Products Archives - Page 6 of 9

What’s Inside My Gym Bag + Thirty-One Gifts Online Party

April 2, 2014 by Tamara 7 Comments

Today I have a super fun post to share with you! All about what is inside my gym bag! Plus an opportunity to go shopping online for your own gym bag and many more ways to organize your home and life!

Before I share with you whats inside my gym bag let me talk for a little bit about my own gym bag. Being a personal trainer, yoga instructor, and mom I like to have enough room to carry all my most essential items. That can add up to carting around lots and lots of stuff. I was so happy when my friend and Thirty-One Gifts consultant Cassie introduced me to the All Pro Tote.

Ladies this bag is amazing! It can literally hold all of my stuff! Yoga mat, water bottle, gym items, you name it and it holds, and to top it off the bag is just super cute! One thing I really like about this bag is that there is a separate storage area from the main compartment that can be used for your dirty clothes or sweaty shoes once your workout is over.

This tote would also make an excellent pool bag for all your summer time fun because you can use the front storage area for a towel instead of a yoga mat if you choose. Lots of options for this bag, plus it comes in several color options!

Because I love this bag so much after I purchased it I decided to host an online Thirty-One Gifts shopping party. If you like organizing your home and life you have to check out their online catalog. This month you can get the All Pro Tote for only $25 if you spend $35. Not a bad deal at all. This tote normally runs $80 so this is a great deal because you can get the tote and another fun and useful item for only $60.

TO START SHOPPING CLICK HERE SO YOU CAN ORDER THE ALL PRO TOTE & OTHER AWESOME PRODUCTS!

I am also really loving this Pack N’ Pull Caddy to help organize my car, the City Weekender for a possible hospital bag when baby girl is born, and a fun color Dual Pro Strap for my All Pro Tote. Be sure to check out these and many other great products!

Share this great find with your family and friends! This bag would work great for many different purposes!

Ok so now that you know how to order your own amazing gym bag, it is time to share with you what is inside my own gym bag. Now just so you know I also keep extra diapers and wipes in my gym bag for Caden when we go to the gym together.

Old Navy Flip Flops: I keep a pair in my gym bag in case I decide to shower at the gym. My gym is super clean but I still would rather wear flip flops on my feet in and out of the showers.
Health Warrior Chia Bars Coconut: I love, love, love these bars! I can’t say enough good things about them. They are great for a quick after workout snack and Caden loves them too.
Alba Botanica Hawaiian Leave In Conditioning Mist & Alba Botanica Kukui Nut Organic Hawaiian Body Oil: I recently have become hooked on this brand. I love that they contain no parabens, sulfates, phthalates, or artificial colors.
Gymboss Interval Timer and Stopwatch: I use this timer for my own workouts and also when I train clients. It just makes interval training so much easier because I don’t have to pay attention to the clock. This means I can work harder and keep my focus during my workouts.
No-Frizz Pocket Comb: Leaving a comb in my gym bag is a must because after a workout my hair is a mess.
CEP Women’s Progressive Compression Socks: Because of my varicose veins these are my go to socks for workouts.
Hair Ties & Headbands (Not Pictured): I always keep extra hair ties in my bag and just found my new favorite headbands from the shop JumpingJack on Etsy.
Thai Crystal Deodorant Mist: Great natural deodorant that keeps away the stink with about 5-6 sprays under each arm.
Starbucks Cold Drink Tumbler: I love these tumblers. I break them at least every few months but I can’t stop buying them. I pretty much only go into Starbucks to buy them because I am not a coffee drinker. I have used other water bottles but this by far my favorite. Plus it is really easy to clean.
Motorola MOTOACTV with Motorola Heart Rate Monitor Chest Strap: This watch tracks your steps, is an MP3 player, and a heart rate monitor all in one. It also measures your distance and route on your runs, hikes, or walks. While I love this heart rate monitor there have been several times that I have forgotten to charge it so that is always a bummer when I realize I can’t use it to track my workout.

We typically go to the gym between 3-5 days a week so I find it is helpful to keep this bag ready to go. In addition to what I mentioned above I also bring a change of clothes in my bag so I can leave the gym clean. I didn’t really understand the value of a hot shower until I became a mom. I try to take advantage of being able to shower after my workouts while Caden is being watched in the child activity center after most of my workouts.

I don’t have to bring shampoo, soap, or towels because our gym provides them for us. I love that I don’t have remember to bring those things because there is a good chance I would forget. I also bring Caden a drink and snack for afterwards.

My ideal time to workout is between 8am and 10am. If I can get to the gym anytime between those times I am feeling pretty good about myself. I try to switch up my workouts each week so I don’t get bored. This may mean I take a group fitness or yoga class, plan my own workout, or swim laps.

Don’t forget to check out my online party with Thirty-One Gifts and order your own All Pro Tote!

Filed Under: Fitness, Products, Style Tagged With: All Pro Tote, Gym Bag, Thirty-One Gifts

Whitening Your Teeth Naturally With Activated Charcoal

March 31, 2014 by Tamara 7 Comments

Your smile is a great way to brighten someone’s day and leave a lasting impression. But if your teeth are stained and have lost their luster sometimes smiling is the last thing you want to do. While there are many products available that will whiten your teeth almost all of them contain harsh chemicals. When Crest Whitestrips first came out I was so excited to try them, and while I loved the results that they gave me I wasn’t thrilled that my teeth and gums hurt for several hours after I used them.

If you are tired of putting chemicals into your mouth in order to achieve a whiter smile keep on reading. I am happy to share with you the amazing results I had by using activated charcoal to whiten my teeth. These photo’s have not been edited in anyway to make my teeth appear whiter.

After 7 days of using activated charcoal in combination with hydrogen peroxide for a mouthwash the results were amazing!

WHAT IS ACTIVATED CHARCOAL AND HOW DOES IT WHITEN YOUR TEETH?

Best known for it’s ability to keep poison from being absorb into the body if it is digested, activated charcoal is carbon that has been treated with oxygen. The treatment results in a highly porous charcoal. Activated Charcoal is made by heating coconut shells in the absence of air. The partly burned shells are then granulated to a size that provides for optimum absorption.

Activated charcoal is amazing at whitening teeth because of its adsorption qualities. Yes I did say adsorption, not to be confused with absorption. The perfect example would be drinking a glass of water = absorption vs. spilling a glass of water on your skin = adsorption. Activated charcoal is really good with it’s adsorption of tannins. Tannins are in the food and beverages we consume that stain our teeth (wine, tea,cola, sauces, sweets,etc) and activated charcoal is remarkably efficient and fast at adsorbing them.

It even has the ability to be helpful at adjusting the pH balance in the mouth. This can be helpful for preventing cavities and bad breath. Plus after you brush your teeth with activated charcoal your mouth will feel super clean and you won’t be able to stop running your tongue against your teeth.

HOW TO USE ACTIVATED CHARCOAL TO WHITEN YOUR TEETH

Activated charcoal is very messy! You have been warned. Use with caution when brushing your teeth. It will not stain your teeth or skin but it can be hard to clean up if spilled.

1) Brush and clean your teeth like you would normally.

2) If using activated charcoal from a capsule, twist it open (I like to do this over the garbage can) and place contents inside mouth. Don’t swallow. You can throw away the capsule.

3) Using your tooth brush give your teeth a good scrubbing. Your mouth will be very black. Don’t worry it will wash out. I brushed my teeth for about 1 minute with the charcoal. And because I love you all so much here is what my mouth looked liked each and every time.

4) Get ready for the really messy part now. Have a glass of water nearby that you can rinse your mouth with. This will take several attempts unit the water runs out clean in your sink. Make sure to rinse off your toothbrush as well.

5) Lastly I used hydrogen peroxide to give a final rinse to my mouth and teeth. I figured if I am ditching the typical way most people whiten their teeth I might as well switch up my mouthwash at the same time.

And that is it. Pretty simple and very cost effective. For the activated charcoal capsules and hydrogen peroxide I spent just under $10. I will be able to use both of these products for a very long time before they run out.

THE RESULTS

I think the pictures speak for themselves. I was very impressed with how easy this was and while I don’t think I will be doing this everyday I can see myself doing this at least once a week and maybe more often if I have a special event planned.I was amazed in the difference that only a few days made but I decided to continue on with my experiment for the full week. Again these pictures have not been edited to make my teeth appear whiter.

If you want to try this out for yourself here are the products I used:

Make sure and take pictures too! It is fun to see how much of a difference this made in the appearance of my teeth and how much cleaner they felt after using the activated charcoal.

Do you think you will try this?

Filed Under: Health, Personal, Products Tagged With: Activated Charcoal, Crest Whitestrips, Hydrogen Peroxide, Teeth, Teeth Whitening

Post Pregnancy Must Haves For Moms

October 18, 2013 by Tamara 4 Comments

For any of you mama’s getting ready to have a baby soon here is my list for post pregnancy must haves! These are all products/items I used to aid in my recovery.

I wore a Belly Bandit and it 100% made a difference in how I looked in my clothes after Caden was born. I felt really supported and wore it all the time except for showering until I was 4 weeks postpartum and for the next 2 weeks only wore it at night. I purchased the small and extra small sized bands. For the first week I wore the small the sized band and the remaining weeks wore the extra small.

This won’t be the case for all new moms but I had the worst, and I mean worst, body odor ever after delivery. It lasted for weeks. Make sure you pack deodorant with you to bring to the hospital. I like the Tom’s brand because they contain no harsh chemicals and it smells fresh.

I used several witch hazel pads topped with medicated foam and ointment to soothe my stitched skin and hemorrhoids. All of this and more will be provided to you by the hospital. Resist the urge to look down there. It is not pretty. I was beyond traumatized after I did and feared I would remain in the gauze panties the hospital had put me in for the remainder of my life. The witch hazel pads were cooling and soothing to my irritated skin.

A sitz bath may be created simply by filling a bathtub with some water and sitting in it for a few minutes. There are also special devices that fit into toilet bowls. It is used to relieve discomfort and pain in the lower part of the body. These are awesome to do! I also used a small amount of epsom salt when I did mine.

The hospital will send you home with a decent supply of pads but make sure you have some at home as well. I felt like the bleeding was never going to stop. Of course it did but the amount of blood that was being released from my body at first was quite impressive. Each day the amount of bleeding decreased. At 4 weeks postpartum I was only slightly spotting.

Prunes! Natures laxatives! Trying to poop and pee after delivery is a nightmare. Seriously, a nightmare. I can not even begin to explain the anxiety I had when trying to have a bowel movement. I felt like any kind of pushing directed in that region of my body would split my stitches open. Peeing was no walk in the park either. My skin was already irritated and raw leaving me wincing each time I needed to go to the bathroom. Take prunes with each meal and drink plenty of water to dilute your urine to make sitting on the toilet less painful.

Speaking of going to the bathroom, do not wipe yourself with toilet paper. There will be a perineal wash bottle in the hospital bathroom that you can fill with warm water to rinse yourself. The wash bottle is amazing! Take it home with you, it will be your bff for the next serval weeks.

Did I leave anything out? What were some of your must haves for after delivery?

Be sure to check out my Losing The Baby Weight Series for more tips post baby:

Have a great weekend!

Filed Under: Postpartum, Pregnancy, Products Tagged With: Belly Bandit, Epsom Salt, Labor & Delivery, Prunes, Witch Hazel Pads