I wish I were in my teens or twenties again. Then I would dare to go all out with this wonderful new collection from French artist Fafi and M.A.C. Cosmetics. But being 40, I just don’t think I can get away with a look like the one below, no matter how much I adore it!
The collection also features Fafi cases, T-shirts, and collectible dolls. For more see Macfafi.com
Last week I announced my start of the Ten Years Thinner
First off, I will go straight to the numbers. After week one:
Weight lost: 5 pounds (color me impressed)
Inches off: Thigh: 1/2, Hips: 0, Stomach: 3/4, Arm 1/2, Chest: 2 1/2. Sigh…. why are the boobs the first to go, and why do they go so quickly?!?!
My experience has been good so far. The first two weeks are quite restrictive–no dairy, legumes or grains, so I ate a lot of eggs and then ate some more eggs. I focused my dinners on grilled chicken or fish with extra veggies and I made chicken soup that provided several lunches. I also premeasured and bagged my daily cup of nuts for snacks, which I supplemented with quite a bit of grapefruit from my recent trip to Texas.
I was stuck eating out one day, but managed to find a great grilled veggie salad at California Pizza Kitchen and I added grilled shrimp. For dinner ,I got pan seared halibut and veggies. The halibut was done in olive oil, so it was fine, but I’m pretty sure that the veggies were not diet compliant–they tasted too buttery good!
Toward the end of week one I got sick, so I’m not sure what effect that had. I ate a bit less than usual and it was almost all soup, so that might account for the quick weight drop. I also missed two days of the workout because of the illness.
The workout is interesting. After a week, I am pretty comfortable with it and feel like it is good at building overall strength and providing some cardio. But I don’t feel like I am getting as winded as I would get from doing sprint intervals, and I also don’t feel like my inner thighs, glutes, or triceps are getting as much workout as I would like. I added an extra set of one of my favorite triceps free weight exercises to the end and I might add something for the inner thigh and gluteal muscals as well. The inner thigh is an area which I need to keep strengthened due to some past hip issues. My glutes? Well, lets just say I would like a skinnier butt!
I also did fine on the supplement regime, which is essentially three prescription fish oil pills (Lovaza), a calcium pill, a multi-vitamin, and a magnesium tablet. I was previously taking all but the magnesium anyway. The difference now is just that instead of forgetting and only taking my pills about once each week, I managed to hit all but two days. Hint: Put your pills in a daily strip container and leave it on the table by where you eat. I only missed with that when I ate out one day and stayed in bed sick all of another, so I didn’t see the pills on the table.
Overall, I can feel a change in my body composition after only a week. I definitely feel stronger and thinner. So I am rather excited and am looking forward to continuing.
For those interested, you can duplicate the great grilled veggie salad that I had:
Spray veggies of choice with olive oil and roast or grill: E.g. eggplant, mushrooms, zuchinni, sundried tomatoes, asparagus, green onion, peppers, corn (beginning in week three). Also grill some chicken breast or shrimp, lightly sprayed with olive oil. Serve warm over a bed of chopped mixed greens and drizzle with a light balsamic vinaigrette dressing. After week three I might add a few black beans or chick peas or green peas.
A good week one compliant side dish: Fry sliced plantain in olive oil and lightly salt. These taste a bit like sweet french fries! Can’t find plantain? Check your local Hispanic grocery or in a pinch, fry green bananas instead.
I will be back next Wednesday with another update!
Jump to:
PreDiet Writeup
Week One Recap
Week Two Recap
Week Three Recap
Week Four Recap
Week Five Recap
Week Six Recap
One Month After the End Review
Comparison shop for diet books and plans
I have heard many good things about Fekkai hair products, but I kept putting off trying them because of the cost. Well, I finally broke down and bought a kit containing several items. I had mixed results with the shampoo and conditioner, but I think part of that was because I purchased the wrong items for my hair type. The glossing cream, however, rocked!
The Frederic Fekkai Glossing Shampoo worked out fine. The shampoo had OK moisture and OK lather. I didn’t love it to the extent that I loved my other recent try, Kenra, but I found it to be serviceable. The Frederic Fekkai Glossing Conditioner
was also OK. I like conditioners that provide a lot of detangling power, and found that while Fekkai did an OK job generally, it wasn’t so great in the detangling department. The upshot was that I had to use quite a bit of it on my long hair. Considering the price, I likely would not choose this one again simply because I can get better results with less product elsewhere. But I think it would be great for shorter hair or hair that does not need a particularly intense moisturizer the way mine does.
At this point in testing, it would seem that things were getting pretty mediocre for me, but wait — I absolutely love the Frederic Fekkai Glossing Cream! This olive oil cream does a great job at adding shine when used in small amounts. I stress “small,” because if too much is used it will weigh your hair down and feel oily, but in small doses it, it imparts a terrific shine and leaves the hair incredibly soft. Price is also less of a factor for this one because of the small amount used.
On another note, my overall experience with the Fekkai products seemed much better once my hair was dry. While I found myself using quite a bit of conditioner in the shower, the results dry were quite stunning. My hair was indeed very shiny and extremely soft. So much so, that I was a bit sad that I needed to use so much conditioner to get there. I just can’t afford to buy that much. I will definitely keep purchasing the glossing cream though.
If you would like to test Fekkai products without buying a bunch of expensive full size products, take a look at the Frederic Fekkai Glossing Travel Faves (pictured).
Comparison shop for Fekkai hair care products
From the Splendicity community, comes this weeks best!
Viva Woman looks at how to prevent the growth of milia seeds around the eyes.
Shopalicious has hit upon the perfect handbag to pair with spring’s almost-neon brights…
Makeup and Beauty Blog brings us a MAC Fafi Makeup Tutorial: A Black and Gold Smokey Eye.
Beauty and Fashion Tech tries the Ten Years Thinner Plan by Dr. Christine Lydon.
Her Accessories has gone to the birds and has the jewelry to prove it!
My Beauty Match asks, Are you using the right skin care cream or are you wasting your time and money?
Savvy Skin tells us The Truth About Beauty.
Sugar Shock tells us about a Supermodel-approved Makeup Remover.
Canadian Beauty is giving away 2 Summer Prize Packs worth $150 each!
ShopDiary discovers that Twenty8Twelve is now at Shopbop.com.
Stiletto Jungle says upgrade your tote bag collection with Marc Jacobs Standard Supply.
Beauty Bento Box attends the local launch event of the Sunsilk Life Can’t Wait Campaign.
Tops 2 Bottoms experiments with a black and white sheer and lace dress by Zara.
Style Manila can’t wait till HE by MANGO hits the streets of Manila.
Spa Beautifully wants to share a hip skin health spa in San Francisco with you.
Style…a work in progress reads a good book (and gets a good workout) with Vivienne Westwood’s Opus…perhaps the ultimate coffee table book (in that it actually is the size and weight of your average coffee table…measuring just over 2.5 feet by 2 feet and weighing in at 55lbs).
NY Spender shares her pink safari fashion.
Get back to basics — Temptalia tells you what MAC brushes you have to have.
Shoe Blitz loves these sexy and sophisticated Alexander McQueen striped pumps.
Have a very splendid week!
I’m no nail polish expert, I’ll leave that for the women at All Lacquered Up and Nail Tech Secrets. But I do know when I find something that I particularly like. Sally Hansen Salon Nail Lacquer is one of those.
I have always leaned toward purchases of Sally Hansen nail polish. I suppose that is largely because they are so easily found, have a large selection, and are affordable. But I also have always like their quality over OPI, which is another more expensive brand with a huge number of colors. Lately, I go right to the Sally Hansen section because I adore their Salon line.
The Sally Hansen Salon nail polish line comes in attractive bottles with a no slip cap and the colors are amazing. In no other line have I found so many shades that I just love. There really are not all that many, it is just that I love almost all of them.
The polish itself goes on smooth, dries relatively quickly, and lasts without chipping pretty well, which for me is just a few days because I beat the heck out of my nails! I definitely get as long as or longer time with the Sally Hansen Salon polishes than I get with other brands.
Sally Hansen Salon Nail Lacquer can be found in most drugstores.
Shop for more Sally Hansen Products
Neutrogena Healthy Volume Mascara surprised me a little. You see, I tend to not fare well with mascara that has a big brush, and the brush with this one is huge. But it worked quite well for me!
In general, Neutrogena Healthy Volume gives just that–volume. I found that the lengthening was fine but not spectacular, while the thickening and general overall volume was the big benefit. And it didn’t clump,– not at all– not even with a large brush.
Healthy Volume mascara also contains olive oil for conditioning, hence the “healthy” part of the name. Olive oil is wonderful stuff, so I like the addition of it in a mascara. The mascara also removed easily and I had no issues wearing it with my contact lenses in.
Random Members
