Coconut oil and chia seeds . . . .

Coconut oil and chia seeds are probably one of the few health trends I have tried that have not back fired on me some how. It is all fine and dandy to read about some supposedly awesome (possibly new to you) item on some one’s blog or in a magazine or whatever it is and a completely different thing entirely to actually try it. Every once and while I actually try out the silly (and possibly overly hyped up) things I read about and it can be disappointing. I mentioned that most of my cooking with whey attempts end up pretty disastrously. Nutritional yeast was not particularly exciting. But what can one expect from something that looks like midly radioactive fish food. Although, to be fair it was tasty mixed into mashed sweet potato. Flax seed, that thing that was suppose to fix all fiber related problems (???) did not agree with my stomach at all. Two things that I have found both yummy and convenient to add to my food/cooking sometimes are chia seeds and coconut oil. If you have not had coconut oil in oatmeal I recommend trying it. It is even yummier if you put some coconut oil, shredded coconut, and cinnamon together in oatmeal. And coconut oil is another alternative for cooking in the place of butter and other oils. Chia seeds are yummy in yogurt. The chia seeds are neutral in terms of flavour but they thicken the yogurt and add texture.

. . . not much point to this post other than to say coconut oil and chia seeds are yummy. . . . also I am bored.

Alternative 3-day & 4-day splits

If I only have time for 2 or 3 days lifitng days per week, I like to do full-body workouts each day. One type of split I am looking forward to trying is a 3 day split using 1 full-body day, 1 upper body day, and 1 lower body day instead of the standard 3 full-body days.

Sample 3 day split: 1 full body day, 1 upper body day, 1 lower body day

Day 1-full-body:
1) incline bench press
2) chin ups
3) shoulder press
4) back squat
5) kettlebell swings

Day 2-upper body:
1) clean & press
2) bench press
3) seated row
4) pendlay row
5) lying leg raises

Day 3-lower body:
1) front squat
2) sumo goblet squat
3) dumbbell walking lunges
4) step ups
5) bird dog

Side note: To challenge your balance and stability more, you can carry only one dumbbell for your walking lunges and for the step ups. Just make sure you alternate hands and work each side equally.

If I have more time, I like four day splits also. For those in the past I have always done a completely different body part each day. An easy way to break it down is to to do 2 upper body days and 2 lower body days.

Sample 4 day split: 2 upper body days, 2 lower body days

Upper body day 1: chest & shoulders
1) bench press
2) incline dumbbell bench press
3) dive bomber pushups
4) shoulder press
5) upright row

Lower body Day 1: gluts & hamstrings
1) back squat
2) stiff-leg deadlift
3) cable-pull throughs
4) weighted bridge
5) sumo goblet squat or side step ups

Upper body Day 2: back & core
1) assisted or unassisted pullups
2) face pulls
3) seated rows
4) lying or hanging leg raise
5) bicycle crunches or cable wood-chops

Lower body Day 2: quads & calves
1) sissy squats or jefferson squats
2) front lunges
3) leg extensions or modified camels
4) seated calf raise
5) standing calf raise