Hi friends!
So about the rash.. no worries! I have extremely sensitive skin and not to mention hay fever so hives are not uncommon for me! It was just strange because usually I can figure out what caused them and yesterday I couldn’t. But no worries- I’m fine 
And thank you for all your sweet comments regarding my workouts! It means a lot to me when you guys say I’m strong and what not- because I’m not that strong but I dont’ want be skinny anymore.. I want to be strong and ripped! 
LOL! So those comments make me feel great. And not to mention when I’m at the gym I think in my head “you better do this last rep- your readers are counting on you!” Haha I’m a dork I know.
So anyway, this morning I woke up and had the best pre-workout meal I’ve had in a while! Last night I combined 1/2 cup Daisy 2% cottage cheese with 1/4 cup raw oats, 10 drops of Capella French Toast Flavor Drops, vanilla stevia, cinnamon, ginger, and 1 tsp almond butter:
200 calories, 18 grams of protein, 16 grams of carbs, 6 grams of fat
Holy mother of pearl it was good!!
Today’s workout was lower body. I started out heavy and then towards the end I did more endurance type training with more reps. Here’s what I did:
- Stationary Lunges- Warm Up- 10 reps on each leg
- Smith Wide Squat- (Warm up with 70 pounds, 10 reps.) 3 sets of 8 with 110 pounds; 3 sets of 6 with 120 pounds
- Single Leg Split Squat- 4 sets of 8 on each leg with 80 pounds
- Good Mornings- 3 sets of 8 with 80 pounds, 2 sets of 10 with 60 pounds
- Stiff Leg Deadlifts- 2 sets of 5 with 100 pounds, 3 sets of 8 with 80 pounds
- Hack Squat- 3 sets of 10 with 70 pounds
- Barbell Deadlift- 2 sets of 15 with 60 pounds
- Seated Calf Raises- 2 sets of 15 with 45 pounds
- Lying Leg Twist with stability ball- 2 sets of 20 (oblique work)
- Knee drops with 8 pounds between legs- 60 reps (oblique work)
That hack squat was a good one! I’ve never used that machine before and I really liked it! The only problem was I added it towards the end of the workout when my legs were tired. But I prefer to leave the machines to the end of my workout because they aren’t as effective for me as free weights/barbells are!
Anyway, I came home and had my favorite bowl of oats. (Well, this and my German Chocolate Oats are tied!). I made them the same way as the German Chocolate but I used Biochem 100% Whey Vanilla Protein Powder and 2/3 cup cold, defrosted blueberries.
390 calories, 39 grams of protein, 39 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fat
It held me a good three hours through my Microbiology lab and lots of stairclimbing! The bathroom on the floor that I usually use was closed so I went up and down a million stairs trying to find another one. (I drink over a gallon of water a day here people- I need a bathroom close by! LOL)
Meal number 3 was packed to eat in the car on my drive to my next class on this side of town. I packed 2 oz of nitrate free beef jerky, one granny smith apple, and 100 calorie pack of almonds:
340 calories, 22 grams of protein, 30 carbs,
But my Micro lab actually got out early so I was able to come home early! I was still a little hungry so I made a Protein Cake (vanilla flavored) and topped it with 1 tsp Naturally More:
105 calories, 20 grams of protein, 2 carbs, 3 grams of fat
And then I was off to my next class. When I came home I had meal number 4- 4 oz lean ground turkey breast, 2 sauteed zucchinis, one cup of coleslaw mixture, cayenne pepper, and pure red chili. Plus a No-Carb Muffin with 1/2 tsp Smart Balance Light and cinnamon (remind me not to use butter- I’ve never liked it and I don’t know why I keep trying!)
305 calories, 32 grams of protein, 5 carbs, 12 grams of fat
Ooph… I was stuffed after that meal!
After eating I met my mom at Sam’s club for a few groceries. Since it was just me and my mom we were able to take our time and look around.. and ended up with a few goodies! I got a kickboxing DVD that has weighted gloves and my mom got a Leslie Sansone Walking DVD with an included band.
For dinner I kept it simple- just 6 oz of chicken breast with cayenne, roasted asparagus leftover from yesterday, and steamed broccoli with Braggs:
215 calories, 40 grams of protein, 3 carbs, 3 grams of fat
Not sure what dessert will be.. but I know I need to eat one! I was extremely active today- I walked a lot and during lab I stood up the whole time and not to mention muscles need food! So I’ll most likely be having yogurt with peanut butter, cottage cheese with protein powder and pb, or one of my protein powder mixtures. You know the drill 
See ya later!
I love the title of this post! I’m all about a STRONG body nowadays, too….way better than just being skinny!
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girrrrrrl you are totes gonna be ripped! so much fun all this eating
i’ve reallllly wanted to try beef jerky actually i want to try the soy vegetarian jerky!
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One of these days I’m going to try that breakfast out! It looks great!!
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You’re so right! Strength is what’s important, because that’s what comes with health! We have a Costco near us and whenever we go I can’t restrain myself, either!
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I am so excited for you girl!! You are rocking these workouts and your meals. You are going to be ripped!!
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So about the rash.. no worries! = GOOD!!!!!
STrong and ripped…that’s a good thing to be!
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what changes did you make to the recipe to make it vanilla?! What replaced the cocoa?
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April Reply:
February 1st, 2010 at 7:20 pm
Nothin! I just left it out
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I’m glad your rash is nothing to worry about! Last year, I got really bad hives. I had thought it was due to food, but it turns out it was because of stress. I’d get all stressed out, scratch, hives, scratch…etc. LOL.
Strong is the way to go!!
<3 jess
xoxo
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I have been on a hug blueberry kick, yum!
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Great leg workout!! Your meal #4 looks awesome – love how it looks like a big meal with lots of filling yumminess but it’s only 300 calories!
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your desserts are alwyas fantastic so im sure tonight wont disappoint!! i want to try the protein cake thingg
xoxox
shelley
http://findinghappinessandhealth.wordpress.com
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girl u ARE seriously doing awesome! u inspire me w. your workouts! i wish we lived near each other and could work out together!
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glad your rash cleared up!! love those protein muffin/cupcake thingys! so so cute!!
and omggggggg i tried your protein cookie dough/brownie batter and it was amazzzzzzzing!! now i wish i had brought a jar of pb and a container of whey protein with me to india! boooooooo! at least i have protein bars, though i am scared about using them up!!!
take care April!!!!!!!
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YUM YUM love the food and awesome workout!! no assited pull ups! girl, you must start posting some pics!! I want to see your progress!!
how do you like the beef jerky? I have never had it before but heard its a good high protein snack but just a bit high in sodium content!
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i am totally with you on the title of this post april!!
xx
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I love your oat/cottage cheese combo! You’re so clever!
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Mmmm protein cake looks good- need to try that asap!
Just a question , do you weigh your chicken?! Beceuse how do you know it is 6 oz?!
Just curious
Jenna
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April Reply:
February 2nd, 2010 at 6:54 am
Yep I do! I weigh most meats, sweet potatoes, nuts, anything that is hard to eyeball
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Can’t wait to hear what you think of your kickboxing DVD. I’ve been looking for a good one!
That dinner looks so fresh! LOVE IT!
xxoo
Heather
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Got to love that workout!!!! I mix the hack squat into one of my leg workouts each week. It is harder than it appears! Sometimes I do no weight & do some plyometric jumps on it.. YIKES!
Love that food…. love that food! Did I already say that!
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Another advantage to mixing in some high-rep exercises is that they grow new capillaries for greater blood flow into the muscles, similar to the cardio benefits. Also, saving machines for the end of the workout might benefit the primary muscle you’re working since your synergists have already been fatigued. It’ll allow you to focus on the motion itself and not worry about stability. Because of that, they provide an additional safety measure as well.
The cottage cheese/oats combination looks excellent. I’ll have to try that. You’re doing great; keep it up!
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I used to find myself wanting that waifish model look…but I am definitely over that! I want a toned figure that people can look at and SEE my hard work…not just think I never eat or something!
I will have to give you the lower body workout I did on Saturday. It was a mix of heavy weights and a ploymetric circuit thrown in. It was killer!
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I love your workouts!
Do you have a trainer or do you get them off a website or make’em up yourself?
Let me know…Thanks
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April Reply:
February 2nd, 2010 at 10:08 am
I make them up myself! I can’t afford a trainer although I’d love to some day!
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Oh I love jerky….yum! Haha…I haven’t had it in a while because it has just fallen off my radar…defintiely going to put it back on the grocery list!
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Yummy food, as usual. And the leg work out is awesome – Leg Day – The day we love to hate! ha ha.
Good for you on taking the strong vs. skinny route! Not to knock fashion models (Yes, they are pretty, but just how healthy are they…’Cmon people! Size 0????), but I’ll take the body of an Oxygen Cover Girl any day. Strong, healthy, and ready to kick butt!
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Hi April,
In case I forget tonight to tell you, lunch was delicious. The protein cake with brown rice and oatmeal (the experiment) was really good. I did add a little p/b on the top to keep me from getting hungry and a little bit of cranberries wi applesauce on the top of the pb. I May have to bring another one tomorrow. Oh I just read that “resistance training can save your brain” Article from rodale.com – so you are definately smart! XX
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Lol don’t use butter since you don’t like it ahahah instead use coconut oil
Whatever you end up whipping up will be delicious I’m sure. Stay STRONG!! I’m hopefully going to be lifting some weights tonight. I’ve been more consistent about it since I have a workout buddy now
XOXO
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amen – having a body is more attractive anyways. Plus, I would kill to have abs/shoulders like yours so its all good
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Your protein cakes always look so good! Whenever I tried to make something like that in the past it never came out good, I might have you give it another try your way!
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I changed my name to hamster haha but I didn’t see a blog today soo I hope your finger will let you type cause ouchie baba and you should post the ouchie but anyways I lovers my sweety and I hope you feel better!!
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sounds like such a great day! you should take a picture of your weighted gloves – I heard kickgoxing is an amazing workout – cant wait to hear about it!
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