HWH Fitness Challenge Week #3 | Protein Brownies Recipe & Core Workout

Hi friends!  We’ve made it to Week #3 of our Fitness Challenge!  We are almost halfway to our 30-day goal and I have a delicious, protein brownies recipe to share with you!  I have to admit that I really struggled last week.  I was swamped with life and work commitments and a ton of rain made my favorite go-to exercise (running/walking outside) impossible.  I still managed to get in a lot of exercise, but I didn’t do my challenging group classes, which always makes me feel so alive, strong, and energized when I go.

On the food front, I ate bad 2 days in a row, and then really felt like crap.  Even though I’m leading this challenge and want to be a shining example for you, I also have to be real and honest and let you know that this is actually a challenge for me too.  I don’t get it 100% right all the time.  And I know you don’t expect me too.  I so appreciate that we are all in this together and have each other to lean on.  I’m not giving up and I hope you don’t either!

Today is a new day!  A day for a fresh start and to begin again.  Sometimes it’s three steps forward and one step back. That’s okay as long as we keep heading forward. We can’t be SO hard on ourselves that we let setbacks make us give up the good fight.  We are strong and we can do this together!  How are YOU doing?? 

nike workout wear

Similar Leggings • Sports Bra • Tank • Sneakers • No Show Socks

P.S.  Several Zella leggings are on sale up to 50% off!  I love the fit, quality, and style.  And they last forever!

HWH FITNESS CHALLENGE | WEEK #3

Week #1 we announced the details of the challenge. Go to Week #2 for help with prepping meals in advance and a running/treadmill program you can follow for your 20 minutes of exercise.

Our 3rd MEAL PLAN went out in the Weekend Newsletter.  You can subscribe to my Blog & Weekend Newsletter HERE.

This week I have: 1) a protein brownies recipe so you can have a treat that you don’t feel guilty about, and 2) a CORE workout that includes helpful tips for healing diastasis recti (ab separation).

20-MINUTE CORE WORKOUT

Big thanks to Cari Shoemate for putting together this core workout for us.  You can head to her blog for further details or instructions about the exercises.

20 minute core workout

** Subscribe to my blog to get a PRINTABLE VERSION of this workout and my entire printable library.  If you’re already subscribed, look for a link to my printables library in the HWH Weekend Edition on Saturday.

ASK THE EXPERT: FITNESS Q&A

Also, mark your calendar for Thursday night at 8:30 p.m. CT.  Cari will be doing a LIVE Q&A on our Facebook group, answering any of your questions.  This is a great opportunity to talk to a fitness expert for FREE about anything you want to know regarding your health and fitness!

fitness q&a

PROTEIN BROWNIES RECIPE

And now for something to satisfy your sweet tooth! I’m sharing my delicious protein brownies recipe! The consistency is lighter more like a cake than a dense brownie, but I still really like them.

protein brownies recipe

Ingredients
  • 1 cup Oat Flour (grind oats finely in a food processor)
  • 2 scoops Vanilla Whey Protein Powder (I used chocolate protein powder)
  • ½ tsp Baking Soda
  • ¼ tsp Salt
  • 3 tbsp Baking Cocoa
  • 4 Egg Whites
  • ½ cup Splenda (I leave out the sugar and add 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips)
  • 8oz Berry flavored Baby Food or 8 oz applesauce (I use the applesauce)
  • 4oz Water
Directions
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Mix dry ingredients (oat flour, vanilla whey protein, baking soda, salt, baking cocoa) together in a large bowl.
  • Mix wet ingredients (egg whites, applesauce, water) together in a medium-sized bowl.
  • Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix together.
  • Spray cooking dish (I used an 8×8 glass pan) with a non-stick butter spray or olive oil spray and add batter to dish.
  • Bake for about 25-30 minutes

Nutrition

2 Bars = Calories 96;  Fat 1.4 g; Carbs 12 g;  Protein 10 g

Store in the fridge so they don’t go bad!

Let me know if you try out this protein brownies recipe! Have a great, STRONG week, friends!

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Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

19 Comments

  1. Morning, Im loving the challenge. I am not always great with the food (i love chocolate so much!) but I have been great with exercise and making time for myself. I have also been more conscious of the food that I am putting down my neck (just not great at sticking to it every day!). This time I have also tried to incorporate my 6 year old daughter in with the exercise to try and set a good example for her and also to get her in a good routine from an early age. Don’t get me wrong she is fit and healthy like a 6 year old should be (seriously if I could have half her energy and flexibility I would be delighted) but I want her to have it set deep into her mindset from an early age so that when she is a teenager it will be like second nature. Being a teen is what ruined me. I could stay thin but eat and drink whatever I wanted so by the time I got to my 20s, I still carried on with that but did no exercise!! Ruined my body 🙂 Anyway long rambling comment to say that yes Im loving this challenge. Keep up the good work!! xx

    1. That is so great to have your daughter doing this with you! I do wish we could have their energy! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and I’m so happy to have you doing this challenge with us!

  2. I am really enjoying the challenge and thank you so much for doing this! When I tried to print the core workout the link brought me to the Zella leggings. I’d love to print the workout.
    Thanks!
    Kellyann

  3. Maybe it’s as simple as sometimes changing your language around food… “I ate bad 2 days in a row.” It feels like you need to punish yourself after you say that. So maybe, “I indulged for a couple of days but ready to get back after it” I don’t know; sometimes tweaking our language can help put us back on track. Just a thought!

  4. Is there any way to see what we have logged in Challenge Runner personally? I think I may have forgotten to enter a couple of days activity but have no way to be sure.

  5. I was visiting my daughter at Penn State Law and while I did lots of walking (4 miles Saturday and Sunday), needless to say there was so over indulging in food and drinking! Back on track today!

  6. I noticed the recipe calls for Whey protein powder. What are your thoughts on Whey vs. Plant based? Thank you!

  7. If you’re serious about losing weight and getting in better shape, there’s no
    better time to start than right now. The longer you put it off,
    the more excuses you’ll come up with. And if one of your goals is
    to rock the swim suit next summer, you’re going to
    need three to six months to see the gains. It doesn’t happen overnight.

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