Happy 4th of July (and THANK YOU for ONE YEAR)!
Happy 4th of July!
Like all holidays, my tradition is to begin with a workout. Usually nothing super heavy, almost never on a strength plan (hey, isn't that what holidays are all about? Taking a break from the norm?), almost always done and over in under 40m and setting the stage for the slightly-abnormal day ahead.
Now, *|FNAME|*, that isn't to say I use holidays to employ the F-it effect ("f it, I've already slept in/eaten a hot dog/skipped a work out, might as well have 17c of potato salad and wash it down with 24 Bud Lights. And then there's cake!"), but, I will acknowledge as much as anyone else, most holidays are both centered around foods we don't typically eat and on a schedule to which we don't typically adhere, and not many people like to be the one bringing Tupperware full of dry chicken and sad asparagus to the barbecue.
We've covered a few cookout-friendly recipes that are also delicious (see here and here for some good ones), so we don't have to be that guy. I've got your back.
The scheduling part can be a little more difficult, so, since we're having this chat first thing in the morning, hopefully I caught you while there's still time to squeeze in some You Time.
The intensity factor is key when we're discussing body change; for fat loss, we'd rather have a quick, intense workout than a slow plod. Our hormones are primed for fat loss, our muscles are pumped, our appetites are kept in check, and we know we've done at least one good thing for ourselves today, getting the ball rolling with some positive momentum (40m or less is the sweet spot that preserves muscle and has less of an effect on appetite in the long term. Ravenous runners are not a myth.).
This is also my favorite strategy given the tight schedules, hectic scenes, and calorie-laden snowballs that holidays can become, so, to that end, I created a 7/4-themed workout that we can all enjoy (using our favorite muse, of course. :)).
This can be done as written, or you can drop the weights and sub a jog for the row, squats for the wall balls, and rows for the slams and do it in your driveway. Enjoy!
This is entirely self-indulgent of me, but I also wanted to take a quick second, on the one-year anniversary of #StrongBySteph, to thank all of you who have been here, whether you've been A1 since Day 1 or just recently joined in on the fun. 52 emails about hacking nutrition, living in gratitude, learning to lift, and letting ourselves take up (and increase!) our space in the world have been quite the ride. And we're only going up!
I'm so thankful to have you as online friends, IRL friends, colleagues, lifting buddies, Instagram supporters, Facebook commenters (and trolls, because, hey, me too. Love you.), fellow pizza enthusiasts, sauce slatherers, puppy people, and everything in between. I began this project as an outlet, creating space in the fitness industry in which we could discuss more than how many reps we should do or how many grams of carbs are safe to eat, and it's turned into more than I imagined. A simple "thank you" could never be enough, but that's what I've got.
If we aren't yet connected on other social media avenues, click any of the buttons below and say hi! I love getting to know you.
Until next week,
Steph
PS- if you have another second, hit reply and let me know anything you'd like to see addressed in the coming year. What's on your mind?
