Tag Archives: energy

July Challenge!! Pray ‘n’ Praise

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Hey Guys! Last Month’s Plank Challenge was amazing! I think it is fair to say that everyone who participated experienced physical, spiritual, and emotional growth. It was incredible for me to be able to watch you all work together toward this goal 🙂 In addition, I know I am stronger for doing this challenge, and I LOVE that I can now do a 3 minute plank! I mean that’s pretty cool!

SO, on that note…aren’t you glad we are done with planks??…….Muahahaha (evil laugh)….don’t get too excited because you are not done my friends! My dear friend Meredith suggested to me that we should keep the planks going because we have all made such progress. So you can thank her for the plank continued abuse! HAHA! Good news is you don’t have to hold it for an ungodly stretch of time. The plank will only act as a brief warm-up for your REAL challenge!!! First you will hold a 30-sec plank and THEN…….

You will do a little move I like to call the Pray ‘n’ Praise! It is similar to a squat jack, but instead of staying in a squat position you will jump into a standing position with your hands to the sky. It is important to really JUMP between your squat and you stance.

How to do a Pray ‘n’ Praise:

1. Start in a standing position

2. Hop into a wide stance squat, creating a 90 degree angle at the bend of your knee

3. While in squat position bring your hands to prayer position and say a one or two word prayer quietly to yourself (or aloud)

4. Then jump high, landing with feet together in a standing position, with your hands and head to sky

5. In that position say a praise or a thank you to God

(I’ll get to WHY the pray and praise part in a sec…first here is a pic.)

pray&praise

I really wanted to share this exercise with you because it is really meaningful for me.

The day I started worshipping God with exercise was the day I really started to love exercising! It was then that I relinquished the pressure I put on myself, and just started taking that time to pray and worship my God. My workouts are now a time when I just talk to Him and think about how much I love Him! That is why the Pray ‘n’ Praise is so awesome. It takes the focus off of the outside world and the stressors that may be weighing on you from the day, and just allows you to focus everything on God! It also challenges you to pray for people and things outside of yourself, and then praise him for all the blessings in your life. You will be amazed with all the blessings you can count!!!! :))

Here is our schedule:

Week 1 (July1-July6) 20 Pray ‘n’ Praises Per Day w/ Sunday off

Week 2 (July7- July13) 30 Pray ‘n’ Praises Per Day w/ Sunday off

Week 3 (July14-July20) 40 Pray ‘n’ Praises Per Day w/ Sunday off

Week 4 (July21-July27) 50 Pray ‘n’ Praises Per Day w/ Sunday off

You can spread these out throughout the day 🙂

Just like with the Plank Challenge I want to see as many pictures as possible and HERE IS WHY:

You may not know this but your plank pictures motivated and encouraged so many people! I received so many messages in my inbox that stated just that. This is not just a page that I post on and try to help people exercise and eat right, this is a Community and, as I have said before, a LOVE REVOLUTION! We are in this together! So please know how important you are to me and everyone else in the world!!!! So get after it and keep me in the loop…I will be harassing you!!! haha!

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Leg & Core Circuit

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Leg & Core

I strongly suggest holding weights during the standing exercises. I like to pull the weights up toward my face for an extra burn in my core.
For example: On the up motion during the one legged dead lift pull the weight up toward your chin, then bring back down to the ground when lifting your leg. You will feel this in your core and a bit in your shoulders! It really amps up the workout :))
ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!

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Hi My Name Is Food. Nice To Meet You Food, I’m Alaina

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I am often fascinated by the areas of our life that we put great effort into, and then the other areas that we leave to chance. I always told myself that I would treat Stephen like a subject in school that I wanted to learn EVERYTHING about! I started with Stephen 101 and I kinda feel close to finishing my Associates of Stevy (that’s what I call him). My goal is to earn my PhD one day….It will probably be around the time I lose all my teeth! HA!

Point is, relationships are hard work. Those that are left to chance rarely succeed. There was a time in our history where eating wasn’t something we had to think about. The food that we prepared was the food that we ate. It was in its purest form and so our bodies received it well. But just like how the dating world has grown more and more complicated so has eating! So, this is why I suggest we treat food like a relationship starting with the first date. Learn how food makes us feel! Does my body like this, or should we never ever ever see each other again!!??

You know how before a first date you are so excited? Yet after, there are a variety of unpredictable emotions, such as happy, sad, defeated, exhausted, lonely, fulfilled, eager for the next. As soon as you part ways you immediately call a friend or get right to texting about how he/she made you feel. These emotions determine whether or not there will be a second or third date, NOT the excitement you felt before you ate went on the date. So, and bare with me here, why is it that when it comes to food we keep dating the wrong guy based on the excitement (AKA hunger) we felt before the date rather than the emotion we feel after?

What if we had some magical way to look into the future and know how the date would go?

This is why I suggest a food journal! Not just to record the calories, but to record the emotions and physical responses to the foods you eat. This is a great way to build a relationship with food! A relationship that is uniquely yours and no one else’s! In just one month’s time, you will know what foods give you a headache, make you tired, cause your stomach to feel ill, or even make you emotional! On the flip side, you will start to recognize which foods give you energy, sustain you for longer periods of time, or help you rest better at night. You will no longer be eating for the “excitement before the date” but for the feeling that comes after. This will change your relationship with food forever!

Here is a generic example of a Food Journal. I encourage you to write as much about your feelings as you can. Also include drinks, medications, and supplements. You never know where you will find that sneaky little playa that’s getting in there and ruining your day!

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What are some problems here? Waiting to long to eat can be problematic too! record WHEN you eat!

Ok so you are now in a relationship. You know this person and how you interact together! But challenges will come and the winds of change will blow in. Do you have the foundation to handle the bumps in the road? This is why continued learning is so vital. This is not a wham-bam thank you ma’am. This is a life long journey, and one of your most important relationships. Taking time to learn more about nutrition will never be a waste! You are arming yourself with knowledge that will ultimately make your life easier. Earn you PhD!!!

What other areas of your life can you apply this way of thinking? What needs more investing?

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And finally in the words of Frank Sinatra, “Nice and Easy Does it Every Time”…..

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Keep Up With What We Are Doing

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Hey Guys!

I put a lot of content on the Facebook page. Sadly, far more than on the blog. So, I wanted to share with you all the ways you can follow Built On The Rock!

On Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/BuiltOnTheRockFaithFitness

Twitter:

@BOTRfitness

Pinterest:

@BOTRfitness

Ok Thats all I have for you so far!

Stay Tuned! Tomorrow I’ll be posting my favorite fresh juice recipe!!!