Chia seeds, they’re in everything! Skin care, desserts, and yummy breakfast items so I thought today I’d share with you my easy and delicious home made chia seed pudding! And if you know me than you KNOW of course I added in chocolate 😉
Chia seeds are extremely rich in antioxidants and minerals, they’re a great source of essential fatty acids, aaaand I do love it as a bit of crunch in my shakes. This recipe is my recent go-to for breakfast on the road and it’s the perfect post-workout treat! Big pros: low in sugar, gluten free, dairy free, and vegan! Say wuuut! I also decided to toss in cocoa powder and raspberries to curb my sugar cravings, and makes it extra satiating. You can also add in sliced almonds or toasted walnuts… goin’ for that crunch factor again. And any time I can add chocolate, I will! Method: – 4 TBSP Chia seeds (I like the texture so more chia seeds doesn’t bother me) – 1 1/2 cup unsweetened almond or coconut milk (have you tried the almond coconut milk combo?!) – rasberries – 2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder – dash of cinnamon – and if you like your pudding sweet you can use some stevia or honey but I omitted it for this recipe – toasted walnuts, sliced almonds, or whatever nut you prefer…crunchy!
Combine the chia seeds with the almond milk, raspberries, cocoa powder, nuts, and cinnamon in a glass jar with a lid. Give it a good shake to combine the ingredients well and let it sit in the refrigerator over night. Tadaaa, enjoy!
This recipe made about two really big servings which is perfect for meal prepping. It’s filling, super healthy, and so simple to make. Try it out, let me know what you think, and TAG me with your creations! Chia seed pudding… make it? Order it? Like it? Leave it?
In light of coronavirus, millions of people across the world are working from home. While working from home may have countless benefits, it also poses some challenges. While working from home, you perform most of the tasks while sitting in one spot either from your laptop or smartphone. Staying in one place for extended periods can lead to a sedentary and unhealthy lifestyle.
So, to ensure that you stay active while indoors, here are some essential tips to help you stay fit.
Take a Walk Daily
Make it a part of your routine and a necessity to walk for at least fifteen minutes daily. Just walk around your neighborhood, either before you start working or after work. Walking enhances the pumping of blood and also boosts metabolism. Experts also say that regular walks boost your moods and help in weight management.
Use a Fitness Application to Exercise
Just like other endeavors, keeping track of your fitness program when having to stay indoors all the time can be difficult. But today there are so many options online hat will help you stay on track. On the app store there are many fitness apps to choose from, one of them being the 30 Day Fitness Challenge that has a variety of different workouts you can do, like this slim waist workout at home for example. A combination of working out regularly and healthy eating, will help you stay on top of your fitness game.
Involve Yourself in Cleaning Activities
Cleaning your house is a win-win situation. Going up and downstairs, lifting laundry, and being on the feet from time to time is a good way of exercising. Also, having a clean house improves your mental health too.
Use Household Tools as Weights
You can improvise the household items if you’re used to going to the gym regularly. For example, you can use a pack of rice as weights or even water bottles. Besides, you can run up and down the stairs for a couple of times, and try to make the run as much intensity as possible. This will get you sweating in a matter of minutes.
Dance
Put on some music and make your living room a dance hall. Dancing is a good way of keeping yourself active while indoors, as well a great mood-improving activity. Dance is proven to be a useful type of workout that burns as many excess calories as bike riding, walking, or even swimming. But the intensity of dance, the effort you integrate, and length of the dance determines the calories you burn.
Walk around during Calls
If you are not on a call that needs you to use a webcam or laptop, consider standing and strolling around while on the call. This is undoubtedly an incredible way of performing some stretches and getting some extra steps in.
Include Online Yoga Classes
Yoga isn’t only essential for your overall physical health; it is also a fantastic way of boosting your general wellness. The reason for this is that yoga lowers stress and improves your emotional health and sleep patterns. Besides, it reduces neck pain, low-back pain, and manages depressive and anxiety symptoms.
These are just some ideas for staying active during a time we are encouraged to leave our homes less as possible. Do you have any useful suggestions to add to this list? What have you been doing to stay active? I’d love to know!
It’s a new decade darlings, can you believe it?! Welcome to 2020… we’re in it and we’re also just coming off of a two week break where we didn’t know what day it was, what time it was, and if we were ever going to change out of footed pj’s. So now that we’re back into the full swing of things I want to share a few of my personal goals with you. I think it’s so wonderful when we can get real with each other and spark creativity in one another. I read a great quote the other day that had so many meanings to me, “one year closes so another can open”.
So good right? So one of my goals this year is to travel more, to hit reset on my mind and my heart when I need it, and to not feel guilty about it. Even if it’s just jumping in my car and visiting a neighboring city, I’ve got to do it in the name of adventure. I was inspired to take more time to explore my own city when Discover Torrance reached out to me for a staycation. ‘Ummm yes please’, is what I think I responded with.
The idea of a staycation always encourages me to relax without worrying about taking a flight out or being too far away from family and financial responsibilities. So I packed my bags and headed to the Best Western Plus Avita Suites in Torrance. Sweet Suites, it’s an award-winning-all-suite boutique hotel and was so close to everything I wanted to do during my stay I couldn’t wait to get there. So with my itinerary in hand I checked into my suite and found it very difficult to peel myself from the cozy bed to hit the town on our night one haha.
My next article will share in detail all of my recommendations for where to go, what to do, things to eat, best desserts to find, and local favorites in Torrance. Today I want to share my experience at this beautiful hotel and share that you can book with them here!
I wouldn’t usually describe lobbies as inviting and beautiful but let me tell you, this lobby was inviting, comfortable, and beautiful. I actually blurted out at the front desk, “how pretty is this?! I have to take some photos before I check in”.
It was bright and festive, the staff was so welcoming… and so was this cushy bed! Every room is a suite so they each have a seating area, office area, and kitchenette. Here’s a fun walk through…more like dance through of my room! Imagine Mariah Carey’s voice singing as I dance you about the suite.
Once I settled in and unpacked… P.S. am I the only one who get SO excited about hotels that I have to unpack all of my belongings before doing anything else? AKA I hang my clothes in the closet, utilize the robe, put my keys in the safe, and place all of my toiletries out ha! I’m saving the rest of my excitement to share all of the things we did, the foods we ate, the drinks we drank, the desserts we hunted, ALL the things that we took in during our time in Torrance.
For today you get to hear me dish all about these digs and the hospitality and generosity we were shown while on our staycation at the Best Western Plus Avita Suites in Torrance. Can we just talk about how much joy complimentary breakfasts bring us all? Haha talk about breakfast, this was a full blown buffet with options like home-made waffles, a yogurt and bagel station, fresh fruit, and every cereal and topping you can imagine.
I indulged and had a little bit of everything Cafe Avita had to offer, here’s a peek above. After all that yummy food I had to get some cardio in and build energy for the day’s events to eat our way through the town! It’s so nice when the place you’re staying at has a gym, it encourages you to stick with your goals, and it completely helps that they have weights and not just a standard treadmill…yayy options!
It was truly so relaxing to stay at this destination for two nights and made coming back after a fun filled day of adventures and foodie times just all the more spectacular. I do hope you get a chance to visit our home away from home, Torrance which is just a town over from us. The staff, the amenities, the views, the food, all of it … I’m so grateful to have been able to relax for a few days before heading back to reality of the grind and hustle.
This was just before the holidays and could not have come at a more necessary time. Please scroll back through and enjoy the images, I hope you loved my dancing walk through of our suite, and come back on Monday for my complete guide to Torrance <3
Staycations… you ever been on one? What is a destination close to home that you’ve been dreaming of visiting? I hope Los Angeles is on your list and I hope you check out Torrance and where I stayed while you’re here!
I used to resent being referred to as an “influencer”. Bleh- you want to group me in with people who create these unrealistic lifestyles and never show the real life that takes place behind all of their picture perfect social media squares? No thanks! But then I thought about it, leaders influence people and we’re all leaders in our way right? P.S. don’t come for my throat, I’m not saying all influencers do this, I’m referring to the people out there who are real ‘influencer buttholes’, you know the ones.
Because I realized that we can choose what we influence and how, and we can choose to not influence at all, even. But to have the “capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone”… wow, well that seems like a big responsibility to me. And honestly, some days I choose not to go too deep and just post about my burrito and some days I choose to go there. Like today. If what we’ve been through in life and how we’ve coped can help even ONE person, wouldn’t we want to influence in that way?
you’re not f*cking it all up and whatever you’re doing, you’re doing just great
I would’ve really loved to have that when Corrine was little. For someone tell me that I’m not f*ucking it all up, that we’d make it out a-okay, that my best was in fact enough, and that I birthed a baby and stretch marks ARE sexy! Holy hell can you imagine what that would’ve done for my confidence as a single mother and my self esteem as a person?
This was wayyy before Instagram , Facebook, and all the other social media platforms that exist today ever existed. So if I had a hard time adulting before all this (still do sometimes tbh) then I know that what our kids and these impressionable young minds (adult minds too c’mon now) are feeling and how it can weigh heavily on their mental health. I have an almost 22 year old daughter and to teach her to think outside of social media is a pain in the ass, and also a lesson I had to learn. PS I still have to remind myself of that, I have my days, trust.
Comparison is the thief of joy- Theodore Roosevelt
Every image… every.single.image. *claps hands, you know she means business* that is published in magazines, on billboards, etc. is retouched. I already knew that but a few of my friends have highlighted a page on Instagram called @beauty.false and others, where Real Life vs Instagram is showcased side by side. You guysssss, it’s pretty crazy what we see on social media versus real life… and hey I get it, I love a good filter! But I use VSCO to enhance the brightness not the booty. Let’s be clear, I love bright whites and shadows and light flares and bumping up saturation…but I’m not going to bump up my booty just to fit into these ‘new norms’ I’ve been seeing. Have you seen this? Where tiny women make their waists even tinier and where they make their asses look like a science experiment? To each their own, this is not a dig, but if you’re out there with an audience and you have a voice on any platform, and you’re not sharing your truths (should you choose to be an ‘influencer’, don’t @ me), then what the fuck are you doing?
it took me 0.5 seconds to cinch my waist and fill out my hip dips
I mean, I’m a fitness coach who loves food, drinks tequila, hulks out at the gym, and has hip dips, stretch marks, and cellulite. GASP! Now, will I post what I feel is a ‘bad’ photo of myself to Instagram? Probs not, but I will be honest about how bomb lighting, a flex, or a filter will make me feel like a GD supermodel. Oh man, I’ll go into the pressures of the industry on another day, but this topic really fires me up. I personally unfollow, delete, mute, block, whatever I gotta do to not have the BS of IG creepin’ on my inner dialogue. If I’m not interested in someone’s actual life or don’t talk to them IRL than I don’t feel bad doing that and you shouldn’t either. They’re the images and messages that will fill our personal space on the daily. I need to follow more cute animal accounts! Don’t we all <3
I’d like to hear your thoughts on this, I kind of went on a tangent (no surprise) so please tell me how you feel about social media. How do you feel about influencers, are you one? Do you feel the pressure to be authentic or inauthentic? Do you think about the content you see in your feed or do you mindlessly scroll for entertainment? I’m guilty of consuming IG in both ways…hello slime vids at 3am <3
this photo got so much praise which I’m grateful for because I do LOVE my body, but also: lighting, filter, flex baby <3
I grew up with three dads. It’s a beautiful story and I love all my dads, they each play a different role in my life. The daddio who raised me was my Drill Sergeant dad. He raised us on tough love and discipline, we were like little soldiers with chores and rules, and we lived on military bases for most of my life- you get the picture.
I didn’t know this until I was much older, but there were a lot of lessons there in the things he’d say to us. LOL the story of everyone’s childhood eh? So I looked up the literal definition of, “suck it up” because it was something I’d hear on the daily. It read: Accept a hardship
Suck it up Miss Priss he’d say
My dad used to tell my siblings and I to suck it up and I was referred to as, ‘Miss Priss’. I was girly and I loved raiding my mom’s makeup bag and wearing her jewelry. I’d prance around in her stilettos before I even knew how to walk properly in them, and my sister and I would have fashion shows- we’d even dress up my brother! I thought I was a Princess. Some things never change 😉
I’m the oldest of three and I’d think to myself, ‘why do I have to be tough like my brother and why do I have to be in charge of everyone?’. I’d get into a lot of trouble if my brother or sister got into trouble so we looked out for one another, we were the three best friends that anyone’s ever had. And I’ve taken that phrase and have said it out loud to my self, I’ve said it to my daughter, I’ve even said it to my puppers when they look at their kibble like ‘wtf’. I was taught to be tough so I thought everyone else should be too. It’s the way I parented.
to accept something is to give it consent
I don’t necessarily consent to anything in life that has sharpened my edges. But I’ve learned from all of them, I’ve let some of that shit go (literally balled those moments up in my fist and dropped em out my window, and onto the freeway), and moved on from anything that didn’t grow me. I used to resent it when I was told to suck it up, it made me feel like I wasn’t given permission to hurt or feel. But it wasn’t that at all, I just wasn’t given permission to whine about it. “Why waste your energy on something out of your control?”… ummm couldn’t my dad have just said that? I was and I am allowed to hurt, to feel, and to be emotional. I just won’t whine about it… for long any way.
We don’t have to accept anything. But we can use things that would usually bid resistance and instead apply them to be the driving force behind what keeps us moving. Think of it like this: we are in control . . . of nothing. How we react is everything and if we can just take all the bullshit, all the wrenches that get thrown in our (very overly controlled) plans, the interactions with mean people and all the suck-ass situations in life, and if we can just “suck it up” for a moment- I’ve realized that there’s more that’ll keep you going than there are things that’ll knock you down baby.
I’m grateful for never being saved
When no one comes to save you, you become fully aware that you don’t need anyone to save you. You understand clearly that you can save your gahtdamn self. And I did. And you will. And you have. Read that again <3
Can you think of moments in your life where you actually saved your own ass from something and thought, “f*ck, I’ve totally got this.”? Click through to see the sweetest best friends that anyone’s ever had <3
my baby Corrine and I
who would tell this cute face to suck it up haha
I told ya, the three best friends that anyone's ever had
This past Saturday wrapped up my first ever Reset Camp. I had the honor of being head coach alongside my friend and fitness Jesus Lacey Stone. If you follow me on Instagram you’ve seen me post a bunch about Lacey, The Wall, these Comeback Camps, and my excitement over coaching. So I wanted to take a moment to tell you why you’ve seen this flux in fitness posts and what it means to me to be a coach.
this is not dejavu, this is a separate post on why I love coaching you
Lacey’s camps are so special because it’s more than just a bootcamp, these camps are about so much more than just the workouts. I really do believe that you can get a good workout anywhere, it’s all about how much effort you put into it or if you’re just phoning that session in. I’ve gotten the same results from hot yoga as I have from a bootcamp style workout because I hulk out no matter what I do … granted, I need to learn to chill TF out, but it really comes down to how present you are in that room right?
… we’re resetting our energy, not just refocusing on our goals
During my Reset camp I really tried to convey the message that we were resetting our energy, not just refocusing on our goals. Though it may be easier to remember why you started, I’ve realized that it’s more difficult for us to reset our energy because we’re so used to giving it away to everyone else. Our time together is more about: refill our energy, and then refocus and reset. That’s what we do in these camps. As time goes on and we evolve as people we change, so it’s completely normal that our goals do too. Here are some excerpts from my emails that I sent out to our squad last week and I want you to read them so that if you need to hear it, it’s here. Or maybe you know someone else who needs to hear it. Where ever you’re at and what ever your goal, it’s our mission as a team to help you get there. Here’s a little love letter from me to you about my Reset camp, what we did, and what you can expect during One Month Mission (1MM).
These camps aren’t for the faint of heart, they’re not easy, and there’s nothing soft or gentle about them
As a coach, I’ve observed your courage and how you move with intensity. These camps aren’t for the faint of heart, they’re not easy, and there’s nothing soft or gentle about them. I mean, these workouts have roughed us up and here we are still standing! That’s how we do.
Lacey asked me what my favorite part of camp was and there were SO many memorable moments. And I’ll tell you, RESET was intense. Yesterday alone, you switched sides four times, you went TEN timed rounds, and you pushed more weight on the benches than in the entire camp combined. I left little room for you to catch your breath and onto the next move we went, performing combinations I’d never thrown at you before. Throughout all the madness, you showed no weakness or hesitation in your bodies…even after the 799 sprints. I want you to remember that the next time in life you want to tap TF out—you did all that! Memorable.
These workouts are absolutely designed to make you stronger physically, challenge your stamina, and push you past your limits. But it is more about pushing so hard that you’re forced to tap into the place you pull from when you physically have nothing left to give, that place deep within our bellies where we’re confronted with our inner dialogue. That is when one of two things happens: You either doubt your abilities and let your minds wander, or you do what you did this week and step into your power. That’s true grit.
To paraphrase something from the film Game Changers, “It’s not about how strong you are or how much power you have, it’s what you do with that strength and power.” You sharpened your edges this Reset, you made one another better, and you spread that energy around like peanut buttah. Lacey and I were literally speechless after class and that says a lot about two people who always have something to say.
Something I’ve asked of you is to be willing to give your all, to be coachable, and to trust the process … we’re going to enter that room with purpose and we’ll leave it all on the floor. Get good sleep tonight, because…“There’s just one thing: we never, ever do nothing nice and easy, we always do it nice and rough.” – Tina Turner, Proud Mary. I am so proud of YOU.
that you’ll only find here at #TeamLSF
Those were just some pieces from our team emails that I wrote to our campers that I wanted to share with you because I do believe there is something we do in that room together that you can’t just recreate. Like I said, you can get a good workout anywhere. There are some FAN-FUGGEN-TASTIC trainers/coaches/teachers out there. But to have a team of badass, strong, warrior-women by your side doing it with you and 3 coaches to guide you, support you, and protect you along the way … that you’ll only find here at #TeamLSF. I do hope I get the chance to help coach you this month during 1MM, click here to claim your spot if you’re local to Los Angeles and if you’d like to join us virtually, you can do that HERE! You can’t escape me, I’m all over the VP and so is Kristin so go rep the virtual squad baby! Hop on the forums and say hello! <333
That was a lot of gushing on how special I believe our team to be, but honestly I think anyone would say that about a group of people they have infinite love for. I felt so sad driving away from the studio on our last day, like I truly wanted to write one last email and then spend every day with everyone haha But I hold that squad near to my heart and now on to 1MM we go! So LET’S GO!
Where will I see you? In person for camp and workouts? On the virtual platform??? Let’s just spend every day together!
“Let’s push through the rough stuff and eat the good stuff”- Coach Jess
I realize this is actually the longest title ever in life, but I couldn’t think of anything more accurate than the statement itself. I said this in a recent video of mine and I meant it.
If you’ve been following along my journey to become a fitness instructor, you know it all began with my fitness journey for myself- but then it morphed into something way outside of myself. Bigger. Corrine had graduated High School, she was going to college and working full time… so umm what other hats did I wear when I took off my mom hat? I put that hat on when I was 15 to be exact.
And I’ve always been active, going through seasons of working out and seasons of not stepping foot inside a gym or studio for months/years. Then I reconnected with a friend of mine, Tiffany Morgan who was working with this fitness goddess, Lacey Stone. In summation- 2 years ago I joined her ‘come back camps’ (bootcamp style workouts + team building), I became obsessed with strength and empowering my teammates, and I realized it was a passion of mine to literally ‘work it out’ alongside others.
Lets eat the good stuff and push through the rough stuff
That’s what my entire brand has been about. Using pain for power, empowering others and giving my energy to the people I care about. Except I didn’t know there was something I could actually do with that, and where would I even start? How intimidating it all sounded, how intimidating the fitness industry was is. So many things could’ve stopped me from pursuing this new career (and almost did). But something was WAY bigger than my fear of failing, way more important to me than my fear of starting something new, of rejection and intimidation.. of training a room full of people ahhh! My desire to help others trumped my fear of failing, my fear of anything really. Oh the fear was still there,
but if you can make your purpose bigger, then you’re unstoppable
So here I am, still shaking (still human) but pushing forward and moving through that uncomfortable feeling. I wanted to share this with you because I learned that if you have something that tugs at you and that you always come back around to, do that thing. I promise you’ll never regret following your passion. Especially when you give of yourself because
that is your legacy
I really like adding in quotations can you tell? lol And I don’t even care how cheesy this is going to sound because I believe it with everything I am- I do believe that as fitness instructors and trainers we work in the service industry. I learned so much going through training and I value the statement that- we hold the space for people to move through whatever they’re going through. We guide and encourage our clients to step into their power, and it’s not about us. And that’s the ONE thing that got me through teaching my very first class this morning. To be a light in someone’s day because
sometimes people are silently struggling
We’ve all been there right? Who doesn’t struggle? But if I can leave my shit at the door, show up for someone else, help them push through the rough stuff, and show them how fuggen strong they really are- honestly that’s why I decided to pivot my career.
I just needed to get that out. And even though you may not be thinking of becoming a leader in fitness, whatever it is that you’re going after, keep going. You’re a leader just by being relentless and getting after it even when it seems too hard- especially when it seems too hard. So I’ll end this public diary entry with some real life images and video from today. A very special day that I’ll never forget. It’s not professional or polished but here it is and I’m so proud of everyone who showed up. Thank you for your energy, your smiles, and your encouragement. Lacey Stone, you already know! Ride or die baby! Mucho respeto <3
So tell me something scary af yet special that you’ve done that you thought was for you but you realized had nothing to do with you and it totes fulfilled you because it was bigger than you
I’m not immune to having mean people say crap things to me, sad days, or low energy… but it really helps me to pull myself up knowing that I can feel the feels and fight harder to stay in the light. Not gonna lie, putting something on that makes me feel good and then getting in a good sweat sesh really does help elevate my mood and change my attitude.
Do you find that to be true for you?
And if I’m gonna sweat my faces off and push harder when I feel like I have nothing left, I’m gonna do it in style <3 This week I spent most of my time in the Studio (have you seen on my Instagram that I’m in Instructor Training?) so I wanted to share my OOTDs with you and maybe inspire you to start feelin’ yourself too! Here’s my cutest workout clothes, activewear you can wear anywhere!
The past few weeks have been hectic, exciting, overwhelming, powerful, scary… all of it! I share daily over on Instagram (my IG Stories in particular) what my life is like during this time of growth. My brain is literally growin y’all…and my muscles too ha… so much to learn and celebrate!
So this week I wanted to show you what I’ve been wearing because it’s interesting to me to see how I take outfits from the studio and work mode, into my life and hustle/still work mode. A lot of my outfits are just layers on layers, switching up my outerwear or shoes and adding in some accessories. Lets shimmy into the weekend shall we!
Monday: work from home, coffee in hand, cozy robe all day
Friday: Extra special day, styled by Jo, it’s fancy Friday! Got the workout in early am, study, edit, celebrate our 2 year wedding anniversary with Joe for the rest of today <3 PS this sexy athleisure badass superhero cat woman look is mah thanggg
