My Marine and Me: Chicken Linguine+ XFit 1

Jon and I have been living in Newport for 7 weeks, a good amount of time on the one hand but on the other hand, barely any time at all.

In Montreal, if I wasn't counselling a client on their diet, I was out teaching a fitness class, in the gym or planning our wedding. Here in Newport, finally living with the love of my life, things are busy in a different way.

At first I had the feeling of not wanting to lose my footing that I had built in my hometown. But more often are the moments where I just want to pinch myself because helloooo this is a DREAM! A clean slate, a place where I can use all my knowledge and skills and put them to use- rebuild instead of being afraid of losing what I had already built. So much opportunity and possibility, what a cool feeling.

But I need to stay motivated- because that clean slate can be a slippery slope to laziness, boredom and a whole lot of unhappiness in our marriage. Consistent motivation to me is the road to getting a citizenship and green card, license to practice dietetics in the US and certification to teach, among many other short term goals, those are my long term goals.

The first couple weeks of our arrival in Newport were used unpacking and decorating our wonderful three bedroom house. Following these two weeks was our yearly vacation in Ocean Park. On our arrival home after vacation we had to get back into the swing of things, Jon went back to work at NAPS and I stayed home and worked on various things, like immigration forms, American dietetics association applications, our budget, car repairs, housing for our move to Quantico, groceries and cooking etc. A big change in lifestyle from being a dietitian in downtown Montreal and fitness instructor on the go all the time, but I was loving the change! Free time spent with my husband and quiet time to be creative. Not constantly feeling overstimulated as one can sometimes feel in the city. I was finding there was more to life than I ever thought. Still though, a little worried that if I didn't make an effort to hold onto what it was that I loved of my identity and independence I wouldn't be the girl Jon had fallen in love with.

The one thing that I think I was missing the most was my daily training. Because in Montreal I was in a position where my work was my workout and vice versa, I didn't necessarily have to schedule in time to exercise. That was not the case here in Newport. So what are my solutions? I wasn't about to sit on my bum, let the day go by, hoping I would stay healthy and fit. Then it came to me- from the mouth of my tall, dark and handsome man- he muttered the words "crossfit".

Great idea! Crossfit. It is a combination of varied exercises that are done one after another, and then repeated as a set. What's great about it is that it is a whole body workout, lasts about 30 minutes, can be done at home or in the gym and can be done at any level of fitness. So Jon and I can do it together and it's hard on us both.

Cross Fit #1

Zigzag shuffle with sprint back to start x 2
Dot drill x 11 (2 dot orders)
Burpees x 5-10
Tricep dips x 15

Repeat set 5 times

If it is too difficult, work your way up to these numbers. Try to keep good form, and really push through the whole workout. It will be over before you know it, so you have to work hard to get results. In the video I did 10 burpees, by the 5th set I was only able to do 5.

Having prepared my chicken linguine before meeting Jon on base to workout was a good idea, because when I got home I was pooped and didn't have much of an appetite. Knowing how important it was to ingest nutrients post workout, I made myself a little plate and sat down with Jon for dinner. He ate his usual behemoth portion.

Main Dish: Chicken Linguine

What you will need: