Health/ Fitness

Do Detox Teas and Waters Really Work?

Detox |lookingjoligood.wordpress.comBesides a being lover of makeup and trying to look beautiful, I am also a Registered Nurse.  I love all the science behind health and wellness and how the body works.

Unless you have been living under a rock, or don’t ever go on social media, I am sure that you have heard about Detox Teas and Detox Waters.  Many of these products claim to flush fat and toxins from your body.

While this sounds like a great way to lose some extra weight, generally if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is.  And… in this case, it is too good to be true.  These drinks do not melt away the extra pounds.

While many of these detox waters include cucumbers, lemon and tea, which have a natural diuretic effect (A substance or drug that tends to increase the discharge of urine.) you aren’t losing any actual body fat.  What you are losing is just a bit of excess water weight.  This water weight will return once you drink fluids or eat again.

Unfortunately, no detox tea or detox water or magic drink can flush out fat or toxinsDetox |lookingjoligood.wordpress.com from your system.
Do you know what can flush out the toxins your system?  Your kidneys, liver, skin (and even your lungs do a bit too.)  These organs are specifically designed to be constantly removing toxins from your body.  If you are a healthy person with properly functioning organs, you can not make them work better by drinking a detox drink.

(You know all those popular cleanses?  They can’t do it either.  Your healthy body is also designed to cleanse itself.)

Save your money and drink more regular plain old H2O.

Detox | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Drinking plenty of water provides many health benefits.  Some of these include, more energy and improved brain functions.  Drinking water before a meal can help you to lose weight due to having a feeling of fullness which in turn causes one to eats less.  Consistently drinking plenty of water will also help you to have regular bowl movement as well.

How much water should you drink a day?  Well, that depends on a lot of things.  Your height, weight and sex, how active you are as well as where you live.  The rule of thumb is to daily consume between 0.5-1 oz per pound you weigh.  For example, if you weigh 130 pounds, that would be between 65 to 130 ounces of water a day. (1.9 -3.8 Liters)

Healthy living Detox |lookingjoligood.wordpress.comClick HERE for an easy more specific hydration calculator.

So in the end, unfortunately, there is no quick fix to weight loss and health.  If you want to lose weight and be healthy there is no way around it, you have to eat right, exercise consistently, get enough sleep, decrease the stress in your life, and drink a lot of water.

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Make up

Beauty YouTubers

I love to watch beauty videos on YouTube.  I am always looking for new YouTubers to watch.  If you have any good recommendations let me know! I have some of my own recommendations of people to follow.  Here are my top 3…

https://www.youtube.com/user/GlamLifeGuru/videos

Tati Westbrook | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com
https://www.youtube.com/user/GlamLifeGuru/videos

My absolute favorite YouTuber is Tati Westbrook of Glam Life Guru.  She is not only absolutely beautiful, but she also makes the most well made and professional make up videos.  If you don’t already follow her, you definitely need to check her out!  I have no idea how she doesn’t have over a million viewers!  Her videos are seriously amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/user/FancyThatwithCandice

FancyThatwithCandice | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com
https://www.youtube.com/user/FancyThatwithCandice

You have got to check out Candice from Fancy That With Candice!  She is so cute and has the sweetest personality!  I love to watch her videos because she gets so excited over the smallest things.  Her videos are so well made and enjoyable to watch.

https://www.youtube.com/user/Melmphs  And last, but definitely not least is

Melissa Autry | lookingjoligood.wordpress.com
https://www.youtube.com/user/Melmphs

Melissa Autry of Melmphs!  Oh my goodness, she is so funny!!!  I seriously crack up at her videos.  She tells it like it is and gives great product reviews all while being entertaining and hilarious.  She is from Tennessee and her accent and personality are great!  You have got to watch her videos, you will be smiling the entire time!  “Are you ready for the weekend, Baby?” (watch her and you will know exactly what I mean by that 😉 )  Be sure to give me some of your favorites as well!

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Health/ Fitness

First Day Back to Work

Nurse | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comToday was my first day back to work at the hospital as a nurse.  I have greatly enjoyed being a stay at home mom over the last 8 years, but I am also excited about being back in the world of the employed.

There is just something about being with a group of like minded people that is exciting.  Plus, if you are a nurse or a nursing student, you know what the meal time conversation is like… revolting to some extremely interesting to others. 🙂 I am even looking forward to going back again tomorrow…we’ll see how long that lasts.

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Flab to FAB · Health/ Fitness

Hi, My Name is Laura and I Am A Food Addict…

Some posts are easier to share than others…

Journey with me From Flab to FAB!

So, from the title you can already tell what this post is going to be about…  While I am not completely serious when I say that I am a food addict, I definitely have a love/hate relationship Eat to Live or Live to Eat |lookingjoligood.wordpress.comwith food.  I  love to eat, yet I hate the guilt that comes along with it.  It is a crazy cycle!

Some people are just naturally fit and thin, while others have to work really hard at it.  Some people are naturally built thicker and curvier.  Some people just naturally don’t like to eat a lot (what is their problem?! :-))  Other people love to eat!  Some people can eat whatever they want while others look at food and gain weight.

Growing up, I was always able to eat whatever I wanted and never gain weight.  Then I got married, and pregnant and then I hit my thirties.  While I am by no means unhealthy or overweight, I definitely have those few pesky pounds that I want to lose.

Just as much as I love to eat, I have always loved to exercise, but… unfortunately abs are made in the kitchen just as much as they are in the gym

healthy-food flab to FAB journey | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comI have tried to “diet” in the past and what ends up happening is that I get stressed out about everything that I eat and obsessed with all the things that I can’t eat.  Usually I end up super cranky and quit without seeing any results.

So, all this being said, I have recently started a healthy eating journey.  It is not always fun, and it doesn’t usually taste as good as ice cream, but it hasn’t been as hard as I thought.  I have been retraining my brain to think about food differently.  It is an everyday decision and it takes a lot of planning.  It doesn’t mean that I don’t still plan on posting awesome dessert recipes (or even eating awesome desserts), it just means that I have changed my way of thinking about dessert.

I plan to share some of my journey with all of you, and if you are interested, you can even join in and take the journey along with me!  Let me know what you think and if you have ever had similar struggles with food.

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

Make up · Review · Weekly Product Highlight

~Weekly Product Highlight~ Highlighters~ Reserve Your Cabana~

Highlight on fleek?

Wet n Wild Color Icon Collection Bronzer SPF 15, Reserve Your Cabana

Highlight on Fleek? Reserve your Cabana | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comWhile personally I am not a super over the top highlight all over the face kind of gal, I know that “strobing” is very in right now.  Since highlighting is so popular there are so many different types and brands of highlighters to choose from.  I have tried a few different ones, some higher end and some drugstore ones. I have to say out of all of the ones that I have tried the $3.99 Reserve Your Cabana Bronzer highlighter from Wet N Wild is my absolute favorite.  It may be called a Bronzer, but don’t let that fool you this is definitely a highlighter and it is gorgeous.  It is such a beautiful shade with just the right amount of shimmer and glow. I don’t know what it is exactly about this highlighting bronzer, but it is absolutely stunning. I use it on my cheekbones, the inner corners of my eyes, on my brow bone, and sometimes on top of my cupid’s bow.  It just adds this beautiful glow to the skin without being an overly in your face highlight.  Whether you are on a tight budget or not, I highly recommend this highlighter, it is such a great product!

What does the Wet N Wild website have to say about this highlighter…

“Sunset tan! The grand daddy of the bronzer world! This big, hunky guy is the perfect man: he’s healthy for you (dermatologist-tested), not slimy (oil-free), has a great pedigree (winner of The Oprah Magazine O-Ward) and is so protective (from harmful UVB rays). Plus, he’ll always complement how you look!”

  • Dermatologist-tested
  • Oil-free
  • SPF Protection
  • Winner of The Oprah Magazine Spring Makeup O-Ward!
Beauty Subscription

Ipsy Customer Service Is Awesome!

September Ipsy Glam Bag | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comIn my post earlier today I said that when I received my ipsy glam bag it was different than what my “glam bag sneak peak” said I would be getting in my bag this month.  Well, I sent an email to ipsy customer service and within less than an hour I got this reply…

Hi Laura!

Thanks so much for letting us know!

I’m sorry to hear the Glam Bag goodies you received didn’t match what you saw in your online Glam Bag. You should’ve received the following products this month:

NYX Cosmetics; ipsy Eye Shadow Trio
tre’StiQue; Mini Matte Lip Crayon (Nantucket Nude)
Evelyn Iona Cosmetics; Cream Blush (Ash)
Bayberry Naturals; Moisturizer (Rosehip & Hibiscus)
Vasanti Cosmetics; Brighten Up! Exfoliating Cleanser

Don’t worry, I’ve issued a replacement order to your current address for the items you haven’t received. You’ll get a tracking number via email once your package leaves our warehouse (within 5 -7 business days).

Apologies again for the inconvenience!

Let me know if I can help with anything else, and thanks for being part of ipsy!

Best regards,
Mariz

Thank you so much ispy! That is some really good (and really fast) customer service!  If you don’t already subscribe to ipsy, here is just another reason why you should!

If you want to check it out here is my referral link:  https://www.ipsy.com/new?refer=uqdkx

BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS · Review

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty Book Review

What Alice Forgot by Laine Moriarty Book Review | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comDon’t let the 487 pages frighten you away!  When you reach the end you will be wishing for 400 more pages!

Laine Moriarty is one of my favorite authors!  She has such a talent for writing that you feel as if you are part of the storyline.  I became so engrossed with this book that I couldn’t put it down.  I am usually in bed and asleep no later than 11, nope not with this book!  I stayed up until well past 3 am just so that I could finish reading What Alice Forgot!

So yeah, this book may be categorized as chick-lit, but I found that it really made me think about my own life. If something were to happen to me and I were to forget the last ten years of my life, what would I think about my “new” life? Would I be surprise by what I have become?  How have my relationships changed?  Would I be surprised at the ones that are better, or which ones have changed for the worst? Have I become the person, wife, and mother that I thought I would be ten years ago? Would I be proud of the decisions that I have made over the last 10 years? This book really made me think about all these things.

Here is how Laine describes What Alice Forgot

“I realized that memory loss is a form of time travel. So I came up with the idea of a woman, Alice, who loses 10 years of her memory. She thinks she is 29, pregnant with her first child and blissfully in love with her husband. She is horrified to discover she is 39, with 3 children and in the middle of a terrible divorce. It’s like the younger Alice has travelled forward in time. Readers tell me that what they liked best about this novel was how it made them think about the choices they’d made and wonder how their younger selves would feel about the lives they are leading now.”

“Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over.”

This is one of my favorite quotes from the book:
“Early love is exciting and exhilarating. It’s light and bubbly. Anyone can love like that. But after three children, after a separation and a near-divorce, after you’ve hurt each other and forgiven each other, bored each other and surprised each other, after you’ve seen the worst and the best– well, that sort of love is ineffable. It deserves its own word.”

The Alice we get to know is in this book is so relatable and likable that you will become enthralled with her life!  I give this book 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend you read it!
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Make up · Tips and Tricks

What Is Your Undertone?

What Is Your Undertone? And why does it matter when choosing makeup?

While the color of your skin may change, the color of your undertones will not.  Finding your undertones is the first step in figuring out what shade of foundation and shades of makeup you should be wearing.  It will also help you to determine if you are choosing the correct colors of clothing.

When trying to get a foundation color match, knowing your undertones is one of the most helpful things to know. There are three types of undertones: warm, cool, and neutral. If you have warm undertones, your skin will tend to be golden, peachy, or yellow. If you have cool undertones, your skin will usually be pink, red, or even blue, neutral undertones are just that, neutral a mix of warm and cool.

If you don’t know your undertones, here are a few ways to can help you to determine what your skin’s undertones are…

what is your undertone? |lookingjoligood.wordpress.com
Look at the inside of your wrist
. What is the main color of your veins? Generally, they will look either blue/purple if you are cool toned or green/olive if you are warm toned.  If you are neutral, the veins will be both blue/purple and green. (That’s me, both purple and green veins)

How do you look when you wear yellow or orange?
One of my sisters looks great in peachy corals and yellows.  My other sister looks sickly when she wears them.

What is your undertone? |lookingjoligood.wordrpress.com
Which of these three sets of clothing looks the best on you?

What type of jewelry do you prefer on your skin? Gold (warm) or Silver (cool)?  For me, although I love the look of silver, and although I am neutral, I generally tend to look a bit better in gold jewelry.

What happens to your skin when you are out in the sun without sunscreen?
Do you burn fast or turn pink? Then you are cool toned
You can get a tan but burn if I stay out too long?  Neutral
Do you
 tan? That means warm
(PSA: Always wear sunscreen!)

DeepDark Brown Eyes | lookingjoligood.wordpress.comWhat color flecks are in your eyes?
Golden or hazel (warm) Blue or gray (cool) A little bit of both (neutral)
If you have deep dark brown almost black eyes like me, you probably have no color flecks in your eyes 🙂

So what did you come up with?

Cool
Jewel tones are your friend! Makeup and clothing that are blue, purple, blue-green, green, magenta, and some red shades are for you. You want to choose a foundation with a blue or pink undertone.

It can all be a bit confusing, so if you are still not quite sure as to what your undertone is, take a quick stop on my Pinterest board called “skin undertones”  I have a lot of pins about this subject that can help you!

lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

I would love for you to follow me on TwitterInstagram, and Facebook. You can find me as Looking Joli Good on all three.  I would also love to follow you on Instagram and Twitter as well, so let me know your username in the comment section below!

Free/Good Deals · Make up

Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty

Ulta's 21 Days of Beauty | Lookingjoligood.wordpress.comUlta’s 21 Days of Beauty starts today and goes through September 26th!

I am not going to lie, when I received the flyer in the mail, I studied that thing like there was going to be a test on it!!!

I am pretty excited about some of the great deals that they are offering.  Some of the sale items are things that I already have on my wish list.

Free/Good Deals · Make up

Target’s Cartwheel

There are so many great way to save with Cartwheel! |lookingjoligood.wordpress.comDo you use the Target Cartwheel app?  If you don’t you definitely need to!  There are so many great way to save with Cartwheel!

According to the Target cartwheel website “You may access Cartwheel from your desktop or mobile browser at Cartwheel.com, or download the apps from the App Store or Google Play.  Save on the things you already buy at Target with Cartwheel! Choose from hundreds of offers with discounts of 5-50% off every area of the store. Just add an offer to your Cartwheel list, scan your barcode in store, and save. It’s that easy. It’s like carrying around hundreds of coupons in your pocket, all neatly organized and accessible!”

There are hundreds of great items you can add to get for a discount. This week there are 61 beauty related items you can save on Here are a few of the great deals you can find this week…There are so many great way to save with Cartwheel! |lookingjoligood.wordpress.com

There are so many great way to save with Cartwheel! |lookingjoligood.wordpress.com