Fitness Friday: Booty Barre Recap

If I was thinking that Becki, owner and instructor of Strength in Balance NH, was going to go easy on us at the Booty Barre Blog & Tweet event, I was proved WRONG! But I'm totally ok with that!

The Strength in Balance NH Barre Fitness Studio is located at Z Club in the old mill buildings on Factory Street in Nashua and is the first barre fitness studio in southern NH. This total body workout is a mix of dance, yoga, Pilates and balance.

Becki got us warmed up quickly with some arm and leg strength work in the middle of the room. Using two pound hand weights seems like nothing at first, but by the end warm up I had to put them down and go through the motions without them.

After the "warm up", Becki moved us over to the barre for the bar/ballet part of the class. She would show us the exercise in small parts first and then put it all together. The balanced moves made my legs literally shake!

These barre workouts would be interrupted briefly for some open floor cardio like burpees and mountain climbers to get the heart pumping before heading back to the barre.

Janine, Allie, Amber and Candra

Just when I thought I was mastering the barre moves, we busted out the blue sponge balls. Yikes! The goal was to squeeze it between our legs while doing squats and behind our knee while doing leg lifts.

Lastly, we moved to the mats for some core work similar to Pilates moves but using the barre. I liked these exercises better than regular Pilates class moves because it felt easier to control what my core was doing.

Class ended with a good dose of stretching which felt so amazing after the complete burn I had just put my body through. Despite feeling spent, I was all smiles!

I wish I lived closer to Nashua because I would make Booty Barre class one of my regular cross training workouts. I loved the high energy, loud music, open and roomy studio. Becki was awesome about walking around, checking our forms, and correcting when necessary. It was a fun and challenging class, which it makes it totally worth the time.

Strength in Balance NH offers a wide variety of classes designed for all levels, so there's no excuse not to try it.

Have you tried barre? What do you think?

Special thanks to Becki for hosting us all for the Blog & Tweet event. We attended the class free of charge, but all opinions are 100% my own.

WIAW: Chocolate Protein Puffed Rice Bites

My favorite post-workout snack is a little ball of chocolate. Literally. Normally I'm not a chocolate kind of person, but sometimes a little bite of peanut butter, chocolate, and crispy just hits the spot.

I'm a big fan of Lindsay Cotter and her delicious Healthy Bites. In fact it was her Muddy Buddy Mochas that started my interest in little bite sized post workout treats.

I've learned over the years that it is important to consume some protein within 30 minutes of a hard workout because it aids muscle recovery and also prevents over-eating later (my biggest problem). The (other) problem for me is that I usually don't feel like eating anything right away.

After ordering some Healthy Bites and then purchasing her recipe eBook, I was inspired to create my own bites. I thought about some of the chocolate candy bars that I've liked over the years and sometimes crave as a little snack: Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and 100 Grand Bars were at the top of my list. 

After jotting down the recipe, I got right to work. Not only was I excited to see how my own creation would turn out, but ever since going GF, I have so much more energy! Most Sundays you can find me wearing my "Chef's hat" and going a little crazy with projects in the kitchen. Ok, back to the treats...I tossed all the ingredients into a bowl and started mixing it up.

After mixing all the ingredients together, I rolled the mixture into 1.5 inch balls (approximately) and placed them on wax paper before putting into the freezer.

About an hour later, my new bites were ready to try. The puffed rice wasn't as crispy as a candy bar, but they are absolutely yummy!

Disclaimer: I did not claim my recipe to be healthy, but it is gluten-free. Enjoy!

What's your favorite post-workout snack?

Today I'm linking up again with Jen from Peas and Crayons. Don't forget to take a look at a ton of other awesome recipes.

Training Truths: Rebuilding the Runner in Me

Let me start by sharing the results of the fitness calendars giveaway. The winners are:

Presley - Complete Runner's Day-By-Day Calendar Log

Allie - Runner's High 2014 Day-to-Day Calendar

Congratulations!

Check your inbox for an email from me!

Last week I continued to rebuild the runner in me. I'm at day 49 of my #squatstreak and I added a few days of wall sits also. The #sweataday challenge has been getting a little tougher, but I'm using the modifications and pushing to increase my upper body strength. Fortunately the mini-workouts often include upper body exercises, like the reverse burpees I tried on Friday.

See that terrible form? Time to build up some strength!

Monday - I started the day with a nice two mile run with my veteran. I decided to go back to avoiding hills until all the muscles in my hamstring and quad are back to 100%. This "flat" out and back was much speedier than I expected, but felt good.

Wednesday - After 30 minutes of ART, I learned that my IT band is tight. Now I have a new stretch to add to my routine and more reason to stay focused on strengthening my hips and glutes.

Thursday - I ran two miles after school on the same route as Monday and felt awesome. Again, I was speedier than I expected which felt good, but I'm pretty sure that I need to continue to restore the base mileage first.

Saturday - mr.C joined me for a 3.5 mile run along the river. I was very happy with my run, and even though I went out too fast, I managed to reign myself in and almost hit my goal pace of 9:30. Afterwards I tested out some new trail shoes for a review.

Sunday - I joined up with the NH Bloggers and Tweeters at Strength in Balance NH for Booty Barre class and I had a blast! Like SurfSet this class is a great cross training option. This class was a perfect strength session with tons of stretching (especially the hips) worked in.

You know I like a good reward challenge and logging miles to win prizes is about as easy as it gets. I was recently contacted by Nick from the National Running Challenge - a challenge that rewards you for running races. The NRC is basically a series challenge that assigns points for the miles you run in races. You submit your races during the current series. At the end of a series, winners are chosen. You can learn more here. Even though I'm not running many races right now, I know a lot of friends who are piling on the miles and would probably win some prizes!


What are you rebuilding?

Fitness Friday: Giving Thanks, Runner Style

Of course I'm thankful for my wonderful family, our heath and home, our jobs, and our friends. Since it is the season for gratitude, I thought it would be appropriate to show my appreciation for the things that make my running life better.

Running buddy husband: I don't know what I would do without this guy. He might not be "jolly jogger" all the time, but he has supported me through all my training and helped me through being sidelined with injury. I probably still owe him big time for running the BAA Half Marathon with me (when neither one of us was prepared) just so I could get some bling!

PT Brian: My Physical Therapist is the best because 1) he knows what he is doing 2) he listens to my complaints/symptoms 3) he married an Ohio girl - like me, oh wait, that shouldn't matter! 4) he's a master at Active Release Therapy and it works!

My foam roller: Since running that half marathon under-undertrained, I have been faithfully foam rolling every morning. Not only does it help loosen up my tight muscles and release tension, it is also great for a good back cracking and opening up the rib cage.

Good running shoes: I'm grateful that I found Mizuno. The company boasts that you will find mezamashii, a brilliant run, in their shoes and they mean it. My Mizunos have helped me become a better runner because the shoes make running easy, and when it's easy, it's fun.

By the way, have you seen the Mezamashii Run Project video I filmed in Atlanta yet?

Under Armour Challenge: These monthly challenges saved me from going crazy during my non-running injured-runner days. Now that I'm addicted, the daily exercise helps me stay focused on keeping myself strong and shows me how easy it is to fit in a mini-workout every damn day. Plus they have great rewards!

What's on your fitness gratitude list?

Why not show yourself or a running buddy some appreciation and enter to win a fitness calendar? More details here! Giveaway ends at midnight November 17, 2013.

Training Truths: Getting In Tune

Last week I found myself getting back in tune with my body. Trying to stick to the 10% mileage increase rule, I upped my weekly mileage slowly and paid close attention to which part of my thigh was achey, and then attacked it with the foam roller! After my runs I also made time to stretch with my yoga for runners app.

The #squatstreak continued, but I found a new favorite version thanks to Shauna Harrison and the Under Armour #SweatADay challenge: in & outs. After doing 50 basic squats every day for the last 40 days, the in & out squats woke up some gluteus muscles that apparently had been snoozing through the traditional ones.

Tuesday's two miles outside will probably mark the end of running in shorts, but I welcome the cold weather. I stayed on the flattest route from my driveway and kept the hamstring happy.

I was feeling pretty sore after my ART session at PT on Wednesday, so Thursday's two mile treadmill run motivated by the rainy weather was fortuitous. With the pace nice and easy, I focused on my form.

Saturday's "long" run of three miles was my best run of the week. It was my longest post-injury run on a hilly route which in the past would aggravate my hamstring, but it finally felt really good.

On Sunday we welcomed another half marathoner to the household. My step-daughter ran the Seacoast Half and we were there to cheer her across the finish line.

It was an exciting week and I like what my body is saying. What has your body been telling you lately?