Shakes and Cakes - Archive

Spokane Welcomes Lululemon Showroom

March 30th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Motivation | Work Outs - (1 Comments)

This is me and Amy after the Twin Cities Marathon 2010

This weekend my sister-in-law Amy Rose (who used to be a Amy Schmidt) is the new manager of a Lululemon showroom in Spokane, WA. This is the exciting news I wanted to share with you!

I fell in love with Lululemon after Amy took me to the store at the Mall of America. This isn’t your ordinary retail store. There are no pressuring sales people, no huge discount prices or messy dressing rooms. Instead, the store is loaded with fun, passionate and outgoing people. The walls are covered with motivational decor and slogans. Lululemon is a company who promotes/sells healthy, balanced lifestyles and technical clothing for yoga and running.

Every time I walk into a Lululemon store I feel inspired. It is very refreshing.

Two things I love about the company are:

1. The Intense Goal Setting

2. The Practical Clothing

Lululemon is an inspirational company that puts so much energy towards training, mentoring and supporting their people. It is much more than a retail store. They focus on goal setting and accountability. I don’t know about you but I don’t think Macy’s or Nike put that much attention towards personal development.

Lululemon’s apparel is functional, durable, reliable and cute! There are a ton of key features within every piece of apparel. To name a few of my favs-

thumbholes- keep distracting sleeves under the thumb
zipper garage- to prevent chin/neck scratches
the zippers are actually hair ties. Perfect when I forget!
chafe-resistant flat seams
preshrunk material

Amy and I both share a deep passion for exercise and healthy living. She is an amazing sister-in-law and someone I look up to. I could not be more excited for her and the new role she is pursuing with Lululemon! I can’t even image all the awesome things she is going to accomplish. So excited to visit her in July!

The grand opening of the Lululemon Spokane, WA showroom is TODAY at 10:00AM. If you are living in the Spokane, Washington area don’t forget to stop in and say hi to Amy and her team. You can find them at:

117 N Howard Street Spokane, WA 99201
1 509.747.0716
http://www.lululemon.com/spokane/spokane

To celebrate for Amy, I accomplished a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) Class this morning and I am toasting with a peanut butter protein shake.

Happy Friday and Congrats Amy Rose!

Amy Schmidt

goals, inspirational, lululemon, marathon, peanut butter, personal development, protein drink, retail, running, spokane, twin cities, washington, workout clothes

What Are You Training For?

March 28th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Motivation | Work Outs - (0 Comments)

My least favorite time at the gym is “New Years Resolution Time.” This is the time of year when the entire world decides to set goals and start going to the gym. Parking lots, locker rooms, machines and fitness classes are packed with newbies.

I don’t mind all the fresh, new faces or the crowded areas. After a few weeks they all seem to disappear anyways and things go back to “normal.”

What I don’t understand, is how many people choose to only workout that one time of year because someone started a tradition of picking January 1st as a good time to set goals and start training.

EVERYDAY IS A GOOD DAY TO SET GOALS AND TRAIN.

Don’t turn into a New Years Resolution Groupie. Don’t wait until January 1st, or after Valentines Day or after Labor Day to start conquering the world. Start now!

The first step is to decide what you are going to train for. Your workout needs to have a purpose. It doesn’t matter what the purpose is as long as you are working towards it. Your purpose could be serious or completely ridiculous.

Currently I am pounding the pavement and pumping iron for two reasons:

1. Jelly Bean Season- I want to enjoy all those wonderful Easter treats.

2. Tank Top Season- I am determined to become a pushup queen and have really toned arms for this summer.

Sure, I am going to be running a half marathon in May and a 10k in June but those races are not what motivate me right now.

My goals and purpose change all the time. That’s what keeps me motivated.

What are you training for:

Loose Weight?
Jelly Beans?
Run a Marathon?
Swimsuit Season?
Maintain Weight?
Fun?

I want to hear about your goals and purpose. Are they as crazy as mine?

Amy

P.S. I have some very exciting Lululemon news tomorrow so make sure you stop by

10k, easter, goals, gym, half marathon, labor day, lululemon, new years, new years resolution, pumping iron, swimsuit, training, treats, valentines day, working out, workout, workout clothes

Treadmill Workout

March 27th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Motivation | Work Outs - (0 Comments)

This morning it was tough to get out of bed. It was dark, cold and windy. I even slept in an extra half hour and still didn’t want to get out of bed. I somehow managed the energy to roll myself out of bed and get dressed to go to the gym.

There were no Group Fitness Classes at Lifetime Fitness this morning that were appealing to me. Even if I wanted to go to one I couldn’t because they started at 5:30AM and I got to the gym at 5:45AM. So I hopped on a treadmill.

Treadmill Interval Workouts are something I really got into this year. Instead of running at a steady 6.5 speed for 50 minutes, I very my speed incrementally. Running intervals gives you a better workout because you are raising and lowering your heart rate which causes you to burn more fat. (This is something I recently learned.)

Side note- Did you know, if your nose starts running during a workout that is a sign you are burning fat?

This mornings Interval Run was very random-

11 minutes at 6.0 speed
3 minutes at 6.2 speed
2 minutes at 6.5 speed
2 minutes at 7.5 speed
2 minutes at 5.5 speed
2 minutes at 6.5 speed
2 minutes at 7.5 speed
1 minute at 5.5 speed
2 minutes at 6.5 speed
2 minutes at 7.5 speed
1 minutes at 5.5 speed
2 minutes at 6.5 speed
2 minutes at 7.5 speed
1 minute at 5.5 speed
1 minute at 6.5 speed
1 minute at 7.5 speed
1 minute at 4.0 speed

Total of 38 minutes- running a little over 4 miles

In addition to the treadmill workout, I decided to get my jumping jacks on. I did 4 sets of 30 jumping jacks. To make the jacks harder- I did them at home, in my socks on my slippery kitchen floor. The slippery surface causes you to squeeze your leg and glut muscles more. You should give it a try. Just make sure you close your blinds so your neighbors don’t think you are crazy

How did you sweat today? Any good stories?

Amy

class, group fitness, gym, intervals, jumping jacks, lifetime fitness, running, running shoes, socks, treadmill

You Need to Be Your Own #1 Fan

March 26th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Motivation | Work Outs - (0 Comments)

Being a runner and an exercise junky I love pushing myself to the limit. However, I wasn’t always this motivated. In high school, I would freak-out about running 3 miles during soccer practice. In college, I couldn’t fathom waking up before 10AM to workout and weekend workouts were nonexistent.

Over the years, I learned that no one was going to push me harder or farther than myself. I knew I had to change my attitude and get rid of all the negative thinking. I knew I was going to have to be my own biggest fan. I threw all those excuses like-

“I’m too tired”
“It’s too cold”
“It’s too hot”
“I don’t have time”
“I have a cold”
“It’s too late”
“I can’t do it”

right in the garbage can! I learned to start believing in myself and to start challenging my mental game.

When I had a bad run or an “easy” workout I would tell myself, “At least you did something, you tried.” You can’t have the best run of your life everyday. If you did, that would be totally boring and you wouldn’t have any goals to work towards. Every day is different and your body reacts differently under different circumstances. You need to understand you can’t control every situation but you can control how you react.

Attitude is the difference between success and failure.

Even at work I always try to take a negative and turn it into a positive. When something doesn’t go just right, I ask myself these questions:

“What just happened?”
“How can I do things better next time?”
“What did I learn?”

If you don’t reflect after a not-so-good situation you will never grow and learn to be better. You have to start by first believing in yourself and having an attitude that motivates you.

Last fall, while I was training for the Minneapolis Twin Cities Marathon I would dread having to wake up at 5AM to beat the heat and get my long run in. I would have to pump myself up because I knew no one else would. I would tell myself:

“At 8AM you will be all done!”
“Only 1 more 18 mile run this training season.”
“You ran 26 miles before, 16 miles is no big deal.”

Here are my Top Five Ways to Become your Own #1 Fan

Don’t Make Excuses
Don’t Dwell Over Failures- Instead, Ask yourself what you learned.
Pump Yourself Up- No one else will.
Don’t Blame Others
Reflect on Your Actions

Remember, attitude is the difference between success and failure. If you tell yourself you can, you will!

Amy

determination, hard work, motivation, workout

Banana Peanut Buttercup Smoothy

March 25th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Feel Good Sweet Treats | Work Outs - (0 Comments)

What better way to start off a Sunday than a run with this princess.

This is our two year old chocolate lab, Bayah! Today, we set out for a five mile run. Bayah did great and we managed 8:49 minute miles.

Bayah hates to wear a leash so we trained her on an electric collar. If you look close in the picture you can see the small black box around her neck. She runs great on this collar. Bayah sticks pretty close to me on our runs only stopping for a few fire hydrant sniffs. I love when we run past other dogs and Bayah just keeps going, minding her own business while other dog owners struggle to hold back their barking dogs.

We are lucky to have such a well trained dog. I give a lot of that credit to my husband, Adam.

Post run Bayah…

POST RUN FUEL

I love smoothies and over this last year I have been experimenting with lots of different kinds. A good smoothy always tastes great after a good workout.

Here is my recipe for a delicious Banana Peanut Buttercup Smoothy

You Will Need:

Magic Bullet or Blender- I love the Magic Bullet because it helps with portion control.
1 Scoop Chocolate Whey Protein Powder
1/4 Cup Low Fat Vanilla Yogurt. I typically like to use Greek Yogurt because it is higher in protein and creamier.
1/2 Cup Vanilla Soy Milk. I sometimes use Almond Milk or Skim Milk.
1 Heaping TBS of Cream Peanut Butter. More or less to your liking.
1 Banana
1 Heaping Handful of Spinach. You can use Kale too.
5 Ice Cubes

Add all ingredients to the Magic Bullet cup and blend. It may not look too delicious but it is loaded with protein and nutrients.

Enjoy!

Does anyone have a good natural substitute for the Chocolate Whey Protein Powder?

Amy

banana, bayah, dogs, peanut buttercup, protein drink, running, smoothy

Mother Nature’s Beauty

March 24th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Work Outs - (0 Comments)

This morning was very foggy and wet outside. It reminded me of the weather one morning when I was in Florida last month.

I was in Florida on a business trip and I woke up to go for a run but my Ipod was dead so I grabbed my Iphone and plugged in my headphones.

While on my run, I spotted this…A giant spiderweb laced with beautiful water pellets. I had never seen anything like it so I snapped a picture. You never know what Mother Nature will share with you so keep your eyes open.

Happy Saturday!

Amy

beauty, nature, photography, running

A Little Bit of essie in Your Run

March 23rd, 2012 | Posted by Amy in style | Work Outs - (0 Comments)

Who said you can’t look pretty while running?Colors Left to Right: Jamaica Me Crazy, Peach Dalquiri, Pink Diamond

I love jazzing up my running shoes with bright colored laces. Loose those boring white strings.

I also love having bright bold nails and essie nail polish is one of my favorite brands. It’s bright, it’s bold and it’s strong. I can go a week with no chipping or peeling.

essie, fashion, nail polish, running shoes, style

Kill That Snooze Button

March 22nd, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Work Outs - (0 Comments)

I am definitely a morning person and love starting the day off with a good work out! My husband and I have a routine where we wake up every morning (Monday- Friday) before work at 5:00AM to go to the GYM. Yes…I said it, 5 o’clock in the morning our alarm clock goes off.

I wasn’t always a morning worker outer but over the years I have really learned to love getting out of bed to work out. Now, don’t get me wrong I like my sleep too but let me tell you a little bit about why I wake up so early to get a good sweat on.

1. Priorities- Working out, staying in shape and being fit are very important to me along with many other things. In order to accomplish all my goals in a day I need to make working out a priority. Just like all important things in your life, you need to give them value and commit to them.

2. Time Management- Just like many of you, I am crazy busy. I have a job, have a husband, have a dog, volunteer, play co-ed sports, have friends and family. There is so much going on in my life after work that it is something difficult to fit in exercise. And I refuse to become one of those people who say, “I don’t have time to work out.” The only thing worst than working out is NOT working out. With that said, morning workouts have become part of my routine and it works best for my schedule to get it in right away.

3. Empty Stomach- I hate working out on a full stomach. There have been times where I would eat a full meal or a few sweets and then go for a run. That is no good. In the mornings I feel refreshed and don’t have to worry about bouncing around with a full tummy. I am not recommending you work out on a hungry stomach. Sometimes I find it best to eat a small 100-200 calorie snack. Something that gives you a little extra punch.

4. Fabulous Endorphins- I always come back from a run or from the gym really happy and motivated to start my day. Sometimes before work I have gotten an hour work out in, two loads of laundry, dinner in the crock pot and the bed made all by 8 in the morning. That is more than some people accomplish in 8 hours!

5. Get it Done!- Sometimes I just don’t feel like working and I hate nothing more than procrastinating. So, instead of putting off my workout, I get it done right away and just do it. Being a couple with no kids (yet) we do a lot of sporadic things- dinner dates, shopping trips, family visits. Sometimes I never know what the evenings will bring. I don’t have to worry about not being able to go out with friends after work because ” I have to work out.” My workout is done in the morning and I am free as a bird to have an unplanned evening.

Instead of wasting another hour of my day and hitting the snooze button- I eliminate that button from my brain and start my day. I trained my mind to think, “when that alarm clock buzzes it is time to get up.

Make time for exercise whether it is in the morning, afternoon or evening. Make it a priority and you will definitely notice a difference in your attitude, health and time management skills.

Remember- The only thing worst than working out is NOT WORKING OUT.

Amy

alarm clock, goals, morning work outs, organization, priorities, snooze button, time management, working out

Jogging, Running, Sprinting

March 21st, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Motivation | Work Outs - (3 Comments)

Is there really a difference between jogging or running or sprinting?

Yesterday, a friend of mine asked me this very same questions and sent me this article, “The Difference Between Running and Jogging”

Without reading the article, I quickly answered her question saying, “Jogging is something you can do while multitasking like look at your phone, read a magazine on the treadmill. It is a slower run and your heart rate is in a low zone 2. Running requires your full attention, it is a faster jog and your heart rate is in a medium to high zone 3.”

Then this morning I went to a group fitness class and the instructor made us jog for 30 seconds, run for 20 seconds and sprint for 10 seconds on repeat. As I exercised with the group I noticed there was not a big difference in our pace from jogging to running. But then when it was time to sprint, everyone kicked it into full gear and ran/jogged faster!

I have always considered myself a runner not because I dislike the term jogging but I think it’s because I grew up with that term. “I’m going for a morning run.” Sometimes my parents (who are in their early 50s) call it jogging. Maybe it is a generation thing. I definitely do not get offended when someone asks me, “How was your jog?”

When it boils down to it, I believe the definition of jogging, running and sprinting are all determined by the individual. It doesn’t matter how fast you are running/jogging or your finish time. All that matters is that you are moving and doing something healthy for your body. Set your own goals and definition.

What do you think?

Your running buddy!

Amy

jogging, motivation, running, sprinting

DIY Easter Tree

March 19th, 2012 | Posted by Amy in Simple Decorations - (0 Comments)

I always love to decorate my house for holidays and parties. I consider myself a creative person and I love seeing what ideas I can craft up with the materials I already have at home.

Today I put together this Easter Tree and it didn’t cost me a single penny! I recycled and reused materials that were already in my linen closet.

Materials:

- Apple branch cut down from a tree at our farm. You can use any type of twig, stick or tree branch. Mine is about 40 inches tall.

- Wine bottle. I always keep my leftover wine bottles because they seem to come in handy for last minute decor ideas.

- A variety of different colored and sized ribbon. You could use wrapping paper ribbon or twine or yarn. Whatever type of fun string you have on hand.

- A dozen plastic Easter Eggs from Target’s Dollar Section. Get the plastic eggs that open in the middle. The ones you can stuff with goodies.

First, I stuck the Apple branch down through the neck of the bottle. Make sure the base of your branch touches the bottom of the bottle so it is stable and the branch won’t wiggle around or fall over. You might need to trim some of the twigs off your branch so it fits correctly.

Next, I opened each of the plastic eggs. I cut my ribbon into 6 inch stripes. I placed the two ends of the ribbon strand inside each side of the egg and snapped it shut, creating a loop. I then hung the eggs randomly on the tree.

After I placed all the plastic eggs on the tree, I used different styles and colors of ribbon and tied small bows on the remaining, egg-less twigs.

I finished this Easter Masterpiece by tying a wide blue and white polka-a-dot ribbon, into a bow, on the neck of the wine bottle.

Woala! You have a very inexpensive Easter Tree that looks great!

Amy