Another great way to load up on veggies at dinner time is with stir-fry. Rather than the usual plain soy sauce flavor that accompanies most stir fry, I prefer teriyaki.
Ingredients:
Chicken
Veggies (I like to use broccoli, carrots, and onion)
ginger
sesame seeds
olive oil
teriyaki sauce
I start by cooking the chicken in a small amount of olive oil (about 1 Tbs) in a large skillet. When the chicken is done, I sprinkle it with ground ginger and sesame seeds. Next, I add all my veggies (cut to whatever size you want them). When the veggies are about the tenderness that I like, I drizzle teriyaki sauce over the whole thing. I stir it all up and let it cook about 2 more min before I serve it. I prefer to serve it without rice because it saves calories, plus I get full on the veggies, but if you prefer rice, brown rice is the healthiest choice.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Friday, December 26, 2008
More for Your Abs!
This is an excerpt I took from SELF. It was featured on Yahoo's website. These exercises are amazing and you can really feel your abs working!!! Enjoy!
"We rounded up five of the most effective tummy toners around. Work three or four of these exercises into your routine (easing them in will minimize soreness). Do the number of reps indicated, resting one minute between moves. The only equipment you will need is a hand towel. Washboard abs, here you come!
Pike 90
Lie face up; raise legs until perpendicular to floor, feet flexed. Lower right leg so it hovers 1 or 2 inches off floor and place hands lightly behind head. In this position, do 15 crunches, lifting chest toward ceiling and lowering. Switch legs and repeat.
Crunchy frog
Sit with knees bent, feet flat. Keeping legs together, raise feet several inches and bring knees toward chest. Wrap arms around knees without touching legs. Extend legs and stretch arms to sides, palms forward. Return to wrapped-arm position; repeat. Do 15 reps.
Tornado
Stand with feet hip-width apart, right leg in front of left, right foot turned out. Bend elbows and raise arms out to sides at shoulder level (like goalposts). In one motion, raise right knee to lowered right elbow. Return to start; switch sides and repeat to complete one rep. Do 15 reps.
Corkscrew
Lie face up. Press legs together and raise them toward ceiling until they're at a 90-degree angle, with knees slightly bent and toes pointed. Raise butt and legs off floor using ab muscles; twist legs slightly to left. Repeat, twisting to right, for one rep. Do 15 reps.
Side arm balance
Start on floor on knees. Lean to left and place left hand on floor under shoulder; extend right arm up and to left, palm down. Straighten right legs out to right with foot on floor, resting on left knee. Hold for 5 breaths. Return to start; switch sides. Repeat twice per side. "
"We rounded up five of the most effective tummy toners around. Work three or four of these exercises into your routine (easing them in will minimize soreness). Do the number of reps indicated, resting one minute between moves. The only equipment you will need is a hand towel. Washboard abs, here you come!
Pike 90
Lie face up; raise legs until perpendicular to floor, feet flexed. Lower right leg so it hovers 1 or 2 inches off floor and place hands lightly behind head. In this position, do 15 crunches, lifting chest toward ceiling and lowering. Switch legs and repeat.
Crunchy frog
Sit with knees bent, feet flat. Keeping legs together, raise feet several inches and bring knees toward chest. Wrap arms around knees without touching legs. Extend legs and stretch arms to sides, palms forward. Return to wrapped-arm position; repeat. Do 15 reps.
Tornado
Stand with feet hip-width apart, right leg in front of left, right foot turned out. Bend elbows and raise arms out to sides at shoulder level (like goalposts). In one motion, raise right knee to lowered right elbow. Return to start; switch sides and repeat to complete one rep. Do 15 reps.
Corkscrew
Lie face up. Press legs together and raise them toward ceiling until they're at a 90-degree angle, with knees slightly bent and toes pointed. Raise butt and legs off floor using ab muscles; twist legs slightly to left. Repeat, twisting to right, for one rep. Do 15 reps.
Side arm balance
Start on floor on knees. Lean to left and place left hand on floor under shoulder; extend right arm up and to left, palm down. Straighten right legs out to right with foot on floor, resting on left knee. Hold for 5 breaths. Return to start; switch sides. Repeat twice per side. "
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
Arms and Abs
As requested, here are some tips on toning your arms and abs:
ABS- The good, old fashioned crunch works great on your abs. Just make sure that as you come up, you stop once your shoulder blades leave the ground. Otherwise, you are working your hip flexors rather than your abs.
The bicycle crunch is especially good because it targets the rectus abdominus (middle abs), as well as the obliques (side abs).
Tightening your ab muscles while doing any workout, as well as throughout your day, helps to tone them.
Doing crunches on a stability ball or Bosu ball forces the abs to work extra because you are not just doing a crunch, but also maintaining balance. A stability ball can be purchased at Target or Wal-mart for $15-$20. A Bosu ball looks like a ball cut in half and mounted to a board. They run about $99. While they are a good investment because you can do so many exercises with them, they are a little pricey! Most fitness clubs should have one available for use.
Any balancing exercise will work your ab muscles. Many yoga routines will engage the abs.
ARMS- My favorite way to tone the arms is to do kickboxing while holding 3-5lb hand weights. This will tone arms, shoulders, and upper back.
Push-ups are another great way to tone this area. It is important that you protect your lower back by holding in your core strength. If you feel any stress in your lower back, drop to your knees and do push-ups from that position.
To target your triceps, I love doing nose breakers. Lay on your back (on a bench or stability ball) with hand weights. hold weights straight up, palms facing each other, and then bend your arms so your elbows are in a 90 degree angle. The weights will be right above your face, hence the name nose breakers! Straighten arms and repeat. When I am done with a set I like to go into a nose breaker position and see how long I can hold it.
Good old fashioned bicep curls are great. Hold hand weights, keep your elbows tucked in to your sides, and curl those weights up. It is important that you do not rock your body to thrust the weights up. your arms should be the only thing moving, otherwise they are not getting the full workout. If you need help with this, put your back against a wall to keep your body from rocking.
I hope this is helpful. I will post more as I think of them! Have fun, but be careful!
ABS- The good, old fashioned crunch works great on your abs. Just make sure that as you come up, you stop once your shoulder blades leave the ground. Otherwise, you are working your hip flexors rather than your abs.
The bicycle crunch is especially good because it targets the rectus abdominus (middle abs), as well as the obliques (side abs).
Tightening your ab muscles while doing any workout, as well as throughout your day, helps to tone them.
Doing crunches on a stability ball or Bosu ball forces the abs to work extra because you are not just doing a crunch, but also maintaining balance. A stability ball can be purchased at Target or Wal-mart for $15-$20. A Bosu ball looks like a ball cut in half and mounted to a board. They run about $99. While they are a good investment because you can do so many exercises with them, they are a little pricey! Most fitness clubs should have one available for use.
Any balancing exercise will work your ab muscles. Many yoga routines will engage the abs.
ARMS- My favorite way to tone the arms is to do kickboxing while holding 3-5lb hand weights. This will tone arms, shoulders, and upper back.
Push-ups are another great way to tone this area. It is important that you protect your lower back by holding in your core strength. If you feel any stress in your lower back, drop to your knees and do push-ups from that position.
To target your triceps, I love doing nose breakers. Lay on your back (on a bench or stability ball) with hand weights. hold weights straight up, palms facing each other, and then bend your arms so your elbows are in a 90 degree angle. The weights will be right above your face, hence the name nose breakers! Straighten arms and repeat. When I am done with a set I like to go into a nose breaker position and see how long I can hold it.
Good old fashioned bicep curls are great. Hold hand weights, keep your elbows tucked in to your sides, and curl those weights up. It is important that you do not rock your body to thrust the weights up. your arms should be the only thing moving, otherwise they are not getting the full workout. If you need help with this, put your back against a wall to keep your body from rocking.
I hope this is helpful. I will post more as I think of them! Have fun, but be careful!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Quote of the Day
"If you quit when you want to quit, your body has no reason to change. You have got to push it so it HAS to get stronger!"
~Kim Lyons, Personal Trainer
~Kim Lyons, Personal Trainer
Friday, November 14, 2008
Biggest Loser Vol 2
I have a new favorite Biggest Loser workout DVD. I am loving Vol 2. This one allows you to customize your workout. You can build how little or how much you want to do, in any order, and you can choose weather or not you want to include their warm-up and cool-down. This DVD provides many options. It even includes workout segments that are designed especially for men or especially for women. As I mentioned in a previous post, I love that the Biggest Loser workouts are not some over-rehearsed, robotic routine. They make mistakes, but it doesn't matter. The tag line for the DVDs is "real workouts for real people" and that is what they give you.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Mix It Up!
Sometimes our bodies get in a workout slump. If our goal is weight-loss, we may hit a plateau. When this happens, just mix it up! Try different workouts. If you mainly do cardio, try some resistance training. Try a different routine. You can even just put on your favorite CD and dance around your house! Our bodies tend to get used to workouts once we have done them several times. This results in the body using less energy to complete the workout, and thus fewer calories burned. The body is almost on "auto pilot". Keep your body guessing what it needs to do. This should help you avoid those slumps, plus it will keep it more exciting for you!
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