FITNESS FRIDAY: Sweat and Solitaire

Need a fun and quirky way to change up your workout routine?

Thanks to this interview with Carrie Underwood,  I've got a great idea for you to try next time you get bored with your normal regime!

SWEAT AND SOLITAIRE

 

1. Split a DECK OF CARDS in half, and assign each suit a body area (i.e. core for hearts, legs for diamonds, arms for spades, and cardio for clubs). 

2. Write down a few exercises for each body area, and flip the first card on the deck. If it's the six of diamonds, for example, you could do 6 squats. If the second card is the ace of spades, you could do 14 push-ups. 

3. Keep on flipping till you complete every card in the deck!

Here's a little example from part of my workout yesterday...

KEY:
Hearts: Core exercises (Bicycle, V-ups, Briefcase)
Diamonds: Leg exercises (Explosive lunges, Split squat, Single-leg deadlift)
Spades: Arm exercises (Push-ups, Curl and press, Chest fly)
Clubs: Cardio exercises (Burpees, Mountain climbers, Box jumps)

After warming up, I flipped the first three cards in the deck and completed my first 4 exercises as a short circuit. After I completed the 4 exercises, I took a *very* short break, flipped the next 4 cards over, and started up again! Here are the first 4 cards and their corresponding exercises...

6 of Diamonds...6 explosive lunges on each leg
3 of Hearts...3 bicycle crunches
Jack of Diamonds...11 split squats on each leg
8 of Spades...8 push-ups

I kept up this rotation until I finished the entire deck! Also, I made sure there was a joker somewhere in the deck, and when I drew it, I completed a plank for as long as I could (in yesterday's case, I lasted 4:06).

Oh, and here's your daily dose of fitness laughter...

 

Happy Friday! 

Introducing...Photography.

This is a bit surreal. But here goes nothing. 

Friends, family, complete strangers, I'd like to introduce you to my newest and most most exciting endeavor: Photography. 

I'll save you the sap and sentiment, but suffice it to say that I have a deep joy and a sweet desire for this work. I have no wonderfully creative name for this new endeavor, but if doors continue to be opened, I promise to remedy that deficiency. For now, we'll just go with Photography, by a girl who loves to see people smile (don't worry, it won't last). I'm still pretty new at this, and I have an infinite amount of growing to do in this field (as any seasoned photographer can likely see), but the Lord has planted this seed in my life, and I am excited to see the shape it will take.

By the way, I'd like to extend my indebted gratitude to my dear friends Brett, Carolyn, Bert, and Stephanie, who have fearlessly entrusted me to take photos for them. I cannot thank all of you enough for blessing me in this way!

If you're pleased with the samples below and interested in booking me for a session, please e-mail me for details, pricing, and availability (scp.ramage@gmail.com). I would be ecstatic to take pictures for you, your family, your engagement, your Christmas card, your precious pets, or the like. I believe photography is so much more than taking pictures, though...it's more like taking moments, recording memories, capturing life. 

If I keep this up, I'll write far more than a thousand words, so let me just let the pictures speak for themselves.

Newborn

 Pets

Scenery

 

Children and Family

 Engagement

Cheers,

Asiago Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes. Asiago cheese. Thyme and oregano. 

Is your mouth watering yet? 

Mine is. You see, my husband's family is from a little town called Vardaman, Mississippi. What? You've never heard of it? Come on...it's the sweet potato capital of the world! Truly, my friend, you're missing out. Vardaman may be a little difficult to find on a map; nevertheless, it is an entirely unforgettable place once you've eaten a potluck dinner in the fellowship hall of the First Baptist Church.  

At every family get-together in Vardaman, you'll be sure to find sweet potato pie, sweet potato casserole, sweet potato logs, and - if you're lucky - sweet potato biscuits. I've attempted a few of these holiday staples in my own kitchen, but to say, "it's just not the same," would be a significant understatement. Alas, after perusing some cookbooks, I decided to take a simple, savory spin on these sinful side dishes.

Weighing in at about 160 calories, this satiating side is at least a moderately wise choice at dinnertime. Sweet potatoes are high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Potassium, and they also add a dose of fiber to your daily diet. Using EVOO is always a great trade for less desirable oils, such as canola oil, vegetable oil, and cooking spray. The cheese? Well, of course it's a bit of an indulgence, but taken in moderation, we can at least affirm its usefulness as a significant source of Calcium and Vitamin C.

Asiago Sweet Potatoes

-6 servings-

GRAB THIS: 

4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp fresh thyme 

1 Tbsp fresh oregano

3 medium sweet potatoes, sliced thin

1 small onion, sliced thin
2.5 cups grated Asiago cheese

   

 

DO THIS:

1. Preheat oven to 400F. 

2. In a casserole dish, drizzle 2 Tbsp olive oil, and sprinkle half the thyme and half the oregano. Layer sweet potato slices, slightly overlapping, followed by onions. Sprinkle with a handful of Asiago.

 3. Repeat, layering sweet potatoes, onion, and Asiago, until no ingredients remain, about 5 layers total. Drizzle with 2 Tbsp olive oil and sprinkle with remaining thyme and oregano.

4. Bake dish until potatoes are cooked through and cheese is nice and gooey, approximately 45 minutes.

 Eat and enjoy.

FITNESS FRIDAY: Four Minutes to Failure

Hello and happy Friday!

Before we begin, I wanted to share this with you...

Come on, you know that was darn witty. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Anyway, I should probably apologize for my extended absence here lately - we'll chalk it up to weddings, work schedules, and midterms. My bad.

A couple of weeks ago, I came across a nifty little routine that claims to burn as many calories as a 30-40 minute run. Personally, I think that's probably stretching it a little bit, but it's an intense four minutes nevertheless. This four-minute drill is designed to raise your heart rate, exhaust your lungs, and force your metabolism into overdrive. The day-long effect of this intensity is an elevated metabolism for 12-24 hours. Pretty neat, huh?

Grab your Nike kicks, your water bottle, and your asthma inhaler. And come on, gang - it's literally 4 minutes long. Step away from the computer and give it a shot.

FOUR MINUTES TO FAILURE

• Equipment: None 
• Duration: 4 minutes
• Exercises: 4
• Method: The drill works on a "20 seconds on, 10 seconds off" basis. You will do the first exercise for 20 seconds, and then rest for 10 seconds. At the end of that rest period, you'll immediately begin the second exercise, which you'll do for another 20 seconds. And so on, so forth, until you've gone through each of the 4 exercises twice. That's it. Four minutes, and you're done. 

 

Burpees (to :20)

Rest (to :30)

Mountain Climbers (to :50)

Rest (to 1:00)

High Knees (to 1:20)

Rest (to 1:30)

Jumping Jacks (to 1:50)

Rest (to 2:00)

Burpees (to 2:20)

Rest (to 2:30)

Mountain Climbers (to 2:50)

Rest (to 3:00)

High Knees (to 3:20)

Rest (to 3:30)

Jumping Jacks (to 3:50)

Rest (to 4:00)

Faint. Just kidding...you made it! 

Happy St. Patrick's Day, my friends!
(By the way, if you want to know why we celebrate the life of St. Patrick, click here.)

Roasted Red Snapper

Its true. Science has proven time and time again that fish-eating populations have lower rates of heart disease and tend to live longer than populations who are less likely to consume fish on a regular basis. Fish is loaded with omega-3 fatty acids ("good" fat), and it's also a great source of protein and very low in saturated fat. 

I guess what I'm trying to say is...eat more fish.

I adapted this recipe from Dr. Janet Brill, Fitness Together's resident nutrition guru. Snapper is one of my all-time favorite dishes - I've even had the wonderful opportunity to catch a red snapper off the coast of Belize and enjoy it for dinner that same evening! If you prefer a mild fish that tastes FANTASTIC when roasted, this one's for you.

ROASTED RED SNAPPER

Grab This...  

  4 (6-ounce) red snapper fillets 

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, cut in half and sliced

4 garlic cloves, sliced thinly

2 (14.5 ounce) cans of diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons drained capers

8 kalamata olives, pitted and sliced

Juice from ½ a lemon

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

  Freshly ground black pepper to taste (I use ¼ teaspoon)

Do This...

Preheat oven to 450°F. In a large skillet, add olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is translucent and slightly brown. Add in tomatoes, capers, olives, lemon juice and spices and stir. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook an additional 5 minutes. In the meantime, spray a large baking dish with non stick cooking spray. Add fish to baking dish. Top fish with tomato mixture and bake uncovered for approximately 10 minutes until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Know This...

Nutritional Information Per Serving (1/4 of the recipe):
Food weight: 3.0, Calories: 281, Fat: 8 g, Cholesterol: 63 mg, Sodium: 921 mg,
Carbohydrate: 15 g, Dietary Fiber: 1 g, Sugars: 8 g, Protein: 38 g

FITNESS FRIDAY: Sore Legs, Great Workout

This past Tuesday, the FT team and I got together for our monthly group workout. Erika, our wonderful manager, put us through a 20-minute lower body circuit, and my legs and butt are still talking about it! I'm a BIG fan of lower body workouts, primarily because I played soccer for 6 years and never once did a push-up (I'm working on this bias, by the way).

If you're looking for a FANTASTIC leg workout that requires little time, little equipment, and a lot of effort, this circuit is for you! I'd like to complete this workout at least twice a week for the next couple of months to help ease the dreaded transition into swimsuit season. What do you say...how about joining me?

Summer Legs Workout

• Complete 15 reps per each exercise
• Do not rest in between exercises. Rest only after you complete the circuit. 
• Complete the circuit 3 times. 
• Use weights!!!! Push yourself, my friends. Remember - you're always stronger than you think you are!
• For an added challenge, do those dead lifts on the Bosu ball, and/or elevate your back leg (on a chair, table, dumbbell rack, etc) when completing the split squats!

Sumo Squat

Single-leg Split Squat

Bosu Squat

Side Lunge

Single-Leg Deadlift

After completing the circuit three times, finish out your workout with a short core circuit.

  Here's the one we did:

• Do 20 repetitions of each exercise. 
• Do not rest until the circuit is completed. 

Squat Jumps

Plank Hops

Superman

Bicycle Crunches 

Need tutorials? No problem. 

•  Sumo Squat
• Single-leg Split Squat
• Bosu Squat
• Side Lunge
•  Single-leg Deadlift
• Squat Jumps
• Plank Hops
• Superman
• Bicycle Crunches

Happy sweating!

 
                                                                                                         

Love & Football

  

To say this post is a little late would be a bit of an understatement. Nevertheless, I wanted to share it with you because it's such a sweet memory for me. 

Two weeks ago, a precious couple from our small group (Brett and Carolyn) got engaged, and I was graciously allowed to be a part of it! Brett asked me to photograph the proposal on Saturday evening, and that was a ton of fun! Most of the pictures from that night are already up on Facebook, so I'll stick to the point of this post in particular. 

The day after their engagement just happened to be Superbowl Sunday (go Giants!!), and we had already planned to entertain some of our sweet friends during the game. Soooooooo....long story short, we decided to throw Carolyn a surprise engagement party!! It ended up being a fun, hybrid party where we celebrated two very wonderful things...love, and football. 

Coffee table centerpiece (Brett's last name starts with a 'G')

 

We had everyone side a card with words of encouragement and congratulation.

Banner says, "Brett + Carolyn"

We had pictures from the proposal hung on clotheslines throughout the living room.

Table centerpiece

The cake was topped with a miniature replica of the banner hanging in the living room.

Chocolate-covered footballs (strawberries)

Football field dip (salsa, guacamole, sour cream, shredded cheese)

SURPRISE!!!!

Robin and Richie

Jen, Stephanie, and Kayla

Corey, Sunni, and Kelly

THE Chris Engleman

The game was obviously not that exciting

We celebrated Louisiana-style with a traditional Shrimp Boil!

Oh hey there, husband!

We are so very happy for Carolyn and Brett, and we have been so blessed to be a small part of their journey thus far. We can't wait to see how the Lord uses them for his glory!