Revolt Now Fitness: Week 3 - Rewarding myself for a job well done

I have heard that after three weeks of doing something, it becomes a routine.  So, I was very excited to finish week 3 of Revolt Fitness this week and "officially" make this one of my daily habits.

Before I reached the 3-week milestone, though, I had to come up with a way to motivate myself to stick with it.  And what better way to get motivated then through a series of rewards?

When I started Revolt, I made a short list of things that I want to "reward" myself with after each week of successfully sticking to the program.  I know the BIG reward will be the awesomely fit body I will have at the end of all this, but short-term rewards are important, too.  Plus, it justifies my shopping habit.

Here is what I have treated myself to so far:

Lunch bag(s) from Thirty One

Sandals by Born Concept from Marshalls

A trip to Bloggy Boot Camp in Charlotte

Oh, and these  rewards are pretty sweet, too:

Do you see my triceps there?  Those  were a nice surprise when I saw this picture on my camera!!

If you want to sign up for Revolt Fitness and treat yourself to some great results, I would love it if you would sign up through my affiliate link here!  I am trying to recruit a "team" to do Revolt with me during the month of June, and we will compete with the other bloggers and their teams.  Any takers?
 

This is not a paid post.  I was chosen to be part of a group of bloggers who participate in Revolt!, and was given access to the program for free, in exchange for an honest weekly review for the duration of the 12-week period.  All opinions are my own.

5 for Five

It's time for another round of 5 for Five with me and Jenn...

...and I have to admit that I'm totally unprepared for it yet again  this week.  I spent my weekend at Bloggy Boot Camp, so last week was kind of consumed with getting ready for that, school stuff, and generally getting my life together in preparation for packing up our house soon.  So you're about to see a whole bunch of red  all up in this piece.

But before I share that, let me share this - I got to meet Jenn in person this weekend, which was awesome!  Here we are at the after party sponsored by Mirassou Winery, along with some other amazing bloggers.

With some of my blog IRL friends this weekend!

Front L-R: me, Emily, Lori, Allie   Back L-R: Jenn, Ricci, Rebekah, Allison

Fun, right?!  I had an awesome time and learned a lot about the business side of blogging.  I have a long  way to grow, and a lot of the stuff they talked about was slightly over my head, but I still feel like I got a whole lot out of being there.  This was also my first time meeting other bloggers in person, and it was definitely a great experience!

Ok, enough putting it off - here is my list from last week:

1. Comment on all 5 for Five linked posts.  I commented on half.  I read them all, though!

2. Go to yoga one time.  Nope.  I went zero times.

3. Call the gym.  I actually went in, and they gave me another number to call.  I still haven't made that call, but I did do what I originally set out to do, I guess.  Plus I wanted to count something  as green.

4. Clean makeup brushes. 

5. Purge closet and dresser.  I got rid of two trash bags full of clothes.  Which are now in the garage.

Obviously, I need to step up my game this week.

1. Send out my "virtual business card" to the bloggers I met this weekend.  I was one of the very few people who didn't have cards to hand out.  So I'm planning to put together a cute e-mail and send it out to all of the new friends I met who gave me their cards!

2. Create a Facebook page.  According to Bloggy Boot Camp, I need one of these.  I think they are right.

3. Pack up dishes.  We are gradually packing up the house this week, and this is my immediate job.

4. Put the dining room set on Craigslist.  I don't want to keep it, so we are not going to bother moving it.  We're trying to sell it, but if we can't, we will donate it.

5. Go by the thrift store.  I have to drop off the big pile of stuff that Andrew and I have decided we don't need any more.  There is a nearby thrift store that is partnered with the school I work at, so I'm going to take it there.  Hopefully someone will get good use out of our pre-loved stuff!

I hope you all had a weekend as great as mine, and that you have a great week, too!

I'm headed to...

Bloggy Boot Camp!!

I'm driving to Charlotte today after school to stay the night, and the conference itself is tomorrow.


I'm nervous and excited all at the same time.  This is not only my first blogging conference - so I don't really know what to expect AT ALL - it is also my first time ever meeting a blog friend in real life.  I feel like I'm going on a blind date (which I have actually never done, but I imagine this is what it would feel like).

Here are some of the things that have gone through my head as I get ready...

Did I pack the right clothes?  I have two outfits packed that I think are cute.  Everyone else will most likely look cuter, since that usually happens, but I think I did alright for myself.

What is the meal situation?  Saturdays are my "cheat day" from the Revolt diet, so I'm really hoping that there is good food!  But no candy.  I don't want any candy.

I am really excited to see how some of my blogger friends sound in real life.  I already know what they look like from pictures, but it's kind of bizarre that I have never heard them speak (save for the few brave ones who have posted vlogs).

Will I be the only person there without a "real" camera?  How about an iPad?  I'm just going to carry my iPhone at the conference and a notebook - maybe I'll bring my laptop in my bag just in case everyone else has theirs.

Should I have gotten blogger business cards?  Clearly it is too late for this now.

What if I talk in my sleep and embarrass myself??  I have been known to say strange things in my sleep.  I'm rooming with my blog pals Jenn and Allie, so hopefully I'll stay quiet this weekend.  Or at least not say anything too weird.

What am I forgetting?  There is always something.  Hopefully this time it's nothing super important.

Despite all of my nervous questions, I am actually really excited.  I think it will be really fun to meet some fellow bloggers, and get some tips on how to grow my blog in the process!

Oh, and one more question...

Are YOU going???  If you are... please come and say hi to me!!!!  I'll be the one in the bubble necklace,  writing in my Erin Condren planner.  That should set me apart from the other bloggers, right?

Personal Day

Today I took the day off of work.  I have been feeling like I have way too much to do with too little time to get it done, so I needed an extra day.  I decided to do this yesterday morning as I was getting ready for work and feeling so overwhelmed.  Once I decided, I felt so energized and knew it was a good decision.

I have already tackled half the laundry and I'm on my way out the door to get started on the rest of my loooong list.  I am bound and determined to make today count - and I will!

My students told me they will miss me today.  That made me feel a little bad, since this is my first time being out at this school.  But I know I need this day, and I'm already glad I did it!

Now I'm off to be productive!!  Have a great day, everyone!!

Revolt Now Fitness: Week 2

Last week was my second week of the Revolt! fitness program.  So far, I am a really big fan.

I said before that I was really liking the diet plan.  This week, I fell in love with it.

The food in week one was so much  better than the detox week.  Andrew started eating the meals with me, and since I had skipped week one's meals to do the detox, we decided to split the week between the menus for week one and week two so that we could have some variety and try different stuff.  The dinners were super filling, delicious salads, and the breakfasts and lunches were also pretty great.  Check out this lunch, for example:

That doesn't look like diet food, right?

This week we also were allowed to start eating our sixth meal - dessert!  I have a really bad sweet tooth, so I am really enjoying learning about options for sweet treats that are not bad for you.  It's nice to know a few good sweet recipes for when the cravings hit - these desserts are all simple to prepare, low calorie, and pretty much sugar-free.

I tried two desserts this week - chocolate lava cake in a cup, and coconut-almond macaroons.  The macaroons were my favorite.  I can seem myself making them for a potluck as a healthy dessert option.

(recipe courtesy of Revolt! by Nichole Huntsman)

• 2/3 cup almond slivers
• 1 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup stevia
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 large egg white
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 325.  Blend everything together in a blender.  Place balls of dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake for 20 minutes.  Makes 24 cookies (my scoop made 12 cookies).  Each serving is 2 cookies.

The program is so full of great recipes like this.  Now, as part of the blogger affiliate program, I don't have  to try and "sell" the program - I'm just supposed to share my honest thoughts.  And honestly, I think that the $10/month is well worth it for the meal plans alone!

It makes sense that as the food got better, the workouts got harder.  I could barely lift my arms after the upper body workout, and it felt awesome.  So, even though I was eating a bunch of great food, I still managed to make some progress this week:

I lost 0.2 pounds this week.  Typically, that would be a really frustrating number.  But - since I have been using my fat calipers in addition to the scale, I know that I actually lost a FULL POUND of fat this week, and gained 0.8 pounds of lean mass (muscle!).  So that point-two doesn't seem so bad after all!  Plus, my overall goal is to lose a pound a week, so I'm more than on my way to meeting that.

It is really cool to see this program working.  I'm really hopeful that these results are not just because I'm getting back on the exercise wagon and my body is just going through an initial shock - because I'd really like to end up in the best shape of my life by the end of this!  If things keep going this way for the next ten weeks, then I think I might just get there.

I was not paid for this post.  I was chosen to be part of a group of bloggers who participate in Revolt!, and was given access to the program for free, in exchange for an honest weekly review for the duration of the 12-week period.  All opinions are my own.