THE LIVE FIT PROGRAM Week 3 & 4

 

WOW 28 days so far and I'm still loving this program!

Time really does fly by, the next 2 days are my rest days and thats the end of phase-1 of Jamie Easons LiveFit Trainer Three Phase program!

One month down 2 more to go until Thailand! WOO WHOO!!!!



Week 3 OK so I only lost 1lb this week {thats a total of 5lbs lost} I have to say it has been a struggle, one day I gain 1lb then next day I lose it-Very frustrating, but HEY 5lbs is better than NO pounds. This being said I'm starting to lose hope, not motivation because I'm continuing with my workouts 100% but I just hope at the end of this I will have a transformed body to show for it. Ive added my BCAA pre workout and protein shake post workout also I need to be more strict with my diet I feel like I'm going to continually say this, but seriously when am I going to get my sh*t together?!? I'm eating ALOT healthier then I ever did but I'm not follow the LF food plan it is just alot of food to consume so basically my meals are the same as last weeks. I branched out and went to a vegetarian restaurant with the husband one night for dinner and even enjoyed some delicious healthy carrot cake for dessert.{I think I even lost 1lbs that night}

△△ Quinoa Onion Rings △△

Week 4 Still sitting strong at my 5lb weight loss. I've regained a bit of hope now nearing the end of week 4 I feel much stronger and my waist seems slimmer. I never took measurements only 'before' photos so I'm only able to tell by the way my clothes are fitting. I must say I think leg day is my favourite. This week was a bit challenging only because I decided last minute to donate blood {for the first time} and actually passed out afterwards. I didn't realize how weak it would actually make me as well I was out of commission that night and the next morning... {you all know I love my morning workouts} anyways it worked out just fine, I skipped yoga that night and ended up doing my workout the next evening. I'm actually looking forward to phase 2 we add cardio in and I'm really  hoping I start shedding some fat and my muscle will show more definition. Thank the lord for my husband who has been so supportive and super encouraging and even helping prepare my meals! It’s so great to know that he is cheering me on!

△△ A few meals from the week △△

 

 

△△ OH! almost forgot I received these in the mail from Quest Nutrition. Look for a blog review soon. SOOO excited to try Quest bars, Ive never had them before. △△

Check back in two more week for yet another bi weekly update. You can also follow me on Instagram to see my updates. @ashleajasper

THE LIVE FIT PROGRAM Week 2

As you know I am currently doing Jamie Eason's Live Fit 12-Week Trainer. The best part is its free! If you are just starting a workout routine or have never lifted weights before {like myself}, I recommend you try it. The program does require a gym {I'm lucky that I have a gym in my condo}, but you may be able to look up alternative workouts.

Yesterday I finished up week 2 workouts, Thank the lord the next 3 days are my rest days. Right now, I workout 4 times a week {lifting weights in the morning and adding 75 minute yoga classes in at night 3x week}. So far so good! I think I’m getting the hang of this thing. I think my biggest lesson thus far is really knowing and being aware of what I’m putting in my body. I look at everything and think ahead before I eat it. All my meals for the past two weeks have been all homemade. {Thanks to my lovely husband} here's a sample of what I've been eating

Meal 1 5:30am {pre workout} – WATER, I slice of multi grain toast with pb, half a banana sliced on top and I eat the other have.
Meal 2 7:30am {post workout} – 3-4 egg whites with 1/2 tsp ketchup.
Meal 3 10:20am handful of almonds, 2 rice cakes.
Meal 4 12:00pm Chicken breast, quinea & steamed broccoli.
Meal 5 3:30pm Apple with pb.
Meal 6 6:00pm Spaghetti squash, ground turkey homemade tomato sauce.
Meal 7 8:00pm {sometimes no meal 7} rice cakes

I know I need to add in more veggies I'm working on it ;)

Lets recap;

Week 1 Went great! I was excited about starting a new program so everyday I was very motivated to wake up and hit the gym early. In  week 1 of the program you have 4 workout days and 3 rest days, the 3 rest days seemed like f o r e v e r and I tried hard to actually relax and not do any workouts however I did yoga one of the days.

Week 2 DOWN 4LBS Can I get a Hell yeah!?! I was finally excited to get back into the gym after the long 3 days off, Same excersies as last week. Again, still motivated and on the right track no slip ups or cravings for bad foods. {with the exception of a glass of wine at dinner 2 nights this week} looking forward to the next 3 days of rest as I'm just getting over a bad cold and need to let my body relax.

I will be starting Week 3 on Tuesday, It's going to be a good change because its a new set of workouts this week. I can already tell a big difference in the shape of my body. I'm following the workouts exactly, and the food probably 65%. My arms are building a bit of muscle, which is something I could never quite achieve in the past and my stomach has lost the bloot. Also I bought whey protien and BCAA's yesterday and can't wait to add them into my diet. I'll keep you posted with my progress as I continue. You can also follow me on Instagram to see my updates. @ashleajasper

 

Egg White Muffins

Ingredients

-12-18 Egg whites (I would reccomend using liquid egg whites, you will be able to see why from my picture)

- Handful of spinach, washed & chopped

- Grape tomatoes, chopped

- Mushrooms (Optional, I used only in half for the husband) 

Heat your oven to 350 degrees. Use a non stick cooking spray or oil to grease the muffin tin. Add your chopped spinach and tomatoes into each muffin tin. Then simply fill your them with your liquid egg whites or cracked egg whites. Pop into the oven for about 20 minutes (until they are no longer liquid).

Remove from the oven and let cool on baking rack for about 10 minutes, then just place in baggies or containers. 

In the morning just heat up and enjoy your easy breakfast on the go!

12 grams of protien per muffin

This is the mess your left with if you dont use liquid egg white. 

 

 

Waking Early to Workout

Its not as bad as you think, I promise!

 

I'm definitely a morning person but I'm also a girl who needs her beauty sleep. In order to get my workouts in I have to exercise before work, I have way to many lazy thoughts after work that I usually convince myself I'm to tired to hit the gym. Which means waking up around 5:20 to 5:30 a.m. UGH!  I can say opening my eyes at the crack of dawn is not fun. But once I get going, I feel so great!

Here are my tips for waking up early and hitting the gym. 

1. Before you get to bed remind yourself that you are waking up early and pick the appropriate time. picture that time on your alarm clock or phone. Plan what goals your going to complete upon waking ie. hitting the gym/which workouts your going to do.

2. When my alarm goes off, I grab my phone and shut off the alarm and go straight on Instagram, I know this may sound weird but I follow a lot of health/fitness people who usually upload a picture of them working out which then motivates me to get up and workout myself. Whatever you do don't hit snooze!

3. Get everything prepared the night before. Have your pre workout meal already prepped {I've been eating 1 piece of toast with pb and banana slices, which takes about one minute to toast}, if coffee have it set out and ready to brew, have your water bottled filled and in the fridge, have gym clothes washed and ready to wear.
 

Having my workout over and done with  first thing in the morning while everyone else is snoozing is really rewarding. And it frees the rest of the day for whatever else you have planned. {I've been fitting in some yoga classes at night} Also working out in the morning means the gym is usually empty and you can get through your workout a lot faster as you have free range of all the weights and machines.

on weekends I try and sleep in, which is not very late since I'm a morning person anyways. But I will do my workouts later in the morning.
Hope these tips helped and happy workout!

 

Sweet Potato Fries Made with Coconut oil

I'm not one to cook {my husbands great so why would I?} But as I wrap up my first week of LiveFit I've been trying to find new healthy recipes. I found this one on Pinterest but tweaked it abit. 

Preparing the fries 

-Peel one large sweet potato.
-Slice sweet potato into VERY thin fry size slices. {make sure they are the same size} 

-Add the sweet potato slices to a large bowl and fill with water let soak for about 5-10 minutes to remove the starch. 

- Empty water and rinse, microwave for 3-4 minutes.
-On a non-stick baking sheet spread out microwaved potato slices evenly.
-Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Don’t let them burn.
-While they are in the oven, heat up a frying pan.
-Add a few tbsp of coconut oil to frying pan.
-Remove fries from oven and add to frying pan.
-Cook fries until they crisp and lightly brown.
-Add all fries to a large bowl Add: 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp dried parsley and 1/2 tsp salt. 

-Enjoy!

Makes 2 cups of sweet potato fries.

Per Cup : 208 Calories, 6 g fat, 29 g Carbs, 4 g Fiber, 0 g Sugar 2 g Protein. 

85 days of the rest of my life

Today I wanted to post about something a little bit different it is officially 85 days until our Thailand trip April 2nd!!! woo whoo

I made a commitment to myself January 1st 2014 that I would finally REALLY make health and fitness a priority in my life. that being said, I feel like in order to keep myself accountable I would need some record which is why I'm writing this post.  I discovered Jamie Eason's livefit its a 12 week trainer program It consists of 3 phases with training, Nutrition & Supplements. You can learn more about the program on the website. bodybuilding.com I will post weekly updates and check ins of how I'm doing and if I'm staying on track.

 

 

Today was my first day training it went well the only struggle I feel I may have is the Nutrition part of the program because lifting weights requires you to eat way more Calories which I'm not use to. but hopefully with time I will be OK. I'll keep you updated and let you know how my first week on the program went. As of right now I'm not comfortable posting before photos but at the end of the 12 weeks or when I begin to see progress I may post before and afters.

10 Random facts

-ONE- I'm a neat freak and having a messy house stresses me out. 

-TWO- I fall asleep A LOT. I think Ive fallen a sleep at every movie theatre I've been too.

-THREE- I don't like to touch ANY raw meat. But I'll eat my steaks medium rare.

-FOUR- I want to become a mom more then anything in the world. 

-FIVE- I hate going to grocery stores alone

-SIX- I paint my nails far to often. If I chip a nail I'll pick off all the polish and re do them.

-SEVEN- I'm obsessed with Instagram. It's usually the first thing I check on my phone when I wake up.

-EIGHT- I've been dieting on and off since I was 14. I've lost 50lbs since then. 

-NINE- Flying insects freak me out. YES even Butterflies FREAK ME OUT.

-TEN- I only drink water and coffee. {some times alcohol}

Blog-iversary!!!!

WOW... I am honestly at a lose for words {for once}. I couldn’t be more excited that this little old blog of mine has made it through its first year!! And I owe every bit of it to you kind readers who take the time to stop by… 

I would have never thought one year ago my silly idea to start a blog would be where its at now It's humbling and so sweet. It's a privilege to share a small piece of mine and Jeff's life with so many kindred spirits. 

So Thank You, my dear readers heres to many more