Just Curious...

I was just wondering if I started a small workout group, how many of you would be interested? We would meet on a facebook private page frequently and  cheer each other on, share our struggles and strengths. It would be for thirty days and I will cheer you on and we can all share tips and tricks on how to survive ;) the workouts and the tough days or obstacles we run into. If you are interested in it or want more info on it, just shoot me an email at lyssa_jeffries@hotmail.com or comment below. It will only be 5-6 people and I need to know if you are interested by Sept. 16. Thanks guys!

Back To School Give Away

My So-Called Chaos | A Peek at Karen's World | Join the Gossip | Patti Cake | Your Modern Family 

Night Chayde | Olive & Ivy | Beauty Expression by Luchessa | MagicCatJenny | Thoughts, Rants, & Art

Harris Inc | 21 Random | Eternal Girl | The Livingston House Full of Boys | Confessions of a College Angel

By the Porchlight | A Beauty Moment | Beauty & More by Christina | Two-Thirds Scarlett | Red Runner | Mama Gab

These fantastic sponsors have teamed up with me for a Big (and I really mean HUGE) back to school giveaway!  We all wanted to go in on awesome back to school supplies that anyone could use.  Whether you're going to college, sending your kids to school, or you really just love adorable organizational supplies.  Here are the packages we have for you! 

The Grand Prize Winner will receive their choice of Kinies EZ Tote Bag (in their choice of Black, Khaki, Army Green, Red, Purple, Royal Blue, Orange, Gray, or Dark Teal), a personalized Watercolor Striped Notebook from Letter C Design, I'm Sticky Sticky Notes from JulieAnnArt, their choice of a Set of 6 Pencils from Carbon Crusader, and their choice of Pencil Pouch from Sawyer Sewing.  If winner is outside of the US they may receive Paypal cash/Amazon gift card for items that cannot be shipped internationally or cost too much extra to. 

The First Runner Up will win a set of 3 pencils from Carbon Crusader and their choice of a Reversible Messenger Bag from Technicolor Moments.  If winner is outside of the US they may receive Paypal cash/Amazon gift card for items that cannot be shipped internationally or cost too much extra to. 

The Second Runner Up will win their choice of Weekly Planner from Simply Paperie and a set of 3 Pencils from Carbon Crusader.   If winner is outside of the US they may receive Paypal cash/Amazon gift card for items that cannot be shipped internationally or cost too much extra to. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Entering the above Rafflecopter/Giveaway agrees to the Terms & Conditions listed inside.
Shops where the prizes come from are not participating and have nothing to do with this giveaway.

Waterproof Foundation

YES! I said it! Waterproof foundation! WOOT WOOT! Not only to they both have great coverage, but they aren't expensive, AND I have super sensitive skin and I haven't experienced any irritation! YAY! I really like both of these products and wear both all the time now. Especially during the hot summer days and a girl who likes to work out a bit, makeup that will stay is always a nice thing to have! There is the Rimmel London Lasting Finish 25 hour Foundation ($7.29)  and the Super BB Cream by Physicians Formula ($14.99). Let me say this, if you have more oily skin, go with Rimmel London's Lasting Finish. It has more of a matte finish and consistency and would probably work really well with your skin type. If you tend to have more dry skin like myself, the Physicians Formula is AMAZING. Althought it doesn't actually say it is water proof, it can stand its ground when faced with sweat.  It actually is suppose to replace your moisturizer if you put one on before makeup (which I recommend doing). I also love BB creams because it helps even out my skin. I have eczema and it tones down the redness and makes my skin look more even and smooth. The Physicians Formula also gives you a more dewy look and makes your face look fresh and less dry. I love the Rimmel too, this one actually says that it is sweat proof. I feel like this one endures sweat a little better than the BB cream and it has great coverage and gives your face that beautiful matte finish. Both are very blendable, and a little goes a long way on both. I am SUPER picky when it comes to foundation, and as of now these two are my favs! Especially for summer or as a workout junkie. What is YOUR favorite foundation that withstands your sweaty workouts, hot humid days, or just in general? PLEASE SHARE!

Best Self Tanner

Alright to it is no secret that I have European skin in my family. I am a white red head, sometimes I can light up the room all by myself (no electricity needed!). I can tan, but that is usually after a burn and we all know that isn't very good for your skin. So I had been hearing all this hoopla about this self tanner for a long time now. Whenever I would see it in a store or online, I would go to look at it but then I would just say "I'll get it later". Well I was looking at my legs the other day and they were probably as white as the backdrop on my blog. YIKES. So I finally grabbed a bottle of amazon.com and I put it on the first day, not expecting much and boy....did it deliver. I am sure everyone has heard of St. Tropez self tanning mousse. Can I say that I LOVE IT??!!! I put it on (trust me, I was nervous when it came out of the bottle, it looked SUPER dark). I mean it was minutes after applying it to my skin and I saw the color change to a shade or so darker. Let me tell you, I am QUEEN of having streakyness when it comes to self tanners, but this product really blends well to your skin and evens it self out more so than your regular tanner. LOVE THIS STUFF! I think I may feel comfortable to try a little bit on my face! So yes, it doesn have a bit of a price tag to it (unless I am just cheap) but it is a lot cheaper, safer, healthier to do it this way than baking in the sun, in a bed, or get an orange, streaky, hot mess from a tanning salon.

Nike Plus Kinect

So I don't know how many of you own an xbox kinect system, but if you do and you're up for some fun ways to fit in fitness do I have a game (yup, a game) for you! It's called Nike Plus Kinect Training. What's really cool is that it tailors the workouts to fit YOUR own personal needs. It asks what your fintess goals are (lose weight, tone, gain muscle, etc) and then it does a series of exercises to study your form and how your body moves on certain exercises and what you need to improve. It really personalizes to your individual needs. Then it creates a series of workouts over the course of four weeks to help you improve on your fitness and reach your goals. You can compete with other Nike Plus users (motivation) and it has games on it such as dodge ball, wall shape, sprint competitions and so on. I think this is so cool! It give you some personalization (without spending $$$ on a trainer), it's fun, its in the comfort of your own home, it improves your form and notices when you kinda slack, etc. It's a great way to get you off the couch and maybe your family or kids as well :) to keep everyone healthy and active.

Vegetarian Fajitas

The kudos for this recipe goes out to my boyfriend! We decided to have a more laid back Saturday and cook dinner together and watch a movie. Since we both are still on our New York kick, we saw the Phantom of the Opera on Broadway while we were there, so we decided to watch the movie. Anyway, this recipe goes out to my veggetarians and possibly vegans, depending on what you put on it. I love that my boyfriend is very good at coming up with vegetarian meals of foods we both really like.

Indgredients

1. red, yellow, orange, green sweet pepppers (all colors or just the ones you like, it doesn't matter)
2. chopped onions
3. salsa of your choice
4. black beans
5. whole wheat tortillas (or corn if you wish)
6. almond cheese
7. cayanne pepper
8. red pepper flake seasoning

This is super easy, there really isn't a wrong way to possibly cook this. All you have to do is chop the onions and peppers (if they aren't already) and throw them in a skillet or pan, etc. Saute them in a little bit of olive oil until they have that golden tint to it. Then add the salsa and your cayanne pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Those spices add a good kick to it so if you aren't into spicey, then skip the spices, add your own or add very little to it. But I love spicey food since it actually has been shown to raise the metabolism ;) a bit. Then throw in the black beans (protein!!!)  and let that sit for as long as your heart desires. I say 10-15 min, the sauteing shouldn't take very long either since you are just trying to cook through veggies and beans (which doesn't take as long as cooking meat). You then can just shred up some almond cheese or buy it shredded  and take the veggie & black bean mix, throw it on a tortilla with any extra addings like low fat greek yogurt (good sour cream replacement if you want it) or some chulula, tobasco sauce, etc. Roll it up and enjoy!!! It really is nice to have a day to go meatless and try something new. I think I want to try doing one day a week away from meat just to force myself to try new foods.

Hahaha

                               Admit it....you laughed a little. Even you hard core dieters

Anyone else have this problem???

You Decide!

Hello my little Red Runners! I just wanted to take today's post and put the ball in your court. I would like to know what you all want to see more of. Do you guys want me to post workouts? Food/Recipes? More tips? Do you want a little more variety and not just all strictly fitness and health? When you stop by the blog, what are you hoping to see and/or find? Please take a moment to comment below, I would like to see what you have to say and get your input. I love being able to post and share all I can on my blog and I want to make sure you are getting all the information you are looking for! I love you guys, and thank you all so very much for being apart of my blog! I love being able to gush out my passion and see you all supporting it.

Accomplishment

Hello everyone!

I do apologize for the delay in comments and no new postings for a bit. I have been out of town, but trying to stay in contact (and making new contact) with blogging as much as I could. I do have to apologize, a while ago I started Insanity as you all know and did one or two posts about it but didn't keep you really informed. I finished my last circuit last week and let me tell you. It. Was. HARD. I had been doing other workout programs for so long, I wasn't used to the format and a lot of the moves were very different and took a lot of power. There were days where I had to pause multiple times, rewind, and there were days where I just did NOT want to do the stupid workout. But guess what, I did. I stuck to it as best as I possibly could. Not as best as Shaun T, or Tania, or Ariel in the work out video or as best to a tri-athelete could, I did it the best that I could. I stuck with it, I put my best effort in and finished. That is one of the most important parts in your life is sticking with something even when it is hard. Everyone and anyone can just give up and do something easy. You don't build character, you don't improve or achieve goals by giving up. You HAVE to keep trying and see things through to the end. Even if I can't do a lot of push ups on my toes, or jump as high or run as fast as those on the Insanity workouts or other fitness fanatics, I do my best and I got my reward in turn of sticking to it and giving it my best. Thanks to stubbornness and sticking to crazy insane workout, I have broken my plateau and lost 8 lbs. Granted, I wasn't looking to lose a lot of weight, just shed a little and become more toned so I had to adjust my nutrition for that. Ok, I shall get off my soapbox and stop rambling! Happy Monday Everyone! I thought this little ecard was pretty accurate....love me some Shaun T though ;)

Summerize and Accesorize Giveaway 8 prizes 8 Winners

 I have paired up with some awesome ladies for an awesome giveaway! Make sure you check them out. 8 Winners and 8 awesome prizes!

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