Aspire, Perspire, Nourish Yourself

Fitness 5: Five Moves, Five Minutes, Five Days

“Everyone can do simple things to make a difference, and every little bit really does count.”

Stella McCartney

Do you want to exercise but can’t seem to find the time? A simple way to think of exercising without overwhelming yourself is to find 5 minutes in your day. If you have more time, then add another 5 minutes.

http://sattvik.info/tag/clock/

Our concept for Fitness 5 is to make it easy for you to get started with exercise. With Fitness 5 you can pick 5 exercises out of our list and do each one for 1 minute, up to 5 days per week (any 5 days). If you have time to add more sets, that’s great. Simple math: you have time for 5 sets one day, then you’ve tallied 25 minutes of exercise in total! You can switch things up every day to hit each of the major muscles groups for strength training or focus on strength one day and cardio the next. It’s your choice.

Fitness 5 Program

We’ve compiled a list of exercises for major muscle groups and created a varied list of cardiovascular physical activities from which to choose. Each exercise is linked to a HyperStrike Exercise Video showing you how to perform it.

Some of the activities need free weights or fitness equipment but most can be done without any equipment at all. Your body weight may be sufficient or you can improvise by using household items like large juice bottles filled with water, and other weighted items for extra resistance. The exercises cover major muscle groups divided into upper body, lower body, mid-section, and cardio related exercises.

How it Works

Each of the 5 days, pick 5 exercises from the lists and perform each exercise for 45 seconds, using the remaining 15 seconds to rest and transition to the next exercise. One set will take you exactly 5 minutes!

You can pick 5 exercises from the same list to concentrate on one muscle group per day, or pick one from each list. If you pick all 5 from one list, then transition to the lists that follow on subsequent days. At the end of the 5 days you will have exercised each major muscle group and fit in some cardio.

Do as many sets as you can, have time for, or wish to do. The idea is to get started and keep it up. We know that once you make it a routine and enjoy the benefits of exercising, you will naturally transition to more sets because feeling great leads to wanting more!

The Exercises

Upper Body – Shoulders, Chest, Back

Upper Body – Arms

Mid-Section – Abdominals & Core

Lower Body – Glutes & Legs

Cardio Activities

Okay, now get your egg timer and get started! If you prefer, use a smartphone App to help you track time. There are a ton of alternatives and many also offer sample exercises.

If you like our Fitness 5 Workout, please let us know and share with others. You can find us on Instagram @aspireperspirenourish. You can also join us on Facebook to share your ideas.

Recipe of the Week: Teriyaki (with hint of pineapple) Beef

Monthly Food Feature: Long Squash

http://www.vegaproduce.com/product/long-squash

Getting a CSA bag from Oahu Fresh has been a treat. Each week, they include a variety of locally grown fresh produce and fruits. When I get the list of what’s going to be included in the week’s bag, I dream up what’s cooking for the coming week.

The past week, the bag included a Long Squash, which is a type of summer squash. Growing up, this vegetable was a staple in our household. Every summer, we had a friendly competition among extended family for the best grown ‘cucuzza’ or ‘zucchina’ (Italian words for long squash). There was great pride in growing long squash in the backyard gardens of Toronto. Our brother continues that tradition!

How is Long Squash different from other Squashes?

http://www.urbanfarmonline.com/community-building-and-resources/urban-farm-bloggers/urban-farmer-rick-gush/cucuzza-squash.aspx

There are so many different kinds of squashes. The common ones are butternut, acorn, calabaza, delicata, pumpkin, and spaghetti. Information on long squash is limited as most of the internet sources focus on zucchini as a summer squash. Nevertheless, based on our personal experience with long squash, it is quite a bit more delicate than a typical winter squash.

The skin of a perfectly harvested long squash is thin and edible, and the seeds are also tender enough to eat. If the long squash is grown too big, or not picked at the right time, the squash will become too hard and the inside flesh will have too many seeds.

The flavor of a long squash is also different than a butternut or other typical winter squash, and some people think its taste is bland. The flavor seems to be more related to its melon and cucumber roots than its winter squash roots.

Nutritional Profile and Health Benefits*

*Note that this portion of the post is based on information about summer squash in general rather than long squash in particular.

Summer squash is low in fat and calories. One cup of cooked squash is only about 36 calories. The fat in summer squash is particularly good as it contains omega-3’s, monounsaturated and medium chain fats. Summer squash is also loaded with vitamins and minerals, and considered:

Excellent source for copper and manganese
Very good source for vitamin C, magnesium, phosphorous, fiber, potassium, folate, vitamin B6, vitamin K
Good source for vitamin B1, B2, B3, zinc, omega-3 fats, pantothenic acid, iron, calcium, choline, protein.

With all these nutrients, you can see why summer squash is a perfect veggie to meet our body’s antioxidant needs. In particular, summer squash contains two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, that are helpful in maintaining eye health. Studies have also shown that summer squash may be beneficial for blood sugar regulation because of all the B vitamins contained in summer squash along with zinc, magnesium, and omega-3 fats.

Easy Recipes

The best way to preserve the nutrients (and specially antioxidant properties) of summer squash is to steam it. The skin contains many of the nutrients so preferably eat it with the skin.

Along with our original recipe for this week, Long Squash Chickpea Stew, the following are a couple of recipes you might like to try:

http://www.cucuzzasquash.com/tenerumi.htm

Pasta con Cucuzza e Fave

This recipe is an Italian tradition – bean pasta with long squash. The recipe calls for using the tip end of the vine of the long squash in the recipe but you can easily omit this ingredient. If you are growing your own long squash or know someone who is, then give those vines a try. They are tasty cooked in different ways or added to your soups.

http://www.food.com/recipe/stir-fry-opo-with-ground-pork-321068

Stir-Fry Opo with Ground Pork

Opo is the Asian name/version for long squash. Here is a recipe using ground pork but if you prefer substitute the pork with ground turkey or chicken.