I bought lipstick

This:

Is me wearing Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey. (As far as I know, it's the only shade it comes in.)

And this:

Is me wearing NYX Cosmetics Soft Matte Lip Cream in Transylvania . 

I haven't been this excited about getting the mail since college

I was really excited when I got home & checked the mail tonight. Both my beauty subscriptions had arrived!

My first ipsy Glam Bag!

I think the fact that they package in these cute makeup bags is adorable. 

And my Birchbox

I don't know how excited I am about the haul itself, but it did make me realize how quickly I'll get behind on trying things if I don't get to it faster. 

Birchbox

Got my first Birchbox!

I'm really looking forward to trying the facial scrub & the eyeliner. 

Exploration time!

Since my last post (which has been quite a while, I know) I chopped my hair off.

It's been pretty weird getting used to it. One if biggest challenges has been just how naked my face feels when I look in a mirror. I decided to handle that by renewing my exploration into makeup. I now have subscriptions to both Birchbox and ipsy. I'll start posting the contents as they arrive, and then, if I'm feeling bold, I'll post some of the experiments. 

https://www.birchbox.com/invite/violetdiva

https://www.ipsy.com/new?refer=v2vj8

This happened

May 16 - Semper Fi Fund 5K
 

I actually don't remember my time, but it was around 55 minutes. 

I'm hoping to get my time back down to less than 45 minutes by the end of fall.

Back to square 2?

This fall, I totally fell off track on all my fitness plans. Pole, running, yoga, nutrition, sleep, strength training, all of it. I've gained 9 pounds, my blood sugar levels are up, my depression has worsened, and I just generally feel awful.

So, I've been trying to creep back into good habits. For some reason, food logging is always a tough hurdle for me. I've made it to a few Zumba classes in the past couple months, and this weekend, I did a 5-miler. Well, now I have shin splints, so I  have to rethink that. I've also tried a couple of "tv workouts" but that's inconsistent.

So, stay tuned for a nearly complete re-working of the plan.

DIY Beauty

I'm trying my hand at making my own beauty products. So far, I've made a face polish, lip scrub, lip balm.  I'm also planning on making body scrub & body butter. Since I had already purchased quite a few oils, there wasn't too much more to acquire. Beeswax was the most "difficult" to get, but I grabbed some while I was at the Renaissance Festival last month. I still need to pick up some cocoa butter & shea butter for the body butters, and epsom salts if I decide to make bath salts.

I'm really looking forward to expanding my use of natural products.  I've had dry skin for as long as I can remember, and I already see improvement in that from eliminating sulfates. I can't wait to see if natural products truly are as beneficial as I think they will be.

My hair care products

I decided to share a comprehensive list of the products I'm currently using in my hair.

My relaxer:



I usually get normal strength rather than extra strength.  If I do use extra-strength, I don't use all the activator, so that it's not full strength. I also plan on experimenting with mixing some olive oil into the relaxer to weaken it further.

I also regularly use the rest of the products that come in the kit, especially the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Moisturizing Hair Lotion and the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Hair Wrap Set, . I also really like the ORS Olive Oil Replenishing Conditioner . I used the ORS Olive Oil Creamy Aloe Shampoo regularly until I started moving away from sulfates. I still use it as my neutralizing shampoo on relaxer week.

My protein treatment:
I'm using a lot of the ORS products, because they work for me & I'm trying to use fewer product lines, especially on relaxer week. This is a heavy protein treatment that seems to be working. 

My deep condition/moisturizing treatment:
I'm also using the ORS Hair Masque as an occasional deep conditioner.

Shampoo & Conditioner: I'm using the organix line, primarily the coconut milk (although I'm trying the argan oil later). So far I'm loving these, especially the smell!



Anti-breakage treatment:

I'm having major breakage issues. I like the Organix products so far, so I grabbed this on sale one day.

I'm still experimenting to find a moisturizing conditioner and a leave-in that I like.

iHerb.com

I found a new favorite website: iherb.com. These are the best prices I've found so far for natural oils, and I'm certainly using a lot of them these days.

I'm in the process of writing reviews on the products I've bought so far. Those will be posted here:  http://www.iherb.com/mypage/violetdiva along with a discount code for your first order.

Bye-Bye Sulfates

So I've already talked about getting rid of sulfates in my face wash. And I'm only using sulfates in my shampoo when I relax my hair (because the neutralizing shampoo is NOT optional). I'm still considering/researching clarifying shampoo options and may have to use one with sulfates occasionally.

But now I've taken the last major step in (nearly) eliminating sulfates from my body care routine.  I've switched to Dr. Bronner's for my body wash.

I chose the unscented one and am filling different travel size jars so I can add different essential oils for smell. So far I've done peppermint & lavender.  I could be imagining it, but I already feel like my skin is less dry. Updates to come, I'm sure.

I may be taking this Pinterest thing too far

I'm on Pinterest constantly these days. I keep creating and reorganizing my boards.  
It may be an addiction, but I'm finding it really helpful.

Here are my boards that are relevant to this blog :)

My fitness/workout boards:

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/fitness

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/workouts/

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/yoga/

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/running/
http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/pole

My healthy eating board:

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/healthy-eating/

My beauty board: 

http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/beauty 

Edited to add my general health board:
http://www.pinterest.com/ohjoyofjoys/health

My first co-wash; my first air-dry

A couple of weeks ago, I had 2 hair-firsts (I know, there have been a lot of those lately.)

I co-washed my hair using VO5 conditioner. It worked surprisingly well, and I plan to use it regularly. My hair felt clean, but not stripped. I'll be doing this at least every other wash. 

Then, I let my hair air-dry for the first time in 20+ years. I did a braid-out, and it looked pretty good initially. However, I quickly learned that a) that style does not last long and b) it creates far more tangles than blow drying my hair straight.  I'm not sure how often I'll do this.  

Stay tuned for more adventures. 

Hair care regimen

After deciding to put more thought into my overall self-care regimen, I turned to my hair care routine as a large focal point.
 

As I noted in an earlier post, I've been relaxing my hair for more than 30 years. In most of that time, it's never really occurred to me to do something different. I thought my choices were to continue relaxing my hair to bone-straight, waiting the 8 weeks, & repeating -OR- go natural and grow an afro. Based on what my new growth typically feels like, I didn't think I had any other options. Further, after relaxing to bone-straight, I also didn't feel like there were any options except to big chop if I decided to go natural.

In my research  to prepare for doing my own relaxer, I came across the term "tex-lax." I found out that the deliberate under-processing of my relaxer was an option. I can release the the tight natural kinks and curls without going all the way to bone-straight. This idea became the jumping-off point for a lot of new ideas. 

If my hair doesn't have to be super straight, then blow-drying is no longer an absolute necessity. Less heat-styling is ultimately healthier for my hair, which is especially important since I'm trying to recover from some serious breakage earlier this year. 

In watching several vlogs, and reading quite a few blogs, I'm realizing there are several pieces of my hair care routine missing or flawed. 

Sulfates:

With the exceptions of my neutralizing/chelating (post-relaxer) shampoo & a clarifying shampoo I have yet to choose, I'm going sulfate-free. I will be alternating between a co-wash (cleaning with conditioner) and a sulfate-free shampoo. I'm still exploring different products. 

Moisturizer and oils:

I'm not sure why it took me so long to become convinced that my hair needs to be moisturized on a regular basis. I've also just learned that after applying moisturizer, it's best to apply an oil to seal the moisture in. 

Heat protection:

Though I'm planning on less heat-styling, I will now make sure that whenever I do use heat protection and not just whatever product happens to be in front of me. 

Leave-in conditioner:

I'm searching for my post-wash leave-in product. I'm not sure if I'll need a specific  detangler, but I'm thinking anti-breakage and/or split-end-mender would be a good idea. 

Self Care Schedule

I've been working on an overall self-care plan. Trying to integrate physical health, emotional health, mental health, spiritual health, beauty, & fitness into an overall regimen that doesn't take hours each day has been difficult. 

Some things, like getting at least 8 hours of sleep and eating real food at least twice a day, shouldn't take up additional time each day; I just need to be mindful of them. 

Other things I'm trying to remember to do every day include flossing, stretching, and moisturizing (feet, hair, and hands.) I'm also working on journaling and meditating/praying each day. 

I'm using google calendar to help me out with the non-daily parts. I'm attempting to clean my face (OCM) 3 times a week and exfoliate twice a week. Saturdays I plan to do my hair & soak my feet; Sundays will be manicure day. 

Hopefully, these things will all become second nature. 

Move Your Body

In addition to running, pole, and strength training, I've been throwing in other activities here and there.

In particular, I've done a lot of Zumba. So much so, that I'm actually considering becoming a Zumba instructor next year. I really love the high intensity and the music. I still remember going to my first Zumba class; about 10 minutes in I thought maybe I had made a terrible mistake & I was going to die before the hour was over.  For several months, I still got that feeling, but it came later & later into the class. Eventually, I got to the point of being fully functional even after an entire class.

I also tried Bellydance! It was great, and I plan to go back to it. But I have too many different types of workouts going on right now. It was definitely a great core workout though.  After my first class, I was pretty sore.  I think I could feel each individual rib.

I'm planning to delve into cycling a little bit, but I need to acquire a bike first. When I took a spin class a few months ago, my butt hurt for 2 or 3 days, so finding the right fit is fairly important.  Still, I really love the idea of  a bike for quick local errands.

Hair Care Follow Up

I did it! I relaxed my hair myself.

It was easier than I was afraid of, but definitely held some challenges.  I started with the front of my hair, which made it more difficult to see what I was doing.

In addition to doing it myself, I did 2 things differently than we had been doing with my relaxers.  The first was to oil the shaft of my hair to protect already relaxed hair from being processed again. The second was to add a mid-relaxer protein treatment. On the advice of a youtube video (because where else do you learn things?) I used the conditioner included with the relaxer kit before the neutralizing shampoo, and then used another deep conditioner at the end.

In the initial aftermath, I noticed less breakage during blow drying.  After blow drying, my hair was a bit dry, but (possibly in my imagination) not as dry as usual. I will continue to experiment with conditioning treatments.

A Very Hair-y Subject

Not a very original title, I know.

I'm 39 years old, and I've been relaxing my hair since I was about 6. Obviously, that initial decision wasn't mine, but I made the decision to continue doing it. I've contemplated going natural before, and I decided against it. But this isn't a post about that.

This post is about the fact that tonight, after 30+ years, I'm going to actually relax my hair myself for the first time.

For the past couple of years, my roommate has been doing it, and she's still going to be there tonight to help me out.  After all this time, I obviously know what the process is, but having never done it, I don't know things like how long it will physically take me to get through my hair or how to manage through sections of my hair that I can't see (though I suspect that will be similar to flat-ironing the hair on the back of my head.)

I watched a few YouTube videos (which I will link to later) and picked up some additional tips, as well as created a shopping list of additional supplies for next time.

I'm slightly nervous, but feeling very empowered.  WIsh me luck!

Running updates

So far in 2014, I've completed 5 5Ks.

January 1, I did the first at a pace of 17 minutes/mile. I walked the entire thing, so I felt good about that. I know that many races have cut-off times of 16 min/mile (or less) so that gave me a good starting point.

March 1, I did a race that I ended up hating.  The terrain was rough, it was really hilly, and it was pretty disorganized. I'm glad I completed it, but my pace was over 18 min/mile.

April 5, I had a great run and was most proud of how well I fueled myself for it. I broke 16 min/mile and felt fantastic. I mean, I totally crashed & went back to bed that afternoon, but it felt fantastic up until then.

May 3, my pace was just over 16 min/mile.  I didn't fuel quite enough, so I ran out of steam with a little over a half mile to go.

May 10, I did something resembling actual running! I broke 15 minutes/mile! The course was almost perfectly flat, so that helped.   But overall, I could feel the progress from the last couple races.

I'm planning a 4-miler for the end of this month, but I'm giving up on the 10K for June.  I just haven't been training any distance. 

I'm still planning on the 8K in August, so that's my next challenge.

Facing Facts

I  just had a facial. Ow.

After relaxing alone in the room, I was joined by the aesthetician. She pulled one of those horrifyingly large magnifying glasses over to my face and said "I do a lot of extractions on you, ok?"

Having been using the OCM (though not exclusively) for a couple of months now, I've become a little obsessed with my skin, and in particular, my pores.  I was getting decent results and then had a series of breakouts, quite possibly due to stress.  So, in hopes of further unclogging my pores, I went for a facial. And I was enthusiastic about the extractions... until they started.  If you haven't been through this process, just be aware - this is not the relaxing, cucumber on the eyelids facial they show you on tv. It is a relatively painful process that left me looking like I'd been attacked by bees.  Granted, my pores were pretty clogged - but I'd wager yours are too. The discomfort goes away pretty quickly, and the swelling followed suit after about 40 minutes.

Since then, I've been trying to exfoliate regularly and continue to unclog my pores as much as I can from home.  I'm probably going to buy my own extraction tool as well.  I think it will take a couple more sessions to get the results I really want.

Non-Scale Victories

Since starting my journey to better health & better fitness, I've lost about 20 pounds.  But that's not the point.  Here are a list of things that have happened along the way:

• I can walk up 4 flights of stairs without needing to stop to rest (or thinking I'm going to die.)
• I can button my jeans without looking or feeling like a sausage.
• That would be my old jeans that I couldn't fit into for the 2 years before that.
• I have completed 3 5Ks.
• I can climb on pole (a little bit).
• I can see definition in my biceps.
• I have successfully worked out more days than not for the past 3 months.
• I have lost 2 inches on my waist (which I mostly only care about as it relates to my clothes).