I spent 2 Hours Making an Instagram Reel / Tik Tok (Day 2/90)

You know when you tell yourself the night before, right around 9 PM, that you’re going to get up super early the next morning and accomplish a ton of stuff? But then you stay up ‘til 1 AM binge-watching YouTube and snooze your alarm for 3 hours? Yeah… that was me this morning!

I started off with my daily Collagen Chai Latte - never a bad choice, if I do say so myself. Now, remember yesterday when I said I was going to get up at 5:30 today to work on my business since I didn’t do it the day before? Welllll, scroll up a few paragraphs and that’s why that didn’t happen. As I rushed through as much of my routine as I could get done before I had to leave for my day job, I made an action plan for the day to make up for my glorious slumber. Let’s continue.

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I work M-F 8:30-5, so that took up a majority of my day today. I got hungry around 11 since I didn’t really eat breakfast (the collagen helps me stay full, but it’s definitely not a meal), so I whipped out my handy dandy 2 minute meal! This consisted of the chicken I made from the night before (cooked at 400F for 25 mins - garlic powder, onion powder, and basil for seasoning) and a serving of the frozen balsamic grilled eggplant & pepper mix I got from trader joes, all topped with the pesto I made from last night and half of an avocado for extra fats, a.k.a. extra fullness. Now that you know the ingredients, here is my trick to packing a lunch in 2 minutes: leftovers and frozen veggies. FROZEN veggies. Straight into your tupperware. Call me crazy, but throwing those puppies in frozen, letting them thaw for a few hours in the work fridge, and popping it all into the microwave saves me so much time! Try it - you won’t regret it :)

As expected, I started to get hungry around 3. I packed a few mandarin oranges and a Peanut Butter Perfect Bar for my afternoon snack. I like eating around 3 or 4 because it holds me over for at least 3 more hours until I can get home, workout, and then be ready for dinner. So back to the bar. If you’re a peanut butter lover, this is the bar for you! It was so good and honestly, just half of it filled me up for 2 hours. And the best part? I got mine for free from my local grocery store by using the ibotta app. I just downloaded this a few days ago in an effort to save more money whenever and wherever I can, and I already love it so much. I’m not sponsored by them, but I really do love it so far and I am such an advocate for saving money and being financially independent, so here is my sign up link. If you use my code, “ekxmtgq” I get $7 for referring you to the app. Use it if you want, or don’t (although I’d be very thankful if ya did), but I highly recommend the app regardless!

Before I left work, it hit 5 o’clock and I thought I’d just check out some manufacturers for the products I’m launching this year for my first business venture (more details coming very soon!). Surprisingly, staying late at work was the best decision I have made in awhile. I submitted a proof for my product, I sent my designs to my besties for feedback, and I got myself just 1 step away from having my product in my hands for the first time! Not only was this extremely exciting, but this motivated me for the rest of the evening.

I got home and immediately hopped on Instagram to ask you lovelies for feedback on my blog because I really really really want this to become my career, and I want to provide value to you every single day.

If you’re reading this, please give me feedback on it! The good, the bad, and the ugly! Seriously! DM me on Insta @MyLifeAsLJ or send me an email, thank you! 

This then triggered inspiration to make my very first Instagram Reel! However…

I spent 2 hours making my first Instagram Reel. TWO HOURS for a 13 second video. When I posted it, I used too many hashtags, so it deleted the entire caption. And if you know anything about the Instagram algorithm, that is basically a guarantee for zero chance of exposure :) But hey, I had fun with it! If you’re interested in 3 quick & easy ways to build a stronger core by using a volleyball, click here! 

​After I posted the Reel on Instagram & TikTok, I fell into a dark, dark hole for another 2 hours. Scrolling, scrolling, and ever so mindlessly scrolling. Then I got up, and since I was still stuck in the TikTok scroll hole, I threw together the simplest dinner ever: an even easier version of the ground turkey tacos I had for lunch yesterday. Today, it consisted of romaine leaves, ground turkey, salsa, hot sauce, and sunflower seeds. I slapped it all in a romaine leaf, without even heating up the turkey, and that was my dinner. I thought it was going to be gross, but what the actual heck, it was INCREDIBLE. I am not kidding, you have got to try this recipe. I went back for seconds and I was full for the rest of the night because of all of the wonderful fats in the sunflower seeds! So good!

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As you can imagine after 4 hours of consecutive 15 second videos, I was getting really tired, but I still hadn’t done my workout. I felt the sleepiness slowly taking over me (cookie cravings were real as of right now), but I snapped out of it and said, "Nope! I’m doing my Pilates." So, I ate a peach for a quick burst of energy and did this 20-minute pilates workout. It was a little easier than I was hoping, but it was actually a very relaxing workout :)

Aaaand here we are! Writing my Day 2 blog post, sipping on my favorite Throat Coat tea, smelling this incredible Cardamom & Vetiver candle, and listening to my favorite Spotify playlist for staying focused. Ahhhhh, how relaxing.

What a great day! I feel so good for accomplishing all of my goals (skin care is right after this blog, of course!) and sticking to my plan, and I cannot thank you enough for all of the wonderful feedback and support you have given me during my 90 Day Challenge journey. It really does mean the world to me, and you mean the world to me. If you’ve reached out offering your thoughts on any of the things I’m doing right now, this one’s for you. I appreciate you.

I’m going to end this with a little segment I call, Gratitude Unwind. What are 3 things you’re grateful for, and what was the part of your day that made you feel the most inspired?

Leave a comment below, DM me on Insta, or shoot me an email! I'll always respond :) 

Thank you for being here & thank you for being you,

Leah Jean