The People I've Encountered at the Gym

The overly friendly Russian
This guy, bless his heart, is a talker. He comes in and wants to talk for at least 10 minutes even if you are in the middle of a workout. He will tell you about his daughter that he goes clubbing with and then invite you to try out hot yoga with him...which you will politely decline.

The lady who thinks she owns the place
This lady will come in and change the radio station you were listening to and turn it to one she wants. She will also turn off the radio and turn on the TV when it's time for her show to start. Don't you dare try and change anything because she will stare you down.

The two guys who listen to death metal on the loudest possible setting
These guys are always by the weights grunting and sweating trying to see how much they can lift that day...all while listening to the scariest music possible. This music is also so loud you can't hear your own music coming through your headphones.

The lady who sings
This lady will put the radio on an old school country or spanish station and while walking on the treadmill she will start to sing (loudly) along with the song. One day she will also ask you for workout tips on how to get rid of back fat which will make you feel in shape/important :)

The girl who is just there to make her pony tail swing
You will only see this girl maybe 2 or 3 times, but each time she will be moving just enough to make her pony tail swing. You never see her lift a weight or break a sweat, but she looks in shape. Maybe pony tail swinging burns more calories than it looks.

The older gentlemen who laughs and makes random sounds
This older man will randomly laugh or make weird sounds. It will start to make you curious as to what he is listening to...is it comedy or is there something funny happening over by the elliptical machines. You will never know...

The people who take up machines while doing nothing productive
These people will sit down on a machine and either take a phone call (go outside buddy), start watching the tv (you can watch and move your arms at the same time) or sit there and text (I'm pretty sure you can do something productive while waiting for a text back)

Kids
Oh the kids are the worst. The gym rules state if you are not 16 you are not allowed in there without an adult. However, these kids (probably jr. high age) will some how make their way in and play tag, take their shoes off, jump on the equipment and just flat out annoy you!! You will want to punch them in the face, but you won't because you don't want to go to jail...ha ha.

***side note...I'm not a member of any particular gym. I just go to the small gym at my apartment complex***

WWU: 14

Saturday, 4/20 - 30 min elliptical followed by shoulder work (424)

Sunday, 4/21 - Leg workout followed by 10 mins on lazy man bike (389)

Monday, 4/22 - No workout

Tuesday, 4/23 - 30 min elliptical

Wednesday, 4/24 - 30 min elliptical (all 3 treadmills were broken) followed by planks, biceps and reverse crunches (458)

Thursday, 4/25 - No workout...but I did start the 300 Squat Challenge with some co-workers...so Day 1 was 50 squats...I followed that up with 50 stability ball catches with my feet...schedule at the bottom of this post.

Friday, 4/26 - 20 min elliptical, 60 squats, 60 stb.ball catches with feet, 1.5 min plank and shoulder work (359)

Saturday, 4/27 - 20 mins of sprints, 10 mins walking and 70 squats with 70 stb. ball catches with feet (474)...learned a very important lesson this day to never workout on a completely empty stomach...you will feel light headed and queasy...no bueno

Sunday, 4/28 - No workout...80 squats

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
				25-Apr	26-Apr	27-Apr
				Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
				50	60	70
28-Apr	29-Apr	30-Apr	1-May	2-May	3-May	4-May
Day 4	Day 5	Day 6	Day 7	Day 8	Day 9	Day 10
80	REST	90	100	110	120	REST
5-May	6-May	7-May	8-May	9-May	10-May	11-May
Day 11	Day 12	Day 13	Day 14	Day 15	Day 16	Day 17
135	145	155	165	REST	180	190
12-May	13-May	14-May	15-May	16-May	17-May	18-May
Day 18	Day 19	Day 20	Day 21	Day 22	Day 23	Day 24
200	210	REST	220	230	240	250
19-May	20-May	21-May	22-May	23-May	24-May	Congrats!
Day 25	Day 26	Day 27	Day 28	Day 29	Day 30	you just did
REST	260	270	280	290	300	4400 Squats!

April Meal: Hawaiian Chicken with Habenero Pineapple Topping

I made marinated chicken for the first time the other night and absolutely loved it! I used Kroger brand Hawaiian marinade and let the chicken sit in it for 30 mins. It smelled amazing while it was baking and tasted great when it came out. BUT I kept thinking this would be even better with some spicy pineapple topping! So to the internet I went to look for a non-complicated habenero pineapple topping and I found one.

I found this recipe from Alton Brown and even though his is to top off your ice cream, I decided it would be best on chicken...ha ha.

I changed it slightly and used 1 can of pineapple chunks and 1 habenero pepper (chopped), but omitted the mint. I also didn't need to make an ice cream shell so I didn't bother with that stuff either.

I combined the pineapple with it's juice and the chopped pepper in a small sauce pan and let it boil for about 5 mins then simmer for another 5.

I loved the flavors, but next time I might add another pepper, some brown sugar to thicken it and use crushed pineapple instead of chunks.

Oh do you see that green stuff on my plate?!?! It's Erica's Meemaw's collard greens! They are delicious!!!!!

Rick Trevino at The Old Trading Post

After finding out Friday we did not win the "lottery" to meet Uncle Si from Duck Dynasty at the Texas Crawfish Festival Saturday, we decided to make the shorter trip out to Booth, TX Saturday night to see Rick Trevino perform at the Old Trading Post. The performance took place outside on a small stage with wooden picnic tables spread out around the yard...I say yard because it really did feel like someones backyard. There was an open area towards the front of the stage where you could get your two steppin' on, but we did not participate in that...ha ha. Overall, we had a good time and would go back again.

I should also mention that this was the first time I've been out past 1 am in a very very long time...ha ha...I even had my very first Whataburger taquito on the way home...ha ha. Needless to say I slept until about 12:30 pm the next day...ha ha.

the "backyard"... I really liked the lights that they had...they were nice and colorful, but I like the pic in b&w the best

The Andrew Wade Band opened for Rick Trevino and were pretty good.

Rick Trevino

The stupid purple lighting made it hard to get a good picture...he was singing She Can't Say I Didn't Cry

By the end of the night it had become quite chilly and a jacket was definitely needed...

WWU: 13

Friday, 4/12 - 30 mins of 30 second sprints followed by 4 mins of plank work (517 calories burned) the plank work that I've been doing has been one min elbow plank on bosu ball, 30 seconds side dips then hold the other 30 seconds, repeat on other side, and another elbow plank on bosu ball.

Saturday, 4/13 - No workout

Sunday, 4/14 - No workout

Monday, 4/15 - No workout...or does spending all night in the kitchen cooking count????

Tuesday, 4/16 - 30 min elliptcal resistance 7 incline 12 (315 calories burned) I wanted to do a lighter workout since I had been tired all day (and had just woken up from an hour nap) and was full of crawfish. Eventhough I didn't burn as many calories, my HRM said that 45% of that was fat calories...meaning I kept it in my optimal heart rate zone for the majority of the time.

Wednesday, 4/17 - No workout

Thursday, 4/18 - 30 mins of 30 second sprints followed by 4 mins of plank work (539 calories burned) I went to my mom's gym with her and it's amazing how much better running feels on a good treadmill. I was able to do 7 mins of sprints on a speed of 8!

Friday, 4/19 - 45 mins stride machine (470 calories burned)

Fruity Croissant Puff

That picture up there doesn't do this casserole justice. If you like the texture of bread pudding and if you like fruit, then you'll like this dish! I stole this recipe from Erica, but made a few little changes.

Ingredients

5 large croissants ripped into chunks
1 six ounce container of fresh blueberries
1/2 of a small container of  fresh blackberries
10 medium sized fresh strawberries cut into halves
1 eight ounce pkg 1/3 less fat cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup 2% milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.

Spread ripped up croissants into a 9x13 baking dish. Place fruit on top of croissants.

In a bowl, cream together the cream cheese, sugar, eggs and vanilla using electric beaters. Once completely mixed, slowly beat in the milk. Pour milk mixture evenly over the croissants and fruit.

blurry I know...please forgive me :)

Let sit for 20 minutes before baking. Bake for 35 mins. Enjoy!

I cut mine into 8 pieces and loved it so much I ate 2 pieces! Shame on me, but what can I say it was a great brunch! haha...it was brunch because I didn't eat until noon...ha ha. I think this would also be really good with peaches...mmmmm.

Larry the Cable Guy with Bill Engvall and Jeff Foxworthy

Yesterday Barrett, his brother and I drove all the way to Beaumont, TX to see Larry the Cable Guy perform. It was a long drive, but definitely worth the miles...ha ha. My cheeks hurt so bad from laughing for 2 hours straight! I've been a fan of the Blue Collar Comedy for a while now and a few years ago my Dad and I went to see Ron White aka Tater Salad perform, but this was my first time seeing Larry and the guys live. Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Kayla Conn opened. She is 15 and from Houston. They said she has opened for Scotty McCreery before and just cut her first album in Nashville that will be released Tuesday. Honestly, she was just ok for me. I might check out the iTunes version of her songs because one that she wrote, Memory for 2, sounded like it could be good. On another note...I thought her camo pants were really cute...ha ha.

Bill Engvall. He was my favorite of the night!!! His material was all new (or at least I hadn't heard it before) and had me laughing from the start. Most of it was about getting older, which kind of does sound like it's gonna suck...ha ha.

Jeff Foxworthy. (sorry for the blurry pic...he was too washed out to get a good one) His first joke was about a family wedding that was BYOLC...bring your own lawn chair. I had heard the story before, but it still had me laughing. Oh the things he claims his family does...ha ha.

Larry the Cable Guy...I believe this was when he was saying Git R Done...ha ha



Laughing at his own jokes. He had a mix of old and new material. His jokes come at you really fast which make them even funnier at times... ha ha.  

All the guys plus the announcer guy...can't remember his name...but he was pretty funny too!

Acting out

I believe this was part of the "I believe..." section