Spa Day with the Girls!

Hey there readers! I am so sorry for my "leave of absence" over the last few weeks.  Justin and I have been extremely busy taking care of some things and my work schedule has not afforded me with a spare moment {until now} to post for you all!

I have already contacted them, but I wanted to let everyone know that there were TWO winners for the 3.1.2.1. Diet Giveaway because there were only two comments on the blog by the time the contest ended.  Both ladies have been notified that they won and should be receiving their books within the next few weeks! Yay!

This past weekend, my girlfriends and I got together for our very own Spa Day.

  

Each one of us was responsible for something different: Kimmy provided massages, Danielle provided manicures, Sarah provided eyelash extensions, Caroline provided the snacks/wine and I provided the facials! When getting ready for the girls to come over, I took a few minutes and organized different stations for everything that way we were not all trying to cram into a tiny bathroom barely big enough for two people.  

Once everyone arrived, we quickly started pampering ourselves with some at home facials and lip treatment.  Honestly, we looked absolutely ridiculous with everything on our faces, but it sure made for good laugh and an excellent treatment for our skin.

After our facials were done, we each took turns getting our nails done, getting eyelash extensions done and getting massages.  It was so nice to just relax and spend some quality time with my girls pampering ourselves.

Once we finished all of the other treatments, Danielle, Sarah and myself made our way into the bathroom to do a body scrub on our calves.  With Michigan's weather being all over the place, it has been drying our skin out to no end.  I love this DIY scrub and have used it on several occasions.  It works very well and helps keep my skin hydrated.  

Of course the day had a perfect ending with us watching Downton Abbey! Do any of you like/watch the show? If so, what did you think of the Season Finale?! 

Question of the Day: 

What is your favorite beauty "treat" that you get to do?

A Book Review + A Giveaway!

Hello Readers! I am so sorry that I have been absent for the last week! I came down with a bad cold and have been unable to do much besides work and sleep for the last few days.

Today's post is going to be entirely dedicated to reviewing, The 3-1-2-1 Diet: Eat and Cheat Your Way to Weight Loss by Dolvett Quince.

Synopsis from Amazon:

"Dolvett offers a dieting trifecta: easy, effective, and friendly to cheaters. He helps trick your metabolism into cooperating with his rapid weight loss formula for success." --Mehmet Oz, M.D.
Want to finally lose the weight and keep it off? Want to be able to eat the foods you love? Reaching your goals can only happen when you don't feel deprived and you continue to stay motivated. Now, celebrity trainer and star of the hit reality series The Biggest Loser, Dolvett Quince, tells you how to do all of that and more in his revolutionary program, THE 3-1-2-1 DIET.This 21-day program works by manipulating your body's natural tendency to slow its metabolic rate in response to calorie restriction. It takes a new approach to getting lean-one scientifically based on changing up food and calories to tap into your body's potential to burn fat. This unconventional plan results in greater muscle and less fat than any other diet you've ever tried. 

Dolvett's effective eating plan is as easy as 3-1-2-1: three days of clean eating, one day of cheating, two more days of clean eating, and one final reward meal at the end of the week. No foods are off limits and you will never feel deprived because the plan is flexible enough to fit into any lifestyle. You'll lose weight fast-10 pounds or more in just 21 days-and you won't plateau.
Dolvett's simple meal plans and delicious, easy-to-prepare recipes, together with his fast and effective workouts that combine cardio and body-shaping moves, will have you back in your skinny jeans in less than three weeks!

My Review:

Besides seeing people on The Biggest Loser, have you ever heard of someone losing 10 pounds in 21 days? Probably, but do you know anyone personally who has? Me either.  This book boasts on the idea that you can, in fact lose 10 pounds in 21 days, and to be honest, I believe that it is totally possible.

I appreciate that Dolvett decided to use a style of writing that makes you feel like he is sitting right there with you while you are reading the book and discussing these wonderful things with you.  The book starts out with Dolvett discussing the importance of eating healthy and exercising correctly which we all know we need to do, but the majority of us do not.  He then goes into the breakdown of how his "diet" works by giving the reader his ideal meal plan and his exercise plan.

I really appreciate that he gives recipes and cooking instructions for all of the recipes provided; however, I do not necessarily agree with the "removal" of certain foods in his diet that you can then turn around and eat on your cheat days and even on those cheat days you are limited to little "cheating".  Now, I'm not saying that his program will not work, because believe me when you begin cutting out sugars and carbs from your diet, you will likely lose a large amount of weight up front, but I do not believe that this lifestyle would be sustainable for me personally.  For some people, the absolute removal of certain types of foods is exactly what they need in order to be successful and that is wonderful, but for me.  Removing something from my diet gives me the feeling that I am punishing myself even though I did nothing wrong.  Just my two cents on that area.  

But to be positive for Dolvett's diet plan, he does give some several recipes for the reader to follow with easy substitutes in case you do not prefer the foods he suggested.  

My favorite portion of the book was the exercise portion.  One of my biggest struggles with reading exercise books and blogs is the fact that they never hardly ever show you the proper technique to do an exercise.  Well, not Dolvett.  He has pages and pages of his book filled with pictures of how to properly complete the exercises he would like you to do and for that I am very grateful.

Overall, I believe that someone who is very dedicated to making a lifestyle change can and will be successful with this plan and that if you are looking to shake things up a bit, this would be a great place to start.  The book is a quick and easy read while also very informative.  

Oh and I must warn you, there are several typos in the book.  So if that is something that drives you up a wall, just be prepared. 

Are you interested in reading this book as well, but have not had a chance to get around to order it? Then you're in luck! One lucky reader will win a copy of the The 3-1-2-1 Diet to read and enjoy! Just leave a comment on this post as to why you want to read the book and one lucky winner will be picked on Valentine's Day! 

Question of the Day: What is your favorite book right now?