Will, Won't and Want Power

It's been 42 days since I shared my Lent sacrifice and lifestyle change to abstain from the cafeteria at work. 

No sausage breakfast, no cheeseburgers, no soup, no salad, no coffee, no second coffee, no third coffee (yes, those days have happened). 

I'm quite proud to announce that I was successful! 

I stayed true to my goals and not only didn't swipe the card at work for 40 days, but also re-formed my favorite routines:

:: Planned grocery shopping

:: Food prep

:: Meal prep 

:: Tupperware game so strong

:: Coffee grinding 

:: Consistency

You might say that it took a lot of willpower, but it also took a lot of won't-power and want-power too.

What's that? They're awesome tips from The Willpower Instinct. If you don't know, I don't often read novels, but rather self-help, psychology, documentary style books that help me learn a little more about the world around me. That's irrelevant to this post, but let me explain what I've learned. 

The actual concept in the book suggest that we use "will, won't and want" separately toward different goals, but I found the three used together working toward the same goal to be three times as effective. 

For me to be successful with lent, I not only had to give up something. I had to form a new habit and had to have a reason for why I wanted that. 

I had an "I won't", I had an "I will" and had an "I want."

"I won't buy any food or beverage from the cafeteria at work for 40 days"

"I will commit to preparing meals for work and brewing coffee at my desk"

"I want to a) be successful, b) form a new habit, c) save money, d) blog about it later"

There was a three-pronged attack on the goal I set out for myself, and by building this foundation I was able to get everything I wanted out of the 40 days. I felt more deeply invested in the commitment because it had layers. To let one ball drop was to let three drop. It made the investment and the cost of breaking the commitment that much stronger which I believe is what made me successful. 

While I'm not planning to be dramatic and never return to the cafeteria at work, I do plan to learn from the last 42 days and understand that willpower is best served with won't and want power as well. I'm also only 9 pages into the book and already achieved this much insight, so expect my understanding of willpower to grow even harder and for this topic to appear again someday. Lucky you! 

What about you, what's a goal of yours that you're going to get after with the "will, won't, want power" method? 

That Time it Rained All Weekend

Remember this: All great weekends start with a Friday night workout. 

No, I don't have any crazy mountain-tops or blue sky photos to impress you with today. Portland saw nothing but rain this weekend and as a fair-weather hiker, this girl stayed inside. That doesn't mean I was a lazy panda though, it actually means that aside from the work-work I had to do I actually had a crazy productive weekend.  

Here's some of the wonderful I got myself into.

Workouts

+ Heated Yoga at Yoga Pod Pearl (my most challenging yoga class yet)

+ Headstand Practice: 15 seconds in the air, personal best!

+ Twerk Practice: 1 Hour, still never enough time

+ Barre Class at The Bar Method

+ Restorative Yoga Class at Yoga Pod Pearl

Home

+ Laundry, fresh sheets, dishes, cleaned fridge & freezer, grocery shopping.

+ Removed everything I don't wear ever. <-- this is refreshing!

+ Meal prep: Chicken, Ground Beef, Kale, Carrots, Broccoli, Cauliflower Rice, Sweet Potatoes

So Much Lazy

+ Four hours cozied up in my favorite coffee shop

+ 150 Pages of Eleanor and Park for Plucky's Book Club

+ Entire Netflix Season 1 of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt thanks to Melissa

+ 2 Hour Sunday Nap

Things I Love

+ Google Hangout with Melissa!!

+ Scheduled a 75 Minute massage for next week

+ Scheduled my week of ClassPass workouts

Weekends like these make me happy. Doesn't this all sound wonderful?

To add on to the first sentence of this post, I also obviously believe a mid-weekend sweat and a Sunday night sweat are essential to keeping balance, but the Friday one is the most important of them all. 

Things I Learned this Mother's Day Weekend

Yay, I'm back and ready to share some of the super great things I learned this weekend!

I've been having some busier than normal weekends lately and I'm really looking forward to the next one with zero plans where I can sit, read a book and have next to nothing to teach you from the world's most relaxing boring weekend. 

This was not that kind of weekend! It was eventful with family brunches, workouts and the always-enjoyable company of my two golden retriever sisters. 

:: My mom is the best.
:: You guys have amazing mothers also.
:: My mom is still the best.

:: She's the best because she blogs AND she did my week's meat prep for me.
:: She also cooked brunch on her special day and didn't complain about it.

:: You guys really seemed to like the lettuce wrap tacos I made last week.
:: My brother and dad are now officially citizens of Luxembourg. Up next, me!
:: You can't give grandma an iPhone. She will comment "Bchfk. F" onto my brother's girlfriend's photo album. (editor's note: no mimosas were had)

:: I can't stay up until midnight anymore.
:: I can DO A FULL TRICEP PUSH-UP... even if it's only one right now.
:: Sometimes Mondays are exciting because I have dance class plans with Kayla!

Great weekend, I need a nap! Are you linking up with Katie today?

Weekend Food Prep

So many of you have been applauding my meal prep on the weekends and have even commented on being inspired by it!

Nothing makes me happier - especially when your continued questions, comments and feedback remind me how easy, necessary and organized this whole food prep work can be.

If you like this topic, I recommend first checking out my post from a few weeks ago: Take The Time: Meal Prep where I go through the steps that are easy to follow on how to set yourself up for success. Taking inventory, making a list, checking it twice - it all counts!

For me, the magic happens on Sundays. Every weekend I shop for all of my weekly staples and make them all at once. I maximize oven/burner utilization, can make a big mess and have a big clean-up all while filling the house with warmth and wonderful smells except for the eggs!

Quinoa isn't something I discovered until a few years ago and I don't recall a time where I haven't had some available in the pantry. Knowledge of quinoa would have saved me from a lot of white rice consumption in college - but it's better late than never the way that I see it!

For every 1 cup of dry quinoa, you will need 2 cups of water. If you want to end up with 4 cups of cooked quinoa, it requires 1 cup dry / 2 cups water. If you want 8 cups, double the grains and double the water! Crank up the heat to medium/high, cover with a lid and allow it to soak up and fill out with no maintenance.

Grilled Chicken is something I'm lucky to have Dan for - he enjoys defrosting the frozen chicken breasts, seasoning them with great spices and throwing them onto the grill! I take a different approach and put them into the preheated oven at 375 degrees (after defrosting) and cook for 35-45 minutes until I see them the way I like them. If you know chicken, you'll know when they're ready. If you're new, test a piece to make sure the meat has cooked all the way through. Follow these safety guidelines for more information on defrosting and avoiding the "Danger Zone"!

Hard Boiled Eggs are very easy to make and can be a great source of protein that will start your morning off right. I also enjoy eating them in the morning because they are a little stinky when you store them - so I don't want the odor to be mistaken for something else while I'm at work. I've tried both the bake and boil methods and haven't yet found a favorite - I love them both! This past weekend I boiled and it was an easy 22 minutes of monitoring time and maybe another 5 for each Dan and I to peel the shells off. If you boil, vinegar is essential to your success.

Steamed Vegetables are SO easy to prepare in mass quantities and I haven't found a way to do it wrong yet.

I grab a big pot, dump in the frozen veggies, fill with enough water to cover the veggies and put the burner at medium to high heat. You'll be able to feel when they're done, and just remember that there's ZERO risk to sampling - so eat your heart out!

These are just a few of the main things I've been cooking lately and it's made a huge difference on the money I spend, the time I have during the week and most importantly the good choices I'm making before I even have a chance to change my mind!

Don't forget to make it pretty and take photos - what you've done is a work of art!

Everyone who's shared their progress and changes with me have kept me inspired - so please keep on encouraging me, sharing your success (even if it's just planning) and I'll keep sharing my tips!

<3 JE