tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44204434923712090752024-03-05T10:06:54.278-05:00The Erica Upgrade ProjectUpgrading my life one step at a time. Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.comBlogger304125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-29724266794412975932020-03-13T16:48:00.002-04:002020-03-13T16:50:10.405-04:00Update for the Past Few Months<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpMaLcVvQsgoAAOYnDDguvk7i2OCkv6Qdy7mqU20a1Th59oyTiaosBspm3mUb15VrZ3NFL1DAPHUpPPgXWYUDq0eca-_D_McO0S9NdffkbxarmlrAGZ_xLCbOmPdbmBvS8uyNDN-YOOCcH/s1600/randy-tarampi-U2eUlPEKIgU-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpMaLcVvQsgoAAOYnDDguvk7i2OCkv6Qdy7mqU20a1Th59oyTiaosBspm3mUb15VrZ3NFL1DAPHUpPPgXWYUDq0eca-_D_McO0S9NdffkbxarmlrAGZ_xLCbOmPdbmBvS8uyNDN-YOOCcH/s320/randy-tarampi-U2eUlPEKIgU-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo created by Randy Tarampi on Unsplash</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long since I wrote, but the past few months have been busy! I spent January and February doing Pahla's High Intensity/Low Impact workout. It helped a little bit, but now I'm doing a P90x/running hybrid. I'm finishing up my second week of that, and so far I'm loving it. Here's what else is going on in my life...<br />
<br />
<div>
<h2>
Work</h2>
</div>
<div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
<br /></h3>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
I'm still working hard with Apptical. Business has slowed down a bit because the weather is starting to get nicer now, so people aren't home as much. </div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
<br /></h3>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
Still doing some writing - I'm currently working on another e-book for one of my private writing clients, and also doing some writing on Medium. One of the posts I wrote in February actually got curated! Here's the link to that post:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://medium.com/publishous/the-thunderbolt-of-love-a5b9b2cf9c7a">https://medium.com/publishous/the-thunderbolt-of-love-a5b9b2cf9c7a</a><br />
<br />
<h2>
Other</h2>
<br />
In other news, I started learning to crochet! I've mastered most of the stitches, and I'm now working on trying to make a few simple things. I'll share pictures of some of my creations in future posts. If you're interested in learning to crochet, here are a few blog posts I wrote for another website:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.cloudytea.com/post/a-beginner-s-guide-to-crocheting-part-1">A Beginner's Guide to Crochet - Part 1 </a></div>
<div>
<a href="https://www.cloudytea.com/post/beginner-s-guide-to-crocheting-part-2-stitches">A Beginner's Guide to Crochet - Part 2</a><br />
<a href="https://www.cloudytea.com/post/beginner-s-guide-to-crocheting-part-2-stitches">A Beginner's Guide to Crochet - Part 3</a><br />
<br />
You can also check out my Pinterest board here: <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/emartin74/crochet-information/">https://www.pinterest.com/emartin74/crochet-information/</a>. I'll be updating it with pictures of stuff I create, and new information that I find on the Web. <br />
<br />
That's it for this week! I'm hoping to start updating more regularly, so be sure to check back weekly for new updates on my progress with my goals! <br />
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-40231000694573845592019-12-08T11:00:00.000-05:002019-12-08T12:15:02.199-05:00Update for the Week Ending 12/8/19<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDoCn1pvSkqiQG6DuMcJe42VRXrMeK92bHHOHevO2u5DLyBQmEGtM5VlmVkVoXRe0GKi8rdUqka36LdqlbSwKV0MXcYdnsPZxjWsiF0uUnLMf3LbAx1pQ5tuop-oWtsBwXSPT6lw_cdBzw/s1600/matteo-di-iorio-VD-Vjc8VmRA-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDoCn1pvSkqiQG6DuMcJe42VRXrMeK92bHHOHevO2u5DLyBQmEGtM5VlmVkVoXRe0GKi8rdUqka36LdqlbSwKV0MXcYdnsPZxjWsiF0uUnLMf3LbAx1pQ5tuop-oWtsBwXSPT6lw_cdBzw/s400/matteo-di-iorio-VD-Vjc8VmRA-unsplash.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "san francisco" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ubuntu" , "roboto" , "noto" , "segoe ui" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: nowrap;">Photo by </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/@shootbyteo?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Matteo Di Iorio</a><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "san francisco" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ubuntu" , "roboto" , "noto" , "segoe ui" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: nowrap;"> on </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/meditation?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Unsplash</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
This week has been good. Kevin and I went to Michigan over Thanksgiving weekend and had a great time. We drove back on Monday, and I got back to it on Tuesday. I made some progress on my goals, here's what I accomplished this week.<br />
<h2>
</h2>
<h2>
</h2>
<h2>
Health/Fitness</h2>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
Weight Gain</h3>
<div>
Unfortunately I gained 2.2 pounds this week. I'm not surprised though - I didn't workout at all while we were up in Michigan, although I've been working out and eating healthfully since we got back. I'm not worried about it, I'll get it off. My goal for our next trip up to Michigan for New Years' is to try and get int at least short workouts while we're there, even if it's just a few short walking workouts. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Started Meditating Again</h3>
<div>
One good thing I did for my health and wellness this week though, was that I started meditating again. I figured it would be a good way to deal with the stress I'm going to have this month between getting ready for the holidays, and having to deal with increased call volume at work. I love the way I feel after I meditate, I don't know why I keep falling off track with it. Going to try to stay on track with it this time. So far I've meditated at least 5 minutes every day, going to try to see how long I can stretch that streak out. </div>
<div>
<br />
<h2>
Work</h2>
</div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Apptical has been steady this week - slower in the morning and busier in the afternoon. I did find out that we're switching to a new payroll company at the beginning of January, so I went ahead and started getting my information set up with them. I also found out that one of our clients is changing its questionnaire - actually doing a complete overhaul to it as of Monday. I've checked out the new questionnaire, it looks like the interviews should go a bit faster the way it's structured now. We'll see. </div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
Writing has been slow, though I have been writing on Medium and started writing blog posts for a new website called Cloudy Tea. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Other than that, I've been just doing my thing every day, and trying to get ready for the holidays. I'll publish a new update next week, and I hope to start publishing posts about other related topics, so if there's anything you'd like to me write about please let me know! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-14741986742374681252019-11-21T09:04:00.001-05:002019-11-21T09:04:45.345-05:00Update<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_rHsir4gr-6r70E6_D1Uqkrr65lZsJNk6sitZ4EfiKwdnsmysnGqHKouVnWeaUKeX4sMSqwyR6fxR2_fbU5ivwAD-5dzhbrDALJ48yEfSwPFxtZiJyJppimjjqKn1wzrzoCeOm4YGb0W/s1600/simon-matzinger-OkQmQ633vDs-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1197" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_rHsir4gr-6r70E6_D1Uqkrr65lZsJNk6sitZ4EfiKwdnsmysnGqHKouVnWeaUKeX4sMSqwyR6fxR2_fbU5ivwAD-5dzhbrDALJ48yEfSwPFxtZiJyJppimjjqKn1wzrzoCeOm4YGb0W/s320/simon-matzinger-OkQmQ633vDs-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; white-space: nowrap;">Photo by </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/@8moments?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Simon Matzinger</a><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; white-space: nowrap;"> on </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/coming-home?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Unsplash</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Ok everyone, it's been WAY too long since I posted! Life has gotten busy the past two years, between working on the house and trying to build my business. But I'm going to try to get this blog going again. I plan to post once a week at least, and eventually build to more than that. As I did before, I'll be posting about my health and fitness, financial and business goals. I'm still keeping in touch with my family, although not as frequently as I did before now that my younger brother is in college and my parents have moved to the mountains. I'm also going to be making up some goal-tracking resources and adding them to a page as links you can click to download or save.<br />
<br />
So be sure to look out for new updates, and I hope everyone has a great holiday!<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-10172892230837756742017-12-04T09:00:00.000-05:002017-12-04T09:00:11.689-05:00November Update<h2>
<br /></h2>
<div>
Hello everyone! It's been a while since I updated again, and I apologize for that. I need to get back to posting regularly, but it's been difficult with everything I've been doing the past few months. Anyway, I wanted to give you a quick update on how I've been doing with my goals.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work</h2>
</div>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Still hanging in there with Apptical - the past few months have gotten very busy, because we've added a few new clients that have been giving us a lot of business. Also, open enrollment season is wrapping up here in the United States (for my non-US readers, open enrollment is the time when people can choose to make changes to their health insurance), and now that the holiday season is here, I know we'll be getting a lot more calls. Still not sure if I want to stay there indefinitely, but we'll see.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
Haven't been doing a whole lot of paid writing this month, but I need to get back to doing some. I have been doing some work on my websites, especially<a href="http://myebookjourney.com/" target="_blank"> My eBook Journey</a>. There's not a whole lot of content on it right now, because I've been working on repurposing it - I'm turning it into a website that's more about book reviews and information on how to read more books and eBooks. I've also been working on the freebie I want to send out to people who sign up for my mailing list on my <a href="http://ericalynnmartin.com/" target="_blank">freelance writing</a> website. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Health</h2>
<div>
My weight loss efforts have NOT been good this month. I've gained a lot more than I've lost - I gained three pounds over Thanksgiving weekend, which I knew I would between the food we ate for Thanksgiving (we made our first Thanksgiving dinner in our new house!) and the food we ate when we went up to Michigan. I also went to see the new neurologist I've got here in Kannapolis now for a follow-up from an appointment I had with him two months ago. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Family</h2>
<div>
I talked to my dad twice in November - once for his birthday, and also a few days ago when I got the Christmas card he and my stepmom sent us. I know I'll be talking to him, as well as some of my other family members, in December for the holidays. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Home</h2>
<div>
We're making progress on our house. Kevin bought a leaf blower and has been using it to get all up off our lawn that have fallen off the trees. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's about all I can think of for right now, I'll try to remember to write another post next week. I hope everyone has a great week! </div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-72046578209555275212017-09-18T09:13:00.000-04:002017-09-18T09:13:31.350-04:00Update! Good morning! It's been a while since I posted, but I wanted to give everyone an update on my life and what I've been up to. <div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Home</h2>
<div>
My husband and I bought our first home a few months ago! We closed on it in June and moved in at the beginning of July. It's been great, we've been really busy with it and our personal lives, but we both love being homeowners rather than renters!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Health</h2>
Gained a little weight over the past few months, but now I'm working on losing it again. I started P90x 3 this morning - did my first workout, Accelerator, and I LOVED it. I'm also trying out Beachbody's streaming service, and so far I love that too.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work</h2>
<div>
Still hanging in there with Apptical, but also doing some freelance writing on the side - working on making some changes to my business website, ericalynnmartin.com, which I hope will start attracting more clients. Things slowed down a little last week because of Hurricane Irma, but I'm hoping they pick up again soon. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's it for now, I hope everyone has a great week! </div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-32617358816849085832017-05-08T09:00:00.000-04:002017-05-08T09:00:20.404-04:00Update for the Past Two WeeksGood morning everyone! Sorry I haven't published an update in two weeks, but the past two weeks have been very busy between work and other things going on in my life. As most of you know, last Sunday (April 30th) was my 43rd birthday. I spent it with my husband - we drove out to Kannapolis, North Carolina where we found a house we're going to be hopefully buying. We put in an offer on the place which the seller accepted. We sent in the money that the attorney needs to get things going I guess. Other than that, here's what's been going on in my life:<br />
<h2>
Health/Fitness</h2>
<div>
Still doing pretty well in these areas. Getting ready to start my last week of the Focus T25 Beta Cycle, after that I'll be doing a three week Gamma Cycle which is a bit more advanced and focuses mostly on body sculpting. After the three week Gamma Cycle I'm not sure what I'll do, but I'm hoping by then we'll be starting to get things going with the house, and that I'll be doing more physical stuff with that anyway.<br />
<br /></div>
<h2>
Work</h2>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Apptical has been busy, which is good since we're going to be buying a house soon. And it's actually been easier to go to work every day, knowing that soon we're going to be buying a house and moving to a different part of North Carolina.<br />
<h3>
Lionbridge</h3>
</div>
<div>
I actually have done some work for Lionbridge the past two weeks, though not as much as I would like. </div>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
I've been doing a lot more writing lately - I have done some paid writing on Wordgigs, but at the beginning of this month I also started a challenge to write one post a day on Medium, which has really sparked my creativity. You can check out some of my writing on Medium here: </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="https://medium.com/@emartin1974">https://medium.com/@emartin1974</a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">Other than that, not a whole lot has gone on the past two weeks. I'm hoping to get back to my weekly updates next week, but not sure what will happen if we get this house - I'll probably end up being a lot busier. </span></div>
<h2>
</h2>
<h2>
<br /></h2>
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-65870573499610393512017-04-24T17:00:00.000-04:002017-04-24T17:00:05.793-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 4/23/17Good morning! This week has been busy, both with work and with life in general. Here's what's been going on.<br />
<h2>
Health/Fitness</h2>
<div>
Had a good week health-wise - went and got my mammogram done on Monday, and got results on Friday saying it was negative. Also did my second week of the Focus T-25 Beta Cycle, which was a bit easier now that I'm used to the workouts, but still challenging. I also decided to do a bonus workout yesterday because I gained weight on Friday. I kind of expected it though because my time of the month started. My workout schedule for the coming week is as follows:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Monday - Core Cardio</div>
<div>
Tuesday - Upper Focus</div>
<div>
Wednesday - Speed 2.0</div>
<div>
Thursday - Rip'T Circuit</div>
<div>
Friday - Dynamic Core/Speed 2.0<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div>
<br />
<h2>
Work</h2>
</div>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Apptical was busy again this week. Made it through the week with no calls from any of my supervisors. </div>
<div>
<h3>
Lionbridge</h3>
</div>
<div>
No work for Lionbridge this week. </div>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
Wrote a few articles for Wordgigs this week, and also did my other usual writing. </div>
<div>
<h2>
Other</h2>
</div>
<div>
Kevin and I started the process of applying for a mortgage and trying to find a house to buy this week. Starting the mortgage application process was interesting. The mortgage lender asked for a lot of documentation from us, such as W-2 forms, tax returns, paycheck stubs, and bank statements. Now we just need to find a house we like that's in our price range. We did go look at a house yesterday in Spencer, NC, but as soon as we drove up to it (actually almost before we got to it) we knew we weren't going to like it. The listing on the realtor's site showed some beautiful pictures, but the outside definitely didn't match the inside. We could tell as soon as we drove up to it that it didn't have central heat and air, because it had window air conditioners. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Also, the maintenance staff here at our apartment complex was able to get the carpets dried out - they had to have high-powered fans in our closets for a few days, but they got dried out. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I also downloaded and installed Quicken on my computer this week, so I'll be able to keep track of what goes in and out of my checking account, and what it gets spent on. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I also got my organizer for my essential oils that I ordered from Clever Container this week, check it out:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhelFXNuifPIaVXcXF4Co8w4GczfDMUZKoVafSeZAHxT1pN60QFU3SbCeic6ZjZgruMF2e9gcmc9LT85zbJTPWYqJZUxIiOznLFhSw3McpdZSNRSG3o2mqA0IOrJhOJrrVPmUJON7Esl4cm/s1600/Organizer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhelFXNuifPIaVXcXF4Co8w4GczfDMUZKoVafSeZAHxT1pN60QFU3SbCeic6ZjZgruMF2e9gcmc9LT85zbJTPWYqJZUxIiOznLFhSw3McpdZSNRSG3o2mqA0IOrJhOJrrVPmUJON7Esl4cm/s320/Organizer.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
It's quite a bit bigger than I expected it to be, but that's ok, it gives me room to expand as I add other essential oils and other products I want to try. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
That's it for this week. Next Sunday is my birthday, so I'm not sure if I'll get around to writing an update, but if I don't everyone have a great week! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-48535437865495088702017-04-17T09:00:00.000-04:002017-04-17T09:00:21.044-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 4/16/17Good morning! Hope everyone had a great week this week. My week has been interesting, here's what's been going on:<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<h2>
Health/Fitness</h2>
<div>
Took my measurements last Monday before I started the T25 Beta cycle. I didn't lose any inches during the Alpha cycle, and that's fine - I'm fairly certain I will during Beta. The Beta workouts are a bit harder, with the hardest ones in my opinion being Rip'T Circuit and Upper Focus. My workout schedule for the coming week is as follows:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Monday: Dynamic Core</div>
<div>
Tuesday: Core Cardio</div>
<div>
Wednesday: Rip'T Circuit</div>
<div>
Thursday: Upper Focus</div>
<div>
Friday: Rip'T Circuit/Speed 2.0</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Might do some stretching on Saturday. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I also decided to start getting back into using my essential oils again - I asked in a group I belong to on Facebook about what everyone uses to organize their essential oils, and got some great ideas. I ended up ordering this <a href="https://extranet.securefreedom.com/Clever/Shopping/ShoppingCart_Detail.asp?PriceID=39661&Cat=&Qty=1" target="_blank">organizer </a>from Clever Container and should receive it hopefully this week. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Also have my yearly routine mammogram today. Will talk about that in the next update post. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Work</h2>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Apptical was fairly busy again this week, except for Friday which was slow because it was Good Friday. I did got a call from one of my supervisors about a client who had called in concerned because I ended one call rather abruptly. I didn't get in trouble for it, but the supervisor that called me just discussed with me some ideas for ways I could have handled that better, and ways I could handle the anxiety that I seem to get when I get into situations like the one I got into on this call. I did come up with some ideas that I'm now currently working on. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Writing</h3>
<div>
Did a little bit of writing for Wordgigs this week - decided I want to try to make at least $30 a month from writing for now, eventually I will raise that goal. I'm also working on brainstorming a few ideas for ways to restructure my ericalynnmartin.com website. Also almost accepted some work from another client I had applied with a while back, but then something happened that made my change my mind, which I'll get into in a bit. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Other</h2>
<div>
This week, on the same day I got the call from my supervisor, my husband told me that we have water damage in one of the closets in my office, as well as our bedroom closet. So now we're in the process of getting that repaired. I also worked a bit on organizing some stuff in my office and in my bathroom - ordered an organizer for my essential oils which I'm hoping arrives this week, but we'll see. We have also decided to stay here another year, so over the next year I'm going to work on getting different things organized so that we can move next year, hopefully into a house, whether we decide to rent or buy. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's it for this update, hope everyone has a great week! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-61127325581133008482017-04-12T17:00:00.000-04:002017-04-12T17:00:10.072-04:00Must-Haves for a Trip to the Beach<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVcVBJU_tE8nG-g9UfDu1KL6qar3RnVNFV5_wPZA5Xn36bWU-Fo5Pyqz6lqxEts7ISpwHNWpaCf3oS4idaUDmodpJgR-0RvWfOm7a6MG6vutq_TRJzttWoWG9IBO7FcsHbiUgmGvarM6O/s1600/Florida+beach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVcVBJU_tE8nG-g9UfDu1KL6qar3RnVNFV5_wPZA5Xn36bWU-Fo5Pyqz6lqxEts7ISpwHNWpaCf3oS4idaUDmodpJgR-0RvWfOm7a6MG6vutq_TRJzttWoWG9IBO7FcsHbiUgmGvarM6O/s1600/Florida+beach.jpg" /></a></div>
If you've never been to a beach, you're in for a treat. Going to the beach is very different from going to a public pool, though, or even hanging out at your own pool. Because you're out under direct sunlight, and you're also going to be walking on sand A LOT, there are a few things that you need for a trip to the beach that are must haves. This blog post will provide some information on those things.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li><b>Sunblock </b>- This is a must-have any time you're going to be out in the sun for extended periods of time during the summer, but it's especially important when you go to the beach. The type you choose depends on what you're going to be doing, and how easily you burn, so be sure to read labels carefully. For example, if you know you're going to be in the water a lot, you'll want to choose a water-proof sunblock. Be sure to apply sunblock before you go out in the sun, and continue applying every so often even when you're outside, because sunblock does wear off after a while. Women may want to put a higher SPF sunblock on their face than they do on their body because the skin on the face is a lot more susceptible to sunburn. </li>
<li><b>A hat with a wide brim</b> - In addition to sunblock, women especially will want to wear a hat with a wide brim to protect their faces and their scalps from sunburn - take it from someone who's gotten sunburn on their scalp a few times, it does not feel good. </li>
<li><b>(for females) Something to cover up your bathing suit with when you're not sunbathing or out in the water, and/or when it's windy.</b> This could be a little sundress. If you don't have anything to cover your bathing suit up with when it's windy, you'll get cold, and when you're not sunbathing or out in the water, you'll want some extra protection against sunburn. </li>
<li><b>An umbrella to sit under when you need to get out the sun </b>- It could be difficult to find shaded areas at the beach, so you definitely want to bring an umbrella with you to stick into the sand and put your beach towel or beach chair under when you want to get out of the sun. </li>
<li><b>Sandshoes</b> - You don't want to wear sneakers or flip-flops on the beach, especially if you're going to Florida, because the sand is very fine, and you will sink down in the sand. You can find sand shoes that are specially made for walking on sand at just about any beach shop though. </li>
<li><b>Lots of water</b> - It's important to stay hydrated even when you're sitting or laying out on the beach, because you're still sweating and therefore, losing water. </li>
<li><b>Solarcaine or aloe vera gel</b> - If you do get sunburnt, Solarcaine or aloe vera gel will help take the pain away and dry up the sunburn. Be sure to apply it often to the sunburnt areas. </li>
<li><b>Music to listen to when you're conversing with friends</b> - Who doesn't like to listen to music, especially when they're out on the beach? If you have Amazon Prime, some good playlists to listen to on the beach include <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Beach-Anthology-General-Johnson-Chairmen/dp/B000QZYKN2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1491661181&sr=8-3&keywords=beach+music" target="_blank">Beach Music Anthology </a> or <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Beach-Party-Music/dp/B004ISEURY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491661181&sr=8-1&keywords=beach+music" target="_blank">Beach Party Music</a>. </li>
<li><b>Something to read when you're not conversing with friends</b> - If you're out on the beach alone, and you enjoy reading, you may want to bring a book or magazine with you. When I went to Florida, I started reading a book called <a href="http://amzn.to/2oNlvJl" target="_blank">61 Hours</a> by Lee Child. If you're looking for something little lighter though, check out this list of <a href="http://www.womansday.com/life/entertainment/g422/10-summer-beach-reads-78448/?slide=5" target="_blank">30 summer beach reads</a> from Woman's Day. </li>
</ol>
<div>
I hope this list provides some useful information on things you should have for a trip to the beach. If you know of anything that I missed, please feel free to comment. </div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-74171174930579583022017-04-10T09:00:00.000-04:002017-04-10T09:00:10.013-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 4/9/17<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0PHkXJqErfIoyxTfpkSpqTgEw3mJBanTWyA3uao4CZT0pLFe1QSirQq7TabD7X7STrFtOvizG1opJwmEtQqWSXExONc0VvnOdOTLvpy6EwIlqKGNC26wm0tYpgxAMn7GS562exuTCc5xj/s1600/update-1672346_960_720.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0PHkXJqErfIoyxTfpkSpqTgEw3mJBanTWyA3uao4CZT0pLFe1QSirQq7TabD7X7STrFtOvizG1opJwmEtQqWSXExONc0VvnOdOTLvpy6EwIlqKGNC26wm0tYpgxAMn7GS562exuTCc5xj/s320/update-1672346_960_720.png" width="320" /></a></div>
Hello everyone! It's been a while since I've written. I had a great time in Pensacola Beach last weekend - I didn't want to leave. I got a little sunburnt, but otherwise had a great time. Pensacola is beautiful and Kevin and I hope to go back next year for a longer stay. In case you haven't already seen it, I've published a post about the <a href="http://theericaupgradeproject.blogspot.com/2017/04/things-i-learned-on-my-trip-to.html" target="_blank">things I learned on my trip to Pensacola Beach</a>. I'm back at my regular routine now though - completed my last week of Focus T25 Alpha this week. I will take my measurements tomorrow, before I start Beta and post them next week. My schedule for the first week of the Beta cycle is as follows:<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Monday - Core Cardio<br />
Tuesday - Speed 2.0<br />
Wednesday - Rip'T Circuit<br />
Thursday - Dynamic Core<br />
Friday - Upper Focus and Core Cardio (double day)<br />
<br />
Will probably do some stretching on Saturday.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work </h2>
<b>Apptical </b>- Apptical was fairly busy this week again, but I made it through the week with nothing major happening.<br />
<br />
<b>Lionbridge </b>- Did a little work for Lionbridge this weekend.<br />
<br />
<b>Writing </b>- Did a bit of writing on this blog and on my other websites, and also did a bit of work on this blog - added sign-up forms and follow buttons to it, so those of you who want to sign up for my mailing list can do so (hint, hint). Also tried to do some writing for Wordgigs after there was an email sent out saying that they need people to step up and do more work. I accepted one job and submitted it, and got an email back saying that it wasn't written in the correct form. So I re-wrote it and tried to re-submit it and got an automated message saying it wasn't passing Copyscape. Have re-written it a few times and still can't get it to pass, so I'm not sure if there's something wrong with their system or if I'm really just not passing Copyscape. I've run it through a few free plagiarism checkers that are supposed to be comparable to Copyscape and it passes just fine.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Other</h2>
Finished "Worth It" before we left for Pensacola like I wanted to. While we were in Pensacola I started reading "61 Hours" by Lee Child, got up to Chapter 17 and had to return the book because it was left at the condo we stayed at. May order a copy of it from Amazon sometime this week. Have not had the time to work through the exercises in "The Authentic Budget" yet, but need to do that. Kevin got a loan from his 401(k), he's going to use it to get a few things paid off and also start looking for a house for us to buy in Kannapolis, North Carolina.<br />
<br />
That's about it for this week, I will write more updates next week. If you'd like to receive updates when I publish new posts, be sure to <a href="http://eepurl.com/cKqVEj" target="_blank">subscribe to my mailing list</a>.Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-20333977588433648972017-04-04T17:00:00.000-04:002017-04-08T11:30:06.629-04:00Things I Learned on my Trip to Pensacola Beach<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjznaReeQ09Mz0yUsldVJOfmRe-H4yzjO8FFPoTm2RRDpK22TBuQd89D9iEss-usrcR_FTmFWLjic6SaXjNF-_1egzC3RH9-vic8xuappntTmHSEVgqTPfAe7hwa9qAgsnVj3mB2Wn1G-Fc/s1600/Florida+beach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjznaReeQ09Mz0yUsldVJOfmRe-H4yzjO8FFPoTm2RRDpK22TBuQd89D9iEss-usrcR_FTmFWLjic6SaXjNF-_1egzC3RH9-vic8xuappntTmHSEVgqTPfAe7hwa9qAgsnVj3mB2Wn1G-Fc/s1600/Florida+beach.jpg" /></a></div>
This past weekend I went on my first trip ever to Pensacola Beach, Florida, and I had a GREAT time. But I learned a few things about Florida, and about traveling in general, that I wanted to share with you in this post.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li><b>Not every beach is overrun by young kids. </b>Kevin and I have vacationed at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for years. It was fun when we were younger, but as the years have gone on it seems like Myrtle Beach and South Carolina beaches in general are getting more and more overrun by teenagers and young kids. Down in Florida though, there are far fewer young kids - most of the people on the beaches in Florida are older adults and older kids - our friends were there with their kids, but they are older teenagers, and I think one of them may be in his 20s. </li>
<li><b>It is possible to get through a weekend without watching TV.</b> When we first arrived at the condo we stayed at, I tried to find TV channels - couldn't find any working TV channels on the TVs in the condo we stayed at. I found out later that the working channels are higher numbers, but the condo also had a lot of books and magazines. Since I love to read anyway, I read a good bit of 61 Hours by Lee Child. I've gotten so into that, I now want to finish it. Unfortunately I had to make sure I left the copy of the book I was reading at the condo, so I'll have to pick up my own copy, or check it out from the library. </li>
<li><b>Walking on Florida sand is WAY harder than walking on Myrtle Beach sand</b>. The sand on the beach in Florida is much finer than the sand on the beaches in South Carolina, so it's more difficult to walk on. If you visit Pensacola or any of the Florida beaches, make sure you pick up a pair of sand shoes at one of the beach shops - they're specially made so you can walk easier on the sand. </li>
<li><b>There are places in the US where the water actually looks blue</b> - The water in the oceans at Myrtle Beach doesn't quite look blue, though I guess it could pass for blue. But in Pensacola the water actually looked blue - there were even places where there was a little green mixed in with the blue. </li>
<li><b>Having on a lot of sunblock and occasionally sitting under an umbrella is a necessity when you're out in the sun in Florida, otherwise you will get scorched.</b> </li>
<li><b>If you do get scorched, Solarcaine or aloe vera gel is your best friend.</b> Be sure to apply it often to help the sunburn go away. Pain relievers can also help. </li>
</ol>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
These are the main things I learned from my first trip down to Pensacola Beach - if you've been to Pensacola Beach or any Florida beach, please feel free to share your experiences and any lessons you learned from your trips. </div>
<a href="https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/18835151/?claim=g6epgxfbzjs">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-34478742921732286712017-03-27T09:00:00.000-04:002017-03-27T09:00:15.883-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 3/26/17Good morning! Last week was a great week in many ways. I made a lot of progress with my health and career goals, as well as some other things I'm working on.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<h2>
Health</h2>
<div>
<br />
Made it through my third week of Focus T25. Also on Monday Kevin and I had our physicals - mine went really well. My old doctor left, so I saw this physician's assistant they hired named Allie - she was really nice, I really liked her. We talked about a few things and she did my physical exam. After that Kevin and I went and got our blood work done and then went out to lunch - our physicals were at 10:30 and of course we had to fast for the blood work, so neither of us had eaten anything in almost 18 hours!! I found out a few days later that my blood work came back normal except for my sodium level, which was a little low. Allie said that could be related to my medication, it also could be because I was fasting. She wants to see me back in a week so I can get the sodium test redone, but I won't be able to go back in a week, so I'll just have to go in when I have time. I also got on the scale yesterday and found I lost a pound and a half last week, so I'm happy about that. Hoping to be able to lose a little bit more before Kevin and I leave for Pensacola for a few days. Since Kevin and I are going to Pensacola this coming Friday, I'm thinking of starting my Focus T25 schedule for the week a day early.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work/Career</h2>
</div>
<div>
<b>Apptical </b>- Apptical was fairly busy this week, but I made it through the week with nothing major happening.<br />
<br />
<b>Lionbridge </b>- I've only done a little work for Lionbridge this week because the work has been scarce. I worked for about half an hour yesterday but didn't do any work during the week.<br />
<br />
<b>Writing </b>- Because of the scarcity in Lionbridge work, I did start doing a little writing again this week. I think I'm going to have to start using that to fill in the gaps and make a little extra money until there's more Lionbridge work available again.<br />
<br />
Also somewhat related to career, I decided to start reviewing my Rosetta Stone Spanish course that I'd purchased a few years ago because I wanted to learn Spanish so I could take Spanish calls for Apptical. Not sure if I'll still do that or not, but I figured it can't be a bad skill to have for other work at home jobs as well.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Other</h2>
</div>
<div>
Still working on "Worth It." I'm just about done with it, I hope to finish it this week before Kevin and I leave for Pensacola. I also started reading an eBook called "The Authentic Budget," which I'm hoping will help me come up with more realistic budgeting goals. I'm about halfway through it, I've quit reading it for now, because I want to go through some of the exercises in it before I continue. I also did a little organizing in my office this week - Kevin brought me a few more label tapes for my Ptouch labeller from work, and I finally figured out what I was doing wrong with the 1/2 inch tape, so now I've got it working properly again. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's about it for this week. Not sure if I'll be posting next week because I'll be out of town, but if I don't I'll definitely be writing a very long post the following week. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-44329222187820095672017-03-19T17:00:00.000-04:002017-03-19T17:00:24.319-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 3/19/17Good morning! I've had a decent week this week. Things have been a bit slower this week in all aspects of my life, but I did have one thing happen that affects all aspects of my life - I got a new computer! I love it, it's much faster than my old one, which was almost three years old and really starting to slow down (and also starting to make some noises I didn't like). I also had a few things happen this week that are forcing me to re-think things a bit. Here's what happened this week:<br />
<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<h2>
Health</h2>
<div>
I gained half a pound this week, but I"m not going to stress about it - it could be water weight. I got through my second week of T25 Alpha Cycle, and it went well. I was able to make it through all the workouts again, and I'm finding some of the movements easier to do now that I've done them once. I actually did my workout for 3/20/17 on the previous Sunday because I have my physical at 10:30 on 3/20/17, and of course I have to fast for the lab work, so I didn't think it would be a good idea for me to be working out. My workout schedule for the coming week is:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Monday - Day off (should be T25 Alpha Total Body Circuit but did it on Sunday due to physical)</div>
<div>
Tuesday - T25 Alpha Speed 1.0</div>
<div>
Wednesday - Alpha Lower Focus</div>
<div>
Thursday - Alpha Cardio</div>
<div>
Friday - Alpha Total Body Circuit and Ab Intervals (double day)</div>
<div>
Saturday - Stretch</div>
<br />
<h2>
Work/Career</h2>
<h3>
Apptical</h3>
<div>
Things have been a bit slower again this week at Apptical, but I've still been having good days, especially since I've been getting calls from a few of our new clients this week. I also got my first write-up in about 13 months for a few stupid mistakes that I made (well, one very stupid mistake that I made which I definitely will not make again, and one that I didn't realize was so stupid until I heard the call). While I won't go into a whole lot of detail about the calls themselves, I did have one call where I sounded way too robotic on the call. I didn't realize how robotic I sounded until I actually heard it, but that's forced me to start thinking about things I can do to make myself sound less robotic and more natural, without speaking too fast, which is something else I've had problems with in the past. One thing I decided to do, and I'm going to see how well it works for me, is I'm going to try and talk more like I'm giving a performance - putting more emphasis on certain words. I'm also going to try to work on ways I can vary my pitch. I actually downloaded the Toastmasters handbook, which has some great tips on how to widen your vocal range. There are a lot of warm-up exercises you can do to warm up your voice and relax your throat, so I'm going to try those and see if they help. I had a focus group conference call just yesterday, which I enjoyed very much - I love being part of the group, it's one of the things that actually makes it worth it for me to stay working at Apptical, so I'm going to do everything I can to stay working there and stay a part of that group. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Lionbridge</h3>
<div>
I haven't done any work at all this week or last week with Lionbridge, so I know I'm not going to have anything for a paycheck this next pay period. This coming week and the next week I hope to get some more work done, but we'll see.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Wealth</h2>
Started reading the book "Worth It: Your Life, Your Money, Your Terms" by Amanda Steinberg, the founder and CEO of WorthFM, the company I mentioned last week that I opened an IRA with in addition to having a small savings account with them. It's very interesting so far and is giving me a lot of ideas. I'll talk more about it once I've finished the book - may even write a review of it on this blog.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Other</h2>
<div>
Still doing some cleaning and organizing in my office and my bathroom. I ordered a 1/2 inch label tape for my Ptouch label maker and got it this week. Went to try and make some labels with it and it got caught in the machine, so Kevin is going to bring me some 1/2 inch tapes from work. Ordered a little organizer for my essential oils, but the little compartments are too small for the bottles - the organizer is meant for make-up and make-up brushes, etc. so I'll have to get something else. I did decide to use the organizer I got for some of the smaller stuff I have my bathroom drawers. I also had my favorite hair stylist cut my hair this weekend, it looks a lot nicer than when any of the "bargain" hair stylists cut it. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-3290664891613488112017-03-12T17:00:00.000-04:002017-03-12T17:00:18.965-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 3/12/17Good evening! I'm pleased to say I had a decent week this week - it didn't go as well as I'd hoped it would, because of some unforeseen circumstances which I'll get to in a minute, but it still went pretty well.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<h2>
Health </h2>
I had an appointment with my neurologist's nurse practitioner on Monday - it went well. We talked about the fact that I had to switch back to the generic from of one of my medications (Trileptal) and her suggestion was to keep track of the manufacturers the drug comes from and notice which ones I do well on. She said if I notice I do better on one manufacturer's generic than another, I can see if the pharmacy can order it from that manufacturer for me. I also started my first week of the Focus T25 Alpha cycle, and it was a good week. I'm finding that a lot of the workouts I'm doing have a lot of legs and lower body work in them, which is great since I just finished Brazil Butt Lift. The only workout I think I did that didn't have any leg work in it was the Ab Intervals workout which focused mostly on ab exercises alternated with just brief periods of cardio. Also, the stretching workout didn't have a lot of legs in it, except for the leg stretches of course. My workout schedule for next week is:<br />
<br />
Monday - Cardio<br />
Tuesday - Total Body Circuit (this one was a killer!!)<br />
Wednesday - Speed 1.0<br />
Thursday - Cardio<br />
Friday - Lower Focus/Ab Intervals (double day)<br />
Saturday - Stretch<br />
<br />
I'm also still doing a good job of getting all my water in every day - I'm on a two-week streak now.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work/Career</h2>
Apptical was good this week - busy for a few days, but I think things are finally starting to slow down a bit. I also worked a bit on some writing for our company newsletter and discussed an idea I had with the leader of the focus group I'm on - she liked it, and I think we'll discuss it on our next conference call this coming Saturday. Lionbridge was a bit slow, I didn't get in as many hours as I wanted to because there were a few days where I didn't sleep well, so I didn't get up and do any work in the morning. Then there was no work for a few days, so I lost some time there. I did do about an hour and 45 minutes on Saturday - I would have done more, but the work ran out.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Wealth </h2>
Decided to try something and open up a small IRA with the company I have my emergency savings account with, WorthFM. My plan is to have one deposit a month go into that and another go into my savings account. Also, should start having some small deposits into my Lionbridge 401(k) on this next check.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Other</h2>
<div>
As the weather gets warmer, I'm finding myself wanting to get back into cleaning and organizing stuff more again. I got some of my paper stuff organized, and also want to work on organizing my bathroom a bit more. Related to that, I was looking for information on ways to dispose of non-acetone nail polish remover - the safest way to do it is to take it to a hazardous waste facility, which I haven't got the time for, but I also found a great article on other uses for non-acetone nail polish remover: <a href="http://experthometips.com/2015/08/20/16-practical-uses-for-nail-polish-remover/">http://experthometips.com/2015/08/20/16-practical-uses-for-nail-polish-remover/</a>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's it for this week, I look forward to posting another update next week! </div>
Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-67374412612153867472017-03-05T16:00:00.000-05:002017-03-05T16:00:14.697-05:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 3/5/17Good afternoon! I'm pleased to report I had another good week this week, both as far as my health and my career goals are concerned. Here's what I have to report.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<h2>
Health</h2>
Finished Brazil Butt Lift this morning! I'm glad to say I'm passing the pencil test now (for those of you who don't know what the pencil test is, it's where you take a pencil and put it under one of your butt cheeks - if it stays, you need to firm your rear end up, if it doesn't, you don't. You can find more information about the pencil test here: <a href="http://betterbuttchallenge.com/what-is-the-butt-pencil-test/">http://betterbuttchallenge.com/what-is-the-butt-pencil-test/</a>. <br />
So tomorrow I'll start the first week of the Focus T25 Alpha cycle. I like Focus T25 because the workouts are only 5 days a week instead of six - though I may throw in a stretch or pilates workout on the sixth day, depending on how I feel. My workout schedule for this week is as follows:<br />
<br />
Monday - Alpha Cardio<br />
Tuesday - Alpha Speed 1.0.<br />
Wednesday - Alpha Total Body<br />
Thursday - Alpha Ab Intervals<br />
Friday - Alpha Lower Focus and Alpha Cardio (double day)<br />
Saturday - possible stretch or pilates workout.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Work/Career</h2>
Got in almost 8 1/2 hours with Lionbridge this week. Shooting for a little more since I'm going to start having 401k deductions come out on my next check. Apptical was good this week, we were steady but I still made quite a bit. I'm doing less with writing right now, outside of this blog and writing for Apptical's company newsletter. I did get a message from someone on Facebook this week asking how much I would charge for a 1000 word article. When I told him, he said it was too much, he was only able to pay $20 or $30 for a 1000 word article. I'm sorry, I'm willing to go down on my prices a little bit, but NOT that much.<br />
<br />
That's it for this week, hope everyone has a great week!<br />
<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-11558187766524074382017-02-27T09:00:00.000-05:002017-02-27T09:00:08.286-05:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 2/26/17Last week was another great week! My major accomplishments last week were:<br />
<br />
Health - Got through my third week of Brazil Butt Lift. Also got my Focus T25 workouts and started looking through those. Focus T25 looks like an interesting program, we'll see how I do with it. This week's schedule for Brazil Butt Lift is:<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Tuesday - Bum Bum/Tummy Tuck<br />
Wednesday - Cardio Axe/High and Tight - going to replace Cardio Axe with the Alpha Cardio workout from Focus T25 so I can start getting "acquainted" with the workouts.<br />
Thursday - Sculpt<br />
Friday - Bum Bum/Tummy Tuck<br />
Saturday - Cardio Axe/Sculpt - will probably replace Cardio Axe with Alpha Cardio or one of the other cardio workouts, depending on which ones I've looked through by that time - I have checked out a few already, will get to my impressions of them in a minute.<br />
Sunday - Tummy Tuck/High and Tight<br />
<br />
As I mentioned above, I've started looking at some of the workouts in the Alpha (first) cycle of Focus T25. Focus T25 has two 5 week cycles - the Alpha cycle is the first one, and it focuses on building a foundation. There are five 25 minute workouts in the Alpha cycle: Cardio, Speed 1.0, the Total Body Circuit, Ab Intervals and Lower Focus. So far I've looked at the Cardio and Speed 1.0 workouts, and they look intense but definitely doable. The Beta Cycle is the second cycle, and it focuses on the core. The workouts in this cycle are Core Cardio, Speed 2.0, Rip't Circuit, Dynamic Core and Upper Focus. It will be interesting to see how I do with this Focus T25, I plan to start that right away on Monday - I do have a doctor's appointment, but luckily the workouts are short enough that I can get one in before I leave.<br />
<br />
My Beachbody coach is also going to be doing a March Madness challenge which I'm going to participate in, so I'm looking forward to that.<br />
<br />
Finances/Career - Had another good week at Apptical, and also worked another 7.5 hours at Lionbridge, so I'll just about hit my goal for this paycheck. I need to start working more every week, but with the Brazil Butt Lift workout schedule that's not possible, at least during the week. Once I start Focus T25 though, the shorter workouts will free up a little extra time in the mornings before I start work with Apptical - I can use that to work a bit for Lionbridge if there's work available.<br />
<br />
That's it for this week, hope everyone has a great week!Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-33485472711867963262017-02-20T12:49:00.002-05:002017-02-20T12:49:40.855-05:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 2/19/17Good afternoon everyone! I hope everyone had a great week last week, and if there any guys reading this, I hope you and your wives/sweethearts had a wonderful Valentine's Day.<br />
<br />
Last week was a great week in many different ways:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Health - Went for my six-month check-up at the dentist, and he said everything looks good - the hygienist even told me she could see less stain on my teeth this time. I told her that I got a new power toothbrush for Christmas, and she thinks that could be why. I also went through the second week of Brazil Butt Lift last week - of course my workout schedule got thrown off because of my dentist appointment, but I will get it back on track again once I get Focus T25. At this point I'm still failing the pencil test (pencil is still staying underneath my butt cheek) but I still have two weeks to go, so I'm hopeful that my rear end will be nice and firm by the time it's done. Ironically, I'll finish Brazil Butt Lift the day before my next appointment with my neurologist - March 5th. I should receive Focus T25 this week by Wednesday, so I'm looking forward to starting to look through that. My workout schedule for this week is:<br />
<br />
Tuesday - Sculpt<br />
Wednesday - Cardio/Bum Bum<br />
Thursday - Sculpt<br />
Friday - Bum Bum/High and Tight<br />
Saturday - Sculpt<br />
Sunday - Bum Bum/Tummy Tuck<br />
<br />
Wealth/Income - Worked 7 1/2 hours for Lionbridge last week. Also got my second paycheck, which was a lot more than the first. But, the first only covered one week. This week I hope to do a bit more - I'm trying to shoot for making at least $150 per paycheck after taxes right now, that will give me an extra $300 per month on top of what I'm already making with Apptical.<br />
<br />
Those were my two major accomplishments last week, hope everyone has a great week and I look forward to posting another update next week!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-46504225891053418252017-02-09T13:53:00.002-05:002017-02-09T13:53:25.263-05:00I'm back!Hello everyone! I'm back after a very long hiatus. I'm glad to say I'm still at it, but have slacked off a bit on the exercise and eating - I got bored with Beachbody programs, so I switched to doing mostly YouTube workout videos with the occasional Beachbody workout thrown in. Unfortunately, during that time I gained back a lot of the weight I'd lost. I'm now back to eating more the way I should, and this week I also started back to doing Brazil Butt Lift, to try and firm up my rear end for swimsuit season. Trying to decide what program I want to do after that, I'm thinking of trying Focus T25.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Outside of that, I've been busy with other areas of my life over the past few months. I'm still working at my regular full-time job, plus doing some freelance writing and other freelance projects on the side, but in January I did get a par-time employee job with a company called Lionbridge that I'd been doing some freelance work for. So I've been doing that part-time and working for Apptical full-time. However, I hope to be able to go part-time with Apptical in the next few months if the project with Lionbridge stays steady.<br />
<br />
Anyway, I hope to update my progress with my weight loss and other areas of my life that I've been working on at least once week, so be sure to check my Facebook page for updates!<br />
<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-61985872347430135242016-08-22T12:00:00.000-04:002016-08-22T12:00:20.850-04:00Weekly Update for the Week Ending 8/21/16Good morning everyone! I'm pleased to say I had a great week in all areas of my life.<br />
<br />
<b>Health/Weight Maintenance</b> - My workouts went well this week - I ended up staying the same weight as last week (119 pounds).<br />
<br />
<b>Coaching Program</b> - Doing well with my coaching program, I was able to get quite a bit accomplished this week. On Saturday, Nicola and I talked about several for me to look into, such as writing for higher profile blogs or websites that have to do with subject areas I like to write about, and possibly looking into writing for local publications. I also talked to her about the idea I had about starting a new website with my name as the domain name, and merging all my websites, as well as this blog, into it (more information on that below).<br />
<br />
<b>Writing</b> - I got quite a bit accomplished here too - I finally heard from the new owner of Work from Home Adventures, so I'm going to be starting to do some writing for that blog again. I also decided to go ahead and get the cover made for the eBook I started writing earlier this year, "Get Paid to Talk Volume 1: Employee Work from Home Phone Jobs." It's now up on Amazon, you can check it out <a amzn-ps-bm-asin="B01KN7PUJ0" class="amzn_ps_bm_tl" data-amzn-link-id="650498c99ea2d8763d75f3af1e11c7ad" data-amzn-ps-bm-keyword="get paid to talk " href="http://www.amazon.com/Get-Paid-Talk-Employee-Phone-ebook/dp/B01KN7PUJ0/ref=as_li_bk_tl/?tag=myebojou-20&linkId=650498c99ea2d8763d75f3af1e11c7ad&linkCode=ktl" id="amznPsBmLink_7812481" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a><img alt="" border="0" height="0" id="amznPsBmPixel_7812481" src="https://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?source=bk&t=myebojou-20&bm-id=default&l=ktl&linkId=650498c99ea2d8763d75f3af1e11c7ad&_cb=1471633071249" style="border: none !important; height: 0px !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important; width: 0px !important;" width="0" />. I also decided that I'm going to move this blog as well as my other websites to one big website, ericalynnmartin.com - I will be buying the domain later this month. If you want to receive an email when the site goes live, you can sign up at this form:<br />
<br />
<h2>
Subscribe to Find Out When My Website is Published<br /><span class="asterisk">*</span> indicates required</h2>
<div id="mc_embed_signup">
<form action="//blogspot.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=44ec37c1822f4c1f62a3cc9eb&id=94e40935ee" class="validate" id="mc-embedded-subscribe-form" method="post" name="mc-embedded-subscribe-form" novalidate="" target="_blank">
<div id="mc_embed_signup_scroll">
<div class="mc-field-group">
<label for="mce-EMAIL">Email Address <span class="asterisk">*</span>
</label>
<input class="required email" id="mce-EMAIL" name="EMAIL" type="email" value="" />
</div>
<div class="mc-field-group">
<label for="mce-FNAME">First Name </label>
<input class="" id="mce-FNAME" name="FNAME" type="text" value="" />
</div>
<div class="mc-field-group">
<label for="mce-LNAME">Last Name </label>
<input class="" id="mce-LNAME" name="LNAME" type="text" value="" />
</div>
<div class="clear" id="mce-responses">
<div class="response" id="mce-error-response" style="display: none;">
</div>
<div class="response" id="mce-success-response" style="display: none;">
</div>
</div>
<!-- real people should not fill this in and expect good things - do not remove this or risk form bot signups-->
<br />
<div aria-hidden="true" style="left: -5000px; position: absolute;">
<input name="b_44ec37c1822f4c1f62a3cc9eb_94e40935ee" tabindex="-1" type="text" value="" /></div>
<div class="clear">
<input class="button" id="mc-embedded-subscribe" name="subscribe" type="submit" value="Subscribe" /></div>
</div>
</form>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
That's it for this week, I will publish another update post next week.<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-70445696757411212632016-08-15T15:00:00.000-04:002016-08-15T15:00:05.337-04:00Three People Talk About Big Changes They Made in Their Lives<span style="font-weight: normal;">Eventually, many of us reach a point where we're dissatisfied with our lives - we may be in a job that's not fulfilling, or feel other changes need to be made in our lives. I asked for stories about changes that people have made in their lives, what prompted them to make the change, and what their lives have been like since then. Here's what they had to say:
</span><br />
<br />
<h3>
Q. What kind of change did you make your life?</h3>
<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="mbu-q-1202"> </a><strong>A. <a href="http://www.you-improved.com/">hhoover</a></strong> <i>(How creative thinking changed my life)</i><br />
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8848/28737765436_6e435659b5_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />
<br />
I was the sole family breadwinner, but decided to stop working for someone else so that I'd have more control over my life and more time with my family. I had no clients lined up and a non-compete with my current employer. My wife, who was not working outside the home at this point, said she had faith that I could make it on my own.<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong>A. <a href="http://minucaelena.com/">Minuca Elena</a></strong> <i>(Minuca creates awesome influencer roundups that provide quality content, brings huge traffic, and helps bloggers connect with influencers.)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8896/28715714745_51b7bd25e7_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />
<br />
One of the most important changes that I made was to give up to my job to become a blogger. I always knew that I didn't want to be an employee and for the short period that I had a regular job after I finished college, proved to me that this lifestyle wasn't for me.<br />
I used to work for an airline as a customer support executive. We worked in shifts and I could never plan anything because I had a different schedule each week. Some days in the morning, other times in the evening. The job was very stressful and the pay was very low. I worked for them for 4 months and then I resigned.<br />
<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong>A. <a href="http://www.bikealatteco.com/">BikeALatte</a></strong> <i>(Founder of Bike-A-Latte)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8561/28319354104_267359fdc0_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />
<br />
After I had given up racing (cycling) in college I began to put on a lot of weight. Constantly eating a lot of fast food etc. A couple years later, while watching TV, something sparked in me and I knew I had to change. From that day forward I had a simple approach eat nothing white (white rice, white bread, sugar etc) and to start riding again. Within 4 months I dropped from 215lbs at 5'9" to 165lbs and have never looked back.<br />
<h3>
<br />
Q. What happened that made you decide you needed to make a change in your life?</h3>
<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="mbu-q-1203"> </a><strong>A. <a href="http://www.you-improved.com/">hhoover</a></strong> <i>(How creative thinking changed my life)</i><br />
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8848/28737765436_6e435659b5_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" /><br />
It was late 1999. My kids were growing up fast in the neighborhood I promised not to leave until they finished high school. I wanted them to have a stable home life and to grow up with their close neighborhood friends, as I had done. Problem was, home was more than 30 miles from work and I was spending two hours per day on the road. I was reading Michael Gelb's book, How To Think Like Leonardo da Vinci, at the time. The book lays out da Vinci's approach to creative thinking and provides exercises to help you incorporate those into your own life. Gelb had a series of "power questions" in the book and one really resonated with me. "What one thing can you start doing, stop doing or start doing differently that would have the most positive impact on your life?" Stop driving two hours per day so I can spend more time with my family was the answer. Once you answer the power question, you must develop a plan to achieve it. So, I started right then thinking about how to bring this plan to fruition.<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>A. <a href="http://minucaelena.com/">Minuca Elena</a></strong> <i>(Minuca creates awesome influencer roundups that provide quality content, brings huge traffic, and helps bloggers connect with influencers.)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8896/28715714745_51b7bd25e7_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />
Initially, I started working for another blogger part-time as a VA. I didn't know anything about blogging but I was fascinated by the idea of working from home, not having a boss and the freedom to travel whenever and wherever I want.
After a few months, my part-time job as a VA became more of a full-time ghost-writing job, because I reached the point where I was doing all the work instead of the person responsible who hired me. I became frustrated by the situation because I knew I wasn't paid according to the value of my work.
I was feeling as an employee all over again. A year after my first introduction to blogging, with a lot of fear and lack of confidence, I decided to start my own business online.
<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>A. <a href="http://www.bikealatteco.com/">BikeALatte</a></strong> <i>(Founder of Bike-A-Latte)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8561/28319354104_267359fdc0_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />
<br />
I was watching TV, I believe it was the FIT Channel at the time, and looking down at my stomach in disgust I knew I had to change. We all need that internal motivation to make us commit to big changes in our lives. Why it was a fitness TV channel I'll never know. Plus I love being on my bike. And being 50lbs over wieght really slows your ability down on two wheels. I think the TV show was the wake up call and my love for cycling that allowed me to commit.<br />
<h3>
<br />
Q. What has your life been like since you made the change?<br /><strong><br /></strong></h3>
<h3>
<strong>A. <a href="http://www.you-improved.com/">hhoover</a></strong> <i>(How creative thinking changed my life)</i></h3>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8848/28737765436_6e435659b5_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" /><br />
I spent several months developing the plan, naming the business, and developing my positioning, as well as networking. I had worked for my company 11 years and felt I had to tell them about my decision, and they gave me their blessing. In October 2001, I launched Hoover ink PR with a positive outlook but no clients. As you might expect, I rolled out an aggressive public relations campaign. My first day in business, I got a call from a colleague who hired me on the spot. Within two weeks, I had landed two more clients, and I was spending more time with my family. After my one-year non-compete was up, two more former clients came on board. In 2007, the kids now off at college, an old friend and I merged to form My Creatrive Team. I sold my half of the business in 2015, which allowed me to start my new enterprise. I'm back to what I do best and love most: writing.<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>A. <a href="http://minucaelena.com/">Minuca Elena</a></strong> <i>(Minuca creates awesome influencer roundups that provide quality content, brings huge traffic, and helps bloggers connect with influencers.)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8896/28715714745_51b7bd25e7_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" />Not having a regular income was scary in the beginning. Fortunately, I had the support of my family that pushed me not to give up. The most important improvement that I made was in my mentality. I am more confident and more independent. Now, I support my living from what I earn online; I have savings and my income increases every month. Being connected with a lot of bloggers and influencers, I'm often featured as a blogging expert and this helps me increase my brand by showcasing my expertise to a larger audience. I have clients in all types of niches, like blogging, SEO, PR, eCommerce firms etc. As long as you are in a convenient situation you won't have the courage to make a change, but you will never accomplish your full potential as someone else's employee. Find out what you are good at, what you like to do and then try it on your own. Work really hard, over deliver and success will come with time and perseverance.<br />
<div style="clear: both;">
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>A. <a href="http://www.bikealatteco.com/">BikeALatte</a></strong> <i>(Founder of Bike-A-Latte)</i></div>
<img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8561/28319354104_267359fdc0_o.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 5px;" /><br />
I have dedicated my life to empowering the every day cyclist. The person who loves the feeling of cycling and wants to be health but has no desire to race. My personal goal is to help 1 million people find health and happiness on two wheels. Even though I'm not racing I ride any where from 10-12hrs a week. I hated mornings, but as my professional life started to grow I have had to find time to be on the bike. Now, getting up at 530am to go for a ride is a real treat and I can offically call myself a morning person! Becuase when you do something you love and its not a chore it seems to take the effort out of it, it just becomes a part of your day that you look forward to.<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-61314143778486002542016-08-15T10:09:00.000-04:002016-08-15T10:09:48.252-04:00Yesterday's Workout: Legs and Back and Pilates for AbsRealized I forgot to blog about my workout yesterday! Yesterday's workout was Legs and Back, which went well as usual. I also did Pilates for Abs because I ran low on time - didn't have enough time to do Ab Ripper X. Yes I could have made time, but I didn't feel like it. Yesterday morning Kevin and I went to breakfast at Golden Corral which we usually do once or twice a month. I actually had a good breakfast - got an omelet from the "omelet lady" that works at the buffet, and also ate some potatoes and some sausages and some red grapes - tried not to eat anything too high in sugar, but still ended up turning lazy and falling a sleep for a bit during the day...LOL.Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-70758776041690584732016-08-15T10:05:00.000-04:002016-08-15T10:05:00.342-04:00My Workout Schedule and Plans for this WeekGood morning! This morning so far I've been working on a few things - Kevin's getting ready to go out of town, so I got his laundry ready to go, and I did my daily routine (minus working out, which I don't do on Monday). Now I'm sitting here working on a few things for a bit.<br />
<br />
One thing I did this morning before I got in the shower, was I looked at the types of blog posts I've written on my websites, as well as on this blog, and came up with a few ideas for things I could do. Nicola and I had talked about the idea of me making up an e-course, or doing YouTube videos, but I also thought this morning of the idea of writing an eBook. I've written a lot of posts, especially on my Work at Home Tips Online website, about tips that will help people be more productive, or websites or products that will help people who work from home. I could easily put a bunch of them into an eBook and sell it on Amazon. I could also write a report that I could send to people who sign up on my website. I'm also still looking at the idea of pulling all my sites together into one website.<br />
<br />
Anyway, my workout plan for this week is:<br />
<br />
Tomorrow: Chest, Shoulders & Triceps and Ab Ripper X<br />
Wednesday: Plyometrics<br />
Thursday: Back and Biceps/Ab Ripper X<br />
Friday: X Stretch<br />
Saturday: Kenpo Cardio<br />
Sunday: Legs and Back/Ab Ripper X<br />
<br />
Hope everyone has a great week!<br />
<br />Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-78394546244699566752016-08-13T11:13:00.000-04:002016-08-13T11:13:06.502-04:00Kenpo Cardio and My Session with NicolaGood morning! This morning's workout was Kenpo Cardio, which I enjoyed as usual. I always get a good workout from Kenpo Cardio because I can really get into the moves.<br />
<br />
This morning I also had my second official session with Nicola - we talked about the homework assignments she'd given me for last week, and she asked me to think about a way to pull all my websites into one website, as well as ways to earn money from them, such as possibly offering an online course, and more ideas for selling my writing. She also asked me to think about what my hourly rate should be by looking at people who offer what I want to offer and seeing what they charge.<br />
<br />
Looking forward to today, Kevin and I are going to go see "Hillary's America" at the movies, and I also have some things to work on. Hope everyone has a great Saturday!Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-36371363086212715092016-08-12T09:03:00.000-04:002016-08-12T09:03:12.161-04:00X Stretch and Weight Loss for this WeekGood morning! Got on the scale this morning and found I'd lost 2 pounds - down to 119 for the first time in a while. This morning's workout was X Stretch, which felt great after doing weight training and aerobics all week. Not sure what we'll be doing this weekend, I do have my session with Nicola tomorrow, and I have some transcription to work on, but other than that I'd like to get some time in with Kevin.Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4420443492371209075.post-27686478451642722512016-08-11T09:12:00.000-04:002016-08-11T09:12:23.893-04:00Back and BicepsGood morning! This morning I did Back and Biceps, again without Ab Ripper X because I ran short on time. I love Back and Biceps because of the variety of different exercises it has - pull-up exercises as well as weight exercises for the back, and different variations of curls (regular bicep curls as well as hammer curls) for the biceps. This morning however I barely had enough time to get through Back and Biceps because I started late - I think I need to start putting out my workout clothes the night before so I can save time in the morning, as well as maybe put my weights out so that I have those ready to go.<br />
<br />
Hoping that today goes well at work, and that everyone reading this has a great day.Erica Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05487773936389112458noreply@blogger.com0