Write It Down and Switching it Up

Working out can get monotonous and boring if you don't spice things up!  If you have a plan written out ahead of time your work out will be more efficient and maybe you'll be a little more motivated to get out there and workout if you've already taken the time to prepare for it.  Also, if you write it out for the week, you're more likely to have a balanced workout so all your muscles can be equally challenged.

Here are a few different options for writing out workouts:
1.  You usually want to start with core, then work on the bigger muscles down to the smallest ones.  The order would go something like this:  Core, Quads, Hamstrings, It Bands (side of legs), Glutes, Chest, Back (upper and lower), Abdominals (Upper, Lower, Transverse) , Shoulders, Biceps, and Triceps.

2.  You can vary your workout by doing muscles back to back, i.e. chest then back, hamstrings then quads, etc.

3.  Do two different exercises for the same muscle instead of doing sets.

4.  You can do a workout with only free weights and body movements.

5.  A workout with only resistance bands.

6. Do only explosive exercises, i.e. throwing a medicine ball for you chest, jump squats, etc.

There are endless options for workouts, it's just taking a little extra time to spice things up and you will keep your workouts more efficient and exciting so you'll want to do it again the next day– instead of dreading it!

Mascara

I hear this mascara is amazing.  I'm going to try it out and tell you what I think about it.  I'm all about finding the best mascara– if you haven't noticed :)  This one might be it so I will let you know what I think about it when I try it.

The End of Overeating

The title of this book caught my attention so I picked it up.  Although it's quite dry and his conclusions are somewhat obvious, there are a few good points I thought worth sharing.  Here is a watered down version of his explanation and cure to this dilemma.

When we eat foods that are high in SUGAR, SALT and FAT it triggers our brain to crave more.  Even if we aren't hungry, it still triggers our brain because it wants more pleasure. Although his conclusions seem quite elementary or obvious, sometimes we forget that's why we're craving so much.  We wonder why we can't stop eating and we don't stop to ask ourselves what we've been eating, which is usually the culprit.

His first suggestion to overcoming overeating is being AWARE.  That's basic enough for us I think.

The second  is to ENGAGE IN COMPETING BEHAVIORS.  For example, change your routine from going straight to the refrigerator after work or taking a different route to avoid a tempting fast-food restaurant that calls your name every time you drive by.  He says "the competing behavior needs to be planned before you encounter a cue."

The third explanation is to FORMULATE THOUGHTS TO COMPETE WITH.  So now that we've got the behavior down, we focus on the thoughts.  His example is instead of saying, "'That pint of ice cream looks really good to me; I'll just have a few bites,'" instead say, "'I know that I can't have one bite because it will lead to twenty.'"  Remind ourselves of our goals instead.

SUPPORT is his fourth suggestion.  You can take that how you want.

The author suggest setting RULES to "help us make the steps of habit reversal real."

Basically, we want to reverse our habits of overeating.  We can help ourselves accomplish this by being AWARE of the foods that trigger us that are very high in sugar, fat, and salt.  (Basically any junk food.)  We can AVOID our "bad" behavior and try to replace it with "good" behavior.  Next is to keep our THOUGHTS in check.  Don't let food be the highlight of your day.  Don't expect so much pleasure and satisfaction from it because then when you have it, it's almost never enough.  Of course I'm not saying don't enjoy food, but you know what I mean when we set such high expectations that if we eat this cookie or cake it will make us happy, or make our day.

Want Natural Looking Lipstick?

I've recently discovered a great lipstick.  It's actually in the form of a lip pencil, but it has a gloss or shine to it, so it's not matte.  The brand is Purminerals.  I know, the name and idea sounds like a rip off to Bare Minerals, but I like a lot of their products.  I have a blush from them called Hot Rocks, and it's very light and natural looking with a little shine.  I like that the products look natural but are quite flattering and not dull.

The lipsticks/liners come in a pack of four (at Ulta) and it costs $28, which is actually pretty good considering the quantity.  I bought only one of that type from Benefit for the same price.  If you go online they are $12 each, so it would come out to $52 with tax, so it's a pretty good bargain.  There's one color that's a bit barbie pink which I'm not a huge fan of, but it's still worth the price and it's still quite light and natural so it's not over the top.

So next time you're in Ulta check out their products, you might like them!

Have you tried this?

This is a crunch and abduction at the same time. You put the resistance band around your thighs and as you come up for the crunch, spread your knees apart, causing the resistance band to stretch which works your outer thighs.


Take a lunge, and as you do, reach your arm forward (same side as front leg forward) and keep the other arm bent, like you're pointing a bow and arrow. Alternate sides.


Put the resistance band around your calves. Squat down touching your toes. When you stand from the squat, raise left leg to the side, working your outer thighs and lifting your arm. Repeat and alternate sides.


All pictures are from fitnessmagazine.com

Family Cardio

Kids are out of school a lot around the holidays and it's not always easy to get your own workout in.  Not just that, but you're probably wanting to spend that extra time with your kids while they're at home with you, and to teach them to be active since kids are less active these days than they used to be with technology as their entertainment.  Here are some active things you can do with your family that you'll both benefit from physically as well as enjoying being with each other!  It's important to think of cardio as just being active in our lives and not always a torturous thing or forcing ourselves to go on a run!  The more we incorporate daily type activities to stay active we'll be much more likely to live a healthy lifestyle and stay active longer!

Roller Skating
Family Hike 

Ice Skating
Snow skiing
Family Dance Off

Snow shoeing
Roller blading

Musical Chairs

Sledding

Family bike ride

Family kickball, or sports game (softball, soccer, basketball) 

Hair Smoother

 
Pureology 

I hear from a great source that the Pureology SuperSmooth Smoothing Elixir is a great product, if not the best, to keep your hair silky smooth without weighing it down.  It's light and keeps your hair manageable by keeping those frizzy stray-aways down.  So if you're looking for something (that actually works) to tame that mane of yours, this just might be for you!