OOTD....kind of, my favourite lip colour and running!

As you might know from yesterday's post I headed out to go Christmas shopping yesterday, and I don't know about you but I kind of tend to shop for myself at the same time..haha.

This was yesterday's OOTD. I know, not very exciting and the shoes are not exactly fashionable but the weather was wet and nasty and they worked well for that.

Top: Joe Fresh - these are a new addition and come in a few different colours. I also really liked the white but it was sold out in my size. $16

Stretchy tank: Bootlegger - yes I'm obsessed with this mustard colour. It goes with anything!

Jeans: Warehouse One

Shoes: The North Face

Bracelets: George

I tried on a few different tops at The Gap:

I love the colour of the orange one so much I almost bought it just for that reason but it kind of clung to my "mummy tummy" and I'm very conscious of that.

And much as I love stripes on other people...on me....just no, especially with the wide open neckline, not flattering.

This top looked totally cute on the rack, but it fit so weird, like a potato sack...just hung there, all heavy and lumpy......and expensive...because it was the only one not on sale.

You have probably heard of buyers remorse before, usually it means buying something and then being unhappy with it and wishing you hadn't been impulsive. With me it's usually the other way around. I tell myself to be good and then go home and obsess, and wish I HAD bought it. Like the orange shirt above, I love it. Maybe I could just suck in all the time?

My moto boot search continues. How cute are these ones from Guess? I love them and they were on sale at The Bay too, $100, regularly $140. Unfortunately when I tried then on it was like strapping a block of wood to my foot. Not comfortable and they were also just a smidge on the tight side so I couldn't have fit an insole in there either. Darn!

Had to snap this great pic of the clock in the middle of the mall....so festive! Are you excited about Christmas?

I thought I would share my favourite everyday lip colour. It's the perfect finish to pull a look together when you want something pretty but not too bright. It really is the colour I use everyday. It's better than a gloss as it lasts longer and isn't sticky at all, but still stays fairly neutral like a gloss would. It's also the perfect compliment to a smokey eye.

It's Maybelline Colorsensational Born With It and the number is 015.

Running continues to go well. I went to the track again last night and this time brought my Garmin with me to see how far I was actually running and it turns out it was 7.3km, not just over 6 like I thought it was. I don't run the whole way, I'll be building up to that but I feel like I'm coming along quickly. One thing I have been working on is slowing down a bit. I tend to want to go too quickly and then I can't breathe. When you can't breathe it just feels like it's too darn hard and you want to quit. If I go slow and steady I can do it (tortoise and the hare anyone?), and when I do it...what a sense of accomplishment!

Speaking of accomplishments....I'm thinking of entering the VIRA - Vancouver Island Runners Association race series. It's eight races total (one is a half marathon..yikes!) and if I enter by the end of today I get the early bird deal of $120 ($15 per race). There is no doubt this would be a huge challenge. Am I up for it? Anyone want to do this with me? I know I have a few Vancouver Island readers on here....yes I'm looking at you...the one in the corner who won't make eye contact...

I think running the race series would be a great bucket list goal, so who's with me?

To keep you motivated and moving here's my current running list:

Classified - Inner Ninja feat. David Myles - I LOVE this song, it's my current favourite, running or not, a great tune.

Tiësto vs. Diplo ft. Busta Rhymes - C'mon (Catch 'Em By Surprise) - this has been on my workout list forever, it always makes me dig deep.

Drake - The Motto ft. Lil Wayne  - Explicit

Some Nights - FUN - I don't seem to get tired of this song, a great anthem type of song, reminds me of Queen.

 Bruno Mars - Marry You - another feel good happy running tune.

will.i.am - Scream & Shout ft. Britney Spears 

99 PROBLEMS  Jay Z - Explicit 

Lil Mama ft Chris Brown T-Pain - Shawty Get Loose 

Girl Talk- Cleveland Shake - Explicit

Nicki Minaj - Va va voom  

Chris Brown - Don't Wake Me Up  

Nicki Minaj - The boys - Explicit

Peace out!

First 10lbs goal: Met!

Yesterday I was feeling really bitchy, there is just no other way around it.... "f" bombs going off inside my head all over the place. Nothing was working out in my day, I was totally frustrated about not being able to move any more weight and I felt like I had been working really hard for nothing. I was also dying for chocolate/sugar and I totally succumbed. By the time I was done I had probably eaten close to a cup of these bad boys.....

They were so tasty but eating them only made me feel worse, both from an icky tummy and crazy guilt. What I should have been doing is remembering this little nugget: 

I did end up feeling so bad that I jumped on the treadmill at eight o'clock last night and put in 45min, of which half an hour was straight running. I've never been able to run that long before so I must be getting in shape. I felt WAY better when I was done, both from the sense of accomplishment and the endorphins.

This morning I stepped on the scale and boom! 10lbs lost. I was naked and it was before breakfast but I'll take it. Finally budged another pound and met my first goal. Today I feel great. I can't wait for the next 10!

I get Lululemon emails in my inbox all the time and is it weird that I've become obsessed with this touque?

 keep your head cozy lululemon athletica

I love it but I can't bring myself to spend $58 on a touque....can I?

Off to go Christmas shopping today and hitting the track to run tonight!

Food and exercise

 Today is the end of day ten being wheat/gluten free and things are going very well. There are times when it has been tempting (our family day trip this weekend that started with a trip to Tim Hortons for coffee...there are no gluten free options there and the kids and Chris indulged in treats, or the Sunday brunch waffles with jam and whipped cream...yummy!) but I have stayed strong. I've committed to this and intend to see it through. One real difference I have noticed is that I don't feel tired all the time, which is huge. I had been feeling pretty draggy for the two or three weeks leading up to the diet change, and that went away almost immediately. I also feel like my attitude has improved, I feel more cheery. I hope very much that these two things are a result of cutting the wheat because I would love to feel like I am control of both.

So on to what I've been eating. This is today's lunch: I felt very chilled today after getting home from my morning walk, but a bowl of butternut squash soup and a cup of tea had me right as rain. I really like this particular store bought organic soup and have bought it several times in the past. I found it at my local Thrifty Foods. I think it would also be good over rice with some lightly cooked veggies like peppers, corn and peas, or whatever you like really.

Chris has put himself in charge of our Sunday night dinners (umm...yes please) and this Sunday he made a delicious pork roast in the oven that was cooked until it was falling apart, oven roasted yams, onions, carrots and potato medley (SO good...perfectly caramelized), oven roasted spaghetti squash with cumin, my mother's pickled beets, and I made the salad. Seriously delicious and healthy comfort food. I'm already looking forward to next Sunday.

Another dinner: spaghetti squash, chicken and veggie stir fry with fresh herbs and a salad.

My grocery cart today, lots of colour and lots of fruit and veg. The Japanese mandarins at Thrifty Foods right now are excellent...I should know, I ate three of them tonight.....

This is the track I run on. I am so thankful for a well lit and maintained area to run on at night. This is my time to leave the kids at home and get some really good cardio and I love every hard minute of it. I did 6+km tonight alternating running and walking. I also walked 7 and a half km this morning. Tuesdays and Thursdays are my big exercise days, the other days I just walk in the morning.

This is so true, anyone can (and should) take that hour for themselves. The benefits are worth every minute....

A new exercise song for you: 

will.i.am - Scream & Shout ft. Britney Spears - YouTube

And if you like Alex Cross's song Too Close (which I do a lot), than you might want to check out this cover of it by Melanie Martinez from The Voice. I don't watch The Voice but I found this on iTunes:

Melanie Martinez: "Too Close"

Cheers!

BIC Band sale

I played around with the layout of the blog today, adding the buttons on the right hand side so you can easily follow me on Twitter and Instagram, or use Bloglovin to have messages sent to your email when there is a new blog post. Let me know what you think. 

I just had this email come through my inbox and thought I would share. BIC Bands is having a free shipping sale that is going on right now, and it you buy three bands you get a goof (imperfect) band for free. Good time to check them out.

Here are some pics of me wearing mine. They are called no slip bands because they really don't. I can't tell you how many head bands I have had that don't stay in longer than I can put them on my head. Super frustrating...

 I have found these ones have a little slippage by the end of the day, but overall they stay where you put them. They are great for running or doing other types of exercise (chasing kids), or just wearing in general. The first two are minnie size and the last is thick. I have four bands total and might pick up a few more while this sale is on.

First two: Minnie Sparkle Black 

Thick Animal Instincts Turquoise

When I went into Victoria yesterday I tried on these moto style boots from Madden Girl  at The Shoe Company. They fit perfectly and were really comfy and I loved the detailing, but they have a slightly pointyish toe that I wasn't a fan of. I like this style of boot to have a really clunky, boxy look so I didn't get them. Now I'm having second thoughts.....hmmm...

Hope you had a great weekend!

OOTD, hairstyles, food, shopping and other random things

The bright sunshine streaming into the bedroom woke us up early this morning (actually, it was streaming into Marshall's bedroom and he woke us up, but that doesn't sound as nice), what a great way to start the day. We did our family chores and enjoyed breakfast, even took some OOTD pics, and then headed into Victoria for fun family day.

Here's the OOTD:

Scarf: Old Navy

Sweater: DKNY

Stretchy Tank: Bootlegger

Jeans: old from Warehouse One

Shoes: Converse

No jewellery or polish today...keeping it simple

Hair was up and easy with poofy pinned up bangs and a big bun (close up pic from Instagram below).

Here's a pic of dinner a couple of nights ago, very easy and ready in record time, just prawns, diced tomates, parsley, garlic, onions and feta....started in a pan, and then finished in the oven and served over rice. I didn't have any brown rice or I would have used that instead.

Here are a couple of hairstyle pictures from Instagram (follow me @braebrook), the first one is from today and the next is yesterdays.

So back to our Victoria trip....not sure exactly what I was thinking heading into the city on Black Friday weekend. I didn't think it would be all that busy because Black Friday is usually a US shopping extravaganza right? No, it's done just as much here. Tons of traffic, no parking anywhere, and the malls and shops were packed with people. Probably a little look into every weekend from here on in until Christmas. Online shopping has never looked so good!

FYI: I saw a Forever 21 going into the Uptown Mall for you local folks.

The kids were pretty good, actually they were very good as far as misbehaving, crying and general bad behaviour but after a long day like that, and both of them saying "Mommy" 427 times per hour this is pretty much how I feel right now:

I have been so good about my diet, even today with our driving around and temptation everywhere, not a grain of wheat has touched my mouth and I have still managed to keep everything very low calorie and heavy veggies/minimal sugar. HOWEVER....I do think a glass of wine is in order tonight.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

OOTD and running!

 I love this outfit of the day, so toasty warm and very fall/winter. The best part? The only thing that's new are the leggings. I love putting together nice outfits from clothes I already have, and it's much easier on the budget too. The sweater is so old I can't even remember when I got it.

Sweater: Joe Fresh

Stretchy tank: Bootlegger - love this mustard colour!

Jean skirt: one5one - from Winners, I wore it a lot this summer

Leggings: Knowing Me from Wal Mart - they are thick so not see through but a tad shiny which I'm not a fan of.

Boots: Bamboo from Winners

Necklace: cameo from my mother

Bracelet: Wal Mart

Nail Polish: Nicole by OPI - Di-Vine is Divine

I also tried a fun braided hairstyle, this one is a side french braid into a low bun. It's just a simple french braid down the side of your head, continue braiding as a regular braid for a little bit near the bottom but not to the very end of the strand. Gather all your hair up and put into a low ponytail, but on the last pull through only pull through about half way. Then arrange the hair around into a bun with bobby pins, leaving a few wispy strands to go where they may.

So last night was my first time back running in a long time and it went really well. My friend Kathleen and I met up at a local Sportsplex to run on the lighted track. I loved running there as it's a safe place to go in the dark because of all the lights and there were several people running/ walking on the track as well as three or four kids soccer teams practicing in all the different lit up fields. Much better than running down a street in the dark, that always makes me nervous. I usually take a dog in that situation but still....

We ended up running around the track 16 times in a little under an hour, actually we alternated, one lap walking and one lap running. It worked out to just over 6km. Combine that with the 7km walk in the morning and it was a good day for exercise. Down another pound this morning....nine in total.

Now we are heading into the weekend, and that is where eating usually changes and becomes more relaxed. I'm determined to stay on the wheat free course though, as well as low calorie, this weight needs to go!

What do you have planned for the weekend?

The food journey continues and a Christmas special for a great cause

As you probably know from previous posts I love potatoes, and I'll take them anyway I can have them. Most ways are pretty high fat so I was determined to figure out a way to have mashed potatoes without all the butter and milk. This turned out so good that I don't think I'll go back, really...they were that good.

All measurements are approx and you can tweak them however you like:

2lbs of baby red potatoes

2/3c of low fat plain yogurt

2 green onions finely chopped

1/4c fresh parsley finely chopped

1-2 tablespoons of butter softened

1/2- 3/4tsp of salt

fresh cracked pepper

Wash and cut the potatoes up so they are about 1-2in in size, some only needed to be cut in half, others needed to be quartered. Steam potatoes for 18-20min, checking with a fork to test if they are done.

While potatoes are cooking take a large bowl and combine all other ingredients. Once potatoes are done  add them to the bowl and and stir everything together and lightly mash the potatoes with your stirring spoon. That's all there is to it and they are so good and so creamy. We had them with steamed broccoli and steak. A very filling and delicious meal.

Today's lunch, tons of veggies along with the last of the leftover rotisserie chicken and a bit of avocado for the good fat. Yes I added a little salad dressing, but just a little. ;)

I don't know if it's just because I'm feeling so determined but I'm actually not finding cutting the wheat out to be all that difficult. I'm eating minimal grains and starches and keeping the sugar to just a tsp in my tea, I feel very good. I'm also walking every morning (6.75km today) so I'm sure that's helping me feel good too. Tonight will be my first day back to running.....Kathleen, I apologize in advance if my wheezing and panting around the track is distracting!

MyFight is having a great Christmas special that I wanted to make sure and tell you about, 40% and free shipping on orders over $50, a great deal, so now is the time to order. Their tag as you can see is "Buy something that matters", and in this case when you buy a shirt you are directly funding micro loans in third world countries. More about microfinance here: MyFight | In Business to End Poverty

I've talked about MyFight before and here is the shirt I ordered:

And a few other designs I like:

This is a great cause and I hope you'll support it by buying a shirt (or three!). A note on sizing, the shirts fit small so order a size larger than you normally would.