The Strength

Monday, February 20, 2012

Motivation Monday

Over the weekend I was reading an article titled "Your Top 5 Success Strategies." The article was based on 6 successful sport minded peoples' top 5 success tips.

Todd Durkin's number one tip was this:
Surround yourself with great people. A coach once told me "If you want to be a great athlete, hang and train with great athletes; if you want tot be a great trainer, hang with great trainers; if you want to be wealthy, spend time with wealthy people."

I feel that carries into everyday life as well. If you want to eat healthier hang out with healthy eaters. If you want to exercise more hang out with happy exercising people!

I heard this statement a long time ago...
"You are who you hang with." Do you ever notice that if you are hanging with a bunch of friends and they order pizza, wings and beer, you find yourself eating it too? Or shopping with a friend. You don't want to spend too much money, but she is, so you inadvertently do too? Think about who you are hanging with, are they a positive influence? Or is she a "Debbie Downer?" Clean your friendship cupboards! Surround yourself with GREAT people! See the difference it makes in your life!!

Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life ~ Confucius

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Taco Seasoning

If you know me, you know I was Spanish in a former life ;) I love Mexican anything, food, the language, the country, the art, everything!!! So when I came across this simple recipe for clean, sodium free, taco seasoning, I was ecstatic!
Simple... and tasty, I will always have this on hand!

4 Tbsp chili powder
3 Tbsp + 1 tsp paprika
3 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp +2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Whisk together in a small bowl. Store in an air tight container. 2 Tbsp of taco seasoning per 1 pound of meat.

If you change nothing, nothing will change.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Tuesdays Workout

I'm calling this workout Chrissy's Nemeses! We will conquer them all together!

21- 15 - 9 of each (all 21 times…all 15 times... all 9 times)

ball cleans

v-ups

burpees

dips

get ups

Talk does not cook the rice. ~Chinese Proverb

Monday, February 13, 2012

One Giant Step

Well, I did it! I ordered a bunch of equipment and I am starting my gym in my friends garage until my facility gets going! I can't believe how nervous I was sending out that FaceBook post inviting everyone to join me! You will never gain anything worth while if you don't take a risk now and then! I just took a big leap of faith based upon my passion and love for fitness and health! And I couldn't have done it with out help from my family and friends! You are all in for a great ride....Get ready to kick your workouts up a notch (or 10!!)!

Whatever you can do or dream you can,begin it. Boldness has beauty, power, and magic in it.
~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

I know...Samson is growing so fast!!

I just got a book about the healthiest 150 foods. I love it!

My mom suffers from macular degeneration, which is hereditary... Pumpkin is very high in lutein and zeaxanthin, which are fast becoming the star nutrients in eye health and vision protection programs.
Not to mention 33% more potassium in one cup, than a banana! Plus 12,000 IUs of vitamin A!

So it got me thinking...pumpkin pie :) SMOOTHIE!! My new "Green Goodness Smoothie"

1 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
1/2 cup organic Pumpkin
1tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 scoop Vanilla protein
1 1/2 cup fresh Spinach (How can I leave out spinach?!)
1 packet Stevia
Ice
Blend all together. It makes about 20 oz. Perfect for an afternoon snack.

Calories 235
Fat 5.5g
Carbs 23g
Fiber 10g
Protein 29g

Potassium also helps with muscle cramps, so this would also make a great after workout smoothie too. Spinach is fabulous as well! High in vitamin K, critically important in building strong bones. Spinach is also high in calcium, vitamin A, manganese, folic acid, magnesium, iron, vitamin C and a powerful anti-inflammatory compound called quercetin. And...LUTEIN! Protects against vision loss...
Come on give it a try! You can't even taste the spinach ;)

You must begin wherever you are ~ Jack Boland

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Tuesdays Workout

This should be very challenging for you! You can make it more so with heavy weights! Don't be afraid to lift heavy!!
3-6-9-12-15-/-15-12-9-6-3

Med Ball Slams. Standing in an upright position, arms over your head with med ball in your hands, throw the med ball down, as you are coming down you should be contracting your abs and lats, squat and catch the ball on the bounce. (DO NOT use a weighted ball...they bounce too much! It hurts...don't ask!)
Deadlift. In a deep squatting position grab the weighted bar, or whatever kind of weight you are using, weight in heels, upper body upright lift up with your glutes and quads, give your glutes a good squeeze at the top of the movement. Lift as much as much weight as possible, with good form.
Burpees. Chest to the floor, keep your feet together both on the jump out and the jump in. jump up at the top!
Let me know how you did!! Come on you CAN kick your own butt!!

Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.~
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Monday, February 6, 2012

Rooting for the Underdog

I love rooting for the underdog! It' especially wonderful when they pull it off and actually WIN!!

I think about how I grew up. I had four sisters and we were not overly encouraged to believe that we could
succeed in anything we set our minds to. I could go on with stories of deep plots, tears and drama...But that's not
what you need to read! For this is "motivational monday"!

The Giants were not suppose to win! But they did! They persevered, they overcame, and they won! I'm sure
they planned, practiced and practiced, kept the focus on the task at hand. They put everything they had into this
game,and kicked the Patriots butt!!

You could use the same regiment for your diet and exercise plan! Plan, your exercise and food for the week.
Persevere, through the temptations to not move your body and/or swerve into a drive thru! Overcome the fact that
you are worth being healthy and fit! Keep your focus on the task at hand, by not losing sight of your goals!

Anything is possible, with a little work and a deep belief in yourself!

Fail to plan. Plan to fail!!

Motivational Quotes

You must act as if it is impossible to fail.
Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself!
Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.
Whether you think you can or you think you can't, your probably right!
If you are sick of starting over, you have to stop quitting
You won't fail if you're not perfect, you'll fail if you're not committed to improving yourself slightly each day.
We can reverse years of damage to our bodies by deciding to raise our standards for ourselves, then living differently. Old wounds heal, injuries repair, and the whole system improves with just a few changes in what we put into our bodies and how we move them.
Failure is not fatal; failing to change will be."
Food for Thought: The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Strengthen Your Desire! Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat.
Success is not a race, be patient.
It's not about how good you are, but how bad you want it!
Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go..."
"Never trade what you want the most for what you want at the moment"
"Success is not a place that we aspire to, it is a process in which we live by. Often the only ingredient being the ability to not quit"
Be specific in what you want, and use specific words. Empower yourself, and become the person you dream about
That which we persist in doing becomes easier to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased."
The odds of hitting a target go up dramatically when you aim at it." ~Mal Pancoast
At the beginning of any task, more than anything else, your attitude will affect it's successful outcome.
Do or do not. There is no try.~Yoda
Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means, effort, pain, difficulty.
Focus on where you want to go, not on what you fear."
There is no one giant step that does it. It's a lot of little steps."
Start doing what's necessary, then do what's possible, and suddenly you'll be doing the impossible!
"My life tomorrow will be the result of my attitudes and the choices I make today."
People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing, that's why we recommend it daily. Zig Ziglar
"Clear your mind of can't." ~Dr. Samuel Johnson
"Any experience can be transformed into something of value. Everything depends on the way you look at things. You cannot have the success without the failures.
What are stumbling blocks and defeat before you, can be stepping stones to victory if you remain determined.
Listen closely: the only time it's too late to change yourself is when you're dead. Until then, you're simply making excuses or lying to yourself.
If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got!
"Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently". ~Henry Ford
What we think or what we know or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do. ~ John Ruskin
Your goals, minus your doubts, equal your reality." ~Ralph Marston
One definition of insanity is: Doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result.
"If we defend our habits, we have no intentions of quitting them."
Your past does not equal, nor does it dictate, your future
Do you choose to simply know the path, or do you choose to walk it?
Your body keeps an accurate journal regardless of what you write down...
When one approach is not working to reach the desired goal, that's not a reason to abandon the goal. Instead, it is time to devise another approach."------Ralph Marston
Discipline is remembering what you want.
Knowing is not enough, you must apply.
Make the decision, then do something - no matter how small - toward accomplishing what you want.
Don’t live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable. ~Wendy Wasserstein
Food for Thought: The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Strengthen Your Desire! Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat.