Dairy and Gluten Free Pancakes, also vegan friendly!

INGREDIENTS:

1. 1 cup oats
2. 1 tsp baking soda
3. 1 tsp vanilla
4. 2 tsp cinnamon
5. 1 tsp chia seeds
6. 2 tsp coconut flakes
7. 1 cup almond milk(add more or less depending on how thick you want it)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Blend all dry ingredients together in a blender until thoroughly blended together. Then add the plant milk, add more or less depending on how thick you want it. Cook it on medium low heat with some coconut oil in a frying pan. Top with whatever your heart desires. Makes 3-4 small pancakes.

Check out my instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos of my workouts and pictures of food. Enjoy!

 

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Benefits of Cutting out Wheat.

Wheat, don’t get me wrong is very tasty and makes cooking and baking easier but sometimes the easier and tastier path isn’t always the healthiest. I’m going to talk about the benefits of cutting out or cutting down on wheat as well as substitutes for wheat/flour.

First lets talk about what wheat does to your body, if there is wheat in something your eating like bread it’s kind of a shock to your metabolism and can create a spike in blood sugar levels this is because it’s very high in carbohydrates. But it can also be death for people with slow metabolisms because it creates big fat deposits in your cells that are hard to get rid of.

So here are some benefits of getting wheat out of your diet. Wheat is a natural flammatory, meaning it causes inflammation and bloating in your body. Wheat doesn’t just stay in your stomach, it spreads to all  parts of your body so if you cut it out you want get bloated and you’ll notice that you have less acne as well as less oily skin if you have those problems. Cutting wheat out also improves your cardiovascular health in general if you stop eating it your heart would be happier, it  also tends to make you kind of sluggish but because of how much wheat we eat we don’t notice all of the negative effects of eating wheat.

When you cut out wheat for 2 weeks to a month and you re-introduce it into your diet, you’ll notice your body doesn’t like it. You may develop a rash or even get a stomach ache as well as notice you can’t eat as much wheat as before. These are all signs that wheat is bad for you, but we all eat it and most of us have no idea that it’s really bad for us inside and out.

Some substitutes for wheat are: oats(ground), almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour.

I hope this was helpful to you!! The full workout i did is below! check out my instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos of my workouts!! A new recipe will be up in a couple days.

TRICEPS:

1. x10 tricep pulldowns with resistance band(i got mine from J-fit)
2. x10 single/cross tricep extensions
3. x10 skull crushers(behind head)
4. x10 skull crushers(on head)
5. x10 reverse grip tricep extensions
6. x10 tricep kickbacks

REPEAT 3-5X!!

LEGS:

1. x15 weighted sumo squats
2. x15 weighted bridges with resistance band
3. x15 deadlifts
4. x15 weighted step ups
5. x15 kick back pulses with resistance band
6. x10 curtsy lunges
7. x10 lunges

REPEAT 4X!!

Flourless Banana Peanut Butter Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

1. 1 cup peanut butter
2. 1/2 cup coconut sugar
3. 1/2 brown sugar
4. 1 tsp baking soda
5. 1 tsp vanilla
6. 1 tsp cinnamon
7. 1 banana(mashed)

INTRUCTIONS:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F, mix all ingredients together and plop about a tsp amount of dough on a baking sheet lined of parchment paper in rows of two(they spread out quite a bit). Let cool on the pan NOT on a cooling rack(they’ll fall apart if you put them on cooling racks). Bake for 10-11 minutes, makes around 12 cookies. Enjoy!!

Tips to “bulk” and “tone”.

Lets talk about tips and the best ways to “bulk”(gain muscle fast) and “tone”(define muscle that is already there/shred fat and replace it with lean muscle).

How do you bulk? I’m going to tell you!! When you want to put on muscle fast you want to eat more carbohydrates(good ones) and increase your intake of protein. When I say protein i mean more meats like beef and chicken, you want to AVOID meal replacement protein supplements like whey protein. If you do want to take a protein powder supplement the best one would be BCAA which are Branched Chain Amino Acids.

Working out to bulk requires high weight and low reps, this is to shock your body to reproduce more muscle than you normally would. So there’s the basic idea behind how to bulk up.

How do you tone? here it is. Toning is just defining muscle that is already there but it is also great for losing weight because it shreds fat and replaces it with lean muscle. You want to increase your intake of protein such as BCAA or even a meal replacement like whey protein best to be taken before or during a workout. Eat more vegetables and less processed foods.

The main part of toning is not in the kitchen, it’s in the gym. You want to do body weight combo exercises with high repetitions. There’s the outline for how to tone/lose weight!!!!

The workout I did is Below!! check out my instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos of my workouts and pictures of food!

1. x16 alternating arnold press
2. x12 shoulder press
3. x15 lateral raises
4. x15 upright row
5. x15 front raises
6. x12 side bicep curls
7. x12 concentrated bicep curls
8. x12 hammer curls
9. x15 straight legged tricep dips

Repeat 3X!!!

How Nutrition Works Best.

Nutrition is of course different for everyone, I have different nutritional needs than you do. Lets talk about what GOOD nutrition is; avoiding adding sugar to foods, getting your omega 3 fats, avoiding trans-fats(its artificial and a chemical creation), getting lots of greens, avoiding refined carbohydrates, avoid taking meal replacement supplements(they mess with your metabolism and other nasty stuff), and the most obvious one is avoiding processed foods! Fresher is ALWAYS better.

Above are some great nutritional facts for everyone, it doesn’t matter who you are these nutrition tips will work for you. Now lets talk about how to realistically apply it to your life, it doesn’t have to be a crazy dramatic change you just have to gradually wean yourself off of what you’re used to and on to better nutrition. For example, eat veggies with your lunch, eat more fish and red meats and not so much bread and other carbs. Start replacing your food with more healthy options and soon enough you’ll actually be craving healthy foods and turn down pizza(hard to believe I know).

Here’s a basic meal plan for a day, use it as a template for your own lifestyle and body. For breakfast: eat a high protein breakfast, eggs, nuts, milk, cottage cheese, ground beef(aka, omelet or something). For lunch: this is the best time to get your greens and good fats in, such as spinach, winter greens, kale, celery, broccoli. Good fats would be: avocados, fish, chia seeds, eggs, coconut. For dinner: You want to finish off your day with healthy proteins and vitamins which you can get through beef, chicken, fish and salads.

Another tip for nutrition would be NEVER MISS BREAKFAST, that’s your fuel for the day!! The second would be, make your lunch(mid-day meal) the BIGGEST meal of the day!!

I hope this was helpful to you! I won’t be posting workouts until probably next week, I’m unable to workout at this time. Check out my Instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos of my workouts and pictures fo delicious food!

Dairy Free Tropical Ice Cream

INGREDIENTS:

1. 1/3 cup almond milk
2. 1-2 frozen banana
3. 8 oz fozen peaches(canned or fresh)
4. 1 tsp honey

DIRECTIONS:

use food processor and blend all of the ingredients together until smooth. Top with fresh fruit, dried fruit, seeds or whatever your heart desires! I topped mine with dried bananas, chia seeds and coconut flakes!

Check out my Instagram @lookingglassfitness for workout videos and pictures of food.

 

Workout On The Go.

Traveling and enjoying life shouldn’t prevent you from getting your workout in! I’m going to talk about easy exercises you can do while traveling that require no equipment at all!

First exercise is a squat, you don’t need anything and there’s a lot of variations such as: Sumo squats, tip toe squats, squat holds, sumo to tip toe squats which are all great for toning your legs and building a booty! All of these exercises are body weight so I have to mention the second “on the go exercise” which is push-ups, I personally don’t like them because they can cause shoulder issues and I can’t do them because of an old shoulder injury I have. However if you do them correctly they can be great for your arms and core they also have variations such as: spider man push-ups, tricep push ups, wide push-ups, narrow push-ups, incline push-ups, walking push-ups and several others!

All the core exercises can be done on the go!! crunches, planks, mt.climbers, reverse crunches, leg lifts etc. Can all be done with no equipment! To make core exercises harder, do it on a bed. Doing it that way adds more work for your core because it’s not a flat/sturdy surface.

You can do leg work all on the go as well like: lunges, kneeling to squat position, step ups(use hotel bed/chair), calf raises and so many others! Be creative with your workouts on the go, where you’re staying may even have a gym. Don’t skip a workout just because you’re traveling! It’s so easy to just do some walking lunges and jumping jacks while you’re sight-seeing etc.

I hope this gave you some ideas for “on the go workouts”. Down below is the arm and core workout I did. Check out my Instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos of my workouts.

I won’t have a new post up till monday the 13th, I’m going out of town for a volleyball tournament.

ARMS:

SET ONE:

1. x8 hammer curls
2. x8 shoulder press
3. x8 butterflies

REPEAT 4X!

SET TWO:

1. X10 concentration bicep curls5-7
2. x10 walking push-ups

REPEAT 3X!

SET THREE:

1. x8 tricep extensions
2. x8 chest fly
3. x30 tricep extension pulses(slow and low)

REPEAT 4X!

CORE:

1. X10 real V-ups
2. x10 cat back stretch
3. x10 superman
4. x10 banded bikes
5. x10 weighted crunches
6. 1 minute plank

REPEAT 5-7X!!

How to Stay Motivated.

Motivation sometimes just disappears, for me it’s when I have a lot of stuff to get done that day or some days I honestly just don’t feel like working out. I give myself rest days so I can hit my training even harder afterwards but sometimes when I come back I don’t want to train at all. How do I get through that feeling? By going down memory lane, thinking about where I started and how far I’ve come. Generic I know, but it’s effective.

I think about my goals and where I want to be in a year fitness wise, I give myself little goals every week(on a previous post) which helps for the days I don’t feel like training. Sometimes you have to give yourself a little kick in the pants. When I think about where I’ve come from and where I want to be it generally works to get me motivated to train but sometimes it doesn’t and I end up not feeling great. Working out for my is an outlet, a lifestyle and a hobby, when I skip my workout on a day I didn’t schedule a rest day on I can’t concentrate the rest of the day and I go to bed feeling very un-accomplished.

So, another way I motivate myself(yourself) to just go in and train no matter how short the session, is reminding myself how I’ll feel if I don’t workout the rest of the day and the next morning. Working out has been proven to clear the mind and improve cognitive skills as well as relieve stress! so if you have a packed day or you’re piled with stress from school, work etc. Set time aside and get a training session in it doesn’t have to be a long one and you’ll actually be MORE productive.

All of the above are ways I keep myself motivated on my fitness journey!! I hope this is helpful to you! Down below is the full body and core workout I did. Check out my instagram @lookingglassfitness for clips of my workouts!

FULL BODY CIRCUIT:

1. x15 weighted double pulse squats(squat, pulse twice, stand up and squeeze glutes at top).
2. x15 wall sit/bicep curl to shoulder press
3. x15 weighted squat/press out(hold DB, squat, press DB straight out, stand up)
4. x12(each leg) Reverse lunge/ press

REPEAT 4X!!

CORE CIRCUIT:

1. :45 plank(keep back flat and butt down).
2. :45 leg raises
3. :45 standing weighted side dips(each side)
4. :45 Side plank(each side)
5. :45 raised leg crunches

REPEAT 2-4X!! (if you’re a beginner, only do circuit 1-2 times).

Delicious, Nutritious Green Smoothie

INGREDIENTS:

1. 3/4 cup almond milk
2. 1tbsp chia seeds
3. 1tbsp pumpkin seeds
4. 1tbsp coconut
5. 1banana
6. 1 small orange
7. 2-3 pitted dates
8. 1 large handful of spinach

DIRECTIONS:

Blend all together, add more or less mylk if desired. If your blender isn’t high powered you might want to pulse the dates in a food processor before adding it to the mixture. Enjoy this super tasty and healthy smoothie!!

HIIT Benefits.

HIIT is a really great form of exercise, it pushes you to your absolute limit! What is a HIIT? High Intensity Interval Training, meaning you do exercises for a certain amount of time. This is a great way to train because it’s easy to just do a certain number of exercises but its a CHALLENGE when you have to do that exercise for a certain amount of time.

HIIT can involve anything and everything from burpees to combo moves to sprints! It’s super versatile and very intense. The best amount of time that I find for HIIT is anywhere from 30 seconds to one minute, of course you can do more. Timed moves push your body more than just 10 of something, especially if you make it a race against time to get as many as you can in the amount of time you give yourself.

I always give myself a goal for the next round, telling myself to get two more in than the last time I did it and so forth. It’s very much a mental challenge, it’s a battle between the exercises burning, time and your own mental thoughts. Even though I have a timer going I tell myself to get to a number like 20 and if I still have time left when I get to that number I’ll tell myself to get to a slightly higher number, this helps me keep my mind off of the burning in my muscles. I do two HIIT sessions a week, it’s also  a great way to do cardio moves.

Above was some tips on how I get through my HIIT sessions! I hope they’re helpful. The HIIT workout I did today is down below!! check out my instagram @lookingglassfitness for videos and pictures of delicious food!!

LEG AND GLUTE FOCUS:

1. :30 reverse lunge to front lunge(each leg gets 30 seconds)
2. :30 frog squats(booty burn!)
3. :30 sumo squat jumps   REPEAT 3X!!

ARM FOCUS:

1. :30 jumping jacks with light weight(i used 7 Lb DBs)
2. :30 T-pushups
3. :30 Half burpees  REPEAT 3X!!

CORE FOCUS:

1. :30 Pendulum planks
2. :30 crunch to leg raise
3. :30 plank tucks(with stability ball or foam roller)  REPEAT 3X!!

FULL BODY/CARDIO:

1. :30 4 high knees to 2 squat jumps
2. :30 Mt. climbers
3. :30 walkout to jump  REPEAT 3x!!

REMEMBER TO STRETCH AND DRINK WATER!!!!!