Pressed for Time?

I haven't had time lately to do very long workouts before heading out the door to go somewhere else. And with VBS coming up this next week (I'm teaching the 1st graders!!), I'll be even more busy. I mentioned early the HIIT runs for cardio, but for strength, I've been doing short 10-15 minutes body weight training, but upping the intensity.

The one I did last night was the 100 pushup challenge (all regular pushups, no "girl" pushups if you can) combined with a 300 rep squat challenge (go all the way down until you are practically sitting on the ground). I did the pushups in 7 minutes and 14 seconds and the squats in 14 minutes and 10 seconds. A great workout that works almost every muscle! Now you do it and beat my time! :)

My personal favorite is just 10 minutes long and it's burpees...with a couple modifications. Standing up, squat down to place your hands on the ground by your feet. Jump your feet back so now you are in a plank. Do a pushup and jump your feet back into your hands. Stand up to a squat and staying in the squat position, jump forward, jump back, stand straight up and jump your knees to your chest. That's one rep. Set your timer for 10 minutes and do as many as you can. I did 50 the first day and 60 the next day.

I've also been doing Tabata workouts and love them! They are 4 minute workouts with 20 seconds of pushing yourself as hard as you can go and 10 seconds of rest. There are so many you can do. I'll list a couple here, but if you want more ideas, just google or YouTube "tabata workouts".

20 sec Squats (as fast as you possibly can)
10 sec rest
20 sec Burpees (as explained above)
10 sec rest
20 sec Mountain Climbers (here's a good picture I found showing how to do it)

10 sec rest
20 sec High Knees (one leg at a time; knee up past your hips)
10 sec rest
20 sec Squats
10 sec rest
20 sec Burpees
10 sec rest
20 sec Mountain Climbers
10 sec rest
20 sec High Knees

Workout #2
Burpees (20 seconds followed by 10 seconds of rest)
Jumping Jacks (20 seconds followed by 10 seconds of rest)
Plyo Jumps (squat down and touch the floor and jump up, hand above your head and feet off the ground as high as you can) (20 seconds followed by 10 seconds of rest)
Plank Jacks (just what it sounds like. Drop down into plank position and your hands stay in one spot while you jump your feet out and in). (20 seconds followed by 10 seconds of rest)
Repeat once more time for a 4 minute workout.

All these workouts are intense and you'll feel great after doing them. The best part is that they don't take very long! It's perfect for the days you don't have time to workout very long. The past couple weeks, my only workouts have been HIIT runs and/or tabata.

I also want to post a recipe for cupcakes I made last night. The best part is, they are gluten free and dairy free. (I think I may have an intolerance to either dairy or gluten but am not sure which one it is. Currently I am eliminating both and then will slowly add each one back in and see which one doesn't agree with me).

Coconut Cupcakes- makes 9

 

 

 

   

 

1/2 cup coconut flour  

1/2 teaspoon sea salt 

1/2 teaspoon baking powder 

3 eggs, gently beaten with a fork 1/3 cup of honey 

1/3 cup of coconut oil  

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 1 cup fresh or frozen berries (I used frozen that were slightly thawed)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
In a medium size bowl, place the coconut flour, sea salt, and baking powder.
Melt honey and coconut oil in a small saucepan, just until melted. Let it cool completely so the eggs won’t curdle. Combine wet ingredients (eggs, honey, and vanilla), and mix thoroughly into dry ingredients.
Fold in fresh or frozen berries. In papered or lightly greased muffin tins, put about 1/4 cup of batter in each muffin tin. Bake for 375 degrees until the muffins are lightly browned on the top and a toothpick comes out clean when poked into the middle of the muffin, 20-28 minutes. (Our oven cooks things super fast so it only took 15 minutes for me. Just keep an eye on it!)
Cool and enjoy! 

The blog I found this recipe (http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/), also included this frosting recipe. I don't have a double broiler yet, so I didn't do the frosting part. It still tasted great...kinda more like a muffin though. But if you want it to be more like a cupcake, follow the recipe below.

Frosting- makes 3 cups
3 egg whites
2/3 cup of honey 
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
Put the unbeaten egg whites, honey, and salt into the top of a double boiler over hot water. Beat with an electric beater on medium to high speed, while you bring the water to a boil. Continue to beat for 7 minutes, or until the mixture forms soft mounds. Remove from the heat, add the vanilla slowly and continue beating until frosting is stiff enough to hold it’s shape.