My five favorite beauty products

Since there is more to attending a high school reunion than Exercising Your Ass Off, I thought I would share my current five favorite beauty products; all of which I will need to look beautiful on June 26.

Sally Hansen Natural Beauty by Carmindy Luminizing Face Primer
Although this face primer is overpriced online, it is worth the $9.99 you will pay for it at CVS. You can wear it alone or underneath foundation; either way, it brightens up your face. The velvety texture soothes dry skin, and it is easy to apply. My only complaint is that the pump becomes useless once the container is almost empty, but it is a small price to pay for a healthy, moisturized face.


Moroccan Oil
My stepmother introduced me to this hair care product, which straightens her naturally curly hair. I love it because my hair often has a straw-like appearance due to its dry nature. Moroccan Oil rescued my locks! I use a nickel-sized amount in my straight, long hair and work it from the roots to the tips. The tangles disappear, the split ends evaporate, and my hair ends up looking smooth and sleek just like Scarlett Johansson, an actress who uses this product. Moroccan Oil can reduce the appearance of scars, too. Oh, and did I mention it smells divine? Ask your local hairdresser where to find the miracle Moroccan Oil.

Oil of Olay Total Effects Night Firming Cream
According to its label, OO's Total Effects Night Firming Cream is supposed to balance color; hydrate, moisturize and exfoliate the skin; reduce the appearance of fine wrinkles, age spots, and pores; and prevent damage to the skin's surface. Desperate Housewives' actress Marcia Cross uses Olay Total Effects 7-in-1 Anti-Aging UV Moisturizer SPF 15—the daytime complement to the nighttime formula. I love how the Night Cream makes my skin feel like silk, and my husband thinks it smells good, too!

Smashbox Emulsion Lip Exfoliant
As the sun heats up in dry Southern California, my dry lips start to crack, peel, and bleed. No amount of moisturizing prevents this happening so I wanted to find a product that would at least eliminate the excess flaky skin hanging from my lips (how unattractive is that picture?). The Smashbox Emulsion Lip Exfoliant is easy to use, and it does the job. Afterward, my lips feel clean, soft, and more importantly, they look terrific. As an added bonus, this product smells like peppermint.

CoverGirl LashBlast Volume Blasting Mascara
Since I have short eyelashes, I am always looking for mascara that will make my eyes pop by appearing to extend the length of my eyelashes. LashBlast works wonders, and unlike most mascaras, it rarely smudges or flakes. In fact, it can be difficult to remove. If you watch television, you have probably seen Drew Barrymore's Lashblast commercial where her eyes look amazing even if she appears overly tan. I love LashBlast; you can sometimes buy it in bulk (three mascaras for $13) at Costco.

Please feel free to share your favorite beauty products by posting comments to this blog entry! :-)

AWW – XoXo

My five favorite beauty products

Zumba: Fast, Fun, and Fierce

One of my readers suggested that I try a Zumba class as one of my EMAO workouts. Initially, I dismissed the idea because I don't know anything about Zumba (except for those late-night Zumba infomercials), and I didn't want to pay for a class that I may not like. However, my friend Sali came to my rescue.

Sali has been taking Zumba classes at 24-Hour Fitness for the past year. As an Arts for LA instructor for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), she also teaches Zumba to her elementary school students. (Zumba is also taught in Florida public schools.) Sali offered to give me a free, private Zumba lesson in my home saying that it would give her a chance to receive feedback as an instructor and give me material for my blog. I agreed.

Zumba is a high-energy, cardio workout done to Latin-infused music. To move with more ease, I donned my Bloch sneakers instead of wearing my Skechers Shape-Ups. My first reaction to Zumba was ... How do non-dancer do these moves when I am struggling to keep up? Sali explained that instructors teach the same classes every week with little variation so eventually anyone can figure out the steps. Sali alternated between facing me and facing the "front" of the room, which was actually easier for me. I couldn't figure out the steps as quickly when Sali watched me, but we lacked a mirror so she had to look at me occasionally in order to provide guidance.

As a professional dance and yoga instructor for over 15 years, Sali possesses the stamina and strength to teach Zumba. Even when she apologized for messing up, she never stopped moving, which is the key to Zumba. As an intense aerobic routine, the music is fast, the steps are fun, and your body burns some serious calories, which makes Zumba one fierce workout. Here are my stats from my private class:

• 57 minutes, 41 minutes in target zone
• Average heart rate: 126bpm
• 310 calories burned 

Sali could have kept going, but when she offered to stop, I replied, "Yes!" because I felt like falling down. Sweaty and exhausted, I had experienced enough Zumba to write my blog. I also realized that I may never be able to master a Latin dance because my hips don't shake when I want them to! As for the belly-dancing and Indian-inspired moves, my body seemed incapable of performing them.

I understand why people love Zumba, but for me, it was frustrating, which is the last thing I want in a workout. While I thank Sali for her outstanding teaching, I don't see myself doing Zumba again in the near future.

AWW – XoXo

P.S. Sali is losing her teaching position in June due to a proposed cut in LAUSD's budget. To help save her job and to provide arts education to students, visit the LAUSD Arts Education Advocacy Team page. You can also support Measure E in the June 8th election; read Steve Lopez's column for an insightful analysis of the proposed measure.

Zumba: Fast, Fun, and Fierce

10-Day Acai Berry Easy-Cleanse

If you follow health and diet trends, then I am sure you have heard about the latest craze—the Acai Berry cleanse. Although I believe cleanses are occasionally necessary, I am cautious when products promise to give me a "firm, flat stomach" or "dramatic weight loss." However, not all acai berry cleanses are the same so it is important to do your research.

Dr. Tim Ramirez claims that his berry cleanse is "simple, successful, and doable." Looks make a strong first impression and judging by his website, he needs some help. I wouldn't buy a lottery ticket from this guy. At Best Acai Berry Cleanse, you can read reviews about a variety of berry cleanses, and Acai Berry Cleanse Reports provides tips on how to begin your cleanse.

I decided to try Applied Nutrition's 10-Day Acai Berry Easy-Cleanse, which is very inexpensive at Costco. On the bottle, the company advertises that you will "feel light and clean inside" and that their cleanse is "fast and powerful, yet gentle." The cleanse consists of 40 pills taken over ten days—two pills in the morning before breakfast and two pills in the evening before bedtime. While they have a mineral taste, the pills are easy to swallow although you may have an aftertaste in your mouth for a few minutes.

I have an incredibly sensitive stomach so I embark on any cleanse with some trepidation; however, the Easy-Cleanse is fairly gentle. The side effects that I experienced included:

• occasional mild stomach cramping
• loose stools/diarrhea (typical for a cleanse though)

For someone who suffers from constipation all the time, the Easy-Cleanse definitely works, but it is not a magical cure. It did not:

• cause me to lose any weight,
• trim any inches off my stomach, or
• make me "feel light and clean inside" as the packaging promised.  

I have another bottle though (Costco sells it in twos) so I may "cleanse" again before my reunion.

AWW – XoXo

10-Day Acai Berry Easy-Cleanse

Slimquick: Tastes Great, Not Filling

If you watch even one hour of TV a day, you have probably seen the Slimquick commercials that claim women lose weight differently than men. Therefore, we need Slimquick. The simple animated ad is quite clever, as the image of the shrinking woman stays with you.

I tried Slimquick's Appetite Control (SAC), which promises to:

• Promote a feeling of fullness
• Reduce appetite
• Provide an excellent source of fiber
• Provide a good source of protein
• Improve digestion
• Provide prebiotics

Out of the six bullet points listed on the package, the only thing I can guarantee that SAC will give you is a modest dose of fiber and protein, which is impressive given that it is a packet of crystals that dissolve in water. As for feeling full and reducing my appetite, it didn't work, but SAC didn't make me any hungrier either. I would argue that it worsened my digestion since I suffered from stomachaches and constipation on the days that I used SAC. I know what probiotics are, but I have never heard of prebiotics until SAC, which brings me to my next point.

Most of the ingredients in SAC make sense, but then there is a section labeled "Other Ingredients"; they include maltodextrin, citric acid, natural and artificial flavors, tri-calcium phosphate, sorbitol, acesulfame potassium, natural color, sucralose, silicon dioxide. Most of the time when you see "natural and/or artificial flavors" as ingredients on a package, you should not ingest the product; however, those "other ingredients" explain why SAC tastes great. (The flavor is pink lemonade.) Though it contains no calories, sucralose is 600 times sweeter than table sugar! No wonder I was craving SAC in my water during my intense cardio workouts; it replaced my Now and Later sugar fix.

Anyway, I have six unopened pouches left. If you would like to try SAC for free, just email me and I will send them to you on one condition: please "share" this post and my blog with five of your friends.

AWW – XoXo

P.S. Click my avatar, which reflects my current mood, to make it come to life. To show off your dark side, create your own Custom Smiley.

Slimquick: Tastes Great, Not Filling