Vodka and Soda

program review: insanity

 

what:  60 day program of high intensity interval training (HIIT) cardio

level: advanced; not for the faint of heart

intensity:  death ass-kicking

target:  total body conditioning and maximum fat burning

equipment requirements:  none.  a floor mat if you're working out on a hard surface.

exercise duration:  45mins - 59mins

meal plan:  yes

 

the mother of all cardio workouts.  i started insanity at the beginning of may and i'm still using this program because i love it so much.  in some weird, convoluted way, i don't want this program to end. 

all insanity exercises involve intense cardio conditioning - power  moves, lots and LOTS of plyometriccs (aka "jump training") and a lot of core work (planking).  each circuit is about 3 minutes long and within each circuit there are there are about 3 or 4 intervals lasting approximate 30secs each.  after each circuit, there is a 30 second rest period so you basically go as hard as you possibly can for 3 minutes and then you have 30 seconds to go throw up or call 911.  weights are not required; the moves uses your own body strength to sculpt and tone your body.

insanity is split into 2 phases - month one workouts are about 40mins long; all hard, all ass-kicking.  every single workout in each phase has a brutal warm-up that isn't even considered a warm-up in my books; it's a warning to those who attempt insanity of what's to come. 

in the second month, every workout is prefixed with the word "max" (ie. "max interval circuit" or "max interval plyo") so you know he ain't playin'.  the duration of the workouts also increases from 40mins to 59mins and the intensity goes from ass-kicking to suicidal.  even now, 2 months into this program, it still kicks my butt every time.  hell, even those trained athletes, marathon runners and beach body coaches and military/marine peeps are walking off in the video or half dead during and after his workouts. 

insanity comes with a calendar for the entire program, split into month one and two.  it encourages you to workout every day with one rest day and includes a mid-month 'cardio recovery week' which involves a lot of core/balancing and plank work.  don't let the word "recovery" fool you; it's still an intense workout, just not as much jump training. 

the results:  this is the best and most effective program i've ever done.  part way through the first month, i stopped following the program calendar and instead, i decided to work out 5 days of the week instead of 6 (it's hard to work out on the weekends since we're always out with kayla) and i skipped the cardio recovery week altogether simply because i felt that my 2-day weekly rest days gave my body enough time to recover.  i also stopped using the calendar to figure out which workout to do; i just did whatever program i felt like doing that was in that particular phase. 

i saw the most significant results from month 2. in month one, i was losing inches but when i started month 2, not only did my metabolism shoot way up, the fat practically fell off my body.   my body literally burned through everything i ate and i had to eat more from the insanity meal plan to keep me full longer and stop me from eating every hour (i realized i was eating the right things, just not enough of it). 

i'm still doing month 2 workouts but now i'm only doing them 3 times/week and incorporating his upper body strength training 1 time/week and a jillian michaels body revolution weight training program 1 time /week.   i guess you can say that i'm no longer in full-on insanity mode but using this as 'maintenance' becasuse i'm moving towards more muscle definition and sculpting.

rating:  10/10. 

 

life of a housewife - holistic healing

 

yesterday was awesome; it was a day spent getting acupuncture, a massage followed by a lunch date with myself.  what's weird was i got all kinds of strangers staring at me because i was eating by myself!  another post on this very topic to follow....

i've been seeing my acupuncturist for a over 5 years now and she's the best.  i started seeing her because i had the worst carpal tunnel; i'm talking so bad that it would keep me up at night or wake me up at night, throbbing.  every doctor i saw (and i saw about 3), recommended surgery (which i didn't want to do) so as a last resort, i took my sister's advice and booked an appointment with leanne.

i won't lie: i was scared (they're needles for christs sake!).  i was also a non-believer because how could a few needles cure me?  psssssht!!  well, after three treatments, not only was my carpal tunnel 100% cured, i was also a believer; so much so that i sort of became her unoffical advocate, often pimping out her name to my friends and family who complained about health ailments or pain.  

leanne had opened up her own clinic - called living waters therapies - close to the beaches but i wasn't able to visit until yesterday.  

 

that's leanne - owner and doctor of traditional chinese medicine.

 

this looks like my mom's medicine cabinet at home!

 

i called leanne because i'm convinced that part of my recent skin freakouts is due to my hormones.  after our consultation, she believes that while my exercising is great, part of the reason why my skin is reacting is because the toxins that are leaving my body are coming through my skin instead of going through my digestive system.   i also told her about my whole imbalanced hormone thing so we've started a treatment to target my kidneys and endocrine system to stabilize the hormones. 

 

my treatment room.  fell asleep and took a 15min snooze, needles and all; it's that relaxing!

 
to divert the toxins to exit my body through my digestive system, leanne gave me several months' worth of ginseng.  there are 2 kinds here - canadian ginseng (which isn't as strong and has a "cooling" effect on the body) and panax (chinese) ginseng (which has a "heating" effect on the body).  my mom drinks ginseng on the regular but i prefer pill form because drinking boiled ginseng tastes as good as eating week-old garbage, it's so disgusting.

 

 lunch was a yummy california salad with a seared steak and a raspberry mojito.  i figured i could use a drink since i was going swimsuit shopping (ugh, worst) and the booze would soften the blow. 

 

 

HAPPY FRIDAY!!

 

looking back ... 2 years of awesome

 

[photo location:  anguilla, BWI]

i was in a very different place around this time 3 years ago.   darkness, despair and sadness surrounded me daily but this month 3 years ago, i was finally cured of my depression and every june, i think about where i was and how far i've come.  while i don't focus on what happened, i will also never forget it because it'll always serve as a reminder that there's nothing more important than life, family and friends.   i've written about my journey several times; all of the posts can be found here. 

the  last two years have been totally awesome - happiness, love and laughter surround me.  

my depression put a strain on my marriage and it took us a long time to get back what we had but my marriage is stronger than ever.   i have the best, most supportive and loving husband in the world who is all kinds of sexy man-hunk.  i know, barf.  sorry y'all.

i love being a mother and it still makes me sad that i lost that first year with kayla.

i am head over heels madly in love with kayla.  she's the most brilliant, adorable, gorgeous and hilarious kid ever.   i can't imagine my life without her.

i thought i had a close relapse towards something which i thought was my depression coming back but after a session with my psychiatrist, it's gone (thank goodness).  since my depression, i'm now aware of my triggers and what i need to do to get back on track.

when work was going on, it was fun, challenging and most importantly, interesting.  to be honest, i was a little disappointed that i had to leave (the project) because it was my baby.

i haven't been this healthy in years and i'm so proud of myself.  i've been feeling so awesome because i'm doing ass-kicking workouts that are changing my body; like, insanity ass-kicking.  i'm going on 6 months strong and i pat myself on the back every single time.

i'm off for the summer and loving every.single.minute.  you all must be tired of my life of a housewife posts and tweets by now.

with the gorgeous summer weather, i want to spend more time with my awesome friends.  wonderland?  zoo? playdates?  shopping?  dinners/drinks?  i'm available!!!  last weekend we had an impromptu bbq and everyone - including the kidlets - had a blast.  i want to have more of those so friends, consider this  your warning.

 

here's to an awesome summer! 

the life of a housewife - update

 

 

it's been about 2 weeks since becoming a housewife (of toronto) and i gotta say, i'm totally loving my time off and spent no time getting used to doing nothing.

my first week off was my 'vacation'.  yes, yes; i know i have 3 months off but i'll be keeping busy during these 3 months and i wanted to have a 'do nothing but pamper myself and fun stuff' week before i started all of my house tasks.   my vacay week was filled with blogging, relaxing, napping and putting around the house; not to mention shopping, facials, massages and pedicures.  oh the life of a housewife... it's pretty fucking awesome.

i recently blogged about my switch to an all-natural makeup line and last week, i had my facial and skin consultation at Pure + Simple; a spa that is dedicated to providing holistic skin treatments using natural and organic products.   since my skin hasn't been on its best behaviour lately and after some chats with bloggy pal, elaine, i decided to book an appointment to talk to them about my skin and possible alternatives for skin products.

 

 

when i walked into the spa, i saw rows upon rows of skin products and i felt like a giddy kid in a candy store; i'm glad i got there early so i could take some pictures and browse the products at my leisure. oh and just so you know, by the time i remembered to take a picture of the room before i messed up the bed, i was already in my underwear fumbling around with my phone camera in a very dim-lit room so i couldn't get all fancy and photographic because i was afraid the lady would walk in and see me nekkid.  

i received the super hydrating facial since my skin is dry and not only did i love the products that were used, it was an awesome and relaxing facial. although my skin looked great, it still felt a little tight but i think it was because the proper moisturizer wasn't used.  i also didn't really click with my esthetician (which is very important for me in order to trust her with her product recommendations etc), but i enjoyed the facial and the atmosphere so much that i went ahead and purchased a package of 3 facials and will just book with another esthetician.  hmmm... i wonder if that's bad form?

prior to my appointment, i researched the hell out of their products  and while i was disappointed that i didn't get the answers i wanted about my product inquires, i decided to go by my research and hauled the following products:

 

martina gebhardt black mud cream | P+S organic peppermint lip oil | P+S organic lime lip balm | P+S collagen elastin Plus | P+S rejuvenating rosehip mask | P+S calming cucumber mask | jurlique eye cream | P+S sunflower cream (sample) | P+S sensitive skin oil (sample)

 

you don't want to know how much i spent (it's ridic) but i'm excited to use everything.  after what i spent, i expect to have skin as soft and smooth as Kayla's in no time.  product reviews will soon follow.   

*****

there's a lot going on in my house right now; we hired some painters and finally, our screaming white walls are no more.  they're painting the entire bottom and top floor with amazing colors that hubs picked out and we got a steal on the quote.  it also helped that my good friend is the owner's good friend and i'm convinced (although he never told us) that he's doing this job with a very low profit margin.  

right now, i'm holed up in my media room listening to them trudge all up in my house with their boots on (!!!!).  i was raised in a house where shoes remain in the front foyer and while i understand their need to keep their shoes on (safety with ladders etc), the chinese in me cringes every time i see them trampling upstairs or leaving boot marks on my hardwood floors and it takes everything i have not to follow them around with a vaccum or mop.

next week, the shutter guy will be coming but here are some before and after shots of what our house looks like (besides being a freaking mess):

 

once everything is done, i'll be posting another update.  it's going to look so awesome i can hardly wait.

 

natural beauty - la bella donna

 

i'm in love.  my wallet also hates me.

on tuesday i went to visit my sister so i could check out her favorite make-up line, la bella donna.  in a previous post, i mentioned that i'm switching most, if not all, of my face products (skin and makeup) to all-natural alternatives and my first stop was at my sister's derm office to check out la bella donna.  

who:  created by a mother and daughter team who struggled with their own skin challenges and created la bella donna to promote and share information about the amazing benefits of all-natural makeup.

what: a complete collection of mineral-based formulas that are actually healthy for the skin.    this all natural makeup line is made from cherished mineral pigments derived from rock that (according to their brochure):

• heals, soothe, calm and do not irritate the skin
• covers, corrects, beautifies and protects
• does not clog pores
• corrects all skin challenges - acne, oily skin, rosacea, eczema, melasma, psoriasis (hmm not sure about this one but i'll see how it does with my eczema)
• balances the moisture content in the skin
• is ideal for sensitive, allergy-prone skin
• contains natural non-chemical sun protection - provides a full spectrum sun block protecting your skin from harmful UVA/UVB infrared rays
• provides superior coverage all day because of the high color pigmentation (a little goes a long way!)
• contains light refractive qualities which immediately reduces the appearance of lines and wrinkles
• will not harm the body as there are no chemical ingredients which means it's safe for pregnant women

their products only contain the following:

• micronized titanium dioxide - non-chemical sunblock (SPF 20)
• iron oxides - the source of color
• bismuth oxychloride - anti-inflammatory properties
• zinc oxide - anti-inflammatory properties
• free of any FD&C dyes, oils, talc, alcohol, parabens, cornstarch, chemicals

sounds pretty good, right?

michelle, who is a RN at the derm office, helped me and man alive, i wasn't even paying attention to what she was saying to me because i couldn't stop staring at her gorgeous skin.  i'm talking about totally air-brushed skin that you only see in magazines and you couldn't even tell that she was wearing makeup.   when she told me that she only uses la bella donna products, i pretty much handed her my credit card and told her that i would buy everything she recommended (i'm a sucker for good products).  she thought i was joking but most certainly was not.

michelle was great at suggesting the products that would work well with my skin tone and what's great was that she never pushed me to buy anything.  i had 4 products i wanted to replace: bronzer, blush, loose (setting) powder and pressed powder (compact) so after trying on a few shades and playing with a few things (and falling in love with them), i hauled the following:

 

compressed mineral foundation in 'honey' | pure mineral foundation in 'umbria' | compressed mineral blush in 'tangerine' | baci moisturizing lip sheep in 'incredibly beautiful'

 

both the loose and compressed powders are actually foundation powders so it gives me a hint of color therefore, i didn't even need to buy a bronzer.  when michelle finished applying it on my face, i looked in the mirror and my skin looked so beautifully dewy and flawless i wanted to makeout with myself.

here are my two favorite products:

 

if you didn't already know, i'm a big-time lip gloss junkie.  i only own one tube of lipstick but a drawer-full of lip gloss.  when i discovered that their baci glosses are also organic, contain hyaluronic acid, vitamins and anti-oxidants, i had a tiny orgasm.  i've always had some issues finding glosses that don't feel sticky or makes my lips feel weird but this gloss is wonderfully moisturizing and has a pretty hint of pink that makes my lips look so kissable, you'll have to control yourself the next time you see me.

the picture of the blush makes it look really orange but in fact, it's a very pretty peachy/coral.  i'll probably go back and get a pinky color but for the warm weather, this is just perfect. now i can be like those models in the magazines with perfectly blushed cheeks *flicks hair back*.

so what does this mean with my existing makeup?  i sent out an email to my friends and i'm so glad thast most of it got nabbed.  gal pal, leesh, already had dibs on my NARS blush and bronzer.  what was up for grabs:  

• laura mercier loose powder (85% full!!)
• stila smudge pot in black (barely used, maybe 4 or 5 times!)
• NARS lip gloss in oasis (barely used)
• stila smudge stick in brown
• stila smudge stick in black
• NARS oasis lip gloss (barely used!)
• bobbi brown lip gloss in kir sugar (only used twice!)

seriously, it really hurts my heart to let go of all this makeup.... i don't even want to think about how much money that is but if it means it'll be better for my skin, then i have to do what i have to do.

 

do you use any all-natural makeup?  

natural beauty

 

over the next few weeks, i'll be replacing my entire skin care line with all-natural products.  since my many and recent skin mishaps, i'm totally convinced that the products i once loved, that once served me well for many years, are no longer working for me; in fact, my skin sort of hates them.  

 

in a previous post, i detailed how i've been struggling with my skin; namely tight, painful and extremely dry skin.  after slathering on tons of (my current) products, nothing gave me relief until i accidentially stumbled upon an unopened - and forgotten about - bottle of all-natural/certified organic argan oil i received for my birthday.  i thought heck, i've been putting so much other shit on my face, why the hell not?  and after discontinuing my current products and applying argan oil non-stop for 2 days, my skin did a complete 180.  gone is the redness, the irritation, the sensitivity, the red welts, the gross, scaly, hideous dry patches.  i woke up after 2 days of using this argan oil with my skin glowing and clear - something i haven't seen since this whole thing started which further confirms my decision to go with all natural products.   

and because i'm now a housewife of toronto, i spend a lot of my free time researching all-natural skin products and makeup (it's sort of my new obsession).  i found this canadian natural skin care line, exuberance, that had great reviews from every beauty blogger who tested their products and loved them.  i found the neroli oil on well.ca and ordered it immediately because it boasted lots of great things about healing senstive, dry, flaky skin  and i've been using it every night since i got it.   a product review will soon follow.

 

i also stopped using vaseline on my lips and starting using this all-natural lip balm made by Matter Company that i bought at the spring OOAK show.   since i started using it, my lips feel more moisturized and i'm not always applying lip balm like i used to.   for sunny days, i use Green Beaver lip protection SPF 15.  when i had great success with their sunscreen on my face (read: no adverse reactions), i decided to switch to their protective lip balm as well.  other sunscreen lip products either made my lips feel weird and dry or it reacted so badly but not Green Beaver's lip balm.  although it needs a bit of warming up because it feels a bit waxy at first, it works - it doesn't make my lips peel, does a very good job of keeping my lips protected and soft and most importantly, doesn't turn my lips white in a crack whore kinda way.    

 

hubs is so awesome at supporting every decision i make that he was thoughtful enough to go on a whim and buy me this facial moisturizer by Green Beaver.  i'm very picky with what i apply to my face so instead of returning it, i use it on my hands.  how many of us forget to apply sunscreen on our hands yet they're as exposed to the sun as your face (ie. driving and the sun is shining on the tops of your hands.)   i certainly don't want sun spots on my hands when i'm 45 so i slather this non-greasy, non-perfume protection before i step into the sun.  i really love this company and they're canadian to boot.  

 

my most recent purchase is a bottle of certified organic rosehip oil i got from the health food store.   while the argan oil is doing wonders for my skin, users on my trusty makeup board say that rosehip oil is best for deep hydration and great for eczema.  it's also non-comedogenic; although the argan oil hasn't given me anything but awesome skin.  don't bother spending tons of money on 'brand name' rosehip oil; i got this at healthy planet for $15 (as opposed to $50-60 at some other stores).  i'm going to give this a few days and write a review (comparing it to the argan oil) but so far, my skin loves it and it looks awesome.

 

 what all-natural products do you use?

OAL update - it's all about the calories

 

[best]

 

during my last week of work, i only got to exercise 3 times that week; mainly because i was so freaking exhausted (damn you, period) and i went out a few times after work to celebrate the end of my contract. i also sort of slacked off on purpose because i knew the following week i would jumping right back into it hardcore.  that meant i had a long, 4-day break from working out; the longest break i've taken since i started exercising regularly.  

but i'm back, baby!

prior to this break, i had been plowing  through the insanity dvds and following their recommended calendar.  i was very good at sticking with my 5-day workout schedule; sometimes i mixed in a couple of jillian michaels' ripped in 30 routines to change things up but throughout all of this, i continue to eat healthy.  hubs went out and bought a box of 90-calorie yogurtsicles and i've only eaten one.  if that's not will power, i don't know what is.  the insanity dvds are still fucking hard but i can tell that i'm  making progress because i can actually survive the warm-up.   

however, as much progress i was making, at one point, it seemed that i stopped trimming down.  when i looked in the mirror a few times, i looked bigger; not muscular bigger but the fat was looking a tad bigger which surprised me considering how insanity was kicking my ass.  after discussing it with my hubs, he thought it had to do with what i was eating - or should i say not eating - and he felt that my caloric intake wasn't enough.  i had a feeling he was probably right because no joke, i was at a point that i was hungry every hour/hour and a half, even after a full meal and it really seemed that i was eating all the time.   don't get me wrong - i wasn't starving myself; i would eat until i'm full  but the things i was eating didn't contain enough calories as compared to what i was burning so my body was thinking it was starving and held onto the fat.   well, fat is not welcome here so i did a little research and hubs was right.  

when you're doing an intense workout program like insanity, it's very imporant to properly refuel your body.  i was eating very healthy but i was also being pretty restrictive especially when it came to carbs - i barely ate them and i was eating more vegetables than anything else.  while i'm not a fan of meat, i eat it for the protein so bought some protein bars to supplement my protein intake and introduced brown rice into my diet (bleh).  after a few days of this, my body went back to normal (read: my mid-section was looking small again).   whoda thunk that by adding a few hundred calories to my diet, it would help me burn more weight?  it's too bad that those calories can't be in the form of sour cream and onion chippity goodness or chocolate cake lovliness.  boo.

i'm glad i didn't donate my skinny clothes because the other day, i dug out my 2006/2007 shorts and not only do they fit, some of them are also loose *hi-fives self*

summer, i'm ready

 

[source]

 

today is my last day at work and i'm so fucking giddy.  actually, i've been giddy all week leading up to today and hardly anyone at the office could stand me.   while the chaos around my project continues, there i sat like an idiot in every meeting with a smile plastered across my face because i knew that these problems - that frustrated and irritiated me to no end - will no longer be my problems and all i could think about were my appointments booked all next week - facial, massage, pedicure and a trip to visit my sister.    like i said - fucking giddy.

in addition to enjoying some "me" time and being a housewife of toronto,  we've decided to do a few things around the house. 

 

 

while i love my floor-to-ceiling windows that allow gorgeous natural light to stream into my house, it's also converts this mofo into a freaking sauna in the summer.  when we had our first heat wave of the season last weekend, our a/c wasn't working properly (of course) so weez be ghettoing it when i made hubs climb up and instal these hideous things to block out the light.   on june 15, we have a shutter guy coming to install more shutters not only on these windows but on the windows upstairs.   relief will ensue. 

in addition to that, we're also getting the interior of our house painted that same week.  talk about money pissing out of my pocket.  for real yo, our tax refunds can't come soon enough but at least i'll not longer have to live in a house with screaming white walls.

then on monday i'm heading to the gym to sign up for a 3-month membership which will be weird since i haven't stepped foot in a gym in years but here's the truth:

 

 

happy friday everyone!!