Deadlifts and Diamonds

Summer is in full swing and we are headed straight for bikini season. I am bound and determined to fit into my bikini so its time to break out the GYMBOSS  and gear up for some serious fat blasting, metabolism boosting workouts. I’m focusing on interval training this summer because it works!  A short tabata session is just as effective as an hour long workout It also ignites the after burn effect —allowing you to burn fat for up to 48 hours after your workout.  Most importantly, for the lifters out there, these short intense tabata workouts burn fat while retaining muscle.  Tabata Workout: 20 seconds work // 10 seconds rest // repeat 8 X // 4 minutes     Benefits -burn fat long after your workout       -retain muscle -increase VO2 Max -short and effective  GymBoss Timer— your new bff Now, at first, I thought, “Why do I need a timer when I can use my handy smartphone?”.  Well, I soon lear...

Thank you Rue Pal! I couldn't have said it better. I love her show Rue Paul's Drag Race. Its fabulous and filled to the tits with lip synching divas, wigs, makeup galore, and cat fights. I would venture to say its a tasteful version of housewives. haha. Rue Paul's 1st music video introduced him in all her glory while preaching loud and clear. If you want it ladies, "You Betta Work!".  Just for fun check out his music video  here on you tube.  In fitness, success doesn't come easy, progress is earned, so let's face it, those weights aren't gonna lift themselves! We are all incontrol of setting and realizing our goals. It all it boils down to showing up every week. Whether you're in it for the endorphins, longevity, or training for an event, keep moving forward, keep showing up, and get to work!  We all need a little extra push and when things get tough, we need to reach down and listen to our  fiery inner diva. She'...

Happy Friday Ladies! No today's not my birthday, but it feels like it is everytime I get a package in the mail. After posting the story “Fun Gym Clothes” , the shirt I ordered finally came in! There’s nothing like coming home after a long day at work and the gym to find a hot pink present waiting for you on the table and smelling the scent of steak on the grill. Mmmm. Lately, I’ve been doing some online shopping and every day I come home I find a new gift waiting for me. It’s a nice little treat--a little gift for myself every day. Inside this pink package is the shirt I purchased from the Etsy shop ‘Hello Fabulous’.   Too Legit To Quit Gym Tanks from Hello Fabulous The shop is ran by two sisters who silkscreen their own unique gym tanks. I am a super fan of their shop now. They even sent a nicely designed thank you note with a coupon code. Yes! I work in commercial print so I’m a sucker for printed items. Speaking of print, I also picke...

 “You’re a touch overrated, you’re a lush and I hate it.” Taking Back Sundays. Pay no attention to this band’s swill, did anyone really ever listen to them anyway? We are talking about LUSH Cosmetics and yes they’re absolutely luscious and we love them! If you don’t know about LUSH, allow me to introduce you to your new favorite brand. I love LUSH because their  beauty and cosmetic products are all made by hand using fresh organic fruit, veggies, essential oils, and herbs. They do not animal test or purchase ingredients from those who do and use very little if any preservatives. Their containers even have a little sticker with a picture of the person mixing your product. I know right! These guys are great! The best part for me is, unlike other stores that use chemical fragrances and give you a migrane whenever you walk past, LUSH is all organic. Their product packaging and message is bold, sexy, and fun! Makes sense that this would be my favorite br...

Hump day, pump day, whatever you wanna call it--I hope that you're doing both today. Usually I do a PUMP Day workout, so checkout what I was up to yesterday at Gold's. No good, as usual.. ;)  WARM UP 1/2 mile run with Sprints! 6.0 incline, 7.2 speed 1 minute sprint, 1 minute rest X 5 WEIGHTS  Bicep Curls drop sets starting with 50 lbs.  Hammer Curls Bench Press superset with 15 pushups between each set Incline Bench Press Shoulder Press Bicep Curls sitting  Lateral Shoulder Raises Bent Elbow shoulder flys  Tricep dips and cable pull downs  I just love getting my arms nice and plump after a solid workout--ahh, feeling good. That's all for now! See you next time.  Do tell.... Let me know in the comments below.  What's your favorite arm exercise? 

Easier said than done. After 2 years on my fitness journey, I finally reached a breaking point. Yes,I had come face to face with the dreaded wall and found myself firmly stuck on a plateau and seriously questioning my motivation to carry on another day, week, year of grueling workouts. After countless hours in the gym, forcing myself to eat clean, and constantly feeling tired and sore, I was seriously wondering, "Why do I put myself through this?". I wanted to just jump to the after picture already! By this point, I was mentally exhausted, hangry and about to drop off that plateau!!I felt more and more like a hamster spinning my wheel full force to nowhere and I was ready for a break. I started to talk myself out of my workouts and summer fitness plans. I kept thinking, "Do I really give a shit if I’m ‘bikini ready’? Why should I give a damn about having a flat 6 pack??" Oh I was in deep and my mind was trying to talk me out of my all the...

Set your day into motion with a powerful intention to create and allow amazing things to come your way. With a strong forward momentum, your positivity can plow right through the dulling mind chatter that can chip away at your enthusiasm and power. Begin the day fresh and new and grateful for what it is--your blank canvas, your sandbox, and your creation. They say the best revenge against negativity and doubt is wild success. Its true. As your positivity reaches critical mass, it can't help but to expand out into your universe and impact your surroundings. That's how positive energy works. Once a high vibration is set into motion it tends to build on itself and attract more positive thoughts and experiences. So start off your day,  your week, this moment right now, strong and with intention to stay open, create joy, feel gratitude, and share with others.

Its Monday! Time to get back to the grind, so put down the mimosas and lets get to work. This is 'Move Your Ass Monday' so for those of us that are dragging it or sitting on it, this is your wake up call to get up and get moving this week. It doesn't matter how or when you do it, the important thing is that you, yes you got it, "Move Your Ass".  I'm not going to preach to you too much today, I have no room to talk. Rather than doing my usual 5 days a week 1 hour gym sessions, I've switched to riding my bike, jogging, walking, or taking the stairs. The idea is, just keep moving.  As we know, an object in motion tends to stay in motion. Its the getting into motion thats the tough part, but it doesn't have to be. The 'object' (your ass) gets into motion by repetition until eventually, it becomes habit--a habit that's not dependent on excuses. Its like going to work every day. You can't call in just because you don't feel l...

Happy Weekend. Its been a lovely few days relaxing, cooking, laughing my ass off and snuggling with Drew and the pets.  Aaaaaah.  On Friday, I had a hot date with Drew and we headed out for dinner and a movie. We started off the night right with a South African dinner. Who knew I liked lamb? I had written it off until I tried it falling off the bone and dipped in mint. Delicious. South Africa does it right. During dinner we caught an impromtu flash mob of zumba moms in the plaza and jammed out before heading to the Alamo Drafthouse for 22 Jump Street. Honestly, I've never laughed so hard in a movie theater. Hilarious. If you havn't seen 21 Jump Street with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, then stop what you're doing (well finish reading this) then watch 21 Jump Street.  Saturday morning we headed out for mani pedis and in the afternoon we bbq'd some thick, bacon filled burgers with friends and watched a few soccer games while the rain poured. On Sunday, we...

Its blazing hot in Texas right now, and we're just getting started. Soon, we'll be into 100 degree heat, dripping sweat in areas we didn't know could sweat. To cool off from the 3rd planet heat, I absolutely love chowin' down on some frozen yogurt with all the fixings. Its so yummy and a ton of fun to make your own froyo bowl. I always get a rich creamy flavor and top it off with granola and loads of fruit. Some of my local favorites are: Red Mango, Menchi's, Tutti Frutti, & Orange Leaf. The Red Velvet Cake is my fav flavor. After a few rounds of by the pound froyo, these little bowls add up, so I opted to make my own homemade, sugar free frozen yogurt. Checkout the blueberry recipe below. After mixing up a batch, I ate the 1st serving right out of the bowl without freezing and the mix turned out a bit sweet. After freezing, overnight (and thawing for an hour before eating) the yogurt was much more tart. So keep in mind, if you're going to make this...

A year and a half into my fitness journey and I still do not own a gym tshirt. Nope, not one. I have plain tank tops, but they are too tight and well, just plain and boring! I tried to cut up an old tshirt and 'Project Runway' it into a workout shirt, but that was a horrendous Pintrest Fail. Oh well, guess I'll spend the $20 and just buy a shirt!  I decided to steer clear of Lulumon and Nike's price tags and went in search for workout clothes in the 20 dollar range. There's a lot of bad workout clothes out there, trust me, I looked, but here are some fun fitness finds to add to your gym wardrobe. I compiled this list solely for saving you and myself some time. I don't have any affiliation with these sites and I don't make any money if you decide to buy one of these tops. I just thought I'd share :) Check these out: Muscle Club  For my lady lifters out there, check out the Muscleclub.com for sassy workout gear and the shortest of short shorts....

Happy Monday Ladies! If you need an extra push this Monday, here it is. Move. Your. Ass. See, they get it! They already got a head start on their workout for the day. 30 minutes, three times a week. Doesn't matter how you slice it--just get it done however you like and whenever you like. Sure, Zumba counts too ;) So does taking the stairs, walking your dog, doing yoga at your desk during lunch, and parking on the far end of the parking lot. It all counts! I know these things seem small, but it all adds up. Whether you do yard work or dance in the living room after work, (yes I've done that before), just do what you gotta do to get your ass moving! Your level of fitness in totally within your grasp and in your control. Its all on the other side of your own fears and doubt. Are you worried about that other people are doing? Who cares if everyone else is taking the elevator at work? You make your own choices and you have decided to live fit because you want a longer...

Its Friday, the 13th, so I did a little online shopping for some good luck. When I'm shopping, I have to start off easy with just 1 or two items so I don't go into an all out splurge fest. Today I did good. I picked up 1 Bobino cord organizer and backed the CLUG project on kickstarter. Not exactly glamorous shopping, I know, but functional, yes. Bobino Cord Wrapper on CB2.com  I picked up the Bobino cord wrapper for my headphones. This way I can keep them nice and tidy instead of shoving the extra cables in my sports bra.  This one was on sale for like 2 bucks.  Pick 1 up here. DIY Heart Cord Wrap For the crafters out there, checkout this heartshapped cord wrapper tutorial. DIY Tutorial Here Aliexpress Headphone Cord Wraps                And for those of you not looking to get too crafty, check out Aliexpress for a huge selection.     ...

              Happy Pump Day everyone! We are half way through the week and still going strong. This pump day is my last night with Andrew until he takes off for a wedding in Chicago so I will be doing an early evening run with him rather than hitting the weights today, but I'm still here to offer motivation and support for you all. For that extra bit of motivation and intensity, I have found that visualizing my workouts long before I hit the gym has helped me stay focused and alert during my workouts. By visualizing myself working hard and going for the burn, I can draw on that image and feeling and use it to drive my intensity during a workout when I feel I'm starting to fade. Visualizing and planning my workout ahead of time also helps me stay accountable to shorter rest periods, doing drop sets at the end of the last set, or any other lifting strategies I choose to focus on that day to keep me focused and working hard. It always helps to im...

Thank God Its Monday and its the perfect time to shake off the weekend and get back to the grind of meetings and workouts.  I know I was happy during my drive to work today. I visualized everything running smoothly and on schedule (and so far so good) and was already excited about jammin' out and sweating during this evening's workout because my body craves sweat! Over the weekend, I did a brisk Sunday morning run and a quick HIIT Friday nite, but I'm ready to go all in this week and earn some serious soreness. Exercise helps clear my mind and keeps me grounded and if I didn't workout, I'd probably stress out. I love the grind. Last week I walked into the gym and Kevin at the counter said, "Wow, you're motivated. You're in here everyday". I thought, "Heck yeah, I'm here because I love it. What the heck else would I be doin?". And I thought about it again, "How do I make it to the gym day in and day out?" There are...