Fit @ 51

Huff Puff.

Like seriously.

When I was in my 30-s, doing aerobics, running 5 miles a few times a week, lifting weights (not muscle conditioning, lifting the 35 lb olympic bar et al 6 days a week) and going out dancing  -I did not foresee the day that I would say…

OMG-I don’t want to work out that hard.

In the last year or so, two gyms that do the crazy type work outs like P90XYZ or BJ Penn or  FIERCE POWER EXTREME KICK MY BOOTIE BOOT CAMP type of classes opened, and one more is threatening.

When I started ballet 6 plus years ago as an adult I was still doing pilates on the ball with weights class. Then after a while, the challenge in ballet increased, so I couldn’t blast out my quads and do ballet class after anymore.

Then I quit kick box class, cuz Reiko’s hap kido style really burned out my quads to the point I couldn’t do an attitude’ without serious pain.

Anyway.

Off and on I have gone to boot camp, zumba(boring to tears), turbo step etc. and nothing floats my boat.

I check out class schedules and my mind goes numb just reading about them.

And as for the power work outs-I just don’t want to work that hard.

Now that I am strong, toned but not cardio-fit – I really don’t want to get wrapped up on that endless treadmill of working out crazily.

Yes, I’ve done yoga. But I quit yoga when it came trendy to take class. I just couldn’t handle the competitiveness to stretch farther, twist further, or otherwise be fashionable.

So, I even searched youtube and found my old college 20 minute workout vids. Funny because I was still smoking those nasty cigarettes at the time, really was chubby and never exercised. But I would do the 20 minute workout in my living room.

So now I am searching for the perfect workout-probably to do at home, in front of the laptop with the clicker close by.

Any suggestions?

k

Advertisement

Facekini-Seriously Extreme Sun Protection

 

Ha ha ha.

My friend who knows I avoid standing, sitting,walking or otherwise being in the sun for more than a few minutes at a time sent me this article about the Facekini.

Apparently the desire to remain pale and protect one’s skin and premature aging has hit China with this scary looking take on protection.

http://behindthewall.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/21/13391303-facekini-craze-hits-china-beach-as-swimmers-try-to-avoid-a-tan?

What’s funny to me is it reminds me of those Korean face masks I use for moisturizing et al that make me look like Freddie from Halloween fright night movies.

I guess they are protecting their hair and scalp from UV as well.

It makes sense to me-just thinking about the ozone layer over China with the smog and stuff.  Re the Olympic Games in Beijing and the concern over the pollution and smog which affects the ozone lawyer which increases the amount of UV ray exposure.

Hmmm.

I don’t see wearing these masks in Hawaii or Brazil or Florida anytime soon-at least on the beaches.

But maybe on the golf course?

k

 

 

Johnson&Johnson’s Baby Oil Gel

 

Like I said before – I LOVE the smell of baby products!

So, I’m getting my supply of J&J Baby Wash-I actually like the honey-apple version for the wash, and the baby fragrance for the 24-hour, but I saw something new!

Okay, new to me.

It was Baby Oil Gel -the package saying it lasts 8-10 hours longer than just lotion.

So, of course I have to try it.

Took a shower so I can have a clean surface to work with – I was expecting gel – like the aloe-gel you smooth on after a sun burn, or something like jello.

I squeezed it out and it is seriously THICK. It really doesn’t glide on the skin so much as you need to smear it on.

I am sure that this is perfect for townie dry weather – but not sure how it is going to fare on the more moist windward side, but my first impression is it is very moisturizing but maybe too much so.

Of late, I’ve also noticed by beloved Kiehl’s SPF 30 lotion is starting to feel sticky as well. Could it be that my skin is getting used to the place I used to visit only once every other year and usually out of necessity?

Hmmmm.

k

 

The Defender-Or, How to Get Your Man to Use Sunscreen

Okay, you may or may not know that I am Asian, and have some natural sunscreen in the form of melatonin in my skin so I tan but don’t burn over-easily.

But I wear sunscreen everyday, faithfully since I live in Hawaii.

So…..not to name names, but I know of more than a few men with blue eyes, freckle skin, red hair, or blonde or some variation on the theme, who do not wear sunscreen.

Not only do they not wear sunscreen, but they refuse to wear sunscreen.

I’ve heard it from my friends whose husbands can’t stand to put anything girly or creamy on their skin, and other significant people who just don’t think it’s manly.

Eh–what’s manly about skin cancer, moles, irregular shaped funny-looking, crusty-crispy stuff, apparently growing on your face, body, head, arm, leg etc.

Ok, a little ruggedness wrinkle edges  or scratchiness is okay, but skin cancer is not.

So…..

I’ve found the perfect product that all concerned women and readers of this post can offer up to any man or young man to use to protect their skin.

I give a high recommend to Clinique‘s Super Defense, SPF 25.  It comes in a few combinations for dry to normal, normal-oily etc. It not only protects their facial skin from the sun’s very harmful rays, but shhhhhhhh – it’s also skincare.

It has moisturizing and anti-aging ingredients, but don’t tell them that.

Just tell them – it doesn’t smell girly, in fact it barely has fragrance.

It’s texture is less frothy-it’s typical Clinique-it has an almost plastic feel to the cream.

It comes in a uni-sex colored jar – I call it Clinique minty-green, with silver lettering.

Clinique does have the M line for men, which comes in a dark gunmetal gray packaging, but for a funny reason does not have this same product. In fact, the men’s line really isn’t very developed.

So ladies, moms, girlfriends, wives and friends – get your man putting on this sunscreen-tell him it’s a cream version of your love and affection.

hehe

k

Kiehl’s Nice to Nose

 

I don’t wear perfume-or at least rarely wear perfume.  I, like a lot of people will get a headache after awhile, or the fragrance will cause a rash (Olay’s Total Effects, Olay’s Smooth (something)).

We were wandering around Nordstrom’s in LA where the salespeople appear to be very anxious to make a sale.  Seriously, every counter we walked by someone would call out and ask if we needed help, etc.

I visit the Kiehl’s counter here in Honolulu, at least once a month to replenish something; Power Line, Creme de Corp lotion with spf30, Rosa Artica; so I’m pretty on top of their products.

A really great addition is their new Aromatic Blends—they come in shower gel, lotion and perfume.  My favorite is the Orange Flower and Lychee Blend.  It’s soft, non-cloying and the lotion formula is very moisturizing without being so much that it gets sticky on this side of the island.

Of course there are other choices, but I’ll leave it up to you to explore.  The web page dedicated to the blends is pretty cool-aromatic-blends,default,pg.html.

k

 

A New Do?

I don’t know what men always look at when they are checking somebody out – or nevermind.

On our flight to LAX last week, I was amazed at how long and wild looking both flight attendant’s hair was.

I had always thought that their hair uniform was neat, groomed and in-place at all times.

I swear one of the flight attendants at the end of the red-eye flight, looked like she just got out of bed. Not the good-kind of bed-tosselled sexy hair-seriously, she looked like she just woke up after a very hard night.

Walking through LAX-I saw another pair of attendants for the same airline (unnamed) who were a bit older, maybe 15 years older than the first two.

They both had every hair in place. And, you know, I think that looked a lot better.

Like I said, men don’t notice that stuff, but when I pointed the mussy hair to the bf-his comment was typical for him.

Ewgh-how can they have that hair and handle food?

Ick.

k

Sun Baked Skin Remedy

 

Hehe-actually that described my skin after baking in the LA sun this past week.

I came home exhausted from our 3 hour delay, took a shower and fell into bed.

The next day I did my regular routine of shower than lotion and sunscreen, but it didn’t quite do the trick-my skin still felt like a desert.

I used one of those Korean face masks this morning too.  I read about COQ10 recently and its lifting properties, you know the basic anti-aging stuff.  I put it on, and as usual left it on for probably an hour as I worked.

The mask did a great job-I feel like my skin looked brighter, definitely cleaner, and very moisturized.

Inspired with the results, I put together my typical sugar and honey scrub, knowing the housekeepers are coming tomorrow!

Not nearly the mess that the Ahava Dead Sea Mud made and effective results! What more could I hope for?

Putting on the same lotion as yesterday, my skin is smooth and moisturized and really really soft!

k

 

La La Style

I’ve never been to Los Angeles with a native.

Much like being taken around with somebody who has local cred for living or being from Hawaii, being toured around with a LA local is a different experience.

Not to mention my guy is a “valley boy”.

Weeks up until the trip I asked him for an itinerary – where were we going, who would we see, dressy, casual, jeans, slacks, dresses or shorts?

I mean men just don’t think of clothes the same way women do.

What’s appropriate-what’s not. What’s too fancy, too sexy, too casual, too old, too young blah blah blah.

Anyway…

The point is I ended up with a suitcase of clothes that numbered the amount of options planned for a month-long vacation.

Really.

White jeans, white ankle-length, shorts, skirt – all white.

4 tank tops – from black to shiny to hot pink.

2 what I call “rumple” skirts-habutai silk skirts dressable up or down.

2 long sleeve knit tops.

4 variations on black t-shirts.

4 dresses appropriate for evening but wearable for day.

1 pink golf shirt ( I wore it to the Beverly Hills Hotel to have a drink at the famous Polo Lounge.  The shade of pink was exactly what the valets were wearing, plus of course my standard white jeans-I’m surprised no one tagged me to go trot after their BMW).

1 jean jacket-perfect for the plane. ( I always wear machine washable clothes on the plane – you never know what someone before sat on, in, over…..).

2 shawls – one turquoise pashmina, one black cashmere-really for the plane-it helps cutt down on cold air drafts and other things unmentionable!

1 shanghai tang evening jacket with mandarin collar.

Don’t get me started on my shoe options, but I took more than I wear on a typical week at home!

The heaviest thing in my suitcase is my make up bag-I tried to repack it but at the end of the day, I like options.

Laura Mercier – radiant primer, tinted moisturizer and silk creme foundation.

Make Up Forever HD Powder-perfect for setting make up and taking down shine.

Laura Mercier lip liner, 2 lipsticks, 1 gloss-but mostly I wear my Maybelienne Baby Lips Grape Lip Balm.

Bobbie Brown and Laura Mercier Brow Powder-the LM color is softer for day, the BB Mahogany is great for night for an intense look.

MAC Zoom Lash-my favorite. I’ve strayed to others but come back to this frequently. One brush and done. Now that I’ve been using Grande Lash MD for a month I need less and less mascara.

Laura Mercier blush and Bobbi Brown Hot Pink blush for a pop of color and to shade it to clothes with more blue in the color.

Plus skincare-Kiehl’s Power Concentrate Vit C, Rosa Artica, Clarins SPF40. Sample packets of ReVive’ Eye Renewal, SPF15 Sensitif.

Next week for a weekend on MAUI.

Packing list.

1 dress for Alan Wong’s new AmAsia.

2 shorts for the house and cruising around.

4 t-shirts.

Makeup that fits in a small Elemis box-everything has to do double-duty or in sample size.

What’s the difference? I know where I’m going.

k

The New Bang

 

Bangs have a life time of about 2 weeks – especially if they are long bangs.  You know the type that are brushed kind of to the side for that peek-a-boo look.

Just went to see Hillary J (of Winam Hair Salon fame) who is currently taking care of her clients out of Billy Fong’s on Kapahulu Ave.

Hillary J. is worth following around for the pure enjoyment of the talk story. Plus, as I’ve mentioned before she pretty much brought my hair back from a dry, frizzy mess from color treatment to shiny, glossy. Really shiny, really glossy.

Be on the look out for any developments!

k