What (Not) to Wear Wednesday

OK here's a quick tip for you all.  When you do early morning workouts at your office's fitness center, don't forget to pack your nice shoes for when you're done...otherwise, you end up going to work like this:

that is all.

Keep that summer glow all winter long!

Good morning lovelies!  One thing I've read on a lot of the blogs I follow lately is how to transition your wardrobe from Summer to Fall.  I'm loving all the tips, because as we know, I'm somewhat fashion challenged.  Today, though, I want to go in a slightly different direction.

I was blessed with my mother's (and her mother's, and her mother's) Irish skin.  It's pale, it's really dry but also oily in places, I have patches of what I call "chicken skin" - tiny raised red bumps on my arms and legs...I also have perpetually rosy cheeks, which is probably a mild form of rosacea.  I am covered in moles, several which have been deemed 'precancerous' and have had to be removed, thus leaving me with some gnarly scars, thanks to a tendency toward keloids.  I'm also mildly allergic to the sun (I break out in hives with too much exposure).  Let's just say I'm incredibly blessed when it comes to my skin.

rock that sunhat, gurl.
ironically...this is the day that I got one of the worst sunburns of my life.  i was methodically applying and reapplying sunscreen every 30 mins, but apparently missed a spot.  it was more than 3 years ago and i still have the 'tan line' .

All that being said, I have come to accept and embrace a lot of those...shall we say...quirks, as part of who I am.  And I'm learning to work with them and tailor my beauty routine around it all instead of trying to fight it.  In the past, I tried tanning.  That's no longer an option because...hives.  and cancer.  I rock some SPF 50 all day erry day.  For my wedding I did a spray tan, but that can get expensive and time consuming to try and keep up.  I've tried self-tanners, tinted moisturizers...the works - but if you know anything about me, it's that I'm completely uncoordinated and I always end up streaky and with orange hands.  With time, I've actually come to love my pale skin (at least from the waist up...my legs are still pretty scary and see-through pale, which is why I tend to keep them covered when I can).  Plus, if you'll remember from a friday 5 post many moons ago, red lipstick looks totally fab on my light skin and dark brown hair (just call me snow white, y'all)!

So when I was approached about doing this post about keeping that summer 'glow' through the fall, I was initially hesitant.  I'm not sun-kissed by any stretch of the means.  And my rosy red cheeks negate the need for blush or bronzer.  In fact, I tend to avoid much makeup on my face, because it makes my skin look more dry (not that I haven't experimented).

this is how you contour...right?

But I quickly realized, glow doesn't necessarily equal color.  A glow can be natural.  And in learning how to love and care for my skin type, I learned the products that help give my skin a healthy, natural 'glow', all year round.  Especially as the weather cools down and the air gets dryer, I have had to learn how to adapt my skin care routine in order to keep my pretty porcelain face looking on point.  The key to that?  MOISTURE!  I can't stress enough how important proper moisturizing is to great skin.  For me, proper moisturizing involves 3 steps.

Step 1: Hydrate!

1. 24 oz Tervis Tumbler | 2. Fruit Infuser Water Bottle | 3. Propel Water | 4. Water with Lemon

Drink ALL the water.  Good skin, great health, it all starts on the inside.  I'm the first to admit I'm a little bit of a tea junkie.  And I've recently found an affinity for iced coffee.  The problem is that the caffeine in those drinks is SO dehydrating.  So you have to drink more than the recommended 8 glasses of water per day to make up for it.  One way I do that is to keep my Detroit Tigers 24 Oz Tervis Tumbler at my desk and keep it full all day.  This results in several trips to the rest room, but keeps me nice and hydrated.  I try to refill it at least 3 times a day to get all my recommended water.  Bonus?  I get to show my home town pride!  I know what you're thinking though - water is so BORING,  Frankly, I don't share those sentiments.  I love water. But ok, I can work with that.  Spice up your water with a little bit of flavor.  One way I do that is with an infuser.  I throw some of my favorite fruits into my infuser and I get my water with some delicious extra flavor.  There are other health benefits to drinking infused waters when you are mindful of your fruit combinations.  Here are some healthy fruits and their benefits -
Lemon, Lime, & Cucumber: Hydration, Digestion, & Appetite Control
Lemon, Lime, & Orange: Immune Defense, Digestion, & Heartburn
Cucumber, Strawberry, & Kiwi: Blood Sugar Support & Digestion
Green Tea, Mint, & Lime: Fat Burning, Digestion, & Headaches
Pretty sweet right?  And all so yummy sounding right now!  Add a capful of Organic Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar and get a whole host of other benefits like suppressed appetite, digestive health, lower cholesterol & blood pressure, indigestion prevention, clears sinus drainage, gets rid of dandruff, boosts energy, clears acne, reduces bad breath, reduces nighttime leg cramps, whitens teeth, fades bruises, controls blood sugar, wards off kidney stones...the stuff is my (not-so) secret miracle worker!

Step 2: Exfoliate!

1. St. Ives Apricot Scrub | 2. Perfectly Posh Classic Snarky Bar | 3. Perfectly Posh The Stripper mask | 4. Perfectly Posh I'm Shrinking mask

Exfoliation is key to smooth skin.  Putting lotion on top of dry, flaking skin is going to do a big fat nothing for you.  I have a few exfoliating and pore cleansing/shrinking products that I love, love, love.  The first is nothing so special - just your basic, everyday St. Ives Apricot Scrub.  I love this stuff.  Been using it forever.  It's my daily face wash and it works so great - exfoliating with crushed apricot pit instead of those awful microbeads.  And it's gentle enough to use everyday.  The second is my body exfoliator (skin care doesn't stop at your neck after all).  I can't stop singing the praises of Perfectly Posh's Classic Snarky Bar.  First, the scent is to die for - bergamot, mandarin, freesia, lily, and sandalwood - I can't get enough of it (no for real, I think I own almost every Snarky scented product they make)!  More importantly though - it is the most effective exfoliator I've ever used.  They call it snarky because it's pretty mean...in a hurts so good way.  It takes some getting used to, but I've seen a major improvement in my overall skin smoothness and my chicken skin is actually clearing up a little.  This is another everyday product.  The next two I don't use everyday, but more when I'm having some trouble and need a little extra help.  The Stripper is a detoxifying mud mask for your face or body.  It pulls out all the nasty gunk that might have built up.  It's not for overly sensitive skin and has a burning/tingly feeling that lets you know it's working.  Another hurts so good product.  Finally, the I'm Shrinking pore reducing mask.  That's another thing I was blessed with - massive, highly visible pores, that get gunked up pretty easily (another reason why I avoid makeup for the most part).  I use this about  once a week to help keep those bad boys in check.  It's another tingly mask and does leave my face a little red immediately after use, but the results really speak for themselves, so I don't mind. 

Step 3: Moisturize!

1. Clinique Clarifying Lotion | 2. Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion | 3. Perfectly Posh Moisturize 911 | 4. Perfectly Posh Snarky Butter

So, once you've given your skin a healthy foundation by keeping hydrated, and gotten rid of all the junk on the surface, you're ready for the final step - the moisturizer.  I was raised on the Clinique 3-step system (I get the full system every Christmas) and have not found a toner that works better than my level 2 clarifying lotion.  It perfectly preps my skin and opens up my pores just enough to allow the moisturizer in.  I tag team with my moisturizers.  Because the skin on my face is super combination, I have to be very careful about what lotions I use and where.  On my oily spots, I use the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing lotion - a classic, which moisturizes just enough on oily skin so as not to encourage blemishes.  On my dry spots, I use Perfectly Posh's Moisturize 911.  It's a thicker cream that really penetrates the dry skin.  It's also caffeinated to brighten and tighten (I've heard some people tell me that if they use it at night, it keeps them up.  I haven't experienced that, but if you're really susceptible to caffeine, stick to morning applications with this one)!  Finally, for the below the neck moisture, I am addicted to my Perfectly Posh Snarky Butter.  This stuff is AH-MAZING.  It's full of so much good stuff - shea butter, cocoa butter, sunflower seed oil, almond milk, honey - plus it's got the classic snarky scent that I adore.  I've never gone through an entire container of lotion in my life.  I emptied out my first 8 oz tub of Snarky Butter in a matter of months and am into the second.  Addicted.

As I touched on in the Hydrate portion, healthy skin ultimately comes from a healthy YOU.  This post was prompted by ALOHA who aims to "share the breath of life" by making health simple, fun, and accessible.  ALOHA provides different health food products like teas, protein bars, snacks and supplement 'super foods' that help you support your overall nutrition.  Besides being able to shop for their products, ALOHA's website also offers some yummy recipes (and cocktail recipes!) that I am so eager to try - especially since I'm on that new health kick.  Here are some of the ones that I'm ready to make, like yesterday...

Organic Superfood Margarita

Pineapple Punch

Watermelon S'mash Superfood Cocktail

Thin Mint Smoothie (um...yes please!)

Healthy Homemade Frosting

5 Ingredient Chocolate Protein TEE-A (Chia) Pudding

Seriously...don't those look and sound amazing?  And not too difficult to make either, which is key.  Check out ALOHA's recipe page for more ideas for food and drinks that will keep you feeling great - and give you a beautiful *inner* summer glow, all year long!

Until next time friends...

*Disclaimer - All opinions expressed in this post are my own and were not influenced by any of the featured companies.

Getting Fit - Getting Fancy

I had every intention of writing a post about how I wanted to use my ECLP (Erin Condren Life Planner for the n00bs) vs how I'm actually using it, but being the ever prepared blogger that I am, I had not taken any pictures yet and apparently, I left my poor LP at home today...oops.  The bigger problem?  LP holds my list of potential/alternative blog topics and my memory is so excellent - I could not even begin to recall what might have been on it...So as I sit here trying to figure out what to write about instead, I realized how crazy sore I am right now - my abs and thighs especially and boom - there was today's post.

I realized a couple of weeks ago (or perhaps more accurately - as someone so lovingly pointed out), I've gained about 10 pounds since we moved to Tennessee.  My quest to be more fashionable is going to be for naught if I can't fit into any of the clothes I'm buying, I guess.  When I really started thinking about it, it made sense - I went from a job where I worked mostly on my own - so I brought lunch every day.  I had gotten into the habit of pushing my lunch time to the latest possible hour, many days skipping it altogether (I understand that this is not exactly 'healthy', but my body was used to a lower calorie count each day).  My job was, for the most part, completely sedentary and my own exersize came from playing with my toddler.  So I wasn't fit, I probably wasn't "healthy", but I was at an OK weight (not my ultimate goal, but not too far over it) and I was feeling, generally, pretty good.

At my new job, I work as part of a very close team who like to socialize - and food is a big part of the team dynamic.  That means we go out to lunch pretty much every day.   It also means that someone brings donuts or fast-food breakfast sandwiches once or twice a week.  And it means that we have a cabinet full of treats for random snacking throughout the day (which is separate from my personal snack drawer - but I also had that in MI, so that's not really a change).  Bringing or skipping lunch with the team means missing out on that socialization - which changes the dynamic in the office.  So I was introducing a LOT more calories without changing my exersize habits at all.  I was getting fat and my body was getting really, really fatigued.  I realized I had to make a change.

I'm not a fan of exersize.  Like at all.  I'm lazy and I know it.

Plus, I don't have a lot of time.  I prefer to sleep as long as possible in the morning and play with my kid in the evening (and at the moment, I have zero energy, so even that is hard).  I decided it would be easier to just change my diet.  My brain said the best way to do that would be to cut down on carbs.  I'm not sure what my brain was thinking.  I love carbs.  I'm Italian - we have pasta at least once a week.    I snack on bread because it's delicious.  I'm also Irish and potatoes are a staple side item for most of our meals.  Oh but sure, Chel, just stop eating all of your favorite things ever.  That's a completely brilliant plan.  I lasted about 5 days.  Then I said - OK start researching 21 day fix.  I've seen lots of people lose a shit ton of weight on that.  Um...measuring?  planning? and I have to get special color-coded portion control containers? No thank you - way too much work (have I mentioned I'm lazy?)  OK FINE.  I'll start exersizing.  UGH.

I thought I would take 20-30 minutes each day after work and go use the workout machines my parents have in their bonus room.  This was difficult because once I came home, Miles wanted to hang out with me and it was really hard for my mom or Chad to keep him away (kid loves his mom...can you blame him)?  I also had to make dinner twice a week.  So that wasn't going to work.  I couldn't use the machines in the morning, because Miles sleeps in the bonus room.  Luckily (?) my parents have 2 exersize bikes, so we moved one into our room.  I could get up 20-30 minutes early and ride that before I had to start getting ready for work (super).  I did that for a few days.  It was going well.  I was catching up on my neglected YouTube subscriptions.  So...cool.  But I also realized that I realize a lot of things I can't just ride an exersize bike for 20 minutes a day and expect to lose weight and tone up.  I started scouring Pinterest for some easy starter workouts that I could do in the morning with no special equipment or skill to help me start to feel healthy - think 30 day ab/plank/arm type challenges here (I'm really not going for much at this point.  I want to be healthy.  I want to have energy again.  I want to lose those 10 lbs I gained and then maybe (maybe) go for 10 more to get down to my goal and then maintain...maintain, maintain, maintain).

So for now, my plan is to bike or do some other form of cardio 2-3x per week, then do one of my pinterest workouts the other 2-3 days (and rest on the weekends). The last 2 days, I've been doing the *scientifically proven* 7 minute workout.

I don't know how sound the science behind it really is, but I do know it's doing something.  I'm unfortable while I'm doing it, it gets my heartrate up, I sweat, and my muscles are sore when I'm done.  That's the sign of a good workout right?
I've lost pretty much all of my upper body strength, so I'm doing modified pushups at the moment, but hopefully in a few weeks, I'll be able to do real ones.  Then apparently, there's an advanced version of this that I can try out once this becomes 'easy'.  

Before I got pregnant (yes...3 years ago...don't judge me), I had also started a couch to 5k (which I never finished because I had some terrible morning sickness on the day of the race) and a version of ab ripper x - which is 300 ab reps in about 15 minutes.  Here's the thing...I hate running, I have terrible knees, hips (see previous post for that explanation), and flat fee.  Running is not for me, but I did love the ab workout.  So I might get back into doing that a little.

And then for the days when I'm just having a really hard time getting out of bed and I realize I needed to get in the shower 6 minutes ago if I wanted to leave for work on time (and those happen more often than I would like to admit), I found these fun one-song workouts so I can squeeze in some high-intensity exersize in 2 or 3 minutes.

So that's my short term plan for getting fit and fancy.  Do you have any tips to help me along the way?  What are some of your short, home-workout favorites?  I'd love for you to share them in the comments!

Until next time, friends...