Raspberry Ketones: Fat Burner?

According to Dr. Oz, Raspberry Ketones could be the secret to burning fat! I saw this on pinterest, and just had to do some research. Once I did, I became engaged in figuring out if this really works! I found reviews of people who are taking them, and they claim that they have lost at least two pounds a week! See this video here. Raspberry ketones are a compound present in red raspberries and is on the USDA's list of ingredients that are generally recognized as safe. As Dr. Oz stated, it would take 90 pounds of fresh berries to get the equal amount of a ketone one dose supplement. I will start the with the good reasearch first. Raspberry ketones work by regulating the body's unleash of norepinephrine, that causes a rise in body metabolism that leads to weight loss. Though, any supplements aren't a replacement for healthy diet and excercise, when used together, the raspberry ketones can be found useful in losing weight. Raspberry supplements are high in antioxidants that are sensible for health. The only downside is that there has only been tests on mice, so many people feel that it is not enough.  Other microbiologist disagree with the raspberry ketone "miracle drug." See this debate here. Despite the debate, I feel that if Dr. Oz agrees with the natural supplement, then why shouldn't I? So, I jumped on the Raspberry Ketone diet and bought them the other night with my mom. We bought a 2 pack of raspberry ketone, and it came in today!! I will start the supplement tomorrow and I am so excited! See what I bought here.   I will keep everyone updated with the results!!!

A Week in the Life of Me.

This week has flown by pretty darn fast. Last Friday, I celebrated my dad's birthday. He decided he wanted to have a casual night with his family and go to pizza hut. It was yummy, seeing as I really have not eaten bad in a while. We got him a Galaxy Note phone, which is so big and cool! I think I want one now. I am just not sure that I can ever give up my iPhone. I also got him a grill light for cool summer nights when we want to grill steaks, and drink Coronaritas. On Saturday, I went to the Azalea Festival near my home. I go every year, and I absolutely love the area. The house are old fashioned, and decorated beautifully with flowers this time of year. The festival is held outside, and it has tons of craft booths, that are fun to look at. The best part of any festival though, is the food. Yes, I know I've been ranting about my diet, and getting skinny, but I can't pass up fair food. No one can. And I am never off on Saturday's to do fun things, so don't judge me. I know this past weekend was horrible. :) After going to the parade and eating everything in site, we went back home to rest and get ready to go back that night for the candlelight walk. My boyfriend and I decided to take the jeep since it was warming up, and we brought some chairs so we could watch his family sing gospel on a front porch of one of the really pretty houses. After watching them sing for a little while, we decided to take a little walk down the candlelit paths. It was so nice, and romantic. We then decided to go back home, and watch a movie. It was a great night. On Sunday, I worked and got ready for the week of school! The work week has pretty much consisted of studying for my perio test, going to baseball games, and dieting. Oh, and running. I need to run. I hate running. My sister started this new thing with Austin, my nephew where they run every day. She started with having him run half a mile, so I decided I would run with them too! My sister left me and Austin in the dust. Austin and I suck. I have asthma so I have always had problems breathing while doing any exercise activity. That's why I never run, but if I am determined to lose some of my hips and get in shape, I am going to have to start. I was out of breath, the other day, so it only has to get better. I am going to start running every, whatever I can, it has to help. On another note, my pinning ceremony is this weekend, so tonight, myself and Lindsey Mercer(another blogger), and Char are going to decorate the centerpieces for the tables. I am excited!!! And tomorrow, I am going to be making 50 cupcakes, that I have talked about in previous posts. Only THREE more weeks of school, folk. GET EXCITED. It is almost over. AND THREE WEEKS UNTIL I'M BASKING IN THE FLORIDA SUN!!!! Ahhhh. Three weeks and counting. Stay Tuned:)

Looking Great in a Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini.

As I have shared in my past posts, I have been on a great diet for a few weeks now, and I really love it. I prepared the diet last summer as well, and lost ten pounds, and was feeling extra energized. What I love most about the diet is that is realistic in preparing, and time management. It is also realistic tasting foods. The meals are very easy to prepare, and filling. Each day is planned for you in one week, and each day is 1200 calories. I found the diet last summer online off of the Good Housekeeping website. Some day meal plans include; oatmeal with blueberries, and yogurt for breakfast, turkey pita with veggies and honey mustard dressing, with cottage cheese, and fruit(I usually do pineapple or peaches). It is very good! Then, for dinner, you could have grilled chicken with asparagus and a sweet potato. This diet promotes energy from the diet, and allows less stress on your digestive system. This diet is a great tool to losing weight, as long as you are also making sure you are taking a multivitamin and drinking plenty of water each day. See this diet plan here. I have a gym membership 30 minutes away at a great gym, but I don't always have time to drive up there, stay for a couple of hours, and then drive home. I usually have too much homework to do, or I get out class to late to drive to Cape. So, in an adamant search of finding a good workout DVD to try on the days that I couldn't make it, I ran across Jillian Micheals' 30 day Shred. There were at least 3,000 reviews and the rating was still 4-5. So, I knew I needed to spend the time to read the reviews to see if it were worth it. People praised the DVD, saying how much sculpting it did to their body only in 30 minutes a day, and how they feel so much better only even after a week. I knew it sounded too good to be true, but for 7 bucks, why not give it a shot? I ordered the DVD. The DVD came with three levels of hardness. I started on level one, and even had a hard time getting through every single circuit. Although the cardio is only jumping jacks, it sure does kick your butt. I can feel a difference in my legs, and my problem zone, love handles. I haven't been doing the workout DVD long, but I feel that I should be able to handle 30 minutes a day, so I try to push myself. I am trying so hard to at least improve before wearing a bikini in Florida in one month, so hopefully this works! See this DVD here. I noticed that since starting this diet and workout plan, even when I am not strictly on the diet, I still find myself making better choices of whole wheat English muffins or sandwich things, with turkey(not ham), and a variety of veggies. My breakfast would also usually consist of a fiber bar, and a banana. So, if you aren't looking to follow the diet strictly, that's okay. The diet will still guide you and teach you to make the right choices for eating healthier, and steering your overall intake in the right direction. Planning your meals ahead of time, creates healthier meals, and gives you time to think about the nutrient density in your food. There are many benefits of planning your meals, including saving money, and being stress free, when time comes around to pack lunches. See the benefits of meal planning here.   This link is a free site that can help you and your family plan a healthier and timely meal.

A Week in the Life of Me.

This week has been the slowest week EVER. We had a test at the beginning of the week, and all at once millions of things got piled on us, and everything was due today. Thankfully, and surprisingly I finished every single last bit of it! I did get nominated for the Outstanding First Year Award, which I am so happy about! I may or may not receive the actual award, but I am proud of myself for being part of the four that were nominated! I have been busy planning my pinning ceremony and we have the centerpieces in the process of making, and I think it will be very pretty! Another dental hygiene girl and I are making 100 cupcakes for the event, and we are hoping to make them very yummy, and gourmet. She is going to be making double chocolate cupcakes with snickers crumbles on top, and red velvet cupcakes with chopped nuts! I am going to be making white cupcakes with a fluffy butter cream frosting and hot pink sugar crystals. I made those for my friend's birthday a couple weeks back and they were absolutely delicious. They were very light, and melted in your mouth. I am also going to be making a strawberry cupcake with home made strawberry icing, with pureed strawberries in the icing. I can't wait to try one! I hope everyone likes them as much as I think I will. This weekend is the Azalea Festival, so Saturday I am going to go to my nephew's baseball game, and then we are all going to go to the festival. It is so fun! It has a craft fair that is very nice to look at, as well as great carnival food. Sunday, I work again, and am ready because I need to rack up on money, since this Summer I am not able to receive financial aid. I really think it is dumb that you have to have a limit on your loans. It is not like I have free money coming my way, just loans to get through school. It is not an option for me not to go to school in the summer because if I don't take the summer classes, then I drop out of the dental hygiene program which is not an option for me. I've put too much time into this already to give up because of financial problems. My mom is not very happy with MSSU right now. It is hard to get a hold of anyone, and sometimes they don't even get back with you. I feel like this school is very hard to receive financial aid for, compared to SEMO. It is really frustrating because how do they expect students to get through school. Thank goodness I have a small nest egg and great family to help me through the summer. Once Again, I've been counting down the days until my vacation. 29 days and counting... Stay Tuned:)

The Problem with Doers.

I am a doer. Maybe it's a problem sometimes, but most of the time I really love that I am able to take things by the horns and get them done. If there weren't people that are doers, nothing would get done. It might be thought of, but it would not get done. I have no problems with thinkers UNTIL they start to criticize what the doer is actually taking their time out to do. Doers are the people who get things done. They recognize the most efficient and correct process, and do not hope for change. Doers usually do not like change because it disrupts the norms. Thinkers are the people who are open to new ideas, and are constantly trying to change things, or make them better. The problems with thinkers is that they do not understand the processes required to bring their thoughts to the board, and get it started. Take this quiz here, to see if you are a doer, or a thinker. I find that doers are usually the ones that are go-getters. If a project comes about, the doer is the one to immediately start the project and begins to think about ways to properly complete the project. The thing you must remember is that you really can do anything you set your mind to. This means that even against all odds; dedication, persistence, and time will support your success. All you would have to do is try hard enough for long enough. See this article here about the differences of thinkers and doers. I do believe that there needs to be thinkers and doers in life. It creates a well balanced workplace, class environment, and life. Sometimes, it may be challenging but it can also be a great opportunity. See more on how thinkers and doers work here. Sometimes doers do have personal issues with always having to get things done. Most women seem to be doers. They try to be super women, when obviously we are not. Sometimes I find myself in dilemmas with taking too much on, and not having any time. I need to learn how to balance  more, or just say no. If I can learn to just say no to new tasks and projects, I may free myself of stress, which would be awesome. By allowing others to try the tasks on their own, if I can just step back and let them try, I could be creating new doers every day, and it will allow them to shine in their own way.

A Week in the Life of Me.

This week has been pretty great, overall. There still was some drama, and stress at school, but I have to learn to just "get over it." Last weekend, I was allowed to be off for the entire Easter weekend, which was nice. On Easter Sunday, I woke up to a very nice Easter basket left by the Easter bunny himself. I gots tons of my favorite candy (that I don't need, but love), and The Muppets movie!!! I absolutely loved the movie! It was so funny, and cute. After the easter basket egg-travaganza, I went to church, which was so calming. I feel like I never get to go to church since I work every weekend, so it was nice to use spirituality to help ease my stressing mind. Once church was over, my family and I came back to start an Easter egg hunt for my nephews. It was Briley's first time Easter egg hunting, and Austin is getting so clever with age, that it was a piece of cake for him. I love hiding the Easter eggs in the hardest spots for Austin. It's fun to see how smart he really is. The rest of the week has been a blur. I did have my last skill evaluation over instrumentation yesterday, and I only missed 4, and passed! It was a relief. I have been busy with planning events. I am busy planning my best friend's bachlorette party. We are planning on spending the day at the winery, and then going to dinner that night. I can't wait! It'll be nice to get away with the girls.  I actually ordered my bride's wedding cake yesterday, because she hasn't had time. It is going to be a white buttercream cake, with white cake on the bottom, chocolate with chocolate filling in the middle, and white on the top. It will be a white cake with shells, and starfish as decoration. It is really pretty, especially for a beach wedding. I'll post it here! Only 7 weeks until her wedding! I can't believe it is so close! Only 5 weeks until my vacation in Siesta Key! I am counting down the days, hours, minutes, and seconds. I can't wait to get away for a week with NO Dental Hygiene Program (Thank Goodness). I need a BREAK.  The rest of the weekend, I am prepared to work and make money, so I can go scuba diving, or parasailing while I am on vacation. I hope everyone has had a more exciting week than I! Stay Tuned! :)

Stress.

Since, this week I have been particularly irked and stressed about every single thing, I am going to help others in this same predicament, and myself on ways to prevent this, and calm yourself. Everyone knows the age old, take deep breaths, meditation, but do we really ever do it? I challenge you to try. Stress is a normal physical response to events that make you feel threatened or upset your balance in some way. Stress is okay is small doses, but once you start feeling overwhelmed, it seems to consume you. See causes, symptoms, and signs of stress here. Some various ways to de-stress are getting up 15-20 minutes earlier than you usually do in the morning. Many people's stress comes from waking up too late, not having enough time to get ready, not feeling confidant about yourself because you aren't ready, and just be late, in general. By waking up early, this may give you the time to stretch, enjoy that cup of coffee, and take your time to get ready. Getting your things ready the night before would also help. Pick your clothes out ahead of time, have them ironed and ready to go by morning. Pack your belonging you will be taking with you. This will all increase the amount of time you have to yourself in the morning. Make friends with non-worriers. No one can put you in a bad mood faster than a friend that worries, complains, argues, and just brings you down. Personally, I am a very sensitive person, so any wrong thing said by someone else can put me in a horrible, and hurt mood. Only worry about today. The yesterday's and tomorrow's will take care of themselves. Worrying about them only gives you more of a headache, and I definitely don't need that. Literally, don't sweat the small stuff. If you take everything with a grain of salt, you will be well on your way to a happier peaceful mind. Just pick your battles. If it isn't worth fighting over, don't. Think "will this truly matter a year from now?" Good Housekeeping has six ways to reduce stress in your life, they are fun, and alot easier than you think. Some include: 1. Smooching spontaneously, 2. Taking the cuddle cure, 3. Lashing out less, 4. Putting the kettle on, 5. Loosening your electronic leash, and 6. Reflecting on what you value. See more on this article here. Others suggest that having physical activity can reduce your stress, also. Participating in cardio, releases endorphins in your body. Endorphins make you happy. :) Taking Vitamin C and Calcium supplements along with you daily vitamin can also keep you stress free, and allow your body to be balanced. Last, but not least, SMILE MORE. I learned that just by saying "money" can cause your mouth to end in a smile position after saying it. I know it sounds silly, but I tried it, and it works. See where I learned this here. Most of all, Don't Worry, Be Happy. :)

A Week in the Life of Me.

Here lately, I've been very stressed. I've been trying to find ways to relieve my stress from school, so that I am not taking it out on everyone else around me at home. I hate having this constant headache, and shortness of breath all because of silly reasons. I've been thinking about taking up yoga as well, since I have started eating healthier and working out everyday. I feel that it might give me some time for me, and let me calm my mind and thoughts. I also was hoping to read "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff," in hopes of it teaching me to let things roll off my shoulders, and just relax. I borrowed "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff for Women," on my kindle, because I could borrow it for free, and if I like it, I may buy the original "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff: and it's all small stuff." I am writing my blog outside in hopes that will calm me down, and ease my headache and trouble breathing. It seems to be working. Hopefully all the stress from the drama at school with subside, and I can return back to my happy self.:) On a happier note, I have been trying to save up a little nest egg of money for summer when we go to that beautiful place called Siesta Key, FL. Ahhhhhh. I cannot wait to be basking in the beach sun, listening to the waves roar, and feeling the fluffy, warm, cottony sand beneath my toes. Only 6 weeks to go. I worked all last weekend, and made a little money. On Saturday, we were not very busy because of the final four basketball game I was unaware of. Kansas and Kentucky ended up being in the championship game, and Kansas is my boyfriend's favorite team. So, on Monday we met up with friends, watched the game, ate taco dip, and drank wine. It was nice to get away in my own world with my friends. The following day, it was one of my best friend's birthdays, so we met up with them again, cooked out, played corn hole, saw some very beautiful black lab puppies that we almost bought, and celebrated. It was nice to not spend my evening studying, cooped up in my room. Last night, we dyed Easter eggs, in preparation for my favorite: Egg Salad. Yummy. This time of the year is the only time we ever have it, so I am very excited. The best lunch is a egg salad sandwich with salty Lay's potato chips, though this year I may have to tweak it since I am trying to be healthier, and lose weight. I was supposed to working tomorrow, but luckily was able to give it away so I can spend the Easter weekend with my family. On Sunday, we are going to church. I am so excited! I feel like I never get to go to church on Sundays anymore because I am always working. I feel that going to church and being spiritual could aid in my stress problem. After church, I am going to hide Easter eggs for my nephews, It's a tradition. When I was small, I used to love hunting Easter eggs, because my family filled them with change and dollar bills! The golden egg always had the dollar bill in it. I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter! If any of my readers think of any remedies for being stress-free, let me know! I could use it.