Kick up the Cardio!

Whether you are pregnant, a new mom, or just your average Joe, cardiovascular health is vital to a healthy lifestyle.  My last 6 weeks of pregnancy made the cardio aspect of my workouts very hard. The pressure Jordan was putting on my bladder, hips, and tail bone slowed me down and turned my walk into a full waddle. But I pushed through and did what I could each and every day, even if that meant taking an hour to walk a mere 2 miles.

At 15 weeks Jordan loves to explore the world around her, especially when she is outside. I’ve taken advantage of her love for nature and have gotten back into an outdoor running routine; but now I have two running partners, my four-legged baby boy, and my sweet little girl. Josh’s parents bought us a Graco running stroller set that we absolutely LOVE! Jordan gets to rest comfortably in her seat and I get the added resistance of the stroller to increase my workout intensity!

Running or walking with a stroller is one of many ways to pump your cardio workout up to the next level, and your little one will love the stimulation of being outdoors. Whether you are running, walking, or riding the elliptical machine at the gym, there is always a way to push your routine up a notch. Here are few additions to an every day cardio routine that will increase your heart rate and get you working different muscles!

She gets to relax while mommy gets in a workout!

For the Runner:

Running is a GREAT cardiovascular workout-

-Run backwards:  Spice up your average run by turning around and running backwards for a while. This will target you calf muscles,hamstrings and glutes!

-Run uphill: Running up hill adds extra resistance, improving the strength in your quads, hamstrings, ankles, and glutes more than your flat ground running.

- Sprint:  Exploding into a sprint between bouts of regular running will help increase your endurance and help your body burn more fat! Try to add sprints to a least one of your weekly runs.

For the Walker:

Walking can be just as effective as running and it is easier on the joints!

-Speed Walk: rather than sprinting, step up the pace of your walking by speed walking in intervals.

-Add Weight: Grab a pair of 3 lb dumbbells before you venture out for your walk. The added weight will serve for resistance and you may even find the motivation to do some bicep curls while you’re walking.

-Don’t avoid hills: As I mentioned before, whether you are running or walking, doing so uphill works your quads, calves, hamstrings and glutes extra hard! If you are outside, find a hilly route to walk. If you are indoors on a treadmill, bump up your incline!

-Walking lunges: If you are feeling really adventurous, break out into walking lunges while you are on your walk! These are greats for your quads and glutes as well!

- Enjoy the view:  Any kind of cardio indoors can get really repetitive and even discourage you from completing your workout. Change up the scenery to make your runs more enjoyable! Venture outside, find a new trail, or go to a neighborhood park. Not only will the change of scenery motivate you, but the change in terrain will help work different muscles, while the sunshine from outdoors will help you soak up vitamin D.

This is my FAVORITE running/walking route- lake lanier

It doesn’t matter what you do, just as long as you keep on moving! Adults should get no less than 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week. This will decrease your risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease while increasing your energy level and brightening your moods!

If you are pregnant, maintaining a regular exercise routine will help control your weight gain, prevent gestational diabetes, increase your energy level, reduce the difficulties of labor, and has MANY health benefits for your unborn child.

“Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate. The world wasn't formed in a day, and neither were we. Set small goals and build upon them.”

~Lee Haney



For those of you looking for a personal trainer in the Flowery 
Branch or Buford area I'm your girl! Send me an email at:

jethomas512@gmail.com

For those of you who don't live in the area I also sell workout plans you can do on  your own!

Go Greek!

First family photo with our adorable babies! I know you're jealous of our matching shirts!

 My rambunctious 14 week old daughter has been keeping me very busy,but motherhood has been more fun than I ever could have imagined! We've shown Jordan the world over the past 14 weeks. She's traveled to Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virgina! She's been to the pool, felt the breeze from the boat on lake lanier, and touched her toes in the sand at Tybee Island beach.

Our most recent adventure took us to visit my sister, brother-in-law and sweet little nephew, Will. We had the best time watching these two kick and coo together.

"Mom I've been in this seat for 9 hours, get me out!"

Will and Jordan cheering on USA during the World Cup

My sister and I spent quality time changing diapers, cleaning up spit-up, bouncing babies, and swapping notes about nap times, breastfeeding, etc. One of my favorite moments occurred at about 4 am one morning. My breast pump wasn't working so I went into my sisters living room to use hers. To my surprise my sister was in the living room herself also pumping. I told her I needed to use her pump so she unhooked one side, handed it to me and we sat on the couch together at 4am sharing a breast pump. We looked at each and started cracking up; if you would have asked us a year ago where we saw ourselves today, I'm sure pumping breast milk at 4am together on the couch would not be on the list. The following 3 days we met for a breastfeeding/ pumping date at 4am.

Play Time!

We also did a lot of healthy cooking during our visit!
My sister always keeps Greek Yogurt in her refrigerator. If you have't familiarized yourself with the many uses of Greek yogurt I highly suggest you do so!

Greek Yogurt is a wonderful substitute for higher fat ingredients like mayonnaise, sour cream, and butter. It cuts fat and calories all the while adding protein!

While visiting we made a batch of DELICIOUS Greek yogurt strawberry muffins.

GREEK YOGURT STRAWBERRY MUFFINS

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup chopped strawberries
2 eggs ( we used 4 egg whites to cut fat and cholesterol)
1.5 cups greek yogurt
1/4 cup butter ( we substituted 1/8 cup applesaue for butter to cut fat)
1 tsp vanilla

Method:
1. In a medium mixing bowl stir together the all-purpose flour, wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, and strawberries

2. Blend remaning ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Gradually stir in dry ingredients until well combined.

3. Divide batter into 12 muffin tins and bake at 375 for 18-25 minutes.

Muffin paired with spinach and egg whites and fresh fruit

A few days ago I used Greek yogurt to make  pancakes. This easy recipe can be altered to make whatever flavor pancakes you wish! I chose to make blueberry.

BLUEBERRY PANCAKES

3/4 cup fat-free Greek yogurt, flavor of your choice
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup of fruit of your choice

This is my FAVORITE Greek Yogurt. It's only 80 calories and 7g of sugar compared to 15-20g in your other Greek Yogurts 

Method
1. In  small mixing bowl, whisk toget egg and yogurt and set aside.

2. In another bowl mix flour and baking soda. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

3. Heat greased skilet over medium heat and pour 1/4 cup batter onto skillet, add fruit and flip once.

Rock-N-Roll Abs

My biggest concern about getting back in shape postpartum was getting my tummy back in shape. I was convinced that it was going to be impossible to get my stomach back after seeing how far it stretched out! However, with a little hard work and dedication I'm on the way to getting my belly back and you can be too!

 This was me at 37 weeks pregnant! I NEVER in my wildest dreams thought I would be posting a picture like this!

This was taken yesterday at 14 weeks postpartum.


Working my abs has always been my favorite part of a workout; I was very excited to get back into my ab routine postpartum. Here is short abdominal workout that is sure the get your belly back in shape!

AB ROLLER
This exercise requires an ab wheel which can be purchased for as a little as $10. I LOVE the ab wheel!!! It targets your entire core. This is a more advanced move so you may need to work your way into a full
extension.
Place your knees on the ground and wheel in front of you. Slowly roll the wheel out as far as you can. Keeping your core tight, use your stomach muscles to pull the wheel back into starting position.

WINDSHIELD WIPERS

This exercise targets your obliques, or outer abs. Lye on your back with your legs straight and in the air, directly over your hips. In a slow, controlled motion, let your legs fall to the right until your feet are hovering just above the ground. Keeping your shoulders flat on the ground, use your stomach muscles to pull your legs back up and over to the left side. This is considered 1 rep.

SUPINE LEG LIFTS

This exercise targets your lower abs. It is performed in much of the same way as windshield wipers, except your legs are lowered in front of you instead of to the side. 

This photo was taken mid-lowering. Continue to lower your legs until your feet are hovering over the ground. If you
can't lower them that much, lower to a 45 degree angle.

CHERRY PICKERS

This is another exercise that targets your obliques. I usually perform this exercise while holding a weight, a more novice option would be performing it without a weight.

Balance yourself on your buttocks, knees bent, and feet off the ground. Using slow and controlled motions, rotate your torso to the left, and then to the right. Keep your hips facing forward and your legs as still as possible.

   

SWISS BALL JACKKNIFE

This exercise targets your lower abs and your transverse abdominis (inner abs).

Place the tops of your ankles/feet on the swiss ball while you balance your body in a plank position. Keeping your shoulders over your hands, roll your knees towards your chest, and return back to plank. 

Complete 3 sets of 15-20 reps of each exercise and you'll be well on your way to those rock hard abs!