Yummy & Healthy!

 I have a deep love for any kind of protein drink. They are so useful for many different reasons. One reason is if I don't have enough time for breakfast in the morning I can make a quick smoothie or have one ready in the refrigerator. They're also perfect for when you have those late-night cravings! Let's face it, I have those every night. These smoothies have really helped me from binging on late-night snacks. Protein drinks are simple, save time, & they're delicious! You can purchase them at any local health food store, or just make them yourself! I love making them myself because I can customize it to how I like it and get creative as well! This is a recipe I've used in the past that I absolutely love!

WHAT YOU NEED: 

• Protein Powder (your choice in brand) I like DYMATIZE ISO 100
• Vanilla Almond Milk
• Frozen Fruit (preferably berries)
• All Natural Peanut Butter
• Natural Raw Organic Honey
• 1 Banana 
• Ice     

1. First, pour the Almond milk in the blender to about 6 oz.
2. Then add 1 scoop of protein powder (add more protein if you're feeding more than one person).
3. Next, add 1 cup of frozen fruit. You can also add the banana in this step. (I like the banana in this smoothie for its added taste).
4. 1 tsp of the natural peanut butter. 
5. 1 tsp of the natural raw organic honey. 
6. Add 1.5 cups of ice. I like my smoothie to be cold and thick!
7. Blend, blend, blend!
8. Sip and enjoy!

xoxo

                                        

How I get my Exercise.

I'm so excited to share my exercise routine with you! I'm a girl who LOVES doing cardio. A good strength exercise is obviously good to add into the mixture but cardio motivates me the most and I need some motivation if I'm going to get myself to workout haha. I usually exercise at home, so dance workout videos are my go-to. I love dancing (can't dance but whatever; do what you love) and the energy and excitement that the workout team has is extremely encouraging. Heres what I do:

A PRE-WORKOUT SNACK

I NEED to eat something before I workout, especially if I'm working out in the morning. Exercising on an empty stomach makes me dizzy and affects my ability to give my all in a workout. You don't want to eat a full meal, just a little something to give you energy. My favorite pre-workout snack is a banana. If I don't have bananas, I'll munch on some nuts (my personal favorite are almonds.) 

HIP HOP ABS

Hip Hop Abs: The Ultimate Ab Sculpting System by Beach Body, is hands down my favorite workout video! You'll definitely get good cardio exercise but you'll have fun doing it. Shaun T is hilarious, his team is so excited, and they get so into it, you can't help but give it your all.  

There are three different dvds to rotate through so you aren't stuck doing the same routine everyday. My personal favorites are the Fat Burning Cardio and the Cardio Groove. They are all amazing though!!

THE BIGGEST LOSER: BOOT CAMP

The Biggest Loser: Boot Camp is another video that I do to change it up a bit. This video is the perfect mixture of cardio and strength (mixing the two burns more calories.) There are three different levels on the dvd and you slowly add each level to your workout as you get more in shape (they explain what to do.) I'm not going to lie, it gets pretty intense! 

ZUMBA FITNESS 2

This Wii Zumba Fitness 2 is perfect for a good cardio workout because you are constantly moving! I know this isn't really a workout video, but it's a game and isn't that even better? You can create your own workouts by choosing the songs you like and how long you want to be dancing for, it even tracks the calories that you burned! You'll definitely get a good workout while having a blast!  

PROTEIN SHAKE: MUSCLE MILK

At the end of every workout, I drink my all time favorite protein powder! I love Muscle Milk because, mixed with a little milk, it tastes like melted ice cream (maybe a little exaggerated but still, it tastes good) and I can't drink anything that tastes gross no matter how good it is for you. It's important to eat, or in this case drink, within a half hour after you've worked out so that your body can recover faster from the stress and muscle breakdown that took place during your workout. Also, you can improve your body composition by building more lean body mass and retaining less fat.  

DRINK WATER

Last but not least, DRINK WATER! It's important to be drinking water during and after your workout. Lets be real, when is it not important to be drinking water? 

I hope you enjoyed reading how I get my exercise and that you found something useful to add to your workout routine! 

"The only bad workout, is the one that didn't happen"

xoxo

It Works Wraps Review.

Isabella's experience:

This was my very first time trying a wrap from IT Works and I'm not going to lie, I was a bit hesitant to try them. But after just two wraps I was extremely surprised with the results! I have had two children and although I don't have any stretch marks, my stomach skin is not as firm as it was prior to kids.

The process of doing the wraps is SO much easier than I thought it would be. The most important thing to do (in my opinion) is to make sure you drink lots of water. It Works recommends that you drink half your body weight. So if you weigh 120 lbs you would want to make sure you drink 60 ounces of water. They recommend you drink on the day you do the wraps and every other day in between doing each of your other wraps. I say why not drink that much water every day whether or not you are doing wraps! At least thats my goal because I am seriously the worst water drinker on the planet. Anyways, before you do your wrap you want to make sure the area in which you are wrapping is clean. So either take a quick shower or take a wash rag and wipe that area clean so that it is free of lotions and fragrances. Open your wrap and place it on the desired area.  Finally, take some saran wrap and put it over the wrap and wrap around the area several times to make sure your wrap stays in place. I did my wrap at night so that I could just go to sleep in it. In the morning rub the wrap a little bit to make sure that all the gel soaks in to your skin and then let it sit for a while longer. To finish, rinse the area off via shower or wash cloth.

It was so nice to take pictures before the wraps and after the wraps so that I could really see my results!

I was honestly so surprised at what just 2 wraps did to my stomach area. My skin definitely looked and felt so much firmer.

Sophia's experience: 

Before last week I had never considered using an IT Works wrap, because I thought they were only for people that were overweight. After trying one myself I realized that this isn't the case. I noticed a slight difference in tightness after only using one wrap, and I was told that you need to do at least two before noticing substantial results. If you are looking to tighten up or tone your body, whether you're overweight or not, you should check this product out.

We would like to thank It Works distributer Tracy Cartwright for giving us the opportunity to try out these wraps. She has been so great to work with! If you are wanting to try these wraps Tracy is your girl. Keep in mind that It works not only sells these wraps but many other products that I have heard amazing things about!

You can check out her website HERE.
Her blog HERE.

And her Instagram name is @tracycartwright1

Happy wrapping!

xoxo

Legs, Legs, and more Legs!

We are so excited to share with you some of our favorite workout routines that work for us and hopefully can work for you! So, today's topic is all about the thing women care about most... legs.  I'm going to share with you in full detail how I prep for my workout, my leg workout routine, and my post workout cool down. 

Lets start with the prep!

 I absolutely HAVE to have a pre-workout drink before I begin anything. 

My favorite pre-workout EVER is ADRENHERLYN by Black Market Labs. The taste is incredible and the effect it has on my body works! You want to fill your bottle with 8 fluid oz of water and then use 1 scoop of your pre-workout. I use the Blender Bottle because it's convenient and you can seriously find them anywhere. I drink mine about 15 minutes before I workout so that way when I'm ready to go the drink will kick in. For those of you who have never taken a pre-workout but are interested, don't freak out when your body starts to take to it. You will feel tingly, but you will also feel like you can conquer anything! Just a little FYI (: 

MY LEG ROUTINE:

TREADMILL for 15 minutes.

0-3 minutes, walk at 4.0.

3-6 minutes run at 6.5.

6-9 minutes walk at 4.0

9-12 minutes run at 7.5

12-15 minutes run at 8.0 and above.

BICYCLE: 10 minutes.

I put my resistance at 9 and above and just kill my legs for the next 10 mins.

STAIR CLIMBER: 10 minutes

I try to do at least 60 steps per minute.

And the last 2 minutes I go as fast as my body can handle.

The cardio portion is killer and its hard, but I always feel incredible after. I advise that YOU only do what YOUR body can handle. I had to work up to this level, and I'm still pushing myself to go stronger. It's a p r o c e s s. Be patient!

CARDIO LUNGES: (my personal favorite!!)

I'll try my best to explain this perfectly.

20 lunges down with a 20 lb back bar behind my neck.

20 lunges back up with 5 lbs dumbbells in each hand.

20 lunges down again with no extra weight just my body.

1 minute break before next set.

I do this 3 times, making it a total of 180 lunges.

DROP IT LIKE A SQUAT:

4 sets of 20, pretty simple.

Making it a total of 80 squats.

I don't do anything more then 20 lbs when squatting. I bulk very easy and so I prefer less weight and more reps!

LEG PRESS:

Again, simple.

Just find a leg press machine and choose the weight you desire.

I do 40 lbs 4 sets of 20.

Making a total of 80 leg presses.

This machine really works my quads.

CALF RAISES:

4 sets of 20

20 lbs.

Making a total of 80 calf raises.

Now, I don't focus on every muscle of my leg. If I did I would be at the gym for 5 hours and I definitely don't have time for that. This is just my basic leg routine that I personally feel does the most for my legs. I do focus on my hamstrings, glutes, and butt in an entirely different workout during the week.

I just want to say that this workout fits me for my body type.  I know there are millions of other workouts out there that would be beneficial as well and I would love to try them. So don't feel discouraged about how many reps, weight, etc., just do what feels best for you!

POST GYM WORKOUT:

When I get home from the gym I have to drink protein. I could go on and on why I love it. If you're interested in what protein can do for you and the benefits it offers, take a look HERE!

This is one of my favorite recipes for a protein shake.

You will need:

1- Blender

2- 1.5 cups of Milk (your preference)

3- 1 scoop of Protein Powder (your choice in flavor). For me, Chocolate!!

4- 1 banana

5- 1 tsp of cinnamon

6- handful of ice.

Blend together and BOOM you have yourself a tasty, HEALTHY treat (:

xoxo