May Julep Maven

"It's a beautiful day to be a maven." -Julep Maven

To my surprise I received my Julep Maven May box in the mail. I literally check my mail everyday with anticipation of getting my boxes lol. This weeks box brought a wonderful goody for all you nail art lovers. 

May box included :

-The Plie Wand and nail polishing system

-Maddy (Dark Pink)

-Ramona (very light purple) 

The Plie wand and nail polish system allow you to create awesome art on your nails from dotting to striping. It also has a additional attachment that allows you to extend your nail polish cap. Wonderful tool ladies. 

If you are not receiving Julep Maven you must subscribe here.

                                                                For the love of beauty,

                                                                                 This Girl Lifts

Perfect Smoothies

Summer time has come and the only thing I have been able to come up with to keep cool is "the perfect smoothie." Smoothies are wonderful for on the go and right after a workout. Starting Monday I will be sharing a perfect smoothie for 5 days straight. In the meantime I will share with you how I make my smoothies from bottom to top to benefit my daily needs.

From bottom to top, I stack my smoothie using a unique formula. I start with the base, then I add my booster, greens/veggies, and then fruit. Here's the breakdown.

Base: water, coconut milk, milk, almond milk, hemp milk, coconut water, or yogurt.

Booster: Stevia, protein powder, antioxidant powder, almond butter, peanut butter, coconut oil, and flaxseed. (There are tons of different options)

Greens/Veggies: Kale, spinach, broccoli, pumpkins, carrots, sweet potatoes, and more. (Your choice)

Fruit: Strawberries, blueberries, peaches, apples, watermelon, and more. (Your choices)

Smoothies can be made in over a million different ways but always remember you want your smoothie to have beneficial nutrients in it to support your daily lifestyle. So stay tuned because I will be sharing tons of new smoothie recipes with you.

Whether in a cup or on a stick, stay cool this summer.

                                                                                 This Girl Lifts

12 Week Plan

Ladies, I have the best news in the history of fitness (probably not lol but to me it is). I have teamed up with one of the greatest ISSA trainers, Melissa Schevchenko, to bring you a 12 week fitness plan that will help you lose, tone, and sculpt the body you have been waiting for. The plan is an upper body lower body split that incorporates plyo moves, intervals, and cardio. The best part is......It's beginner approved!!!!

12 WEEK PLAN INCLUDES:

-12 week plan

-Nutritional guide

-Tips and Tricks to get started and maintain

-Guide to meal prepping

-A series of videos on our Youtube channel to help you get started and through your workouts

So I have one more awesome surprise for you. I am letting you join in on all the excitement for the very low cost of $49.95. Yes, you read it right. You get 3 months of exceptional training and guidance for $49.95. How awesome is that???!!!! So ladies, if your ready to join us on this great journey, pre-order your 12 week plan today.
           
                                                                          Ready to Rock,
                                                                                   This Girl Lifts

Pre-order Here.

Strawberry Protein Pancakes

The best part of my day is getting to eat a great breakfast. Once I wake up in the morning I run straight to do my fasted cardio. Right after I'm done I'm starving. You will love this easy and already measured out recipe for your morning breakfast. 

Earlier in the week I was flipping through Instagram and I ran across Met-Rx pancake mix. It's a protein packed pancake mix giving you at least 12g of protein in a serving. Best thing yet is it's original buttermilk flavor. It doesn't have a protein taste to it nor any kind of nasty after taste. It is delicious even plain.

Strawberry protein Pancakes

Ingredients:

-2 scoops of Met-Rx protein pancake mix

(Depends on how much your wanting)

-1/3 cup of water

-diced strawberries

After mixing water and pancake mix you are ready to pour and flip. Once pancakes are done drizzle strawberries and juice over stack to your liking. You can even mix strawberries in mix like I did. 

This recipe is just so simple and delicious especially on the go. So eat up and enjoy.

                                                                    So delicious, 

                                                                          This Girl Lifts

Track Workout

Trying to stay in shape can be the hardest thing but where people really get stumped at is when you hit a plateau. In my world, sprinting and track workouts are the best way to get over these. Besides that, you get an awesome workout that torches calories and builds strength. 

Here is one of my most favorite track workouts that I am actually doing this month. This workout consist of 10 laps. Each lap consist of two sprints and two exercises. For the first time it could be exhausting. Hang in there. 

1st Lap- sprint, high knees, sprint, high knees

2nd Lap- sprint, lunges, sprint, lunges

3rd Lap- sprint, walk/rest, sprint, walk/rest

4th Lap- sprint, butt kicks, sprint, butt kicks

5th Lap- sprint, sideways run, sprint, sideways run

6th Lap- sprint, walk/rest, sprint, walk/rest

7th Lap- sprint, 20 push-ups, sprint, 20 push-ups 

8th Lap- sprint, 20 jumping jacks, sprint, 20 jumping jacks

9th Lap- sprint, rest/walk, sprint, rest/walk

10th Lap- sprint, 20 squats, sprint, 20 squats

2 cool down laps walking.

How many of you are dead by now or was half way through lol? By the end of this you should be sweating and possibly sore already. 

*please remember to stretch before and after workout*

If you breeze through this the first time, do a second round or start doing this workout with a weighted vest or ankle weights.

                                                                                                                                                                                   Working my ass of, 

                                                                                This Girl Lifts

Land of the Fit

Last week I took a trip to Portland, Oregon where I trained with my awesome trainer for a week. Being in Portland was crazy enough for me because of the traffic but what most definitely shocked me was how physically fit a lot of people were and how health and fitness are a huge part of their lives.

Being that Portlands a huge city a lot of people actually ride bikes everyday. I imagine I probably almost hit about 5 or 6 people a day because of the damn bike lane LoL!!! Most definitely because I'm from deep down south, you rarely see people riding bikes. 

Next was this amazing grocery store called New Seasons. First off, I was there like everyday. The food was amazing but also healthy and junk free. This grocery store had a hot food bar and a salad bar. It's what most of us like to call a health food store. I'm dying to get this store on the east coast. Here's a look.

Granted there are not a lot of health stores this big or that actually sell 95% healthy foods. On top of that the staff was so educated on their stuff. I was amazed. I totally came home and told my husband I want to be on the west coast with all the fitness fanatics lol!! 

Besides all of the great fitness fanatic stuff my trip to Portland was so amazing. Until July when I attend the Crossfit games, I will see you again west coast.

                                                                                             Just a quick trip recap,

                                                                                                                THIS GIRL LIFTS

Top 5 Bathing Suit Must Haves

It's almost summer!!! I can't Wait!!! That's me singing...LOL!! The best part of the summer to me is being able too wear hot bathing suits that show off your abs and that body you have been working all year for. From one pieces to retro, I try to keep collection with a little of everything. Check out my must haves for this summer.

1. The sexy one piece

This suit is to die for. I love the color and the cut. It's sexy but not to revealing. check it out at Bikini Goddess.


2. Oh so lacy.........This two piece is totally a 9 on the hot scale. Reckless bikini, you have my vote.



3. Flash back to the past with this hot two piece. I am totally digging the retro bathing suits.This suit is fabulous for people still working on their abs. 



4. Geometrically intact!! Love the style and characteristic of this suit. Sweet and simple.



5. The sporty suit. Due to my love of workout clothes, this suit has to be included in my wardrobe. Sporty and stylish.



So there you have it. My top five suits for this summer. My list could go on and on but these were my fave. So get it to it ladies........Summers right around the corner.

                                                                                                     Bikini Ready,
                                                                                                        THIS GIRL LIFTS