There's this girl I follow on social media.  She's a successful entrepreneur who's constantly growing her brand. Although I don't follow her very closely, I can say that she's had an amazing journey over the years.  But, there's one thing I notice....every so often she's discussing a new diet plan to help shed some of her excess weight. 

One time she consumed mainly vegetable juices.  Recently she decided to go keto.  But the last time I visited her page, it seemed as if simple carbs had entered back into her life in a big way.

I don't fault her. Carbs are a tough food group to eliminate.  They're filling, satisfying and taste so good.  It's nearly impossible to give up carbs long term. But losing a decent amount of weight requires some form of carb management.   Since the keto diet is so popular, many are opting for carb elimination.  Eliminating carbs works!  But is almost 100% temporary.

You will reintegrate carbs back into your life....and you will likely gain all the weight back once you do.  The true key to weight success, in my opinion, requires carb management, not carb elimination. 

Sometime last year I started to amass a small collection of balms.  Not lip balms, the kind that comes in little canisters meant to be used on the body.  I bought them 'cause I knew it was the right thing to do.  But, honestly, I had no clear purpose for them.  Because I didn't really think of how to put them to use, they pretty much just sat around.

Now I'm realizing that I'm allowing potentially great products to go to waste but I can't let that happen. So I did a little brainstorming today and came up with a bunch of specific ways to utilize body balms in my beauty routine.

Even though  I talk about sheets masks incessantly on this blog, I don't really use them all that frequently.  My sheet masks are pretty much "out of sight, out of mind" until winter."  Heck, I didn't even bring any with me on a recent trip to California.  I figured that since we're in the middle of summer, my normal moisturizer would suffice.

Wrong.  I was completely wrong.

That extra-long flight combined with lowered humidity really dried out my skin.  Luckily, a friend randomly offered to share some sheet masks she picked up on a trip to Japan.  Thanks to her intervention, my skin was saved.  Once again I made a verbal commitment to never forsake my sheet masks again.  This was perfect timing as I just learned that the 1# selling sheet mask brand in all of Korea has finally launched in the US.

When it comes to summer, one thing I really hate is how the hot, humid weather messes with my skin.  My skin gets really congested thanks to all of the oil production, dirt, and dead skin working together to ruin my life. 

One solution that I'm using this summer to address this problem is a nifty little beauty accessory that's been a total lifesaver.

Today I want to talk about a really important topic.  I've discussed this before but it's time to bring the conversation back once again.  As I prepare to celebrate another birthday, I've made a commitment to incorporate wellness habits that will serve me well as I age.

I mentioned in the article on lymph massage that I've been on a mini-weight loss journey.  As of this morning, I've lost 5lbs.  Pretty good right?  As the weight comes off, one thing becomes increasingly clear. My body is changing.  Yes, it's getting smaller....but something else is happening behind the scenes.

I'm losing muscle.  And I've been doing so for over a decade. Sure, I'm able to fit in the same pair of jeans that I wore years ago, but my body composition is now very different.  Although I'm considered a slim person, I'm fattier than I used to be.

I'm not fat per se,
I'm fatty.
Does that make sense?

When I was younger, I noticed that television commercials would urge viewers to develop skills to launch a new career in their spare time.  They made it seem so easy to earn a degree simply by reallocating excess time.  The idea of taking on a huge undertaking in just a few minutes a day didn't seem realistic.  

One of the most popular articles I've written was that time I shared how I became pretty and it changed my life.  To this day, that has been one of the most effective experiments I've ever done.  Today I want to touch a bit more on the process I took to actually facilitate my glow up. 

Hyaluronic acid is great.  I've written several articles on how much  I adore this moisture-inducing powerhouse.  I've even amassed a small collection of wonderful hyaluronic acids products that do a wonderful job of moisturizing.   Applying hyaluronic acid topically is pretty awesome but there are a slew of folks out there who swear by HA injectibles to create the look of firmer skin and ward off wrinkles.

Let's face it, going after your goals isn't easy.  We start off with good intentions but have a tough time following through.  I can't tell you how many times I've made huge plans concerning what I'd love to accomplish in a week. But when Friday rolls around, a lot is left undone.

Actually, I do get stuff done, but I often struggle with incorporating NEW habits into my routine.

 Can you relate?

One reason why I often make little progress when it comes to tackling new challenges is because there's no contingency plan in case things don't go as expected.  Thankfully, I've stumbled on a solution.  It was developed by a psychologist who theorized a goal achievement method that produced a high rate of success.   I love this method because it's super easy and we can all start implementing it today!