The Fit Skool

by Kelly

July 29, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Casein Protein vs. Whey Protein

Although I try to get most of my dietary protein from healthy whole foods, I do consume Whey Protein after some of my intense workouts or Casein Protein during the day!

If you aren’t familiar with Whey Protein it is considered to be a “fast” acting protein, meaning it is absorbed quickly. Casein Protein is considered to be a “slow” protein, therefore the protein digestion is prolonged.
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This is helpful to know when timing protein ingestion. In the mornings when I teach Group Power I immediately have a Whey Protein Shake to help my muscles recover fast. I have noticed when I don’t have that shake sometimes I am a little more sore after or my energy doesn’t last as long.
I started adding in Casein as a morning snack to fuel my busy days at work, it keeps me a little fuller longer. I even had one this morning, the cookies n cream flavor is like a treat!
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The Casein provides a steady release of amino acids which is a great choice for long lasting muscle protection. As a former athlete and someone who is highly active I know that taking care of my body is important and to be honest some days are harder then others to get the adequate protein that I need.
Do you use Whey or Casein Protein? Do you notice a difference when you are using a protein supplement?

 

July 27, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Sunday Food Prep!

After a long relaxing weekend, I am ready to tackle the week ahead!

Yesterday we did some food prep in the morning and spent the afternoon resting & relaxing around the house.

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Instead of our typical summertime grilling we decided to turn on the oven for some Sunday Food Prep! Here is what we made:

o   Applesauce Bran Muffins these make great on-the-go snacks in between clients and teaching classes!

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o   Baked Honey Mustard Chicken these bite sized chicken chunks are easy to add to salads or make into a quick sandwich.

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o   Roasted Green Beans & Mushrooms with Olive Oil I love having veggies ready to go for lunches. I have no excuses for not eating veggies throughout the day.

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o   Baked Potatoes I am a potato girl, I always feel satisfied after a simple baked potato.

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o   Juicy Watermelon watermelon this time of year is amazing on a hot day! It is a great snack.

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o   Steak for steak salad Leftover grilled steak over a salad is one of our dinner meals this week!

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Do you food prep? What are some of your favorite things to cook up?

July 25, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Things I am loving this week

This week has flown by and I am not complaining about it :) I didn’t get an opportunity to post yesterday, my day was a little too busy so I apologize.
There are so many healthy things I have been loving this week and I want to share them with you!
First up is Ripe Peaches… They are so sweet, refreshing, juicy, and healthy. I can’t believe my little Ava doesn’t like them.
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Sweet Potatoes… For dinner I enjoy having a sweet potato as a side to my meal before I teach any of my night time classes. It is a great pre-workut carbohydrate and it fills me up in the right way!
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Salmon Burgers.. these were a quick easy dinner and although its not as good as fresh salmon I still loved the fact that I was getting in some healthy Omega-3’s
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Pesto Chicken.. I have always loved pesto whether it is on veggies, pasta, fish or chicken it is delicious!
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Casein Protein.. this protein powder is cookies n cream flavor and it’s so good! I have a post about Casein Protein coming to you next week.
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HAPPY FRIDAY!
What do you have planned for the weekend? 

 

July 23, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Ladder Supersets with Kettlebell Swings & Pushups

I have an easy way to get in extra pushups for our Pushup Challenge.

Last night in Boot Camp class one of the circuits we ran was a Ladder Superset using Dumbbells for Dumbbell Swings and Pushups.
You may be thinking to yourself, what is a Ladder Superset? Ladders are used to increase the intensity of the workout. One of the more common ways to perform a ladder is to subtract a rep from every set you do until you reach one, you can also reverse the order!!
Before beginning the workout always warm-up to get the muscles ready for exercise. You can use a kettlebell or if you are at home and don’t have a Kettlebell you can use a dumbbell!
Here is how the Kettlebell Swings & Pushups Ladder workout goes:
 
Kettlebell Swing 10 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 10 reps
Kettlebell Swing 9 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 9 reps
Kettlebell Swing 8 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 8 reps
Kettlebell Swing 7 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 7 reps
Kettlebell Swing 6 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 6 reps
Kettlebell Swing 5 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 5 reps
Kettlebell Swing 4 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 4 reps
Kettlebell Swing 3 reps – followed by – 
PUSHUPS – 3 reps
Kettlebell Swing 2 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 2 reps
Kettlebell Swing 1 reps – followed by – PUSHUPS – 1 reps
If you are doing this workout at home set a timer for 10 minutes. Once you complete the full Ladder rest for a minute, then climb back up the ladder or start back at the top!  You can always increase the time if you are looking for a more intense workout.
Your heart will be pumping and you will complete a quick full-body workout in no time! 

 

July 22, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Pushup Challenge #2

Last week I had mentioned a Pushup Challenge that Marc has been doing for the past week! I decided to join him, and now I want you to join me.

When your trainer or fitness instructor tells you to pushups do you make a face and say “I Hate Pushups??” I constantly hear from my clients and people in the gym that they hate pushups & pull-ups.  Usually when you dislike an exercise you are weak in that area, and in this case the weakness would come from your chest and arms.

Obviously Pushups aren’t easy, you can make them easier; it just takes practice!!! So lets practice together.

A while back I challenged you to this PUSHUP CHALLENGE. The challenge was to complete as many PUSHUPS as possible in 1 day. 

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I have a new challenge for you and it starts today.  This time instead of 1 day lets work every other day for 10 days! 

Drop down and do some pushups throughout your day, at the end of your day record how many you completed. Take a day of rest in between and then try to beat your number!!

Lets see after 10 days how much our Pushup Strength improves!

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**Please consult your Doctor or Physician before beginning any new exercise program**

 

 

July 21, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Loading up the grill

Hiiiiiiii

This weekend wasn’t the greatest, and I hate to say that because weekends are clearly awesome but not when Ava is sick. It seems that every other week she is sick from some new cold at daycare. This one is Coxsackie virus, something I have never heard of until a couple of weeks ago when daycare sent out a note saying that one of the infants had the virus. It was almost inevitable that Ava got it.  Soo with a fever and a rash over the past few days, we have been giving Ava some extra TLC and she seems much better today!

We got in some long walks this weekend which was great! When Ava was uncomfortable we took her out and walked until she fell asleep. We basically did whatever kept her happy & comfortable!

Yesterday morning I headed to an early Group Power class, this week we are launching the new workout so I was happy to practice one more time before I taught this morning. It is a tough workout, but then again what workout isn’t challenging?? If a workout is easy then you aren’t working hard enough!

My arms were shaking by the end… there are soo many pushups.

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(Here is a pic of me & 2 of the other Group Power Instructors)

When I got home from class I refueled with a Chocolate Protein Shake & a banana.

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We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging around the house and doing some food prep.

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Do you ever load up your grill with healthy eats?

Go through your fridge and see what veggies & meats you can throw on your grill all at once.. don’t leave any empty spots on the grill!

I take advantage of the nice weather to use the grill as an easy way to get in some quick food prep for the week, with some tasty & healthy foods. PLUS the cleanup is ridiculously easy!! I am all for having NO DISHES to clean!

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We cooked some BBQ Chicken Thighs, zucchini, red pepper, & Pesto Grilled Chicken. We are all about summer time grilling and I love having the fridge stocked with some easy grab and go meals.

My Monday morning began with Group Power! My workout left me feeling energized but then tired! I think that is from lack of sleep but man do my muscles feel stronger. Gotta love it!

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Do you have any grilling tips? What do you throw on your grill? 

July 18, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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You CAN make healthy choices… even on vacation!!

Since it is vacation season I have a great topic to discuss with you today, thanks to my client Sheila.

Making healthy choices… even on vacation!! 

The thought of vacation gets me excited and I’m sure it gets you excited too. It is something to look forward to and a time to spend with friends and family without any obligations. When I go on vacation I think of it as a time to relax, rejuvenate, see different places, try new things… but by no means do I leave all my healthy habits behind.

Do you use vacation as a time to splurge on unhealthy food & drinks, just because you are away from it all?

Here are some tips to staying healthy and to make wiser choices while on vacations:

  1. WALK… there are so many places to see when you are on vacation so take the scenic route and walk. Explore all the shopping areas and restaurants in the town or city you are visiting. Better yet rent a bike!
  2. Indulge but don’t SPLURGE.. if you want a slice of pizza have it but pair it with some veggies and a tossed salad. If you want ice cream or dessert, consider it a treat.. don’t have it every day you are on vacation.
  3. Drink water… being on the beach or out in the sun can quickly dehydrate you. Don’t let it happen. Carry a water with you and keep an extra in your bag.
  4. Don’t eat until you are stuffed… eat until you are satisfied. When you feel like your button is going to pop off your pants, you ate TOO much.
  5. If you are drinking alcoholic beverages… limit them to non-sugary drinks such as light beer, wine spritzers, etc. Don’t forget to drink water!
  6. Exercise… sure the walking counts but you have way more time then you normally do so hit the hotel gym or do some bodyweight exercises in your room such as pushups, situps, and squats.

Remember to have FUN… you deserve it!

July 17, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Thursday Rambles

My morning started off bright and early this morning and was action packed until lunch time.

Here are some of my Thursday rambles:

  1. Around 930 this morning I had a quick break so I asked one of my clients if she wanted to go grab a quick smoothie with me at Green & Tonic. Since the YMCA is so close I knew we would be quick. I got the Ultimate Warrior smoothie again. You know when some days you don’t feel like eating veggies??? Well today is that day for me and it was nice to sneak in some spinach/kale in my smoothie. The drink is definitely refreshing on a hot day.IMG_4918
  2. Ava is crawling like crazy. She is so intrigued by everything.. the cabinets, the dishwasher, the items in the fridge, Cooper’s tail. Etc.                                                                                                   IMG_4829 IMG_4833
  3. My shoulder’s and biceps are sore.. thanks to Group Power!
  4. Tomorrow is a rest day for me and I’m excited.
  5. I haven’t been in the water at the beach yet, I think I might need to get in there this weekend.
  6. I can’t believe it’s already the middle of July.. I need to take advantage of this amazing weather we are going to have the next few days.
  7. Lastly, I have a Pushup challenge coming to you in then next few days. Its a challenge that Marc created for himself. Since he is so good at Pushups I will share it with you!

Do you ever feel like you have random thoughts? Do you ever share them? Please do.  

 

July 16, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Day 7 of our Healthy Eating Challenge

If you joined me in the challenge for 7 days of Healthy Eating, how did you do? Do you feel any different?

Eating healthy does require planning and meal prep, no one said it’s easy but that’s because most of our lifestyles force us to resort to the GRAB-N-GO type foods that require no thought. Sometimes I hate deciding what to cook for dinner or what I need to pack for my lunch and snacks for the next day.. but I realized that when I am not prepared I make poor choices, I eat less veggies, and my meals don’t keep me as full. Do you agree?

On Sunday Marc and I sat down and planned out our dinners for most of the week. Then I made a big trip to the grocery store so that I had all my ingredients when it came time to make my meals. Its a no brainer!

Over the past week, here are what some of our dinners looked like:

Grilled Blackened Salmon served with veggies

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Ginger Sirloin Tips with Asparagus & Sweet Potato

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Sesame seared Ahi Tuna served with edamame and zucchini bites

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Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

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Thai Chicken Brown with Veggies & Brown Rice (take out from a Thai Restaurant)

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When you are planning and cooking meals, Try to think outside the box, you don’t have to eat CHICKEN every night to eat healthy. Keep trying new recipes and new flavors!

Did you learn anything new  from eating HEALTHIER this past week? 

July 15, 2014
by Kelly @ The Fit Skool
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Upside down Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

I didn’t realize how much we have been grilling until it starting raining here a few days in a row. I had to think of something to cook inside on the stove instead! Marc requested Shepherd’s pie and I was excited about it since we haven’t had it in a while… but this time I took the lazy route!!

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Instead of making mashed Sweet Potatoes, I made baked potatoes and topped them with the Shepherd’s Pie mix. This saved me time peeling, boiling, and mashing the potatoes. It turned out great!

As you know, most of my dinner recipes are usually simple and easy to whip up… so this one comes together rather fast!

For the recipe: click on this link SWEET POTATO SHEPHERD’S PIE

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When I was making the Shepherd’s pie this time, I used Ground Turkey instead of lean ground beef.

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We didn’t have frozen corn to throw in the mix so I diced up a little red pepper for some added veggies and color. I like making substitutions to my recipes, it changes up the flavors!

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Do you have any quick stove-top recipes with ground meat?