oz plain Greek Yogurt--I used whatever I had, blueberry/greek mix worked fine.
1 T olive oil
2 T water

Cook for 8 - 10 minutes at 375. I try to make them a little smaller, so make 2 batches and it equals out to around 50ish cookies. Normally they last me 2-3 weeks of happy snacking. I have to keep them away from friends, or they will go missing within a few hours.

Tilapia and veggies

I try to keep my dinners at least edible, who really wants to eat something that doesn't taste good or even tasteless. many of the clean eating recipes I had found, its pretty simple, broil or boil the chicken rather simply with just pepper and salt. Here is a recipe that will sure keep your mouth watering and full, while aiming for that perfect bod. Fish Portion:

Talapia
Chinese Five Spice Seasonings
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil


For Veggies (I used a bag of frozen mixed veggies for this recipe..I normally use whatever is on hand though)

Olive Oil Italian Seasonings

Lightly dust with ingredients, just enough to coat, and I sauteed everything for just under 8-10 minutes.

Simple healthy recipe that can be quickly put together. Enjoy!

Wait, I need to eat more in order to stay in shape?!

Yup, that is correct. Obviously you can't be eating processed foods 100% of the time, but the proper protein, mixed with some healthy veggie recipes can do a world of wonders.

These are my side dishes and some of my weekly meals I make every Sunday:

I know what your thinking, wow that is a lot of food! But guess what, that's just a few sides, and a few meals really. I take around 3-4 Tupperware containers to work daily, some of those cheaper kinds you get at Walmart. From the left top, potatoes ( olive oil and Italian seasonings), left right hand side asparagus (Italian seasonings, olive oil and minced garlic), Left bottom-- chopped up 2 skinless chicken breasts and mixed in peppers and Montreal steak seasoning w/ olive oil, and lastly right hand side, sweet potatoes (olive oil, and paprika).

Throughout the course of my day I might mix other things to fill in my diet, such as cottage cheese mixed with yogurt, veggies mixed with cheese, fruit mixed with a wheat cracker, or even just some simple protein. Either way doesn't matter which I choose, normally I am eating every 2-3 hours.

Seasonings used for the recipes above

So, when someone tells me, "Wow, I can't believe you EAT ALL THAT and look way you do.." I simple tell them, its not like I eat processed foods all day, I provide my body with what it needs throughout the day, to get me through what I need it to get me through..such as my heavy workouts, my long work day, my days at the barn with the horses and anything else life throws at me. Think of your body as a machine, you need to fuel a car up properly in order to run right?

Eat a lot of protein and be merry, your booty will thank you.

Monday = Leg day.

I know for most its chest day, but for me I take advantage of this and make it LEG DAY! One of those days I am sore for days after, since I pretty much tear all the muscle fibers from every inch of my legs.

For legs this is my work out 3 sets of 8-12

Leg Extentions
Lying leg Curls
Abductors
Adductor
Seated Leg Curl
Barbell Lunge
Wide Barbell Squat
Leg Press
Seated Calf Raises
Standing Calf Raises
Hack Squats
Kettle Deadlifts
3X45sec Planks
55 Crunches
55 Bicycle
50 Crunches


This seems like a lot, but really its not after a while, your body gets used to it, and you just increase the level of difficulty. 1- Tip when the weight is too easy go up in weight. You want to keep tearing that muscle in order to grow sexy muscle. After this workout I pretty much leave the gym feeling like a super hero ready to take over the world..obviously slowly since I am sore from lifting, but still, pretty pumped and ready to continue on with my day feeling like a complete badass.

Enjoy this workout!

So..How do I get started in this weightlifting stuff?

Well, its pretty easy actually. If you can follow along, read instructions and look at the tutorials on Body Building.com walks you through the entire thing. There are programs for pretty much everyones goals.

My favorite part of this website is the way they describe and show an actual video how to actually do the exercise. Its a great tool on their website, lists what kinds of exercises you can perform to hit specific body parts. Even includes a rather simple search tool.
Exercises For those ladies that feel you will turn into this:

No worries there, this will not happen to you. I REPEAT WILL NOT, unless your taking heavy steroids. I seriously thought to myself something like this would happen to me as well, but it is not the case since our bodies are COMPLETELY different then our males counterparts.

The program I started on was Jamie Eason's Live Fit LiveFit. Its a great program, 3 phases. Has a full list of the exercises, meal plan and pointers for each phase. Phase 1 starts off very basic, and you build on from there. Phase 1 was my favorite step actually there is 0.0% cardio involved in it!! Phase 2 adds more reps, more exercises, cardio and Phase 3 adds an extra day and looks further into your diet.
By the end of the program I truly fell in love with lifting, and have rethought a lot of my past fitness goals. Seriously I was wasting all my time doing all that cardio, for what? I was getting no where. I built my core, leaned out and stronger then ever. Give it a try, what do you have to loose and gain (muscle!)


P.S. Don't mind the scale, make sure your doing measurements every few weeks to see how much your progressing. Muscle weighs more then fat and obviously its sexier.

Meals: Stuffed Peppers

Okay--another quick recipe I made last night Stuffed peppers!! So easy, so quick to make and VERY delicious. I made about 5 large green stuffed peppers in a crock pot. I cooked them overnight for about 6-7 hours and woke up with the house smelling amazing.

Recipe: 5 Large peppers 1lb ground beef or turkey 1/2 cup of white rice 1/2 cup pinto beans 1/2 cup of salsa 2 jalapenos cut up 1 whole onion cut up Put in Crockpot--poured some more salsa on top of peppers for 6-7 hr or until browned. Bam, dinner served for 5 without breaking a sweat, save that for gym time!!

Meals: Mexican Pizzas

I try to setup my meals for the week every Saturday and Sunday of each week so I can properly prepare. We all know that if you don't have something waiting for you already made after a full work day, most times makes you want to stop on way home at a local Fast food. There are quite a few websites out there that can help find some interesting recipes and get creative while still eating pretty clean. Last night made Mexican Pizzas

Pretty easy recipe adapted the recipe from Food Babe Pretty much you can put whatever you like on them, I put chicken and some other veggies. Completely filled in my mexican food void I had. Enjoy!

How Fitt Pony got started..

Little over a year I have been on quite the fitness journey.  I have always been fit in some fashion, but really up until a year ago, I didn't have a full  plan or even a full proof diet plan.  Through the course of looking for something to assist with my back issues, I have a C5/C6 slipped and PT, wasn't fully helping, I took a friends advice to start weight lifting and eating clean.  Amazing how something so simple changed my life. 

I normally would post fitness articles, my thoughts on certain topics and recipes on facebook, but now have decided to finally  blog my progress and more of how I got where I am today.