500 posts and counting!

this is my 500th post! can you believe it? seems like just yesterday i was writing my first post... actually, what a lie. it doesn't.

first up for this fantastic friday, a shout out to cat and her awesome post on concealer. last night i went straight to shopper's drug mart after work and bought the smashbox photo finish primer. i like it A LOT. thanks cat!

second, bi0nic was asking what kind of bum exercises i do on the mat, so without further ado, here they are:

les exercices du clochard

1) on the mat, get into an "all fours" position like this girl below:



don't pay attention to her movements or her band, just the body position.

2) i do each "exercise" 10 times, and do all the exercises on one leg (to feel the burn) and then switch it up and do the other leg. the worst feeling is putting the first leg down after doing the exercises. here are the exercises:

a) from the "all fours" position, straighten one leg out behind you. flex the foot and with the leg straight at all times, bring it down to the ground so your toe almost hits the ground but not quite. repeat ten times.

b) now, bend your straight leg and bring your knee into the chest without any part of this moving leg touching the ground. from this bent position (like the picture above), straighten your leg up as far back as it will go. repeat ten times.

c) now keep your leg straight out behind you and flex your foot again. this exercise is sort of like the first except when you bring your leg down (keeping it straight), you are going to cross your leg over the other one. so, if you are doing exercises with your right leg, it's going to cross over to your left. remember to keep your foot flexed here. repeat ten times.

d) finally, keep your leg up in the air behind you but bend the knee and keep it bent. for this exercise, you are going to pump your foot up to the ceiling, almost straightening your leg with each pump but not quite. i do twenty repeats of this one. the first ten are not too tough and the last five are brutal.

then, sink back into a child's yoga pose for a stretch
and repeat on the other side.

in other news, i forgot to talk about this amazing product i found at the whole foods market. maple flakes! they are only 10 calories for 2 teaspoons and are absolutely delicious. i have started sprinkling them on my oatmeal for a little added sweetness. amazing!

this morning for breakfast i tried a carrot cake clif bar. i had to use it as a meal replacement bar instead of a snack, because it was 5 ww points and my breakfast is usually around that. it was filling, but not good. too artificially sweet. i only read after that it's a nutritional supplement bar with 10g of protein. i love protein but not when it comes out of nowhere! it had a long list of ingredients too. i bought it because i LOVE the clif kid z bars i bought in the states. sorry carrot cake clif, i don't think i will buy you again.

this weekend should be pretty good. tonight i plan on relaxing and watching this week's episode of project runway canada that i taped. tomorrow, i might be shopping for a new winter coat (a warm one, not a fashion one... any recommendations?) and hopefully going dancing. it's supposed to rain on saturday but be unseasonably warm outside. what are you doing?