Loulou's views

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. Now that the new year has started, it's time to get serious about sticking to those resolutions. This year, it's all about eating right, getting your beauty sleep, working out, and taking care of your skin. Here are some tips on how you can be your best self in 2018: Eat Right We all want to eat healthy. I know no one is counting calories in December, but now that January is here, it's time to get back to eating smart. As someone who is always on the go with two busy kids, this is an area I struggle with. Working downtown can make choosing a healthy lunch difficult, but luckily I work close to  Mad Radish. This Ottawa-based restaurant has great plant-based options to make healthy eating simple, delicious, and nutritious. My favourite is their Smoky Caesar salad–with a twist. This salad includes romaine and kale, garlic-marinated chickpeas, and broccoli. Instead of parmesan cheese, it's topped with ...

Spring is finally (finally!) in the air. This means it's time to start spring cleaning to make room in your closet for all the new pieces you have to buy this season. Along with spring cleaning your closet comes spring cleaning your mind and body, too—by eating healthier, and working out several time a week. I love incorporating a number of different activities to stay fit, but what I love most of all is taking classes at The Dailey Method . I began working out at The Dailey Method last summer when I was invited to take part in the #DoItDailey30 challenge as a blog ambassador. Once I got through my first class, I was in love. It was more of a workout than I expected, and after the 30 day challenge I not only felt better, I looked better, too. It was so motivating and a lot of fun. The Dailey Method, in case you're not familiar, is a group fitness class that helps you increase muscle length, strength, tone, and balance, while improving your cardio strength, post...

I was first introduced to The Dailey Method this past summer when I was asked to be a blog ambassador and take part in the #DoItDailey30 challenge. Doing it daily sounded like an excellent idea to me, and I was definitely up for the challenge. I just didn't know quite how challenging it was going to be. The Daliey Method (TDM) is not only popular in Ottawa's Glebe neighbourhood, but across North America and Europe, as well. TDM is an efficient and effective way to increase muscle length, tone, and balance, all while improving cardio strength, posture, and motivation. The work-outs are amazing and will have you burning calories while you're building muscle in a fun environment with amazing teachers and music. (This is key!). I'm so excited that The Dailey Method has opened their very own Dailey Cycle studio. "Dailey Cycle fuses The Dailey Method's signature focus on alignment and body sculpting with the cardiovascular benefits of indoor cycling to de...

Can you believe there is only one week left until Christmas? Yes, the holiday season is upon us, and if you're anything like me, you've been especially busy this month. So busy, you glance at the calendar in disbelief at how quickly the days are going by and a little frightened with all you have left to do before the end of the month... and year. During the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, it's easy to forget eating well and maintaining a healthy diet, with all the parties and cookies and festive beverages tempting you. Once you get in the habit of eating well, though (habits usually take 21 days to become a daily routine) it's easier to keep to your routine of eating well, despite the temptations around you. If you're looking to start your day off right, and improve your overall healthy, you should consider taking psyllium fibre. Sounds scary? It's not. It's just a naturally sourced dietary fibre found in Metamucil powder, and it has a long his...

Now that summer is here, I'm back to a regular workout routine. My mornings start with me enjoying breakfast with my boys, putting on my work out clothes, taking the kids to school, and heading straight to the gym.  It's amazing how much better I feel after a great workout, especially now that the days are warmer. It's so much easier to push myself and motivate myself at the gym when I'm in "summer mode".  If I'm not at at the gym, I'm in the pool, or lounging by the pool, and knowing I'm feeling my best makes putting on a bikini that much easier. Having cute workout clothes helps, too—having tops and pants that fit well and look good so you can have a killer workout is very important, you know! I recently discovered www.mylegwearshop.com  and love the variety of leggings and active wear they offer—and I'm so happy they sent me some active wear, too. Ordering online was simple and fun. The only hard part was deciding which pair of leggings ...

It's mid-January and hopefully, we're all on track with our resolutions. After over-indulging in December, I'm taking better care of my health—making sure I'm staying active, and eating well. I've been faithfully going to the gym because the truth is, nothing feels better than a great workout—which makes you feel—and look—great. (Also, getting ready for bikini weather and an upcoming vacation down south is great motivation to kick up your workout routine!) There are other ways to monitor your health, too, and Best Buy Canada is the place to go to get all that you need to make sure you're staying on track with your health. Best Buy gave me the awesome new Garmin vivosmart HR Fitness Tracker with Heart Rate Monitor , and I love it, because it measures my heartbeat which helps me improve my fitness regimen. It's stylish, and easy to wear. The vivosmart HR uses exclusive Elevate heart rate technology to measure my heartbeat directly from my wrist....

I always have time to go to the salon to do my hair, even if it's just for my weekly blow-dry.  I always have time to go to the mall. I always have time to check Facebook. I always have time to catch up on my favourite shows on Netflix. So, really, there's no excuse for why I sometimes can't find the time to go the gym. "Want to go to BodyPump?"  "I can't—I have no time!" I don't like excuses, but sometimes, that's exactly what I'm using when I try to get out of going to a class at the gym. And sometimes, it truly does feel like I have no time for the gym, but that's only because my priorities have shifted—and that should never be the case. After all, it's my health. And my future. So why do I find it so hard to stick to a fitness routine, one that'll benefit me now and in the long run? I get into great routines with working out, usually in the summer and before a vacation when I know I'm going to be spending my d...