It’s Friday again already can you believe it?!

Not only is it Friday but it’s the first Friday in May?!

Sloooowwwww down 2019!!!!!

But, here we are, another fabulous Fri-Yay is upon us and you know what that means . . .

. . .  it’s time for another round of fit Friday fun!!!!

Today I’m sharing a short, sharp total body workout that you can get in and get done in less than 20 minutes, with or without equipment, totally your call!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, with the right combination of exercises you can have an awesome workout in next to no time at all, and that my friend is what we are going to do today!

Today’s workout is called full body fiesta with very good reason, although it’s made up of just a handful of familiar exercises, believe me when I say you will be feeling the burn from top to tail!

In today’s workout we are going to do 6 exercises that incorporate most of your major muscle groups, I’m talkin’ quads, glutes, hamstrings, back, lats, delts/shoulders, chest, biceps and abs/core which means you get serious bang for your workout buck!

Just because your workout is short doesn’t mean it’s not effective, trust me. When you’re done with this workout, your heart rate will be pumping, endorphin’s flowing, metabolism firing and have you feeling, strong and energized ready to take on the rest of the day!

So, here’s what we are going to do –

A descending ladder workout which simply means we will start by completing 10 reps of each exercise  (count reps per leg/side for lunges/Climbers & twists) and continue to decrease one rep, each round, until we get down to 1 , make sense?

We will do;

→ Curtsy Lunge
→ Squat
→ Lateral (side) Lunge
→ Burpees
→ Mountain Climber’s &
→ Russian Twists

Nothing overly complicated, basic movements done with good form for a short but effective total body workout.

I’m not allocating any specific rest breaks in today’s workout but I want you to listen to that beautiful body of yours and rest as needed.

Anytime you feel like you need to take a break to catch your breath and grab a little drink then by all means please do so, and take all the time you need. However, if possible try to wait until you get to the bottom of each round to do so but, do what you gotta do, OK?!

Catch your breath, grab a drink then get straight back into it, deal?

For those of you who are just getting started or may not have access to a gym of any kind of weights you can absolutely do with workout without any added weight and let me tell you, you will be feeling it.

Just because you’re “only” using your body-weight as resistance doesn’t not make this an easy workout. Your heart will be pumping and those quads, glutes, hamstrings, biceps, shoulders, abs – you name it,  will be burning by the final round! And, you will definitely be feeling the effects of it tomorrow I assure you (and I mean that in the best possible way).

For our fully functioning/more advanced lifters who might be looking to make things a little more challenging – grab yourself a weapon of choice – a set of dumbbells, a barbell, kettlebells, your EmPack, some resistance bands or any combination you like. Make sure you choose something appropriate for your strength but, don’t be afraid to challenge yourself.

Although, we want quality not quantity, always! Never compromise your form, ever! If your form starts to fail your done, got it?

Take your time, concentrate, focus and breathe through each and every exercise. You are strong, you are amazing, you have big energy! You’ve totally got this!

And because nothing makes a workout challenge more fun than getting a buddy to join you. Why not grab your BFF or a family member or your fave workmate and have them join you, power in numbers baby!

Don’t forget to come back and let me know how you did once you’re done. Either leave me a message in the comments below, or you can give me a shout on the Facebook page or tag me (@EmSwanston) on Twitter , or Instagram (@emsswanston) . I mean it, I wanna hear how you did!

Ok enough chit chat time to work –

 15 Minute Full Body Fiesta

As always make sure you are nice an warm before you start your workout – Run on the spot, do jumping jacks, jump rope, dance around your living room, anything to get you warm then it’s time to get serious.

Finish with a nice little cool down and stretch, maybe take a walk or something anything to help bring your heart rate down. Finish with a few of your fave stretches. Please don’t skip the stretch people, its like dessert for the body.

Now for our smoothie recipe . . .

In honor of upcoming Cinco De Mayo I thought we could have ourselves fun and festive, Mexican inspired smoothie today.

How does a nice, tall, light, fresh, subtly sweet, deliciously creamy, secretly healthy, blackberry mint & lime mojito shake sound?

You guys, this smoothie . . .

It’s fun, festive and just all  kinds of delicious!

Sweet juicy blackberries, zesty lime, a hint of minty freshness and a gentle hum of belly warming!

Sooooo good!

It really is just simply divine, the perfect way to treat yo’ self while you re-fuel and re-energize yourself on this fabulous Friday (or anytime really because, yummmmm)

Oh and I should probably mention that not only does our fun and festive smoothie taste like an absolute dream but, it also happens to be naturally gluten free,  dairy free (if you want) , refined sugar free, BANANA FREE,  (!!!) , low carb, vegan, keto and paleo friendly

So much to love I tell you and it you will!

Enjoy xo

Blackberry Mint & Lime Mojito Smoothie
Makes 1 nice, tall, subtly sweet, creamy, dreamy, super smoothie

Ingredients –

1/2 cup of coconut or Greek style yogurt

1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1 cup of frozen blackberries

1 Tablespoon of fresh mint leaves (or 1 drop of mint oil)

1 teaspoon of freshly grated lime zest

1/2 teaspoon of rum extract

A pinch of pink salt

1/4-1/2  cup of ice – more or less to desired consistency

Optional add ins;

1/2-1 cup cauliflower or zucchini (pre-steamed & frozen works best) Keto friends sub 1/3-1/2 an avocado – a great way to get an extra (undetectable) serve of veg & make your smoothie extra thick

1 teaspoon of chia seeds – for fibre & omega 3’s

1-2 scoops of unflavored collagen – for an extra boost of protein and its great for hair, skin, nails & gut healing goodness

1 scp protein powder – for extra protein (vanilla or unflavored would work best in this recipe) .

Method –

1 – Place all smoothie ingredients into your and process until smooth, creamy and well combined.

2 – Pour into a chilled glass or mason jar then top with toppings of choice – I love to use coconut shreds & jalapenos for some extra festive flare

Enjoy xoxo

Don’t forget to give me a shout out when you’re done – hit me up in the comments below via the Facebook page on Twitter or on Instagram

Now go;

and have yourself a killer day xoxo

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Question of the day –

What’s your favorite way to refuel after a workout?

Feel free to share recipes, or links to your fave recipes in the comments below or on the Facebook page and please for the love of all that is good in this world when you do make this smoothie (or any of the recipes you find on this blog of mine) go ahead and snap a pic and share it either on the Facebook page, or tag me on twitter or Instagram. Sharing is caring remember.

Do it, do it You know you want to xo

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