I must say… watching Bubbie do her butt lifts while braising beef is as educational as it is entertaining!

Watch video! Then follow recipe and work out by reading below.

Now that you watched the video, lets get down to brass tax and learn how to truly tone up and burn your muscles with out burning your meal!

Take a peek at my family recipe, listed below. Its delicious as well as low in fat, (For a brisket that is!)

Ingredients

• 1 3 to 4 pound beef brisket
• 1 envelope dry Lipton onion soup mix (feel free to use onion and mushroom soup mix if you like)
• 1/ 2 ( or a dash more) cup of ketchup
• 1/4-1/2  cup of regular Coca Cola ( you don’t need a lot of this, but the sugar and the carbonation helps tenderize the meat)
• One large peeled potato
• carrots
• 1/4 cup chicken soup
• Golden raisins, (optional but it really sweetens it.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Trim meat of as much fat as possible. This is KEY! ( I like to trim before I cook and after.)
3. Place the brisket in a 9 x 13 shallow baking pan and sprinkle with the dry onion soup mix.
4. Shmeer the ketchup over the top.
5. Pour the 1/4 cup of chicken broth
6. Add diced potato, (not too small), raisins, carrots into pot.
7. Pour 1/4 cup the Coca-Cola over top.
8. make sure the ingredients are not only on sides of pan, but on top of the brisket.
9. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven 3 to 4 hours or until brisket is fork tender.
10. Important: Remove the brisket from the oven, and let it rest for at least 20 minutes. This will give the meat time for the juices to re-distribute.
11. Slice thinly against the grain.
12. Put meat back into oven, sliced with juice and slow cook for an hour more. (optional, but it makes it that much yummier!)

The work out.

Note: This is all about form and technique, and the movements are quite subtle. Remember to breathe through them. If done correctly, they are amazingly effective!

As you are mixing your ingredients together, chopping your potato or slicing the brisket, take this opportunity to “TASKERSIZE” Here are some simple core and lower body movements that will really tighten and tone your muscles.

NOTE: There is plenty of idle time while your meat is slow cooking so throw in a few more work out moves while you wait for the timer to BEEP! ( You can pull additional moves by clicking the category, “Down and dirty quick tips” , or scroll down.

Mixing your ingredients. – Works core, tush, quads and back of thighs.

While  standing in front of mixing bowel and your ingredients:

Make sure that you are standing tall, abs are engaged, (tight but where you can breathe)

Make sure your shoulders are down and relaxed to create “Working arms”

Your legs are shoulder width apart. Keep your hips square to your counter.

Get into a squat position.

As you mix your ingredients your body will naturally want to wiggle. (By keeping your hips square to the counter top, and your abs tight, you will isolate the muscles in your core and really feel the burn.)

Maintaining a squat position will work the thighs and tush. The deeper the squat, the more advanced. It’s very subtle but if your form is correct, it is amazingly effective!

Do this for 30 seconds, rest and repeat.

Chopping and cutting your ingredients- Works core, tush, quads and back of thighs.

Try this to strengthen and tone the back part of the thighs, quads, tush  and core while chopping your potato, and slicing your brisket.

Note: It is very much the same as above, but instead of holding the squat, you pulse in your squat, as you cut or chop.

(Be careful, you are holding a knife. If this is too tricky for ya, obviously, don’t hurt yourself by doing it.)

Make sure that you are standing tall, abs are engaged, (tight but where you can breathe) and your legs are shoulder width apart.

Keep your hips square to your counter.

Get into a squat position. Instead of holding the squat this time, pulse up and down keeping your hands level while cutting.

By keeping your hips square to the counter top, and your abs tight, you will isolate the muscles in your core and really feel the burn.

Get in 2 sets of 10 -12 of pulsing slowly and 2 sets of 10 -12 while pulsing double time.

Releve/ Calf raises- Works your core, calves and thighs. You can do this at any point while you are in your kitchen while holding your counter top for support.

Get in 2 sets of 10 -12

Face your counter top

Make sure that you are standing tall, abs are engaged, (tight but where you can breathe)

Make sure your shoulders are down and relaxed as on the counter top. The less you hold the counter, the more of a core work out you will gain, (balancing is great for strengthening your abs.)

Your feet should be hip distance apart.

Keep your hips square to your counter.

Now that you are in correct form, bring your heels off the ground and hold for 1 count.

Do this 10-12 times, for two sets!

Thrown in your own sets of something, you can always mix it up a bit in your own kitchen.

THE KEY TO “TASKERCISING “IS YOUR FORM!

Happy cooking!

P.S. Would love to hear any of your questions ideas, recipes or comments!

It’s your body, your mind, your life, your CHOICE!

For more “TASKERCISING” exercises you can do almost anywhere…Order the cLEANmomma DVD!

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I hate it so much that I’ve been known to let my dirty dishes in the sink pile up and there’s nothing worse than a sink full of dirty pots and pans AND a full dishwasher!

Sooo….

I turned emptying the dishwasher into a chore I can tolerate now that I’m getting something out of it – I’ve turned a negative into a positive!

In order to not be like Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout – who wouldn’t take the garbage out – I started doing this:

My 10 Minute Tush Routine that Really Works!

Emptying the Top Rack

• Create a staging area: Clean up your countertop a bit above the dishwasher to give your self a place to work. The idea is to break down your routine into controlled movements and empty the dishwasher in steps.
• Engage your core: Make sure that your back is straight, your head is pulled up, and your tummy is tight.
• Your hand work: Put one hand on the countertop for support and use the other hand to remove you dishes. As you take the cups and mugs out, instead of putting them away and coming back to the dishwasher to grab another one, take them all out and put them on the countertop staging area. In the process you can turn them right side up, allowing any remaining water to drip off. By staying in place near your dishwasher, you can work your legs while your hands are doing the unloading.
• Your leg work:  Kick your leg out, start with the left, or the right – who cares, just pick a leg -  and kick it out to the back gently 2-3 inches off the floor. Do 8-10 leg-lifts on each side and then repeat until you finish the task (or until you are ready to pass out). Keep in mind that if you are out of shape and you get wobbly, pause to breath and regroup. You don’t want to break your dishes doing this routine.  If you start to really feel a burn doing this move alternate with some additional moves below.

Additional moves to try:

• Side kicks: Try bringing your leg up and down 2-3  inches off the floor to your sides. You don’t need to kick the cabinets – these are small, controlled leg-lifts.  Remember to engage your tummy and pull up!
• Butt kicks: While you stand in front of the dishwasher just lift up the bottom part of your leg and try to kick yourself in the butt (literally) – not fast and not too hard.

Before you get to the bottom rack take the cups and quickly put them away. While I do this I try to keep in exercise mode, focusing on stretching my arms and legs while moving going back and forth. Thinking how would a ballerina do this really helps.

Emptying the Bottom Rack

Pretty much the same set up as the top rack. Use a staging area and engage your core letting your hands do the unloading while you work out your butt and thighs.

I do grand plies as I take all my dishes and put them on the countertop. When I put the dishes in the cupboard, I add in some calf raises for an added bonus.

If you have a removable silverware holder, remove it. If you don’t, take all your silverware and put it in a tumbler. As you do this get into a deep plie and pulse at the bottom, or squat. It really burns and is fab for making your tush tighter!

Now once you have collected all of the silverware in the tumbler, do the back and side leg kicks (the same as you did unloading the top rack) as you organize the silverware into the drawer.

Its not very complicated once you get the hang of it.

As crazy as this sounds, this routine really works! My butt got much tighter and my pants are much looser!

Let me know how it works for you!

-C-

When I’ve been out of the house all day, and I missed the opportunity to get in a work out, I found a way to shove one in.

I came up with “Cardio Cooking.”

Cardio Cooking allows me to really maximize my time and multi – task while chopping vegetables or slicing chicken. I know sounds crazy, but it works. Wouldn’t  you want to burn off calories before you eat them?

Some might call me insane…. but for those of you on board with this, I came up with a bunch of recipes and a way to chop till you drop.

Recipe for:  Sophie’s “Candy Chickie” (“Apricot Chicken” if you don’t have a Sophie.)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
2 pounds chicken tenderloins – cut in small pieces (the smaller the better according to my kids)
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons cider or white wine vinegar (optional)
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup apricot all fruit spread or apricot preserves

Serve with brown rice (if you can get away with it… otherwise, mix half white rice half brown rice, till your kids dig it!) Also, lemon juice and butter helps!

Directions
Heat a large skillet with a lid over medium high heat. Add oil and chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Lightly brown the chicken a few minutes on each side. Add the stock and vinegar (if you’re using it) and cook five minutes. When stock comes to a bubble, add preserves and stir to combine. Cover pan, reduce heat and simmer 10 to 15 minutes.

Your Workout!

1. Start your “Rag Drag”.
   
   
2. Engage your tummy muscles and create a loose upper body and controlled lower body.
3. Then, with your right leg, bring it in and out 5 -7 times alternating with the left 5-7 times. Do this while you dice your chicken and prep your food. You will elevate your heart rate and burn your butt and work your oblique’s quite a bit.
4. Next, while browning your chicken do several sets of leg lifts to the back and side. Lift your leg straight out to the side or back until your foot is 6 to 12 inches off the floor keeping your tummy tight.
5. While you are cooking at the counter top, take this opportunity to do 15 – 20 presses, like counter top push ups.
6. If you have anything to nuke in the microwave…always seize the opportunity to do something active. Instead of just standing around waiting for the beep, throw in 10-15  pushups at the counter top. What else are ya gonna do?