Tamara, Author at The Workout Mama

Backyard Campout + $50 Kohl’s Gift Card Giveaway

April 15, 2016 by Tamara 41 Comments

Disclosure: This post is sponsored. While I was not paid to write this post I did receive product from Kohl’s.

The giveaway has closed. Thanks to all who entered.

I know many families who camp with little kids. Some as young as three weeks old. I applaud you parents out there who are so adventurous and have this camping thing down. Josh and I on the other hand do NOT have this down yet. We decided to play our first family “campout” safe and pitched our tent in the backyard.

This tent is not like any tent I remember from my camping and backpacking experience. It set up quickly and features a built-in closet with shelves and hanger bar to organize gear and clothes. It easily fit a queen size air mattress plus the two sleeping bags for the kids.

The kids favorite was the air mattress. And it wasn’t because it was super comfortable but because they treated it like their own personal trampoline. Josh and I didn’t have a problem with them jumping on it all because it is made that well. No need to worry about the mattress deflating.

Since we didn’t have any sleeping bags for the kids we ordered them each their own kid size sleeping bag. They look so cute in them and the kids seemed really comfortable.

We knew that our backyard family campout would be a big success in the eyes of the kids and to keep the fun times rolling we set up their very own Kids Coleman Wonder Lake 2-Person Dome Tent indoors. For the price (under $35), this tent is pretty awesome. If you were going backpacking or didn’t mind sleeping close to another person this tent can fit two adults. There wouldn’t be room for anything else in the tent with you but I mention it because it is well made and would work if you are on a budget or looking for a small easy to assemble two person tent.

Lastly we received this amazing Coleman lantern. This lantern has 4 detachable side panels that can be used to light up separate areas of your campground or combined for a more traditional lantern experience. When I told Josh I had ordered a lantern he wasn’t super thrilled until he took it out the box and actually saw how it worked. It runs off batteries and offers up to 75 hours of light.

For our backyard campout we grilled hotdogs and had chili but the highlight of our camping food was our oven made s’mores. They are super simple and easy to make. I was even able to find some GMO free marshmallows!

To make oven baked s’mores preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lay 1/2 of the graham crackers on a cookie sheet. Top with chocolate pieces to cover. Use kitchen scissors to snip the marshmallows in 1/2 horizontally. Place the marshmallow halves on graham cracker. Bake until the marshmallows are puffed and golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with the remaining graham crackers, pressing down slightly to make a sandwich. Serve immediately, while still warm.

Now that we have done this backyard campout I feel a little more at ease to graduate ourselves to actually going camping in the woods.

Thanks to Kohl’s you have a chance to win a $50 gift card! You can check out their awesome selection of camping gear and let me know what you would purchase if you win! That is all you need to do to enter. Tell me what you would get if you win! Also I would love to know have you gone camping with your kids? Or where is your favorite place to go camping or hiking?

Good luck!

Winner is Amanda S., please check your email and respond back in 24 hours. Thanks to all who entered.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: My Family, Sponsored Post Tagged With: Camping. S'mores, Coleman, Giveaway, Kohl's

The 20 Minute Workout: EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute)

February 2, 2016 by Tamara Leave a Comment

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

If you are limited on time but still want to make an impact with your training time EMOM workouts might be the answer you are looking for.

When it comes to learning a new movement or wanting to improve how you move, you need to practice. The problem with practicing and refining a specific movement during a total body strength day or after an intense cardio session is that your body will be more fatigued. To become efficient at a movement and to ensure that your form and technique are not lacking you need to practice quality repetitions.

Most of us to do not have extra time in the week to devote to our movement patterns when we are already exercising several hours each week. The majority of us, myself included, want to feel like we gave it our all when we workout, dripping with sweat, and like we pushed our bodies until we had nothing left. The older I get the more I realize how important it is to balance these high intensity sessions with movement specific focus sessions.

If you are looking for an efficient way to add movement training into your week EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) workouts are a great starting place.

While there are many different ways to do an EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) workout today I am mainly focusing on 1 movement pattern with very few reps performed each minute.

HOW TO DO AN EMOM WORKOUT

Pick one movement. This movement needs to be a total body movement. Examples – Turkish Get Ups, Pull-Ups, Box Jumps, Pushups, or Burpees.
Pick your total reps. How many reps do you want to do? Start with 20 if it is a new to you movement. Your total reps can be 20, 40, 60, 80, or even 100. It really depends on the movement.
Each minute you perform 1-5 reps of the movement you selected. The goal here is to make sure that the during the minute you are only working for about 15-20 seconds.
Rest during the remaining time. The beauty of these types of workouts is that you are allowing your body ample time to recover so you are never overly fatigued while performing the movement.
Repeat for 20 minutes.

BENEFITS OF AN EMOM WORKOUT

You don’t have to think about the workout. You can focus on form and technique. The pace is set for you by using the clock.
EMOMs are super versatile. You can program these with many different exercises. Keep reading for examples.
Built in rest. You should be resting more than you are working during an EMOM workout. If you can keep the movement to 15 seconds to perform all your reps for the minute you are looking at a rest to work ratio of 3:1. This is a very good ratio. The recovery will allow to complete your next set without being fatigued.
You will feel it. By focusing all your energy on practicing one movement not only will you become more efficient but you will also be feeling your effort within the next day.
Did I mention it is only 20 minutes?!?

EXAMPLES OF EMOM WORKOUTS

Like I mentioned earlier there are so many ways you can do an EMOM workout. Below are 6 examples of different 20 minute EMOMs.

It wasn’t until a few months ago that I was able to do a pull-up. I followed a 12 week strength training program and was super consistent with my workouts. I am still working on building up strength and working on my form. When I perform pull-ups in an EMOM workout I try to do as many as I can without assistance. When my form starts slacking or I can’t get my body up I use thick resistance loop bands to assist me. I just wanted to share that in case pull-ups are challenging for you also.

To time these workouts I like to use either the Seconds Pro App on my iPhone or my Gymboss.

Get creative with EMOMs. These are just examples and are by far not the only way to do these. Have fun working on a more balanced and stronger body!

PS…In case you are looking for some new workout gear check out the Reebok One Series Tights. I love these pants! I wear them at least twice a week. I also have worn my ASICS Women Gel Fit Sana Cross Training Shoe for every workout I have done since I received them in the mail last Fall. This shoes fit like a sock and are so light! Hands down my most favorite shoe. EVER.

Filed Under: Fitness, Health, Workouts Tagged With: 20 Minute Workout, CrossFit, EMOM, Pull-Ups, Push-Ups, WOD, Workout

3 Biblical Reasons to Take Care of Your Body

January 14, 2016 by Tamara 7 Comments

What motivates you to take care of your body? Here are 3 biblical reasons to take care of your body that personally motivate me. Fitness, just like anything, can become an idol if you allow it. By shaping your worldview around what the bible says,taking care of your body can be another act of worship.

TAKING CARE OF OUR BODIES GLORIFIES GOD.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. -1 Cor 10:31

God created your body. He wants you to take care of it. Illness, disease, and death are going to happen. No one, not even Christians are immune to it. It doesn’t matter if you tithe your 10%, give a little extra, serve in a ministry, and honor your spouse. Life happens, everyday, all the time. There is only so much we can do to take care of the bodies we have.

Self care is a discipline. It takes dedication, time, and effort to grocery shop, cook healthy meals, and workout. Just like reading the bible, praying, and tithing are considered spiritual disciplines, the process of taking care of your body to glorify God is also a spiritual act. More on this also in the next section.

JESUS DIED SO YOU COULD LIVE.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. -Romans 12:1

This reason is super important so don’t miss it. Your life has a purpose (Jer. 29:11). It is easy to go through seasons of our lives on autopilot missing all the good God has placed around us. I am totally guilty of this. Any other moms to little ones agree? I can become so consumed in my own little world that I miss opportunities that I could have been used by God to bless another person.

God is whispering to us all the time. It is a matter of deciding who we will pay attention to. God’s whispers or the enemy’s lies. I have battled with anxiety and can happily say that God has given me the power to overcome my anxious thoughts by leaning on Him and being in His word daily. Read my post 10 Bible Verses for Anxiety. Doing this wasn’t easy and it took time, prayer, and effort on my part to say NO to lies I was hearing and to start allowing God’s truths to permeate my life. By listening to the enemy’s lies I was not being able to live out my purpose for God, instead I was in a place of constant fear.

By taking care of our earthly body we have the potential to be God’s hands and feet here on earth. Our spiritual, physical, and mental health need to be aspects of self care that we evaluate on a regular basis. Exercise for the purpose of maintaining the health God has given you is not vain. It is one of the ways we can show God, and be a witness to others, that we care enough about the body we have. By keeping God at the center of everything we do, even exercising and at meal times, we are ensuring that our bodies do not become a stumbling block for us but another way to give glory back to God.

Make no mistake about this. Living an unhealthy lifestyle has the high probability of ensuring you less time with your loved ones and less time to make an impact for Christ to others.

THE BODY IS GOD’S TEMPLE.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. -1 Corinthians 19:20

The Holy Spirit lives in you. Our bodies are a gift from God and do not belong to us. As Christians we need to realize that our bodies are on loan to us until heaven. If a friend loaned me an item that they greatly valued, they would expect me to return it to them in the same condition. They would be hurt and disappointed if I returned it to them destroyed. Shouldn’t we as Christ followers view our bodies with the same care and respect we would for a friends treasured belonging?

With social media and fitness magazines constantly blasting us with before and after pictures and telling us about the latest diet craze it can be challenging at times to remember that taking care of your body needs to remain rooted in God. NOT what the media says. If we rely on the quick fixes of this world we miss out on the power that comes from asking God to give us the spirit of self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Today is the perfect day to start making healthy changes. Start small and don’t try to do everything all at once. Get out for a walk everyday, drink more water, up your veggie intake, or eat your meals at home. And just to clarify, eating meals at home means cooking the meals, not ordering in ;). Small daily changes over time can add up to huge health benefits a year from now. Most importantly remember this about your body…

God created. Jesus died for it. The Spirit lives in it. So we better take care of it. -Pastor Rick Warren

Filed Under: Faith, Fitness, Health, Nutrition, Personal Tagged With: Bible, Biblical Worldview, Fitness, God, Health, Jesus