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Cari Fit

Cari Fit

Fitness Advice, Workout Tips, and Inspiration

Baby

Friday Favorites

Here are some of the latest products I’m loving right now!

  1. I really like this new Fiery Pink Pepper Scrub from Molton Brown. It has a great scent, makes my skin smooth and I love the bright pink jar it comes in!
  2. This one is for all the new moms out there! I got the Baby Shusher as a shower gift from one of my friends and I thought she was crazy. I thought it was a gag gift and was like “WTH is this??”. But, I’m not kidding…this thing works! It made our baby quiet down fast and it also made us realize how often we were saying “shhhhh” before we got this thing!
  3. Have you guys tried Halo Top ice cream?! I’m seriously hooked! Whenever I want a sweet treat at night – this is my go-to indulgence.
  4. As a new mom – I look for any chance I can to feel like I’m on vacation! When I tried these ToGo Spa Coconut Eyes I was in Heaven and felt like I was at a luxurious beach resort! Not only do they have a fabulous light coconut scent but they feel wonderful under your eyes! You can also put them in the fridge and use them to de-puff! I seriously did not want to take these off!
  5. I found this cute makeup bag at Sephora by Mara Hoffman. I love the bright print and I think I’m going to have to buy the cute clutch purse too!
  6. I just got these cute shorts by Calia – Carrie Underwood’s new workout line. I get compliments on them all the time and I love the cute tropical print!

 

Although I was paid and/or given some of these products to sample – all texts and opinions are my own and I only feature products that I use myself!

Cari’s Favorites For Pregnancy, Postpartum & Baby

I just had my second baby a couple of months ago and wanted to share some of my favorite items for those of you who are expecting or also have little ones. I feel that pregnancy and postpartum relates to health and fitness – so I thought I’d share on my blog. What are your favorites? Comment below!

Pregnancy Favorites

I love Beyond Yoga leggings because they are super soft and stretch really well – which is perfect for pregnancy. For non-workout pregnancy clothes I really liked Old Navy and H&M (outfit pictured below). I love coffee but I’m not a die-hard caffeine person so doing without wasn’t too hard. But, I found that many decaf coffees just didn’t taste the same. I found this one by Lavazza at Whole Foods and love it! For workouts – I got a pair of adjustable weights that I could use throughout my pregnancy and that didn’t take up too much space.

Screen Shot 2016-05-12 at 3.36.08 PM

H&M Maternity

Postpartum Favorites

I really like this lilac nursing bra by Bravado that I got from Target. For workouts – I like the Juno bra by Moving Comfort and also would just double up on these lightweight seamless Champion bras from Target (you can remove the pads when you double them for support). Staying hydrated after you have your baby is important – especially if you are nursing. I like my Camelback bottle but also love this pretty one by Kate Spade. My favorite diaper bags are ones that I can carry every day as a “normal” purse. I really like ones by Timi and Leslie and I’m currently using this one from the Honest Company.

 


For Baby

I absolutely love these onesies from Nordstrom because they are super soft and also durable. I’ve seen so many people post pics on Instagram with their babies in cute moccasins so I had to get a pair for my little girl. I love these metallic ones from Freshly Picked. With my son – he slept in a bassinet for the first few months but with our daughter we’ve found that it works best just to have her sleep with us, at least while she’s a newborn. I love this “Dock A Tot” sleeper that fits in the bed with you (so you don’t roll over on baby!)and it also works great for naps and for playtime when you want to keep your baby secure. Another Instagram find is the “Milk Snob” carseat and nursing cover. I already have a few nursing covers that work ok and I usually just use a lightweight blanket to cover my carseat when we take our baby places. But, this cover by “Milk Snob” is great because it stretches and covers the carseat perfectly and it’s also very lightweight and breathable – perfect for Houston! It also works great as a nursing cover and isn’t too hot.

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“Milk Snob” cover81X3zRl9ffL._SX522_

“Dock-A-Tot”

 

 

 

Cari’s Fitness Favorites – May ’15

Here are some of the latest products that I wanted to share with you guys! Some of them were sent for me to try, while others I discovered on my own. Most of these are health and fitness related, except for the baby gear – so just skip over that section if it doesn’t apply to you.

Workout Clothes & Gear

Gaiam has a new line of workout gear that is really cute and functional! I have the “curve” pants and love them! I’ve also been wearing Victoria’s Secret “knockout” crop pants because they fit really well and they always have really cool colors and prints!

I love the pretty print on this Sakroots Yoga Bag! Sakroots is part of the brand “The Sak” and all of their purses and bags are made really well. Sakroots features some very cool original artwork and the brand also gives back to local artists and charities.

Tinke – I got a chance to try this new fitness monitor and I’ve been really impressed. It works differently than most because you plug it into your phone (vs wear it) and it’s more about calculating your pulse and respiratory rate (better indications of your fitness vs. steps taken or calories burned). It’s the only tracker that measures your heart rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygen saturation and heart rate variability to determine your fitness and stress levels. I also like that it’s very small and easy to take with you.

FXP Hula Hoop – The hula hoop is making a comeback! I was a little skeptical to try this workout, but once I did I really liked it! It actually gets your heart rate up pretty fast and burns a lot of calories. Surprisingly you don’t have to be super coordinated to use it either! The best part is that it’s just fun and having fun is a must if you are going to stick with a workout!

Books

If you are looking to conquer pull-ups once and for all, check out this book: Doorframe Pull-Up Bar Workouts. It has great tips and advice on how to do your first pull-up. I also really love this Yoga Sequencing Deck – which is great for when you travel (or at home) and aren’t sure how to put together a good yoga sequence.

Baby Gear (for 18-24 mos)

I’ve been using this bib by “Make My Day” since my baby started solids and it’s still my favorite. It’s not as hard and bulky as other silicon bibs and having a pouch that catches food is a must! It also folds up easily for travel. We really like these cute “touch and fee” flashcards. They have all kinds of sets ranging from animals, machines and foods.

Dog!

I almost didn’t include this – but if you have a dog…their fitness should be priority too! I absolutely love Barkbox! My dog Smudge has had a subscription for over a year and he loves it! They not only include treats (almost all are organic and healthy!) but toys to keep him active too – like this awesome doggy kettlebell:

Screen Shot 2015-05-23 at 12.55.39 PM

 

 

 

New Mom Workout With Jamie Eason, Kelsey Byers & Hilary Hall

From left: Hilary Hall, Cari Shoemate, Jamie Eason and Kelsey Byers

I recently interviewed my friends and fellow Houstonians Hilary Hall, Jamie Middleton (Eason) and Kelsey Byers to find out how they got back in shape so quickly after they had their babies (they look AMAZING in person btw!) They shared with me some great tips for new moms (really for anyone who wants to get fit) as well as their favorite moves that helped them bounce back after pregnancy. Below is a sample workout I put together that includes their top exercises they recommend for new moms.

Bounce Back After Baby – 20 Minute New Mom Workout

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Read More

Exclusive Interview with Jamie Eason, Kelsey Byers and Hilary Hall

From left: Hilary Hall, Kelsey Byers, Cari Shoemate and Jamie Eason

I recently sat down with Three of Houston’s Fittest Moms to find out how they got back in shape post-baby and how they juggle family life and fitness. Below they share a little bit about who they are, their fitness journey and their top tips not just for moms – but for anyone looking to make fitness and a healthy lifestyle a priority.

Hilary Hagner Hall, Kelsey Byers and Jamie Middleton (Eason) all live here in Houston and are good friends! I’ve been friends with Hilary for years and she introduced me to Jamie and Kelsey. I’ve been following them both for a long time and have always been inspired by their workouts and healthy lifestyle. So, when I found out Jamie and Kelsey were pregnant at the same time as me – I was super excited to follow their journey!

If you haven’t heard of these 3 ladies – you must be living under a rock ; ) Hilary is super popular here in Houston and has been on local and national tv shows demonstrating her popular workouts and she runs popular Shed ‘N Shred. Jamie is a huge fitness star and has been in hundreds of magazines and on dozens of covers and can be seen each week on Lifetime’s Mission Makeover. Kelsey is an up and coming fitness star who has also been a cover girl and has competed in NPC competitions. She is the author of Eat Clean and Follow Your Dreams and she has a very inspiring 50lb weight-loss success story!

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Read More

Cari’s Fitness Favorites

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a favorites post – so I have a lot of new products that I wanted to share with you guys! Most of these are health and fitness related, except for the baby gear – so just skip over that section if it doesn’t apply to you.

Workout Clothes & Gear

I really like lucy’s capris that have pockets so I can stash my key or energy gel when I run. My 2 favorites with pockets are the “endurance run” capris and the “pocket capris”. I’m also a huge fan of Lorna Jane and love their bright colors and sporty style. I recently shot workout for Lorna Jane in my favorite green tank. Of course, Oakley is still my favorite for active glasses and lately I’ve been switching back and forth between my go-to Daisy Chains and the Urgency for running. I also found some great tanks and capris by Under Armour and I got them at Six:02 – which is one of my favorite stores because they not only have clothes but all the best brands in shoes (Nike, Asics, etc).

I live in Houston, so that means I have the pleasure of working out with mosquitoes year-round. Now that I have a baby – I really don’t want to spray myself down with chemicals and insect repellents every time I head outside to run or go teach bootcamp. So, I’ve been experimenting with citronella products – including these Mosquitno bands. They seem to work good and they are a good alternative to sprays.

For gym workouts I usually take my water bottle AND my blender bottle for my post-workout whey… until now! Blender Bottle recently released a new bottle called a Pro Stack that has a built-in section for your powders so you can keep it separate! So, now I can use my Blender Bottle as a water bottle during my workout and then turn it into a post-workout shake after! Great idea!

Food

I don’t do a ton of baking – but this time of year I occasionally make a batch of (healthy-ish) cookies or other holiday treat. Instead of using traditional sugar – I’ve been using Zulka which is minimally processed cane sugar that comes from family farms. If I want to make something low-cal I use these new Truvia Blends which are a mixture of Truvia and sugar. They also have a brown sugar option! When the weather is cooler, I tend to eat oatmeal more and my current favorite is Modern Oats! They come in convenient single serve containers that are super portable and all you have to do is add hot water. For hydration – I still love coconut water and lately have been hooked on Amy and Brian’s Coconut Juice! It comes in these cool cans that make the water extra chilled and I love the lime flavor (would also be good for cocktails!). I also tried Watah Maple water to see what the craze is all about and the stuff is actually pretty good! Maple is another natural electrolyte and contains a lot of vitamins and minerals. Give it a try if you are looking for a new way to hydrate!  My favorite snack right now is called Halfpops (if you are in Houston you can get at Costco). The company sent me some to try and also some to give out to my bootcamp, but they were so good I didn’t want to share! The snack is “half” popped popcorn – just like the little pieces left at the bottom of the popcorn bag that are crunchy (my favorite!).  The snack is very simple – just corn, butter and salt (no artificial ingredients) and the singe serve bags are only 100 calories with 2g of fiber (8% RDA) and 2g protein.

Baby Gear (for 12-18 mos)

My baby absolutely loves this Activity Table and it keeps him busy every day! I also still use a foam playmat for indoors but now that the weather is cooler – I sometimes use a few squares out on our patio so he can crawl/walk around and have some cushion. When we traveled to Cabo a couple of months ago (will try to do a post on that!) we purchased a small umbrella stroller made by Uppababy (G-Luxe model). I thought I’d only use it for travel, but I’ve ended up keeping it in my car to use for daily errands because it’s so easy to use and it has all the features of our bigger one. I’m still trying to transition my baby from bottles to sippy cups – which he doesn’t seem to be a big fan of. But, for the last few months he’s been drinking water from his Zoli Bot cups and loves them! These cups are genius – they have a retractable lid you can close when you travel, easy to grab handles, a weighted straw (so even the water at the bottom comes out) and easy to clean parts. I also really love his Boon Flair highchair that we’ve had ever since he was about 8 months old. It’s super easy to clean and I love the modern style. I really don’t see how people use highchairs that have any fabric!

Let me know what you guys think and also what your current favorite fitness or health food products are!

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