#MushroomMakeover - Here I Go (Day 1)!

This post is one of several as part of the Mushroom Council's 30-day weight loss challenge called the #MushroomMakeover. I am being financially compensated for my participation as an ambassador for this program but the opinions and anecdotes posted are my own.

All of us need a kick in the butt every once in a while. At the start of 2014, I told myself that I would be more focused on my health this year because the food blogger habits were catching up on my waistline and sleep schedule. I am the biggest now that I have ever been, and that is troubling to me. When I went to my first blogger/media event in late 2012, I took a look at the copious amounts of food we would be tasting and promised to Duc and myself (he promised too) that we'd continue to stay fit throughout all of the events. Less than two years later, we look down at ourselves and know that we broke that promise long ago.

The problem is...it's so much easier to gain that weight than lose it, isn't it? Working full-time (with an hour-long commute each way!) and running Much Ado About Fooding while trying to balance other responsibilities doesn't leave many hours in the night for sleeping nor time for exercise. Even though I said 2014 would be a huge change, I've only done little things here and there that are different. Then came the #MushroomMakeover challenge.


I first saw the information through one of the G+ communities of which I am a member. On a whim, I applied to be one of the fifteen blogger ambassadors to participate in the 30 day weight loss challenge, not expecting to be selected. Lo and behold, when the fateful day came around for announcing the participants, I scrolled through the picture list and found myself face-to-face with my own mugshot! What were the chances? More than 300 bloggers had applied - how did I get in? I was so humbled that the Mushroom Council found me a worthy ambassador and then quickly became nervously excited. What kind of commitment had I gotten myself into? It starts today and runs through April 7th.

Gorgeous lot of mushrooms at the Hollywood Farmers' Market

Last week was for orientation so all of the bloggers got to know each other a little bit better and the rules of this challenge. I'm pumped up to get started now and hope you do choose to follow me in this adventure! For the next 30 days, I will be using mushrooms as the main star for four dishes per week whether by using it as a meat replacement or blending so reduce meat intake. I think this will work out finely considering that I wanted to do Meatless Mondays for 2014 anyway! In addition to that, all of us bloggers will be following a workout plan put together by Mamavation, the community that is leading this challenge. You can follow along by downloading the PDF of that plan here.

The dishes will really test my creativity, and I want to challenge myself to do more than just your regular old white mushrooms. Duc and I already started that by visiting the Hollywood Farmers' Market yesterday and purchasing some unique 'shrooms from the LAFungHI stand. I'll also be sharing the mushroom facts I learn during this journey. Though this is called a weight loss challenge, my goal is actually not to focus so much on the weight loss as it is to change my everyday diet around. I like that we have a dietitian helping us along the way with suggestions. Duc and I have been wanting to be more conscious of our food intake, and this is definitely a step in the right direction. I hope you'll follow along! I'll be posting with the hashtag #MushroomMakeover on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter as well as doing weekly update posts here. There will also be a Twitter party on April 8th at 6pm PST/9pm EST so join on in!

More exercise and outdoor activities with Rusty also sounds like a good idea =]

This post is one of several as part of the Mushroom Council's 30-day weight loss challenge called the #MushroomMakeover. I am being financially compensated for my participation as an ambassador for this program but the opinions and anecdotes posted are my own.