Welcome to the weekend, my friends! We’ve been in Arizona for the past couple of days, getting ready for our annual family camping trip, and I sure am looking forward to the cooler weather up in the mountains. Want a peek at some of our past camping trips? You can find them all here. 

With 7 siblings and a whole lot of nieces and nephews now, camping has proven to be the easiest way to get us all together in one place. Not everyone makes it every year, but even when our crowd is smaller, it’s still a whole lot of fun.

ON THE BLOGS this week:  The best ever BBQ Meatloaf is here to add variety to your dinner table! Take an easy meatloaf recipe and make it even better with the addition of tangy barbecue sauce and bacon.

Jalapenos and cheddar cheese make this Jalapeno Popper Potato Salad a guaranteed win. With a creamy, spicy dressing and smoky bites of bacon and egg throughout the salad, it’s a crowd favorite.

Crisp broccoli florets mingle with savory bites of smoky bacon, tangy cheddar cheese, and zesty red onion in this awesome broccoli salad. Each bite offers a delightful balance of textures and a terrific combination of rich, creamy, and savory notes.

Juicy, salty kielbasa sausage and tender-crisp cabbage is a match made in food heaven. With the addition of some chopped onions and garlic, this Sausage Stir Fry becomes a simple one-pan dinner the whole family loves.

A quick and easy, flavorful side dish is only a few minutes away with this Bell Pepper Rice recipe. Combining jasmine rice, fresh bell peppers, and chicken (or vegetable) stock, this rice is a staple in our house.

Crispy tortillas, sweet corn, and gooey cheese combine to create these flavorful, hearty Mexican Street Corn Quesadillas. Whether served as a midday snack or a last-minute dinner option, the whole family is sure to love these quesadillas.

Fluffy Strawberry Shortcake Pancakes layered with sweet strawberry compote, fresh strawberries, and whipped cream are a breakfast dream come true.

Creamy Cookie Monster Ice Cream filled with chunks of Oreo and chocolate chip cookies is a hit with all cookie-loving kids and adults!

What I’m CRAVING: Watermelon Margaritas are calling my name. Fresh watermelon meets Serrano peppers along with a splash of tequila to make this unforgettable drink. They’re a little bit spicy and a litte bit

Get your summer body all year long with Summer Shape Up.

Summer is finally here which means my Summer Shape Up Challenge is BACK! Are you ready to confidently rock that bikini? If you are not quite where you want to be, we’ve got you covered. I have put together a foolproof plan to help you achieve your summer body goals in just six weeks. Let me show you how.

Step 1: Setting Goals: Know what you want!

The first step in your journey is setting realistic and achievable goals. Whether you want to lose a few pounds, tone your body, or simply feel stronger, outlining what you want to do will allow you to build habits to get there.

Start by visualizing your dream summer body and break it down into smaller milestones. 

Step 2: Have a Plan: A roadmap designed for YOU!

Now that you know what you want, you need to know how to get there. My 6 week Summer Shape Up challenge gives you a step by step, easy to follow and stick to plan to get results. No diets. No crazy intense gym workouts. Just 30 minutes a day at home.  

Step 3: Fuel Your Body Right

Let’s talk nutrition! The key to how you feel and lose weight is centered around what you put into your body. Our Summer Shape Up Nutrition Plan is an easy to follow ebook for 6 weeks. It includes both my Hot Body Meal Plan and my 14 Day Shape Up and is full of healthy recipes and nutritional tips to support your fitness journey. Nourishing your body with wholesome, delicious meals is a vital part of reaching your goals. With the SSU eBook, you’ll have all the tools you need to create balanced and satisfying meals that will leave you energized and ready to conquer the world.

To get the best results, our LSF Nutrition line offers clean and effective supplements designed specifically for women. From protein powders to energy boosts perfect for before your workout, we’ve got you covered. Fueling your body with the right nutrients w

Hi friends! Happy Friday! How are you? I hope you’re enjoying the morning so far. Today, I’m off to a barre class and then meeting up with a friend for lunch to talk about some exciting upcoming plans. What are you up this weekend? We’re having friends over for sushi night, and I’m going to start ordering the kids’ uniforms and supplies for back to school. I can’t believe it’s less than a month away and wish it could just be summer forever. I’m definitely enjoying the slower pace. I hope you have a fun and wonderful weekend ahead!

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party. This is where I share some of my favorite finds from the week and around the web. I always love to hear about your faves, too, so please shout out something you’re loving in the comments section below.

Exciting news:

I finished IHP Level 2! WAHOO! While it took me a long time to finish – I really wanted to learn and absorb as much as possible, and didn’t take the course to simply pass the tests – it was so worth it, and I’m honestly a little sad that it’s over. It was over 100 hours of learning, and I’m so pumped for this new certification and the ability to offer functional labs for my 1:1 clients (and also in the new group coaching program I’m working on creating). If you’re interested in learning more, send me an email at gina@fitnessista.com with the subject COACHING and I can share the different options with you.

If you’re interested in exploring a new career or if you want to take your current fitness or wellness practice to the next level, I can’t say enough great things about IHP. You can check out the details here, and if you use the code FITNESSISTA, you can get up to $250 off levels 1 and 2.

Celebratory dinner at Vivace:

Creamy cookie monster ice cream filled with chunks of Oreo and chocolate chip cookies is a hit with all cookie-loving kids and adults!

Blue Cookie Monster Ice Cream

What is cookie monster ice cream? Sweet vanilla ice cream is absolutely loaded with cookie chunks to create this ice cream. It’s cookie monster’s version of cookies and cream ice cream and it has been a win with everyone who tries it.

Not a fan of food dyes? Just skip the blue coloring. The ice cream tastes every bit as delicious with or without it.

I highly recommend serving this ice cream in cones, preferably Oreo or chocolate chip cookie ice cream cones if you can find them in the grocery store, for the ultimate cookie monster ice cream flavor!

Cookie Monster Ice Cream

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this recipe:

• heavy cream
• milk
• sugar
• kosher salt
• vanilla extract
• blue food coloring OPTIONAL
• chocolate sandwich cookies
• chocolate chip cookies

The most popular question I get is whether it’s possible to make ice cream without a machine. The answer is YES. You can make ice cream without a machine. Find the full directions here!

Read more

Hi friends! I hope you’re having a wonderful day!

I’ve got a new podcast episode up this morning, and am chatting with Sara Frenza about changing body composition.

137: Top 3 body composition mistakes to avoid with Sara Frenza

Here are some of the things we talk about in this episode:

– Top mistakes we see when it comes to changing body composition

– What body composition means

– Different factors that affect metabolic health

– How to eat more protein

and so.much.more!

Here’s a bit more about Sara and her background:

Sara Frenza is a published fitness model and writer, nutrition and body transformation coach, and the owner of Sara Frenza Fitness and Nutrition. After overcoming her own struggles with chronic dieting and post-pregnancy weight gain, Sara discovered a sustainable approach to losing over 50 lbs. and transforming her body composition. Now, she helps women achieve their dream bodies through her 1:1 coaching program, focusing on the exclusive Restore, Lean out, and Sustain body transformation protocol. With a passion for empowering women, Sara has been published in top fitness magazines and graced the covers twice. Her journey from avoiding mirrors to becoming a fitness model in her 40s serves as an inspiration to women worldwide.

You can connect with Sara on Instagram and on her website. Download a copy of her free recipe ebook here.

More resources from this episode:

Check out this podcast episode about progressive overload training and how it works.

If any of my fellow health professional friends are looking for another way to help their clients, I highly recommend IHP. You can also use this information to heal yourself and then go one to heal others, which I think is a beautiful mission. You can absolutely join if you don’t currently work in the health or fitness industry; many IHPs don’t begin on this path. They’re friends who are passionate to learn more about health and wellness, and want to share this information with those they love. You can do this as a passion, or start an entirely new career.

You can use my referral link here and the code FITNESSISTA for up to $250 off the Integrative Health Practitioner program. I highly recommend it! Read more