Simple Systems: Post Workout

Believe it or not, but one of the most important parts to a successful workout is after the workout is finished. What we eat and drink 45 minutes after a workout can help determine how productive our workout was and the effects it will have on out body. The recovery and replenishing of our bodies it vital for a complete workout.

Recovery

Remember to eat within 45 minutes of your workout. This is vital for a well rounded workout because your body needs the recovery. Sometimes, it is hard for me to believe, but the body is able to burn fat better when we eat post work out and it will continue burning more fat throughout the day, bonus-onus!
Great post workout snacks are things that have a high protein content and carb content. Our bodies need the protein and carbs for recovery after a workout. Plus, the calories are more likely to be used as muscle energy rather than fat storage. Things like whey protein with healthy carbs (spinach) or eggs will keep your calorie burn going long after you have left the gym. The carbohydrates will increase insulin production and the insulin will help the amino acids (from the protein) in muscle tissue repair. This means that your muscles will recover quicker and your anabolic metabolism (what builds your body) will get a nice jump start on your day.

Replenish

Replenishing your body is important after a workout.  Most sports drinks have high amounts of sugars and can actually work against our weight loss routines. If you are going to drink sports drinks, make sure to read the ingredients and pick one with a low sugar content. Unless you are doing some intense, hour plus workout, water is enough and can be held off until after the workout. Too much water during a workout can make you water-logged and cramped.
It is recommended that people drink their sweat rate in water post workout. The sweat rate is the amount you weighed (in your birthday suite) before your workout minus what you weighed (same style) post workout. If you did drink anything during your workout, this should be added back in. A good thing to note with these calculations is that 16 oz. of water is equal to one pound...

Meat Free Monday

Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

Minestrone soup is a great vegetarian option and crock pot minestrone makes soup preparation easy! This recipe is great for a busy Monday when all you want to do after a long day is come home and eat. Enjoy!

Recipe

Serving Size: 6

• 1/2 white onion chopped
  
• 1 cup baby carrots chopped
• 1 celery stalk chopped
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 3 tomatoes seeded and diced
• 1 (15oz) can navy beans
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 medium zucchini chopped
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 1 1/2 cups small shell pasta cooked
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Parmesan cheese grated over top (optional)

Minestrone Soup

Combine onion, carrots,celery, garlic, tomato, beans, vegetable broth, Parmesan cheese, zucchini, baby spinach and parsley in crock pot. Add bay leaves and rosemary to top. Cook on low heat for 6six to seven hours. Add the cooked pasta and cook for ten minutes. Remove the rosemary sprig and bay leaves and add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into bowls and grate Parmesan cheese on the top if desired.

This recipe has been revised from skinnytaste.com

Simple Systems: Workout Timing

Timing a work out to get optimal results is uber important. Unfortunately, there are about a billion different opinions on workout optimization. Here is what I have learned, dumbed down and put into a teeny tiny nutshell.

Exercising in the morning will boost your metabolism for the rest of the day. This is why you feel a little more chipper on the days you work out in the morning. If you are feeling run down in your day, it may be because you are overworking your body. This is something I was doing a lot until I got a heart-rate monitor. Your heart rate should stay between 65%-85% for about 30-45 minutes for a solid workout. Anything higher and you could be damaging your body more than helping it. This is partially due to an increase tissue recovery time and partially due to burning muscle and fat when you go above 85%.

Although you should stay in your aerobic heart rate zone for long durations. There are times when your heart rate can go higher than 85% to build power and muscle. This should not be done for more than two minutes at a time. More than 2 minutes and you will feel fatigued, plus your muscles will feel sore from an overproduction of lactic acid.

Favorite Yoga Podcasts

One of the best things that I have ever incorporated into my fitness routine is yoga. The go to yoga that I generally prefer is hot yoga... Yoga in about 100 degrees for ninety minutes. This type of yoga helps improve flexibility, strength, and mental stamina (mental stamina is an opinion, it has not been proven). Even though I love hot yoga, I only go about 2-4 times per month since it can be a bit pricey and intense. For those days when yoga is on the mind but hot yoga is not a real option, I turn to a podcast called Yogamazing by Chaz. His classes and directions are great, plus, he says funny things... I always like a little laugh with my yoga! My personal favorite is one done way back in 2008 called Warrior Flow. It totally works your bum and arms, it is awesome and I am still in love with it after four years.

Another one of my favorites is a podcast called Yogajournal. The instructors here are rotated so you can mix it up or pick a favorite and stick with them. The Move and Sweat and Twist and Detox are great when done together, you will definitely be feeling it in your core after these!

Two great things about these podcasts is that both are video and they are available as subscriptions on YouTube and iTunes. No need to be a yoga pro, they show and tell all the positions!