How to Get Fit for Summer

Hello Ladies and Lads!

This winter came and went so quick yet in my case left a trail of eating orgies throughout the holiday season. Since I am not one of the lucky girls that can eat whatever they want and not be affected by it I started my summer fit workout. Plus I got really sluggish due to the lack of sports which made me feel really uncomfortable lately. For those of you that share the same fate are welcome to join in. Today I will talk about the measures I take to get in shape mentally and physically for the summer especially getting motivated to a workout which seems the hardest part of all.

1) Set realistic objectives

We are all dreamers in some parts but when it comes to setting goals it's super important to set realistic ones. If you are curvy like I am there is no chance you will look like a Miranda Cure in a Bikini. You have to find a measure and weight you feel the best with. It's not about being skinny it's about being fit or achieving the goals you set. Also feeling comfortable with yourself and accepting your body the way it is supporting it the best you can. So it's not about the looks more about the feeling that you gain of your body during this time which gives you a lot of power for the upcoming season.

2) Find the form of sport that suites you

I for one love to go to the gym using the training tools being pushed by the other people working out until the sweat drops from their foreheads and the possibility to workout no matter what weather it is. Others might love to be outside a lot so they should probably try jogging or nordic walking. For those that don't like training alone how about joining a volleyball or soccer group. If you don't want to leave the house you can always buy yourself a workout mat and weights and workout like that. It's about giving yourself the chance of overcoming stress and feeling great with your body after doing sports. It's well known that it helps getting over stress whilst at the same time releasing serotonin which makes you feel great.

3) Getting started – Motivation

As I said before how do you overcome your weaker self best is for my part the hardest thing. If you can't find the drive on your own grab a friend and start a sport with him. You will push each other to train until you find your own motivation due the process of developing your own sport self. If you can't find a friend to join look at point 2). Find something that is so much fun to do that it motivates you itself. But sometimes even when I joined the gym how to you urge yourself to go there regularly? For me it always helps to think of days in the week which I keep free for doing sports. After making space for working out how do you kick your ass to do it when the day pops up. It works the best for me to slip into my sportswear which I bought looking awesome and feeling comfortable and put on some workout music that wakens my drive to move myself. Here is a list of music mostly house music with a pushing beat to make you want to move.

Professional Griefers - Deadmau5

Out Of My Mind (Original Mix) – Bingo Players

AYO (Hardway Remix) – Hyper Crush

Like Home (Dannic Remix) – Nicky Romero& Nervo

When I See You (Alesso Mix) – Arty

Get Loose (Tiësto Remix) – Showtek & Noisecontrollers

#SELFIE – The Chainsmokers

The Night Out (A-Trek Remix) – Martin Solveig

This Time (Klaas Remix) – Dj Antoine

Dear Friends (Original Mix) – Rush West

Get Up (Rattle) (Vocal Extended Mix) – Bingo Players feat. Far East Movement

4) Allow yourself to eat

I am not a big fan of diets and such. In my opinion it's important to listen to your body. If you can't hear your body it's essential to develop a sense for your needs. But it's important to differ needs from longings. If you see a bowl of chips you might think your body “needs” it because you are craving to eat them. But it's just the longing of enjoying the taste. Yet if you think about fatty food all the time and really long for it it's probably your body communicating with you. And this is the point where you can stop yourself eating food that is not good for you. You want to eat fat because you need okay. But start being creative. Instead of unhealthy fat like chips try nuts. They taste delicious satisfy your need and are greatly healthy. There might be voices saying that they have a lot of fat but a Harvard study showed that eating nuts is linked to a longer and healthier life so forget the chips and go nuts. 

Not only nuts are good for you. As a healthy snack try some vegetables and fruits!

Also you should allow yourself to eat whatever you want at one day of the week. With that you overcome the urge to eat something just because you can't during the time of the diet. Another thing improving your healthy quality with nutrition is cutting down on alcohol and drinking enough water, tea or whatever calorie low beverage you like. I personally don't drink any sodas no matter with or without sugar. Some people drink their calories of the day which is quite shocking in my opinion. I prefer eating things to keep me stuffed for the longest time. And Soda without sugar is suspicious in my opinion. So I keep my hands away from that. If you can't just let go of your sugar beverages limit them to a healthy amount.

5) Reward yourself

So you got into a gym, started working out and already feel good? Great. But how do you keep it coming now that you achieved something. Easy. Reward yourself. If you wanted to loose weight and you managed buy yourself something nice to wear. If you just wanted to feel healthier how about going out with your friends as a reward. Or invest in nice sport clothing. But don't overdue the rewarding because it can loose its effect.

6) Regularity and endurance

The last point is the most important one in my opinion. You wont achieve any great goals in short time. Stick with your plans. It's about stamina when you are confronted with setbacks and failure. Also the feeling of being able to achieve something with your own force is an ability that when gained helps you with all situations in life.

In that sense I hope you could gain some strive to do some sports for your health and have a great time welcoming the spring! What are your best ways to motivate yourself? What are your favourit songs to workout to?

I hope to see you here next time and hoped you enjoyed reading my blog!

Yours Kate

Orange! - The Colour of Spring/Summer 2014

Hello ladies and lads!

Yes, I admit I was lazy, but here I am back with great products that all scream "spring is coming!" so hold on tight and take a colourful ride with me! 

First off, I had a big haircut. I decided to go short this spring since it's -the- haircut of the year considering most beauty magazines. It's quite an overcoming but now I love it. All in all it's easy to handle and gives you a cheeky touch. So from that to the actual topic, orange! I am so glad to have found so much awesome products to celebrate the advent of spring with a huge shot of colour. This is my momentary favourite makeup look with hints of orange.

The products I used to create that look are following:

Eyes: As concealer I used the NYX HD Concealer in the shade 02, for the lashes I used the Catrice Glamour Doll Volume Mascara and the eyeshadow that was applied is the well known Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette.

Cheeks: To get just a hint of colour which goes perfect with orange tones I used the Rockateur Blush from Benefit.

Perfume: Well you can obviously not smell it, but since it's orange/coral and a beautiful smell I thought it would be nice to present it to you. I am talking about the perfume Eve by Jil Sander. The fruity accents are grapefruit flower and currant. The heart of the perfume is jasmine, rose and violet. The base note is created by cashmere wood and patchouli. In my opinion it's independent yet fresh and sweet at the same time. Just try it out!

Just the products that were listed above.

So what are the best lipsticks now for picking up this trend? I have a small assortment for you guys from keen to expensive. Plus a matching nail polish by Essie.

First off the keen product. This lipstick is a lighter tone by Manhattan. It is the X-Treme Last & Shine Lipstick in the colour 33N. I combined it with the Catrice Longlasting Lip Pencil - Reach the Peach. Last is unfortunately not the perfect match yet I am struggling to find a lip pencil suiting the light orange tone. Nevertheless they go well together. I am wearing both it in the first picture. With that lip stick I put on the Essie tart deco nail lacquer. I love the pastel orange colour it gives my nails! Here are all the products I just talked about:

Next up is a more expensive lipstick which is a favourite in my lipstick collection. The MAC Morange!

The texture is creamy and it covers up your lips perfectly and lasts long. It's a little glarier in real life so just try it out and look if it suits your skin colour. But this tone should suit very light skin types as well as dark ones due to the orange slightly reddish tinge. In the last post I already talked about the NYX Lipliner Pencil in the colour Pumpkin and I think it matches this orange well too. A nail lacquer now suiting the darker orange is the Essie - meet me at sunset. 

If you don't want to spend around 19 Euros on a lipstick there is a colour dupe of the MAC Morange from the same brand as the lighter orange tone. It's the Manhattan Perfect Creamy & Care Lipstick in the Colour 34N.

All the mentioned products from above in a picture together:

For those of you that want a direct comparison between the lipsticks and the lip pencils here are all of the tones together in the same light.

From top to bottom: Manhattan 33N, Catrice Reach the Peach, Manhattan 34N, NYX Pumpkin and MAC Morange.

So Ladies spread the colour! Call in the spring and have fun testing some of the products! Which are your favourite orange lipsticks? Have you tried any of these?

I hope you had fun reading my blog! Until next time,

Yours Kate

Douglas and DM Haul!

Hello Ladies and Lads!

Yes! Finally I am through with all of my tests and happy to be able to write on my blog again. In that pause I collected a lot of ideas for the next month and hope you will be excited to read them.
So having my life back after my tests are over I went into the next Douglas and DM and got myself some nice products. Have fun reading!

What to start with - So I bought myself the Clarins Moisture-Rich Body Lotion with shea butter for dry skin. I started to get addicted to super soft skin so I had to try this lotion. I love the way it nurtures my skin more then just a few hours. It just gets really soft and feels good to touch. Only downside for me is the smell which is kind of leavy and herbal. I usually tend to buy things with a fruity and sweet smell. The price for this Lotion is usually around 20 Euro but I got it on sale for 15 Euro.

Another thing I bought well rather rebought for my skin is the Annayake Sensitive Soothing Cleaner for the face. I have a very sensitive facial skin and this product cleans it without letting rashes pop up which they did using a lot of other cleansing products. After using your skin is a very little tense in my case but due to my skin being a real rebell it's no big surprise and easily solved with a good cream. This facial cleanser was also pricey with 31,99 Euros.

Yet another facial cleansing product I bought is the Alverde Clear Cleansing Mask against pimples and blackheads. The product is made in germany and organic. I haven't tried it but I am really curious about it. This one was really not expensive although it's organic and costed around 2 Euros.

Let's stick with the skin and go over to the lips. I get the slight feeling might be a little addicted to lip products. Seeing the Bobbi Brown Shimmer Lip Color lipstick in the colour Raspberry Shimmer online made me try it out in the stores and I loved it. It's very shimmery with small glitter particles that reflect the light and gives your lips an extra shine. It's not 100% lip covering but I don't think that this is the meaning of this lipstick. It's about to have beautiful shimmery lips with neat colour shades. Again this one too was not cheap and was priced with 26 Euros.

Sticking to the point I also bought two Lipliner Pencils from NYX in the colour Pumpkin and Coffee. I like the texture when applying but unfortunately I should have tried those out before because Pumpkin wasn't all that orange and Coffee a little dark for my lips. Yet Pumpkin being red would make a good basis for one of my MAC lipsticks and Coffee will surely find usage as well. One pencil alone costs 5 Euro.

From left to right: NYX lip pencil - Pumpkin, NYX lip pencil - Coffee, Bobbi Brown Lip Shimmer - Raspberry Shimmer and
the P2 eye dream eyeshadow - afternoon break

Passing the P2 Shelf I couldn't resist to buy the P2 Eye Dream eyeshadow in the Colour Afternoon Break. It's highly pigmented and very glinting and for less than 3 Euro nothing to complain.

Next to the P2 Shelf there was a huge rack of Catrice and the Glamour Doll Volume Mascara caught my attention. The non-waterproof one looked similar to the Hypnose Doll Eyes Mascara from Lâcome so I suppose it's meant to be a low-priced product alike the original. I personally have both and I like both of them equally. The one from Catrice is just a lot keener for only 4 Euros.

The last product I purchased at this Haul was the Essie Vanity Fairest nail lacquer. It takes quite some time to dry, is unfortunately very see through with sprinkles of petite glitter. Yet after the obstacle of drying it safely and coating it it really looks nice. I would rather buy it again if it wouldn't cost 8 Euros but I am still not sure yet.

So that was it from the things I bought. I hope you all had fun reading or got inspired! Have a wonderful day and until next time.

Yours Kate