Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.

This morning the last thing I wanted to do was drag my body out of bed at 7am and walk the ~10 blocks to Flywheel for an 8am spin class. I didn't sleep well last night - I think I may have clocked 5 hours - and I was feeling like a total grump, thanks in part to this dreary Philadelphia weather that's been hanging around for the last 10 days.

Thankfully, I had two things motivating me to not be a lazy bum: 1) The $15 "late cancel" ClassPass fee I'd incur if I canceled at the last minute and 2) The fact that my favorite Flywheel instructor, Nicole, was going to entertain my ridiculous fantasy of flying (that's fancy Flywheel lingo for spinning) to the Star Wars theme song.

I got up, donned my R2D2 socks and Star Wars tank, and although I may not have performed to the best of my ability in the class, I'm glad I went.

A year ago I was convinced that I hated cycling. I mean, truthfully, a year ago I was convinced that I hated all forms of exercise, but I particularly thought indoor cycling was lame. Granted most of my experience was based on miserable rides on the stationary bike at the gym, but I did attend one cycling class at another studio in Philly about a year ago and just wasn't feeling it.

Something about Flywheel changed my mind.

Let's start with the environment. You fly in a stadium-style room with bikes lined up in a semi-circle around an instructor who is elevated on a small stage. When the ride begins, that stadium becomes pitch black dark, save for a few subtle blue lights illuminating the tech pack (I'll get to that momentarily) on your bike. This environment feels almost like you're in a submarine, where the lights, sounds and distractions of the outside world fade away. I find that I'm able to really tune in to my body when I'm in the stadium and focus on what I'm there to do: sweat.

That's the next great thing: Flywheel workouts are amazing, and they're great for fitness enthusiasts of all levels, because 1) you can pace yourself, and 2) the pitch black workout environment means there's no way other riders are looking at you and "judging" you on your relative performance. Sure the instructors yell out torq (or resistance) and RPM (or speed) numbers as a guide, but if you're feeling tired, you just do you. (The one caveat to this is the torq board, which is totally optional, but if you're looking for an extra competitive push, you can opt to have your class rank displayed on a big screen at the front of the room. I've been flying for 6 months now and haven't done this yet.)

Next there's the instructors. There's a million of them, and they each have their own unique style, not only in terms of music choice, but also in how they structure the ride. I went to a class with a woman named Jordana last week, and while I loved her music, she threw in a bunch of fancy, bouncy moves that were more uncomfortable for me than anything else. That said, I have a friend who loves stuff like that, so Jordana's class is perfect for her. As I mentioned, Nicole's my favorite (I also love Utley), because she keeps it simple -- that doesn't mean easy, by any means, but I don't have to worry about keeping up with intricate up-down choreography or incorporating overhead claps into my routine to get a good workout. Ultimately, my point here is that there are enough Flywheel instructors that you can try a bunch of them and figure out whose style gels with what you like from your workout.

The last point I'll make about this studio is that they're really on the up and up in terms of technology. The tech pack that I mentioned earlier is a little tracking do-dad (yeah, that's really the best descriptor I could come up with) that not only measures your speed and resistance, but also how much "power" you're working out at in a given moment and your overall "score" for the ride (I'm pretty sure the power metric contributes to your score). After your ride, you can go onto your handy dandy Flywheel app and see all sorts of stats about your ride - your max speed, how many miles you rode, how many calories you burned, etc. And you can track and compare your scores over time to see how you're improving as you increase your level of fitness. That's another reason why I love Nicole's classes - for some reason, I almost always earn my highest scores when she's teaching. And yes, as a type-A, accomplishment-driven individual, getting a high score definitely makes a difference.

It's all these things put together that really makes for a quality exercise experience in my book. An environment conducive to focus, an awesome instructor, killer music and an embedded motivational tool that makes you want to come back again and again.

On this rainy Tuesday, dragging my tired ass to class was worth it, because riding to the Star Wars theme song was as fabulous as I imagined it'd be. Not to mention, I snagged this amazingly awesome Flywheel / Star Wars t-shirt on my way out. Score.

If you're interested in giving Flywheel a shot, they have locations in 12 states and they'll let you take your first class for free to try it out. My best advice for a newbie is to go easy on yourself. Pedal at your own pace and enjoy the experience for what it is. If you're anything like me, you'll be addicted to flying in no time.

Flywheel isn't paying me to write this blog post, in fact, they have no idea that I've even penned it. All opinions expressed are my own, and no affiliate links have been used.

Expanding Beauty Babble & My Fitness Story

Beauty Babble celebrated its five-year anniversary this summer, and while that definitely felt like a massive accomplishment, I also couldn't help but feel like things were getting a bit stale. Don't get me wrong, I still LOVE beauty, skin care and hair care products, but I've also spent a lot of 2015 expanding my interests, and I've been itching to share those on the blog, too.

I sat down earlier this week and started pondering different ways to add spice to my writing, and the idea to expand to a new vertical -- specifically fitness -- popped to the top. I'll get to the full "why" behind this decision in a moment, but to tease the story, I've spent the last 7 months transforming my attitude about exercise and am really inspired to share that fervor with you! Along similar lines, I was also looking for a way to add local flavor to my posts, so this expansion will let me bring you fitness class/studio reviews for the metro Philadelphia area, in addition to other non-geo specific posts on fitness motivation, health, nutrition and the like.

Of course, I'll still continue to bring you the best reviews in non-toxic, safe beauty products, so nothing will change there. You'll just start to see some new variety in the content. I hope you like it!

As for my fitness story, here's the scoop:

I grew up in a dance studio, taking jazz, tap, ballet, lyrical and pointe classes for 11 years, but outside of dance I was never an athletic kid. I'm the girl who got her two front teeth knocked out in tennis camp, twisted her ankle before her first soccer game and had her nose broken twice from being hit in the face with volleyballs and basketballs one too many times. I got the message pretty early on that I was more of an inside girl, so I never joined a sports team or made exercising a true part of my life, particularly as I got older.

As an adult, fitness was never a priority, partially because I tended to work long hours and felt exhausted when I got home, and partially because the variety of exercise types available to me bored me beyond belief. It took all of my effort to drag my tired body to the gym to suffer through 30 miserable minutes of walking on the treadmill. I tried a few group classes here and there, but they all seemed so low energy or the music was bad or the instructor looked just as bored as I was. Living in Florida didn't help because for at least 9 months of the year, it's miserable to be outside unless you want to die from heat exhaustion or get West Nile virus from all the mosquito bites you acquire after dark. Exercise was just always inconvenient or boring, so I didn't do it.

In September 2013, I move to Philadelphia, and looking back I can now say that the move was pretty traumatic. I didn't know a single person in my new city, and I had changed jobs, companies, industries, functions AND geographic locations in one fell swoop. I underestimated just how challenging this would be, so when I had been in the city for 6 months and still had no friends, I fell into a bit of a depression. Sure, changing my situation was totally in my control - I could have gotten off my ass and done any number of things, but sometimes when you're so entrenched in an emotion, you just can't get yourself to budge.

I wallowed in my sadness for a while -- too long, to be honest -- but in early 2015 I hit my breaking point. After months of turning to my friend, Mr. Dessert, for comfort, I really started to feel uncomfortable in my own skin. I have never been a perfect trim, slim gal, so I hadn't noticed that I had packed on 10 pounds of flubber, but I did notice it was suddenly uncomfortable to button my pants, that my shirt buttons kept popping open and that I continually felt sluggish and low-energy.

After doing some Googling, I discovered Philly Dance Fitness. I figured that if I was going to have to change and force myself into exercising the least I could do was find a modality that I liked. With my background in dance, this seemed like the lesser of all the evils of the exercise world. I went to a BalletEXTREME class thanks to the prodding of my friend Melanie, and then a month later I worked up the courage to attend a class called Dance Party Boot Camp that she said was more intense. The instructor, Timaree, was amazing, the music was fabulous and the class completely kicked my ass.

I was so damn winded that I hid in the back, took lots of breaks and looked longingly at the people around me who seemed like they were having fun. I simultaneously felt miserable about how out of shape I was and entirely envious of all the fit, confident people that surrounded me.

I decided I was going to "change," but frankly, I was still pretty lazy and spent the next three months going through the motions. I signed up for the gym at work and took advantage of two, 25-minute personal training sessions a week, and then once a week, I'd go to my 50-minute cardio dance class. But after three months of this "working out" routine, none of the stats on my fitness assessment had even budged. This is when it really hit me that I had been lying to myself, and if I wanted to see real results, I needed to put in real effort. (Duh.)

In July, I joined ClassPass and during a 2-week period where I was forced to work from home due to office construction, I went a little crazy. I took a workout class every single day for two weeks, alternating between trying new studios through ClassPass and going more regularly to my favorite Philly Dance Fitness classes.

And then something ridiculous happened. The two week "test" ended and I didn't want to stop working out. I had created a habit.

ClassPass opened doors for me because it allows unlimited classes per month at something like 150 studios in the area, with the only restriction being that you can't visit the same studio more than 3 times in a month. Since you pay a flat fee for the month and aren't exchanging funds each time you go to class, they start to feel free, and when something is "free" your expectations for satisfaction aren't as high. This allowed me to spend a lot of time experimenting, so I tried different modalities, different studios and different instructors "risk free."

Before long, I had established a routine. I found instructors I loved, studios that were convenient and classes that were actually fun. And I was shocked to see that the more I worked out, the more I loved it.

Like any change, my fitness transformation happened gradually. I was pretty winded for a while, but slowly I was able to push myself harder, take fewer breaks and even declare a few classes "too easy." I noticed that my arms and legs (which always tone faster for me than my midsection) became more defined, and I became one of those people that watches as her muscles flex in the mirror (I know this sounds a little douchey but it's true). When I went back in for my fitness assessment in November, I had lost 8 pounds and 6 inches, increased my flexibility substantially, lowered my resting and active heart rate, and boosted my strength.

I remember feeling a sort of glee that I hadn't recalled feeling before, and as I looked in the mirror I couldn't help but wonder who this "new" girl was. I liked her.

Now I can't stop working out. I have my "regular" classes that I attend every week, and on the off days, I find something on ClassPass to try or return to. And on days when I have to miss a workout, I'm one of those people that feels "off." I'm even pursuing my group exercise fitness instructor certification with hopes of teaching at a studio near you sometime in 2016. When I think back to where I was a year ago, I can't believe how far I've come.

This is not to say that in 7 months I've become this super powered, in the best-shape-of-my-life version of me. In fact, there are still plenty of classes that kick my ass, and I know I have a long way to go. But what I can say is this: I went from being that winded chick hiding in the back of Dance Party Boot Camp to one of those confident women standing in the front of the room that I had envied. I routinely push my body as hard as it can go, and it feels fantastic.

I recognize that working out (mostly) 7 days a week is extreme, so by no means am I saying that you need to do that too. For me, creating a habit that I stuck to every day of the week was easier than trying to do something on occasion, because it became a natural part of my day, rather than something I did "when I had time." What I would encourage you to do is get up and just start moving. Keep moving until you find an activity or class type that you really like (I promise that they do exist).

With all that said, I'll leave you with this: I look forward to coming back to the blog with additional fitness stories, including reviews of some of the classes I've mentioned in this post. If you have a particular request or question, please let me know in the comments section below.

Til then, Happy New Year, and here's to an awesome "year 6" for the expanded Beauty Babble.

Meeting Gregg Renfrew & More Beautycounter products!

I'm not easily starstruck, but every once in a while there's a person who inspires me to such a degree that I feel that little flutter in my stomach when I have the opportunity to be in their presence. I felt it when Bob Iger (Disney's CEO) came to speak at our HBS Entertainment & Media Club Conference in 2009. I felt it when I got to hear Cary Elwes talk about his Princess Bride experience during last year's Wizard World Comic Con. And I felt it last month when I got to meet Gregg Renfrew at the Pennsylvania Conference for Women.

If you don't recognize her name, Gregg Renfrew is the founder and CEO of Beautycounter, a non-toxic, safe and high-performing line of personal care products. You probably know by now that I'm a big fan of the brand, since I've talked about them here and here and here, so it should come as no surprise that seeing Gregg's name on the list of speakers at the conference was hugely exciting for me.

Let me tell you guys, Gregg was just as stylish, fabulous, smart and sweet in person as I hoped she'd be. She stole the show on her panel, giving incredibly insightful answers to the questions she was asked, including this tweetable that I shared on my other handle (it's for my other blog, Career & The City should you like to check it out):

All this to say, meeting the woman behind the magic brought Beautycounter back to the top of my personal care product list, so I wanted to come to the blog and write out one more review post on the final three Beautycounter products I received and hadn't yet discussed. These include their eyebrow pencil, eyeliner and eyeshadow duo.

Let's start with the eyeliner.

Here's what I like about it: it comes in the four most classic eyeliner shades (black, brown, purple and navy), it comes with a smudge tip, it's fairly affordable for a high-end liner ($20) and it works nicely.

Here's what I don't like about it: in spite of the Website stating that it has ingredients to give it an emollient feel, I actually find it to be fairly hard to apply. If I try to apply it directly from the pencil, I have to tug fairly hard to get significant color payoff and a crisp line. I do find that the product works better if you sharpen it right before using it, or if you warm it up on the back of your hand first. I also find that while it has pretty good staying power on the upper lash line, it wears off fairly quickly on the waterline, even though it's supposed to be water proof. I have the brown liner right now, but am anxious to try the black and the purple to see if they work similarly!

The eyebrow pencil is awesome. I use the medium shade and it's the perfect color for a brunette with lighter eyebrows, plus it comes with a spooli so you can brush your brows before applying and after to really blend in the color. The pencil comes in three shades (light, medium and dark) so it should suit most skin tones, except possibly a redhead with red-ish tinted brows. At $20, it's also fairly affordable, and I find that because it's a pencil the color lasts longer than a powder product, which has the tendency to rub off. I don't use an eyebrow gel, but if you do, that would probably help the color stay even longer!

As for the eyeshadow, I really do like the duo that I have, which is the oyster/amethyst combo, although I harken back to my original commentary here when I say that nearly all of Beautycounter's products seem intended to live on the very "natural" side of the spectrum, particularly when compared to a brand like MAC where you really do have every color of the rainbow at your disposal. Frankly, for most people that's great, because I think the majority of the population prefers to wear their makeup on the more natural side. For me, while I like a natural look some days, I do tend to go for slightly more dramatic makeup, so I find that I have to be a bit more heavy handed here.

The oyster shade is a really pretty, very light satiny pink with a subtle shimmer, and the complementary purple shade really does make for a great crease color. Each of the colors has a metallic sheen to them, but neither are over the top sparkly, so no disco ball worries here! I find the application to be pretty buttery soft - no chalkiness at all! -- and at $30, you're actually looking at a comparable price point to two single shadows for most mid- to high-end brands. Speaking of single shadows, I do wish that Beautycounter would offer a few single shadows, as there are some individual colors (specifically champagne, malt and slipper) that I'd like to try, but I don't care for the other color they come with, so I'd be hard pressed to shell out $30 for them.

All in all, I'll continue to rave about Beautycounter products and hope that people continue to explore what the brand offers. I don't think all of their items are perfect or necessarily worth the money, but I believe so deeply in their mission and definitely think they've got some winners in their roster. If you're a Beautycounter fan, let me know what your favorite products are in the comments section below!

Til next time...

The Influenster Spice VoxBox, plus Soap on a Mission!

Recently, I had the pleasure of being included in Influenster's Spice VoxBox program. And while I always love the chance to try new products, this VoxBox was particularly awesome, because it was literally packed with head-to-toe products. Here's a quick run-down of what was included:

1. Boots Botanics Organic Hydrating Day Cream: A moisturizing and light cream from the British brand, Boots, this new Botanics line has awesome ingredients that are safe and non-toxic, AND the products don't cost an arm and a leg.
2. Foot Petals "Give 'em the Boot" inserts: These guys were great in theory, but not so much in execution. The wool base certainly would add warmth to your shoe, but they're so thick that the only pair I could slide them into without the insert making my shoe too small was my UGGs and those already have a wool lining! I guess my feet will be EXTRA cozy this winter.
3. SinfulColors SinfulShine Nail Polish: I'm going to do a Nail of the Day post shortly with this polish because the color truly is beautiful and very shiny. Only, for all their talk about "gel tech," the first time I tried this polish my nails chipped just as quickly as they do with every manicure.
4. GoodHealth Veggie Straws: These are basically a healthier version of potato chips. And I devoured them in 5 days. 'Nuff said.
5. Yogi Tea: I'm not a huge tea drinker, but these were delicious! And Yogi's got some other awesome flavors out there, so I may just be buying a few more to try in the near future.
6. Not Your Mother's Whip It Up Cream Styling Mousse: As a chica who doesn't wear her hair curly, this product doesn't have a ton of use for me, but boy oh boy is the delicious vanilla cupcake scent alluring.

...and finally, the item you've all been waiting for:

7.  A full size coconut scented shampoo and conditioner from Soapbox!

I bet you're wondering why I'm so excited about this shampoo and conditioner, eh? There's a few reasons.

1. Just like TOM's Shoes, this company is on a mission to change the world. For every bar of soap you buy from them, they donate a bar of soap, and many of those bars stay right here in the United States and are delivered to the homeless. For every bottle of shampoo or conditioner that you buy, they work with an international organization to provide a month of clean water to the community. Since I don't get the chance to do quite as much volunteering as I'd like, supporting companies that are using their profits to affect social change in the world are always places I like to spend my money.
2. The ingredients are great (mostly)! I say mostly because after researching all of the ingredients from my shampoo and conditioner on the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep database, there wasn't a single ingredient that ranked higher than a 4 on their scale, and 95% of the ingredients were 1s or 2s. However, they do use fragrance, which is a big no-no for many people wanting natural products -- I didn't count this against them because they clearly stated on their Web site that they only use fragrances without phthalates, but that is something you should be aware of. You should also note that this "safe" declaration I'm making only applies to the shampoos and conditioners - some of their other products contain SLS, which is a huge "avoid" for me. Always read your ingredient lists!
3. The price point is amazing and you can buy the products at big box stores like Target! So often natural products can only be purchased online or at specialty stores like Whole Foods, and then they cost a bazillion dollars. But these shampoos and conditioners are only $5.99 for 16 oz! 
4. They smell amazing and work like a dream. Even without sulfates, the shampoo has a nice lather, and the conditioner (which I am very picky about) does a great job of soaking into my hair, yet still leaving it feeling silky smooth and soft after I rinse it out. 

Affordable, effective, delicious smelling, safe, non-toxic and on a social mission. Ummm...does it get much better than this?

Why, yes it does! For people that want to be even more strict about their ingredient list, the company has an "Elements" line of body washes and soaps that are truly squeaky clean. These items are slightly more expensive (but still super affordable, in my book), and are sold in more limited locations, but they're an available option for the uber careful consumer.

All of their main product line items come in four varieties - coconut (the one I got to try), acai, bataua fruit (I have no idea what this is) and argan -- I sort of want to try them all.

Just one more cool thing about this product before I sign off - each of their bottles comes printed with a "hope code" on it. You can go onto their Web site, enter the code and it'll tell you a story about how your purchase is benefiting the company's mission. For example, when I entered my conditioner code it told me that my purchase was benefiting Thailand and then when I entered my shampoo code, it told me the purchase was benefiting Cambodia. Obviously, it's hard to know how accurate this is, but either way I think the theory is nice and it encourages people to connect their purchase back to the community aspect.

And that's a wrap! Have you tried any of Soapbox's products? If you have, let me know what you think of them in the comments section below!

*Note that I did receive the Influenster Spice VoxBox for free, however, that does not influence the opinions I share or my desire to write a blog post about Soapbox! I am always honest in the statements I make on the blog and would never tell you I liked a product if I didn't. Also note that none of the links included in this post are affiliate links. They're just there to help you find the products and sites I'm talking about!

Bacteria on your FACE is a GOOD thing? Review of Black Paint skin care from Japan

Science is confusing. Take bacteria, for example. You grow up with your mom telling you to wash your hands after you go to the bathroom because there's lots of bacteria in there. Or your teacher tells you not to touch the earthworm crawling around the playground because he's covered in bacteria, too. But then you grow up and all a sudden your doctor is telling you to proactively take probiotics that add bacteria into your digestive system, because as it turns out, there are certain kinds that actually help things run smoothly on the inside.

I guess this means I shouldn't have been surprised to hear about beneficial bacteria on my face. If you've read any of my other skin care posts, you'll know that I don't have the perfect, smooth, porcelain skin of my dreams. In fact, I've suffered from acne, rosacea, uneven pigmentation and scarring for much of my adult life. All this time, I've thought it was because my skin was covered in bacteria that was clogging my pores, causing outbreaks and making me oily as an unstirred organic peanut butter jar.

Then about a month ago, a company called Black Paint reached out and asked if I'd like to give their products a try. They offer a multi-step skin care system derived from all-natural essential and plant oils that is actually designed to foster and support the natural bacteria on your face. Their products are cold pressed (yep, just like your olive oil), don't have synthetic preservatives and are free of all the nasty stuff you want to avoid (no artificial fragrances or colors, no paraffin or drying alcohol, etc.). Apparently they're crazy popular in Japan and are newly available in the United States. I jumped at the chance to give the stuff a whirl.

The company sent me two of their products to try - their signature Black Paint soap and their Black Sponge, which is a charcoal-infused Konjac sponge. I'd used something similar to the sponge before, so it was familiar to me, but the soap was a completely new experience.

Because the soap is made of plant oils, with one of the key ingredients being coconut oil (which solidifies at room temperature), you have to let it emulsify in hot water before you use it. Once the soap is soft enough that you can press a fingerprint into it, you're supposed to apply it to your face directly from the bar (avoiding the eye area), then massage it in before rinsing.

When I first got the soap, I tried doing this as part of my regular skin-care routine in my bathroom. This was a disaster. The soap is black (duh) and since you have to wait until it emulsifies, then apply it directly from the bar, I wound up having black-colored soap dripping EVERYWHERE. I'm talking water running down my arms, dripping onto the floor from my elbows and making a great big, black mess of my bathroom counter. Plus, the soap left a goopy, black mark on my white sink after I left it to dry overnight, not to mention it didn't dry evenly, which I know is a recipe for the BAD kind of bacteria.

I didn't want to give up on this product so quickly, so I decided to move the soap to my shower, and voila! Since you're already wet in the shower, this was a much better solution that created significantly less mess, not to mention allowed the soap to dry more thoroughly, since my shower caddy has a wire frame. The only issue I continued to deal was the no eye contact + massaging piece. Since I'm squeezing my eyes shut while applying it to my face, I find myself blindly groping around for the soap holder, while trying to avoid getting my face in the water, lest I accidentally rinse it off before I'm ready.

So how does the stuff work, you're wondering?

I can't say that it's a miracle product, but I've also only been able to use it once a day, so there's the possibility that the benefits would be enhanced with twice daily use. What I can say is that it's most certainly an effective, gentle, safe facial cleanser that is great at removing face makeup (not eye makeup, since once again, you're supposed to avoid the eye area). It rinses clean without any residue, and it seems like it'll last a while (I've been using mine for about 3 weeks, and it's only about 1/3 gone). I've actually been applying the soap to my chest as well, and it seems to be helping clear up my body acne, which is a huge win. I haven't noticed much of a difference in the skin on my face, unfortunately, but I have been dealing more with acne scarring and the odd breakout these days (rather than a full facial explosion), so perhaps this soap is helping to keep things at bay.

As for the Konjac sponge, a sponge is a sponge is a sponge. This one is infused with charcoal, which I know is a purifying element, but based on their instructions, you're not even supposed to use it with the soap, nor are you supposed to scrub your skin with it. In that case, I find its use a bit perplexing, so I just kind of do my own thing and use it as an extra scrubber after rinsing the soap from my face. That said, their price isn't bad ($9.99), so if you're going to order the rest of the system, why not throw that guy in as well.

The company sells their full, 5-step system for about $140, which isn't cheap, but you can purchase the soap separately for $30, which is comparable to a lot of high-end cleansers. I'm not 100% sure if I'd re-purchase myself, but I would be much more interested if they figured out a way to bottle it and sell it in a pump or squeeze-tube format (then I could keep it on my sink and use it more regularly).

Have you ever tried Black Paint products? What about other skin care items from Japan? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.