Hey you guys!! I want to THANK YOU ALL again so so much for the outpouring of love and sweet comments regarding my transformation article in Muscle and Strength You all inspire me each and everyday and I could not ask for more kind, dedicated, magnificant readers!
So last week in the kitchen, I was craving something ‘fun’ to enjoy with my salads. Sure I always vary up my protein, veggies, healthy fats and carbs on my salads but I wanted something more
So, it is fall, it is pumpkin season. I love unsweetened cocoa powder on just about anything. Why not mix all of those delicious seasonings onto chickpeas?
I started with these ingredients, but ended up using a bit more. Full recipe is at the bottom!
I mixed all of the ingredients on 1-16oz can of garbanzo beans
Spread them out on a cookie sheet
Cocoa Cinnamon Roasted Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1-16oz can of chickpeas (drained well)
- 1 heaping T of cocoa powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp stevia extract (can use a few packets as well)
- 1 T sugarfree maple syrup OR honey OR agave OR pure maple syrup
Directions
- Drain chickpeas well and place in a small bowl.
- Add all spices and syrup and mix well until the chickpeas are evenly coated
- Place on a sprayed cookie sheet
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 15-18 minutes (tossing every few min or so)
- Enjoy!
How do I enjoy them?
- Mixed into Greek yogurt
- Tossed with salads
- Mixed with quinoa
- On their own!
What else have I been coooking up in the kitchen? Well I got back to being quite the smoothie machine, trying out different ingredients and flavors. I made this shake and had it 3 days in a row it was THAT good.
Vanilla Spinach Cocoa Protein Shake
Ingredients
- 1 scoop vanilla pea protein powder (I use Olympian Labs)
- 2 C spinach
- 6 ice cubes
- 1/2 C unsweetened almond milk
- 3/4 C water (may need to add more depending on how thick it gets)
- 1 T unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/8 tsp each xanthan and guar gums (for thickening)
- 1/4 tsp stevia extract
Directions
- Mix all ingredients in a blender
- Blend for 30 sec-1 min
- enjoy!
Fitness Front
Fitness wise, I am getting back into the swing of things with lifting. I am not so much on a ‘rigid’ workout schedule which I acutally really enjoy, however with that said I always like to have somewhat of a weekly ‘plan’ meaning I like to be mentally prepared for the workout I have in store for the next day.
I have been doing more full body style workout focusing on more compound movements…bringing it back to the basics. I really want to work on increasing my strength in my entire body, so I am not so much focusing on ‘accessory exercises’ and rather big compound movements (bench, deadlift, squat, chin up, military press, dips etc) I am still always trying new exercises with my lower body because I get bored easily
On tuesday I had a great glute focused workout
Notes on this workout
- I kept this workout not too heavy. I still want to get my body used to lifting again with moderate weight, so I kept the reps at 12 for all of the exercises and 3 sets of each.
- I focused on form form form over getting through the workout at a warp speed. I really concentrated on the mind muscle connection, ensuring that my muscles are being activated which is SO important.
- I have linked up some youtube videos of some of the exercises if you are unaware how to do them, as well as given some modifications
- ENJOY!
Getting Back Glute Focused Workout
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Set 1
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Trap Bar Dead lift
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3×12 reps
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Val slide hamstring curl
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3×12
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*if you don’t have a val slide, use a towel on a wood floor!
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Set 2
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Straight leg dead lift
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3×12 reps
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Val slide Reverse + lateral lunge
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3×12 (in each direction)
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*if you don’t have a val slide, use a towel on a wood floor!
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Set 3
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TRX Split Squats
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3×12 each side
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*if you don’t have a TRX or know how to use it properly sub Bulgarian split squats
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Stability Ball Glute Bridge with band
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3×12
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*start this exercise on the ground for beginners or intermediate
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Set 4
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Jump squats
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3×12
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Body weight squats
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3×12
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Isometric squat hold
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3×30 seconds
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Videos and More Notes about this workout!
- Trap Bar Dead lift (if you don’t have the trap bar, just perform a conventional deadlift. I like the trap bar because the weight of your body is more evenly distributed and less pressure on your back. I really feel my glutes being activated with this!
- Val slide Hamstring curls (These are pretty advanced and you really have to make sure you are activating your hamstrings. I couldn’t even perform 12 straight through. If you cannot perform these, stick with 1 leg at a time!)
- Val slide Reverse and Lateral Lunge Combo
- TRX Split Squat (sub bulgarian split squats if you do not have a TRX)
- Stability Ball Band Glute Bridge (I attached a band around my knees to ensure that my knees stay straight and my ab and adductors were firing!)
As always...be sure you are properly warmed up and I would highly suggest some foam rolling before hand to really loosen the muscles and get them prepared for this workout.
Modify where you need to to make this workout work FOR YOU. Don’t worry about getting through the sets or reps that I have written down. This is your workout. If you want to subsitute another exercise for one I have written go for it! I would love to hear how you modified this workout in the comments section!
I give this workout TWO THUMBS UP!
Questions
Do you have a favorite lower or upper body OR full body workout that you have been following?
What ‘other’ salad topper do you enjoy to spruce things up?
