Awesome Week

Good morning!!!!!! How has everyone's week gone?? Once again, I apologize for the irregular blogging, but this week has been super busy and I wanted to spend time with my family. Plus, Wednesday was my birthday, and we were out most of the day anyway. Anyway, I have a brand-new workout and recipe to share with ya'll today!
First up, here's my new circuit workout! Of course, you can always either cut it in half or complete just the strength or cardio portions if you don't have a whole lot of time....the entire circuit took me about an hour to finish.

Cardio Set 1:
0-5              Warm up at an easy-moderate pace
5-17             30-60-90 style run (30 seconds max intensity, 30 seconds rest, 60 seconds moderate-hard intensity, 60 seconds rest, 90 seconds moderate intensity, 90 seconds rest)
17-20          Cool down

Strength Set:
For each strength set, complete the arms circuit and then the legs circuit 1-2 times
Arms:
Woodchop w/ lunge (12 reps each side)
Rotating tricep kickback (15 each arm)
Hip hinge with reverse fly (12)
Lateral Lift  (6-8 on each side)
Pike walk pushup combo (5-6)
Shoulder Press (10)

Legs:
Dumbbell sumo squat (10-12)
Elevated reverse lunge (10 each side)
Jump lunges (12, with one lunge on each side counting as 1 rep)
Weighted squats (15)
Bicycle Crunch  (20)
Squat + lunge combo (squat, kick one leg back into a reverse lunge, repeat) (8-10 each leg)

Cardio Set 2:
Use any cardio machine
0-3             Go at a moderate-light intensity
3-5              High intensity
5-15           Repeat 0-5 2 more times
15-20         Cool down

Repeat the entire strength set again. 


And there you have it....yet another cardio/strength circuit! :D Also, if you want, throw in some ab work at the end!!  Also, check out my brand new playlist (with song suggestions from my dad and sister!)

Now, for the recipe!!!! Not surprisingly, it is yet another muffin recipe....I do have a chocolate dessert that I'll be posting about very soon though! :D 

Coffee Cake Streusel Muffins 

Ingredients:

Streusel:

Combine 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 2 tablespoons butter and cinnamon to taste in a small bowl until crumbly.

Muffins:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil or applesauce (a combination of the two would probably be great)

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In another, smaller bowl, combine the egg, milk, and oil. Stir wet ingredients into dry until just moistened.
2. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of batter into 12 greased muffin tins. If desired, sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on each muffin. Finish filling the muffin tins with the remaining batter. 
3. Get the streusel mixture and distribute evenly on top of all of the muffins. 
4. Bake at 400 for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the muffin comes out clean. 

Yum!  

Just to quickly update ya'll on the zinc thing, I'm making sure to get at least 100% of my RDA of zinc and will see what that does to my salt cravings over this next week. I'm really hoping that it works, and definitely enjoyed learning more about the importance of a balanced diet! 

What are your New Year plans???