Friday night was a really special night; mine & Marco's one year anniversary. I got dressed up and he took me out on the town.
Outfit deets: Smart Set blazer (new), A.Co Designs top, American Apparel liquid leggings, H by Halston heels, vintage clutch (from a garage sale) & Suzy Shier necklace.
We went to Town and had an amazing meal. These were our shared appetizers: crab cakes & a pork something-or-other (I'm so technical, clearly). Needless to say, they were delicious. We shared entrée plates after and had the meatballs and another pork dish. It was so satisfying and enjoyable. The music they played was on point too (perfect house meets electronica, think JMSN meets Klangkarussell meets Dpat and in between. And if you don't know who any of those are, you're missing out and need to look them up on Soundcloud stat).
We sat at the weirdest table, at the back of the restaurant, side-by-side looking into the kitchen. At first it felt a little awkward, but it quickly felt special and like we had our own private viewing to the chef's in action. Afterwards, we went to Starbucks to grab coffee, tea and desserts to take home and indulge in.
Saturday early afternoon cheering on my man and team in their softball tournament (they lost, unfortunately).
Outfit deets: Ardène flats & Almost Famous jeans.
I picked up Peanut in the afternoon to come for a sleep-over. My parents went out of town and asked if I could take her, several months back, and the weekend finally arrived. We had a nice time cuddling but she's getting so old, deaf and has a mild case of Alheizmers so she barks and lot and isn't as mobile as she used to be. Still, she's completely adorable and I love her to bits. I'll be devastated when she passes away as she's been with us for 13 years.
I made some 'gourmet' chicken salad and bought some artisan olive bread. I ate almost the entire loaf to myself by the end of the weekend so feel a little yucky. No more gluten until next weekend, back to some fresher-clean eating for the work week.
Chicken salad mix: boil two large chicken breasts, once cooked, shred them and mix with mayo, pepper & red peppers in bowl. Serve on a croissant or special bread. The consistency should be chunky and hearty.
Chicken salad mix: boil two large chicken breasts, once cooked, shred them and mix with mayo, pepper & red peppers in bowl. Serve on a croissant or special bread. The consistency should be chunky and hearty.
Sunday morning gym sesh and I 'splurged' on a protein shake afterwards. They are just over $6 so I don't get one often, but sometimes a little reward is nice, plus it's so freakin' delicious.
I took Peanut home on Sunday morning and had a nice visit with my parent's, then headed to Marco's for dinner & Dexter. I wore my first Fall outfit of the year, which carries some mixed emotions. I always feel like Fall is too short and by the time I get into it, I really haven't had much of a chance to sport all the looks I wanted to rock. On the flip side, summer. don't. go. WAH.
Outfit deets: Winners jacket (old), Zara sweater over H&M sheer/opaque tee over H&M tunic tank (super layering!), Urban Planet sheen leggings, Ardène pashmina & Ash booties.
See the other version of this photo HERE.
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In this vlog I go shopping for my next Place d'Orleans fashion vlog, share some exciting news about my bff and tell a lie to get a better deal $$$ :P
Thanks for watching! xo
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THINGS I MENTIONED
Car camera mount
Sarah is pregnant
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MUSIC
Onyx - Exoplanet
RayRay & Jerm - Pretty Face & Electric Soul
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CONNECT WITH ME
EMAIL | acoest1984@gmail.com
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CAMERA / EDITING INFO
VLOG CAMERA | iPhone 5 & iPad mini
EDITING SOFTWARE | Adobe Premiere Elements 11
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This video is not sponsored...clearly.
Thanks for watching!
Outfit deets:
* Jessica Simpson dress (new!), I picked this up recently on clearance at The Bay, it was originally over $100 and I got it for around $40 #superscore
* Forever 21 heels (new!) that I'm obsessed with and loving despite my former dislike for chunky heels. I'm diggin' the chunky heeled look and think this is going to be a major trend. You saw these in my recent haul video.
* Accessories: Gucci shades, H&M necklace & random bracelets from F21 and gifted.
It's been a while since I've done a fitness related posts (see all those posts HERE) and since I've changed up my routine, what better time to share.
I gave up my GoodLife gym membership over four months ago. I had been a member with them for almost a decade but since the beginning of 2013, I really hadn't been using my membership. Sarah--my bff--and I started working out on our lunch hour in May 2012 and really got into a good groove alternating between running outside and body resistence workouts inside. I loved that my workout was over and done with for the day by 1pm and when work was over, I could go home and relax or do whatever I wanted without the impending after-work workout.
To be honest, I was a little worried about giving up my membership, despite having not been for about three months. I had a fear I would give up working out or be less motivated, but that did not happen. I continued working out on my lunch hours, which I preferred and was saving money in the end.
Just over a month ago, I joined The Athletic Club, and have been working out there in the evenings and on weekends. Sarah recently announced her pregnancy and we've kind of abandoned our lunch time workouts. Not because she is expecting, simply because we are being lazy. I would still be going at lunch had I not gotten the gym membership but since the urgency isn't there like before, I feel kind of meh about it. Additionally, I really love spending lunch hours with her catching up, shopping or just sitting to enjoy a meal.
As far as running goes, I haven't run in a while. I ran for 10 minutes on the treadmill a few weeks ago, and try to get some cardio in, but I have definitely cut back. I wouldn't say I love running, but what I do really enjoy is seeing my improvement, which never ceases to amaze me. My goal two years ago was to run 1km without stopping. I surpassed that goal and ran 2km that summer without stopping. Last summer was the first time I ever ran 5km without stopping which was such an accomplishment. From there, I focused on less walking 'breaks' while running and I slowly started to bring my time down. That doesn't mean there were set backs, or times when my time was worse, but gradually it got better. When I started running 5km on my lunch hour, I was averaging 35 minutes; my best time came near the end of the summer at 29 minutes.
When the colder months came, I ran inside on the treadmill but would never do 5km because I was bored after 20-25 minutes and would wimp out and get off. I kept my cardio up by running tons and tons of stairs on my lunch hour with Sarah; it was brutal but it helped when this summer rolled around and we started running outside again. Almost immediately we were beating or averaging our best time from last summer and on one 5km run, I broke 26 minutes! A time I never thought I'd be able to accomplish--also a run that was brutal and I wanted to quit on so many times throughout.
All that to say, running has been put on the back burner for now; my knees get really sore or can get really sore from running and I've re-hurt them again by playing in a softball tournament last week. I don't have a huge desire to run, but at the same time, don't want to lose my endurance. I'm sure I'll go back to it when I'm ready whether that be indoors or out.
So what have I been doing at the gym lately? Instead of body resistence workouts with an elevated heart rate and considerable amounts of cardio, I'm now more focussed on strength training with heavy weights and working out one part of my body each time (eg. arms, shoulders, back, legs, etc.). I use a combination of machines, barbells and free weights and almost always tac on an ab workout at the end of each session. It's definitely a change and a challenge but I am enjoying it, for the most part.
If you made it to the end of this post, thanks for sticking with me and reading. I know fitness isn't everyone's cup of tea, and for me it's definitely a daily work in progress. It's still a struggle for me to go to the gym, I make it happen but definitely groan about it and an often dragging my ass to get there. It's not really 'fun', but the way I feel afterwards is amazing. My mood is elevated, I feel more confident, I know it helps me look better and I overall feel better. I find when I hit the gym less or slack off, I start to get a little bit bitchy, so it's good for me to get my blood pumping and body moving. If I know I won't be going to the gym that day--or for a few days--I simply try to make healthier choices; park far away, take the stairs instead of the elevator or go for a walk at lunch. Bottom line, get your body moving, everyday.
Thanks for reading! xo
Hello work week! Did everyone have a nice long weekend (if you were lucky enough to get one)? I had an uber relaxing and lazy weekend. Seriously, not much was done at all and while sometimes that's boring, it was quite nice to just sit around and watch YouTube videos for hours on end--that's kind of embarrassing to admit, but it was glorious--and have nothing more than hitting the gym and eating, be on the agenda.
Unfortunately on Friday I had a terrible headache which lasted a full 24 hours. I stayed home from work and spent most of the day in bed, moving as little as possible and taking Advil. I don't get migraines ever, but this is the second one in six months (weird?). It ceased as the day went on, but moving around made sure to tell me it was still ever so present. I whipped up a crepe for myself as an afternoon snack, which was delish.
Saturday, after the gym, I spent the day filming and editing my two most recent videos: my everyday make-up routine & my most recent vlog (August 27 - September 1).
I never wear flip flops as I prefer a more fashion-forward look with Gladiators but at the same time, they are so easy to slip on. This was after hitting the gym and I had forgot to pack my 'real' sandals but to be honest, I ended up just wearing these all day instead.
Outfit deets: unknown green chiffon top (from Ross in Florida, a couple years back), Material Girl floral chiffon top, Bench shorts, American Eagle (from Payless) flip flops & Gucci shades.
Breakfast at home every morning this long weekend (that's a first!) and it was pretty much the same each day (I'll save you the pictures), which works for me!
On Sunday night, we ventured out and had a make-shift BBQ at a friend's place...which turned into a random dance party, me doing a shooter that was lit on fire and a long session of the boys killing zombies.
...oh, and practicing our twerking moves for an upcoming annual party.
Monday morning...er...afternoon gym sesh. I ran out of tops so Marco lent me his H&M crew-neck tee. I rolled up the sleeves and tucked the front in my shorts to girl-it-up.
A cray rain storm on Monday afternoon which resulted in more YouTube watching, lying around and being lazy. Relishing in those last few hours of the weekend.
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