good morning, gym!

To accompany my purchase of the Fitbit One, I've also been exploring the best ways to up my daily exercise routine. I've talked about tacking on morning workouts since I entered the real world more than three years ago, and they've finally made their way into my schedule. Awesome? Surprisingly, yes!

After a coworker convinced me it was worth a try, I set my alarm and re-entered the world of 6 a.m. workouts. Normally, I'd roll out of bed at 8 a.m. and be in the office door by 8:30 a.m. Yes, that is my own personal magic trick, and no, it didn't actually feel like a shock to my system as I expected.

When my alarm went off, I'm pretty sure I shared a few choice words with, well, myself. However, the second I stood up, it was as if it was 10 a.m. already. So, off I went. I managed to get in 45 minutes of cardio and about 15 minutes of weight training before heading into the locker room to get ready for the day.

The best part? For the first time in quite awhile, I did not get the 2 p.m. slump feeling later that day. Seriously. 

For the last three weeks, I've averaged about three days a week with pre-work gym sessions. And, I've added in yoga at least once a week. This folks, has been a game changer for a lot of reason: 

Better mood.

Better sleep.

Better eating habits.

And the list goes on.

It's just one part of my "happiness project" (more to come on that), and one step closer to finding ways to stay active and exercise better. 

Win it! Calphalon Convection Oven Giveaway

via Sometimes, Always, Never

Want to give back? My friend Whitney (over at Sometimes, Always, Never) is hosting a giveaway to raise money for her trip to Africa with Restore International to help build classrooms, visit existing schools, meet with local leaders and more. Pretty inspiring, eh? 

Who wouldn't want a shiny and new Calphalon Convection Oven? I mean, I would! It preheats quickly and has a removable plate to help clean it more easily. Convenient. You can bake bread, pizza or cookies. I like all three. 

Anyway, it's easy to help her out and have a chance to use this shiny and new convection oven in your home. 

Hurry though! It ends this Friday, June 28. Here's how:

• For every $5 you donate, you'll be entered to win. And yes, it works in multiples! So, three entries is $15, for example. (Note: You have to do this at least once to be entered.)
• If you Tweet a link to the giveaway and mention @wbiber, you'll get another entry. Same goes for Facebook. Just tag Whitney so she can track it. :)

So, go ahead and do it. You know you want to! 

Good luck!

high-tech health

I've worked a desk job for more than three years now and it's starting to take a toll on my body. My activity level can sometimes hit rock bottom if I can't make it to the gym at some point during the day. I figured it was time to find something to help me track progress and also motivate to stay on track. Thanks to a recommendation from my friend, I'm a proud new owner of a high-tech gadget called the Fitbit One! 

Sitting on my butt all day long just ain't cutting it anymore. Mainly, the Fitbit is a pedometer. However, it does so much more than that to compliment it. It tracks steps, flights of stairs climbed, distance you've moved (in miles), calories burned and sleep patterns. 

Fitbit also has a mobile app, iPad app and online dashboard to help you set goals and track progress. It gives you to capability to input your daily intake of calories.

My daily step goal is 10,000. I'm only a few days in, but I've exceeded that twice already. It's clear that unless I'm getting some sort of workout or dogwalk in, I just won't make my goal. 

I used my first day with my Fitbit to find out about what I get on days I don't get to the gym. Talk about harsh realty! My first day, I was just less than 5,500 - barely over half my daily step goal. Another day where I went to the gym, I easily reached my goal with a whopping 10,600 steps. 

I can already feel myself wanting to move more and am also making strides to ensure I do so. Tomorrow, I embark on pre-work workouts. YIKES! I'm sure 6 a.m. on the treadmill will be a great thing, but I'm pretty sure it'll take me a bit to get into the swing of things. I know I am more than capable, though, given my years of early morning swim practices. I just have to stay motivated.

Wish me - and my Fitbit One - luck! ;)

*I ordered mine on Amazon.com!

long and lean: no-sew curtains

Several months ago I decided it was time to find new curtains for the den. When we replaced our dining room curtains, we moved those old, brown curtains into the den (left from the previous owner a few years ago). However, they were old and brown... so, just not our style. 

Long curtain panels are not cheap, so I went to Hancock Fabrics to snag some lightweight, white fabric to create a few of my own. Originally, I was going to hem them with my sewing machine, but I decided to give a different product: Heat-n-Bond (found at Michael's).

I had the fabric pre-cut to each panel's size at the store, so it made it really easy to get them all the same length and width when it came to hemming. With the Heat-n-Bond, an iron and an ironing board, I was done in just an hour or so. 

No-sew curtains in four steps:

(1) Iron the fabric, particularly the folded hemlines;

(2) place the Heat-n-Bond tape between the folded hemline;
(3) iron over the hemline, holding it for 30 seconds or so on each part; and
(4) done, done and done.

So, back to the old, brown curtains. The second bedroom (more of a den for us) is pretty small, so the dark curtains weren't exactly inviting. They also darkened the room quite a bit making it feel smaller. 

Not to mention we didn't have one for the side window, which just make it look even worse.

In addition to lightening up with the white curtains, we also hung them higher with new curtain rods. This little trick works wonders. Hanging them higher makes the room seem bigger, too. Double win. 

While we don't spend a great deal of time in there (hence, why it looks like a storage space!), this makes me so much happier. You have a clear view of the room from the living room and kitchen since we removed the door for the time being, too. So, having it a little easier on the eye was a must for me. 

Just another project that's been a long... time... coming!