Good morning!
First up! A quick reminder…
Don’t forget to check out my guest post over at Silly Tater Tot where I talk about all of my favourite vegan baking tips!
GLO BAR GIVEAWAYS going on now:
Check out Katy’s Glo bar giveaway
Check out Michelle’s Glo Bar giveaway
Check out Julie’s Glo Bar giveaway
Next up…
This morning I channeled my inner PSS (Project Snow Strength) and I headed outdoors for a mini bootcamp. It was a a cool and wet 4C outside so I bundled up.
Project Snow Tip #5: Use outdoor items (like stairs or a bench) as workout equipment!
Here is what I did:
- Warm up: 1 mile walk at a fast pace around neighbourhood
- 20 lunges (on each leg) off a step in backyard
- two sets of 10 push-ups on incline (off a step)
- two sets of 50 jumping jacks
- 1 mile bike around neighbourhood (fast as I could)
- Walking lunges for 2 minutes across yard
- Front plank on incline for 60 seconds
- Ran up and down stairs for 60 seconds
- 3 sets of 10 Tricep dips off step
- 50 jumping jacks
- 1 mile power walk around neighbourhood
- Three sets of 15 squats
- two sets of 10 push-ups on incline (off a step)
- Cool down: Light walking for 2 minutes
- Stretching and yoga poses
The bootcamp took me about 45 minutes from start to finish and I felt so energized at the end of it. :)
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Today is the official Blogger Vegan 4 A Day Challenge!
Since I am already a vegan, this challenge is obviously easy for me. ;) However, I decided to put on my food blogger hat and blog 3 times today showing all of you what a typical day of vegan eats looks like for me. Make sure to come back for lunch, snacks and dinner!
Breakfast:
My day usually starts off with a Broccoli Sprout Juice or Wheat Grass Juice shot (see this post for more info!). Followed by Japanese Sencha Green Tea and a Green Monster.
My GM’s vary a lot each day, but my ‘go-to’ green monster lately has been this:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup hemp milk
- 3 cups spinach OR 3 cups kale, cooked
- 3-4 ice cubes
- 1 T almond or peanut butter
- 1 T chia seeds
- 1 scoop Hemp protein powder
- 1 T Amazing Grass Wheatgrass
- 1/2 frozen ripe banana
- few pineapple chunks
- Kyolic Garlic extract
I also take my vitamins every morning with my green monster: B12, Calcium/Magnesium, Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Spirulina. I take Calcium/Magnesium and Vitamin D twice daily. Oddly enough, I don’t take an iron vitamin and my iron has been the highest it has ever been since going vegan. My doctor thinks this is because of the kale/spinach in my green monsters (make sure you cook it though!). :)
Mid-morning Snack:
This will be my mid-morning snack:
1 organic apple with 2 heaping tablespoons of Almond Butter.
I couldn’t resist zooming into this gooey goodness…
This is definitely a power snack!
Remember this power snack contest that I held back in January??? So much fun!
Whittle My Middle Updates!
How is everyone doing with the challenge so far? Today marks day 9- already! Here are a couple observations I have made:
1) When doing planks my arms tire before my abs do. I have also heard this from a few of you too. I have found that if I focus on contracting my abs, it helps put the effort back into the abs instead of the arms. Anyone out there who wants to offer more tips?
2) The slower I do the stability ball roll-outs the better they work. Squeeze your abs while doing them. Works great!
3) I still hate the Jackknifes. They are so hard! I can barely squeak out 15 reps.
4) My abs feel so much stronger only after 8 days. It is very motivating!
5) Taking a short rest in between exercises helps me be as strong as I can be for each exercise. When I rush the workout, I notice that I don’t perform as well.
Don’t forget, you can follow my Whittle My Middle workouts on my abs page!
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See you later for lunch! I’m off to bake, pack, ship.
Have a great Thursday. :)
That bootcamp looks awesome!! I agree with the arms being targeted more than abs. It was explained to me once by a PT that plank on elbow is more for ab work and plank with arms extened is more for arms/shoulders. What I have been doing is plank on elbows and then side plank with arms fully extended. I find then I get the best of both worlds. Loving the challenge so far!! Thanks for the motivation!
Oh and I wanted to add I was told to make sure I don’t slouch in plank on elbows, and to stand on toes, and contract abs. I find it burns my abs every time.
Ohhh those tips make perfect sense. I guess it isn’t a big issue since we are doing all sorts of different exercises in this challenge. I find the plank on the stability ball works AMAZING. Its supposed to work your abs 30% more.
Angela- Do you fully extend your arms on the Stability Ball plank, or use your elbows?
I don’t find I like the Plank w/ Ball that much…It seems ackward, so maybe I’m doing it wrong??
That apple with almond butter looks SO good.
Have a great day! I’m off to a nap (don’f feel good today).
Eliana >^..^<
I love apples with nut butter – they give me so much energy! I also am a HUGE fan of bootcamp workouts. I always do them with my clients. I just posted a few yesterday. They are such a nice change to the traditional weights workout. I also love that it is stuff we can do in our own homes. :)
I just wanted to tell you that I LOVE your blog! I don’t usually leave a comment, but I love it! Not only is your blog informative, but it is so welcoming. You really do “glo”. If I’m having a really bad moment in my day all I have to do is come here, see your inviting smile, read an archive, and *poof* I’m better. Thank you, for what you do.
hehe the default image coming up on your power snack contest slide show is mine (the smiley face on the pita)!!! from back when i was living in Prague :) aw, memories.
I know it brought back great memories!
Hi there,
Just wondering ~ why is it necessary to cook your greens before adding them, in reference to the iron? I always use raw greens, is all…
Thanks to anyone with an answer :)
I had to channel my PSS this morning too…. darkness, 27 degrees and frost everywhere. But I got a great run in and watched the sunrise as I ran.
So you cook your spinach for GM? why?
Many nutrients in spinach are more bioavailable when the spinach is cooked. This means that the nutrients are absorbed better.
From Worlds Healthiest foods:
“Iron for Energy
Cooked spinach is an excellent source of iron, a mineral that it particularly important for menstruating women, who are more at risk for iron deficiency. Boosting iron stores with spinach is a good idea, especially because, in comparison to red meat, a well-known source of iron, spinach provides iron for a lot less calories and is totally fat-free. Iron is an integral component of hemoglobin, which transports oxygen from the lungs to all body cells, and is also part of key enzyme systems for energy production and metabolism. And, if you’re pregnant or lactating, your needs for iron increase. Growing children and adolescents also have increased needs for iron. In one cup of boiled spinach, you’ll be provided with 35.7% of the daily value for iron.
So while spinach probably won’t make you super strong the minute you eat it, as it did for Popeye, it will promote your health and vitality in many other ways. It seems like Popeye was pretty smart after all.”
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=43
Ohhhh ok makes sense!!!
So you just boil it?
I actually cook it in a glass bowl in the microwave to save time..about 3-5 minutes does it.
Yes, a plank is not just for the abs, it is a GREAT full body exercise that hits a lot of different body parts. I find when doing any kind of strength exercise that if you focus on the muscle you are working on it helps. For instance during the bicep curl I actually picture my bicep flexing and extending and focus on it so I don’t use the stabilizer muscles as much.
Courtney
Adventures in Tri-ing
I make sure to keep my pelvis tucked in so I really work my transversus abdominis. It’s easier for me to tuck first (when I’m on my knees) and then go into the full move. My arms barely fatigue at all this way — but my abs are on fire!
Sorry if this is obvious, but how do you tuck your pelvis in?
That sounds like such a fun workout! I might have to give that a try this weekend!
I was wondering, also, if you might consider doing a post on the “good, bad and ugly” of starting your own business. What sorts of things surprised you? What has been easier or harder than you anticipated? I would love to hear more about that!
Totally agree about the Jackknife- love it because it feels like I’m getting a good ab workout, but it is hard! I’m only at 10 reps so far…
I’m still not to good at the Roll-Out…practice makes perfect I guess!
Good work on getting outside for a workout- its definately getting tougher! We’ve been lucky with the weather here in Alberta, but they say snow is coming (maybe on the weekend…)
My arms tire before my abs as well. I find that about halfway through my plank, I lean onto one arm, and stretch my other arm back behind my body. Then I do the same thing for the remaining arm. It keeps me in plank position, and working my abs, but gives each arm a quick break and boost!
Nice workout! Go Ange! Wow your Green Monsters trump mine! Although, I don’t think I’ll find the time to cook my spinach before putting it in. Maybe I’ll cook a whole batch, then put it in the fridge.
I find that doing planks on my forearms work my abs more and are easier on my wrists/arms. Planks on your hands keep your hands/wrists in an extended position for too long, which is said to be especially bad for those with carpel tunnel/pre carpel tunnel symptoms.
Yea…I could see it not being good for the wrists…it hurts mine!
Wouldnt the exercise strengthen them over time though? Or would you have to do specific wrist exercises for that?
I’m also nervous about doing the planks using my hands/wrists and it seems that I also have pre-carpal tunnel symtoms :(
I went to physio for my super sore wrists about 6 months ago and it helped for a while, but the soreness came back after long days of typing and mousing…
More recently, I started taking Kettlebell classes and was worried that it might hurt my wrists, BUT it has actually been what helped the most as my wrists and arms have gotten much stronger!
Totally recommend Kettlebell- GREAT workout!!
When you say to cook the spinach/kale for GM’s, do you mean to boil it? Sorry if you’ve already touched upon this subject before, i’m all kinds of new here!
Great post on STT’s Ange!
Enjoy!
I’m going vegan today! I’m usually pretty close to vegan anyway, but I find it hard to give up my beloved goat cheeeese!
I can wait to start whittling my middle – I’m starting the challenge today for myself!
Hi Angela,
Thanks for sharing your Project Snow workout– it is currently a monsoon outside of my window right now in PA, but I’ll definitely be trying that workout on a clearer day :-)
I was wondering, do you cook the spinach in your GMs because of the oxalates? I’ve just been putting mine in raw– is that bad??
Have a great day!
Ahhh yes,zoom in on that OOEY GOOEY GOODNESS!
awesome job with your Project snow workout. I am off to the gym right away, 4th time this week, working on my endurance and stuff for my first 10k in May 2010!