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Hey Guys!!

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!! I took this time over the weekend to do some serious thinking, so I'm going to set this post up with a little story. (haha).

I came home Friday and felt dejected. There was something about my workout that didn't make me feel happy, I was actually really upset about it. I have been on my fitness journey for about 2.5 years now and I don't feel like I am where I want to be. If you would have asked me way back when I would never have dreamt that I would be in this position. I am able to manage my weight, I still go to the gym 4-6 days a week, and I am healthier than I would ever dream possible. Now a lot of this is due to the fact that I have amazing people around me, who constantly help me stay focused (you know who you are and you rock!). But after my workout I was down and I really couldn't put my finger on it. I am sure all (or at least most) of you have been in this position. Without a goal to push us it can feel like we are lost on a road with no directions. So the question is how to we find a "map"?

So Friday night I sat down and talked about what I really wanted. I don't want to lose weight (never thought I'd say that!!) but I do want to be stronger. I don't want to be a power lifter or a bodybuilder. I just want to increase strength. So with some help I have a plan. Remember...whenever you feel stuck think about what it is that you really want...really ask yourself "WHAT DO I WANT". And then go from there!

Now this goal to get stronger might change. And in a month I might want to change it and do another goal, but as of right now this is what I am going to do. I am going to work on increasing strength. So I hope this post helps, if you feel dejected or low right now. Everyone feels that way. All you have to do is re-evaluate and get back up and start moving!!

Monday is a great way to do this (that's why I saved this post until today!). Take time today to think about what it is you really want. Set your goal and go for it!!!! So I am going to share mine, and I hope you share yours with me, your best friend, your family, or the world!!

GOAL 1: Increase Smith Machine Squat: 2-3 reps at 100 lbs on each side
GOAL 2: Increase Shoulder Press: 2-3 reps at 40 lbs (dumbbells)
GOAL 3: Increase Deadlift: 2-3 reps at 50 lbs on each side
GOAL 4: Increase Cable Row: 2-3 reps at 125 lbs
GOAL 5: Increase Chest Press: 2-3 reps at 35 lbs on each side

-Also I am going to try and stay focused on my nutrition. At times I indulge a little to much and I want to learn to use food as fuel more than something to make me feel better in the short term!

So here is how my schedule will work:

So this week I am going to write down the weight that I do in each slot. 3-5 sets everyday. This is to help me on the way to my goals that I wrote about above. I do a bootcamp and cardio class at my gym but I suggest 2-3 other cardio days.

It is also important to think about nutrition, so make sure that you are always trying to have a healthy diet with the correct macros for you and your active level!

Well I hope this helps, and I hope that you set goals this week and we can motivate each other!!!

Weekly Workouts

Hey guys!!

Hope everyone is having a great week so far!! I have been super busy since coming back from vacation and being sick, so I apologize for the lack of posts :-(

But have no fear, I am in the process of writing multiple posts that I can post over the next couple of weeks. But while you are anticipating those releases, here are some of my workouts from this week!


Monday:

(Right Click to save to Phone/Computer)

Tuesday:

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Thursday:

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Friday:

(Right Click to save to Phone/Computer)

Hope you enjoy the workouts! If you do any tag me on Instagram, I love to connect with you guys!!! :-)

Shoulder WOD

So the other day I post some videos on Instagram about the shoulder workout that I did at home. What I love about fitness is that you can do it any where! At times it can be frustrating going to the gym because it is crowded and you are unable to follow through with you plan. That is why I like the option of doing a home workout.

Home workouts can be fun and different. I have done no equipment workouts, HIIT workouts, and some weightlifting workouts. So the workouts that I put on Instagram can be done at the gym, and they can be done at home. I used weights for this particular workout, but it can be modified for no weights. You can add exercises that are more plyo (pushups/dips), you can also use house hold products for weight (milk jug anyone?!?!)

So here is the workout, enjoy!

1. Alternating Dumbbell Press (3x15)
2. Barbell Shoulder Press superset Upright Row (3x10)
3. Lateral Raise (3x10)
4. Behind-the-Neck Press (3x10)
5. Rear Delt Raise (3x10)
6. Arnold Press (3x12)

Simple and fun. I put a timer on for 30 minutes...so no dawdling around!!
 

FitCassie Workout and Nutrtion Plan

 Hey Guys!

Happy Monday. So I have been working on a workout and nutrition plan that I would like to share with you all. So before I start I want to say a couple things,

1. What works for one person might not work for you, always do your research and find out what methods work for you.
2. The workout is my split. I have things that I want to focus on, you may wish to focus on different things, therefore feel free to change things up!
3. I don't do calories. I try to stick to whole, natural, foods. I worry more about getting all my nutrients. I have also been doing this for good amount of time so I know about how many grams of each nutrient I need. I would also suggest doing research to figure out exactly how much you need.
4. If you do calories, do calories. I won't judge!
5. I put on the nutrition low carb, this doesn't mean no carb or really even low carb. It's a way to make me mindful on days that I don't work out.
6. Also I am doing a program called HIITMAX. In place of this I would suggest doing another HIIT workout. I have some on here that I have posted that you could look at, or you could do sprints!



Ok so here it all is!

 Ok below are the workouts and nutrition broken down a little more. I like to be able to write the weight that I am using during workouts. For nutrition, to keep myself on track I am giving myself a percentage of how I did at each meal. This will help me be more accountable to getting all my meals in and staying on track!

Below I have a link to the PDF file of the above workout and nutrition. This is my first time inserting a PDF into a blog, so please let me know if you can't get it. Or something went wrong. I am not super amazing at getting all this in, so I'm praying this works!!


FitCassie Workout and Nutrition      (<----this is the link for the PDF) :-)

Shoulder and Back Workout!

Hey Guys!!!!

Ok so yesterday was one of my favorite days, Shoulders and Back!! One of the main reasons I like this day is because working out these two areas are challenging and make me feel stronger! Another good reason to focus on these two areas is because it can create the illusion of an hourglass figure. If your shoulders and lat muscles are well defined than that makes your waist look smaller. Uh, can anyone say win...WIN?!?! :-)



So here we go...

1. Dumbbell Shoulder Press (4x15/12/10/10)
2. Dumbbell Row (4x15/12/10/10)
3. Dumbbell Front Raise (Over head) (3x15)
4. Lat Pulldown (3x15)
5. Leaning Lateral Raise (3x15)
6. Seated Row (3x10)
7. Shoulder Push-Ups (3x10)
8. Reverse Grip Row (5x10)
9. Shoulder Circles (5x10)

-Run - 1 mile





-When doing the first set warm up with a lighter weight, and then move up. One of the things that I do is write down the weight while doing the exercises (in your phone, in a journal, etc.). This is so that you can work on increasing weight in later weeks. Remember the muscles won't grow unless they are challenged.

-With front raises over head, use a dumbbell and start with palms touching your upper leg. Lift dumbbell with front delts. DO NOT ROCK (use momentum) to get the weight up. If you want to try a more advance version of this exercise try using a barbell. It seriously an intense delt burn!!!

-Leaning lateral raises are a fun way on a typical delt exercise. I typically do these when I am near the cables. Place one arm on the cable pole, place feet at the base of the pole, lean (duh!), and then raise the other arm to the side and make a funky looking "T".

http://www.bodyweighttraininghq.com/handstand-push-ups/

-To do a shoulder push-up, place feet on a bench (I am going to use the seated row bench), your body should be in pike position, arms straight, then do a push-up. This should really hit the shoulders. Try not to use your back muscles.

-Reverse Grip Row - you can use a barbell or a smith machine for this exercise. Place your hands the opposite way of a bent row (palms up).

-As far as cardio, I am going to run 1 mile. But you could really do any form of cardio for 10-20 minutes.

I just put up a video on Instagram of my shoulder exercises from yesterday. Also look for more exercises on my Instagram!!

Leg Day Workout

Hey Everyone!!!

So recently I posted an upper body workout, so I thought I would take some time to put together a kick a$$ leg day workout as well.

For leg day I like to focus on the four different parts separately. Most exercises will use a little of every muscle, but it's beneficial as well to focus on each separate muscle to get the most bang for your buck. For example - Sumo Leg Press is going to work the quads, hamstrings, and glutes; but a secondary muscle would be your calves.  So I like to break down the leg and focus on each individual muscle for at least one set.

BEFORE YOU START:
-Make sure to warm up your legs. Going into a workout with being stretched will give you less flexibility and less power to complete moves. It takes 5 minutes and will be the difference for your workout I promise!!
-Make sure to have your BCAA's!!! (if you don't know about these, I have a post about supplements that you should def read!!)



Without further ado, the workout!

1. Sqauts (5x10) superset with Up-Downs (10 each leg)
2. Deadlifts (5x10) superset with Sidekick (10 each leg)
3. Single Leg Press (5x10) superset with Glute Bridge (10)
4. Bulgarian Split Squats (5x10) superset with wall sits
5. Leg Press (5x 8,12,16,20,25 )

-Run 1 mile
-Stretch!!!!




Info on exercises:
1. Squats - do weight that is appropriate for you. You want to make sure that you are able to go to parallel and you may not be able to use a lot of weight. Start light and increase throughout the sets.
    --Up-Downs - start on your knees. Start with right leg and get yourself up into a squat position. Hold this for one second and then return to kneeling position. That is one rep. This move is super challenging if done correctly. It really focuses on the quads! Do 10 starting with right leg, then do 10 starting with the left leg.

2. Sidekicks - similar to a kickback, instead of using the glutes to push your leg back, use the glutes to lift your leg to the side.
3. Single Leg Press - using a smith machine set yourself up as if you were going to do a leg press. Bend on knee and place the other foot on the bar. You will do a "pulse" up. You want to squeeze the glutes and quad. Don't bend the leg, don't try to make a large move up or down, it's a short motion.
4. Leg Press - I like to use the inverted leg press for these sets. This is the burn out set. Start with heaviest weight that you think you can complete 8 FULL reps. Then remove some of the weight and do 12, etc. etc.


Happy Lifting!! :-)

Upper Body Workout

Hey guys!!!

So I posted on Instagram yesterday that I would put up my workout. What I really like about this workout is that it was simple yet difficult. Remember that in order to gain muscle you have to challenge the muscle. You could do 10 lbs. curls till you're blue in the face but your biceps won't grow. You need to increase weight as you become more skillful. So for this workout the reps are decreasing with weight increasing. Really challenge yourself! So without further ado...the workout.


Shoulder/Bicep/Tricep Workout:
1. Bicep Curl (4x15/12/10/10)
2. Weighted Tricep Dips (on bench) (4x15/12/10/10)
3. Shoulder Press (4x15/12/10/10)
4. Barbell Curl (3x10)
5. Bent Behind the Knee Tricep Extension (3x10)
6. Barbell Shoulder Press (behind head) (3x10)
7-9: Circuit (Cables)
- Cable Hammer Curl (3x15)
- Tricep Pulldown (3x15)
- Rear Delt Pull (Face Pull) (3x15)

This workout took about 45 minutes. I really tired to stay focused and pushed it throughout the workout. I did a 10 minute mile and then a little extra walking to cool down. This was one of my better bicep/tricep workouts that I have done. Remember to focus on the muscle to insure its getting the max benefit!

Hope you guys enjoy!!!

Monday Post - Whoops this is late :-0

Hey Guys!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I'm sure you celebrated with delicious BBQ's and fabulous desserts, so lets get back at it.

One thing to remember is that one day is not going to throw you off. If you have a bad day, recognize it and move on. One of my big things is that if I had a bad day I try to drink a lot of water. I force myself to start the "detox" process. I want all that junk out! So here is the scoop for the rest of the week.

Exercise:
Monday - off (duh!)
Tuesday - HIIT and Abs (see #workout below)
Wednesday - Squats (HIIT if possible)
Thursday - Upper Body (back/chest focus) and HIIT
Friday - Active Rest (see below for details)
Saturday - Lower Body (hamstring focus)
Sunday - Upper Body (shoulder focus) HIIT

HIIT and ABS

• Warm up on machine (bike, elliptical, treadmill) 3 minutes
• Increase resistance (speed) and sprint for 30 seconds
• Decrease resistance (speed) and recover for 1:30
• Repeat x10
• Cool down on machine for 5 minutes
• ABS: Leg Raises (15), Heel Touches (20 each side), Bicycle Crunches (30), Plank (1 min)
• Repeat circuit x4

ACTIVE REST
-There are two types of rest days, active and inactive. Inactive days are ones when you do little to no exercise (little = taking dog for walk). Active rest is when you are helping your body recover from workouts the previous days. I like to do foam rolling and stretching on those days. So on Friday I may ride my bike for 10-15 minutes, then do some light stretching and foam rolling. Both foam rolling and stretching release lactic acid which can build up and cause muscle pain. Decreasing lactic acid cannot only help decrease muscle pain but also helps the muscle recover and get stronger.

So I hope this is all helpful. Remember to continue to eat a healthy balance diet! Fruits and veggies are your friend!! Pick one eating habit you want to decrease this week and have that be your goal. Mine is to decrease junk food snacks and drink more water!

Have a great week guys :-)

Tricep and Bicep Workout

Hey Guys!!

Hope everything is going well for each and everyone of you! I wanted to let you all know that I have recently started pinning some of my stuff on Pinterest. I have pinned some workouts that I like as well as some other randomness. I hope that you will check it out and let me know what you think!

On to fitness!! Yesterday's workout was Triceps and Biceps. I have talked about this before, but when working out you want to switch muscles during the workout in order to give the muscle some reprieve. For example, you do leg extensions (quad) and then do a leg curl (hamstring). This gives the muscle times to shuttle blood and other nutrients to the muscle to help start the repair process. If you work quad muscle after quad muscle you will never allow time for the muscle to repair, therefore stunting progress.

For arms I have worked it out many different ways. The bicep has two heads and the tricep has three heads, so when I am only working out one of these groups I typically switch between the two or three heads of the muscle. So, sometimes I do back and biceps, when I do this I switch between back and bicep head one, back, bicep head two, etc. Yesterday I switched between bicep and tricep. Whichever way you run the workout is a-ok!

SO (finally!!) here is the workout from yesterday. It should ONLY take 1 hour. Really push yourself to complete in 1 hour.

1. Bicep Curl (dumbbell) w/Kickback (4x10)
-Really focus on the movement here. Go SLOW and create that muscle memory. You don't have to go heavy, but make sure that when you are doing the curl that you feel the bicep contracting and extending, squeeze the tricep when you are doing kickbacks, I promise you will feel it in the morning!
2. 21's w/Bench Dip (3x12)
3. Hammer Curl w/Overhead Extension
-This exercise can be done with dumbbells or on the cable machine. I used the cable machine so that I could really push myself.

Have fun guys! Keep me posted if you do the workout!

Shoulder and Glute WOD

Hey guys!!

I know it has been a while, but life has been so crazy!

So I have decided to start prepping for Bayou Muscle bikini npc contest that will happen in April. So in order to keep myself more sane I am (hopefully) start blogging more workouts and recipes! So here is todays workout, enjoy!

1. Shoulder Press (4x15, 12, 10, 8) w/ Speed Skaters (15 each side)

• You can do shoulder press with free weights, barbell, or smith machine. I suggest doing whatever you feel most comfortable with. I like to use the smith machine because I can increase the weight and not worry so much about dropping it :-P

2. Leg Press (5x 15, 12, 10, 8, 8) w/ Pop Squats (10)

• A pop squat is where you go into a regular squat (bodyweight) and "pop" into a narrow squat (bringing feet almost touching). Remember to go low, and this movement should be pretty quick and fluid. I love this move because it gets the heart rate up!

3. One Legged Leg Curl (4x12, 10, 10, 8) w/ Jumping Lunges (10)

• For the one legged leg curl use whatever machine you have available. I have been using the extension machine lately because it forces me to use more glute and hamstring during this motion. I tend to use to much of my quad when I do it on the seated hamstring machine. If you have a lying leg curl, that would be my suggestion!

4. Leg Extensions (4x 15, 12, 9, 9) w/ Jumping Jacks (30)

• Leg extensions - I put it in multiples of 3 (wide, regular, and narrow). Doing extensions in this three forms forces you to use different areas of the quad. Remember you quad is made of four muscles (who would have thought right?!?!!) so you want to target each. 

5. Arnold Press (5x10) w/ Shoulder Circles (10)

• I have a video on Instagram of shoulder circles. Basically, start with a lighter weight palms out resting near your legs (you should be standing), bring the weight up in a circle, weight will touch at the top above your head. Go through this motion slowly. This will target all of the shoulder and it will be quite a workout believe me!

I followed this AMAZING workout with 10 minutes on the elliptical. Should take between 45-65 minutes. Try to keep the pace high (keep heart rate elevated therefore burning more calories) If you have to rest, do it for 15-30 seconds between each set. 

(If you aren't already, take a gander at Instagram and give me a follow @fitcassie_88)

Let's Get Ready!!

Hey!! Hope you had a great weekend!

With the holiday coming up this week it is important to set yourself up for success NOT failure. This starts with a realistic plan for the week.

For this week I am going to set up a meal plan (based on Jim Stoppani's Shortcut to Shred diet) and then follow the same workout regimen that I did last week. Here are some helpful tips to start your week.

Meal Plan - .75-1 gram of protein, .5 gram of fat, .5-1 gram of carbohydrate.

Workout Regimen - pick 1-2 main body parts, create 2-3 exercises per body part. Instead of rest do a cardio exercise in between sets. It doesn't have to be anything crazy like sprints but just something to keep your heart rate up, like jumping jacks.

This is going to be my week:

Breakfast - 2 egg muffins (see previous post), 1/4 cup of oatmeal, 1/2 apple

Snack 1 - 1/4 cup of nonfat greek yogurt, 1 tbs of peanut butter, a couple chocolate chips (taste like cookie dough :-) )

Lunch - 4 oz of steak tips, asparagus, a small salad

Snack 2 - 1/4 cup of meat sauce (turkey ground meat), spaghetti squash, cabbage

Dinner - 4 oz of lean protein, 1 small sweet potato, broccoli


Workout - 5-6 days

1. Remember Christmas is this week. You will have to plan around this, there are a couple things you can do, (1) this can be one of your rest days. (2) you can do a body weight workout at home. (3) you could go for a run...if thats your thing (yikes :-P).

2. Plan your workouts. Most people do not want to workout to hard around the holidays but this is the time that you need to push yourself. Do those extra 10-15 minutes, push yourself on weight, etc. This will help you feel better when you are eating a little more this week :-)

Here is my week:

Monday - Chest, Triceps, Abs

Tuesday - Shoulders, Legs

Wednesday - Back, Biceps

Thursday - rest

Friday - Chest, Triceps, Abs

Saturday - Shoulders, Legs

Sunday - Back, Biceps

For the exact workout that i will be doing this week check out the shortcut to shred on bodybuilding.com...its an amazing workout.

I will try to be better this week with posting workouts and videos. So check back :-)