Cinnamon Apples!

I got this recipe from one of my Figure friends. If you like green apples, you will love this sweet recipe that is super-good-for-you!

1 Granny Smith green apple
Ground Cinnamon

Cut the apple into pieces, place on plate and sprinkle with ground cinnamon. Place in microwave for approximately 1 minute (depends on your settings on your microwave). Let cool and enjoy!

If you aren't training or worrying about your sugar/calories, you can also sprinkle with brown sugar splenda for extra sweetness.

Enjoy!!

Coffee Heaven

On the forever quest for yummy goodness while competing, I have discovered a great way to make my black coffee taste like a Starbucks latte with ZERO calories or fat or sugars. Take your regular, black coffee and add a teaspoon of Walden Farms Caramel (0 Carbs/0 Sugars/0 Calories) to it, stir. Delicious!!!

Protein for the Sweet Tooth!

Every competitor struggles with that sweet tooth every now and then. I'm no different. I stumbled across some yummy goodness out there and thought I would share. As most of you know, my favorite protein powder is ISO Dymatize 1000. It is super-clean and mixes well with water (I am not a paid endorser). Zero carbs, Zero sugars and Zero fat which is also a happy. I ordered their Pina Colada flavor for the first time, just to experiment with some new flavors. I put a scoop of that and a teaspoon of my Walden Farms Marshmallow Whip (also zero carbs, zero sugars and zero calories), 1/3 Cup of oats and water/ice cubes in my blender to mix it up. YUMMY! 206 calories. I must warn you, it is really sweet. Like that's a bad thing. Ha! Enjoy!!

Happy March!

Hello everyone! Wow, it has been awhile since my last post, I am sorry about that. Managing 4 active kids and a busy hubby while working AND training for a competition is a bit crazy but I wouldn't trade a minute of it. Just bear with me as we finish up winter sports in our house, my postings will get more frequent. How is everyone?

I woke up this morning with a smile that it is now March. Winter here in Kansas this year has been grueling, kind of like your training diets!! Ha! Like all of you, I am ready to take my cardio/interval training outdoors. I think I have worn grooves in my treadmill. My hubby is also glad because my treadmill sits right next to his side of the bed and those early morning cardio sessions are getting really old while he tries to sleep!

So today marks 8 weeks out until my competition. I was really worrying because I had hit a plateau and wasn't making any changes. I made some changes to my diet and my cardio and now I am movin again! Leaning up time is officially here!! I am extremely proud of my online clients who are posting some incredible changes as well!! The girl power around me is awesome!! Keep it up all of you!

It is also that time to begin thinking about my competition suit. I'm excited because I just put in an order for a new, custom made one last week. I can't wait to see it! If you all haven't worked with Tamara at www.bikiniguru.com yet, you should. She's really great with measurements, colors, style, etc. Reach out to her and let her know I sent ya. She has done my trainer's suits for years.

Send me emails and tell me how you are doing. I love to hear from everyone. We are in hard core training season now, so I know EVERYONE is working hard and eating super-clean. It will all pay-off as all of you beauties hit the stage to show off that hard work. Keep the thoughts positive and lean on your competition friends to get you through the rough days. I posted the above picture as a reminder to keep going. It's a magnet that I have on my fridge. Love ya! Rock the Girl Power & Go Figure!!

Muscles over Skinny!!

In honor of the Olymipic Winter Games that are currently on, I thought I would post this article. I actually came across it through HardBody.com/news (great site by Isaac Hinds to check out).

This is an article about Olympic ice skater Tanith Belbin and how going from super-skinny to muscular and eating correctly made her a better skater. She talks about the weight issues that she has experienced that a lot of us have and how she made the change to an "Athletic Body". It's amazing what some weight training and inteligent eating will do for ya!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/17/sports/olympics/17icedancers.html?ref=nutrition

Fitnes Universe, 2010 in Miami, Florida

Great Butt Workout by Zuzana

If you all haven't been to Zuzana's site (www.bodyrock.tv), you really should. She hosts a daily fitness show where she does some of the best workouts I've seen. She has a great way of coming up with new ideas that keep your cardio fresh and interesting. Another great thing about what she does is it is all "outside" of a gym setting so people who don't have gym memberships can do the workouts from home. So here is a really fantastic butt workout that is also a fat-blaster because she keeps the heart rate up. You can do this at home or at the gym and I am always telling everyone to work those butts!!! This is an easy one to do...well...maybe "easy" is the wrong word :) Go get it!!