The following post is sponsored by FitFluential LLC on behalf of Soldier of Steel™. All opinions are my own!
Hello, my friends, and happy Wednesday! First things first: have you guys ever timed yourself doing a plank hold? The plank hold is one of my favorite workout moves because you can do it anywhere and no equipment is required! Between yoga and Crossfit, I end up doing a lot of planks, but I’d never actually timed myself to see how long I could just straight up hold a static plank. So this morning I did!
Photo via fANNEtasticfood on Instagram!
The verdict? I made it 5 minutes and 1 second before collapsing! I was actually really surprised I made it that long. Try it yourself and let me know how it goes! 🙂 I started on my forearms/elbows but switched to my hands for the second half (without letting my knees touch the ground, of course).
So, why was I doing plank holds this morning? My inspiration came from checking out some of the cool new Soldier of Steel™ workouts developed in partnership with The National Guard by Mark Twight, a Hollywood fitness trainer who helps train fighters, endurance athletes, and cast and stunt crew for action movies. He most recently helped Henry Cavill become the MAN OF STEEL™ for the new movie! Check it out:
Mark sounds like a pretty hardcore guy – he was one of America’s leading alpinists at the turn of the 21st century, and holds the title of the fastest climb of “Slipstream,” a three thousand-foot-high waterfall in the Canadian Rockies. He climbed it in 2 hours and 4 minutes; most people do it in 12 hours. Um, wow.
I checked out the workout plan he developed (which is free to download once you put in your name and email address) this morning and it’s awesome! In addition to the downloadable month-long day-by-day training routine, their website also includes tutorials and videos for the exercises, webisodes, and more. I’d encourage you guys to check it out if you’re looking for a way to mix up your routine! I love that it’s all offered totally free.
Having grown up in a military family, I know that staying physically fit is an important part of the job, so it makes sense that a workout affiliated with The National Guard would be pretty intense – from the looks of the program, you will be whipped into serious shape in no time! Check it out and in the meantime, if you have any fitness questions for Mark Twight, he’ll be taking over the @NationalGuard Twitter handle for Q&A on Thursday, June 20 from 3 to 4 p.m. EST. Follow the conversation at #TwightTakeover !
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Anyway! I haven’t shared any of my simple eats lately so I figured today would be a good time to do that (yes, still waiting to hear back from Brooks on whether I can give out extra prizes – stay tuned!). Last week, I rediscovered my love for Mexican-style wraps.
The inspiration was this fun local crab salsa that I purchased down in Richmond a couple weekends ago! So good.
My wrap was stuffed with guacamole, black beans, some leftover shredded chicken, chopped peppers, fresh cilantro, the crab salsa, mixed greens, and some cracked pepper. The fresh cilantro definitely made the wrap.
I packaged it up in some tin foil so it didn’t fall apart or explode while I ate it! Yum. This would make a great packed lunch for work, too – just pair it with a piece of fruit and you have the perfect meal.
Another old favorite that I rediscovered lately was my Pesto Baked Salmon with Veggies (click for recipe)! So easy and great for summer.
I mixed it up and had asparagus instead of zucchini and squash and it was still great.
Matt doesn’t like salmon so I ate it all myself – first with a side of leftover quinoa, and then again the next day for lunch. I threw the salmon and asparagus atop some salad, added some black beans for a little fiber and texture, and finished it off with some feta and salt and pepper. No dressing needed – the pesto was enough!
And now it’s time to get back to work. Have a great day, everyone! 🙂
Do you prefer to follow specific workout plans or just wing it day by day?
What’s your favorite quick and easy lunch or dinner as of late?
