McClaren
We’re running a series on our instructors – but the side you don’t see in the studio every day. Get to know our team even better through these interviews and hopefully we can all connect on an even deeper level.
Today we’re talking to McClaren! As both our Liberty Station manager and and an instructor, McClaren has had her schedule totally flipped. As we work through our fourth week of this stay-at-home order, we talked to her about her new schedule, some at-home workouts, and a couple healthy smoothies to make.
How are you feeling about everything?
Every day is a little different; I have really good days and some eh days. Since we don’t know how this is going to unfold it’s hard to stay optimistic but I find that reaching out to people early in the day helps me stay positive and connected. I miss the studio and teaching more than anything.
How has your day to day changed?
I definitely took advantage of an uninterrupted sleep schedule during the first two weeks of quarantine. But I began to feel the effects of staying up too late watching Fargo and Tiger King so I've set my schedule up to be up and moving around 7:30 a.m. everyday.
I've found that organizing and planning out my days has helped me the most during this time. The first thing I do when I wake up is my skincare routine; all of this extra time has led to a major increase in my self care regime.
Then I’ll have breakfast and do my morning meditation. I'm currently on day 18 of Deepak Chopra's 21 day meditation challenge. It's gotten a little easier everyday to sit in my own thoughts because of this challenge, and I highly recommend it. Let me know if you want to do it with me!
Once I finish my meditation, I go for my morning walk or run and do a home workout of some sort.
I feel like it’s been so hard to workout alone. You have a lot of experience teaching not only cycling but other workouts too — help?
Yes! These workouts you can do just bodyweight or you can add bands and ankle weights if you have them!
30 min full body cardio circuit (no equipment needed!)
Round 1
30 jumping jacks
20 squats
10 push ups
Round 2
30 mountain climbers
20 plyometric lunges
10 push ups
Round 3
30 squats with pulse
20 burpees
10 push ups
Round 4
30 bicycle crunches
20 high knees
10 push ups
Repeat everything twice. Take breaks as needed and try to keep rest periods between rounds between 30 seconds to 1 minute!
Booty circuit (I added a heavy resistance band + ankle weights)
Diagonal step backs
Side lunge with a pulse
Donkey kicks
Rainbow kicks
Fire hydrant
Side lying leg lifts
Do 3 rounds of all of the exercises; 12 reps on each side
Ab circuit
Round 1
40 bicycle crunches
30 crunches
20 shoulder taps in high plank
Round 2
45 seconds low plank
30 seconds R side plank
30 seconds L side plank
Round 3
20 leg lifts
20 bird dogs
20 v-ups
Repeat 2-3 times and rest as needed
Upper body circuit
Round 1
20 kneeling push-ups to downward dog
20 shoulder taps in high plank
30 mountain climbers
Round 2
30 tricep dips
30 punches (15 reps each side)
30 Heismans (15 reps each side)
Round 3
20 superman presses
1 minute low plank hold
1 minute side plank (30 seconds each side)
Amazing! I’m sore thinking about it. Pre those workouts: what have you been doing for breakfast?
I've started getting into making smoothies every morning for breakfast. Here are my two go-to's!
Banana Cacao Protein
1 frozen banana
1 tsp cacao powder
1 tsp maca powder
1 scoop Ora Organics chocolate protein powder
1/2 cup of ice
dash of cinnamon
Green Smoothie You Won't Hate
1 frozen banana
1 scoop Amazing Greens Superfood Powder
1/2 cup frozen mango
2 handfuls spinach
1/2 green apple
I also love to have a coffee along with my smoothie. My favorite coffee combo right now is Tieman's fusion low acid coffee (I get mine from Jensen’s) with Laird's turmeric superfood creamer (on Amazon).
If I'm not feeling a smoothie, I go savory with a fried egg on top of avocado toast. Trader Joe's tip: sourdough boule + Trader Joe's Dukkah + avocado + squeeze of lemon + a dash of olive oil. It's the best.
Any other snack suggestions?
I love Lesser Evil coconut popcorn (I get it from Jensen’s or another specialty grocery store), Trader Joe’s giant Inca corn, and Majestic tomato basil hummus (eat it with vegetables or crackers).
Last thing: do you have any advice for this time?
These are extremely overwhelming and stressful times. If you're feeling like you're on an emotional roller coaster, you're not alone. We may not have control over much right now but we always have the ability to respond and react as we choose. Coping with this stress and taking care of your mental health is just as important as your physical health.
We have the time we've always wanted to focus on our mental wellbeing. Try to limit the time you spend listening to or reading the news and social media scrolling. Stretch, read a book, FaceTime family and friends, and look for fresh, healthy recipes that you can make! I find that writing down a home workout schedule is very helpful in keeping myself in a routine.
I’d love to hear from anyone who wants a pen pal or any connection; we all feel a little lonely right now don’t hesitate to reach out to me.
