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By Amy Zhang September 2, 2020 in Lifestyle, Wellness No Comments

Down There Care With Cottonelle

Let’s talk about downtherecare… specifically, the skin that we don’t show or ever talk about. Yep, we’re going there. Intimate wellness shouldn’t be taboo! In fact, almost half of Americans have a routine for their skincare down there. That’s why I’m excited to be partnering with Cottonelle® today – a brand that I’ve had in my household since I was a kid – to talk to you about how downtherecare has made a positive impact on my overall wellness. We talk so much about skincare for our face, but rarely talk about taking care of our skin down there!

DownThereCare With Cottonelle – Why You Need a Routine

Staying home has really forced me to re-evaluate my entire wellness routine from top to bottom. Working, exercising, and living at home – it’s all happening in the same space! I’ve never had to think so much about keeping the bathroom clean and fully stocked at all times. My days have picked up and I’ve found myself needing to establish a beauty and wellness routine that I can stick to. The times for me specifically that I need to refresh – after working out and during that time of the month. It’s even more important than usual to take care of your entire body and make sure you feel clean and refreshed.

I started pairing the combination of Cottonelle’s toilet paper and flushable wipes (yes, they really are flushable and don’t clog your toilet!). It makes staying clean and refreshed at home SO easy. The wipes especially are a game-changer! I even threw a pack of these in my gym bag as well for when I do start leaving the house more. Don’t knock them until you’ve tried them! I had never used wipes before but the added cleaning power makes my morning routine so much better. Especially for women during your period, or if you do any sort of waxing/hair maintenance down there, it’s so so important to take care of your skin and make sure you’re always clean.

Taking care of my entire body – from head to toe – has been key to staying confident and feeling healthy during these uncertain times.

What I’ve learned is that I can’t control every aspect of my life. Instead, I’ve learned to let go of what I can’t control, and focus on what I can. Which is myself, and treating myself when I need to. Whether it’s cooking my favorite meal or buying a new beauty product, I’ve been giving myself more self-care than ever before. I really view self-care as essential to my overall wellbeing, and every little bit counts. Thanks for introducing me to #downtherecare and partnering with me on this campaign, Cottonelle!

Follow me on Instagram for more updates.

By Amy Zhang January 8, 2020 in Lifestyle, Wellness 2 Comments

Wellness Habits to Kick Start the New Year

Can you believe we’re already a week into 2020? I feel like the last few months have flown by. I’m not the biggest new year resolution person (to be honest, I can’t tell you my most recent one), but I do love kicking off the new year with some self-care and focusing on wellness habits. By the end of last year, I was feeling a little run down and ragged.

After some much needed time away from work and blogging, I feel ready to take on a new year of challenges and goals. The most important aspect, however, is taking care of your body first. Nothing I’m committing to is groundbreaking or new, rather the below are a series of small promises and wellness habits I’ve made to myself in an effort to start putting myself and my health first.

With a new year, comes a chance to hit the restart button and refocus on your goals and intentions. As cheesy as it is, I love having January 1st to motivate me, and if we’re being honest, kick a little discipline back into my life.

Wellness Habits to Kick Start the New Year

+ No alcohol.

This is my fourth year doing “Dry January” and at this point it has become a very welcome routine in my life to start the year off on the right foot. November and December are typically the two most indulgent months of the year, and that means more alcohol than usual. We started doing Dry January as a challenge to see how we would feel after a month of alcohol. After you get over the initial crutch of alcohol in social situations, you realize that it isn’t so bad, and no one else will notice (there’s no need to scream it at the top of your lungs every time you go out, a soda water with lime will usually do the trick).

As much as I miss my regular glasses of wine, the physical and mental effects are undeniable. By the end of the month I always feel less bloated, see an improvement in my skin, and have a much easier time waking up early.

+ Water.

In a similar vein, hydration is key! I’ve made a mental note to myself to drink at least 2L of water a day. I’ve also made an effort to cut down on my caffeine and substitute coffee with matcha when I can. So water has become my drink of choice. We also have a SodaStream at home that I love, it makes drinking enough water so easy.

+ Fitness.

In the past, I’ve been into super intense bootcamp style workouts and long-distance cardio, but after feeling burned out from the impact of the exercise and some suggestions from my doctor, I’ve made a conscious effort to cut down on high-intensity exercises and cardio. I’ve been adding pilates to my routine 2-3x a week as well as resistance training and weightlifting, which I believe is a more sustainable routine for my body.

+ Sleep.

This one is super hard for me, according to my sleep tracker I average only 6.5 hours a night, which is ok but not great. The benefits of getting enough sleep cannot be stressed enough. And I know how much better I feel when I hit the recommended amount. I’d love to get above 7 hours a night, but you know, life…

+ Diet.

After analyzing my diet in-depth, I came to the conclusion that it was, like my sleep, ok but not great. Towards the end of the year, I found myself reaching for office snacks on a daily basis, eating more chips and packaged snacks than I care to admit and eating out more meals than not. After getting over the initial hump of grocery shopping and light meal prepping, I’ve found that cooking doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. My goal is to eat most meals at home, and see if it makes a difference in how I feel at the end of the month.

+ Reading.

In an effort to be more conscious about the type of media I consume, I reset my reading goal for the year (last year my goal was to read 30 books!) and am trying to choose a book over TV before bed – even though it’s much easier to put on The Bachelor and zone out after a long day. So we shall see how this goes!

How are you starting off the new year?

By Amy Zhang June 10, 2019 in Beauty, Lifestyle, Wellness 3 Comments

Winding Down & Beauty Sleep – My Nightly Routine with OLLY

Winding Down & Beauty Sleep - My Nightly Routine | by The Luxi Look

Today’s post is all about a subject that is very, very important to me, and is written in partnership with OLLY. As always, all opinions are my own. The topic of today: SLEEP! I’ve written about sleep before and why it’s so important for you. Long story short, it impacts and improves pretty much every area in our lives – mental, physical, emotional. It’s called “beauty sleep” for a reason! When you sleep enough you are restoring your body and giving it the energy it needs to function at its best.

Sleep repairs your body from workouts, improves your skin and appearance, helps maintain your appetite and weight, improves our brain function and concentration, and enhances your mood… I could go on and on about sleep. The problem is, getting enough sleep is something I struggle with at times. Between work and travel I don’t always get the recommended 7-8 hours. Truthfully I often only get 5 or 6 hours of sleep a night – which is a terrible habit and something I do not recommend!

With that said, I have started implementing a nighttime routine to force myself to be more conscious of how I spend my evenings and prepare for bedtime. Here’s what it entails:

My Nightly Routine

+ Eliminate Devices

It’s easy to lay in bed, scrolling through your Instagram feed and getting sucked into the rabbit hole that is social media. If you struggle with getting enough sleep, eliminating devices at least one hour before you go to bed is a must. It helps your mind begin to unwind and settle down – if you have thoughts racing through your head all night it is much harder to fall asleep!

+ Skincare Routine

For me, having a set skincare routine is incredibly therapeutic and calming. I love going through the process of cleansing, toning, and moisturizing before bed. A few times a week I will try a new mask as well.

+ Read

Instead of being on my laptop or phone before bed, I have been reaching for a book. I’m still trying to reach my goal of reading 30 books by the end of the year (!!) and I have found that reading is more enjoyable and helps me fall asleep faster.

+ Journal

Getting into the habit of journaling is still new to me. I don’t always know what to write about, but even 5 or 10 minutes help me feel more centered. Also, knowing I will have something to look back on and reflect in a few years is incredibly motivating!

+ OLLY – Beauty Sleep

The very last thing I do before bed is take an OLLY gummy. Melatonin affects everyone differently, but I found these gummies to be more gentle than others I have tried. It helps me fall asleep (and stay asleep), but I don’t have crazy dreams or wake up groggy the way I do after other supplements I’ve tried.

How do you get ready for sleep? xx

By Amy Zhang May 23, 2019 in Lifestyle, Wellness 5 Comments

Chilling Out – How to Relax After Work

We all have crazy workdays! I have to admit it can be difficult to truly “unwind” after a long day of work and staring at a screen. For me, the last thing I want to do is stare at a screen more or have to be “on” – hence why the frequency of blog posts has come to a halt over the past month. In many ways taking a digital detox has been great for my mental health and attention span. But I continue to always look for more ways to unwind and clear my mind after work. Here are some suggestions I received from close friends and loved ones that I have been taking to heart; and actually helping me relax after work.

How to Relax After Work

Journal

Maybe it’s the fact that I’m getting closer to 30 and my memory isn’t as good as it used to be. But journaling has become a much larger part of my daily routine. I recently read and loved Michelle Obama’s book. I heard from a friend that one of the reasons her book was so vivid and fantastic is because she has kept avid, detailed journals for most of her life. Although my life isn’t nearly as exciting, I’d like to think that there are some nuggets in there that I will like to pass down in the future. For those of you who journal more regularly, do you prefer digital or paper?

Read

I shared my winter reading list back in January along with a lofty goal of 30 books read by the end of the year. I actually made decent progress on the list but still have a long way to go before I hit my goal for the end of the year! Reading is something I find so therapeutic. It brings me a lot of joy! So I am really trying to make a point of making it more of a habit than an afterthought. Any tips or suggestions for incorporating more reading into your everyday life? If only I could spend the two hours a day I spend in the car driving to and from work reading. (Yes, I’ve tried audiobooks. No, I do not like them as much as reading).

Turn off devices

Another lofty goal but one that my boyfriend and I have made a joint decision around. It can be tough to do given the nature of both of our jobs, but our goal is as little time on devices as possible once we are done for the day. In this sense I feel fortunate my job is not a full time blogger. I don’t actually *have* to be on social media all day long.

Catch up with friends

Between work and managing a blog I’ll be the first to confess, my personal life more often than not goes to the wayside. Work/life balance is a challenge for everyone, but there really is nothing more relaxing than catching up with a good friend over a drink or good meal. The older I get, the more I value true, genuine friendships (and recognize how difficult good friends are to find!) and recognize the importance of keeping in touch with and cultivating relationships that are important to you. Like all things worth having, good friendships require work and effort (from both parties!).

Go to a yoga class

Honestly, I love a good relaxing yoga class. I don’t mean a crazy yoga sculpt or vinyasa class (although I do love those as well!). But a yin or restorative yoga class. I used to be obsessed with hot vinyasa yoga and yoga sculpt, but these days I’m all about a slower pace and more sustainable workout routine. Also, the idea of doing yoga with blocks and blankets is more appealing than chaturangas after a long day of work. I also have aspirations to meditate more, but view yoga as an appropriate substitute as well. The combination of restorative yoga + meditation does wonders for relieving stress.

Create a skincare routine

Light a candle (I’m a sucker for Diptyque candles even if you are literally burning money). Put your products to work! More often than not, I get lazy and just wash my face and slap on night cream. But I find the process of creating a spa like atmosphere, making a cup of sleepy time tea, and actually following my multi step skincare routine to be incredibly relaxing. The perfect way to get ready for bed.

How do you like to relax after work?

By Amy Zhang March 15, 2019 in Lifestyle, Wellness 3 Comments

Real Talk – Is Caffeine Good or Bad for You?

Is Caffeine Good or Bad for You? | by The Luxi Look

The other day, it dawned upon me that my habit of downing 3 shots of espresso upon waking up might be a problem. A quick Google search showed me that I may be teetering the line of caffeine addiction. Like anyone in denial of a bad habit, I made a laundry list of reasons justifying why my behavior is fine. But I also wanted to know more about the science behind caffeine. Is it actually good or bad for you? How much is too much? Is the right amount none? What are the negative side effects? And how the F do you know if you’re addicted or have a problem? I think a lot of us drink coffee mindlessly and it’s probably okay. To be honest, I think there are much worse vices out there. Here’s what I found on caffeine – the good and bad.

What are the effects of caffeine on the body?

According to the Food and Drug Administration, better known as the FDA, caffeine is a stimulant. It’s actually considered a food and a drug. And they say it’s addictive. Most commonly, it is consumed to wake us up or give us energy.

Some research has shown that moderate amounts of caffeine can actually be beneficial to the body – because it is a stimulant, it can help with improving weight loss (may work as an appetite suppressant), mental function, and alertness. Some studies also suggest caffeine may be good for memory, athletic performance, and even going as far as saying it can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s.

The not so good effects of caffeine – it’s addictive and highly acidic, which can cause heartburn or digestive issues. It raises blood pressure, and too much can be bad for pregnancy and fertility. In extremely high amounts, it can be fatal.

How much caffeine is in my favorite drink?

Caffeine actually occurs naturally in some foods – tea and coffee are the most common ones that we consume. It’s also found in cacao beans (chocolate!) and yerba mate. To give you a sense of how much caffeine is in common beverages –

+ An 8 ounce cup of coffee has between 95 to 200 mg

+ A shot of espresso has about 80 mg

+ Black tea has between 60-90 mg of caffeine, while green tea has between 35-70 mg. Herbal teas do not have caffeine

+ Energy drinks can have up to 240 mg

Ok, how much caffeine is too much?

The FDA recommends people not to consume more than 400mg of caffeine a day. That translates to about 4-5 cups of coffee. Most of us should be ok, but it’s definitely something to keep in mind. The long term effects of too much caffeine aren’t super clear. If you’re not sure if you are consuming too much caffeine, definitely talk to your doctor. A cup of coffee or two in the morning out of habit is probably fine – but if you’re relying on it as a crutch, it may be time to revisit your relationship with this.

How do I know if I have a caffeine addiction?

If you feel anxious, irritable, and tired without your cup of coffee, you may have an addiction. Try going without it for a week and see how your body responds. Some people get piercing headaches – me, I get sleepy and need to take a nap around 3pm. If you think you might be consuming too much caffeine, it might not be a bad idea to do a “caffeine detox” – if you’re brave enough to go cold turkey. Even cutting back to just one cup a day can make a difference.

While the jury’s out on whether caffeine is definitely “good” or “bad” for you… I say, keep calm and coffee on. What are your thoughts on caffeine?

You might also like… All About AHAs/BHAs, and Healthy Foods That Can Make You Bloated.

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