Hello all, I hope you all enjoyed your weekend. Some of us more than others perhaps? Ladies at Pizza Pomodoro I’m looking at you!

One of the highlights of this weekend was dinner at Peruvian restaurant Coya by Hyde Park Corner with Brian’s Hong Kong colleagues and one of my old Yahoo friends who is here in London on a brief work assignment. We feasted on small plates and seasonal cocktails in a hipper than usual ambience for this old mum. Today we got out for a quick jog in the morning followed by an intense packing session at home (we’re moving next weekend!). Everything we placed in a box was promptly removed by Micky. He seems to be partial to small, sharp, and/or poisonous objects. Good times. I look forward to hearing about what you all were up to! Ainsley how was the move? Julie how are you feeling? Are you mentally preparing for the Red Sox to smoke the Cardinals in the World Series? 😉 I look forward to hearing what the rest of you were up to in class tomorrow! Here’s what to expect:

Monday: Simon Says! Does anyone remember this game from growing up? Simon says you will be getting a very good workout tomorrow so don’t miss out.

Tuesday: HIIT! High Intensity Interval Training is on the lips of every celebrity trainer here and abroad. Come find out why this workout is a favorite both of beginners and of seasoned athletes. We will be intermittently escalating the intensity on all exercises, and follow with brief periods of rest to rev our metabolism, burn fat, and feel 1,000 times better than you did when you dragged your lifeless body out of bed that morning.

Wednesday: who was sore from last week’s stair workout? We will be experimenting with new exercises to complement our stair routine this week. Get involved.

Thursday: Yoga and cardio has been a hit! I’m really glad you are enjoying it. We will freshen up the routine with new calming poses to keep our energy levels high and get the endorphins flowing.

Congratulations to Katy Davis, winner of last week’s Fall Fitness Challenge! Don’t forget to check here for a list of ways to earn points:keepcalmandcarrylollipops.wordpress.com. You are all doing so well and I hope you are enjoying the group recipes and workouts. Don’t forget to email me your weekly and cumulative points as there is a pretty great prize for the winner: 10 free classes and 5 for a new friend to try it out with you!

Here is your weekly recipe:

Baked Chipotle Sweet Potato and Zucchini Fritters

1/4 cup “Pure” butter (sunflower seed butter)

1 large egg (or flax egg)

2 tsp chipotle seasoning

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp alond or oat flour

3 cups coarsely grated sweet potato

2 cups coarsely grated zucchini (Bonus: you get a bicep workout from all the grating!)

Instructions:

combine sweet potato, zucchini, chipotle seasoning and salt with a couple tablespoons of the flour, melted “butter”, and a beaten egg/ flax egg. Form the patties (it will feel like soggy globs of vegetables, forge on).

Bake the fritters at 200C for about 10 minutes. Lower the temp to 190C for another 15 minutes, then carefully flip patties over and bake until sufficiently browned (about 10-15 more minutes). Tastes delish with Franks Red Hot Sauce or spicy honey mustard!

Cheers,

Kerri

Hello Sunshine!

Happy perfect fall day everyone! Congratulations to Molly Rosedale on finishing the half marathon in 1:59! You couldn’t ask for a better day to get out and pound the pavement. Did anyone else run? Extra points to you Molly on the Fall Fitness Challenge and also to Julia Griffith-Jones who was spotted running past 4 sloth-like Hollands on Saturday morning on Kings Road. How did everyone else do? Don’t forget to tally up and email me your points for the week. 1 week down, 9 to go. Let’s start off strong and keep each other motivated through to the end!

This week we will be switching up our routines and keeping things fresh. Here is what’s ahead:

Monday: we haven’t done a circuit training workout in a while… Let’s give it a go tomorrow morning!

Tuesday: tone and tighten! We will be using our bands in new ways to carve out more defined arms, abs, and legs. Get ready to sweat 😉

Wednesday: Tabata workout on the stairs! 20 seconds high intensity followed by 10 seconds rest. Bring a friend for moral support!

Thursday: Three Set Thursday! Plenty of light cardio and fun strength training drills to end the week.

Last spring Brian and I took the kids on a nearly PERFECT family vacation to the Algarve coast in Portugal. We stayed at the Sheraton Pine Cliffs and enjoyed a week of swimming at the pool, sunbathing on the private beach, tennis, golf, spa, and delicious meals. The accommodations were so comfortable, staff was incredibly friendly, the weather was gorgeous, and the flight was too easy (only 2 hours from London to Faro). Our entire trip was arranged by a company called Tots Too, who specialize in family holidays. If anyone is planning a holiday with the little ones I can’t recommend this company enough! My contact Mark Sumpter arranged everything from babysitting to the Kids Club to dinner reservations to car seats on the transfers to our groceries waiting for us the fridge when we arrived. When we returned home I reached out to him to let him know just how positive our experience was. From there we have developed a partnership and Mark has given me an exclusive offer to extend to all Buggy Bootcamp members! Here are the deets:

Mark Sumpter
Msumpter@totstoo.com
If you do email him make sure you congratulate him (his wife is expecting and will be joining Buggy Bootcamp this spring!)

The trip is based on stays in 2 and 3 bedroom Pine Cliffs Residence Suites:
Stays between 1st May and 31st October 2014
Bookings made by 31 December 2013
20% Discount on Accommodation Rates
Free Upgrade from Self Catering to Half Board*
Offer for a maximum of 2 Adults + 2 Children (0-12 years old).
All extra guests sharing the same Suite have to be booked on the same board basis and are charged.
The above offer excludes the following dates of travel : 23rd May- 2nd June and 18th July 31st August 2014

All this plus an extra £30 just for BBC-ers to use toward a meal, babysitting, spa, etc., so make sure you mention it in your correspondence!

If you are doing your Fall Fitness Challenge, make sure to tally up all your points and email me. Hold yourself accountable and encourage others too. We are all going to be feeling and looking like the best version of ourselves by Christmas! If you need to re-visit the point structure just scroll down for last week’s blog post.

Here is a delicious recipe to keep up your clean eating regime through the next few weeks:

Baked Sweet Potatoes with Sundried tomatoes and Olives
(The combination of sweet and salty is too good to be true!)

Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 oz. black olives, pitted and chopped
1 oz packed sundried tomatoes thinly chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp fresh oregano
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 200C
Pierce each potato with a fork
Bake about 45-60 minutes, let cool
Mix together remaining ingredients in small bowl
Slice baked sweet potatoes lengthwise down the center, top with mixture and serve piping hot

Enjoy!!

Cheers,
Kerri