Nikki Blackketter is taking a hike – in her two-piece workout gear. In a new social media post the athlete shows off amazing body in workout gear during a strenuous hike. “Granola girl,” she captioned one of the Instagram posts from Tahoe, revealing she had gone on a 10 mile hike. How does she approach diet, fitness, and self-care? Here are her top diet and fitness tips.
Nikki recommends lifting weights, explaining how it was a game-changer for her. “When I was 18 I was a real ‘party girl.’ I was pretty much lost and had no direction in life and didn’t have any good role models to look up to. I finally decided that I was tired of going to school every day with a hangover. I hated the way my body looked and felt. I always thought that lifting weights would make me look ‘bulky.’ Once I found Jamie Eason and some other great fitness models, I decided to try it out; it was fun and I started to see results pretty quickly,” she told Simply Shredded.
Nikki also recommends doing splits. “I have pretty much always done a five day split with three leg days and two upper body days. The first few years, I focused on building a solid foundation. Now I do a lot of isolation for my legs and glutes. I add in cardio here and there when I feel I need it, but I love tossing in plyos to keep my heart rate up,” she said.
Nikki recommends doing the following 3 exercises:
- Step Ups: “They are great because they hit my glutes and quads nicely and keep my heart rate up,” she told Simply Shredded.
- Squats: “This is an excellent full body compound movement and I have fun hitting new PR’s,” she added.
- Lunges: “Never seem to get easy, but are great for my quads and glutes. I also love the variations you can do with these,” she said about the move.
“I follow an ‘IIFYM,’ or ‘flexible dieting,’ diet. I love the balance it creates, and I never feel super restricted! Since I have switched to this type of diet, I have a very healthy relationship with food,” Nikki dished.
- Meal 1: 2 Whole Eggs, 2 Egg Whites and 2 packets Sugar Free Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal
- Meal 2: 4 ounces Chicken, 1 slice Turkey Bacon, 2-3 cups Spinach, ½ cup Strawberries, ¼ cup Reduced Fat Feta Cheese, handful chopped Tomatoes, handful shredded Carrots, 1 tablespoon Olive Oil and 1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
- Meal 3: 4-6 ounces Chicken, 1 cup chopped White Potatoes, 3 ½ ounces Asparagus, and 1 tablespoon Reduced Sugar Ketchup
- Meal 4: 80 calorie Light and Fit Greek Yogurt, 5 ounces Bell Peppers and ½ cup Strawberries
- Meal 5: 1 serving Kodiak Power Cakes, 1 Whole Egg, 3 tablespoons Peanut Butter and ¼ cup Syrup
Want to lose weight fast? “I usually prefer normal cardio, but when I am really pushing for results, I’ll do HIIT. HIIT provides me with results more quickly. When I keep my calories low, I prefer using the Stairmaster,” she said. There is lots of research backing up the benefits of HIIT workouts, including body fat reduction, improved cardiovascular function, and mental health. It is also time effective.