Dynamax Workout 2.18.13

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I love when my week starts on a Tuesday and not a Monday:)  Especially since my mom and cousin are coming to the city tonight… slumber partyyyy!

I wanted to share with you what we did in Dynamax last night.  I have a whole post designated to professing my love explaining my Dynamax class and what a Dynamax workout is all about, but until I finish that, I thought I’d share this workout since it can be done in pieces and with or without equipment!  If I were you, I would swing over to the Dynamax as it has loads of tips and workouts and instructions on how to use the balls… they are my FAVORITE exercise tool right now!

Dynamax 2/18/13-

Please note that this can be done with any type of medicine ball or weight if you do not have access to a Dynamax ball. Also, if you do not have access to a partner, skip the partner work.  Instead, maybe try 1 round of the Supersets, followed by 3 rounds of the 45 second moves, and end with another round of the supersets… This workout can be done in different pairings as you wish!

Dynamax 2.18.13

And then we ran out of time:) I know some of these moves might be a little confusing, so try putting them into YouTube or going to the Dynamax website! Also, I’m always available for questions… I hope to have pictures of these moves up on the blog soon:)

Weekend Catch Up, Family Dinner, Lulu…

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Hello, hello!

How was your weekend? I really enjoyed my long weekend at home in Maine with my family! Saturday night we had a blast drinking wine and having lots of laughs. Mom always wants to know what I teach in my classes and when I showed her lunges, she wanted to show me what she does when she does lunges in class:

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Yes, she is doing the sign of the cross while lunging.  I nearly died with laughter when she showed me this.  Apparently all the Catholics in class really get a kick out of her when she does this. Haha, still laughing as I think back to that!

Anyway, Sunday we woke up to snowy, windy, COLD weather… yuck:( Mom and I went to church and then to the grocery store.  Hannaford had French Toast K-Cups- holy yum! That made the shopping process so much better!

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All my groceries for the week! Love that I can buy wine, on a Sunday at 10AM at the grocery store.

When we got home, we did lots of cooking- I made brownies and this and mom started to prep our dinner: Pork and Chicken Wellington, mashed butternut squash, fancy mashed potatoes and asparagus with roasted red peppers. Here are some pictures from the process… I wish I had a recipe for you, but neither mom or dad used one.

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While we prepped the food, a couple of my mom’s friends came over for happy hour- have I mentioned how much I love being home and with my family? I wish I made more time for “happy hours”.  We had a blast laughing and drinking delicious bubbly (what else?!) and snuggling sweet little Emma:

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I drove back down to MA relatively early today. I had to stop off at the Burlington Mall and clean the apartment before teaching tonight, so I wanted to make sure I had time for everything! I had too much fun at Lululemon… oops! I mean, the damage isn’t as bad since I get 15% off for my instructor discount, right? Shhh… that’s what I keep telling myself! Here are my goodies:

011I didn’t end up buying this water bottle, but I am totally obsessed with it.  Guilty pleasure: I love muffins. Donuts? Yuck! but muffins? I just love them so much! This water bottle is seriously perfect for me.

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I am home alone all week, except for my mom and cousin coming to spend the night tomorrow, so I spent a few hours deep cleaning. There is nothing better than a sparkly clean apartment!

012 013And, I finally did something I have been meaning to do for so so long:

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I FINALLY organized all of my workouts into a nice, organized binder:)  This makes me a happy, happy fitness instructor!

I was going to post my Dynamax workout tonight, but as this post is already ridiculously long (if you’ve made it this far, THANK YOU!), I’ll post that tomorrow!

Have a great week!

Butternut Squash, Kale and Goat Cheese Lasagna!

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Mmmm omgoodness was this delicious! I remembered reading something about a yummy lasagna over at Kath Eats Real Food, but when I was searching her blog, I couldn’t find the link. After some digging, I realized it was because I was typing in Butternut Squash lasagna and what I saw on her blog was Pumpkin and Goat Cheese Lasagna… duh! Anyway, since I had bought butternut squash and not pumpkin, I would just have to make substitutions- no big deal when cooking at the Gagnon’s!

I didn’t really follow a recipe, but here is what I ended up doing:

Ingredients:

  • Butternut squash (it was only about $.30 more to get the peeled and cubed butternut squash… no brainer there!)
  • Kale- about half of a bunch that they sell at the grocery store
  • 1- 3.5 oz. container of crumbled goat cheese
  • 3/4 cup Ricotta Cheese
  • 1 egg
  • Herbs/Seasoning: we used Italian seasoning, garlic pepper, salt, pepper and oregano-maybe 1/2-1 teaspoon of each
  • Shredded Fancy Blend cheese (about 3/4 of a cup)
  • Hodgson Mill Organic Whole Wheat Gourmet Lasagna Noodles with Milled Flax Seed (I used 5 sheets)

1. Steam butternut squash and mash once it is fully cooked.

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2. Steam kale- once the butternut squash was finished, I did a little switcheroo and used the same water/pan to steam the kale- bingo! time and dish saver!

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3. Cook noodles according to the back of the package.

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4. Mix together 1 egg, ricotta cheese and goat cheese crumbles.  Add in the herbs/seasonings of your choice.

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5. Once the noodles are finished cooking, spread a thin layer of the mashed butternut squash on the bottom of your dish. Place a layer of noodles next, and then more butternut squash.  From there, layer with kale and the egg/cheese mixture. Continue this with one more layer of squash, kale, egg/cheese and noodles. The final layer should just be squash, kale and the egg/cheese mixture.  Sprinkle some shredded cheese as the top and final layer.

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6. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until it looks cooked.  I used my parents wood stove/cook stove, so I have no idea what the temperature was… ahhh, the joys of Maine living:)

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I served mine with a simple salad. I love meals like this because not only are they healthy, they reheat really well! Can’t wait to have this for leftovers this week:)  Enjoy!

3-2-1 Strength, Cardio, Core Workout

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Hey everyone! Happy President’s Day! I didn’t have today off as a holiday, but I took it off because I was in dire need of a little break! Last week was killer so it’s nice to know this week will be a little easier:)

I wanted to share with you a workout that I taught a couple of times last week (don’t worry, at different gyms!).  Both times I taught it, I remembered why the workout is so killer: 2 min HIIT cardio drills in between strength and abs.  The glares I got were awesome. Athena, the format of this is similar to this workout that you posted a while ago.

I had my sister take photo’s of me doing the moves since some of them aren’t as common.  This workout is intense, so mind your body and take rests and modify when/if you need to.

3-2-1 Strength, Cardio, Core Workout

Each strength move is performed for 3 minutes (usually 1 minute on each side and then 1 minute of a combined move), cardio is performed for 2 minutes (2 exercises performed in 30 second increments) and the core workout is performed for 1 minute.  Choose weights and modifications as you see fit- I want you to challenge yourself, but I also want you to be safe and mindful of your body!

3-2-1 Strength, Cardio, Core workout

Let me know if you try this workout!

I am so happy I took today off because I would NOT have wanted to have driven back to MA yesterday in the weather we had.  I made a Butternut Squash, Kale and Goat Cheese lasagna and hope to post that recipe tonight so be on the lookout!

Question for you: What are your plans today? Favorite thing to make for dinner? Let me know if you try this workout!

A Super Saturday, Indeed!

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Ahhh, after a full week of work and teaching 7 fitness classes, THIS is just what I needed:

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I taught at 9 and 11 today (We killed it in my Dynamax class today- this group makes my whole week!!) and by noon time rolled around, I literally was beat!

Katharine and Macall cursing at me in Dynamax today!

Katharine and Macall cursing at me in Dynamax today!

Luckily, I was in Brighton and able to get lunch at Pizza Etc.. When I lived in Brighton, we used to order their salads (topped with the most amazing chicken- seriously, just ask Rachel) probably once a week, so whenever I am able to order them again, I always get excited. I mean, look at this thing:

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Lettuce and fresh veggies and feta topped with 4 chicken tenders! Don’t worry- it was just as good as I remembered it being:)

After I was fueled up, I hit the road and headed north. My sister went home yesterday and told me that I had to stop off in Kittery because the Gap and Banana Republic outlets were having crazy deals.  Twist my arm, will ya?  I figured that since I recently got a promotion at work, I deserved a little shopping spree.  Look at what I got!

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Banana Republic deals on the left (all of that for $62… no joke! That dress was on sale for $20!! and the other tops were all on mega sale too. I couldn’t believe it!) and Gap deals on the right (cardigan, long-sleeved top, silky work top and a nude belt- $30!). And, if that wasn’t good enough, I decided to stop by the Nike outlet, because really, as a fitness instructor, you can never have too many pairs of sneaks, right?!  SO happy I did because look at these deals:

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Yes, I bought hot pink sneakers (and lime green laces for them), but in my defense, they were $20!!!! And only the hot pink was that price so I couldn’t turn it down. The purple long-sleeved Nike top will be great for outdoor runs in the early spring and during warm up for my classes, and since my sister has been so diligent with working out (even while on the road), I got her that funky sports bra.

I would say the shopping spree was a success, right?! Hoping for a stop-off at Lululemon on my way back to MA on Monday!

I am not sure what is on the dinner agenda tonight, but tomorrow, as a congrats for my promotion, mom said we would make a “blog worthy” meal AND open her nice champagne… I can’t wait! I also plan to post a killer 3-2-1 workout tomorrow once my sister takes photo’s of me doing the moves…. I think you’re all going to like it:)

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Questions for you: Any good shopping deals lately? Anyone else enjoying the long weekend? I took Monday off and am SO happy about that decision!