Top 10 VenusCrossing Articles of 2014

Here is a round up of the top 10 most read articles on VenusCrossing this year:

1. Lower Calorie Hawaiian Dream Cake

Recipe HERE

This recipe went viral on Pinterest this year. Hawaiian Dream Cake- does not even taste like you are taking some calorie shortcuts! 4 weight watchers points for 1/12th of a 9x13 dish! 

Follow me on Pinterest HERE

2. My Story

Article HERE

I went from that to this in 12 weeks! (and I have even improved in the last 2 years since then!) How I did it using the Venus system.

3. Weekly Healthy Dinner Menus for the Whole Family

Article HERE   

Easy quick dinner menu ideas that will please the whole family and your diet plan!

4. Healthy Crockpot Peach Cobbler Oatmeal

Recipe HERE 

This is another one of my recipes that took off on Pinterest this year! Healthy Crockpot Peach Cobbler Oatmeal #sugarfree #highprotein Dessert for breakfast, sign me up!

5. Sweet Balsamic Pork Loin

Recipe HERE

Another recipe that took off on Pinterest this year! Sweet Balsamic Pork Loin in the crockpot- one of my all time favorite meals. FULL flavor, low cal, and high protein- 130 calories and 22 g protein per 4 oz serving!

6. A Week in the Life of Liss: Planning your deficit

Article HERE

A week in the life of Liss- Planning your deficit What does a week of eating look like for me when I am cutting? What are my weekly goals?

7. Commitment and Starbucks Blendicano -How to order a blendicano

Article HERE

Blendicanos were big this year on social media. And brought a lot of new visitors to the site! 20 cal sugar free- and carb-free frozen treat from Starbucks#competition #onplan #sbux #cleanfastfood

8. Controlling Your Calories

Article HERE

How many calories a day should I eat to lose weight?

9. Planning Your Deficit Part 2: A Week in the Life of Liss

Article HERE

I see a trend here, haha! I guess it is interesting to see what my week of eating and workouts look like! So here it is, again. What does my week of meals and workouts look like?

10. Exercise Progressions and Modifications: push ups, planks, and dips

Article HERE

What to do when you cannot do a push up from your toes, hold a plan, or do a body weight dip. I will walk you through building strength in all these exercises.

************************************************************************************************************

So what do YOU want to hear about in 2015? Let me know in the comments below, and I will make it happen!

Thanks for all the love in 2014 :) I appreciate the love!

X- Liss

Squat Progressions

I get clients who are new to lifting, recovering from an injury, or who need to perfect their form. Progressions are here to save the day!

You should master form at each level before moving onto the next progression.

General Squat Form Reminders-

*Head stays in neutral position
*Keep shoulders square, no hunching
*Neutral spine and upright torso
*Knees tracking over (but not beyond) ankles
*Weight onto heels

Golden Nuggets of Form Wisdom from Coach Jenny

"Remember that we are all different and that you should pay attention to where you feel the movement and/or where you feel sore after on YOUR body.  Women are typically more quad dominant, so make sure you are feeling it where you want to feel it.  Sometimes all it takes to get the glutes involved is hitting it with body weight exercises BEFORE you squat.  Big breath, brace your core, down, up, exhale." -Coach Jenny

Here is a video with each progression:

Progression #1-
Sitting and holding a chair (or other sturdy object) to counterbalance

*Choose a seat height that you can comfortably sit and rise from. The idea is to just tap the seat, not completely relax between reps.
*The counterbalance chair (or other object) will be held onto lightly.

Progression #2-
High seat

*Choose a seat height that you can comfortably sit and rise from. The idea is to just tap the seat, not completely relax between reps.

Progression #3-
Lower seat

*The lower the seat, the more challenging the squat.
*Choose a seat height that you can comfortably sit and rise from. The idea is to just tap the seat, not completely relax between reps.

Progression #4-
Bodyweight

*The lower you go, the more challenging. Always aim for thighs parallel to ground at minimum range.

Progression #5-
Weighted - dumbbells or barbell

*The lower you go, the more challenging. Always aim for thighs parallel to ground at minimum range.
*If a weight causes you to shorten your range of motion, then you need to back off the weight.

X- Coach Liss

Is there room for lifting when you are training for a half marathon?

This past weekend, I met up in Memphis with Coach Jenny to run the St. Jude Half Marathon. The run was really an excuse to go see her, meet her family, and vacation. And by vacation, I mean eat at all the great places in Memphis!

It turned out to be a little experiment to see what would happen if I did the bare minimum training for  the race while continuing my Venus workouts. I did not want to:

• run more than I had to
• experience the hunger that comes with all that cardio
• give up any of my normal 5 days a week of lifting

 

The plan

So my plan was to...

Continue reading here - http://www.venusindex.com/is-there-room-for-lifting-when-you-are-training-for-a-half-marathon/