My Fitness Pal- Follow me!

Do you have a myfitnesspal account? If you do, then you are probably on a journey similar to mine. I have had my account for some time now, and although I don’t regularly enter my meals or exercise I do go on to update and track my weight loss.

My goal is to be at a healthy weight. With my 4’11 frame, I should be somewhere between 105-128. With that said, I need to lose around 30 more lbs and now that I have nearly finished breastfeeding my one year old, I am getting back on the gym flow and will definitely be tracking (and sharing) my meals!

If you aren’t familiar with My Fitness Pal, it is a calorie and exercise tracking site that helps people lose and/ or maintain weight. You can connect your social media accounts and follow your friends’ activities! I have a few friends I harass on there.

If you’re a MFP user, follow me so we can support eachother! My username is as follows: mssickofbeingfluffy

New Blog- My Weight Loss Journey

I have a new blog, where I’ll be posting things similar to Let Pandora Help You Find Your Grove and Rice Cereal Squares. Those posts were actually meant for my Ms. Sick Of Being Fluffy blog. If you’ve enjoyed the last few posts you’ve read here, please go check out my new blog!

This one was made for Beauty related topics, like Beauty Subscriptions and Reviews so I will be posting all Fitness related posts to Ms. Sick Of Being Fluffy from now on.

Thanks!

Let Pandora Help You Find Your Grove!

I come to you today with a list I found via Pinterest (Oh, how I love Pinterest!) of Motivational Workout Stations. I’m currently listening to Hungry Like The Wolf by Duran Duran on the 80s Cardio Radio station and it’s awesome! All great upbeat songs, I’m in love with this station! I already use Pandora Radio when I run (OK when I jog) and I’m excited to have these new additions to my stations.

Before I go, another fab. find I came across this morning are some motivational tee’s. These are seriously so cute, and I love the quote!

You can view other colors/ styles here.

Rice Cereal Squares

This recipe was a lot of fun to make! I found it online but changed up a lot of the ingredients to match what I had in my pantry. The squares are supposed to be energy “bars” however mine were sort of flimsy and not holding their shape. This is likely due to me switching out so many ingredients.

Ingredients I used:

1/2 cup silvered almonds

1 cup dried fruit (I used apricots and cranberries)

1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

A small pinch of salt

1/2 cup of rolled oats

3 1/2 cups of Special K cereal

3/4 cup almond butter

1/2 cup honey

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Pam cooking spray

What to do:

Measure out dried fruit and almonds.

Give them a quick chop.

It doesn’t have to be perfect.

In a separate bowl, combine your cereal and oats.

Now you throw in those fruits and almonds and mix it all up!

Don’t forget your chocolate 🙂 I like the Kirkland brand from Costco.

Ok, next grab a microwave safe bowl and heat your almond butter (or peanut or whatever you decide to use) and honey until it bubbles. For my microwave, this took just over a minute.

While that’s getting nice and hot, grease a brownie pan.

Pull out your honey/ almond butter mixture and add to it the vanilla extract and salt. Stir. Pour into dry mix.

Mix well and place into your greased baking dish.

With wet hands, press the mixture down into the dish.

Cut into sections. I started cutting bars and then decided to do squares.

Allow to cool completely (I waited 2 hours) and enjoy! You can find the original recipe here.

This is a great make ahead recipe and is easy to double or triple. I especially like that you can substitute many of the ingredients to what you may have on hand. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out as well as what substitutions (if any) you made.

Tuna salad for lunch

This is a super quick make ahead recipe, packed full of protein! I make 2 cans of tuna at a time which will make me 2 servings.

What you’ll need:

2 cans of tuna
Light mayo or plain greek yogurt
Bell pepper (any color)
Onion
Celery
Salt and pepper
Cayenne pepper
Paprika

What you’ll do:

Open and drain your tuna
Place in a mixing bowl
Add a tablespoon or two of mayo or yogurt
Dice your veggies
Toss veggies and tuna
Season to your liking
Serve with thin wheats or on an English muffin or in between two slices of toasted whole wheat bread. I often will just throw this on top a green salad and eat it just like that!

Dont forget to drink up!

Putting in work? Reward youself!

I have been trying to lose weight while exclusively breastfeeding my newborn son. It’s been tricky since you can’t just start a diet without sacrificing your milk supply. I have had some success with simply substituting white with wheat and adding lots of fruits and veggies to my diet. What I eat has not been a problem, I love fruits and veggies and have found many recipes to satisfy my taste palate.

Working out is where I fall short. It’s hard to get motivated to work out, and when I am up for it the timing isn’t right. My newborn needs to eat or my toddler is in the middle of having a melt down and I am needed at home. I know that if I can squeeze in 3 workouts a week, it would really boost my weight loss efforts!

I recently joined a “Biggest Loser” challenge with a few Facebook friends. Each participant will pay to the winner, $20 in the form of a money order or cash. So far, we have 10 people, so there is a minimum jackpot of $200! So in addition to me desperately wanting my old body back, I also have this incentive to get moving! I decided to also start a rewards system, so that I have so pampering to look forward to as I move closer to my goal. This is so very important, when you have a good amount of weight to lose. When you’re just starting out, you don’t see results right away. In fact, it can take up to 12 weeks for you to notice changes in your body. That’s a long time, when you’re working hard and eating right every day. If you set up rewards for yourself, you will be more likely to keep with the regiment you’ve set for yourself. I suggest setting “mini” goals and rewarding yourself each time you meet one of those goals. If you have 15 lbs to lose, reward yourself every time you lose 5 lbs. It can be something small like a mani/pedi or something like buy a new workout outfit or pair of running shoes. As long as it gets you excited, it will work!

 

Julep Maven- The Intro Box

Hey ya’ll. I actually have had my Intro box for a few weeks now and thought why not share anyways? Julep Maven is a monthly nail polish subscription company. It costs $19.99/month however I have only ever paid that once! See, as long as you log into your account within your selection period, you can choose to skip a month if the colors don’t suit you. I simply cannot justify spending twenty bucks a month on nail polish! 

The way Julep works is you sign up, take a quiz and then the results of your quiz tell you which kind of Maven you are. Some of the styles include Boho Glam, Classy with a Twist & It Girl. A special box is created each month for each style. Once you are a Maven you can log into your account and choose to change your style. Say you are an It Girl but just aren’t liking the colors- no prob! Simply click on the “Try a new style” tab in your account and choose which style you like! I am Classy with a Twist (according to my quiz results) however I find that I am drawn to the It Girl boxes more often than not so it’s nice to be able to choose that instead.

I forgot to mention that I got my first box for just $0.01 using promo code “COLOR2012” (for new members only) so if you decide you would like to give it a go, remember to enter the code before checking out! Also, I would love it if you would use my referral link 🙂

http://julep.com/?r=20316264

QVC’s New Beauty Test Tube Spring/ Summer 2012

Hey guys! So, my first QVC Test tube came on Friday. If you aren’t familiar with the test tube it is a quarterly subscription service that costs $29.95 + 6.95 S&H. QVC gives you the option to have it auto-delivered and if you select this option, you may also choose to skip a month if you aren’t really liking the contents of the tube.

OK so here are the products along with the value:

New Beauty Magazine $10

.5oz Peter Thomas Roth Laser-Free Regenerator $34

Mally Beauty Evercolor Shadow Stick (in Twilight) $25

2oz Philosophy Amazing Grace Shampoo, Bath & Shower Gel $4.25

Tarte LipSurgence Lip Luster (in Adored) $24

6oz WEN by Chaz Dean Cleansing Conditioner  (in Lavender) $10.85

2.5oz Tropez Gradual Tan Everyday Body $11.19

2oz Bliss Fabulous Foaming Face Wash $6.57

.5oz Strivectin-SD Intensive Concentrate $19.75

A total value of $145.61!

Tarte LipSurgence Lip Luster (in Adored)

I have to say that the color (Adored) isn’t very pigmented at all. It actually goes on quite sheer which is nice, if you are looking for a light, natural shimmery lip. It has a nice minty taste & smell to it and glides on smoothly. Overall, I am happy with the product however I probably wouldn’t re-purchase in this color.

 

Mally Beauty Evercolor Shadow Stick (in Twilight)

What it claims: Glides on smoothly and allows up to 30 seconds to blend color before it stays put and will last until you want it off. What it does: Exactly that! The first time I had swatched this (for the un-revealing video I did on YouTube) I blended it out and it was very easy to work with. The second time, I only wanted to show what the color was like on it’s own so I didn’t touch it after. When I attempted to remove the swatch from my hand, it wouldn’t budge. I had to use a bit of makeup remover on a Q-tip in order to remove it. Should more colors become available, I might purchase another one of these.

Philosophy Amazing Grace Shampoo, Bath & Shower Gel

I just can’t get enough of this scent. I don’t think it smells like any one thing in particular it’s just a nice, airy, clean scent. I have totally shunned my other body washes since getting this one, I just love how amazingly fresh my skin feels after using it.

And that is all I’ve used as of yet. I do plan on testing out the StriVectin on my belly to see if it truely helps in removing stretch marks, so if any one is interested I can do a follow up for that. If you have any questions, please comment below! Thanks for reading 🙂

How To Get Bikini Ready This Summer

Spring has sprung and now summer is on its way! Which for us girls out there, not only means packing away the boots & scarves and replacing them with tanks and sandals but it also means that it’s crunch time! Literally It’s national Get Bikini Ready season! Here are just a few ways I’ve been preparing for bathing suit season:

• Drink up! I try to drink 1/2 my weight in oz each day to ensure that I stay properly hydrated. I know a lot of us think that if you drink too much water, you will retain it and have extra water weight but that just isn’t true! In fact, in order to keep from retaining water you have to drink more of it. As long as your body has plenty of water, it will not retain it.
• Break out the SPF! This isn’t really a product I even have to purchase, since I get so many with my monthly beauty subscriptions but if you don’t have any lying around, be sure to add it to your shopping list so you can protect yourself from sun burn this summer.
• Excercise! Whether it’s biking, hiking, swimming or the gym that you’re into it’s time to work it. And if you’re having trouble getting motivated, just remember that in two months from now you will have wished that you started today!
• Show your feet some love! Now’s the time to pamper your feet. When you get out of the shower (after you’ve dried of course) slather your favorite lotion all over your feet, leaving a little extra lotion and then throw your socks on. This will keep your feet soft and smooth and guarantee you sandal ready feet this summer!
• Eat Right! Not only will this help you to look better but you will feel better too. I recently purchased 12 pint-sized mason jars which I use to store salad in. Take an empty jar and coat the bottom of the jar with whatever dressing you want and then add in your veggies. Top w/spinach or lettuce and refrigerate that bad boy! Quick and easy for when you just don’t have time to make something. I like to make about 6 at a time, using different dressing and different veggies/toppings. I find that if it’s there and ready, I will eat it!
• Keep Kiss-able Lips! Keep your lips hydrated they too can get sun-burned so remember to keep a moisturizing lip balm or chap stick with you at all times!
• Drink up! That’s right, I said it again. It’s so important to keep yourself hydrated and it has many benefits too. It helps you to maintain a healthy weight and clears up acne so do me a solid and try to carry a water bottle with you when you’re out and stay with  a full cup of water next to you when at home.

That’s it my lovelies I really hope that you enjoyed reading this. I am by no means an expert in weight loss or nutrition, just sharing with you what I hope are some useful things to help you get Bikini ready this summer.