Eko party, anyone?

Ok, so we all like to drink alcohol from time to time. I try to limit it as much as possible, because it influences my skin in worst possible way. But, at the same time, let’s not get carried away.

My friend shared with me a few checked recipes for delicious drinks.  Enjoy ;)

1. green etiude

2cucumbers
1/2 cup of fresh mint
50ml of green tea
100ml of vodka or bacardi rum
squeezed lime
one flat spoon of sugar
ice

2. watremelon&cucumber margarita

2cucumbers
2pieces of watermelon
1/2 cup of fresh mint
squeezed lime
1 spoon of Cointreau liquer (or any sweet oneyou have got)
100ml of gyn (I recommend Finsbury)
1/2 spoon of sugar
ice

- one has to mix the cucumber, mint and waternelon in a blender and then add rest.

3. mayfair

one cucumber
two squeezed lemons
50ml gyn
a spoon of sugar

4. gazpacho

one cucumber
one tomatoe
one red pepper
a small bottle of tomatoe juice
a little  bit of Tabasco sauce (like one spoon)
1/2 spoon of Worcestershire sauce
100ml of vodka
salt and pepper

One needs to peel all veggies and mix them with half of tomatoe juice, then remove all the shit and add the rest of the juice, tabasco, sauce, vodka, salt and pepper.

A new approach

There is no denying there has been a more than normally acceptable delay in fitness posts, not for a lack of ideas but for a lack of time.

Now we are firmly into the “Im going away in 6 weeks help” season I thought Id do a few updates on new ways to work the key parts on show in a bikini..

First up – Abs:

Having worked on my Abdominals for years the key bit of advice I tend to share is that you need to keep changing what you do. Too much of the same movement or excercise and your muscles get used to it, you can repeat it for ages but it isnt actually doing you much good. In the past Ive posted various crunch routines but recently a friend of mine developed two new excercises which Ive found incredibly effective

Excercise one

Lie on your back with your legs in the air and your lower back pushed into the floor. Slowly lower one leg down until its just off floor level then the other. The trick with this one is to a) gradually reduce the angle from the floor – so your muscles are continually worked and b) dont speed up. If you have difficulty keeping your lower back engaged, put your arms straight up in the air and that should help.

Excercise Two

This one involves being able to do a side plank, if thats a new move for you then Id suggest you get comfortable with it first before trying this. Using a light weight (about 2KG) go up into a side plank. Extend the weight up into the air and then lower down to the floor and back up again, repeat it 20 times on each side. The key with this is to keep the technique on your side plank good, keep your body still and with only controlled movements on your available arm. As you get better at this one you can increase the weight you are using and raise the leg on top for even more of a challenge.

One sign, big difference

I just signed an urgent petition to stop the Uganda Anti-gay bill. Join me now!

In two days, the Ugandan Parliament could pass a brutal hate law that would impose the death penalty on citizens who repeatedly “practice homosexuality.” If we can keep this law from reaching a vote this week, it will die when Parliament closes on May 12th. Click to sign the petition, then repost this campaign!

http://www.avaaz.org/en/uganda_stop_homophobia_petition/?rc=fb&ref=nf

The climate supporters: Lily Cole & Tesco tshirts

Check out this short but inspiring video made by Environmental Justice Foundation.

Model Lily Cole visited India to check out the process of making organic t-shirts, and the enormous effort, that is needed to produce it.

The eco t-shirts are going to be available in Tesco to promote the  Climate Week.

Baby, it’s cold outside…

Winter can be a very disturbing time of the year. On one hand it’s beautiful – snow, Christmas, family joy. On the other hand it makes our skin vulnerable and dry.
I have been exposing my skin to wind, – 10 degrees and constant temperature change from hot indoor places to chilly outdoors. Gloomy atmosphere and darkness at 3 pm didn’t make it easy. I’ve been drinking lots of coffee to stay awake during day. All these factors made my skin extremly dry and irritated. I visited my beautician and asked her what products does she recommend for that time of the year.
I have been adviced to use a moisturizer with SPF factors. I have a huge problem with blushing in the winter when the difference between indoor and outdoor temperature is enormous.
This is why I decided to buy (and check) General Topic, Sychrorose line.
Their Synchrorose intensive cream contains Silymarin, MSM, hyaluronic acid, UVB-UVA filters, which helps to hydrate and calm irritated skin. I have been using it every morning since December. I have noticed that I stpped blushing and my skin is definately less prone to temperature changes, stress etc The cosmetic is paraben free.
The cream is perfect for blushing problems but it didn’t hydrate my skin enough. This is when I have started my rosehip oil night treatment. Rosehip oil by Florame, composes of natural ingredients. The oil – applied every night – hydrated my skin just after a few nights. It soothed irritations caused by the environment and made my skin more glowing and relaxed. The application has been extremly pleasurable, as I have done a short face massage each time I applied the oil.
The final step – and probably the cheapest one – has been the inner hydration. Drinking juices and water instead of tea and coffee has been a great step towards upcomming spring. There’s nothing like an orange juice in the morning!

None of the cosmetics have been tested on animals, none contains parabens, perfume or

chemical colourants.

(Herbal) Tea Time.

Tea Time!

I don’t know if anyone of you heard about this, but some time ago a friend of mine told me that the pansy tea helps for skin.

I have decided to give it a go. Pansy tea is easy to find.  So here’s a brief review, with highlights:

TASTE: to be quite honest it isn’t so good, it tastes weirdly, a bit like red tea combined mixed up with green one. One can add a spoon of honey to make it sweeter, no sugar though.

DURATION: I’ve  been drinking  pansy tea for about two months (which is not a long time, if it comes to herbs) . Two teabags per day.

RESULTS: skin is smoother, brighter & hydrated (mind you, I drink lots of coffee and tea that dries it off).  I tried not to use any new cosmetics, serums or face masks at that time, so I am sure the effect was caused by the pansy itself.

Some friends of mine decided to join me in that test, one of them had problems with acne. I can’t say that her face is acne – free yet, but her skin is purified and glowing now.

In my opinion, drinking pansy tea is as profitable as drinking nettle. I  guess we should just remember, that herbs and plants won’t change our skintypes or heal diseases, but they can contribute to the process of detox.

x

PS I have just gotten a pretty nasty comment from one person, which can be seen under Reactivation post. I wanted to let everyone know that I have no intention to copy anything from other blogs about organic living, healthy living, healthy life style and such. I just enjoy sharing stuff, testing products and trying to stay healthy. I have no agenda and I don’t write here to sell any product or promote any cosmetic/food line. This is why I don’t really need to make this place famous/fashionable/seen by thousands.

I write for my own entertainment. More over, everybody lives in rush nowadays, it’s nice to stop for a second, and think of ourselves. No matter if it means drinking yerba mate, using organic cosmetics, doing workouts or simply, focusing on activities we are currently performing (which is my ballet teacher’s favorite ;)  )

January Blues

Now we’re out of January, I thought it was time for the first fitness post of 2011. I don’t about you but I get rather tired of being told about all the “new” things I can do in January when the reality is that most people engage with their new routine for a couple of weeks and then drop off again.

Fitness isn’t about what you do in a quick burst, fitness works best when its something that you do as part of your daily or weekly routine. So, now the gyms are hopefully quieter again, its time, if you haven’t already, to start building fitness into your day. If you are beginner go for a walk at lunchtime, avoid lifts like the plague and walk up escalators; even changes as small as this will make a difference if you keep consistently at them. If you are happy in a gym, nows the time to shake up your workout, do some new classes perhaps – or build up your own circuits.

Talking of classes…This is also happily the time of year when exercise classes start to get less rammed! Classes are another excellent way of getting into exercise. They are usually fun, challenge you in different ways to just doing your own workout and its generally quite a social occasion too. Of all the classes I’ve done so far there are two I have fallen in love with! One of theses is Spin and its one of the best fat and calorie burners you can find in a group session. With the right music and the right instructor its hard to find a more challenging workout in a class environment. But if you haven’t got a spin class to go to, panic not! Its pretty easy to recreate the spin experience on a stationery bike either at the gym or at home.

1) Put on your favourite tunes (something with a fairly high rate beat ☺)
2) Start off with 10 minutes with the resistance down fairly fast but comfortable as a warm up
3) Do 30 seconds going as fast as you possibly can with the resistance down low followed by a minute of normal pace – repeat 8 times
4) Do 30 seconds going as fast as you possibly can on a standing sprint (out of the seat with resistance slightly up) followed by a minute of normal pace out of your seat – repeat 8 times
5) 5 Minutes with medium resistance seated, take your hands off the handlebars and just push with your legs
6) 2 minutes going as fast as you can

Remember to stretch out your legs at the end of this, otherwise it will hurt the next day! Take it from a girl that knows and has spent time walking around doing a John Wayne impression after a particularly arduous spin class!