My Posh Nail Polish | Jade

It's been quite a while since I last shared an image of my painted nails. Well, I actually decided to cut my nails not too long ago because some chipped off already and I wanted to start anew.



When my nails have grown a bit, I decided to paint it green, just because this bottle of nail polish has been in our container for about a month or two and I still haven't blogged it.

This nail polish is by My Posh. One of the cheapest nail polish I got to buy, I loved it because it was easy to apply. However, my biggest problem with this nail polish is that it bubbles way too easily, so whenever I use this brand, I always polish my nails in the dining area where there are no windows. Despite that problem, I still consider buying this brand because even if I don't put a top coat on, the polish last one full week before it chips off (I do house chores, by the way).


In one of my posts, I mentioned I bought a new pair of flip flops. This pair by World Balance is made of hard plastic... I admit I bought it because it was cheap and looked sturdier compared to the rubber flip flops. At first I thought it would be uncomfortable using it (walking long distance), but it was actually comfortable to use. Sure the material is hard, but it's so flat that I find it easy to use.


Last Tuesday, us girls went to the mall to watch a movie then after, we roamed around to window shop. As always, us sisters went to try on some footwear and I had my cellphone to take a quick picture. These two designs are by Skechers... both looked good, but if I have to make a choice, I might go for the one on the left.


The left one is by Charcoal... I have been a fan of their designs since then, but I still haven't had the chance to actually buy one pair. :) The one on the right was by Grendha... looked good, but not my type of Grendha design.

In the past few days, my sister and I bought about 4 new bottles of nail polish. I only paint my nails once per week, so these new nail polish will be shared in the future.

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 10

A few days ago, a childhood friend (who's a plus size like me since then) messaged me on Facebook asking if I wanted to join The Biggest Loser - Philippine Edition. I told her I want to, but me weighing 202lbs (yep I gained weight again), I don't think the show would consider me because the requirement is at least 200lbs for women. I am actually a big fan of the show, and I sure hoped to be a part of it (I remember watching The Biggest Loser Australia and told myself if the show comes to the Philippines, I'd audition but wasn't able to). Now, I don't think I can anymore.

Part of losing weight is for people to set goals, which is the topic of today's The Beck Diet Solution.


Ask anyone who want to lose weight about their "goal weight," they'd immediately tell you of their long term goal. I am (of course) like that, too, having to set my goal at 150lbs by May 2013... but I never really thought about setting a short term goal...something that is realistic to reach.

In the book, Dr. Beck says we should aim to lose 5lbs. She didn't say whether it is for the month, but she did say we should celebrate every 5lbs lost - not really by eating - but by rewarding ourselves with something good... like a massage, or maybe a tennis lesson.

Recalling my friend Nathalie's blog post, it was stated there that the healthy weight loss is at 1-2lbs per week, so I guess it is surely realistic to aim 5lbs per month.. but of course, if one loses more than that, then it a blessing to celebrate.

What I Ate in Ilocos, Day 3

Oh my... I totally forgot that I still haven't finished my Ilocos food trip! :) Anyway, Day 3 was our last full day in Ilocos, and we were asked to get up early so we can leave and have more time enjoying the sights, but that morning the rain just fell. We still hoped to eat breakfast early, but the resort's dining area wasn't open yet.


Thankfully, people at the Pilipinas Roadtrip took us to this little food place that looked like a shanty near the Pagudpud Public Market. We wondered why they took us there and then we realized the place serves breakfast. Typical -silog dishes were available that morning, and among the choices, mom and I went for the Longsilog. Others went for the Tapsilog, while sister went for Chicksilog just to give it more variation - she really is a food blogger at heart. Anyway, I was pretty satisfied with my food - the egg yolk wasn't fully cooked and the longganisa pieces were big enough. I didn't know what made the fried rice orange, but it was cooked good.

After that hearty breakfast, it was time to visit the places we weren't able to visit on Day 1, plus the places included for Day 3.


Lunch, we went for pizza at Herencia Cafe - located just in front of the Paoay Church. The church was included in the Day 1 itinerary, but it was way too hot that afternoon and that my sister and our neighbor Ria asked if we could eat at Herencia Cafe, so the tour guides moved this to Day 3 itinerary.

We had a bad dining experience when the staff didn't punch in our order. We were waiting more than 1 hour for our food, people who came later than us were already eating... and since all of our companions were already in the van waiting for us, we just went for the pizzas (our initial order had some other dishes) - Pinakbet and Dinuguan. I could say both pizzas taste good, but because we had to eat as fast as we could, we weren't really able to fully enjoy it.


It was already late in the afternoon when we reached Vigan City. We were given about an hour to roam around, buy souvenir if we want to, but because us four (mom, sis, Ria, and I) have already visited Vigan, we decided to just eat early dinner at Grandpa's Inn. Mom didn't eat with us as she ate a lot of free native delicacies earlier, so it was just three of us. Ria had an Oreo Cheesecake, sis had Hungarian Sausage pasta, and I had Baked Macaroni. It wasn't over the top good, but it was still delicious enough to recommend to friends.

From there we headed straight back to Manila. I started feeling queasy sometime during the trip, so that stopover at Pangasinan where some of us ate midnight snack gave me the chance to empty my tummy. I wasn't feeling so good anymore, but I was able to hold on 'til we reached home - around 4 in the morning.

Booking group tours with fixed itineraries do have its pros and cons. Despite my personal complaints, at the end of the day, I feel blessed to be a part of this trip

Shopping Day with Sister

Sister's day off at work is during Sundays and because she didn't like staying at home during her rest days, we decided to go out and go to the mall today.


My sister loves shoes - she always has a budget for shoes, and roaming around, she asked if we could stop by People are People shop. This was my first time to enter it and as my sister started trying on some shoes, I also checked the Sale Rack for shoes that would fit me.

This black peep toe and animal print strappy wedge shoes caught my interest right away. I don't really like trying on some shoes this high, but once, I remember my dear friend Lon told me weight has nothing to do with wearing high heeled shoes, I thought I'd give it a try. Well, it will still take a lot of time for me to get used to it.

What I loved was that these shoes on sale are only p700 per pair. Very stylish and pretty without the hefty price tag. Well, I just hope by the time I am slightly lighter, there will be these affordable shoes I can buy... part of my goals is to wear dresses and sexy shoes!


Of course, sister and I did buy some items:

• Flip Flops at p135 (World Balance) - Only two styles left, I decided to go for the green one as I don't really go for green footwear that much; I just feel it's time to go a little different now.
• Lavender and Metallic Purple Nail Polish at p48 each (Etude House) - Sister and I went to Etude House and seeing that some of their nail polish are less than p50 each, I decided to buy two bottles. 
• Baking Powder BB Foam Wash at p348 (Etude House) - Sister's purchase. When she bought an eyeliner at Etude House, she was given a sachet of this facial wash as a freebie. It was such a good product that sister was convinced to go and buy the big tube of it.
• Gray Nail Polish at p98 (Etude House) - Sister asked me for another bottle of nail polish and I went for gray. I am not sure why this is pricier than the ones I bought... but... sister still went for it.
• Maroon Brassier at p100 (Cinderella) - Cinderella has a sale and I am currently updating my closet so I decided to buy this. I won't tell you its size, of course. Hahaha.

It sure is great to be with my sister. 

Oh... the individual blog posts about the flip flops, nail polish, and facial wash will be share in the days to come.

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 9

I have been a lazy blogger lately, I know... but I still haven't thrown in the towel yet. In fact, I am gathering all the motivation and inspiration I can get.

Before I move to Day 9 of The Beck Diet Solution, I would just like to update a little something about Day 6 - Finding a Diet Coach. I have said that Mr. Pipoy is no longer my Diet Coach, but the past few days has been awesome for me as the people I encounter with online are very supportive with my journey, and now I can name three people who are my diet coaches. They aren't real friends (yet) as they are people I meet online, but apart from the usual exchange of stories about different matters, these people would take the time to ask me how is my journey going... what I ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I feel happy that even if one person stopped "caring" about how I am, there are still people who are supportive and caring.

So now... Day 9.

 

True, some people lose weight just by dieting, but regardless of our physical condition, I am sure you'll agree that we all need to exercise. Some exercise benefits printed on the book:

• Exercise helps you stick with your diet.
• Exercise might help control appetite.
• Exercise boosts mood and soothes stress.
• Exercise burns calories.
• Exercise preserves muscle tissue.
• Exercise builds confidence.
• Exercise makes you feel better physically.
• Exercise improves your health and helps prevent disease.

All the points raised above, I agree with. I felt I eat less whenever I exercise, I feel less sluggish, and I have more stamina to walk longer, even climb the stairs without panting that much. Exercise has to be a big part of my journey because I am a very big woman; if I just go for dieting, I'd sure have a lot of saggy skin. Well, I do exercise and I still have loose skin, what more if I don't?

Dr. Beck mentioned about two types of exercises: Spontaneous and Planned Excercises. Spontaneous Exercises as the word suggested are those we do spontaneously - like parking far from the entrance of the building so one can walk, or taking the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator. Planned Exercises are those we stick to like daily walks / jog / run or hiring a personal trainer.

Exercise surely is something we all should do, but not all of us have the privilege of time and some people have to consider factors - like taking care of kids or having physical limitations... but as what they say, "If there's a will, there's a way."

As for me, the spontaneous exercises I think I will do is to get up from my seat every hour to walk around the house and drink water or use the toilet and walking from the house to the market and back at home. My planned exercises are those listed on my exercise schedule.

One pal who works at the gym told me success in weight loss is 70% diet, but 30% still has a big share, so it shouldn't be taken for granted.