pucker up

**Makeup alert**
If I was to name one beauty product that instantly sexifies a look its got to me RED LIPPY!!

 

It brings attention straight to your lips, and makes them all full and lush (unless you opt for a darker red which may thin your lips) You may know by now but my favorite era is around the 40's/50's and this was key to the look. If I want an instant pick me up I go straight to my makeup back and take a grab.

The safe way to play red lipstick... go easy on the eyes. Unless you are doing an amazing shoot or are totally at ease at makeup and have done it before, i would recommend keeping it simple. I generally wear light beige eyeshadow to lighten my lids and a black flick liner, mascara and thats it. i would steer clear of and bright colours x

Try a few tones... some reds will look better on you than others so make sure you try before you buy. MAC have such a great range of red lippys to choose from, my all time fave is 'Cockney' however I have just discovered Barrys M's red which is pictured above... I like this as it had great staying power! Its also matte which is great for the classic retro look. I find it sooo important to use a liner with Red lippy, the last thing you want is the lipstick bleeding onto your face... not hot!.

If you want something less high maintenance go for a gloss, I have fallen in love with my Dita lip lacquer.

seriously amazing stuff! super shiny and it lasts longer than a regular lip gloss. Sometimes i'll use this over my lipstick to give it an extra va va voom.

Kissing? ah see this is the downfall of the red stuff, it can be rather messy when it comes to having a good snog. My tips, opt for the lipstick over the gloss if you think your gonna be getting lip happy. Also take a peek at Lipcote. Coat the lip after application, just watch out it can make your lips a little dry

For a subtle long-lasting smudge risk free alternative... a lip stain! NYC Smooch proof 
this is perfect for a quick nip out, 2 second makeup fix up! And something thats super cheap and works a treat... £1.99 lip and cheek tint from Superdrug and you can pop some on your cheeks too 2true lip and cheek tint its very similar to Benefits Bene tint which is around £25, oh i do love a bargain!

I expect to see lots of kissable retro lips about now! have fun girls xx

Post holiday slump!

Okay okay so I have returned from a lovely holiday away...come back far more tanned and a little more flabby! But thats fine, thats what holidays are for. I had lots to drink and eat and bathed all day...lovely!

 

 

 

A Tanned curvier me... end of hols

So this is my plan... im going to wake up tomorrow and im going full swing back to the gym. To stop myself getting an injury i will do my weights lower again and build my strength back up. I have a feeling after 2 weeks off tomorrow will kill me. Im not going to weigh myself..but take a little selfie, as this is my choice in progress inspiration!

Next stop, grocery shopping. I will get some lovely fresh fruit and chicken and something i love.... fruit teas!
After consuming a fair amount of cocktails i also feel a detox coming on.

i dont feel that I have got a lot to lose, but I feel unhealthy so its going to be nice to have a boost back.

Peace out lovely people mwah x

My obsession... the Brows!

**Girls makeup alert**

So aside from them the fitness today, I am going to tell you about my obsession.. EYEBROWS! I have been known to walk up to strangers and compliment them on there brows!

I in my younger years, along with many others made the awful decision to over pluck. Pamela Anderson has a lot  to answer to! Since then I found them hard to keep up and in shape. I decided to grow out my brows a few years a go... BEST THING I EVER DID! as well as being a lot easy to keep in check, a fuller eyebrow is far more flattering and youthful.

Heres a little before and after for you....

My thinner Brows

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Current Brows

 

 

 

.
Growing out eye brows it a pain, im not going to lie to you, but it really is worth it. After about 2 months of growing them back I went to get the celebrity cult "HD Brow" Which I absolutely loved! I had them threaded, plucked, waxed and dyed so they were nice and full and she also showed me the areas that needed to grow back to get my best shape. Heres a link for more on HD Brows.... http://www.hdbrows.com/


Now to avoid the Scouse brow, which is another thing entirely... dont get me started! Its best to keep your eyebrows natural, the easiest tool for this for me is a powder. I absolutely LOVE GOSH Brow kit... http://www.superdrug.com/gosh/gosh-eye-brow-kit/invt/223878&bklist= Its my absolute favorite and only £8.49! I also use their Brow defining Brow gel to keep them in place... :) http://www.superdrug.com/gosh/gosh-defining-brow-gel/invt/223879&bklist=

How not to do it!

Here are my eyebrow crushes..... <3

Work them Abs!

So one of the main areas im asked about is Abs...
I never thought i would have a toned stomach, as I've always been curvy this has been the hardest place to lose the pounds, but I have now managed some definition :) So this is my stomach busting regime....

Diet, Unfortunately no matter how strong your abs are if you have a layer of fat over them you aren't gonna see them so you will have to follow a sensible healthy diet to loose the fat. I eat healthy with the occasional treat, i am not 'on a diet' its just the way I eat I guess, if I feel I have put on a few lbs I'll just watch what I am eating a little closer. I will do a typically day food diary soon...

Cardio, so to keep the lbs at bay I do a 'fat burn' walk, if you use a treadmill you should be able to enter this as an option and it will monitor your heart rate. I do this for 30-45 minutes. Then do 15minutes high intensity. I can discuss my cardio options at a later date, but basically getting your heart rate going and burning calories is going to have an affect and remember to step out of your comfort zone.

Abs exercises! So here are a few of my favourite ab work outs....

Bicycle Twist...

1. Lie face up on your mat and place your hands behind your head, lightly supporting it with your fingers.
2. Bring the knees in to the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the floor without pulling on the neck.
3. Rotate to the left, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee as you straighten the other leg.
4. Switch sides, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee.
5. Continue alternating sides in a 'pedaling' motion .

I do these in 3 sets, as many as I can do (about 35 a set)


The Plank
 I love and hate this exercise as it hurts! Great for core strength...

1. Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor.
2. Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows.
3. Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels.
4. Tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking up in the air or sagging in the middle.
5. Hold for 20 to 60 seconds, lower and repeat for 3-5 reps. 

Leaning Camel

In yoga, Camel is a pose that increases flexibility in your spine, but this challenging variation using a weight strengthens your quads and abs. This exercise works the abs as they lengthen, which creates a lovely, lean torso.

• Stand on your knees with your toes tucked. If this hurts your knees, fold up a mat or towel and stand on that for a little cushioning. Your thighs should be parallel.
• Hold a dumbbell comfortably with both hands in front of your chest. I use an eight-pounder.
• Take a breath in and as you exhale, use your quad muscles to lower your torso behind you. Don't arch your back as in Camel pose, but instead keep your torso in one straight line. As you inhale, return your torso back to the starting position.
• Repeat for a total of 15 times. Complete a total of three sets. 

Dumbbell side bend

My favourite of all...

 Hold a pair of dumbbells at your sides, arms straight and core engaged. Without twisting your upper body, slowly bend to the left as far as you can, lowering the weight toward your left knee. Pause, then slowly return to an upright position. Repeat, bending to the right side. That's one rep. Do 10.

I currently do this one side at a time holding 15-20k and then swap to the other side. I do 10-15 of each side times 3.

enjoy and be safe x

Get inspired, Stay motivated

Surround yourself with support and positivity. From experience... I know this is a lot harder than it seems.

I mentioned this with a previous blog, but progress pics are a great way to feel motivated. More so for me than my weekly weigh in, as I am gaining muscle it doesn't show my progress on the scales. I am aiming for a toned, curved figure so the best way to gauge it is with a pic.

Todays progress pic, im getting booty!

Instragram in my inspiration wet dream!! I follow lots of superhot, toned girls... if they can do it so can you! I know the inspiration quotes can be annoying and cliche, but sometimes reading them really does help me, and if im not feeling the gym and read something it can kick me into gear. I never regret going to the gym, but I do regret not going.

Unfortunately there will be some people that will put you down for your hard work.. i just say ignore the haters and well done for making a positive healthy choice in making yourself happier and fitter. Its hard enough getting motivated anyway without people telling you that you should be eating cake and getting you to have that extra packet of crisps and not bother with the gym. The key is that your real friends will support you and your progress, even better...they will join you on your fitness quest!

Holiday Countdown

Ive decided to have a body busting week to get in super shape. This means EATING CLEAN. Ive not totally eaten clean before so lets see how this goes.... I am actually excited. As they say, Abs are made in the kitchen so no treats for me. Off to the shops for chicken, veg and fruit then!
I will also making a gym appearance every day this week. No cheat days for me this week.

I had my first night using heavier weights yesterday and my legs ache, i love that. Feel the burn! Whether you have a holiday, wedding, date or photo shoot coming up its great to use an incentive to push yourself, its easy to get stuck in a rut but it feels so good when you change things up and challenge yourself! Even if it is your weekly progress pic pushing you, keep yourself motivated:)

x

Diet... be sensible

The dreaded 'diet'. Well for me fad diets and fasting are not going to cut it.. I enjoy food and dont want to loose that. Also I want something that's attainable.

My yummy breakfast this morning :)))

I think having a good diet is pretty much down to common sense, you know having an apple and banana is better for your body than scoffing that deluxe chocolate cake. Its just making the decision to go for the healthy option. Now I am no angel, I have a real sweet tooth and love chocolate. I think its also good to give in to your sugar cravings once and again... just not every day.

Planning is your best friend when it comes to eating healthy, if you dont have junk in the cupboards but fill it with yummy healthy alternatives then thats what you are going to eat.

Now another bit of advice, be aware of what you are eating. I often 'mindlessly' eat, Im bored or craving sweets and before I know it half a packet of biscuits have gone! But something that has helped me is being 'calorie aware' of what im eating. Once you realise scoffing that packet is your daily allowance of calories you soon think twice! I found a great App recently, Nutracheck. I used the trial and stuck to the calories they calculated for me and filled in everything I was eating. You soon realise how quickly these calories add up! My trial is over, but I still use the app to reference the foods for there calorific data. It also helps calculate the amount of exercise you need to do.

Nutracheck app

I found this helpful as you see that you can eat much more when choosing the healthier options. Also you feel so much better in yourself not grabbing the biscuits and crisps all the time :)

Remember to still enjoy yourself, plan yummy meals. A nice balanced diet is what I go for. Have some cooked chicken ready to pop in a salad for a quick lunch, and there is nothing faster than fruit and if you reallllly want that cake have it but record it so you can keep track of your eating habits. You may surprise yourself with what you actually eat, and how many calories are in that glass of wine, those boozy nights out may be costing you!

I cooked these recipes last night for a party, wanting to still have a healthy meal whilst entertaining. The desert is only 129 Kcal! and noone would have realized, it was super yum xxx


'Healthy option Korma Curry'

'Spiced roasted apple desert'

much love x