Winter Shape Up 2016
Hi friends! Happy Monday, and happy WSU!
Welcome to Winter Shape Up 2016: a perfect chance to revamp your fitness routine, thrive from healthy eats, and revitalize your love for healthy living. Whether you’re looking to achieve a fitness, fat loss, lifestyle, or energy goal, hopefully this plan will provide you with steps, ideas and inspiration along the way.
For the friends who are new to Winter Shape Up, here’s how it works:
– I’ve been doing the Shape Up plans on my blog for years as a way to share free fitness and meal plans with my readers. I’m so happy Anne has joined in the fun to share her expertise as a Registered Dietitian. She’s my WSU partner in crime, and we love being able to put together these plans for you all.
Each week, for the next 4 weeks, Anne and I will be posting free full workout schedules, meal plans, videos, printables and grocery lists.
While you can follow these exactly as suggested, remember that these are just suggestions; they can be always be adjusted or modified to suit your personal needs and schedule. If you have a class that you like to do each week at the gym, by all means keep it in, but just remember not to do the same type of workout on consecutive days. For example, I wouldn’t take a hardcore bootcamp class the day after Workout 1, and avoid strength training the same muscle group two days in a row. If you need help shuffling things around, please hit me up in the comments or tweet me @fitnessista
Your 4 week focus:
-Visualize a goal. What’s your intention behind Winter Shape Up? Looking to shake up your routine? Burn fat? Get stronger? Write it down what you’d like to accomplish and remind yourself daily for the next 4 weeks. If you made an inspiration board, this is a great time to update it and check it regularly! If you’re looking for fat loss/muscle gain, I highly recommend a body fat assessment towards the beginning of the Shape Up, or take some pics and measurements so you can gauge progress. Keep in mind: this isn’t a weight loss plan. While weight loss may be the result of changing up your routine and implement new diet or fitness strategies, remember that weight is a poor indication of overall health and body composition. Focus on foods and habits that will encourage fat loss and encourage lean muscle retention/building if that’s your overall goal. All in all, use strength, energy levels, and confidence as some mental success meters. <3
-Nutrition. Eat like a PRO: meaning you’re going to emphasize PROtein and PROduce. Anne has a variety of delicious, healthy and satisfying recipes in the meal plan with vegan and gluten-free options.
-Consistency. The greatest way to achieve a new fitness or health goal is consistency. Stick with it and remember that the little things definitely add up! Be gentle with yourself throughout the challenge, and endeavor to be consistent in your actions to achieve your personal goal for the 4 weeks.
-Be a cheerleader for yourself and other Winter Shape Up participants. Make sure to check in each morning with your workout, pics of your healthy eats and to cheer each other on! The comments are a great option (which is how you’ll enter the giveaways), or if you’d like to tweet/Instagram, use the hashtag #wintershapeup and tag us @fitnessista @fannetasticfood.
We also have a private Facebook group with lovely supportive, active members. Check it out here!
The Winter Shape Up will run from Monday, January 25 to Sunday, February 21, 2015. Here are links to all the content (this page will be updated as the new pages are published).
More details and FAQs are below!
How do I enter the giveaways?
We’ll have two giveaways running each week. Check in on each weekly post for your chance to enter! (For week 1, you’ll check in for your workouts below in the comments, and check in with your eats on Anne’s week 1 page.)
How do I keep track of all of the deliverables and info? It seems like a lot!
This page that you’re currently reading (the Intro post) will be your home base for ALL things Winter Shape Up-related. Each week’s meal ideas and workouts, plus any giveaways will all be linked here. If you’re joining in, keep this page in a safe place (bookmark it, Pin it, keep it in your pocket) so that you can easily access all of the info. I’ll also add a widget to this page at the top of the blog (on the upper right side bar).
A special thanks to our Winter Shape Up sponsors, who will be providing amazing giveaways along the way:
Cabot | Sabra | Sizzlefish | Pure Canadian Maple Syrup | Daily Harvest | Gluten Free Chex | Crunch Live (use code WSU30 to get a free 30-day trial. After 30 days it will roll over to a membership at $9.99, but can be canceled at any time)
This week’s featured sponsor is Daily Harvest! I’ve been obsessed with their smoothies for a while now, and am so excited to share them with two lucky winners.
A little bit about Daily Harvest:
Each blend contains a mixture of fruit, healthy fats and superfoods. Add you do is add liquid in a blender, blend it up, and enjoy! The combos are soooo delicious, and I especially love that they don’t use any added sugars or preservatives; just whole, REAL foods. You can add protein powder to the smoothies, but I find that I almost never want to do that. They taste amazing on their own, and have a great mix of greens, fruit, and energizing super foods. Everything is picked at the peak of freshness and flash frozen, and the ingredients are non-GMO and organic whenever possible. One of my favorite things about Daily Harvest is the convenience and accessibility. For example, I love maca, but it isn’t really worth it for me to have a giant bag in the pantry to sprinkle into oats and smoothies. Also, when I make a smoothie, it’s fast and furious. This makes it so much easier to put the container in the blender, add almond milk or coconut water, and blend. If the container is two servings worth, it usually works out well because my tiny smoothie bandit (Liv) will claim it as her own.
Some of the other ingredients that they use: kale, avocado, cashew butter, pink Himalayan sea salt, ginger, cacao nibs, and wheatgrass.
2 lucky Shape Up participants will each receive a 6-pack of Daily Harvest smoothies, and can choose which flavors they’d like to try.
Here’s how to enter:
Leave a comment below EACH TIME you complete a workout this week! That’s right, you have multiple chances to win.
Bonus entry: Instagram a sweaty workout pic, and be sure to tag us (@fitnessista @fannetasticfood #wintershapeup)
Let’s get this party started! Are you joining in the fun?
xoxo
Gina
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hooray, winter shape up is here! I plan on doing workout #1 tomorrow, so I did my steady state (Zumba class) today!
Loved the first workout. OMG those smoothies look awesome. I saw your post on instagram and quickly googled them.
So awesome! I went ahead and used the HIIT as a finisher on my strength workout today 🙂
I just finished workout #1!! It was amazing! Thank you 🙂
Just finished a combo of the weights section of workout #1 and a Turbofire HIIT workout! Chalene motivates me to try harder during HIIT than if I’m just telling myself to do it in my living room. 🙂
WO #1 done. I was diggin’ the strength and HIIT combo. Great workout!
Wasn’t able to complete workout #1 but I did do my 60-minute barre class! Looking forward to incorporating some of your workouts over the next few weeks! Thanks Gina! 🙂
I’m going to be hitting the gym a few times this week. I’m tired of feeling run down after work. Since it’s gotten cold out I haven’t ran, I’m missing it so bad.
I did a dumbbell/ kettle circuit workout……#29weekspreggo
One DONE. Love the combo strength and HIIT
So pumped WSU is back!
3 rounds of Workout 1 done!
Steady state done this afternoon on the treadmill!!
just finished workout one!
Workout 1 completed! Only had time for one round, but I walked to and from work today so got another hour of activity in, which feels awesome!
I can’t tell if the giveaway entry is here or on the Week 1 page, so I’ll just do both. I just did two EXTREMELY sweaty rounds of workout 1. Yikes!
Did my first track run in a long time today. It was only 20 minutes but felt great to get moving again!
Just finished 2 rounds of workout #1. I almost modified the HIIT to make it easier but pushed myself to just TRY each move and see how long I lasted. I’m pumped that I was able to do the whole 30 seconds!
Happy Winter Shape Up! !
I did an invigorating Ashtanga Yoga class this morning, my arms are still burning from all the chaturangas 🙂
workout #1 done, using some yoga to relax and stretch out after.
Sweaty and successful workout #1 today!
So excited for winter shape up. Loved workout 1! Thank you!
just did body pump
Completed 3 rounds of Workout 1 today!! So stoked for this month!!
I am looking forward to squeezing in Workout #1 later this week! This morning was kettle bells and Body Combat!
Just finished workout 1 and feeling pretty good!
Workout 1 is done! I loved this workout!
Monday’s unconventional workout-1.5hrs of snow removal!
WSU is just the kick in the pants I needed after a month of slacking! WO #1 is a lot sweater than I thought it was going to be. Haha.
Did workout 1 today. It was short but intense. Love!
Loved the workout! I did two rounds!!!
workout 1 completed 2 times and thats all i could handle. i forgot about wsu and was so excited when i saw this as i needed a plan to focus on. Thanks!
Can’t wait to give some of these workouts & recipes a try. Thank you for putting this together! <3
Workout 1 done. It was great!
Workout 1 was great! I did a 3 mile run beforehand as well. Feeling good.
Worked it out today!!
Checking in! I did three rounds of workout 1 last night because I wasn’t sure with my Monday schedule if I would get it in. You know that kettlebell moves link you posted in your Friday faves? There was a little crossfit video at the end of the article that I just watched & completed two rounds of & I did a 16 minute tabata superset workout! A little high intensity better than no intensity, right? 🙂 I usually would not have done it, but the start of WSU and its push to create my *goals* & stick to them held me accountable! Yay feeling great!
So glad the newest shape up is here! Yay!! Just finished Workout 1. Thanks, Gina!
I did a power yoga class tonight and am really excited that winter shape up is here! I need some structure to my workouts – way too much meandering around the gym.
I completed 45 minutes on the treadmill for my steady state (plus some abs). Had to switch up my workouts so I have workout 1 on the agenda for tomorrow!
I posted earlier today, but for some reason it didn’t post.
Anyway, just checking in. I did workout #1 today doing the circuit 3 times! It kicked my butt! I am so out of shape. I really need to loose about 35 lb. Really excited about this 4 week challenge!
Thank you!
I’m on the elliptical right now with my iPad reading blogs!
Commenting for yesterday’s 30 min of HIIT!
Steady state completed bright and early.
steady state done!
Nailed my steady state on the treadmill this morning after an (initially) hectic morning. It actually relaxed me and I feel 100% better.
Did a run today (5K this weekend!)
Workout #1 was a doozie, but so happy to have done it last night! It was the perfect workout to fit in before the Bachelor 🙂
Monday’s workout was a super sweaty 3G class at orange theory! Got a PR for splat points (28).
Finished my Tuesday workout first thing this morning. 55 minutes on the treadmill- 5 minute warm up (followed by a bathroom break), 45 minute easy run, 5 minute cool down. Feeling great!
Did an hour on the elliptical today