Polar Monday

No, the title isn't for the arctic, icy weather we seem to have in Memphis today, although it could be. It's actually for the very first day I got to break out my Polar FT4 heart rate monitor and watch (maybe the best alternative to candy as an early Valentine's gift from JT) for my workouts. And I must say, it's fabulous, fun, and pink. I am in love. And I also felt totally official in the gym with it on, so that doesn't hurt. 

{not bad considering I've been out of the gym for nearly 2 weeks}

Something about new workout gear, extras (i.e. water bottles, hand weights), or a new routine that make things so much more fun. Variety is the spice of life, and Lord knows I continually need motivation to keep my butt in the gym. As I was still riding my endorphin-high from this morning, I stumbled upon this article. 

I'm very familiar with Tracy and her Method since I'm a big Gwyneth Paltrow fan (in the way someone can be obsessed when they've never actually tried it), and I'm well aware she swears by it. And I don't know if you've seen GP lately, but I think if she swore by drinking mud, I'd consider it, too.

All that to say, I think that once my bank account gets fuller (thanks to Nerium and extra freelancing I have lined up) I might just take the plunge and incorporate one of these DVDs into my routine. 

Because summer bodies are made in the winter, and homegirl has not one, but two bridesmaids dresses to rock in a few months. 

I'll try anything once

I'll pretty much try anything once, whether it's food, a style trend, or in this case, a healthy habit. I've seen people post about various tricks and thought to myself "hey, I could do that." Well, that thought turned into action last night as I was wandering through the organic foods aisles of my neighborhood Kroger. Partially because they were fresh on my mind, and partially because I was just plain curious (and the aloe water was on sale) I tried two of my "what ifs."

Aloe Gloe:
After seeing this instagram from the oh, so lovely Hilary Duff I was nearly obsessed and searched high and low for the ingredients for this healthy skin shot (since her skin is near flawless as seen here and here). But, like most things do, once out of sight it was out of mind. Until I stumbled upon this variation yesterday. They were 2 for 1 and I thought what the heck/what could it hurt. It can't be any worse than the coconut water everyone raves about (yep, tried that too, many moons ago. It was grotesque). 

I tried the white grape flavor last night, and to my surprise it was actually good. Really good. And obviously it's too soon to tell if it gave me glowy skin yet (fingers crossed), but hey the placebos don't hurt.

PB2
I've seen this stuff everywhere, and honestly was mildly freaked out that peanut butter can even ever be a powder. But, in an attempt to get healthy, I bought the chocolate kind (I doubt anything with chocolate in it will be bad) for my afternoon snack with carrots (don't judge... I found I liked the combo wile on le cleanse).

Any other goodies I should try? I'm game!

Tone It Up Tuesday

It's not exactly a secret that I have been attempting a healthier lifestyle (even before the new year when it seems like everyone is). But sometimes (okay...often) I need a little extra motivation to get out of my cozy, plush bed and brave the arctic temps to warm up my car and head to the gym to get my fitness on. 

I honestly find motivation in the strangest yet simplest places, and wanted to share a few with y'all (in case you're a mere mortal like me, and healthy/fit life is a constant battle of not eating the cinnamon chips or pack of starburst but still wanting that adorable bathing suit that's on sale).

The Bella Twins:
I admit it, I fully enjoy Total Divas, and not only to I watch it faithfully... I use their instagrams (Nikki's here and Brie's here) to keep me motivated. See here, here, here, here, or here for motivational images of them to inspire you. It's easier to do 5 more minutes on the stair master when you know Nikki is essentially squatting with the weight on a semi-truck on her back. At least for me anyway...

The Tone It Up/Toned Up girls:
Special thanks to Merebear for telling me about them b/c now that Total Divas is on hiatus, I need some female fitness motivation (not the scary kind that is what I tend to think weight training does/not at all what I want my end result to be [for example: this terrifying image]). Katrina and Karena have a successful web-series turned Bravo tv show where they help normal average ladies feel good about themselves and set fitness goals -- all while being fabulously quirky much like Mere and me (as in they text each other from the same apartment to tell each other night when they already said it 5 seconds ago anyway... guilty as charged). Their instas are full on motivation (examples here, here, here, and here) to eat a spinach salad instead of the above mentioned bag of starbursts (again, guilty as charged).

So, with the help of these motivators, I'm finding it a little easier to maintain a healthy lifestyle instead of chasing a number on a scale or feeling bad about a glass of wine after work.

Any other fitness role models y'all have out there?? I'm always looking for others.

Flashdance Friday (not really)

Okay, so this post has nothing to do with Flashdance as it pertains to the movie and/or the actual dance from the movie. But, I love alliterations. And in my weird little mind, I associated all YouTube videos as being "flashdance-y" types of distractions in which you repeatedly watch dance groups in Australian studios perform Rihanna or Beyonce music video choreography (I do believe I have Miss Claire Bear Strate to think for this mentality). 

Nevertheless, I have come to find that YouTube videos don't always have to be like that. Nor do they have to be about watching screaming goats or babies laughing (all of which have their place, mind you). They can be motivational; cue The Conversation | Honest Talk in which Amanda de Cadenet interviews some of Hollywood's leading ladies and digs a lil deeper than the average interview.

To better explain my infatuation (thus, hours of distraction) with the following videos I offer these facts about myself:
-I detest YouTube (except for gems like these videos)
-I'm vocal about my hatred of said social media outlet
-I'm freakishly obsessed with celebrities and their lives
-I truly, genuinely believe that I should be (and will be) friends with Nicole Richie, Katy Perry, Gwyneth Platrow, Giuliana Rancic and Tori Spelling (among others).
-I wish I had Amanda de Cadenet's job

Now, if you can accept these disclaimers, watch on and fall down the rabbit hole with me.


 

Motivation Monday

Some nuggets of inspiration to make you 

excited about the week ahead.

{the one and only Mary Poppins}

And finally....

Happy Wednesday Folks

some nuggets of wisdom from my ever-racing mind