Into week three, day two
Warm Up -
Foam roll – 10 min
-Dynamic Exercises: jumping jacks, flings, seal jumps, hip flexion, overhead squats, arm circles, bootstrapper squat, lunge, cat/camel, hip circles, lying leg kicks, glute bridges
Squats- 6 sets of 5
Bar x 5
80 x 5
95 x 3
110 x 1
125 x 5 x 6
Single Leg RDL – 6 sets of 5
Superset with
Power Wheel Rollout – 6 sets of 8
2 Arm Kettlebell Swings – 4 sets of 25
Cool Down – Planks, glute bridge, stretching
*Being that the gym was packed I had to substitute sumo deadlifts for single leg RDLs
PDF 
There is nothing more refreshing than drinking the water straight from a coconut and then scooping out the meat when your are finished. So delicious! This is a ritual every week for many as they stroll through the Sunday farmers market .
Since we are living in sunny California, these are not hard to come by and one of the best foods to drink or eat 
. You can find an abundant supply of these at any raw food restaurant, farmers market or Whole Foods store in the area. There are many health benefits to drinking coconut water and including coconut oil in your diet which you should definitely be aware of.
Here’ s some great info on coconuts from Markus Rothkranz:
“Fresh young coconuts and coconut oil can save your life. Coconut water is identical to human blood plasma. In third world countries it is used as an emergency replacement for IVs. It has strong anti-viral, anti-microbial, anti-yeast and anti-fungal properties. In the Polynesian islands, people used to eat nothing but coconuts, tropical fruits and raw fish. They didn’t get parasites because of the coconut, papaya and papaya seeds in their diet. They also never got fat or had any… …continue reading.
In between all the fun and sun we’re having here in Cali, I’m relentlessly training . My last workout was very simple, enjoyable and can be done with or without weights. Not every workout has to include a barbell exercise to appease me and I am a HUGE fan of bodyweight workouts which I will be incorporating more of in the coming weeks. The weather here is just too nice to be inside the gym, even for an hour, so I will be including some outside and beach workouts to change things up a little. Stay tuned 
.
This was Thursday’s training session…
Warm Up
-Foam roll – 10 min
-Dynamic Exercises: jumping jacks, flings, seal jumps, hip flexion, overhead squats, shoulder dislocations, arm circles, bootstrapper squat, cat/camel, bird/dog, hip circles, lying leg kicks, glute bridges
Weighted single leg bench squat- 3 sets of 20
Weighted back extension – 3 sets of 20
Superset with
Band pull apart – 3 sets x 30 sec
One arm plank – 2(per side) x 30 sec
Here’s a quick look …
*Please… …continue reading.
Saturday was day three of my new training cycle and I have come to a conclusion that I have a love/hate relationship with barbell hip thrusts. I love them because I know this is one of the best exercises to do and has the highest glute activation if you’re looking to build up the back side. And when you are training in a group setting at Renegade Gym, they are awesome! However, in a public gym when you are training by yourself, they are very inconvenient and time consuming.
The setting up, changing of the weights, making sure the pad is around the bar properly (still waiting for the squat pad I ordered to arrive), the positioning of the bar on the hips, and finally moving yourself up on the bench while making sure the pad and bar do not move, UGH…making it all one big tedious mess!
Most of the time, I’m training on my own, while Jay is training nearby. However, we both happened to be doing barbell hip thrusts on the same day. We had two separate bars going at the same time and we didn’t say much during our training session, as usual …continue reading.
“If you are what you eat and you don’t know what you’re eating, do you know who you are?”
I wanted to share this unique nutrition reference guide I have been reading and using for a while now. It’s also one of my favorites . If you are interested in nutrition and care about your health this is a great book to have on your bookshelf. It’s awesome nutrition advice explains the health benefits of “real” whole foods which can help you make better decisions about what you should eat. This book is usually out on our coffee table rather than on the shelf because it is that good . Below is a link where you can find this amazing book so you can have access to it at all times.
I’m on a mission….A glute mission that is! I kept the reps consistent with a few more sets than usual. What an a$$ burner .
Monday’s Lower Body Workout looked like this:
Warm up
-Foam roll – 10 min
-Dynamic Exercises: jumping jacks, flings, seal jumps, hip flexion, overhead squats, shoulder dislocations, forward lunge, garland, cat/camel, bird/dog, fire hydrants, hip circles, planks (20s), glute bridges
Squat– 6 sets of 5
Bar x 5
75×5
95×3
105×5
120x5x6
Sumo Deadlift – 6 sets of 5 (I’m still working on my form, keeping my lower back arched and tight)
95×5
105×5
135x5x6
Cool Down – front plank (60s), side plank(30s), prone mountain(60s), glute bridge(60s)
I had a solid performance today and felt real strong . I am realizing that we cannot go to the gym between the hours of 12-2pm because that is cleaning time. Someone is bound to get injured when training with wet floors all around. I hope it’s not me!!
Here’s a peek at my Sumo Deadlift …
My friend Grant Lofthouse, who is a super cool guy and fitness professional, asked to interview me. You see Grant HATES CARDIO just as much as I do! Just like me, Grant was always a “gym junkie” and played a sport. He sustained an injury and bounced back training hard with the weights, not the treadmill. Sounds all too familiar . I was extremely flattered and really had fun with it. Attached is the link… hope you all like it!
Interview with Jen Grasso
“The quickest way to improve in virtually any endeavour is to work the weakest link.”
After much deliberation, I have decided to go all out and concentrate on my biggest weakness during my next training cycle. I will be training my lower body and glutes three days a week, with three different rep ranges, with a focus on optimal hypertrophy. Upper body will be kept to a minimum in hopes my lower body will have some time to catch up and I will pack on some size back there . I will continue with my fasted morning cardio, adding in a lot more hill sprints, heavy sled drags, prowler pushes and Yoga. I have taken a before picture in which I will share at the end of this training cycle. I can only TRAIN HARD and hope for the best
Wednesday’s workout looked like this:
Warm up
-Foam roll – 10 min
-Dynamic Exercises: jumping jacks, flings, seal jumps, hip flexion, overhead squats, shoulder dislocations, forward lunge, garland, cat/camel, bird/dog, fire hydrants, hip circles, planks (20s), glute bridges
One leg Bench Squat – 3 sets of 20 (was supposed… …continue reading.
There are so many choices but this is one of my favorite protein shake recipes which can be found in our plant based recipe guide. This delicious, healthy shake couldn’t be any simpler to make and won’t take you more than five minutes.
Chocolate Chip Mint
Protein Shake
Ingredients
• 2-4 scoops chocolate protein powder
• 2 fresh mint leaves
• 1 tsp cacao nibs
• 16-24 oz of water or chocolate flavored
almond, hemp, or rice milk
(depending on your caloric needs)
• As much ice as desired
Directions
Combine all ingredients in blender.
Blend until smooth.
I decided to take my last upper body day of my previous training cycle to max out on the bench press since I will be taking it out of my next cycle. I’m excited to say I hit a new PR of 135!
This was my Upper Body workout:
Warm up
-Foam roll – 10 min
-Dynamic Exercises: jumping jacks, flings, seal jumps, hip flexion, overhead squats, forward lunge, garland, cat/camel, bird/dog, fire hydrants, hip circles, planks (20s), glute bridges
Push Press – 6 sets of 3
Bar x 5 (Warm up)
65 x 3 x 3
75×3 x 3
Superset with
Chin up – 6 x 3
Bench Press – 1RM
Bar x 5
65 x 5
85 x 3
105 x 3
115 x 1
125 x 1
130 x 1
135 x 1
Planks –front (60s), prone mountain (60s), side (30s, glute bridge (60s)
It’s always great to end a training session and cycle with a new PR and feeling STRONG .
Here’s a look:
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