I have to admit, this year, it took me a little bit of time to get back into the swing of things. Well to clarify, I was in full swing planning and goal setting, I tried a few new approaches this year that were really fun and effective in getting me to think about exactly what I wanted out of the year and how I can break that down into manageable chunks to get there. See the full posts here and here. 
 
So now that planning is officially finished, or at least the annual one (I like quarterly planning too, sorry it must be the project manager in me) I am taking action once again. One of the goals on my list this year is to do an intense workout 3-4 times a week, something that elevates my heart rate and burns lots of calories.
 
Fitness has always been a big part of my life, I was even a barre instructor for a couple years, so I’ve tried quite a few workout regimens/classes. I like to switch it up often (I normally stick to something for 3-6 months and then fall off/get bored so by switching things up I keep it fresh and coming back for more).

​Also, depending on my schedule, at home workouts are sometimes much easier to fit in then a studio class, so I incorporate those in as well. At the end of the day, I really hate being in a gym solo (even virtually solo). If you're like me and need someone talking you through the different postures and motivating you to work harder, then the list I've compiled here is for you.

These are some of my favorite spots, ranging from local San Diego treasures to national chains and home programs. I’ve tried them all and compiled a review for you to find the one that works best for you. None of these are sponsored, just a look back at my experiences, what I like/liked and what I didn't. 

These are just some of my experiences over the last couple years of training. There are so many other programs out there, both small and large and I’d love to hear some of your favorites to add to my list of workouts to try! Let’s hear it in the comments! 

​I’m really excited to share with you guys this amazing product I got to try out. As I got ready for the holidays, I was lucky enough to partner with Smile Brilliant and I have to say it’s one of the best whitening products I have ever used.
 
To back up a little, I’ve actually tried quite a few whitening systems. Growing up, to say I had some teeth issues would maybe be a bit of an understatement. Eventually my parents started calling me the “cha-ching child” because of how *unique* my teeth were. Before I was 16 I had 4 teeth pulled, an expander, braces, and professional whitening since I had some "miniature teeth" that needed to be bonded. Yes, I definitely was the butt of some jokes throughout middle school and early high-school (I also had a back brace but that's a whole different story)
 
As I got older, I knew the benefits of maintaining all the dental work, but in the laziness of everyday life I ended up drinking all the delicious things like coffee, tea, and wine and gradually wore my retainer less and less. I tried whitening toothpaste, whitening strips and even at home whitening kits so I’ve done my fair share of research and inevitably the product always had a horrible taste and made my teeth super sensitive that I ended up stopping early.
 
When I got my Smile Brilliant kit, I was surprised that they help you make professional custom-fitted trays. Passed kits I had tried used hot water molds to make the trays, like mouth guards, and never fit quite right. These impressions took less than 10 minutes to make and then I sealed them in a pre-paid label and one week later my custom trays arrived and fit really well. 
 
After that I applied the whitening gel for 45 minutes. I did it every other day just because I know that a slower process works better for me. I actually did it while walking the dog in the morning. It was so easy and then I’d switch out the trays to the desensitizing gel for 20 minutes while doing my hair and make-up for the day. I’d already had my breakfast and coffee before the walk so it was setting basically until lunch. It was so simple to incorporate into my morning routine, and the best part is that it had more of a minty taste unlike all the other products I’ve ever tried. Check out my results below after just 2 weeks!

It’s really amazing to see how far teeth whitening has comes since I first tried it and I’m thankful I finally found something that whitens the coffee stains away without making eating ice cream impossible from the tooth sensitivity.
 
To make things even better Smile Brilliant and I have partnered for a giveaway for one of you to get a kit that will start your new year off bright! 

To enter click here and enter your details, bonus points for sharing on social!
Also, if you don't win the giveaway, you can get 15% site wide by using the code beyondtheclock15

​Good luck and happy whitening! 

Ok so even though we are already on the 6th day of the month, it has felt so difficult to get back "into the zone" this year. Not only that but I feel like over the last few years New Year’s resolutions have started to get a bad reputation. It used to be a way to start something new or maybe restart something you should have been doing all along. Now, it feels like everyone fears the failure of falling off as the year gets going so they would rather not set them.
 
My view falls somewhere in between. I think the act of reflecting is so important to improving so unless you make a concerted effort to track and reflect upon your goals, they can become frustrating. What’s more is that as we get busier with the year, if we don’t keep them top of mind through a intentional system, they will quite likely fade into the background of things on the very bottom of our to-do list that eventually just fall off.
 
Planners have never really worked for me, I always use them for a week or two and forget after that. Then when I finally do remember, I've forgotten the planner in another room or at work or something. Last year, I started to find a system that really worked for me using both the Reminders app on my phone (it syncs with my computer) and a modified bullet journal that I made on my ipad. So over the last couple days to help get our minds (especially mine) out of vacay mode and into the domination zone, I’ve revamped my tracking template for accountability and a few of my tips to sticking with it and making 2019 your best year yet... but actually. 

• Keep it simple – When setting goals, don’t take on too much. Sometimes a good goal is to continue doing something you already do and is helping you. 
• Segment your goals - There are 3 categories that help me organize my life and feel good about keeping balance across the board.
  1. The first one is foundational - health - both mind and body need to be tended to in order to be good both at home and at work. 
  2. The next one is home, meaning the people you connect with most (they don't *have* to live with you, but be important to your network of relationships) and the space you either rent, own, or love to frequent. When these pieces of our life feel good, you have the peace and confidence to do more beyond the clock.
  3. The last pieces is to take action for your goal or passion beyond the clock. This could be the things that help you get ahead in your full-time job, hobbies you love and want to improve on, or growing your side-hustle.
• Write it down - Writing something down helps us commit it to memory and commit to it overall. It's especially helpful if you place it somewhere you see often, like in your bathroom or next to your stove. 
• Track it - This really is the second half of "writing it down". The ability to track against an expectation helps in two aspects, one, it gives you accountability to yourself, and two, it allows you to have a metric at the end of the month. Let's say one of your goals was to lose weight, and to measure that you wanted to go to the gym 3 times a week. At the end of the month you ended up going 10 times out of your goal of 12, you can feel good about being close to your goal. If instead you hadn't tracked it, then you would likely focus on the times you missed and slowly give up altogether when in actuality, doing a good percentage of you goal is better than nothing at all. 
• Talk about it - This is another way to keep yourself accountable. Talking to other people about your goals makes you not only want to stay true to it for yourself but also for others. In fact, sharing it with some of your closest friends is even better than sharing it broadly across social media so that you know people are really listening. They can also be a great support system to keep you going or get you back on track when you may have fallen off. 
• Reset on Sunday - Set a reminder on your phone for 15 minutes every Sunday. It could be morning or night but just sit and catch up on any tracking and take a little time to recommit to your goals and keep them top of mind. 
• Review quarterly​ - Lastly, don't let this process be something that happens only once a year. If you do it quarterly (or even monthly) you will keep focused on what you really want and make sure it happens. 

Most people think the hardest part about New Year's resolutions is sticking to them, but actually the more difficult part is creating a resolution that you can track and actually give yourself the opportunity to stick to. If you leave out the details that will help get you toward a goal, you can easily push that to the side, I mean there is no way to tell if you are really working toward it or not. So if you need a little help getting out of vacay mode, feel free to download this action planner template that I use and always always, text, email, or DM me with any questions. I love talking about these things and want to stay accountable with all of you.