Take-In Thursday ~ Mashed Pumpkin Side Dish

This week we thought it would be nice to provide you with a festive dish. With it being halloween, we thought it would only be right to do something with pumpkin. If you are preparing a halloween dinner tonight, try this great side dish. If pumpkin isn’t your favorite, you can substitute any winter squash or potato you would like. We also have done this with acorn squash and loved it!

Mashed Pumpkin

Ingredients:

1 small cooking pumpkin

cooking spray

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp ground cloves

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 375F.

2. Cut pumpkin in half and scoop out seeds. (You can eat the seeds if you roast them)

3. Lay pumpkin on a sheet pan, flesh facing up. Spray the pumpkin halves with the cooking spray.

4. Combine all the spices in a small bowl and sprinkle the mixture over the two pumpkin pieces evenly.

5. Bake pumpkin for 45-55 minutes or until flesh is tender.

6. Allow pumpkin to cool for about 5 minutes. Scoop out the flesh into a bowl and mash. Taste it to see if you want to add more of the seasonings.

7. Serve warm

Hope you enjoy your holiday dish!

Get Fit for It,

D & K

Photo from: www.whatscookingmexico.com

Workout Wednesday ~ Kacie’s Spartan WOD workout

This week we wanted everyone to try our workout that was featured on the Spartan Race blog as their Street Team WOD this past Friday. Check it out - http://run.spartanrace.com/webmail/23832/116624503/ef2584b0c41c851040716558c119918d

Workout:

Warm up: 3 Rounds

20 High Knees

10 Push-ups

10 Squats

Main set:

4 Rounds

10 Burpees w/lateral jump

20 Sit-throughs or mountain climbers (10/leg)

10 Burpees

20 Jumping lunges (10/leg)

10 Elevated push-ups

Tabata (8 rounds of 20s on / 10s rest)

-Leg Lifts

-Bicycle Crunch

Stretch

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photo from: www.jaybirdgear.com

Tunes Tuesday ~ Kacie’s picks of the week

Happy Tuesday :) We hope your week is off to a great start! If you need a pick me up, check out these tunes Kacie has selected for you this week. We hope you enjoy them!

Kacie’s 5 Picks of the Week:

1. Avicii - wake me up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y_KJAg8bHI

2. Enrique - Turn the night up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfqx8dp9zXI

3. Kelly Clarkson - Tie It Up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCXEV-O0kQk&list=PLlfxpA5HDrNY7nnKVjaLaUTknUfSs8QLy&shuffle=408

4. Armin Van Buuren - This is what it feels like

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhYIA0rwb7k

5. Jake Miller - I'm Alright

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsEPtVf8q74

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photos from:

www.fistintheair.com

www.justjared.com

Motivation Monday ~ Recognizing Gratitude

Motivation Monday ~ Gratitude Recognition

Sometimes we don’t have the motivation to anything in life. We even struggle to get out of bed in the morning. One negative thought leads to another, which leads to doubt about our capability to do anything. This causes us to spiral down into an “unhappy” state. We know everyone struggles with finding inspiration and positive thoughts that increase our belief in our potential and minimize our doubt of failure. Although we have no formula to guarantee you will always have motivation but we do have suggestions for helping you maximize your ability to stay in your “happy” state and keep moving forward. This week, we want you to try this exercise each day before you get out of bed and before you go to sleep. This appreciation exercise is a great technique to use when you are feeling down or frustrated as well. Practice this exercise every day all week so it becomes part of your routine. Once you are used to doing this, it will become an automatic response to help you cope with hard situations.

Exercise: Take 2 -5 minutes and close your eyes and focus on how you feel. Taking deep inhales and exhales, calm your mind and begin to think about all of the things you are grateful fro at the current moment. Start by saying to yourself, “I am grateful for …” and “I am lucky for…” Fill in the blanks with things you appreciate. Continue to think about these things for the allotted time or longer if you can. Perform this exercise right as you wake up in the morning and right before you fall asleep.

We hope you enjoy this challenge and learn to find the silver lining in every moment of your life.

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Get Fit For Friday ~ Tree pose

Thank Goodness It’s Friday! With the work week coming to an end, we want you to think about bringing balance back into your life. To help you find your stability, we are challenging you to hold tree pose, a yoga pose, at least two times during the day. If you have had a stressful week with littles sleep, too much caffeine and lots of stress, you might find this harder than others. Rather than becoming frustrated, take a deep breath and focus on calming yourself down and continue to perform the exercise. If you fall out of the pose, you are not alone, catch your fall and get right back into the pose.

Tree Pose - 1-minute intervals on each leg, aim for 2 - 3 times during the day!

#ChallengeAccepted

This weekend, we hope you get outside and enjoy the autumn weather before winter strikes! Get Fit For It has an exciting, busy weekend. Not only are we involved in a networking event for the industry but we also have our preliminary video shoot to do. Hopefully we will be able to share some of our fitness videos with you soon!

Articles you might find interesting:

Managing Lactose Intolerance

http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/housecall-managing-lactose-intolerance-1.1480926

Autumn brings apples and winter squashes

http://clintonherald.com/food/x1442575891/With-autumn-comes-winter-squash-and-apples

Stay on track even when life is hectic

http://www.usatriathlon.org/about-multisport/multisport-zone/multisport-lab/articles/adjusting-expectations-100813.aspx

Speed work to improve your 5K pace:

http://beta.active.com/running/Articles/6-Speed-Workouts-to-Run-a-Faster-5K.htm

Have a great weekend!

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photo from: kristinmcgee.com

Take-In Thursday ~ Carrot-Chickpea Hummus

This week we are offering you a harvest dip that is the perfect color for your Halloween-themed parties! We hope you enjoy it as much as we do! Try it out and let us know how you used it. Did you make sandwiches for your kids or serve it with celery sticks and cucumber slices? Take a photo and submit it to us. The person with the most creative/festive idea will win a free training session!

Carrot-Chickpea Hummus

Ingredients:

1 (15-oz) can chickpeas, low sodium, rinsed and drained

4 carrots, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 Tbs fresh ginger, peeled and minced

3 Tbs lemon juice

4 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs Sriracha hot sauce

1 ½ tsp dried parsley leaves

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp ground black pepper

cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425F. In a medium mixing bowl, add chopped carrots, 1 Tbs of olive oil, garlic and pinch of salt and pepper. Mix until carrots are evenly coated with oil.

2. Spread carrots out on a sheet pan coated in cooking spray making sure they are only one layer thick. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown on the edges and tender.

3. Using a food processor, combine carrots with the rest of the ingredients .On low, blend together until consistency is smooth. You may have to stop and stir mixture a few times during this process. If the texture is too thick, add more lemon juice and olive oil in small increments.

4. Once hummus is smooth, remove from food processor and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Let us know what you think of this recipe once you have made it!

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Workout Wednesday ~ Concentrated Core

Today we want you to challenge your core. Remember to keep smiling as you focus on tightening your core muscles during this fantastic workout. As you perform each exercise, think about pressing your belly button down towards your spine the whole time. Alright, now get to it!

Workout:

Warm up:

Standing side bends

Standing torso rotations

Bob and weave

Standing elbow to opposite knee

Set#1: 3 rounds x 30sec intervals

Russian Twist

Leg raises

Shin parallel

Scissor (In & outs)

Plank series: 2 rounds x 45s intervals  

Forearm Plank

Side (RT)

Reverse Plank

Side (LT)

Set #2: 3 rounds x 30sec intervals

Bicycle Crunch

Flutterkicks

Double Crunch

Heel Taps

Challenge: one minute of V-ups

Stretch for 5-10 minutes

Modify as needed and do the right number of rounds for your fitness level.

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photos from:

www.indianprairiecommunity.org

www.womenshealthmag.com

Tunes Tuesday ~ Drew’s MIKA Picks

This week, Drew is providing 5 of his favorite MIKA songs that he wants everyone to listen to at least once! Take a few moments to listen to the songs and see which ones are going to make your next playlist.

Drew’s top MIKA Selections of the week:

1. We Are Golden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEhutIEUq8k

2. Elle Me Dit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiHWwKC8WjU

3. Overrated

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsJrRfjhQdA

4. Make You Happy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9YeRSsMmak

5. Emily

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIZhPIfFaq0

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photo from:

www.thefourohfive.com

Motivational Monday ~ Loving the Present Moment

Everyday we have so many things to distract us, we often forget to take the time and appreciate our current situation - who we are and what we have now. With our focus directed to our to-do lists and the steps we need to progress towards our personal goals, we miss what is happening in the present moment and we don’t recognize all we have and do each minute of each day. Instead of always looking forward at the future and who we want to become, stop and take the time to congratulate yourself for everything you have. This week, we want you to refocus your thoughts to the present and take a few minutes each day to love the moment you are living right this instant and everything your mind and body does. Realize how lucky you are for all that you have and concentrate on this instead of who you want to become and all you have to do to get to there. Take our challenge and take in the moment for what it is.

Get Fit For It,

D & K  

Get Fit For Friday ~ Side Planks

This week we are challenging you to fit in 3 minutes of side plank throughout the day. Whether you do them all at once or spread it out throughout the day, try to hold each one for a long enough interval to make it a challenge.

#ChallengeAccepted

Articles we think you might find interesting:

How to prevent overtraining

http://beta.active.com/running/Articles/How-to-Prevent-Overtraining.htm

How to master the long run

http://beta.active.com/running/Articles/How-to-Master-the-Long-Run.htm

Fueling on a budget

http://beta.active.com/nutrition/Articles/How-to-Fuel-During-Race-Training-and-Not-Break-the-Bank.htm

Have a great weekend!

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photo from:

www.voyagerfitness.com

Take-In Thursday ~ Roasted Beets

This week’s recipe is Roasted Beets. Beets are one of our favorite foods that we especially enjoy roasted. You can use this recipe for other root vegetables as well. if you want to combine different vegetables, makes sure to cut the pieces into comparable sizes so they all have a similar cooking time.

Roasted Beets

serves about 6

Ingredients:

5 small beets, washed, dried and diced

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

1 ½ Tablespoon olive oil

2 Tablespoon fresh basil leaves, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425F.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine beets, salt, pepper, garlic, and olive oil.

3. Evenly spread beets across a 13 x 9 inch pan. Place in the oven and roast for about 30-40 minutes, until beets are tender.

4. Toss in basil and serve warm.

Get Fit For It,

D & K

Photo from:

trialx.com