I have spent the past 2 days sick in bed with the flu. My boyfriend got sick on Sunday, and we were convinced it was food poisoning. Then on Monday night, I got sick. Definitely not food poisoning, just a good old fashioned case of the flu. Besides Season 1 of Mad Men, YouTube, Slice.ca, and MTV.ca have been keeping me going. I just saw the trailer for Season 6 of the Hills. I haven't watched the Hills in a while, but I think I am going to tune in for this season. It looks undeniably juicy. I've posted the trailer below - skip to 2:32 to see Heidi attempt to cry. The botox is preventing her face from moving, it's hilarious!
Hope everyone's having a good (and healthy) week!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Clean Eating
The clean eating revolution is kind of the next big trend in the health and diet world, and I personally hope it's the last.
It's hard to keep track of "how" to eat these days. It sounds so silly, but it's true! North American culture is saturated with new approaches to eating that we've completely lost track of the basics: eat balanced food groups, be mindful of portion size, and choose healthy foods. Big duh, right? (Note: do people say "duh" anymore? I really like using it...) Here's a quick low-down on the diet trends of the past century:
1940s - Pop + ciggies = key to being skinny
1050s - Fat vibration belt - so lazy! I kinda love it...
1960s - Formation of diet support groups, and the infamous cabbage soup diet
1970s - Introduction of diet pills as a solution for weight loss (we're talking Dexatrim here...)
1980s - Popularity of Weight Watchers on the rise, introduction of low calorie and low fat diets
1990s - Atkins (Potential correlation with the beginning of North American mass consumption of animal products? Just throwing that out there...)
2000s - Celebrity-endorsed diets (Harvey Pasternak's "5 Factor" diet), diet delivery (Nutrisystem), portion control (100-calorie EVERYTHING), sweet n' savory (Cookie diet - "I stole the cookie from the cookie jar!" This commercial absolutely kills me - that guy! hahaha)
2010s - Clean eating, and the "food revolution" (Jamie Oliver, anyone?)
The overall philosophy of clean eating is simple: eat natural foods that come from the Earth. That's it. I know you're probably thinking "easy-peasy", but in order to subscribe to this way of eating, you really need to de-program alot of bad habits. When you're grocery shopping, you basically have to shop the perimeter of the store, as everything in the middle aisles is pretty much processed.
My obsession with clean eating started about a month ago when I stumbled upon some YouTube videos by Dani Spies. She's a Health & Food Coach and Fitness Trainer who makes these amazing short cooking videos. I highly suggest checking them out - especially the video on kale chips. They're sooo good. I've been eating clean as much as I can (I'm trying! I got sour dinos yesterday, I admit it. They were calling my name..."Brittannnyyy, it's me - Stega, you're favourite sour dino shape. Come eat me, I'm tasty and sour). I can genuinely say that I feel...better. My skin is brighter, I feel more in control of my body, I am developing more of a mind-body connection (okay that sounded really Dharma & Greg, but it's true, okay...), and I have more energy! Take that however you want. I am the world's biggest skeptic, and it could very well be a placebo effect and/or researcher bias (don't get me going). So like a good health science grad student, I am self-monitoring a couple of variables to report on at a later date. :)
Try it out yourself for a bit and see how you feel! Bottom line: if it comes from the Earth - good. If it doesn't - bad. If you don't know what the ingredients are, it's probably bad. For example, xantham gum (?!). In my mind, pretty much any food that starts with an X is Bad News Bears. Everyone knows that the letter x is reserved for "xylophone", and "x-ray".
Britt
PS - Here's a good book if you're interested. This guy was on Oprah, okay. He's not all "James Frey", he's legit.
It's hard to keep track of "how" to eat these days. It sounds so silly, but it's true! North American culture is saturated with new approaches to eating that we've completely lost track of the basics: eat balanced food groups, be mindful of portion size, and choose healthy foods. Big duh, right? (Note: do people say "duh" anymore? I really like using it...) Here's a quick low-down on the diet trends of the past century:
1940s - Pop + ciggies = key to being skinny
1050s - Fat vibration belt - so lazy! I kinda love it...
1960s - Formation of diet support groups, and the infamous cabbage soup diet
1970s - Introduction of diet pills as a solution for weight loss (we're talking Dexatrim here...)
1980s - Popularity of Weight Watchers on the rise, introduction of low calorie and low fat diets
1990s - Atkins (Potential correlation with the beginning of North American mass consumption of animal products? Just throwing that out there...)
2000s - Celebrity-endorsed diets (Harvey Pasternak's "5 Factor" diet), diet delivery (Nutrisystem), portion control (100-calorie EVERYTHING), sweet n' savory (Cookie diet - "I stole the cookie from the cookie jar!" This commercial absolutely kills me - that guy! hahaha)
2010s - Clean eating, and the "food revolution" (Jamie Oliver, anyone?)
The overall philosophy of clean eating is simple: eat natural foods that come from the Earth. That's it. I know you're probably thinking "easy-peasy", but in order to subscribe to this way of eating, you really need to de-program alot of bad habits. When you're grocery shopping, you basically have to shop the perimeter of the store, as everything in the middle aisles is pretty much processed.
My obsession with clean eating started about a month ago when I stumbled upon some YouTube videos by Dani Spies. She's a Health & Food Coach and Fitness Trainer who makes these amazing short cooking videos. I highly suggest checking them out - especially the video on kale chips. They're sooo good. I've been eating clean as much as I can (I'm trying! I got sour dinos yesterday, I admit it. They were calling my name..."Brittannnyyy, it's me - Stega, you're favourite sour dino shape. Come eat me, I'm tasty and sour). I can genuinely say that I feel...better. My skin is brighter, I feel more in control of my body, I am developing more of a mind-body connection (okay that sounded really Dharma & Greg, but it's true, okay...), and I have more energy! Take that however you want. I am the world's biggest skeptic, and it could very well be a placebo effect and/or researcher bias (don't get me going). So like a good health science grad student, I am self-monitoring a couple of variables to report on at a later date. :)
Try it out yourself for a bit and see how you feel! Bottom line: if it comes from the Earth - good. If it doesn't - bad. If you don't know what the ingredients are, it's probably bad. For example, xantham gum (?!). In my mind, pretty much any food that starts with an X is Bad News Bears. Everyone knows that the letter x is reserved for "xylophone", and "x-ray".
Britt
PS - Here's a good book if you're interested. This guy was on Oprah, okay. He's not all "James Frey", he's legit.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Big, bushy brows!
If you've been following fashion mags lately, it's pretty obvious that big brows are BACK! To this I say: Umm, why didn't this trend catch on in 1997?! I hatedddd my brows all through adolescence. Actually, I should say brow - singular, as I had more of a unibrow until I discovered waxing (thank goodness). I know, super embarrassing, but I'm not ashamed of the unibrow of my past (insert z-snap here)! I'll be the first to point and laugh at a picture of me n' my uni...
K, so here is the ironic part - I've actually been waxing my brows for so long that I find myself FILLING THEM IN with a pencil to create a more fuller look! Who would have thought?! 12 year old Britt would be like "say whaattttt!"
What do you guys think of the big brow look?
Above (rotating clockwise): Raina from AMTM Cycle 14, Camilla Belle, Denise Richards, Kim Kardashian
Friday, March 19, 2010
TGIF
The weather has been uncharacteristically nice here in Halifax. It feels like spring back in Ontario! I've learned that the east coast doesn't typically get a spring - winter just slowly fades into summer. There's alot of slush and grey. I'm going to take advantage of this weather while it lasts! Hope everyone has a nice weekend. :)
In honour of the sunshine...
Version 1: Orig BB
Version 2, and my personal fave: BB Movie (re-make)
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Awesome $-Saving Sites
Here are some of my favourite money-saving sites:
For those of you that shop at Whole Foods, or Pete's Frootique (Halifax, NS), The Healthy Shopper offers lots of great coupons for saving money on expensive organic groceries. You have to sign-up and create a log-in ID, and then you can select the coupon(s) you want, and print.
For drug store items and household supplies, check-out Save.ca. This is a really great site if you have an animal because they offer lots of coupons for pet food. Word of caution: you have to be proactive when selecting which coupons you want. The coupons arrive by mail, and usually take about 4-6 weeks to arrive.
If you're looking for shoes, accessories, and clothes, I always suggest checking eBay.ca first. You can narrow your search options to locate the exact size, colour, brand you're looking for. For example, if you really loved the dress Kate Bosworth was wearing, you can go to WhoWhatWear.com and find out who the dress was by, and try to find it on eBay for cheapsies! I don't really have any money right now to shop (student...), but I have tons of items saved for when I start making money! There's just something so satisfying about finding a Michael Kors purse or shoes at half the price...
I was referred ShopItToMe.com by a friend-of-a-friend. It's a site that allows you to enter your size and favourite brands, and then it searches the web for the best deals out there. It's like your online personal shopper (actually, I think that might be the company's slogan). It's really cool. You can select how many times a week you would like to receive the notification email.
Ideeli.com is like the VIP room of online discount shopping. You have to register to become a member and cross your fingers they let you into their exclusive club (if you're cool enough). I know, sounds kind of lame, but once you're in you'll have access to top designers at up to 80% off. Cha-ching!
Britt
For drug store items and household supplies, check-out Save.ca. This is a really great site if you have an animal because they offer lots of coupons for pet food. Word of caution: you have to be proactive when selecting which coupons you want. The coupons arrive by mail, and usually take about 4-6 weeks to arrive.
If you're looking for shoes, accessories, and clothes, I always suggest checking eBay.ca first. You can narrow your search options to locate the exact size, colour, brand you're looking for. For example, if you really loved the dress Kate Bosworth was wearing, you can go to WhoWhatWear.com and find out who the dress was by, and try to find it on eBay for cheapsies! I don't really have any money right now to shop (student...), but I have tons of items saved for when I start making money! There's just something so satisfying about finding a Michael Kors purse or shoes at half the price...
I was referred ShopItToMe.com by a friend-of-a-friend. It's a site that allows you to enter your size and favourite brands, and then it searches the web for the best deals out there. It's like your online personal shopper (actually, I think that might be the company's slogan). It's really cool. You can select how many times a week you would like to receive the notification email.
Ideeli.com is like the VIP room of online discount shopping. You have to register to become a member and cross your fingers they let you into their exclusive club (if you're cool enough). I know, sounds kind of lame, but once you're in you'll have access to top designers at up to 80% off. Cha-ching!
Britt
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
My best memories of St. Patrick's Day involve lots of green beer, green Jell-O shooters, best friends, lots of singing, and green tank tops with mini skirts! In honour of SPD, here is a good recipe for a low-calorie Shamrock Shake from HungryGirl:
Shamrock 'n' Roll Shake
PER SERVING (1 shake, entire recipe): 176 calories, 4g fat, 142mg sodium, 29.5g carbs, 3.5g fiber, 16g sugars, 7.5g protein -- POINTS® value 3*
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
3/4 cup light vanilla soymilk
1/2 cup Breyers Smooth & Dreamy Creamy Vanilla fat-free ice cream
1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring
1 no-calorie sweetener packet (like Splenda)
1 1/2 cups crushed ice (8 - 12 ice cubes' worth)
Directions:
Combine Coffee-mate with 1 tbsp. hot water and stir to dissolve. Transfer mixture to a blender and add all other ingredients. Blend at high speed until mixed thoroughly. Pour into a glass and enjoy!
MAKES 1 SERVING
PER SERVING (1 shake, entire recipe): 176 calories, 4g fat, 142mg sodium, 29.5g carbs, 3.5g fiber, 16g sugars, 7.5g protein -- POINTS® value 3*Ingredients:
1 tbsp. Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
3/4 cup light vanilla soymilk
1/2 cup Breyers Smooth & Dreamy Creamy Vanilla fat-free ice cream
1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring
1 no-calorie sweetener packet (like Splenda)
1 1/2 cups crushed ice (8 - 12 ice cubes' worth)
Directions:
Combine Coffee-mate with 1 tbsp. hot water and stir to dissolve. Transfer mixture to a blender and add all other ingredients. Blend at high speed until mixed thoroughly. Pour into a glass and enjoy!
MAKES 1 SERVING
Above: SPD 2007
HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
On Motivation
I've been having a really hard time boosting my motivation lately. Like, a really hard time (case in point: I've created a blog). It's funny because I am so close to being finished graduate school, and my motivation to finish is at an all time low. I remember back in undergrad I used to experience the same problem. I would write multiple midterms over the course of the term, and by time the final exam came around, I just didn't care. Has this happened to anyone else?
I really need to shift from 2nd to 3rd (if you know what I mean). I was thinking of changing some of the furniture around in my apartment - you know, feng shui stuff. Right now I don't think my feng is working so well with my shui. I might move my desk and see if the new environment is more conducive to academic writing. I will let you know.
In order to get motivated, I think I'm going to have to adopt a new perspective. I think I need to turn my extrinsic motivation into intrinsic motivation. They (Deci's theory) say that intrinsic motivation is a stronger motivator than extrinsic motivation because you experience want instead of need. Either that, or I am going to have to start bribing myself with candy...
If anyone has any tips for maximizing motivation, let me know!
Britt
I really need to shift from 2nd to 3rd (if you know what I mean). I was thinking of changing some of the furniture around in my apartment - you know, feng shui stuff. Right now I don't think my feng is working so well with my shui. I might move my desk and see if the new environment is more conducive to academic writing. I will let you know.
In order to get motivated, I think I'm going to have to adopt a new perspective. I think I need to turn my extrinsic motivation into intrinsic motivation. They (Deci's theory) say that intrinsic motivation is a stronger motivator than extrinsic motivation because you experience want instead of need. Either that, or I am going to have to start bribing myself with candy...
If anyone has any tips for maximizing motivation, let me know!
Britt
Saturday, March 13, 2010
One step closer to summer...
Who else gets excited for spring Daylight Savings? Here is a picture of a sunflower field in Cape Breton, NS. I made my boyfriend pull over so I could be surrounded by huge sunflower stalks. So pretty, but alot of bees...
Happy weekend!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
The Great Gym Equipment Debate
I am a treadmill lover. It's pretty much the only piece of equipment I use in the cardio room when I go to the gym. I find the elliptical to be too gadgety (too much coordination involved), and don't really feel like I've had a satisfying workout when I use the bike (excluding spinning, obv). I am a huge Slice network fan, and an even bigger Paul Plakas fan. He's very blunt - brutally honest. I love him. I wish him and Kelly Cutrone (People's Revolution - The Hills/The City anyone?) would get together and have an insult-off. Anyways, I was reading Paul's blog the other day, and came across his article on gym equipment. If you've ever watched him on X-Weighted, you know how he feels about gym equipment. He has some pretty strong views. I support his arguments, and believe exercising outdoors, using free weights and your body's own resistance is superior to using electrically-powered gym equipment.
Here's the article:
http://www.paulplakas.com/2009/12/cardio-machines-big-scam-in-the-fitness-industry/
What do you think? In the spirit of challenging one's self, I am going to swap running on the treadmill for running outside and see how I feel after one month. It's getting nice outside anyways, so why not. Who's with me?! Haha.
Britt
PS - If only I could get my hands on this beauty:
Here's the article:
http://www.paulplakas.com/2009/12/cardio-machines-big-scam-in-the-fitness-industry/
What do you think? In the spirit of challenging one's self, I am going to swap running on the treadmill for running outside and see how I feel after one month. It's getting nice outside anyways, so why not. Who's with me?! Haha.
Britt
PS - If only I could get my hands on this beauty:
Red Lipstick
For us pale-skinned girls, red lipstick is a big deal. When you wear red lipstick, you have to own it. If you don't have confidence, you look like a wannabe who's trying to wear red lipstick, but totally failing ("epic fail" - Perez). Or, at least that's what I think. :)
I realize this is kind of weird, but sometimes when I'm cleaning my apartment I put on my favourite new pair of heels (obsessed with these new ones I just bought at Winners for $100! Amazing find, I know), and apply a generous helping of red lipstick. I put on some music, maybe dance a little (no big deal), you know...it's weird. Hahaha. There's just something about red lipstick that makes you feel so..I dunno, cool! I feel like whenever my friends and I debate red lipstick, this is the conversation:
"I dunno, what do you think - too much?"
"Absolutely not. Do it. Wear the red. You look so gorgeous."
"It's just so...red."
"I know it might seem really red, but it's supposed to look like that. You have to go-big or go-home."
"I know, I just feel...weird."
Hahaha, seriously I think we've had this conversation like 10 times. Red is IN! I am more of a nude/light pink girl myself (due mostly to the fact that I have chronically chapped lips, and always end up packing a pot of medicated Blistex in my purse instead of lip stick or gloss...), but to those of you who wear the red, and wear it well, I applaud you!
Britt
PS - This is me cleaning my apartment. Clearly in "red mode", and looking a bit Twilight-esque. :)
I realize this is kind of weird, but sometimes when I'm cleaning my apartment I put on my favourite new pair of heels (obsessed with these new ones I just bought at Winners for $100! Amazing find, I know), and apply a generous helping of red lipstick. I put on some music, maybe dance a little (no big deal), you know...it's weird. Hahaha. There's just something about red lipstick that makes you feel so..I dunno, cool! I feel like whenever my friends and I debate red lipstick, this is the conversation:
"I dunno, what do you think - too much?"
"Absolutely not. Do it. Wear the red. You look so gorgeous."
"It's just so...red."
"I know it might seem really red, but it's supposed to look like that. You have to go-big or go-home."
"I know, I just feel...weird."
Hahaha, seriously I think we've had this conversation like 10 times. Red is IN! I am more of a nude/light pink girl myself (due mostly to the fact that I have chronically chapped lips, and always end up packing a pot of medicated Blistex in my purse instead of lip stick or gloss...), but to those of you who wear the red, and wear it well, I applaud you!
Britt
Eek!
I've been thinking about started a blog for a couple months now. I am finishing up my graduate degree, and seem to have waaaay too much time on my hands (this topic alone requires a separate post, so stay tuned). So, I figured - why not? I would have started this blog a long time ago, but I've been struggling with a few BIG apprehensions. Here they are:
1. How can I have a blog, and write without being overly ego-centric and self-actualizing?
I don't know if there is a right way to go about blogging so that you don't sound totally self-indulgent. Let's face it: you're writing about yourself, your life, your experiences. A blog is sort of like a journal that you're opening up to an audience. Maybe it's impossible, who knows!
2. What am I going to write about?!
Seriously, nothing in my life stands-out as being important enough to solely blog about. So this blog is going to be a "tossed salad", if you will. Hopefully a little bit of everything. Annnddd since I'm 24, it will most likely be about boys, friends, health, school, work, and play. :)
3. What if no one reads my blog, and I just end up writing to myself, from myself?
Totally lame and embarrassing, right. Yes, this is definitely a fear! I'm just going to roll with it, and if people read - cool, if they don't - online journal, woo-hoo!
4. How can you have a blog, and still preserve your sense of privacy?
Sometimes I think people open themselves up way too much online. You've got your FB, with the "Info" section, detailing your education, work experiences, DOB, etc. You're got twitter, which lets everyone know what you're currently doing, and then there's online bio's, CV's, Linked-In, it's crazy! I am a "open-book policy" kind of girl. My close friends and I know very personal details of each other's lives, and we like it that way! Hopefully I can find a good balance between letting people in my life, and still maintaining a sense of control over my privacy.
SO, here we go! First blog! Yay! I'm excited to be part of the blogging community!
Britt
1. How can I have a blog, and write without being overly ego-centric and self-actualizing?
I don't know if there is a right way to go about blogging so that you don't sound totally self-indulgent. Let's face it: you're writing about yourself, your life, your experiences. A blog is sort of like a journal that you're opening up to an audience. Maybe it's impossible, who knows!
2. What am I going to write about?!
Seriously, nothing in my life stands-out as being important enough to solely blog about. So this blog is going to be a "tossed salad", if you will. Hopefully a little bit of everything. Annnddd since I'm 24, it will most likely be about boys, friends, health, school, work, and play. :)
3. What if no one reads my blog, and I just end up writing to myself, from myself?
Totally lame and embarrassing, right. Yes, this is definitely a fear! I'm just going to roll with it, and if people read - cool, if they don't - online journal, woo-hoo!
4. How can you have a blog, and still preserve your sense of privacy?
Sometimes I think people open themselves up way too much online. You've got your FB, with the "Info" section, detailing your education, work experiences, DOB, etc. You're got twitter, which lets everyone know what you're currently doing, and then there's online bio's, CV's, Linked-In, it's crazy! I am a "open-book policy" kind of girl. My close friends and I know very personal details of each other's lives, and we like it that way! Hopefully I can find a good balance between letting people in my life, and still maintaining a sense of control over my privacy.
SO, here we go! First blog! Yay! I'm excited to be part of the blogging community!
Britt
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
