A Cambridge fitness training post by Callie Durbrow
How I Create the Perfect Fitness and Nutrition Day
What’s up??
It’s been a few weeks since the last blog and I apologize for the absence. Next week I am moving my fitness training studio into a new location. Yep that’s right, we now have our very own training center with lots of space and even a parking lot for some cool outdoor workouts. So, that has been consuming a lot of time, effort and planning.
But no worries, I’m back!
Here we are in the official start of summer-time, the week before Memorial Day. I love this time of year. This is the time of year that people often have a wake-up call when it comes to their fitness and overall fat loss. Did those New Years Resolutions pay off? We’re halfway through the year so how ya doin’?
I wanted to hook you up today with a little inside look on my day. Now, I know the title of this post is the “perfect” fitness and nutrition day and I’m certainly not saying that I’m perfect when it comes to all of this. Sure it’s my lifestyle and my business but each day I simply strive to make it a clean and healthy day. Is it always perfect? Nope. But here’s a little sneak peak….
5am: Wake up and drink 8 ounces of cold water then make a smoothie
The cold water tactic is two-fold. One, I like water in the morning. Two, the ice cold water can stimulate your metabolism just that little bit extra. My smoothies are usually pretty simple. Today I mixed 1 cup of almond milk, 1 cup of frozen blueberries and frozen cherries, 1 scoop of plain greek yogurt, handful of chai seeds and 1 scoop of Prograde Vanilla Protein powder. This mix is loaded with protein, the chai seeds are a great source of fiber and Omega-3’s and then I get a nice dose of fruit in there as well. And, the Magic Bullet is the bomb for making these things super fast!
8am pre-workout snack- Prograde Craver
The cravers are a simple snack that gives me a little boost of carbohydrates and not too many calories. I can’t eat a lot right before I train so this is perfect and I just throw it in my bag and have it right after I train clients.
8:30am Workout
My training sessions vary from day to day. I generally train on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. I play basketball on Sundays which takes care of a conditioning day for me. My training session yesterday (Monday) consisted of:
Kettlebell Snatch (4 rounds of 6 reps per side)
Box Jumps (4 rounds of 8)
Pistol Squats (4 rounds of 8 each leg)
Renegade Rows (4 rounds of 10)
This was a short, explosive and dynamic workout. After that I rode my bike home (couple of miles) and did some foam rolling.
10am post workout shake
I keep it simple here with Prograde Workout ….I know you’re wondering why every single product seems to be Prograde. Very simple, this stuff works for me. I’m not going to make this a pitch-fest I just want you to see exactly what I do during the week. These products seem to work great for me, they are all-natural, no extra junk or chemicals and they fit my lifestyle. I mix a scoop of this with 8 ounces of almond milk and I’m good to go with a nice mix of carbs and protein right after my workout.
12:30 or 1pm Lunch
Typically for lunch I mix in protein and healthy fats with some veggies or fruit. My lunch yesterday was some leftover roasted chicken breast, a few slices of full fat cheese (yep that’s right, full fat- get those healthy fats in moderation) and a bowl of raspberries and strawberries
3pm snack and bike ride to gym
Most days I’m headed back to the gym to train groups from 4-7pm so I grab a snack around 3 or 3:30 to tide me over until dinner. Typically here I have a handful of nuts and some fruit.
7pm bike ride home
I have been biking to and from the gym lately provided that the weather is good. This gives me a little extra caloric burn and I like to clear my head on the ride home.
7:30pm dinner
My dinner is always some form of protein and some veggies. I really am not a starch-eating person by nature so every once and a while I’ll throw in some sweet potatoes or beans but I really just don’t like pasta or rice that much so I don’t even have to worry about it. Last night’s dinner was a nice cut of steak just marinated in worchestershire sauce (gotta watch out for those marinades with tons of sugar), asparagas and a nice green salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, carrots and a dressing with rice vinegar, olive oil and lemon.
I have a 24 ounce Nalgene bottle and throughout the day I make it a goal to drink 5-6 of those. Even if I get 4, I’m still doing pretty well. I always make sure I drink at least one during my training session so that takes care of it pretty easily.
As you can see my meals and snacks are structured every 3-4 hours and I emphasize my pre and post-workout snacks. This is so much more important than most people realize. Especially after the training session when your body is primed to take in nutrients. Plus, you want to have that shake or chocolate milk to eliminate over-eating when you get home and you’re starving.
As I mentioned I’ll train 4-5 days per week and I like to take off and rest on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Every day I make sure to get in some stretching and foam rolling. My hips are really tight so I focus a lot on that. Luckily I don’t sit too much at a desk but for most people I highly recommend hip and shoulder/upper back stretches after many hours at the computer.
You’ll also notice that I don’t count calories. Who has time? Make your focus about the timing of you meals, eating protein with every meal or snack and limiting your starchy foods. Another sneaky tactic is to avoid the pairing of carbohydrates and fats too often. Carbohydrates are the first form of energy burned, then the body moves to fats. If there is too much fat that’s not being burned, guess what? It gets stored. If you are having a higher carb meal, pair it with protein.
I keep my days very simple and I’m lucky that I can have most of my meals at home. If you are at the office all day the best thing is to PLAN, PLAN, PLAN. Pack what you are going to eat for the day and do just that. Plan your dinner ahead of time so you’re not starving when you get home and you’ll just eat whatever is in front of you.
I’d love to hear about how you structure your training and nutrition days and leave me any tips that you find helpful!
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