Tips To Stay On Track While Traveling

Staying on track with your meals can be hard enough when you are at home, at work, or out running errands. But when you go out of town thinking about meals can be a huge headache. I've found a few ways to make staying on track while traveling a little easier. 

Hey Fit Fam,

Next week I am going to The Arnold next week for the very first time! It was watching the show on my laptop in my living room last year that I decided FOR SURE I was going to make the commitment to see how fit I could really be and start competing!

I can not wait to actually go this year and walk around the expo, spend some time with my #FitFam, maybe even meet some of my fitness idols and of course watch the competitions! I'll be there observing and dreaming, but also cheering on part of my Physique Empire team! My coach/mentor's husband is once again competing this year!! GO BRANDON CURRY!!

The only thing I dread is packing. Trying to decide what to take, how to mix and match stuff so I don't overpack and at the same time make sure I don't under pack -- it stresses me out worse than almost anything! I'm not talking about food prep either. I'm talking about just packing clothes and necessities, lol. I am a horrible packer. It's a huge downfall of mine. I've gotten better about it and hope to keep getting better! However, add in MEAL PREP and the stress is ten-fold! I will never forget the first time I tried to pack with my meals .. I thought I was going to die!!

I am not on any kind of "official" prep right now which will make things SO much easier, but I still try to only eat whole foods and measure out all of my foods (this is KEY for anyone..not just competitors.) Here are a few things I do when traveling. What food I take depends on the trip, how close I am to a show, if it is a show weekend and how long I'll be traveling. Some of these are WAY more extreme than you may need! Some may be a little to "lax" for competition travel. So pick and choose what works for you!!

First .. you will need to check with your hotel. If they have a microwave & fridge life will be easy. If they do not .. it won't. I've found most do NOT have microwaves but I've never been to a hotel that hasn't been able to provide a fridge. Why? Because they have to be able to provide MEDICAL fridges (I've been told at no cost) for those that have to refrigerate medications, etc.  Since I have Celiac Disease .. I don't feel bad about saying I need one for medical reasons. You all use your own judgement on that one :)  But another tip, I prefer to use AirBNB when possible so that I can rent a house with a kitchen! In this case, I will only pack a few of my favorite seasonings, baking necessities and 1st Phorm Protein (stuff I may not be able to find where I am going) and then I make a grocery store trip upon arrival!

Second -- Invest in a ROLLING COOLER and some sort of six pack bag. I suggest the totes or backpacks from 6 Pack Fitness because they double as your "personal item" you can take with you and you can put your laptop, etc., in them - not just food (like some of the 6pack bags.) Here is what I mean by rolling cooler.

You can get them many places. Sometimes they are hard to find when it's not "tailgate season" - but they have them online everywhere year round -- like Target, Walmart, Amazon, etc. I got mine at T.J. Maxx during tailgate season last year! I wish I had ordered one online though because there are many better ones out there. I wish I had taken the time to shop around! No matter which one you get, they are great because unlike 6pack bags (which are really designed to carry meals already prepped and portioned) these can fit TONS of food in them (if you pack like I explain below) and they can be your carry on luggage item if you are flying! Just make sure any liquids and some condiments are packed in your checked luggage instead so they don't toss it!

Assuming you have a fridge wherever you are going. Here are some suggestions!

Lean Meat Options:

Chicken:  Just bake some up in the oven or however you choose. If you are going to be on a LONG flight or LONG car ride I would suggest freezing it after you cook it.  If it's a shorter trip as long as you keep it really cool there is no need to freeze and will make life much easier (it can take a while to thaw.) The key is to put the chicken in a big ole GALLON freezer bag, not individual containers! Much easier to pack in a cooler and you can fit SO much more!!

Tuna Packets:  These are easy and require no cooking!! Just stir in some rice, seasonings and/or dressing (I love fat free italian or low sugar bbq) and you are good to go!

Pre-Made Burgers:  Same as chicken. Make ahead and freeze (if needed) and put in gallon freezer bags. You can patty these or made into ground meat. Your choice depending on how you plan to eat it.

Carton of egg whites: Always sealed & unopened so it doesn't spill everywhere. and remember this can not be put in your carry on bag because it's liquid. I take this with me so I can make my microwave mug breakfast, waffles at night, etc. However, this can be left out if it's too much of a hassle to pack. You just substitute protein powder & water in most cases! Not all protein powder bakes well without egg though... that is why I suggest 1st Phorm brand Level 1 for baking. Well .. and cause it's the best :)

Carb Options:
Sweet or Red Potato rounds:  I make these into "rounds" in the oven (like usual) and just put them in a gallon bag. They are good hot or cold. If I don't have time to prep food, I will pre wash them and them and pack whole potatoes raw and bring my microwave potato bag! Side note, you can steam veggies in the potato bag as well! I discovered that on one of my trips!! So if you wanted to bring raw veggies (great if you have no time to prep before you leave) .. there ya go!

Rice: Make ahead and put some in a container OR buy the little microwave cups! If you don't do the cups don't forget to bring a measuring cup!

Homemade Chips: I blogged about these a while back. Unlike the store bought fatty/greasy ones - these don't last very long without getting soggy/stale. But they will be good for a day or two after making! You can just make a bunch and put them in ... you guessed it .. a gallon baggie. Just put on top or somewhere else in luggage so they don't get crushed!

Veggie Options:
I roast a bunch of green beans and put in a gallon bag. They are easiest and are delish cold! So I usually just stick to green beans! Second option I go with is roasted broccoli or asparagus - also pretty good cold! I also sometimes bring some pre-cut red bell pepper.

Fruit Options:
I typically stick to bananas because they are the easiest to travel with! But I will also do apples on occasion because they are also easy to travel with. I use the fruit in my Mug Muffins, which is why I prefer banana. Can't travel with blueberries (my fave in my muffin) so this is easiest!

Other:
Seasonings - I usually pack one of my Flavor God seasonings, Cinnamon, Paprika, Baking Powder, Stevia and sugar free coffee creamer (they now make these in those little squeeze bottles which makes it so easy. if not just get the little single serving ones).
Waffle Maker - You can do many things with this aside from the obvious. Heat up chicken, make an "omelet", etc. I use it for my night time waffle that I just can't live without! I've always packed this in my carry on and never had issues.
Magic Bullet (or other small blender/processor) - Sometimes I PRE grind my oats and put them portioned out into individual sandwich bags. Other times I take the Ninja with me .. depends on how much room I have in luggage and how much time I have to "pre" prep my food before I leave. This is also good if you want to make actual smoothies instead of just protein and water in a shaker!
Ceramic Bowl (for microwave mug muffins. disposable paper plates don't work)
Food sScale and Measuring Cup/Spoon
Walden Farms Syrup (because you can't find it everywhere and it's good on everything)
Unopened Peanut Butter (if it's opened and in your carry on they MAY toss it. but i learned if you tell them it's for dietary reasons they will instead "test" it with their little wand)
Almonds or other healthy nuts 
Extra Container(s) (for when you portion out your meals)
Plastic Utensils 
1st Phorm Protein (usually portioned into bags so I don't have to pack the big container)
Quest Bars or other healthy meal replacement bar
Rice Cakes


If you DO NOT have a fridge here are a few things I would suggest packing these staples
Rice Cakes
Peanut Butter
Almonds/Nuts
Packets of Tuna
Brown Rice Crackers (these would be good with your tuna)
1st Phorm Protein Powder & Shaker (for a shake or also to stir into your oats. most hotels have plain oats on their menu, so if you add this you have a more compete meal)
Quest Bars (or other good meal replacement bars)
Seasonings/Dressings -- so you can order food out. Ask for it PLAIN, baked/steamed, with no butter, no oil, no seasonings and just add your own seasonings/dressings.
Fruit

Couple of travel notes. I have NEVER had problems with my "gel packs" when traveling -- even out of the country. But I've seen where MANY people have. Not sure why as long as it's FROZEN solid! If they tried to toss them, I personally would and ask for a supervisor before you just say okay and let them. Most the time if you stress you have dietary needs and have to travel with food .. this won't be a problem. But if this is a concern or you don't want to deal with the possible hassle ... just freeze ALL of your food! Or you can not freeze it and bring some empty baggies or containers and as soon as you get past security .. go get some ice and then pack it in!

That said. Freezing your food really is the safest route. But it really just depends on travel time. If your on a short flight or short car ride and have lots of ice packs in your bag (and aren't opening it up a lot) you don't really need to (unless you are afraid they will toss your ice packs.) If it's a long flight or car ride you should freeze it to be safe. BUT that is where it gets tricky. It seems to take forever to thaw in a fridge! In fact, I had to eat 1/2 frozen chicken at Olympia last year! My room didn't have a microwave and I was fine with eating COLD food .. but not frozen!!! But guess what worked pretty well ... a HAIRDRYER!!!! I had my waffle maker with me and at that time didn't think about using it. But totally could have!!

I put all the "food" in the rolling cooler and then I put the meals I need for the day already portioned in my 6 pack bag. Those are my two "carry on" items! I keep my seasonings, coffee creamer, stevia, etc.,  and at least one power bar (in case my flight is delayed) in that carry on bag as well and then pack all the other stuff, specifically condiments over the allowed ounces, in my checked bags.

These are all tips for traveling WITHIN THE U.S. The only time I've ever had food thrown away was when I arrived in Mexico. I had one meal left in my 6 pack bag and they tossed it at customs (they tossed my cooked fish and veggies, but didn't toss any of my protein or bars.) If you are traveling out of the country you will need to finish all your food on your flight! Also remember that eery country has different rules as to what food is/is not allowed to be brought in and brought out .. so you will want to check before you travel! I can't help you there :) I usually just pack a few sealed basics and take the grocery store route when traveling out of the country!

Hope this helps in your quest to travel clean!! If you have any tips to add ... please comment below!!!

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Shocking Video of Young Homeless Boy Being Ignored

I often post about eating 6 times a day and how crucial that is to live a healthy lifestyle, which makes this blog topic even more heartbreaking. Did you know that in 2013, 14% of households were "food insecure" and in Tennessee that number is even higher at 17.4%?! In January 2014, statistics were released that say 578,424 people experienced homelessness on any given night in the United States. 

Hey Fit Fam,

As I visited my usual sites and did my typical google searches this morning to try and find what "hot topics" were happening in health and fitness, I came across something that is far more important than any exercise, recipe, health study, or entertainment happenings that I could write about today.

I don't watch much TV when I am home during the day, but I do have the tube on in the background while I blog, research, job search, meal prep, clean, etc. This morning a video was playing that quickly got my attention. It appeared to be cell phone footage that someone randomly captured of a very young homeless boy standing in 5 degree weather in New York, wearing only a torn t-shirt and no shoes, asking for "help". Check it out yourself before you read any more of this post. Trust me and watch it all. Not just some of it.

Heartbreaking....right? While this wasn't a random cell phone video, it was a social experiment, the reactions from people were VERY real. I have bawled my eyes out over this!! Obviously because it is touching, but also because it hit me that I am not sure what I would have done? Do you know what you would have done?? Would I have just walked by, would I have given him money, would I have talked to him, would I have gone and bought him a coat and blanket? We are so accustomed to people "faking it", or always looking for a "handout" when they don't really need one or COULD make money if they wanted to, that we tend to write off everyone we see begging for a buck.

I think I would have at least stopped and talked with him to get a better read and then gone and bought some warm clothes and a warm meal. Heck, one day I went and bought a guy a beer simply because his sign said "I'm not gonna lie. I want money for a beer." I respected his HONESTY!!!!

But can we really judge people that just walked by? We are so used to seeing people on every corner begging for money, work, etc.  It's sad that the "bad apples" have to ruin it for people that are really in need.

Either way, I challenge my #FitFam to find a way to give back during these cold winter days we are having. If our good deed wasn't really needed.. at least God will smile down on our actions!

#SpeakBeautiful, 
Stacy

Recipe: Creamy Avocado Carb Free Pasta

A virtually no carb, low calorie, low fat, healthy, creamy, very tasty pasta dish? Sounds too good to be true, but in this case it is not! 

Hey Fit Fam,

In no way am I telling you that you should eat meals that are carb free. You all know I love my quality low/moderate GI complex carbs, eat them all day long and encourage everyone of all fitness levels to do the same! Most low carb "diets" can not only be dangerous, they are totally counter productive. You need carbs to grown beautiful lean muscle and sculpt your body! Please understand that carbs are not the enemy! It makes my heart hurt when people tell me that trainers or nutritionists encourage them to eat virtually no carbs. Carbs are not what make us "fat" -- overeating and eating the wrong carbs are what is bad!

That said, a bowl full of noodles just isn't always realistic. For me this is especially true because I eat small meals every 2.5 to 3 hours. Even healthy pastas (brown rice/quinoa) are very high in carbs, so in order to get "full" I would have to have more than I could allow myself at ONE meal. For that reason, if I were going to have real pasta, I'd rather save it for a splurge meal and carb up with as big ole' bowl full!

For a long time I cooked my yummy "Broccoli Slaw Pasta". I've also tried spaghetti squash and zoodles (zucchini noodles) and they are all great, but my pasta game was changed when I found Miracle Noodles. They literally have ZERO macros down the nutrition line. They add NOTHING to your daily count. So I can eat 3-4 ounces (or more if I really wanted) of it and then still pile my bowl full of veggies - such as mushrooms, zucchini, asparagus, red bell peppers, sugar snap peas, etc. The list of veggies is endless!!! All of those veggies do have carbs, they are just fibrous carbs (different than complex carbs like rice, potatoes, etc.)

I reserve this meal for late in the day, usually my meal 5. Why? Well, sometimes I taper my "real carbs" off throughout the day, but sometimes I don't. It really depends on the day and honestly I've tried doing this both ways and have noticed ZERO difference in terms of the way my body looks.  I simply find that I need energy more earlier in the day and closer to my workouts, so I use up most of my real carbs for the day in Meals 1-4 and my pre/post 1st phorm workout supplements. Then for Meal 5... I usually try to get all my carbs from veggies (sometimes I'll throw in a small serving of sweet potato if I haven't hit my macros that day) and for my last meal (6) I never have "carbs" so to speak. I always have a 1st Phorm Level 1 creation, which tastes like sinful carbs - but isn't.

For those of you that do not follow me on Instagram or haven't read up on all my Recipes here on the Blog, the waffle is just the 1st Phorm Level 1 Protein, little bit of baking powder and an egg white mixed up and poured into a waffle maker! You can also put it in a mug and make a mug cake, skip the egg and baking soda and make "pudding", or even add a little Xanthan Gum and pop it in the freezer and have yourself some ice cream!! Protein creations are ENDLESS!! For my nightly waffle, I top it off with some Walden Farms pancake syrup (only that brand) and a little healthy fat .. usually 1tbs of nut butter! I save some of my healthy fats for Meal 6 because healthy fats are great to have before bed. But, if you can't have the nut butter, I am in love with making "icings" out of Kroger Carbmaster Vanilla Yogurt (just 1-2 tbs, not all of it) mixed with just a pinch of any powdered peanut butter. While PB2 is good .. the creations you can make yourself on MY OATMEAL are much better! I made one called Peanut Butter Cookie Dough ... yummmmmy! You can also save a little bit of your protein powder and mix it in the yogurt! So many options!! Sorry to go off topic, it just gets me so excited, lol!

Back to Miracle Noodle Pasta. If you wanted to have some carbs in the meal that you have your Miracle Noodles, you can always add some in (black beans would be great.) Miracle Noodles can be cooked in a skillet too to make great "asian" type dishes! How yummy would they be with a homemade peanut sauce, peppers, a veggie and onions!! Speaking of homemade peanut sauce .. I am posting one soon! It's super simple!

Now, lets talk about sauces. This is where it gets tricky and could make or break you! Turn over those jars you buy in the store .. HORRIBLE! They are usually packed with calories, fat, sugar and carbs! Another reason I save "real" pasta dishes for my splurge meal!  The "sauce" I choose on my daily wellness plan depends on what I make my Miracle Noodles with.  Here are my two favorites!

Creamy Avocado Sauce (per serving) 
1 oz smashed ripe avocado
1+ tablespoon light plain greek yogurt
Lemon juice to mix/taste
Flavor God Garlic Lovers Seasoning (or garlic salt is okay)
Pepper to taste

You can blend this in a ninja, but if the avocado is ripe enough you can just use a spoon to mash/mix! Much less mess! Taste it when you are done and add more spices as needed! I go easy on everything (especially the yogurt) at first and add more as needed. This won't look like much, but trust me, it will coat everything well (as long as you aren't going overboard on your servings .. I stick with 3-4oz of the noodles, 3-4oz meat, 1/2 cup zucchini, 1/4 cup peppers, 1oz mushrooms, etc.)

Tomato Olive Oil Basil (per serving) 
1/4 cup crushed tomato (I use the one that is all natural with the lowest sugar/carbs I can find)
Spices (I use Flavor God Garlic Lovers and some extra basil)
Olive Oil -- I just use about 1 teaspoon (depending on my fat needs for the day) and you do NOT want to cook this. You want to just pour this on after cooking! Heating olive oil can actually pull out the nutrients!

As for how to prepare this recipe, you can make it all in one skillet if you wanted, but that is WAY harder in my opinion. I meal prep everything at one time. So I map out my foods for the week and then make enough veggies, miracle noodles, meat, etc., for a few days and put in individual containers, that way I can mix up my foods to keep from getting bored. It's a way you can eat the same things everyday, but in different ways if you want!!

I didn't mention it above, but of course don't forget your lean meat in this recipe! I use ground extra lean turkey, extra lean beef, or just baked chicken cut into small pieces or shredded! Ground turkey is my favorite in this particular dish!

One last thing. The noodles STINK!!!! They smell like ... fishy water. Just follow the instructions on the packet .. promise that is not what they will taste like! They honestly don't have much "flavor" but the texture is what we miss when we crave pasta anyway!

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Dove Encourages Us to #SpeakBeautiful

Women wrote over 5 million negative beauty tweets in 2014. The word ugly was used over 22,000 times in just an hour-and-a-half tonight and was used 34,838 during the Oscars red carpet alone! But we aren't just tweeting negative things about each other. 4 out of 5 negative beauty tweets are from women writing about themselves. Dove wants to change that. 

As I watched The Oscars last night, the thing that got my attention the most wasn't who won for what, who looked the best on the Red Carpet, or even Lady GaGa's red gloves, lol. It was the Dove commercial and their #SpeakBeautiful campaign that wowed me. If you didn't see it -- here it is.

Dove has teamed up with Twitter for the #SpeakBeautiful campaign. The idea is simple. One positive tweet can start a trend. They asked you to post at least one positive tweet. It could be to a friend, about yourself or just something positive in general.

I have chills just writing about this. Social media has made so many people more bitter, hateful and negative. Well, maybe they are always that way, but social media has given us a place to express that negativity. I'm not going to lie and say I've never posted anything negative. I am guilty as well. Even during award shows I live tweet and am known to post if I don't like a "look" or if something sounds bad, etc. Of course I don't mean for it to be negative, I usually try to post with humor, but this campaign sure has me thinking. I even feel bad for tweeting last night that I don't get the Adam Levine obsession because I like men with muscles. I of course didn't mean for that to be negative and wasn't bashing his skinnier frame, I was just trying to say it's not my preferred look. It did have a positive spin since I talked about how hot my husband is, that was a positive tweet :)

The bottom line is .. our words matter. I try to be positive and motivating. But we can all try harder. I don't have a problem complimenting others and while I don't "put myself down" ... I also never compliment myself and am horrible about accepting complements. So, I am joining in on the #SpeakBeautiful movement and I hope you do too!

This isn't easy for me, but here are my compliments to myself :) What are YOUR compliments to YOURSELF?

* I love my loyalty. When I am loyal .. I am loyal.
* I love my determination. It's rare you will ever see me "give up" at something.
* I love my booty. I've worked hard for it! I may have some genetics, but that backside took WORK.
* I love my eye color. Not exactly green, not exactly hazel ... they are unique and mine.
* I love my shoulders. They showcase the handwork I put in day in and day out at the gym.
* I love my hands .. they remind me of my mammaw.

Because this campaign isn't just about speaking beautiful about yourself, here are my compliments to some other lovely people in my life!! I love you all!!

*Melissa Fleming: I admire your strength. You have been given hardships no one should ever be given and still have a smile on your face.
*Sue Bray: I admire your faith. Because of you I always repeat to myself in times of doubt "remember whose you are."
*Doug Green: I admire your work ethic. I've never met someone as honorable and hard working as you are. Thank you for being the glue that holds our household together.
*Brandy Leaver: You are a "super mom" and I can only hope if God wants me to have a child one day that I can be 1/2 the mother that you are. I admire the healthy values you teach your children.
*Lisa Weathers: You are so positive and thoughtful. You are a such a light to others.
*Lindsey Langley: You literally live each day with the mentality that I TRY to live by .. which is never settle. As you know, I not only vote you for Nashville Mayor .. but actually President :)
*Stephanie Langston: I admire how you somehow manage to "do it all" - you did this before motherhood and now even as a mom still manage to literally DO IT ALL! I don't know how!
*Laura Sweeney: I am in love with your heart. It is so pure, so real, so full of love. It is one the most beautiful one I have ever known. I am blessed to be one of your bests.
*Rod Youree: I respect you as a friend. You are pretty much the only person my husband and I know that would drop everything to help us out. Loyalty is hard to find and loyal you are my friend!
*Brian Sullivan: You are the only person I know that is literally everyones friend. You don't know a stranger and I'm certain don't have an enemy. We should all aim to live more free .. more "sully" like.
* Joy Green-Hadden: You not only get the "mother in law award (I won the mother-in-law jackpot y'all) ... you are your name. You seriously spill out JOY to everyone around you. Thank you for being so positive!

There is beauty all around us. Find it. Talk about it.
Stacy

Muscles & Music: Getting "Fancy"

Hey Fit Fam,

In this edition of Muscles & Music I'm getting a little "fancy" with my delt work!

I had Iggy Azalea cranked up loud! I love working out to "The New Classic" album. I always hit repeat when "Fancy", "Work" and "Bounce" come on :) I've been an Iggy fan well before the rest of the world really knew who she was. I can remember begging my husband to bring her to his club (that is how long I've loved her, when she was still playing smaller night clubs) but she blew up before he could book her!

I primarily trained Shoulders on this day, but I also did a couple of supersets of triceps at the end of my workout. The key to a successful shoulder day is making sure you are working ALL parts of your delta (front, rear & side) -- this video demo is three of the exercises that I incorporated into this particular shoulder day. I ALWAYS mix up my workouts, but no matter what I always work every single part of the shoulder! That is very important and one of the biggest mistakes I see beginners make. You can't just do shoulder press or lateral raises and expect to have great shoulders!

As usual, my workout was fueld by 1st Phorm. My pre-workout for this day was a 1/2 scoop of Juicy Watermelon Phormula-1 and a serving of Alphasurge DRV.

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Cryotherapy Promises to Freeze You Skinny

Is ice cold the key to a hot body? That's the promise of a fitness fad that elite athletes and celebrities are freezing their "assets" off for. 

It is cold here in Nashville. In fact, wind chills are well below zero this morning. I know many of my readers "up north" are used to this kind of cold, but here in Tennessee we are not and are more than ready for winter to get out of here!

No matter where you live, I don't know many people that enjoy standing in freezing temperatures, but some people are actually paying to stand in SUBFREEZING temperatures because they are being told that it will help boost their metabolism and stimulate anti-inflammatory proteins that will reduce soreness and muscle damage. Some advocates are taking it as far as advertising you can burn up to 800 calories in less than 3 minutes.

Here is how it goes down. It seems there are several different methods, but here is how one of them works. Patients are put you in socks, mittens and workout shorts. You stand in this chamber, you are flash frozen for a couple minuets and then they warm you back up with a 10 minute moderate intensity cardio on a treadmill or elliptical trainer. The theory is that the frigid cloud of nitrogen blasted into the chamber tricks your body into think it's in danger (that you may die is actually how one described it), so the brain sends a signal to the rest of the body to rush blood to your core for protection, increasing body heat (your metabolism). After it is all over, enriched blood rushes back through your body boosting immunity, cell renewal and natural pain relief.

Want the truth .. in my unprofessional and just common sense opinion? You are paying 80+ bucks for a high tech ice bath. For decades, athletes have taken ice baths and this whole body cryo is just a fancy version that according to proponents simply works faster and better. I can totally see why elite athletes, such as  Kobe Bryant who is allegedly a fan, would want to do this. But does it work? Well the opinions are very mixed, but at least one study proved it didn't improve soreness or performance.

What really bothers me about this is that many are taking this "gimmick" one step further (in what I can assume is an attempt to attract the "everyday" dieter) by claiming they can spot reduce and "freeze fat away" on certain spots of your body. The bigger the claim - the bigger the price tag as well. From what I'm seeing, these "treatments" are running $1500+. There are many names circulating out there, from CoolSculpting, to Lipoglaze, Zeltiq therapy and more. They chill these trouble spots for about an hour and claim that these sessions result in a reduction of fat thickness. People may be especially curious about this since the FDA has approved Ziltiq. Keep in mind just because the FDA says it's "safe" .. doesn't mean it works!

I'm not saying if freezing yourself does or doesn't work. That is for you to research and decide. What I'm trying to tell you is that if you want to boost your metabolism and reduce soreness, then why not follow these no gimmick tips .. for free!

Ways To Boost Your Metabolism

* Drink Green Tea - I drink at least 2 cups a day. I love adding Essential Oils to mine to add even more health benefits! My favorite oils to add are Peppermint and Cinnamon Bark!
* Get Spicy -- Spices can rev metabolism! Cayenne Pepper is a great one! My favorite is to make my own Low Sugar Cayenne Pepper Ketchup! I also love adding Jalepeno to my extra lean turkey burgers!
* Eat small/healthy meals every 3 hours.
* Strength Training
* Omega 3's - either from food or a supplement.
* Don't go "low cal". You need to eat enough to AT LEAST match your resting metabolic rate. Don't know what that is? You really need to! It's a huge help! Check out the Bod Pod. 
* Ginger - Add to your cooking. I use doTERRA Ginger oil (add to foods after it's cooked as the heat will kill the benefits if you cook WITH it. This is true for Olive Oil as well folks.)
* Grapefruit - I eat 1/2 of a medium one everyday.
* Cinnamon - I use this on a minimum of 3 meals a day.
* Paprika - I use this on meals that I am not using Cinnamon.


Ways To Reduce Soreness and Muscle Damage 

* Foam Rolling - I found my foam roller on Amazon for like $10 bucks. There are tons of videos online that can guide you to all things "rolling".
* Stretching - I have found my best stretches on www.bodybuilding.com 
* Glutamine - If your protein does't include it already. Buy some and add it both pre/post workout! If you are really sore .. take more before bed!
* BCAA's (1st Phorm Phormula-1 Protein has amino acids already added. So one less thing to buy)
* Joint Repair - Have inflammation in your joints? 1st Phorm Joint Mobility is amazing!
* Starbucks - Or whatever coffee you choose. Studies show that drinking coffee prior to working out cut muscle soreness and fatigue by half!
* Essential Oils - I'm telling ya people, doTERRA oils work!  I would be happy to help customize which ones would be best for your aches & pains.
* Get a nice deep tissue massage. I mean if you are willing to pay 80+ bucks to freeze yourself for 3 min, why not pay that same money for a 60-90 minute relaxing massage?! This makes much more sense to me. Of course they have their own oils they use. But I like to take doTERRA "Deep Blue" with me and ask them to add it to theirs! You can ask me how to order or just click on shop on my doTERRA page .

There are so many more, but I hope these tips help! As for this "freezing fat away", it's up to you folks. Just always ask yourself if something is "too good to be true" -- you know the rule :)

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Today is Doom Day for New Years Fitness Resolutions

Hey Fit Fam,

Here in Nashville gyms will likely be pretty packed today since the ice and snow is finally melting and anyone that has been "stranded" at home will finally be able to venture out! But statistically today is actually the day that people throw in the towel on their new years fitness resolutions.

Gold's Gym did a study and found that on February 18th gym member check-ins nose dive. Some of us here in Tennessee may have gotten a head start on that date, using the snow/ice as an "excuse" to go ahead and give up, but that doesn't mean you have to become a statistic! I love this quote circulating on the internet. It's so true.

I actually find the results of this study a little bit shocking. If you have been sticking to a good/non-restricitve plan ... 6 weeks is enough time to really see some pretty decent results and it's usually when people start seeing results they become a little more addicted and want to go harder. I guess people just lose site of their goals quickly? Maybe it's because they aren't seeing results fast enough? Maybe it's because they are bored? Maybe it's because they have no will power? Or maybe it's just because they aren't really committed to the LIFESTYLE.  Either way, today is the day people statistically go back to their old habits. So if you make it past Feb 18th you are being the odds! Congrats .... keep going!!! If you are one of the folks that are walking the line of becoming part of this statistic, try going harder for just one more week. Give yourself another chance .. you deserve it!! If your "ways" aren't working, instead of just giving up, maybe it is jus time to start researching some new methods!

Here are a few tips to help you get over this "hump day" :)

• Remember why you started! Think back to that feeling of WHY you wanted to be a better you. This isn't a race. There is NO "30 day fix" or "45 day plan" .. your goal should not have an expiration date. This is a LIFESTYLE! 
• Talk about your resolution. The more you let people know you are STILL on this journey, the more likely you are to stick with it because you have more people to "answer to" so to speak. I prefer to say more people "looking up to you" because you NEVER KNOW who you are inspiring! 
• Give yourself an off day (two max) to "reset" and get your mind right ... but do not give up! 
• Change up your gym routine. Make it fun and different so you want to lift! For example, I always break up body parts the same way. Next week I plan to change that and even plan on ditching the gym for a week in the near future and doing a full week of different "classes" around town! 
• If you haven't already, ditch the boring cardio and register for some type of group exercise! 
• Download some new workout music! I've just started my Muscles & Music workout demo series! I hope to give you all great ideas for not only new exercises, but music that will get you moving! 
• Add some new foods to your "diet". Oh .. and stop calling it a diet!!! The goal is LONG TERM HEALTH! So if you are on that low carb bandwagon .. get off it. Have some yummy baked sweet potatoes or steamed rice with dinner tonight! Or try one of my "comfort food" modified recipes! If you are bored with your morning egg whites .. what rock are you hiding under? Why haven't you used my "basic batter base" to create a mug muffin, pancake or waffle!!! Trust me on this one. I could eat them for all 6 of my meals! 
• Seek support. If you have been doing this alone you may simply need a friend. Post something on Facebook asking if anyone wants to be your "accountability buddy", talk your partner into joining you if they aren't already and if none of that works there are actually phone apps that offer support! 
• You may feel let down right now, but just think about how AWESOME you will feel come Summer and you can proudly wear sleeveless shirts and shorts and yes .. a bikini :) If you give up now you WILL regret it! 
• Reward yourself once you reach a specific goal. But instead of setting goal "date" to fit into a certain outfit or reach a certain body fat percentage, just tell yourself once you do get there you will get a reward. By the way, I refuse to say when you reach a number on the scale because if you are GAINING muscle while losing fat .. the scale will not be a true representation. Don't let this reward be FOOD. Book that vacation, buy the shoes, go swimsuit shopping, etc.

You can do this!!! While I don't have my personally training or nutrition certifications (yet) .. I am here for you all!! I promise to be your biggest cheerleader and answer any questions you have! Just comment below or connect with me on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter!

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

"Modified" Snow Day Comfort Foods

Hey Fit Fam ..

Here in Nashville we were hoping for the biggest snow we've had in over a decade, but we ended up getting a little bit of snow and lots of ice/sleet/freezing rain. Either way ... we are "iced in" and enjoying an extended weekend!

When it is cold, or you are snowed in, people tend to reach for "comfort" type foods. I've seen every bad food you can imagine on my social media feed. Does it make me want to eat it ... YES!! Am I going to ... NO!! I had my cheat meal on Saturday for Valentine's Day, so it's too soon to have another one :-( But I can have a "clean cheat" since I'm not on any kind of official prep anytime soon, so that is what I'm going to post for you guys today!

By the way, my "clean cheats" could very easily be everyday clean meals for others! It's just that for me, anything off the "meal plan" I have given myself IS a (clean) cheat! That said, most of these recipes will totally fit into daily macros for someone not as strict as I am! I just always prefer to have my protein from one source, carb from one source, etc. It's easier to measure this way. So for example if you have a typical "Chili" (even made healthy), that one meal could be 3 different carbs sources in one meal (beans, cornbread, tomato sauce -- all carb sources.)

We can always "find" and excuse to eat bad and cold days at home certainly make us want comfort foods! Sometimes its fun to indulge on these days, other times it may be "tradition" to make something on a "snow day" and THAT IS FINE!! We must live a little, right?! Just another reason you should really try to be CONSISTENT year round! If you never fall off (except for your weekly splurge), you can enjoy a little "extra" when the occasion arises  -- such as bad weather! But it is important that you just have it one time and MOVE ON! Since it looks like we may be iced in for a few days, it could be VERY tempting to "fall off" the entire time you are stuck at home. So here are some great options for "clean cheats" so you can have your comfort foods in a modified way!

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Snow Day Chili 
(This would make 4 servings for me and this particular "chili" would actually even be 100% contest prep friendly.)

1 lb Extra Lean Ground Beef or Turkey
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Coriander
1/2-1 tsp Cayenne (optional .. I like spicy)
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder (I prefer Garlic Lovers by Flavor God)
1/2 cup Prepared Salsa
Salt & Pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan combine the meat and all spices. When meat is cooked .. add salsa. Simmer for 5 min.

Garnish with -- red onion, cilantro, low fat shredded cheese, etc :) Certainly not you typical soupy chili -- but still delicious!

This Chili recipe is basically NO carb and you know that I am a stickler for having carbs at most your meals. So I would likely add a serving of beans into each bowl (portioned out and added after I'v measured out my chili, otherwise I wouldn't be able to properly measure how many beans I am getting "per bowl) ... or a side of sweet potato rounds ... or in off season  I'm hoping to try some Protein Powder Cornbread!! Here is the recipe for it! I've not tried it yet and would personally omit the honey. This would also mean that I'm adding about 10 grams of protein to my meal. So I would eat less chili to keep my macros where they need to be. Or I could possibly OMIT the protein powder in the recipe below .. just not sure how it would turn out! The cornbread per slice has about 10 grams Protein, 20 carbs and 140 Calories (depending on brand of protein you use, if you omit honey, etc)

In one bowl mix the following -- wet ingredients 1st
1/2 cup milk of choice (skim if you aren't as worried about macros .. unsweetened almond if you are)
1 Large Egg (I am wondering if 2 egg whites would work)
1 tbs honey
10 drops Liquid Stevia (or a couple packs)
1/4 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce
1 cup plain ff greek yogurt (i would try to find light since greek yogurt is still high in carbs/sugar usually)
1/4 Cup Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (made into flour)
Pinch of salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder (Phormula 1 or Level 1 by 1st Phorm)
3/4 Cup Cornmeal

Mix Well
Coat baking dish with nonstick cooking spray
Pour mix into pan
Bake at 425 till done (15-20min)

Snow Day Pizza
I actually have SEVERAL pizza recipes on the blog. HERE is one for Meat Crust Pizza. HERE Is one for a Brown Rice Tortilla version. You can also use Corn Tortillas if you don't have any brown rice tortillas .. they just want be as "clean" in my opinion. Those that can have Gluten have MANY more "clean" options for the pizza base. There are tons of whole wheat, whole grain, low carb, etc., pitas or tortillas out there! My husband always uses a couple of low carb italian flat breads! I am envious .. however my brown rice frozen Whole Foods ones will have to do!

If you head to Pinterest you will find tons of healthy pizza recipes... such as Cauliflower Pizza. However, I have found the amounts of cheese and egg many add in make them anything but "healthy." So just be smart and MODIFY even more than what they have listed!

In the brown rice tortilla recipe that I linked ... you will see that I did a "classic" pizza. Since then I have discovered Flavor God Seasonings. He came out with a seasonal one that is PIZZA flavored and it is UNREAL!! He won't have that available for purchase again for a while, but the garlic lovers would work great as well! These are BY FAR my favorite seasonings!

Recently I tried this pizza variation and it was so good! Just think of any healthy toppings you like on pizza and make it your own! Just make sure and measure everything out!

*low sugar/low carb BBQ sauce (not all bbq is equal. most is filled with cals/carbs/sugar)
*low fat mozzarella cheese
*Cooked shredded Baked Ckn (or just cut up baked ckn)
*Cilantro
*Red Onion
*Flavor God Pizza Seasoning

All I do is take a little olive oil spray and get my base a little crispy on the stove. Then I just put all ingredients on the "pizza" and put it in the oven until toppings are melted! Oven temps vary .. 375 should do the trick!

Another "Snack" type pizza I have made in the past is a little less "clean", but is easy and requires NO cooking (if your power goes out.) 

Rice Cake Pizzas
Plain Rice Cakes (I prefer low sodium)
Pizza Sauce (low carb/sugar)
Turkey Pepperoni (or whatever you desire)
Low Fat Mozzarella Cheese

Just put the toppings on the rice cakes and enjoy! These are SOOOOOO good!!!!!

Snow Day Sandwich  & Chips 
Ezekiel Bread is the bread of choice for the #FitFam. So if you are going to have bread always go with that one! Celiac keeps me from being able to have it. I've found a couple gluten free breads that are "okay" but nothing I would have on a daily basis as part of a "meal plan" -- which makes this a "clean cheat" for me for sure. I just look for ones that are primarily brown rice if possible.

You can use shredded chicken as your sandwich meat, but if you want to use deli meat ONLY USE natural ones that are free of nitrates, etc. I use AppleGate Herbed Turkey.

1/2 serving of low fat THIN Swiss Cheese (you don't need a full slice. modify, modify, modify)

Spinach (made in the pan with some olive oil spray)

Spicy Brown Mustard

I just make it like a grilled cheese using olive oil spray and a TINY bit of smart balance butter or olive oil on the bread.

I have mine with a side of Quest Chips (because the serving of sandwich meat doesn't have enough protein for me and I've already had my carbs from the bread.) If you can have more carbs, or if maybe you can make your sandwich with only one piece of bread, you can make chips at home! You can find plenty of recipes HERE. In that blog entry I state that I haven't tried the "Microwaved" version. Since then I bought the Microwave Chip trays. THIS IS A MUST! It is SO easy, requires NOTHING but a potato (sweet or red is all I use) and whatever seasoning you want. No oil .. nothing! I have them every single day!! I believe the trays come with instructions, but you just slice the potato, put in a single layer on the tray (I got mine at Bed, Bath & Beyond) add seasonings and microwave! Time varies .. for 2 trays stacked on top of each other it's around 6min in my microwave. But CHECK THEM after at least 5min. Even 10 seconds too long and they WILL burn!

Snow Day Soups
While I LOVE a bowl of Chili or Veggie Beef Stew and would give ANYTHING to have some of my late Granny's "Brown Beans" ... I am not a big soup person. I don't find soup very filling and even most "healthy" soup recipes are FILLED with creamy bases or have numerous carb sources in them. They just aren't balanced at all. Soup is a "comfort food" many crave when it's cold outside, so I found some recipes for you! HERE is a webpage that has a few great soups that are LIGHTER than normal and HERE is another.  However, I would suggest really studying the recipes and seeing how you can modify them even more since some of them really aren't "healthy" at all. For example, one of the Chicken Noodle Soup recipes calls for Chicken Thighs and Egg Noodles.  No way I'd do that. Just shred some baked chicken and maybe use some brown rice noodles or quinoa pasta! A couple others have dumplings in them and use an all purpose flour. I would see if it's possible to substitute a healthier flour (like coconut, almond, etc.) Some call for Tortilla Chips. Trader Joes has a great baked blue corn tortilla with really great macros! You just have to use your brain a little and think outside the box :)

Hot Chocolate
This is an easy one! Just mix in ONE SCOOP of 1st Phorm Level-1 or Phormula11 Chocolate Protein and a little stevia if you want it sweeter .. stir and YUMMMM!!!

If you don't want to do Protein Powder .. you can also use Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, Stevia and Unsweetened Cocoa Powder!

Apple Cider 
I just posted an AMAZING recipe for this the other day. It's actually TEA and is my favorite! You can find it HERE.

Muscles & Music: Swolemate Edition (Couples Sit-Ups)

Hey Fit Fam,

Happy Valentines Day!!! In this segment of Muscles & Music I talk about a Pandora channel specifically for your "cardio at home" tonight (lol) and also demo a fun sit up you can do with your #swolemate 😍 Enjoy!!!

Eat Clean. Train Dirty. 

Stacy

Health & Fitness News: Wearing Yoga Pants In Public Should Be Illegal

"It should be illegal to look that good" may have a new meaning for the #FitFam.

Let's face it, most of us ladies live in "yoga type pants", but if one Montana lawmaker has his way we could be in trouble... literally! While this is in Montana, I wouldn't be surprised of some Southern lawmaker here in Tennessee would pull a similar stunt.

According to the Associated Press, Rep. David Moore wants to tighten indecent exposure laws to include any clothes that "give the appearance of a persons buttocks, genitals, pelvis, or female nipple."

The retired professor drafted the bill after a group of naked bicyclists rode through the city of Missoula last summer. It doesn't look to have much of a chance though. A Montana legislative panel moved to kill the indecent exposure bill.

While it makes for great headlines, yoga pants were not specifically the target. However one article states that Mr. Moore said they could be included and that he wouldn't have a problem if people wearing form fitted pants in public were arrested.

Is this real life? First of all this bill is way too vague. There are many articles of clothing I can think of that would fall under this "expanded indecent exposure" category (some rightfully so), so the likelihood of this passing is slim to none.

I certainly agree that some people should not be wearing our form fitted friends without a long shirt, but illegal? Sandals with socks .. THAT should be illegal. Leave our compression pants alone!

Entertainment News: Drake Drops New Album Out of Nowhere

In the middle of the night music fans got a nice surprise! Drake released a full studio album called - If You're Reading This, It's Too Late. 

Maybe the project wasn't totally unexpected. Rumors have been circulating for some time that he was going to release a free mixtape. The surprise is that it's not a free mixtape. It's a full 17 track album and is available for you to purchase on ITunes .. now! 

Fans have kind of been on watch since this morning when Drake released bits of the new music in a 14 min short film called Jungle about the price of fame and the point of life. The film features bits of the new music.

Jungle is the title of one of the 17 tracks. It also features collaborations with PARTYNEXTDOOR, Lil Wayne and Travi$ Scott.

We are listening to his new body of work here at our house and I can tell you that it certainly seems to be a very nice surprise indeed!

Chicken & Sweet Taters Never Tasted So Good -- Lynchburg Whiskey Cinnamon Chipotle Rub

Hey Fit Fam ...

All I can say is .. you are welcome :)

I saw this line of Lynchburg Whiskey Seasonings the last time I went to Kroger. Zero macros pretty much all the way down the Nutrition label and the sodium isn't HORRIBLE either?! How in the world could those macros be correct?! I did a triple take that is for sure!!!

At around 5-7 bucks a pop ... I could only get one. I think I stood there for 10min trying to decide, lol. I went with the Cinnamon Chipotle Rub and I am so glad I did! One of my favorite meals is chicken with sweet potatoes. I always put Cinnamon on both (yes, it's yummy on chicken) and so I knew this would be good .. but I had no idea it would be as amazing as it was! Talk about a serious taste bud party going on in my mouth! It was pretty sweet but not really not spicy at all. I love spicy - but this was the perfect mix! I've used it every day since I bought it last week! I can not wait to try all the others!

Two thumbs up on this one for sure!! Like I said, I found it at my local Kroger, but I know some stores carry items and others don't. So I found it online on a few different websites! You can obviously google it yourself and see if you can find better deals. Amazon had some as well, but it was in like large quantities only.

http://www.whiskeysauce.com

http://www.bumpybeermustard.com/index.html

http://www.hotsauce.com/Historic-Lynchburg-Tennessee-Whiskey-Cinnamon-Rub-p/1370c.htm

http://www.porkysgourmetstore.com/product_p/752.htm

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Muscles & Music: Intro and "Wide Stance Squats"

Hey Fit Fam,

I hope you are enjoying my NEW blog layout!! Please take a look around! All of my "blogs" are now under the blog TAB, but organized into individual labels! This means all my blogs will not appear on ONE page anymore,  but it should be much easier to navigate and search for specific topics! I'm super excited about the new look and format! What do you think??

I'm also excited to finally offer you all some workout demos. But y'all know me .. I just can't have some "ordinary" workout demo page!! I've decided to call it ... Muscles & Music. Most days it will just be demo videos of me showing you a workout and telling you what is on my playlist, about a neat playlist I've found, or maybe chat about some NEW MUSIC that is out that I think you should listen to (especially while you are working out.) But I do hope to incorporate some fun stuff into this Video Blog! I plan on having some of my favorite musician friends joining me in the gym from time to time, finding out what is in their gym bag or playlist and passing that info along to you, or maybe just finding out one of their favorite workouts and doing the demo myself! 

Here is the little "intro" to the series and also a demo of one of my staples on Leg Day .. Wide Stance Squats.  

 

Eat Clean. Train Dirty. 

Stacy 

Life is simple .. I insist on making it complicated

Hey Fit Fam ....

I know I am suppose to be a motivator. I know you are suppose to come here to find positive thoughts and encouraging messages, but we all have "those days" and last week I had one of those days. This is my tiny little corner of the web .. so I'm going to do a random rant, lol!

I should have known it was going to be one of "those days".  First of all ... it was Monday. Second, I get downstairs and find this.

My mind has been in a million places lately and in my scatter brain fog I guess I forgot to take the chicken out of the oven the night before!  My house didn't burn down because the oven was off (I always turn off the oven and let the chicken sit in there while it cools cause I'm weird about it being really done and I also think doing this gives it a better texture without making it too dry.)

The rest of the day was just ... off. Nothing bad happened. No one was rude to me. I didn't get bad news. I just felt "off" all day. Everything "bothered" me and everything was an "ordeal". I found myself upset that I couldn't make the simplest of decisions. Things that shouldn't matter AT ALL became what felt like these big "life or death" decisions?! If I gave you examples you would think I am coo coo.

The week got better and this week has started off wonderful. We all have those days. They don't make us and shouldn't break us. But it just hit me just a moment ago. The tag line of my blog really is ME. "Life is simple. We insist on making it complicated." -- THIS IS SO ME! I insist on making almost everything more complicated than it needs to be. Not just today. My life in general. I've always thought things were a bigger deal than they actually were, I've always thought the worst in most situations, I've always been detail oriented in the worst way. You see .. I am a imperfect mix of my mom and dad. My dad is a neat freak. Everything is organized and this comes very natural to him. This it the way my brain THINKS. It's what it wants so very badly to be. But I take after my mom in that none of that is really a priority. That isn't a negative trait .. it's just that being perfectly organized isn't something that is a big deal. Her "mess" (which isn't even a mess) is "okay" .. it doesn't bother her.  Me being this "mix" of the two means that I obsess about everything, yet don't have whatever gene it is that all these obsessive compulsive, neat, organized, well thought out people have -- to actually DO it all the way my brain wants me to do it. I'm the person that is obsessed with the Container Store, but has a panic attack thinking of actually executing any of their perfectly organized system. I'm the person that will spend all night on Pinterest looking for ways to better organize my life and then just leave them "pinned" ...  rarely done. What is funny is that my husband thinks I am "super organized" because he is like my mom. To him, this mix is great. I organize our home/life "just enough" without it be obsessive. He should tell my mind that :)

I am no doubt a perfectionist. So I have to remind myself that it's OKAY that these flaws exist.
So what do I do to change this? Nothing. It's a flaw. It's my flaw. I'm human and it's okay. God made me with this very A type personality that is mixed with whatever other trait this is that I have. It's my flaw. I can't change it. But I can work on being better. I can inhale .. exhale .. and remind myself that no one cares if my cabinets are organized or my bills are piled up on the counter. I have to remind myself that with life ... it's all gonna work out one way or the other. I don't need to know how. I don't need to have a master plan. I just need to be grateful for each day and trust HIS plan. Well .. that and have some doTERRA oils on hand, lol. I'm not even kidding. A few drops of Serenity Calming Blend and it's like I've taken a "nerve pill" ;)  I haven't placed my February oil order yet, but I think I'm going to try an oil called InTune. It seems like it would be perfect for me. It helps you stay calm and focused!

Anyway ... if you have related to this blog at all, just remember that we all need to learn to stop making life so complicated. As long as your "flaws" don't hurt you or someone around you ... embrace them!!!  They aren't weaknesses .. they are simply YOU.

Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Baby Got Back -- The #Belfie Challenge

Hey Fit Fam,

I was challenged by my friend Faith to post a new trending thing on Instagram ... a #Belfie (a back selfie.) I am horrible at selfies so I cheated and had my husband take mine, lol. This picture is from THIS morning with NO filter.

I never look at my back .. so I was a little shocked to see my back progress!! Here is a picture I posted exactly ONE YEAR ago before I even started training for a show. I was just a gym regular and had been consistently going to the gym at an "average" pace for about a year. This picture IS filtered, lol.  I pulled it from the post from that day ... so that is why there is a bicep pic with it too :)

This picture was just before Nationals November 2014. I had also just done Ky Muscle.

The lighting is different in all pics. But I think you get the idea!

The back is one of our biggest muscle groups! DO NOT neglect it! I know many (mainly girls) that don't give it much attention because it's not "seen" and they just want to work on abs, arms and legs. But DO NOT ignore your back! It's one of the sexiest parts of a female body! Plus, growing your lats will help give the illusion of a smaller waist by giving you that beautiful V-Taper!! 

I have a new blog that is about to launch (hopefully this week) and it's going to include a new and unique spin on "workout videos" :)  It will be called Muscles & Music .. I'm so excited!! I'll make sure and post some of my favorite back workouts once it gets going, but to help get you going, here is a good example of what may be a "back day" for me at the gym! I never do any less than 4 sets .. my rep # and "method" changes! These are all "super sets" -- meaning I do the two grouped together "back to back" with no more than 15 seconds of rest. Then I rest about 45-60 seconds between each super set! 

Back Day Example:

Wide Grip Pull Downs
Narrow Reverse Grip Pull Downs 

Straight Arm Lat Pull Downs
Single Arm Rows (cable)

Renegade Rows
Lower Back Raises 


Eat Clean. Train Dirty.
Stacy

Super Bowl Jeep Commercial has Nashville Ties

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

This shouldn't come as a surprise, since Nashville is the home of some of the best singer/songwriters in the world, but according to my buddy and USA Today writer Brian Mansfield, the voice of the 90 second Jeep Super Bowl ad is Marc Scibilia. Marc is a Nashville singer/songwriter that will be releasing his major label debut album later this year. 

Scibilia performed the rendition of Woody Guthrie's This Land Is Your Land that played during the car companies "Beautiful Lands" 3rd quarter commercial.

The 28 year old released a four-song digital EP back in 2013. His major label debut was proceeded by Butch Walker, who is known for his work with my personal fave P!nk. 

According to Mansfield's USA Today article, which you can read HERE, Scibilia bought a  TV this afternoon just so he could watch the commercial and the game! In case you missed it -- here is Marc performing the song on his YouTube channel! 

Congrats Marc! Can't wait to hear more of your music later this year!