Tuesday's Trunk and Core -- Jump Rope Fat Burn/Abtacular Pilates

As usual on Tuesday, I am posting a workout focusing on trunk and core work.  However, today, in addition to the core muscle work, I'm also posting a 6 minute jump rope workout  from Melissa Bender to help burn any fat that is covering those abdominal muscles. 

This is an intense 6 minutes.  She does 6 different types of jumps for 30 seconds each with no rest in between and repeats the sequence.  Take a 15 second or more break in between if you need to.  Just pause the video while you catch your breath.

There is no warm up--you can jog in place or do easy jumps for 3 minutes or so to get your body warmed up.  If you don't have an actual rope, or the space to use one, just pretend you are using one,  keeping your elbows tucked into your sides--tight and controlled. 

Your core work comes from Cassey Ho on the Livestrong Woman Channel.  It is entitled the Abtacular Pilates Workout.

On the roll up, I suggest that you keep the arms extended.  If you do put your hands behind your head, make sure to keep your elbows back.

She uses optional dumbbells for one of the exercises--I'd suggest doing it without until you are strong enough to add them in.  Don't forget to stretch the legs, arms (they both got work while jumping), abs and back afterward!

Monday's Muscle Work -- 30 Day Butt Lift--Yoga Inspired Workout

Today's video is another one from the 30 Day Butt Lift series from BeFit.  It is Workout number 6 and is yoga inspired.

She does various versions of the yoga pose Warrior III to really target your glutes.  If you have a hard time balancing, go ahead and put your toe down in between lifts, or have a chair handy to hold on to.  She also does some Pilates inspired legwork that also targets this area.

But first, Quick Tip #4 (which should be tip #1) on how to get a butt lift without surgery.  I agree with everything she says except one thing.  Longer, slower workouts are important to do as well.  If you are only doing short, high intensity workouts, you are more prone to injury--especially if you are doing plyometrics.  Slow and steady workouts a couple of times a week will help protect your joints while still burning fat and calories.

There is no warm up or cool down/stretch.  Please do those on your own.  The workout is about 10 minutes long. 

Sunday's Recipe Share -- Baileys (Kahlua) Cheesecake Bites

Had a super busy weekend--too busy to post yesterday.  I'll post a bonus stretch at the end.

Today I'm going to share an incredibly yummy recipe that I made for dessert last week for my mom's birthday party.  I did get a small cake surrounded by cupcakes, but since I'm not eating grains, I decided to make this so I could indulge in dessert as well!

It is based on this recipe from Things My Belly Likes, but I changed it from Bailey's Cheesecake Bites to Kahlua Cheesecake Bites (that was the only substitution I made to the recipe posted) and added a layer of chocolate ganache to the top.  Oh my goodness, were they good!!!  They are completely grain free.  Click on the link below for the cheesecake recipe.

Baileys Cheesecake Bites

For the chocolate ganache, I warmed up a 1/2 cup of canned coconut milk until it started to bubble--you could sub with any other type of milk you'd like.  In a glass bowl I had 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips and a tablespoon of butter.  I poured the warm milk over the chocolate and butter and whisked until smooth.  I then refrigerated this for about 20 minutes so that it would thicken up a bit, but still be pourable.  I poured this over the top of the cooled cheesecake (I made the cheesecake the day before) and smoothed it out.  I then put it back in the fridge to set--it's beautifully smooth and glossy. Another option is to put the ganache into a pastry bag and then leave it in the fridge a bit longer until it's thick enough to pipe onto the cake in patterns--a criss-cross diamond grid, stars or swirls, whatever you like.

Here's what mine looked like:

Mine did crack as it cooled, but with the ganache topping, you couldn't tell.  I think I'm going to make Rumchata bites next!  I have some eggnog and pumpkin flavored cream liquors as well--I think they'll make for some tasty experiments as well!

Here's the bonus stretch video to make up for yesterday:  Stretches for Low Back and Sciatica Pain