W.O.W. Week 2 – RawFitnessChallenge!

Time for a new W.O.W. (workout of the week)!
This week we will be doing a ‘Time & Rep Challenge’. Again, focus on form first, endurance & strength will follow as you improve in fitness. You will perform the below exercises in a circuit fashion, perform the given # of reps for each move, then move onto the next move until you finish the whole circuit. Then do a 2nd and/or 3rd round. Your goal is to see how many rounds you can complete in 30 – 45 minutes. You choose the how long you want to push yourself for. If you’re a beginner, aim for 20-30 minutes. If you’re advanced, go for the whole 45 minutes. Or you can even up the intensity and just do 30 minutes! It’s up to you and your goals!

‘Time & Rep Challenge’: Warm up for 5 – 10 minutes.

1. Split Squats 30R/Leg
2. Pike Press 30R
3. Donkey Kicks 50R/Leg
4. Dips (Off chair, Dip station, 1-Leg, you choose) 40R
5. 1-Leg Deadlifts 20R/Leg
6. Reptile Push Up 10R
7. Plie Squat Pulse 40R
8. Bicycle 30R (2 twists = 1Rep)
9. Double Straight Leg Circles 10R/Way (Lie w/back on ground for beginners)
10. Toe Touches 30R

Cardio: Do 10-20 minutes of high intensity intervals on treadmill, elliptical, arc trainer, outdoor jog, bicycle, spin bike, etc.

• Do 30 seconds at a 6-out-of-10 exertion level. (Active Recovery Interval)
• Do 30 seconds at a 8/9-out-of-10 exertion level. (Effort Interval)
• Alternate between these two exertion levels for 10-20 minutes.

Cool Down and pat yourself on the back! Good Work!

Click on the exercise to be taken to a youtube video showing the exercise move if you aren’t familiar with what the exercise is. Make sure to have a nice big bottle of water nearby and write down how many reps, the weight you use, and how many rounds you get done. Then post your results on our 30 Day RawFitnessChallenge Facebook Page! Keep a journal of your workout results so you can track your progress!

M.O.W. (Meal of the Week): Perfect light meal that you can cook up on the grill! Sweet potato rounds are my ‘go-to’ when I’m hitting up a cookout. Everyone is throwing on their greasy, artery clogging burgers and hot dogs…meanwhile my sweet potato rounds are grillin’ up and are absolutely satisfying and tasty! Serve w/a side of raw vegan zucchini pasta that you can make ahead of time and bring with you to your cookouts. All the other guests will be jealous of your yummy plate of food!

Raw Vegan Zucchini Pasta

Grilled Sweet Potato Rounds

 

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist or a doctor. What I write in my blogposts is simply information that I have gathered over the years from reading and researching several health related topics from credible resources as well as personal experiences. I urge you to consult with a physician before changing your diet. The purpose of my blogposts are to share my experiences and fitness knowledge with everyone I possibly can to help others in their journey to improve their state of well-being.

MacroVegan Sushi? So YUM! & Part of the RawFitnessChallenge!!!

So you’re thinking…’RawFitnessChallenge’??? Am I going to be eating broccoli for 30 days? Well although I use the word ‘Raw’, this challenge is in no way only ‘raw’ foods! RawFitnessTV.com and Raw Fitness personal training use the word RAW to describe the approach to nutrition, exercise and lifestyle habits. RAW can stand for Real, Authentic, Wholesome in relation to food, nutrition and lifestyle. RAW can stand for Ripped Ass Women or Ripped Awesome Workouts when it comes to exercise and fitness. Basically, I want you to be friendly to the environment and use what ‘the good lord gave ya’! Food should be from the earth to your table, unprocessed, unrefined, organic farming practices, wholefoods baby! Exercise should be functional, bodyweight and minimal equipment and machinery. Your body weight is a sufficient amount of weight for your workouts to get you trim, slimmed, lean and toned…and feeling great! Get back to the basics! Oh, and there is more info about how to join the #Rawfitnesschallenge at the end of this post, so don’t miss that!
A fantasticly tasty meal that is aligned with the RawFitnessChallenge is my MacroVegan Sushi rolls made with Quinoa, Sweet Potato, Avocado & Zucchini. SO GOOD! AND SATISFYING!

If there is anything that could help satisfy a sweet tooth craving, it would be the combination of a slice of sweet potato, a slice of avocado on top, and a sprinkle of sea salt or dulse flakes…and if necessary a drizzle of agave…so good. But you put that combo into a sushi roll and you’ve got yourself a pretty delish meal for a warm summer night. Refreshing, satisfying, filling yet light. Remember, your dinner should not be super heavy and filling, you will be sedentary after din din and going to bed soon…so there is no reason to load up on the calories.

Super Satisfying Sweet Potato-Avocado Sushi (Macro-Vegan, RawFitnessChallenge worthy)

Sushi Ingredients: (All Organic)

• Quinoa (1/4 – 1/2 cup per person)
• Avocado (1/2 Avocado per person)
• Sweet Potato (1/4 – 1/2 Medium Sweet Potato per person)
• Zucchini, julienned (1/3 Large Zucchini)
• Ume Plum Vinegar 1 -2 tsp (or Apple Cider Vinegar)
• 1 Nori Sheet per person

Marinade Ingredients: (All Organic)

• A few dashes of dried basil, oregano, dill, pepper and dulse flakes
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp ume plum vinegar
• 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

First combine marinade ingredients and put your julienned zucchini into a bowl with the marinade and let sit, to soften and infuse the zucchini. Cook sweet potatoes in a pressure cooker for about 10-15 minutes depending upon how many potatoes you’re cooking. Remove from pressure cooker and place in tupperware on the side/countertop while you make other ingredients. Cook up your Quinoa before or during prep. You should soak your quinoa, then cook in pressure cooker for around 10 minutes. You can use it hot or chilled, it’s up to you. Lay one nori sheet on a sushi mat, shiny side down. Place about 1/4 – 1/2 cup of Quinoa onto nori sheet and spread out over one half of the nori sheet. Drop a line of ume plum vinegar down the middle of the quinoa on the nori sheet. Lay your sweet potato slices (1/4 inch thick slices), avocado slices (1/8 inch thick), zucchini slices down the middle of the quinoa and drizzle the extra marinade over the quinoa evenly. Roll it up, slice it up and plate! I used any extra avocado, sweet potato and zucchini slices to put atop my romaine side salad. Very delicious and satisfying dinner for a warm summer night! Enjoy!

For the RawFitnessChallenge starting on July 1st read the blog post ’30 Days to Re-Vamp’. Additionally, we will be chatting with eachother over the world wide web to keep each other motivated not only on Twitter.com but you can join the conversation and interactive community directly on Tweetchat.com too using the directions below. Remember, if you want to join the challenge you must post your ‘commitment statement’ on Twitter.com using hashtag #rawfitnesschallenge now…do it now…the instructions are in the ’30 Days to Re-Vamp’ post. And any tweets you make in reference to this challenge on twitter.com use the hashtag #rawfitnesschallenge.

Get Involved in the Interactive Online RawFitnessChallenge Community:

1. Go to tweetchat.com
2. Sign in using your twitter account on tweetchat.com
3. Enter rawfitnesschallenge as the hashtag to follow.
4. It will take you to a ‘wall’ with all the posts related to rawfitnesschallenge so we can share our experiences and keep each other motivated, share exercise routines and recipes, and do a little Q & A.

See you there! Make your commitment statement now!