From shopping to beauty treatments, women want more of the good things in life. However, in a recent survey we found that many ladies aren’t pampering themselves during these difficult economic times, especially when it comes to buying new clothing and getting beauty treatments. With so many women cutting back on life’s little luxuries, it’s no wonder that survey results indicate that most women would like to be surprised with such enjoyable, pampering gifts.

We have responded to these results by giving women a number of opportunities to indulge in more of these luxuries:

First, we launched our new No Panty Line Promise® Luxe collection. These styles offer a lavish thread count and the line-free-confidence of our No Panty Line Promise® collection. Indulge in the luxurious fabric of our No Panty Line Promise® Luxe collection for ultimate comfort every day, at a cost you can afford..

Next, we will be kicking off our nationwide “Random Acts of Luxe” campaign by hitting the streets. We will be dropping into spas across the country and covering the costs of spa treatments for all lucky spa-goers present at the time. We will also be giving each of them a pair of free Jockey® No Panty Line Promise® Luxe underwear. Our planned city stops include Boston, Chicago, Denver, Miami and San Francisco. We will also be stopping at a sixth city, and YOU can choose our destination. Visit our facebook page and post a comment on our wall telling us which city (and spa) you think we should add to our list and why. Then between September 23^rd and September 30^th, take part in our Facebook poll where we will take the top responses from our fans and ask you to vote for the winning sixth city. Our spa visits will take place between October 18^th and October 29^th.

Finally, we will be giving away the ultimate pampering experience to one luck winner:  A Spa Vacation for two at renowned Canyon Ranch®, located in Tucson, Ariz. And Lenox, Mass. You can enter for a chance to win this four-night spa getaway anytime between now and October 31^st. (Register here).

“Every woman deserves to be pampered but we know they can’t always afford to do so,” said Sally Tomkins, senior vice president of Design, Research and Development at Jockey. “With the introduction of Jockey® No Panty Line Promise® Luxe and the Random Acts campaign, we really wanted to give women a special treat by adding a little luxury – and a few big surprises – to everyday life.”

Well, I don’t really have anything profound to say this week, except that: morning workouts have saved my life.

I never used to be a workout-in-the-morning type of person. In high school, it was torture to get up at 7:30am for cross country running practice. In college, getting up before 8am for anything, let alone working out, was unheard of. But, now that I am all grown up (at the ripe old age of 23), I find myself waking up before 8am, even on the weekends. I hate to admit it, but I have turned into my father already: “Look at all I’ve gotten done today, and it’s only noon!” Or on the rare occasion that I sleep in until 10am, I wake up and look at the clock and think, “Oh no, half the day is almost gone!”

But, the truth is: I love the morning! I don’t know how this magical change has happened, but there is just something about starting the day early. I love getting all those nagging “to-dos” crossed off my list so I can go into the rest of the day a little more care-free. This new love of the AM has especially come in handy for workouts.

It’s hard to fit in a social life, time with the ones you love, and even simple errands, when you have to rush home to work out, after already putting in your hours on the job all day. A couple mornings a week, I get up early (before the sun is even yawning), and get my work out in before I go to work. Some mornings, it’s hard to get out of bed. The other morning, I didn’t even get up to work out (oops). But whenever I DO get that cardio or weight training in, I sure can feel those happy endorphins as I jam out to the radio on my way to work as the sun is coming up. I don’t always feel the most “energized” like some people say they do, but I do feel pretty chipper and happy. And the best part is, my evenings are free for socializing, errands, or whatever else I feel like doing. Sometimes I just don’t know what to do with myself, with so much free time!

So, now I am proud to call myself a “morning person.” I didn’t even realize that I am a morning person until last week: On Thursday, I had to be at work at 6am so I could leave for vacation (road trip!) at 3:30 that afternoon. I knew I only had one option: I had to work out before work, since I’d be stuck in the car from 3:30 until late that night. So, on Wednesday night, I set my alarm for 4am and hoped I would actually get up. The next morning, I pushed the snooze button a few times, yes—but I was up by 4:30 and pumpin’ some weights. I’m not gonna lie: I felt pretty hard core when I finished working out and then was at work at 6:15 that morning. I did it!

The question is, if I can get up at 4:30am to work out, do you have any excuse next time not to get up? :)

I do have one issue with morning workouts: I need a healthy, protein-packed, quick breakfast to eat right after. I want to test a bunch of recipes next week and review some of them right HERE on this blog for your reading (and tasting) pleasure. So help me out, please! Do you have a go-to breakfast in the morning, or a favorite recipe? Please comment and let me know!

Fat Stats:
Starting weight: 166 pounds
Last week: 153 pounds
This week: 152 pounds
Goal weight: 145 pounds

Happy mornings,
Amanda
@jockey_amanda

William K. of Kalamazoo, Michigan called our personal shoppers because he was having a hard time reading his Jockey® catalog.  When Tammy Crane answered, she had such a “kind voice” that William didn’t mind sharing his story.  While trying to break up a fight, he suffered head injuries that left him with permanat visual impairments, he is unable to even drive a car.  Therefore, reading our catalog was difficult.

After placing William’s order, Tammy sent him a bottle of Vera Wang Fragrance for men, a special pleasure that his injury can’t steal from him.  And, in a card, she included a large-print note assuring him that all of his friends at Jockey® are rooting for him, a man who, despite what the eye charts say, still has better “vision” than so many.

If you had the opportunity to see our “Real Athletes” campaign last January, then you probably remember Stacey Kiefer (read her bio). This summer, Stacey displayed her incredible athletic abilities when she not only completed, but WON the Danskin triathlon in Pleasant Prairie, WI on August 22, 2010. We caught up with Stacey to congratulate her on her accomplishment and to hear about her training, the race itself, and what’s in store for her next!

 Here’s what our favorite tri-athlete had to say:
Q: How long was your training for Danskin?
I train all year round for triathlons, but vary the intensities and amounts of time depending on the time of year. A typical summer week (the height of tri season), I train every day for a total of 11 to 13 hours a week.

Q: What type of training plan did you follow?
I have 2 coaches who are local, Jay & Willie LaBonne. They formerly owned a gym, but now focus their efforts on training just a handful of athletes.  My coaches provide a plan and workouts that I complete each week.

Q: What was your goal going into Danskin?
 My goal is always to be as close to the top (ie WIN!), as possible. Traditionally, the Danskin race, like most of the single distance women’s’ races, is very hard because the field is not broken up into different distances, like sprint, international, etc. Everyone is out there competing in the same event, and women of all categories (amateur, elite, pro) and distance specialties (Sprint, Olympic, Ironman) show up to race.

Q: Do you have a favorite pre-race meal?
Hmm…I don’t have a single thing that I must have before racing, but I usually enjoy pasta the night before and a bowl of cereal, a banana, a glass of FRS, and a GU (energy gel pack) the morning of a race.

Q: Is the swim still your strongest leg? How do you rate yourself in the bike and run?
Swimming is definitely my strength…and the part I enjoy the most! In the swim and run I am usually near the top of the field, but I sometimes have issues with alternating between having a good bike, but a not so great run or a not so great bike, but a good run. It’s really hard to get all 3 disciplines perfected.

Q: At what point in the race did you feel like the win was yours?
 Because I raced in the Elite wave for this race, I could see that I was ahead of everyone out of the swim. My goal was to just ride and run as hard as I could to hold the lead. I knew the girl who was in second place was a really fast runner, so in order to stay ahead of her I needed to make sure that I had a decent lead off the bike. Fast runners can really make for an exciting race as they creep up on the not so speedy. I have to say, it was fun to be out ahead and keep the lead. I felt like a little rabbit being chased, but the spectators cheering were so motivating!


Q: Who came out to cheer to you on?
 Several friends who I race with came to watch the race as well as a few relatives. Unfortunately, my husband was home babysitting our two children, so he couldn’t come…but normally he would.

Q: How have you dealt with training in the Wisconsin heat and humidity this summer?
I do most of my training between the hours of 4:30am and 6:15am so heat and humidity are usually not much of an issue. I did have a few weekend workout sessions that were pretty scorching, but I just made sure to take in plenty of fluids and usually took a cold bath after working out. I think the hottest race this year was the Chicago Triathlon Aug 29. By 11am it was in the 90s…and that was at the lake!

Q: What does winning this race mean to you?
Winning Danskin was definitely a cherry on the top of a sundae. It proved to me that all of the time and effort put into training all year round was worth it. Not just winning, but feeling really good the whole race made me feel like I finally taught my body and mind that I can really race hard and succeed.

Q: How does the Danskin victory rate with other “wins” in your swimming career?
Winning triathlons is much different than swimming wins. Triathlons are much longer than most swim events and draw many more competitors. Instead of racing against maybe 40 people in your age group (like swim events), you’re racing again hundreds…and thousands if you’re shooting for an overall award (in triathlon). Also, triathlon success requires training in swimming, biking, running, along with lifting weights and stretching. There is so much time that can be spent trying to cover all of the training for tris. I think the best part of winning triathlons is responding with the answer, “yes” when my daughter asks me if I won…and seeing her excited and proud reaction…and then her request to have the first place medal!

Q: How do you juggle work, family and training? Any tips for other workout moms out there?
Juggle…that’s the perfect word! Actually, my husband and I live very scheduled lives. Because my husband also trains (but for Ironman distance races), we follow an agreed-upon schedule in which we alternate who can leave the house (or go outside to run/ride) and who needs to stay home and workout in the basement, where we have bikes on trainers and a treadmill. My husband and I also work and drive to work together, so we often take the turns running or riding to or from work, while the other drops off/picks up the kids. Advice I would give to other workout moms is to get yourself on a schedule and stick with it. I’ve been on a workout schedule for years, knowing what I will do each day. It’s gotten to the point where it’s hard for me to take a day off now because I am addicted to working out!

Q: What’s next for you? 
Now that my tri race season is over, I plan on enjoying a little down time with my family and then moving right into trail running season and Masters Swim season. Hopefully I’ll squeeze a little vacation in too one of these days! A little fall camping trip would be fun.

Stacey, thanks so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule for this interview with us. It was so great to catch up with you and hear about the details of your victory! You have a huge fan base here at Jockey®. Good luck with your trail running and Masters swim season. Be sure to keep us in the loop. GO Stacey!