{"id":8003,"date":"2012-08-30T03:55:09","date_gmt":"2012-08-29T20:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/?p=8003"},"modified":"2012-08-30T03:55:21","modified_gmt":"2012-08-29T20:55:21","slug":"my-fitcation-getaway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/my-fitcation-getaway\/","title":{"rendered":"My Fitcation Getaway"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Lori Cunningham @wellconnectdmom<\/span><\/p>\n

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As you know, I love technology but another one of my interests is health and fitness. \u00a0Taking care of my body through\u00a0nutrition\u00a0and exercise gives me hope in knowing my body can better fight off cancers, shorten illness lengths, increase my lifespan, and give my children a good example of how to do the same in their lives. \u00a0When I heard from fellow MomsLA blogger, Leah Segedie, about Fitcation 2012, I was all over it. \u00a0Fitcation took place August 16-19th and there were only 20 spots available. \u00a0Fitcation was part nutrition\/exercise and part fun.<\/p>\n

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Fitcation stems out of a great support community called Mamavation. \u00a0Mamavation.com<\/a> is an online support group that offers women the opportunity to go through a 7 week online bootcamp with a personalized fitness and nutritional plan, complete with mentors and a growing community of Mamavation Mamas who have already been through it and support each other. \u00a0I have not had the privilege to be a part of the Mamavation community, but I can tell you, they are tight. \u00a0Everyone really seemed to know each other well and had much to laugh at, that had been discussed online. \u00a0Participants were from current and past campaigns and all just wonderful beautiful women who are making healthy changes for their own lives and the lives of their children.<\/p>\n

Attending<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

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Leah Segedie, @Bookieboo
\nMark Segedie, @MrBookieboo
\nShelly Oswald, @Momma_oz
\nAlysa Bejenaru, @InspiredRD
\nKia Ruiz, @Bodhi_bear
\nAmanda O\u2019Dair, @beeacutie2
\nAndrea Emilien @AndreaEmilien
\nAngela Bishop, @Ninemoremonths
\nApril Ockerman, @InsightsbyApril
\nCaryn Bailey, @Rockinmama
\nKrista Swan, @Kristalswan
\nLena Burkut, @elenka29
\nLolo M., @Mybaybah
\nLori Cunningham, @Wellconnectedmom
\nMegan Herbert, @mnmspecial
\nMeagan Carter, @NcCarterFamily
\nPamela Kramer, @PamelaMKramer
\nResa Barillas, @ResaMichelle
\nShannon Sander, @Ariesmommy
\nTina Kelley, @Madhattermom
\nWendy Del Monte, @Weightsover<\/div>\n
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\"Omron<\/div>\n
There were many great sponsors who helped to make Fitcation very affordable. \u00a0Thank you, Leah, for ensuring a gadget sponsor was included. \u00a0Omron <\/a>provided all of us with\u00a0pedometers\u00a0to track our walking progress. \u00a0Omron’s\u00a0pedometer tracks both calories and fat burned each day and with their PC software, you can track your progress. \u00a0Dole Foods were very generous, helping to provide beautiful refined\u00a0accommodations\u00a0at the Four Seasons in Westlake Village in California. \u00a0The hotel was so beautiful, I almost wanted to ditch the early morning exercises, put on a robe, and just lounge around!<\/div>\n
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I just loved turning on the\u00a0chandelier\u00a0in our room at night, it felt so luxurious!<\/p>\n

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My roomie, Caryn Bailey of RockinMama.net<\/a>\u00a0in the lobby of the Four Seasons. \u00a0We had some good laughs.<\/p>\n

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As we were exploring the grounds, I found this fun little getaway – it’s a private pool suite you can rent, just 20 steps away from the main pool.<\/p>\n

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One of the highlights of Fitcation was visiting Dole Foods<\/a>‘ headquarters, just a short walk across the street from the Four Seasons hotel. \u00a0The lobby was magnificent. \u00a0It reminded me of being in Hawaii, as it had similar island decor. \u00a0In my former life, I worked for Nestle USA, which wasn’t too far away from Dole Foods. \u00a0It’s been a while since I’ve visited a food company. \u00a0One of my favorite places at Nestle was the Test Kitchens, and Dole Foods’ Test Kitchens didn’t disappoint…<\/p>\n

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Dole Foods made a healthy version of oatmeal cookies for us and talked to us about their philosophy of making healthy foods available in ready-to-eat portions. \u00a0People will eat healthier choices if fruits and healthy snacks are in easy, consumable packaging. \u00a0Dole Foods is so strongly committed to offering healthy products, that they make all of their sliced fruit bowls in natural fruit juices. \u00a0Dole is the only company that does this with their fruit bowls. \u00a0I know because I never offered fruit bowls to my kids before because of the heavy syrups. \u00a0Several years ago I discovered Dole was using real fruit juices and \u00a0I have been buying them for my kids ever since.<\/p>\n

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Dole made us some of their famous Pineapple Banana Hummingbird Mini Loaves, and let me tell you, they were delish! \u00a0You’ve got to try the recipe <\/a>for yourselves! \u00a0Yum!<\/p>\n

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Dole treated us to a wonderful breakfast with fresh fruit, baked goods, and a fantastic view. \u00a0Dole employees get to take in the serenity of this beautiful “backyard” everyday along with their lunch.<\/p>\n

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One of Dole Foods’ new products is Portobello Mushroom powder. \u00a0Most people are not getting enough Vitamin D naturally from the sun due to the fear of sun burning and the heavy use of \u00a0sunblock. \u00a0As a result, our bodies are depleted of this important vitamin. \u00a0Mushrooms are the only vegetable source that provides Vitamin D. \u00a0We tried sprinkling the Portobello powder in our oatmeal cookies…and our yogurt to get some extra Vitamin D for the day. \u00a0The powder has a cocoa smell and taste to it. \u00a0We found it to be quite yummy in the yogurt parfait two of us tried it in. \u00a0We each brought a bottle home to sneak into our cooking.<\/p>\n

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On Saturday, we drove around in a private van to tour many of the highlights of Los Angeles. \u00a0We visited the local beaches, downtown, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Olvera Street, and more. \u00a0Above is a shot of Capital Records, an icon in Hollywood. \u00a0I have visited many of the tourists sights over the years, usually giving the tour and driving “the bus.” \u00a0But on this day, I was the tourist and could sit back and enjoy the show.<\/p>\n

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And of course, in Venice Beach, there’s always some sort of “show” going on. \u00a0This\u00a0skillful\u00a0Aboriginal\u00a0\u00a0impostor\u00a0utilized wooden snakes to make his act more engaging. \u00a0No doubt, he captured people’s attention!<\/p>\n

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\u00a0After a long day of sightseeing, we rested in this posh private room of the popular Middle Eastern restaurant, Marakeesh<\/a>, in Studio City. \u00a0We were graced with a wonderful belly dancer with a warm smile twice during our fantastic dinner. \u00a0Although this picture doesn’t show it, most of us got up and danced with her. \u00a0However, as the available floor space was long and narrow, those of us at the end of the room had a different interpretation of the belly dance as we could only see the person in front of us. \u00a0I’m afraid the belly dancer would have been appalled by my attempt at belly dance. \u00a0LOL! \u00a0A big thank you out to Leading Lady Bras <\/a>for sponsoring this great dinner!<\/p>\n

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But Fitcation wasn’t all fun and games. \u00a0We had workouts too…every morning! \u00a0I was really looking forward to the workouts until our alarm rang each morning. \u00a0I found my motivation was lacking in the morning. \u00a0Fortunately, everyone was counting on my roomied, Caryn, \u00a0and I to attend, there’s nothing like good old peer pressure to get you to do things that you SHOULD be doing. \u00a0I can see why Mamavation is so popular! \u00a0Here, OC Fit Body Bootcamp<\/a>\u00a0led our first morning workout. \u00a0I was sore for 5 days afterwards. \u00a0I didn’t expect that since I walk hills often as a part of my morning fitness. \u00a0Our coach worked us hard!<\/p>\n

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Here is more my speed, this morning workout was provided by Hoopnotica<\/a>. \u00a0I was really looking forward to this workout, but was nervous because I have never been able to hula hoop before. \u00a0Well, as you can see, I’m doing it! The Hoopnotica hoops are bigger and heavier than a normal hula hoop, making it easier to hula hoop. \u00a0They also come apart into pieces and bundled up so you can carry them around easily. \u00a0Our instructor taught us some great moves and how to dance while hooping. \u00a0I still have some practice in the dance department, but fortunately, Hoopnotica provided us with the hoop and a video to learn at home. \u00a0Hula hooping is a lot of fun and provides a great workout, who would have known?<\/p>\n

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Credit: http:\/\/inspiredrd.com\/2012\/08\/fitcation-2012.html<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

In addition to the fun long weekend, we were treated with bags full of fun, healthy things to take home with us. \u00a0New\u00a0Balance<\/a>\u00a0provided us all with fun purple sport shoes and Dole Foods<\/a> was generous with products and full-value coupons to try additional products. \u00a0SIP Certified<\/a>\u00a0provided a variety of great wines in the evenings along with another company providing a new product called Coco Breve<\/a>, which is a premium malt beverage with coconut milk and natural flavorings. It gives you a healthier alternative to beer and other wine coolers.<\/p>\n

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All in all, I had a fun long weekend with the Mamavation girls. \u00a0If you’re fighting with your weight and could use some\u00a0camaraderie, accountability, and support, I highly recommend Mamavation<\/a>. \u00a0Weight loss can happen if you do it alone, but it is such a more enjoyable journey if you do it with others going through the same thing and know what you’re going through. \u00a0Leah Segedie, founder of Mamavation <\/a>and Fictation, genuinely cares about their growing community and is committed to everyone’s individual success. \u00a0Thank you, Leah, for the opportunity to share in this wonderful Fitcation experience!<\/p>\n

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* I was provided with all of the items listed in this post as a part of attending Fitcation. \u00a0I paid a fee for being a part of this fun adventure. \u00a0All opinions are uniquely mine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My getaway Fitcation, combining fun and exercise, was a lot of fun. We stayed at the beautiful Four Seasons in Westlake Village. Fun exercise, a visit to Dole Foods Headquarters, a tour of Los Angeles, and camaraderie made this vacation memorable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8004,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,802],"tags":[799,858,1292,1289,1291,1294,1295,1290,1293],"class_list":["post-8003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-moms","category-trade-shows-conferences","tag-blogger-event","tag-bootcamp","tag-dole-foods","tag-fitcation","tag-fitness-vacation","tag-hoopnotics","tag-hula-hooping","tag-mamavation","tag-omron","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/p-content\/themes\/atahualpa342\/images\/articles\/2012\/08\/Fitcation-Group-Shot-2-400.jpg?fit=400%2C206&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8003","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8003"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8003\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wellconnectedmom.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}