This is the very first 30 day challenge of my own creation.  I decided to focus on an upper-body theme since that was what we've been talking about wanting more of.  Next month, I'm thinking about pistol squats… hmmm!  I'm excited for another 6x5-day circuit style challenge.  Below is a summary of days 1-30, and after is a more detailed list with descriptions and pictures.  For each exercise, do 30 seconds of cardio beforehand.  So on day one of a circuit, you would do 30 seconds of cardio, then day one's exercise.  One day five, you would do 30 seconds of cardio before each of the five exercises.  Cardio could be high knees, butt kicks, jumping jacks, burpees, ski jumps, sprints, etc.  
Let's do it!  

Days 1-5:  PLANK
1.  Day 1:  20 Regular Push-Ups
2.  Day 2:  10 T-Planks, plus day 1
3.  Day 3:  20 Opposite Shoulder Touch Planks, plus days 1 and 2
4.  Day 4:  30 Mountain Climbers, plus days 1, 2, and 3
5.  Day 5:  30-second rotating 120 second Plank, plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

Days 6-10:  MOVEMENT
6.  Day 1:  20 meters Inch Worms
7.  Day 2:  20 meters Spiderman, plus day 1
8.  Day 3:  20 meters Crab Walk plus days 1 and 2
9.  Day 4:  20 meters Leopard Crawl, plus days 1, 2, and 3
10.  Day 5:  20 meters Duck Walk, plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

Days 11-15:  TRICEPS
11.  Day 1:  20 Narrow Push-Ups
12.  Day 2:  50 Ski Jumps, plus day 1
13.  Day 3:  20 Triceps Extensions, plus days 1 and 2
14.  Day 4:  2x10 Burpees, plus days 1, 2, and 3
15.  Day 5:  20 Dips, plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

Days 16-20:  YOGA
16.  Day 1:  3 Sun Salutations
17.  Day 2:  7 (each, Left and Right) Downward Dog to Knee to Chest, plus day 1
18.  Day 3:  7 (each, Left and Right) Downward Dog to Knee to Same Side Elbow, plus days 1 and 2
19.  Day 4:  7 (each, Left and Right) Downward Dog to Knee to Opposite Elbow, plus days 1, 2, and 3
20.  Day 5:  30 Second Crow Hold, plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

Days 21-25:  WEIGHTS
21.  Day 1:  40 Light Weight Curls
22.  Day 2:  15 Heavy Weight Curls, plus day 1
23.  Day 3:  20 Overhead Press Squat, plus days 1 and 2
24.  Day 4:  20 (each, Left and Right) One-Armed Rows, plus days 1, 2, and 3
25.  Day 5:  20 Delt Raises and 20 Butterflies, plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

Days 26-30:  BALLET
26.  Day 1:  10 Arm Circles (Forward and Backward for each, Left and Right)
27.  Day 2:  30 Ballet Squats, plus day 1
28.  Day 3:  30 Plie Jumps with Ballet Arms, plus days 1 and 2
29.  Day 4:  20 (each, Left and Right) Back Leg Raises with Ballet Arms, plus days 1, 2, and 3
30.  Day 5:  10 Hold-the-Plate (Forward and Backward for each Left and Right), plus days 1, 2, 3 and 4

1.  Regular Push-Ups
Start in a high plank.  Lower your body until it's almost touching the ground, maintaining that plank position.  Push yourself back up.  Repeat.

2.  T-Planks
Start in a high plank.  Rotate your body until you are balanced on your right arm, with your left are extended up towards the sky.  Come back to a plank.  Rotate your body until you are balanced on your left arm.  This is one rep.  Repeat.

3.  Opposite Shoulder Touch Planks
Start in high plank.  Use your right hand and touch your left shoulder while maintaining a plank position.  Use your left hand and touch your right shoulder.  This is one rep.  Repeat.

4.  Mountain Climbers
Start in high plank.  Quickly bring your right knee to your chest while maintaining a plank position and back to plank.  Switch legs by bringing your left leg to your chest then back to plank.  This is one rep.  Repeat at an aerobic rate.

6.  Inch Worms
Start standing in Mountain Pose.  Dive down into forward bend.   Put your hands on the ground and crawl your hands out to high plank.  Walk your feet up into forward bend.  Stand up and sweep your arms over head.  Repeat.

7.  Spiderman
Start in high plank.  Bring your right foot up to your right shoulder, staying low to the ground.  Crawl your hands forward while bringing your left foot up to meet your left shoulder.  Repeat.
​

8.  Crab Walk
Start in a table position, on your hands and feet but with your stomach facing the sky.  Walk forward in this position halfway then back to where you started.

9.  Leopard Crawl
​Start on your hands and feet, with your knees hovering above the ground.  Reach your right and your left foot forward at the same time.  Try to stay low to the ground.  Then, reach your left hand and your right foot forward at the same time.  Repeat this cat-like movement.

10.  Duck Walk
Get into a low squat.  Walk forward staying in the low squat.

11.  Narrow Push-Ups
Start in high plank.  Lower your body so it hovers above the ground, keeping your arms hugged against your body.  Return to high plank.  Repeat.

12.  Ski Jumps
Start standing with your feet together.  Bend your knees and hop to your right, landing on your right foot.  While you hop, drive your arms straight back behind you.  Bring your left foot across to meet the right, but don't touch the ground.  Bend your knees and hop to your left, landing on your left foot.  Bring your right foot across to meet the left, but don't touch the ground.  This is one rep.  Repeat.

14.  Burpees
Start standing, crouch low and place your hands on the ground near your feet.  Shoot your feet behind you so you are in a plank position.  Lower your body flat to the ground.  Reverse all the movements by pushing yourself up to a plank, jumping your feet up to your hands, and jumping straight up into the air from the crouch.  Repeat. 

15.  Dips
With your hands on the edge of a chair and your feet extended out in front of you, lower your body by bending your arms.  Raise your body back up to the starting position.  Repeat.

16.  Sun Salutations
Start standing in mountain pose.  Sweep your arms overhead with a deep breath.  Breath out as you sweep your arms down and dive towards the ground ending in a forward fold.  Breathe in as you walk or step your feet back to plank.  Lower your body down to the ground as you breathe out.  Breathe in as you push yourself into upward facing dog by keeping your hips and legs close to the ground and straightening your arms while arching your back.  Return to the ground and push yourself into downward dog, breathing out.  Breathe in, hop or step your feet back up between your hands.  Breathe out into forward fold.  Lastly, breathe in and sweep your arms overhead, then return to mountain pose. This is one rep.  Repeat.

18.  Downward Dog to Knee to Same Side Elbow
Start in Downward Dog.  Lift your right leg behind you, then bend your knee and sweep your leg under your body, try to touch the elbow on the same side as your raised leg with your knee.  This is one rep.  Send your leg back behind you, without touching the ground, and repeat.

21.  Lightweight Curls
Stand up straight with a dumbbell in each hand.  These should be light enough to do many reps but heavy enough to be a challenge.  Curl the dumbbells up to your chest without overarching your back or twisting your arms.  Lower them back down to starting position.  Repeat.

22.  Heavyweight Curls
​Stand up straight with a dumbbell in each hand.  These should be heavy enough where you can't do much more than 10 reps.  Curl the dumbbells up to your chest without overarching your back or twisting your arms.  Lower them back down to starting position.  Repeat.

23.  Overhead Press Squat
Hold the dumbbells, just outside your shoulders with your arms bent and palms either facing each other or to the front.  Stand with your feet just wider than shoulder width apart.  Press both dumbbells up until the weights are overhead and your arms are straight. As you press the dumbbells up, do a squat.  As you stand back up, lower your arms to starting position.  Repeat.

24. One-Armed Row
Using a bench, (optionally, just bending your knee and supporting yourself with your other hand as in the picture) place your right leg on top of the end of the bench, bend your upper body forward from the waist until its parallel to the floor, and put your right hand on the other end of the bench for support.  Use the left hand to pick up the dumbbell and hold the weight while keeping the lower back straight.  Pull the weight straight up to the side of your chest, keeping the arm close to your side.  Lower back to the starting position.  Repeat.

25.  Delt Raises and Butterflies
Delt Raises:  Hold a dumbbell in each hand.  Start standing with your arms by your side.  Raise your arms out to the side until a little higher than 90 degrees.  Pause here, then lower back down to the starting position.  Repeat.

26.  Arm Circles
Start with your arms by your side, standing straight up, with your hands facing your thighs.  Start with forward circles.  Slowly and deliberately raise your right arm out in front of you keeping your hand in the same position until it's overhead.  As you rotate your arm back behind you, let your hand rotate out to face away from your body.  Let it keep rotating around until you are back in the starting position.  Repeat.  
Reverse the direction on the same arm for backward arm circles.  Then, repeat all of this with the left arm.

27.  Ballet Squat
Set your feet wide, with toes pointed out, in "second position."  Start with your arms in front of you, finger tips touching, and shoulders relaxed away from the neck.  As you lower into a squat, raise your arms out to the side.  As you stand back up, bring the arms back down to starting position.  Never let your shoulders scrunch up.  In other words, keep your neck long and your shoulders relaxed.  Repeat.

28.  Plie Jumps with Ballet Arms
Start with heels touching, and toes wide, in "first position."  Raise your arms so they are overhead, with fingertips touching.  Bend your knees out.  This is starting position.  From here, jump up and point your toes, then land back in the knee bent position.  Do quick, smooth repetitions.  Remember to keep your shoulders relaxed away from your neck.

29.  Back Leg Raises with Ballet Arms
Start with your arms by your sides standing with one foot pointed behind you, resting on the ground.  Raise the leg behind you and as you do this, raise the arm on the same side out in front of you and the opposite arm out to the side.  Keep your chest up and your shoulders relaxed away from your neck.  Pause for a moment.  Then, lower all your limbs back to the starting position.  Repeat.

30.  Hold-the-Plate
Stand straight up with feet shoulder width apart.  Relax your left hand by your side, or place your hand on your hip.  Hold your right arm out to the side with your palm facing up like you are holding a plate near your shoulder, as a waitress might.  Bring the "plate" in front of you, careful not to "spill" anything, then rotate your hand underneath your armpit, out behind you, then back up to the starting position.  Keep you palm facing up at all times.  Rotate slowly.  Repeat.
Reverse the exercise on the same arm.  Then, repeat all these movements with the left arm.

I found this avocado and grilled salmon recipe online the other day and simply,  FELL.  IN.  LOVE.  I've become addicted and have been making the avocado salsa daily since then, and eating it in a variety of ways.  I'm so excited to be able to share this!  My mother-in-law, amazing woman, said that it was quite possibly the best salmon she's ever had.  Now, I didn't make the recipe up, but I did cook it!  So I'll take some of that credit.  :)  Hehe.  
I found the recipe on the blog "The Cookie Rookie."  I love salmon.  In any form.  But this is unbelievably delicious.  It's a really simple rub, grilled, then topped with an avocado salsa.  Sounds simple, but the flavors go above and beyond your normal salmon recipe.  I made extra of the rub to have on hand later… so besides letting it sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes prior to grilling, it just became a 15 minute meal!  

The avocado salsa was also amazing.  I am usually a guac girl, not straying too far from my favorite recipe (including tomatoes, cilantro and Wildtree Guac Seasoning) but I loved this simple salsa and tried it with a few different dishes.

Here, I pan fried some bell peppers, spinach and asparagus in extra virgin olive oil and the same spice combination as the salmon rub.  I topped them with a couple fried eggs and some of that avocado salsa.  
The next day, I tried the avocado salsa in some mini tacos filled with wild rice, roasted chicken, and sprouts.  Any way you go, it's delicious!

Salmon Ingredients:
-2 lbs salmon, cut into 4 pieces
-1 tbs olive oil (I used light extra virgin olive oil)
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp ground cumin
-1 tsp paprika powder
-1 tsp onion powder
-1/2 tsp ancho chili powder (I used regular chili powder because I didn't have ancho on hand)
-1 tsp black pepper (I ground up peppercorns)

Avocado Salsa Ingredients:
2 avocados, diced
1/2 small red onion, sliced
Juice from 2 limes (2 TBLS)
1-2 tbs finely chopped cilantro (depending on how big of a cilantro lover you are)
Salt to taste (about 1 tsp)

Directions:
1.  Mix the rub spices together in a bowl.
2.  Rub each salmon fillet with a little oil, and the spice mix.  (Use up the entire amount of the mix on the salmon fillets.)
3.  Let them sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.  
4.  While they are marinating, mix together all the avocado salsa ingredients.  The avocados should be slightly harder than you would normally buy for guac.  They shouldn't fall apart when you dice them into squares.  
5.  Cook the salmon on the grill for about 3-4 minutes on each side over medium heat.  Until they have a nice crisp on the outside and they are tender and flaky on the inside.  
6.  Serve the salmon topped with the avocado salsa.  

Ideas for Eating:
Try the salmon with watermelon and a cooling cucumber salad for a great summer meal on the grill.
Use the rub to season vegetables
Try the avocado salsa on eggs or in mini tacos.

Summer!  Time for burgers and brats on the grill, ice cold watermelon, and fresh veggies.  And then… all those leftovers!  Instead of simply reheating a burger, I tried a couple different leftover ideas this past week.  One way to use those burgers up is to crumble them into an omelet.  Another way is to make a homemade hamburger helper!  

For noodles, I used these gluten free Vietnamese Brown Rice Noodles with Green Tea.  But, any noodles would do, or rice if you'd rather. 

Ingredients:
2 leftover hamburgers, diced
2 handfuls of kale, stems removed, chopped
1 clove minced garlic
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup bone broth
1 TBLS extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
About 1 cup cooked noodles or rice

Directions:
1.  Cook the noodles/rice according to the directions on the box, set aside.  (This can be pre-cooked)
2.  Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil for a couple minutes over medium heat.
3.  Add broth, tomatoes, burgers, kale, and noodles and cook for a few more minutes.  The texture should be moist but not soupy.  
4.  Enjoy!

Ideas for Eating:
This one-dish meal is great all on it's own, but you could try rice instead of noodles or kick it up a notch with some peppers and taco seasoning!

I don't have a good past relationship with omelets.  They always turn into scrambled eggs by the time I'm done.  Last week I felt determined to give it a valiant effort.  Besides using too many eggs and making it too thick, it came out pretty good!  Even without cheese.  I really had to press down the eggs in order to get them to stay folded in half since I didn't use cheese to hold it together and it was extra thick.  Nevertheless, it was delicious.  I think I owe this flavor blast to Jim's Meat Market's summer sausage, up here in Iron River, Wisconsin.  Paired with strawberries, a cup of tea and a chair out on the sunny deck… heaven.  The recipe below reflects what I would do if I fixed the too many eggs problem.

Ingredients:
1 egg yolk + 3 egg whites, mixed thoroughly
​2 TBLS extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2-inch slice of Jim's Meat Market (or any place) summer sausage, diced
1 handful spinach, stems removed
1 tsp minced garlic
1 full slice of a medium onion, diced
3 strawberries, sliced
*optional:  feta cheese

Directions:
1.  Heat 2 TBLS extra virgin olive oil over a pan on medium/low heat.
2.  Saute the onions, garlic, and spinach until spinach is wilted and the onions are translucent.  Take them out of the pan and set them aside for now.
2.  Add the egg mixture to the pan and let cook for a few minutes with a top on, until it's golden on the bottom and "flip-able."
3.  Flip the eggs, top them with the summer sausage, and the garlic/onion/spinach mixture. *and Feta Cheese if you so choose.
5.  Let it cook for about 30 seconds with a top on.  
6.  Turn off the heat, and fold the omelet in half, pressing down to make it stay.  
7.  Enjoy!

Ideas for Eating:
Enjoy this omelet with feta cheese if you eat dairy, and a side of strawberries.​

BONUS!  Tea Recommendation!
This month, I have spent a few minutes each morning enjoying a cup of Woman's Moon Cycle Tea by Yogi Tea.  It has a unique flavor blend that is warm and energizing.  I recommend it!

So many of my favorite family memories have certain flavors and smells associated with them.  My mom and her sisters are great cooks, each with their own flair and style.  Aren't they the cutest?!

This simple vinaigrette comes from one of my aunts and it's so easy and delicious, it's criminal.  :)  It pairs really well with a green salad topped with walnuts, feta, bacon, apples and tomatoes.   I forgot to snap a picture of my salad… haha- too busy eating it!  So, here is a little inspiration found on cookingclassy.com.  The dressing is three ingredients in equal parts.  It doesn't get much easier than that!  One time I made it in bulk by using 1/4 cup of each ingredient, simply re-mixing any time I wanted to put it on salad.  It kept in the fridge for two weeks before it was gone.  The second time I made it for just one meal for two by using a tablespoon of each.  

Ingredients:
3 equal parts: pure maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1.  Put all three into a container you can put a top on and pour from (I use a small mason jar)
2.  Shake for about 30 seconds.  
3.  Serve and enjoy!

Notes:
*It will keep in the fridge for a couple weeks.  
*I used slightly less than an equal part of maple syrup, but I don't like my dressing quite as sweet.  

Ideas for Eating:
The maple flavor in this salad dressing tastes amazing with bacon and walnuts.