Tacky Tuesday....

....when two obligations collide.... First obligation:: It's Tacky Tuesday in my Beachbody Virtual Challenge Group!! We have & give out these assignments for fun, you know....because #FitFams ARE fun!! ;)

Tacky Tuesday photo collage::

(1.) pic of your   <3 Shake-O <3 

(2.) pic of a healthy meal from your day <3 

(3.) pic of yourself doing your Beachbody workout (T25 Total Body plus Stretch) in the tackiest active wear you've got ;) . I was thinking the best I could do was wear mismatched clothes....but....

The 2nd obligation:: I lost a bet on Saturday to a friend & am supposed to post a pic to my social media sites of me wearing Gator attire...specifically, has to say Gators or have the Gator on it!! :'( What's more TACKY than making a Georgia fan wear a Gator?!?!

No one can ever say I'm not a really, REALLY good sport. ;)

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  <3 .="" 2nd="" :="" a="" active="" am="" attire...specifically="" beachbody="" best="" bet="" body="" can="" clothes....but....="" could="" day="" do="" doing="" ever="" fan="" friend="" from="" gator="" gators="" georgia="" good="" got="" has="" have="" healthy="" href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" i="" in="" it="" lost="" m="" making="" me="" meal="" media="" mismatched="" more="" my="" no="" not="" obligation::="" of="" on="" one="" or="" pic="" plus="" post="" really="" s="" saturday="" say="" shake-o="" sites="" social="" sport.="" stretch="" supposed="" tackiest="" tacky="" target="_blank" than="" the="" thinking="" to="" total="" ve="" was="" wear="" wearing="" what="" workout="" you="" your="" yourself="">

If You Fall, I Will Be There

Fitness tip of the day:: if you work out when you're irritated, you'll push harder...😂😂 Morning plank = tired, sleepy & feeling weak Afternoon plank = tired & irritated for the win!!!! 😉😉 I like to channel frustrated feelings in a positive way & use them to my advantage, haha!!

Planking with a Partner...or Partners...

Last day of our trip = grouchy ppl who have had enough of my location planks & I'm afraid to ask one of them to be my photographer!! 😂😂. Sore elbows from concrete made it harder but it bugged me that my time was shorter, so I added on side planks after giving my elbows short breaks... Today's challenge was to plank with a partner & I don't have one, but creativity counts for something, right?? 😉. Every day that we've arrived "home" at Give Kids the World, there's been a surprise waiting in our villa!! Sometimes, a snack or goody bag, one day was a board game....and on a couple of days it was stuffed animal friends!!! Put them to work this morning before packing them up!!! 😁😁😁😁

Planking with Horton...

"Don't give up! I believe in you all! A person's a person, no matter how small". Dr. Suess/Horton
Hears a Who 😘😘
 

Planking with Backdrops....

Concrete does not make for an easy elbow plank, but I had a cool back drop, soooo...😉😉

 

Planking on Vacation....

I had 2 hyped up crazies not letting me go to sleep last night so I slept a little later than I meant to....and we've got super fun stuff to get off to this morning....but I can still take 10 min. w/ Tony and do that plank, dontcha know....😉😉 And we off!!!! Here. We. Go...I have an excited 18 yr. old this morning!!! 😍

Get Your Strong On...

When ppl say runners don't have muscles....I say "shut yo face, how do you think I get from point A to point B on my runs"!?!? ;) But.....I do want to complete some obstacle runs and more extreme challenges...so this crazy runner lady has GOT to start being more consistent with the cross training to round out that #FitLife, and gain more where I'm lacking!!! And I have 156 things to do before we head to central Fl today....but I did manage to get that plank challenge in AND make & keep a 30 min. date with Tony Horton!! ;) (thanks, Beachbody ;) )

 Home fitness tip for ya:: Do your workouts in front of a mirror, or something that gives you a reflection. Because....

 1.) you can check your form and fix it, if needed. If you're going to do your workout....do it right!! And often, you think you're on it...but seeing yourself in the mirror will often make you say, "whoops....let's fix that"!!

2.) you're likely to tighten it up & engage more muscles when you can see them working....or not working. Good form trumps number of reps!! Take the time to train correctly, get that form down...and THEN increase your reps.

3.) when you see those muscles engaging....it helps ya stick with it!! ;) Sometimes you just don't want to. You just don't feel it while you're doing it. Or... feel like doing it at all. SEEING progress helps quiet those self defeating voices in your head & helps ya keep on, keepin' on!!!

 Now....GO GET YOUR STRONG ON!! I can help you with that even MORE if you're in my challenge group next month, you know.... (wink, wink).

Stressed....but Blessed...

Hey there, Christian lady.....you know those Christian-ese phrases that are so super spiritual in theory, but in reality seem to really only make us feel bad and less like that perfect little Christian we're "supposed" to be??? I hereby invite you to to kick them to the curb & experience the freedom from the guilt trips they put us on!!!! We women and our guilt trips & our feelings....smh. We're awfully hard on ourselves...and on each other sometimes.

 Case in point:: "too blessed to be stressed". I'm over that one!!! Why??? Because....life IS stressful. If it wasn't....we'd already be in Heaven. 😉. It just is!!! Even AMAZING & WONDERFUL blessings often come with a side of stress. Quit feeling guilty because you feel it like everybody else does....and just admit that you're human, take a deep breath, pray, deal with it & move on to enjoy the blessings part. 😉.

 I was up a good part of the night trying to figure out how to coordinate 3 teens' & 1 adult's schedules & obligations so that we can take full advantage of everything Dreams Come True wants to do for us next week....and how to make sure everyone is peachy keen happy in the process. Haha. Lolol....you just gotta laugh at the thought of actually succeeding in doing that last part!! 😂 I'm a bit tired this morning from trying to figure out AALLLLL the things. But...hey. That plank challenge, tho...at least I'm making forward progress there!!! 👍👊😂😂. I'm just going to rest here for a second before I take on Hammer & Chisel.....yawn..

..

How many attempts at getting a photo of yourself does it take to finally get one where you don't look like a dork....or without your stray cat's behind walking in front of the camera?!?! Too many!!! 😂😂 Hello. My name is Jill. And I have a problem saying no to online challenge groups!!! Put me in, coach....I say to myself!!!! 😉 Contrary to what you might think....fitness selfies can keep you humble!!! 😂😂 Oh, and by the way....think you can't get healthy & get your fitness on because you don't have time to go to a gym?? Or because you don't have a spare room?? Ummm....welcome to my....workroom...."gym"....storage facility for everything that doesn't fit in my house... pantry for bulk items...bike shed.....tool holder...yard stuff facility.....the list goes on....I think a lot of ppl refer to this as a "garage". 😉 You don't need a special place. You just need the desire...😘😘💪👊   

When it's Wacky Wednesday in my virtual challenge group....ya never know what you might be asked to do!!! This Wednesday is Wacky WATER Wednesday....and the assignment is two-fold.

 1.) Did you know that you SHOULD be drinking half your body weight in ounces of water DAILY??? This is my norm & not usually a challenge for me, but when I'm sick the way I have been for the past week...I don't want to drink or eat!!! Not drinking enough isn't helping me out in the getting better dept, so this challenge is on like Donkey Kong for me!!! ;)

 2.) Take a wacky picture of yourself drinking your water. I tossed wacky to the curb because my focus was on trying to stop regurgitating my pre-run Larabar 😂 ... and went for...Water On The Riverfront instead..😉😉😉 Getting started on a healthy path can be hard!! STAYING on a healthy path can be harder!!! Challenge groups can make it more fun & can occasionally get a little wacky....& you should be in mine!!! 😉😉 See Jill drink water??? You should drink more water, too. 😉

It does your body good, in so many ways!!!!

 

 🎵🎶 I want to put on.... my my my my my boogie shoes....
Just to boogie with you....🎶🎵 😉😎👟❤ Sing it with me now...

 

High Protein Oatmeal

I'm wearing my chef's hat this week!!! 😉 You can't taste the eggs, but they boost the protein to double what it would be without!! This variation gives you 12 grams according to my recipe calculator...💪👍

 High Protein Oatmeal (2 servings)::

 3/4 cup rolled oats
2 eggs
1/2 cup coconut almond milk (I highly recommend Califia Farms brand👍)
1 Tbsp. Ground flaxseed
1 tsp. Cinnamon
 1 ripe banana, mashed
1/2 tsp. Pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup berries, fresh or frozen (thawed)

 Mix all ingredients except berries together in a pot on the stove; turn to med-high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until mixture reaches normal consistency and the eggs are no longer runny (about 5 min). Stir in extra milk, if desired. Top with berries and make it pretty, then mix them in & eat it up!! 😉

 Beachbody Container Equivalents:: 1 ❤, 1.5 💛, 1.5 💜, 1/2 🎃 (there's no orange heart 😉) #EatLikeAnAthlete #BreakfastOfChampions 😉

 

Roasted Red Pepper Lentil Soup

Took a new recipe for a spin tonight with a couple of my own detours!! Roasted Red Pepper Lentil Soup with Cilantro & Green Onion garnish......and I think the picture is food magazine worthy so I had to post it!! 😉😉

 

Make Your Future Self Proud

Fall Me is looking back at Summer Me.....& saying, hey you. Thanks for staying consistent. Thanks for getting out there in the heat, listening to your body, throwing out the pace comparisons & just getting it done. Thanks for all the times you did those intervals in the heat & humidity that slow you down, when walking drives you crazy!!! Thanks for all those miles of turtle trots trotted while telling yourself that the pace would get there when the weather was more accommodating, telling yourself to just be happy with the love of the adventures....& of keeping those ankles & knees trained for impact & distance....

 Because starting over is so much more frustrating than just hanging in there, staying consistent & going with the flow, adjusting as needed through the seasons of weather....and of life.

 And, Fall Me is looking at the calendar and seeing my biggest Runventure of 2016 coming up fast & has been looking at "exactly HOW long do I have to cross the finish line before they close the race down"??? ;) .... & has shifted from maintaining to pushing a little harder & working on getting that pace to where I'd prefer it to be. Fall Me has been pleasantly surprised that I'm ahead of where I thought I'd be...& when I look at my splits, I'm clocking in on some of them at paces I haven't hit since early Summer 2015!! Woo Hoo!!! High five to Summer Me!!!! Is it where I want it to be, overall??? No....but I wasn't expecting it to be where it is, so I'm good!! I always need a goal to go after, anyway.... ;)

 Where does YOUR future self want to be.....by Christmas? By the New Year? In 3 mos, 6 mos, or a year from now?? What's stopping you from getting started....NOW?? And, in regards to whatever it is that's stopping you....WHY are you letting it??

 Make yourself proud. I double dog dare ya.

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Yoga....Wall Sit

I'm supposed to be running now :'( , but....holy moly, hamstrings!!! They were begging for some TLC!! Hammer & Chisel instead....and a little runner's targeted yoga. Legs Up the Wall currently in progress. Creative name, eh?? ;)

 Want to try it?? WELL, it's SUPER hard & complicated, but I'll tell you how........lie on your back with your sit-bones as close to the wall as is comfortable for you. From there, you extend your legs up the wall, so that the backs of your legs are resting fully against it. BOOM, there it is. ;) If you're not very flexible, you won't be able to get super close to the wall at first. That's ok....if you keep at it, you'll get closer & closer as time goes by! It's recommended to practice this pose for at least 10 to 15 minutes, but even just hanging out for a minute or two will do.

 Great for runners....my hamstrings say "thank you"!! Great for non-runners, too. Why, you may ask??? It's #NationalYogaMonth, so I'll tell ya!!

 1. It reduces edema in the legs and feet. By reversing the effects of gravity on your legs and feet, you can help to move any stuck or stagnant fluids that may build up there if you have low blood pressure, or spend a lot of time on your feet during your day.

 2. It relieves tired leg muscles. Hanging out with your legs up the wall is one of the best ways to help drain tension from the legs, feet, and even the hips, if you have them elevated on yoga blocks.

 3. It gives you all the benefits of inversion, without the effort. Inversions can help to reverse the effects of gravity on the whole system, help regulate blood pressure, help move stuck fluids, and even help to improve your digestion....but sometimes some of the inversion methods can be too much for some people. With Legs Up the Wall, you will still be getting many of the benefits of practicing an active inversion.

 4. It is super calming for the nervous system. This posture is really intended to be a deeply relaxing pose. When combined with slow, rhythmic breathing, you'll be tapping into your “rest and digest” nervous response. In this state, your body will be actively digesting anything you have eaten, as well as working to heal and repair your body. When you do these kinds of poses consistently, you may notice that your body feels healthier overall, and that you are better able to find a calm state of mind.

Basically, it helps ya chill out!! That IS what we're supposed to do on a Saturday, or at least for part of it, right?? ;)

 

Dark Chocolate Raspberry Shakeology

When there's bday cake in the house....& and when my son's favorite cake is also MINE....let's just say that Ms. Disciplined DOES have a couple of weaknesses!! ;)Bdays around here call for not just any cake, but homemade bday cakes made with <3 love <3 . My kids won't let me off the hook on that one, EVER!! {spoiled much??? ;) } 

Several years ago, Robert couldn't decide what kind he wanted, so I set to work adapting a recipe I'd found to suit our preferences....and that cake, Dark Chocolate Raspberry Mouse Cake, has been his request every year since!! It's ridiculously yummy & indulgent, & I did have a piece on his bday, you know....just to make sure it was good enough for him, but.....there's still a cpl pieces waiting to be eaten that I refuse to touch!!

SO, I created this instead to resist the temptation w/ something that's actually crazy GOOD for me....& it seriously tastes like the cake in a cup!! I'm not even kidding.....who needs a napkin?? Not me.....makes ya lick that chocolate right off your lips!!!

"Mom, do you want some of this cake, or is the rest for me"?? "It's all you, baby. I'm good". ;)

Sharing this with my challenge group....if YOU were in it, you'd get even more recipes and meal/snack ideas....because that's part of the fun for me:: teaching ppl that yes, healthy FEELS good.....but, y'all. It TASTES good , too!!! <3