Welcome to day 1 of our #AdventAbs campaign – Northern Bootcamp’s plan to make sure you do enough and eat healthily enough in December to offset some of that partying!
Every day we’ll bring you a boot camp abs exercise to help keep that core strong, along with recipes, hints and tips to help stay in shape while you have fun this December.
First up is a delicious recipe for Mediterranean Chicken that’s quick, easy and full of protein.
Mediterranean Chicken
4 medium chicken breasts (120g each)
1 onion sliced
3 cloves garlic
1 chicken stock cube in 150ml water
12 small pitted black olives
1 tbsp capers
1 tbsp fresh thyme
250ml of passata
½ can of chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp jalopenos (optional)
Method
Heat a tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan, sauté the onions and garlic.
Remove from the pan, then add the chicken breast and fry for 5 mins to seal.
Transfer all ingredients into an oven proof dish and cook for 30mins (200 degrees).
Easy! And while you’re waiting for that to cook, why not do the below? These will increase in intensity and variety every day, so it’s best to start with Day 1 and work forward from there.
#AdventAbs exercise day 1 – the plank
Nice and easy one to start with! The plank is notorious for being much harder than it looks, but is staggeringly effective and is an essential part of any exercise routine. It doesn’t make you sweat, needs no movement, so when you are used to doing them, there’s no excuse not to try to squeeze in a plank as many times as you can per day!
Simply lie on your front, on your toes, with your body propped up on your elbows and forearms. Keep your body straight, and hold the position for as long as you can hold form. Relax for a minute, then repeat. Do it three times, then relax and enjoy your chicken!
Day 1: Plank
Beginners: 3x 15 seconds
Intermediate: 3x 30 seconds
Advanced: 3x 45 seconds
Pro: 3x 60 seconds
