March 25, 2015

VLOG inside! hump day motivation + WWAW (what we ate wednesday)

March 25, 2015/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

it's hump daaaay! and heavy leg day. and we hit the gym (wut) together .

sure we can be normal. for what?

why is wednesday referred to as hump day? i heard the reasoning years ago but Googled it anyway to reconfirm as i typed this post:

'Starting around 1965, Wednesday began being referred to as “hump day.” Smack dab in the middle of the traditional work week, arriving at Wednesday symbolizes that we've made it over the hump and the weekend is in sight.'

sounds about right! not working a traditional job since the beginning of 2013 when my IT contract ended has diminished the 'monday blues' and those feelings of always wanting to speed through the week to get to friday and the weekend. i am a WSAHM (working stay at home mom) and being here with my boys has taught me to slow the heck down and live in the now. i look forward to every single day! yeah, entrepreneur life is a scary, huge sacrifice (especially with young kids in the mix) but i would have never, ever gotten the chance to GROW as quickly and as much as i have these past 2 years in every. single. aspect. of the word. each day is a new adventure over here and i am head over heels in love with this temporary journey with my boys (Dego is 9 months already yall, DANG.) now that Sonny is no longer working a traditional job either (this is now week 4) and his schedule allows him to be with me and the boys more often, we have been taking full advantage of this blessing.

the endorphins were flowing after our workout this morning so we made quick vlog! i also included 2 clips of some of exercises we did. we focused on unilateral training (one leg at a time) for most of the exercises instead of both. why? sometimes when you train both arms or legs together, you can cheat by letting your dominant side do the brunt of the work. so, working them one at a time helps you:

create balanced growth and development in both limbs equally
correct size asymmetries
improve general balance
engage smaller muscles like the abductors, gluteus medius, and quadratus lumborum in ways we can't duplicate training two legs at a time.

[wpvideo uAAre0Ps]

here are a few things we dined on today:

i found the Ranch Tuna Creations, woo, hoo! someone mentioned this flavor on Instagram and i had never seen it until the last time i was at Walmart. i like. i didn't add a thing and ate it straight from the packet while out and about today.

i whipped up a snack using my Ninja Blender single serve thingy and Dego loooooves this combo! it's 1 heaping cup of all natural, unsweetened applesauce + 1/2 cup roasted beets (you can do frozen or fresh and even canned if you must) + 4 or 5 strawberries.

i could not stop eating it myself! tasted way better than those prepackaged flavored applesauces in stores. but you knew that already, right!

for my meals 4 and 5 i had quesadillas using La Tortilla Factory light flour tortillas. they were stuffed with spinach, onions, mushrooms, Weber Beer Can Chicken seasoned chicken breast chunks, and Lisanatti almond cheddar cheese.

i folded them in half and cooked them on my griddle for 2-3 min on each side until the cheese started to melt and the tortilla was crispy. no avocados in the house :( but this citrus pineapple Pace Picante sauce sufficed!

now i'm going to lay down, blink, and it will be time for me to get up and go teach my Barbell Strength class. GOODNIGHT!

Q: what have you ever ended up doing (or being) that you said you never would do (or be?)

May 14, 2014

updated Zucchini Pizza Cruise Ships + we're registered!

May 14, 2014/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

had a bowl of organic rolled oats cooked in unsweetened vanilla almond milk, water, cinnamon, and vanilla before heading to my (now weekly) OB appointment this morning. fresh blueberries, more cinnamon, more almond milk, and pure maple syrup went right on top. i had egg whites w/ salsa on the side too. fueling up for some kickboxing a little later today.

was running late and threw on whatever (but i was comfy though!) and we made it just in time for my group b strep test and routine check up. if only pap smears were that quick & easy-peasy! all is well @ 35 weeks and i thank Him for another great progress report. and yes, i smacked Chiso right after he smacked me.

on to our new hospital to registerrrrrr!

so the hospital where Chiso was born doesn't do L&D anymore. i enjoyed the experience there and was saddened after hearing that! however, the new hospital is literally 3 minutes away, so no biggie. AND my favorite OB in the entire universe will be there to deliver Odego this time, Lord willing. (she was out having her twins at the time Chiso was born :'( ) . i went ahead and registered juuuuust in case we have to pop up there sooner than expected, but i am coming back with Sonny to take a tour so we can be cheesy and take pics and stuff. a date i am so looking forward too, again. i hardly EVER buy overpriced convenience store food/snacks, but i was unprepared and Chiso got restless while i filled out paper work. so i got him this Sabra pretzel and hummus dip along with a banana.

enjoy this updated recipe of last night's dinner:

updated Zucchini Pizza Cruise Ships

the stuff:

4 large, raw zucchini, halved & seeded
2 cups cooked and seasoned extra lean ground turkey
1 cup homemade marinara (add more if you'd like and the recipe is below)
8 turkey pepperoni, cut into thin strips
1 cup shredded almond or rice cheese
6 cherry tomatoes, sliced into coins
2 tsp dried italian seasoning or parsley or fresh basil
sea salt & cracked black pepper to taste

do this:

set your oven to 350 degrees and coat a large baking pan with foil and no-stick cooking spray.
after halving the zucchini, scoop some of the insides out using a small spoon. they should look like empty ~~canoes~~ cruise ships once you're done; arrange them flat and seed-side up on your baking sheet.
mix the cooked ground turkey and the marinara sauce together, then spoon the mixture evenly into/onto the zucchini.
sprinkle the turkey pepperoni, tomato, and italian seasoning on top of the cruise ships, and bake them for about 20 minutes.
remove them from the oven and sprinkle shredded cheese on top. ( i used 2% colby jack cause that's all i had. to keep this recipe dairy free, use almond or rice cheese.)
let them bake once more for 7-10 minutes or just until the cheese melts to your liking.
top with fresh basil or parsley!

i thought i posted my marinara recipe in the Fit N' Crispy Chicken Parm post but maybe it didn't save like i thought?? can't explain that one. but here it is:

homemade marinara:

the stuff:

1 6oz can tomato paste
6 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 tsp Italian seasoning blend (optional)
sea salt & cracked black pepper to taste

do this:

heat a large sauce pan to medium-low heat; once hot, pour in your olive oil.
add onions & garlic and sauté until translucent...about 2-3 minutes.
add in the rest of the ingredients except sea salt and cracked black pepper, stir, cover, and let simmer for 12-15 minutes.
shut off heat; add mixture to your blender or food processor and blend on high until super smooth.

you can make this ahead of time and store in the fridge to be used for pizza sauce, wing dip, breadstick dip, whatever!

happy hump day! hollaaaaaaaaa

September 05, 2012

10 days to destiny

September 05, 2012/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

my last post was deleted completely and i almost cracked. it's not the first time that has happened, but when it does, my 'make up' post usually turns out better the second time. and i remember to add a whole bunch of stuff i left out the first time. so, it's all good.

so, HI :)

this post was supposed to go out on Labor Day, whoops. speaking of LD, was there a party at your gym late-morning/early afternoon too!? i think everybody slept in, then got up and went to the gym at the same time. there were people EVERYWHERE on every machine. that's a good thing though as there are no holidays for your health.

oh and also, i have managed to go from an iPhone, to a brand spanking new Samsung galaxy s3, to NO phone in a matter of days. gaaaaaaaaaaaah, having no phone is THE absolute worst thing ever these days. especially when it's your fault :roll: replacement phone is en route. i miss Instagram so much, lol! IG on the PC is wack!

*update*

10 days, not weeks, left until the show. i have always been a cardio horse, so these last few days of it will be a piece of cake.

i actually gained some weight this past week (due to the carb loading, water, and gaining more muscle), but i still managed to drop a tad more body fat, whoop whoop. last progress pic(s) until the show- no spoilers!

currently at:

144lbs

10% body fat

few more progress shots before this morning's workout (stole Sonny's phone)

my meal plan is different all the way up until show day, so my trainer says to expect more changes and i will.

my abs seem to have disappeared for the moment, but it's temporary bloating. you know i asked!!

#backaction

even more reason to love my racerback tops now!

got my show suit, got my theme wear and now all i need to do is PRACTICE. some more. oh and get that other stuff done too of course: waxing, makeup, hair, and tanning. my posing coach, Christine, sent out an email that included a checklist of everything i need to have done or do. all i can say is WHEW! i felt this same feeling before my wedding, before Sonny's 30th birthday party, before Chiso's 1st birthday party... yeah, pretty much before any big event. a feeling of suffocation, anxiety, and my mind racing a mile a minute... just ready to just get this the heck over with. my life will then settle down a bit...until the next thing i get myself into.

now for some food porn!!!!

this was Chiso's breakfast today- his current favorite. banana oat pancakes, banana chunks, and eggs.

i packed a quick snack for him before i headed out too: roasted sweet potatoes, some ripe avocado, and strawberries.

while i was making breakfast, i got going on my lunches- i munched on steak and potatoes for my low carb menu today. i roasted my sweet potatoes last night (450 deg oven for about 45 min), so they were already soft and just needed to be reheated later.

i put my grill pan over super high heat and grilled my steaks which had been marinating in liquid smoke, garlic powder, onion powder, and montreal steak seasoning.

i packed up meals 2 and 3 before heading out earlier.

however when i got home this evening, i got fancy! this totally feels like a cheat meal, forreal. i made garlic sweet potato fries instead of my usual roasted. i told you sweet potatoes are SO versatile!

i cut them up, then i got crazy and used all this on them lol. no added calories but plenty of flavor. (the smokehouse maple seasoning does have sodium and sugar in it but i went super-duper light) i read about the butter flavoring and it's pretty awesome and smells WONDERFUL.

end result:

POW!!!

grilled sirloin steak topped with avocado, garlic sweet potato fries, and fresh sautéed spinach. i'll be Instagramming this as soon as i get my phone back lol.

it tasted as amazing as it looked!

*season the fries and pop them in a 400 deg oven for about 20 min. spread them out so they cook evenly*

and i get to have it one more time for meal 6!! happy rest of your hump evening!!

July 05, 2012

fourth

July 05, 2012/ leah.egwuatu@6packusa.com

mid-week holiday? i'll take it! Sonny and i both got our workouts in super early.

then, we finally made it to the

POOL!!!

after being rained out several times in the past few weeks, we finally got some swimming in. it even took us two attempts in one day, goodness. we pulled up to the pool earlier in the afternoon and it really started coming down:( so, we went back home and tried again a few hours later.