Photolog from NxTraveller Australia, Blue Mountains. Most photos taken with Samsung Nx3000, kit lens! The Blue Mountains were really beautiful and I had an amazing time. To read my daily entries, click on the following links! :)
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Slim Couture: YZ's Weight Loss + Before-And-After!
Dear friends,
Yippeedoodle, my laptop is back in action!
I've been wanting to do an update about Slim Couture for some time! I'm not sure if you know, but YZ did 12 sessions with Slim Couture too last month, and his results were amazeballs!!
As for me, I've been flying in and out of Singapore for the past six months and haven't been going regularly for sessions ;__: My weight hasn't gone down much but at least I didn't put on weight haha, which is a miracle, with the amount of food I've been consuming :X But now that I'm properly in Singapore and will be going for regular sessions, I have set a target for myself to really work hard for the next twelve sessions, which is gonna be the next forty days!
I just want to lose like 5kg? :X Is that asking for a lot? Well.. I believe that it can be done, cos YZ lost like 7kg in a month! My friend Wan Ting lost 7kg in six weeks! So 5kg in 40 days sounds very do-able.
To do a re-cap of Slim Couture for those who are new here and haven't read my previous blog posts on Slim Couture, you might want to take a look at my previous entries, in which you'll find more information on how Slim Couture works, using traditional chinese medicinal therapy like cupping (ba guan) and scraping (gua sha) to help with weight loss and slimming!
TCM slimming therapies target fats by stimulating the acupuncture points and unclogging the meridians - commonly known as the natural energy pathways of the body. This helps to increase the body's metabolism of fats, which in turn transforms into energy for the body's consumption and is dispelled. It is healthy, with no side effects.
My first blog post about how Slim Couture works: TCM Slimming with Slim Couture
My second blog post on my results at Slim Couture: Slim Couture Update + Before-And-After!
My third blog post about going back to Slim Couture: Back at Slim Couture: New branch at Singapore Shopping Centre!
I truly believe that Slim Couture's treatments are effective, just look at what two months of treatments (16 sessions) achieved on my silhouette during my first round of sessions at Slim Couture last year! I also lost 4kg and a total of 33cm from my arms, tummy and thighs! And that's without sticking to the specified diet entirely!
In two months, I lost FOUR kilograms, as well as total inch loss of 33cm: 4cm each off my arms, 9cm off my waist, 5.5cm off my hips, and 5.5cm each off my thighs! (There are more photos and details in my previous blog post.)
***
Back to YZ: He saw the results that I got with Slim Couture previously, and he was really keen to try on the treatments too! Actually, Slim Couture doesn't take on male customers (to protect their female staff from harassment) but they do make exceptions for the partners of existing customers.
Good news though, Slim Couture is gonna be opening a branch specially for male customers soon, at the end of this year I believe! And that's really great news cos I know there are lots of guys who have problems with losing weight and slimming down too! Well, it's definitely not only the girls who are vain, I know that cos YZ is just as vain as I am, or maybe more, lol.
If you've been following me on Dayre and all that, you'd know that YZ and I tried doing Insanity Workout earlier this year and did get some results from there, but to be honest, I'm not too sure if exercise is the right way for me to go because once I stop exercising (whenever I'm too busy or I've lost my momentum), all the muscle turns flabby and I end up gaining weight instead. And exercising makes me feel like I get bulkier, which is NOT what I wish to achieve! (This is a personal preference, some girls prefer a healthy toned and muscular look, but I really just want to be.. slim and slender, if possible.)
As for YZ, he has already got huge muscles on his arms and thighs, rather than just building more muscle mass, he actually wanted to lose the fats and make his silhouette leaner and slimmer.
YZ started on his twelve sessions at Slim Couture a week or so before I left on my two weeks trip to Australia, and by the time I got back, he totally wow-ed me at the airport with his visible weight loss! Apparently, he was really really good with his diet while I was away, and the weight practically melted off him!
WHAT THE HECK. Super spoil market please! And this was like in.. 3/4 weeks?
Those circular red marks on YZ's torso are the cupping marks from ba guan (cupping)!
YZ's total weight loss: 6.8kg
Centimetre loss: 7cm off tummy, 2cm off arms, 4cm off thighs
YZ's results has been the best out of all four of us! (That's me, Jess, Sam and YZ us four!) Because he was so disciplined and stuck 100% to the diet unlike the rest of us greedy folks. And this was in just twelve sessions!
It's amazing the kind of results that can be achieved! YZ used to have this whole wardrobe of clothes that he couldn't fit in.. But now he can fit into many of those old clothes already and he's ecstatic about that! Old jeans he couldn't fit into anymore and new shirts I bought for him but were a tad too small, all these clothes that he hasn't been able to wear for awhile, he's been happily trying them all on and excitedly reporting to me about how he can fit into all those clothes now. His tummy and love handles are way smaller and even his thighs have become smaller too!
It's been about two or three weeks since YZ ended his sessions at Slim Couture and he's still maintaining well! YZ might be carrying on with another 8-9 sessions to further slim down the areas he wants to target, like his huge thighs.
I'm really happy for YZ cos he managed to achieve such great results! But now it's my turn!! Next forty days.. I'm gonna see what I can make out of it. My wedding is in just less than 5 months and I desperately want to look good! Go go go!
***
Anyways, I also wanted to address a couple of issues in this blog post because there's been some reader inquiries.
Some people have asked me regarding the scraping/cupping procedure and the kind of marks it leaves. Like I mentioned before, the ba guan cupping does leave little circular marks that are most visible on your arms, back and thighs.
I honestly don't have issues with those marks at all, and I find it really easy to simply cover up with a long sleeved jacket or even sleeved tops that help to cover the cupping marks on my upper arms. I remember how Jess used to complain about the cupping marks, but now she barely notices them anymore, too!
But really, the longer you're on Slim Couture's sessions, the lighter the marks get, and they fade faster as well. I remember YZ's marks during his first few sessions were super dark, but towards the end, the marks faded so fast, even faster than mine! The lady bosses and staff have told me that eating more cherry tomatoes and blueberries which are high in antioxidants and have strong healing properties helps with the fading of dark marks.
For myself, I tend to get darker marks around the arm and back area, but they get lighter in a few days and I'm not really bothered by them! In fact, they fade to almost invisible in just a few days. Though if you're going regularly for sessions twice a week, you'll gonna get fresh marks every few days haha.
You can spot some light marks on my arms but it doesn't stop me from wearing sleeveless clothing!
Or even backless apparel actually! See the mark on my underarm and on my back?
You can also spot circular marks on my thighs in this photo, taken two days after my last session! It's barely obvious, isn't it?
Some readers have also asked about the products they have been recommended to purchase to complement the treatments. I've also religiously applied those products during my treatments, and although I don't know for certain how effective they are, I trust Slim Couture a lot and I believe they do help with enhancing the treatments! These products though, are not a MUST and I believe you can just let the staff know if you don't wish to purchase the products even though they highly recommend you to do so.
Lastly, regarding the pain factor, I think I'm already way too used to it. I'm almost starting to enjoy certain areas of the gua sha (especially on my back and when I can feel my love handled being attacked lol) and sometimes even fall asleep during ba guan! It's definitely very tolerable pain, and the therapists will go a little easier on you if you have issues adjusting to the treatments initially. Don't worry, everyone at Slim Couture are very nice people!
I really have to thank Slim Couture for helping YZ slim down so much in just a month's time! And I'm further convinced that I can get the same results as YZ did, cos I definitely don't wanna lose out to YZ haha he can't be stealing my limelight on our wedding day!
The next twelve sessions are very important for me cos I've decided to be as commited to my weight loss cause as possible, and drop as much weight as I can in twelve sessions! All those overseas trips of non-stop eating need to be undone! Enough of feeling like a big fat bloated whale. I wanna look good and feel even better!
As you know, there is a list of diet "dos and don'ts" while on Slim Couture, I'm gonna try to follow as closely as I cannnn!
The two of us are really motivated now to lose weight together healthily so that we can look good together on our wedding day! Teehee. Wish us all the best? :)
I'll be updating more frequently with my regular progress on Dayre during the next forty days, so go hop over to keep an eye on my updates! And especially for my readers, quote "Yina" to receive a complimentary slimming wrap worth $58 for every 4 sessions with Slim Couture! The wrap will stimulate the slimming process and work wonders!
Once again, a disclaimer. I have not been bribed to write all these nice things about Slim Couture! All that I've shared in this entry and my previous ones are all entirely my honest opinions and factual experiences! :) If you have any more inquiries, just leave me a comment on here or even on my Ask.FM (@yinagoh) or Dayre (@yinagoh).
***
SLIM COUTURE
Official website: www.slim-couture.com
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/SlimCouturePteLtd
Instagram: www.instagram.com/SlimCoutureSG
18 Cross Street, #02-06
China Square Central
Singapore 048423
Tel: (+65) 6536 8586
190 Clemenceau Ave 2,
Singapore Shopping Centre, #05-29
Singapore 239924
Tel: (+65) 6336 8665
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Review: Loreal Youth Code Luminizing Essence
Who doesn't want a glowy, radiant, complexion, hands up?
Nobody put up your hand... Right? Me neither! Cos really, I'm sure everyone out there is just like me, we all lust after a perfect complexion that glows from within!
If you remember reading from my earlier posts, I've been trying to take good care of my skin, and have whittled down my skincare regime to a very simple and fuss-free one. However, have you ever felt like your skin sometimes looks dull and tired, even though *touch wood* you don't have any pimples or breakouts?
I guess I've been flying around too much the past few months, and getting proper rest hasn't been top on my list ever since I got back on our sunny island and have been bombarded by work work work! :(
Apart from running TheVelvetDolls, blogging engagements and the likes, I'm also heavily involved in other activities, like my choral rehearsals (I spend two days, and a total of seven hours at least every week in rehearsal) and let's not even talk about wedding prep. It's stressing me out like crazy!
Probably due to all these factors, I feel that my skin got pretty lacklustre, and my skin tone looked dull and uneven. I think my diet and lifestyle also contributed to the overall condition of my skin as well? I haven't been exercising for some time, and my diet has been that great as well!
But I have a little discovery to share..
I found a product that helps to activate my skin's inner light.. L’Oréal Youth Code Luminizing Essence!
If you've been searching in vain for something to help with that radiant, glowy complexion, L’Oréal Youth Code Luminizing Essence is a pre-essence that gives you a natural luminous glow while boosting your skin’s absorption power!
If you've been searching in vain for something to help with that radiant, glowy complexion, L’Oréal Youth Code Luminizing Essence is a pre-essence that gives you a natural luminous glow while boosting your skin’s absorption power!
When I mention “Activating Your Skin’s Inner Light”, it actually means to clarify the skin from inside out to reveal illuminated, brightened and translucent skin! It's not just a term that's being used as a marketing gimmick, because there are THREE powerful ingredients in Youth Code Luminizing Essence to do just what it claims.
Youth Code Luminizing Essence contains the following ingredients to Activate Skin’s Inner Light in 3 Dimensions (Skin Tone, Skin Light and Skin Texture)
Pro Cystein: Brightens Skin Tone
Pearls (Micro Blue Pearls): Enhances Transparency of Skin
Pore Refiner: Even Out Skin Texture
Youth Code Luminizing Essence - Spread on skin
Youth Code Luminizing Essence - After absorption
As you can see, the texture of Youth Code Luminizing Essence is very lightweight and has a very runny consistency! Perfect for me because I really don't wish to use products that are too rich or heavy. This doesn't feel greasy or uncomfortable on the skin!
As you can see, the texture of Youth Code Luminizing Essence is very lightweight and has a very runny consistency! Perfect for me because I really don't wish to use products that are too rich or heavy. This doesn't feel greasy or uncomfortable on the skin!
It's very easy to apply as well, and only requires four simple steps!
1. Release one pump-full onto your palm
(You may need less if you have a smaller face! I found one full pump to be too much for me.)
2. Distribute evenly around the palm
3. Lightly pat onto face and neck area
4. Allow essence to be absorbed
As this is a pre-serum, you should use it before your serum and moisturiser, and it can be used both day and night! :) So the order will go something like this, depending on what your skincare regime is like:
Cleanser > Toner > Youth Code Luminizing Essence > Serum > Moisturiser
Youth Code Luminizing Essence not only helps to restore radiance and translucency in your skin, my favourite part is that it boosts your skin's absorption power for any skincare products used subsequently! So that only means that my other products will be even more effective than ever. Yay!
(You may need less if you have a smaller face! I found one full pump to be too much for me.)
As this is a pre-serum, you should use it before your serum and moisturiser, and it can be used both day and night! :) So the order will go something like this, depending on what your skincare regime is like:
Cleanser > Toner > Youth Code Luminizing Essence > Serum > Moisturiser
Youth Code Luminizing Essence not only helps to restore radiance and translucency in your skin, my favourite part is that it boosts your skin's absorption power for any skincare products used subsequently! So that only means that my other products will be even more effective than ever. Yay!
I've only been trying out Youth Code Luminizing Essence for a short period of time, but I really like how it fits into my skincare routine so effortlessly, and I do feel that my skin is getting back some of its radiance and luminosity!
In fact, I've been getting compliments on my skin the past few days about how my skin is looking flawless and radiant! ;) Teehee. And that's definitely making me glow with happiness! Hahaha.
In fact, I've been getting compliments on my skin the past few days about how my skin is looking flawless and radiant! ;) Teehee. And that's definitely making me glow with happiness! Hahaha.
Of course, I believe in putting on a huge smile on my face too, and staying happy and carefree regardless of any circumstances! Then, I'm sure you will be glowing inside out!
Youth Code Luminizing Essence is retailing at $45.90, now available at Watsons, Guardian, SASA, selected Department Stores and Supermarkets. Check in stores for promotional discounts!
To find out more about Youth Code Luminizing Essence, do visit the Microsite or Facebook page!
xoxo
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Happy 7th Anniversary!
Hello friends!
My laptop is currently down and I've sent it in for repair at the service centre! Thank God I found out at the service centre that I still have extended AppleCare warranty until next month, phew!!!
This means that my blogging activity has been severely limited due to lack of a computer.. Boohoo. But I can still copy and paste stuff using Blogger app on my phone hehe!!
Today is YZ and my 7th anniversary! And in memory of our seven years together so far, I found an old Dayre entry I wrote during last Christmas, in which I shared a lot of thoughts and feelings about our relationship.
Oh, we just spent my 27th birthday together too on the 3rd of August, which you can also read on Dayre! (Download the Dayre app or go to www.dayre.me/yinagoh) That's where all my ramblings and rubbish are. I try to keep my blog slightly more informational but as Dayre entries are so transient, I'm gonna share my favourite Dayre entries on my blog every once in a while!
Some happy moments from my birthday. I feel very very blessed and loved! :)
***
*written 24 December 2013*
Dear Dayre,
It's been an entire year since last Christmas.
Funny how much difference a year can make. Last Christmas, YZ and I were going through a very wretched stage in our (then) five years plus relationship.
I mean.. No relationship is perfect, I believe. Just like no man or woman is perfect. We were made imperfect, so how do you expect two imperfect souls to come together in a perfect union?
To me, those that claim they have zero issues in a relationship are probably either in denial, or won the elusive love lottery when they found their perfect other half. I don't know, am I too cynical?
YZ and I are certainly not perfect.
I'm stubborn, wilful, too independent for his liking, not attentive/sensitive enough, and too busy with my life.
He's quick-tempered, sensitive, with an easily-bruised ego, insecure at times and can say extremely spiteful things in the heat of anger.
How do you know if someone is The One for you?
YZ was/is my first relationship. I was 20 years old when I met him, and we were both quite smitten with each other, though he showed it more, heh. I just thought he was a charming and funny person, and always secretly looked forward to getting to see him at the music cafe whenever I went down to support my classmates who were taking part in a singing competition at the cafe. (He was helping a friend part-time manage at the cafe back then, and thus our paths crossed!)
One of YZ's greatest traits (depending on how you look at it..) is that he can be read like an open book. He can't hide his emotions, be it positive or negative emotions, it's usually written all over his face and in his body language.
I figured out pretty early that he was interested in me, hahaa. He'd sometimes steal glances at me with that adoring look on his face during late night group suppers, or look inexplicably happy to see me when I showed up at the cafe.
I'd even catch him a few times by the glass reflection outside the cafe washroom, primping himself up so he looked presentable when I saw him, hehehe.
When he finally 'confessed' to me one night, I had a lot of mixed feelings, I was happy and flattered, but worried and apprehensive, because I'd never been in a relationship before.
Of course, we got together eventually, and it was my first experience in love and of being loved.
We've seen each other at our best and worst, and have gone through our fair bit of ups and downs in the past 6 years. But him being my first, I never knew what the 'gold standard' for a relationship should be like?
I guess YZ is usually the more unreasonable half because he rides on emotion, while I'm the logical and cool half, which sometimes frustrates him to no end.
And him being more sensitive as well, I usually hear accusations being thrown in my direction during our fights.
Most of the time, we fought because I wasn't attentive enough, or wasn't careful enough, or maybe not loving enough. Things like too many missed calls, or not replying an SMS fast enough, stuff like that. It sounds kind of immature now, but looking back, it was probably because YZ was feeling insecure.
I started blogging in 2009, around the third year of our relationship together.
When things sort of started taking off, even though YZ was happy and supportive for me on the outside, I think he was secretly worried and insecure about how I was turning my attention to blogging, and that it might be negative for our relationship.
I never once felt that our relationship was threatened by anything, but because YZ felt unbalanced, we'd sometimes end up quarreling over the silliest things, and once YZ got started, he could get really vicious with his words, which hurt me a lot.
Thing is, he always says things in anger just because he wants to get a reaction out of me, or to spite me, but once we've settled our differences, he'd reflect on what happened and then apologize to me for being unreasonable or spiteful, stuff like that.
And both of us are always so caught up in our own perspectives in a quarrel (as is always the case), that it's so difficult to come to a middle ground, especially when hurtful words are being thrown in the midst of the disagreement.
It led to me feeling like I was always the one at fault during an argument and that nothing I did was right. I was really tired of hearing hurtful and unreasonable words, and hurt that someone this close to me could even say such things to me.
Though once we made up after a quarrel, YZ would always apologize for being a jerk and would be back to his usual loving self, our fights always made me feel unsure of our relationship.
I started to worry if a relationship should be this way, and whether I was with the right person or not.
For YZ though, he's never had second thoughts about me, he knew that I'm the girl he wanted to marry and spend the rest of his life together with.
Being brought up in a household where my parents have had horrific fights and I've seen how much grief they could cause each other, I'd never want myself to end up in such a marriage, fraught with too much unhappiness and angry, violent words being lashed out without consideration.
It really got me thinking.
Was this really the kind of relationship I wanted for life? Like I said, I didn't know nuts about how other relationships were like, but I didn't feel like it was right at that point.
I felt very tired, because I was always the one tolerating tempers, giving in to unreasonable anger, having to be super extra careful because one wrong word or wrong move might trigger off a quarrel.
Please don't get me mistaken, on most days, YZ is the perfect partner. He loves me to death, and is always open with his affection for me. I love being around him and I feel very comfortable and happy with him. He has made me a better person in many ways, and is a wonderful partner to me.
But when shit hit the fan, somehow the blame was always on me. I didn't realize it at that time, but I was probably giving in too much to YZ, even for issues that were caused by his own insecurities and over-sensitivity, it somehow became my problem for not realizing that I could have done something about it, could be a more attentive girlfriend or knew how to say exactly the right thing to defuse the situation.
Like I said, no person is perfect. And however much I try, I cannot be perfect.
We almost ended our relationship last Christmas.
I knew that YZ was preparing to propose to me soon, and at that point of time, I wasn't sure if we were right for each other. I wasn't ready to accept a proposal yet and I wanted to head off the idea of marriage, and have more time to really think the relationship through.
This unhappy incident really woke both of us up and made us look long and hard at our relationship, and all the little fissures that were threatening to crack and disintegrate our relationship.
***Author's note: Obviously, we are still together and happily engaged one Christmas later la so our relationship did not disintegrate in the end.
---
Back to last Christmas.
It was a very painful and tiring time for both of us. YZ was hurt and shocked by what I told him (that I wasn't sure if he's the right one for me) and he wanted to know what was wrong, but it was so difficult to explain in words? I think the one main thing I felt was that I was tired of having to pander to YZ's needs and demands. And I kept telling myself it's normal because I want the relationship to work out and I wanted YZ to be happy with me.
If you're my friend in real life, you'd know that I'm a very straight-forward, no-nonsense kind of girl. I don't take shit from people and I always say what's on my mind.
When it comes to my relationship, I transform into a 小女人 and whenever he's upset, I will try to placate him, hear him rant for hours patiently to try to talk things through.
The first time I went overseas for choir trip in our relationship, we quarreled long distance every night until my phone bill hit $700 (Indonesia only hahaa). Every time I go overseas without him I always anticipate a fight cos he feels insecure that I'm somewhere enjoying myself and have forgotten all about having a boyfriend at home. That kind of thing.
(Seriously I think YZ will kill me if he reads all this. But that's all in the past la. He's changed a lot now and he's no longer like this.)
Of course, I sparked off a HUGE fight. We nearly decided to call it quits because things got so bleak.
The incident left an indelible mark on our relationship, but one year later, we both look upon that trying period as one of the most significant turning points of our relationship.
It took our relationship to be on the verge of break-up for us to actually learn so much about how to be together with each other, but I am really thankful that we decided to stay together and make things work.
You can imagine how much courage YZ worked up to propose to me for real in August this year, which made the proposal all the more special to me.
We're still a long way from being the perfect couple or having a perfect relationship, but one thing I've learnt about a relationship is that love is a conscious decision.
YZ's letter to me on Valentine's Day this year.
Thinking about last Christmas has made us more appreciative of our relationship this present Christmas.
Love is a conscious decision. Make that decision to appreciate, respect, understand and treasure your loved ones better!
***
Happy seven years, love.
xoxo
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)