Hump Day Booty Move: Kettlebell Swings + Med Ball Slams

If you're looking for high calorie burn, booty burn, and a little bit of fun, you need to add this to your next workout!

Switch back and forth between 15 Kettlebell Swings and 15 Med Ball Slams, non-stop, for 3-5 sets to develop power in your glutes, strength in your core, break a sweat, and get your heart racing! I'm using a 45lb. kettlebell here. Go heavy to build a round booty, but be sure your form is on point, or your back will feel it tomorrow.

This superset is perfect to add to your HIIT workout, especially when you're focused on lower body. Share when you incorporate it into your workout on Instagram/Twitter @cassiebstrong #BStrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

Maple Coconut Overnight Oats

Overnight Oats are where it's at. These babies save me on the days I wake up at 4:30am, when getting dressed and walking Tucker before 5:00am are a grand feat. Then I make my mug of warm lemon water, (if you missed why I'm obsessed with that, read here), throw berries on top of my oats, kiss and squeeze Tucker until I can't deal with anymore guilt, and I'm out the door. All because my breakfast was prepped the night before.

It's too healthy and too tasty not to get excited about, so go ahead and brag! Post it on Instagram, you health nut, breakfast freak - just tag me @cassiebstrong. Oh, and #BWell #EatYourWellness. See what I did there? I don't eat my feelings, I eat my wellness. Clever.

Anyway... Pour the following ingredients into a mason jar, (or glass tupperware), in this order:

1/2c. Rolled Oats

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1c. Coconut Milk (any variety of milk is fine!)

1 tbsp. chia seeds (optional)

2 tbsp. Coconut Flakes

2 tbsp. Maple Syrup

Don't mix it! Just refrigerate overnight.

On your way out the door: Throw berries or fruit of your choice on top! (I love blackberries.)

Chow time: Mix it all together and bask in the glory of the easiness, healthiness, and yumminess of your breakfast!

B Well,

Cassie B.

Momma B: A Grand Plan Isn't Always the Answer - Small Adjustments Make the Greatest Difference

There was a time when my life consisted of daily headaches and regular migraines. No prescription medications, not even trial prescriptions, worked for me, and I began to feel helpless. When I took matters into my own hands and began researching headache and migraine triggers, I found a lot of information about food ingredients that can cause headaches. Since then, I’ve been reading food labels, knowing that MSG, artificial sweeteners, food colorings, and artificial flavors were all things that could make my headaches and migraines worse. I focused solely on the food and ingredients I needed to avoid, so I never thought about the foods I wasn’t eating and what adding to my diet could do for me. I was avoiding what I knew was bad, but for the most part, most of the food I ate still came in packages. Before I enrolled in IIN, I never considered eating whole, natural foods as a way to avoid headaches and migraines. Once I started to bring real food into my daily diet, I quickly noticed a difference.

Now I look at food very differently. My daily headaches and regular migraines were my body's way of communicating that it was not happy with what I had been feeding it. I just didn't realize it at the time. As I progressed through my IIN program, I started to learn how to nourish my body, not just feed it processed "foods", so my migraines started to get better. Thanks to my newfound relationship with my body, I had more energy, was taking less medication, and my focus improved too. It felt good to feel better, but I still had a nagging headache each morning as I left for work. I had reduced the packaged foods I ate, was eating mostly whole foods, but now that I knew how to communicate with my body, I understood that there was room for improvement if I still didn't feel my very best. Finally, I thought to read the ingredients label on my toothpaste. And there it was - artificial sweetener. I had been reading labels long before I enrolled in IIN and was so disappointed that I didn’t take the time to read that label until then. Since I’ve changed to a natural toothpaste, I no longer experience a daily headache. And because I’m eating real food now, it's been months since I last had a migraine.

Every small change makes a big difference. Listen to your body, and take the time to learn how to nourish it so you can feel your very best. When you feel your best, it manifests itself in the rest of your life.

To read more about developing your awareness of your body's reaction to what you feed it, check out my article The Food Mood Connection.

B Well,

Momma B.

HARD CORE: Stability Ball Leg Lift + Hip Drive

Here's the final progression I'm posting for using the stability ball while laying down to target your abdominals! We started with the Dead Bug, progressed to the Toe Tap, challenged ourselves with the V-Up, and now we're ready for the Hip Drive!

This exercise challenges your lower abdominals and helps you build a rock solid core! Notes on form: - Legs are always straight. - Press your lower back toward the floor as you lower your legs. - Your legs lift directly over your hips. Don't kick them back over your chest or face.

Try 2-4 sets of 10 reps of this exercise to target your abs at the end of your next workout.

Share when and how you incorporate this exercise and the progressions before it on Instagram/Twitter @cassiebstrong #BStrong!

B Strong,

Cassie B.

Jennifer Hanway: Rest & Reset - The Importance of More Sleep for Less Stress

Wasn't the extra hour of sleep a blessing?  Not only does sleep make you feel wonderful, it has some pretty amazing health benefits too: 

To visit Jennifer's website and read more articles by her visit: http://jenniferhanway.com/

• It helps to control weight and improves body composition (ration of body fat to lean muscle) in two ways. Sleep regulates the hormones that effect appetite, and when we don't get enough sleep our bodies produce more of the hormone ghrelin which in turn leads us to make poor food choices and consume more calories. Research studies have also shown that lack of sleep leads to less energy output, i.e. we are less likely to exercise (or even walk around the block) due to tiredness and lack of motivation.

• It increases your ability to handle both mental and physical stress. Not only this but sleep lowers both blood pressure levels and the stress hormone cortisol.

• It has a beneficial effect on our mood and our thinking. Not only does it make us feel happier and less worried (studies show a long term sleep deficit can lead to depression and anxiety) good sleep increases cognitive function, leading to better judgement, improved focus and less tendency to takes risks.

• It enables cell repair throughout the body, important for both repairing muscles post workout (we are at our weakest state post workout due to the breaking down of muscle fibers, they will repair and get stronger whilst we sleep) and beautiful skin (repair at the cellular level results in less fine lines and wrinkles, and gives us a glowing, even complexion).

• It decreases inflammation: chronic inflammation is the source of many diseases, including cancer, obesity, and heart disease. We all need some level of inflammation in the body to help heal and fight off infections, but when too much inflammation is present (this can be caused by a myriad of things, from stress to bad food choices and poor gut health) it can cause the immune system to malfunction, relating in auto immune conditions such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and arthritis.

There are many simple ways to improve the quality of our sleep, below are five easy to implement health habits:

• Introduce a caffeine curfew: for me this time is 3.30pm, for others it may be later or earlier, depending on your tolerance for caffeine. If you find your mind racing the minute you close your eyes start moving your caffeine curfew back by half an hour to see if it helps.

• Get outside in daylight: as the days become shorter we can find ourselves not seeing the daylight hours. By taking just a 10-15 minute walk outside at lunchtime you can normalize your circadian rhythm, letting your body know it is time to ‘wind down’ when the sun goes down.

• Ensure adequate magnesium levels: due to our modern diets and extra environmental stresses the majority of us are magnesium deficient. Magnesium is needed in over 300 metabolic processes in the body, and is vital for ensuring a restful nights sleep .

• Do not take the phone into the bedroom! Use an old fashioned alarm clock, or if you must use your phone turn the wifi off and switch to airplane mode for good measure. The electrical signals will have a negative impact on quality of sleep, even if you do not wake up.

• Consider supplements for sleep: they are many natural supplements available that can help aid sleep, my favorite is a product called RestoREM from the Poliquin Group. RestoREM contains the nutrients 5-HTP, Phenibut and melatonin and to improves serotonin levels, resulting in better sleep patterns to leave you feeling refreshed and energised when you wake (https://main.poliquinstore.com/?___store=usw&acc=cd00692c3bfe59267d5ecfac5310286c).

If you would like to learn more about the benefits of less stress and more sleep, I would love for you to join me at my informal, intimate Wellness Talk next Tuesday 10th November at 7pm at 715 Boylston Street, Boston, MA. You will leave with easy to implement nutrition, lifestyle and supplement strategies and have the opportunity to voice your concerns and questions to myself and the group.

We will also be joined by leading meditation expert Charity Collier who specializes in bringing meditation into the lives of busy people. Charity will be leading us through a 5 minute mediation at the end of the talk to help us leave relaxed, refreshed and ready to implement our new healthy habits.

Tickets are $12 and spaces are limited. Attendees will receive a gift bag and 10% of ticket sales go to the Greater Boston Food Bank.

For booking and more information please visit:

https://www.movewith.com/events/rest-and-reset-with-jennifer-hanway