It’s January, and in my mid-30’s life that means taking a trip to my favorite medi-doc Dr Marks to get some touch up schlerotherapy for spider vein & varicose vein removal. Since I’m only a few months away from goal weight with Jenny Craig, I want to make sure my legs are looking fab for this summer!

Schlerotherapy doesn’t really hurt - Dr Marks injects the vein with a tiny needle with solution that collapses the vein, but after the injection (which you totally can’t feel), your leg cramps up kind of like a charlie horse. Unfortunately I’ve got a pretty resistant varicose that just won’t totally go away, so on my next checkup appt, I might have to get a referral for a more evasive method for getting rid of it, but best believe, it’s going to get got…somehow or another - I AM GOING TO BE FLY THIS SUMMER. Doggonit.

Technorati Tags Dr.-Marks, jenny-craig, laser treatment, schlerotherapy, varicose vein removal, vein-removal

Sigh…another product that simply didn’t work. I think I have Jimmy Smit’s dark pigment under my eyes - they are getting hollow and zombie like - I’m so sad!!! I’ve asked Dr. Marks if there is any kind of cosmetic proceedure that I can start considering, but he suggested just putting makeup to cover it. Blah.

I’ve gotten no luck after religious application of Benefit’s Eyecon, no luck with Philosophy’s Dark Shadows, no luck with Elemis’ eye serum…BUT my sister in law Tracy gave me some Arbonne vitamin C eye cream, so I’m day 3 into that regime. The only thing I can report as of now is that it smells really good - kind of like old school Orange Julius from the mall, minus the hot dogs. Wish me luck!

Technorati Tags arbonne vitamin c eye treatment, benefit eyecon, dark under eye circles, elemis, philosophy dark shadows

OMG are you as psyched about Laurie’s wedding as I am? I can’t wait!!!! I hope they don’t give complimentary botox to all the guests - you know how they’ve been overkilling the botox footage!

Technorati Tags botox, The Real Housewives of Orange County

There’s a new pinkberry opening up in the Valley! It’s on Tampa in between the Northridge mall and Costco. Woot!  Word on the street is that they are launching a new flavor this spring too - coffee or java or something of that sorts. Remember to top your pinkberry with blueberries to get all the antioxidants you can!

Technorati Tags antioxidants, blueberries, pinkberry, superfood

It’s January, it’s cold and rainy, but just because it isn’t that sunny doesn’t mean you are in the clear, but with the whole sunscreen dramz being good or bad or whatever, I’ve taken the safe route and gone more organic in chemistry and am seeking out products with zinc as the ingredient of choice for a safer sunscreen.

I did ask Dr. Marks about the sunscreen spf scare and he said that he recommends 30 spf and that he doesn’t believe the argument that some are blogging about regarding sunscreen loves cancer topics, but I’d rather be safe than sorry…so zinc it is!

Technorati Tags Dr.-Marks, sunscreen, zinc

mmm. Last year, on a quest to lose about 20lbs for my sorority sister’s wedding, I managed to link up with a co-worker who was also on a similar mission. After she had her daughter, she went through the “depressed, i hate skinny people, and i hate my body” phase. Someone hipped her to Alpha Health Care on Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks. Within a month, she had lost 15lbs and had managed to keep it off. But now…she was in the same boat as I. We were going through the “my job stresses me out and I’m eating everything in sight” phase.

With her name as my referral, I managed to secure an appointment the next day. Because they have several offices and just a few nutritionists and nurses, everyone rotates around and it’s sometimes difficult to meet with a nutritionist. After you receive the first consultation including blood pressure, blood tests, and a sit down spill your guts with a “shrink”, you’re able to start their program and receive any of their services on a walk-in whenever you want basis. They prefer that you try to come every other day though. So maybe a Tues-Thurs or a M-W-F if you plan on eating like a pig over the weekend. *smile*

Hell bent on not paying $300 for 6 weeks of vitamins at the time, I decided to combine their Vitamin B12 injections with the Lemonade Diet for a week. Every other day, I trekked over to Ventura Blvd around lunch time to receive my Vitamin B-12 injection. It definitely sped up my metabolism to the point where I was dying to go to the gym and get in a run. They hurt like a bitch at first, but…now my ass is used to it, and they inject you in the same spot every time, so the bruising is in one spot.

In the first month, I lost about 10 lbs. I’m pretty sure that the lemonade diet had a lot to do with it, but the Vitamin B12 definitely gave me the energy that I needed to gym and it definitely kept the scale moving in the right direction

I walked in one day and there were a few women who were whispering. It seemed like something was wrong, but one of the nurses mentioned that Beyonce had just left. mmm. They were star struck. how cute. they must be new. I didn’t care really…I just needed my injection. Seeing the scale needle move down was like crack at that point.

Although it’s been over a year since I started on B-12. Earlier this year, I added in their $300 vitamin program to the mix, in order to get in shape for a cruise that I was going on for Grad School graduation. They worked. But after a few months, I figured out what it was that I was paying for and that I could go to target and save $260 every month. *lol* They had given me a months worth of B-6, a *secret pill*, an appetite suppressant and 3 months worth of 100 calorie protein shakes.

I’ll probably start receiving the B-12 injections again soon. I just hate the drive to Ventura Blvd. So if you’re looking for a monitored way to lose weight within 6 weeks, you should definitely check out Alpha Health Care. See you there!

Alpha Health Care
16260 Ventura Blvd # L40 Encino, CA 91436-2203 USA
818-905-9700

Technorati Tags injectables

Haters are alive and at em in the valley ya’ll! I got a “concerned’ call from someone who got Botox injections from Dr. Marks Cosmetic Center (and looked amazing btw) because she had a “friend” who got her eyebrows done in the valley who told her that Dr. Marks uses knock off botox from mexico.

Umm whatever. I’ve seen the boxes, I’ve been there when they book the Botox appointments making sure that everyone comes in within minutes of each other to make sure that the product is fresh when it’s injected, but you know me, I have to dig for the truth.  I immediately called Erika who is the good doctor’s right hand and was totally assured that their product is from Allergan and that she can totally show me whatever it is I have concerns about. I’ve actually sat in the waiting room with the Allergan rep many times so I’m not the one who needs assurance, but it would make for a great knowledge base for all of you readers.

Anyway, if you want to look amazing, you can make an appointment with Dr. Marks too and get some botox by clicking here.  Tell him that SylviaG from Spa-View.com sent you!!

Technorati Tags , botox, Dr.-Marks

If you have never gotten your eyebrows threaded, you really are missing out on perfectly sculptured brows. Yea it hurts, but beauty hurts, bitch! When I was in college at CSULB, I would take the bus to the Cerritos Ziba Beauty to get mehndi, threading and whatever else I was in dire need of (read: could afford at the time).

While walking in the Topanga mall the other day, I noticed a banner saying that Ziba Beauty now had a boutique on Nordstrom part of the mall. Sign me up!!! I am going to make my way there this week at some point, so my review will be up later on.

Since I am a huge fan of Ziba, I am confident that this boutique will offer fantastic services like the others in the lower southern cali area. As I get older, I am having some bad results from facial waxing and am looking forward to nice smooth skin minus the breakouts

here is a video I found on youtube that shows threading, although the woman who did mine put one end of the string in her mouth between her teeth and used the free hand to smooth/pull the skin.

Technorati Tags eyebrow-threading, Eyebrows, henna, mehndi, waxing, ziba-beauty

Today marked a milestone. I went to starbucks for my nonfatsugarfreevanillalattewithanaddshotextrahot and actually was told that my drink had been renamed!

Introducing the 90 calorie Skinny Latte! WOO…now I don’t have to sound like an LA dork when I order my drink. yay! Recent studies suggest that coffee has lots of antioxidants, can lower your risk of diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and colon cancer, lift your mood and treat headaches - webmd.com states.

Visit Starbucks.com to check out the other flavors & nutrition info.

Technorati Tags healthy-eating, starbucks-skinny-latte, superfoods, trendy-eating, wellness

wow…they even have a match site for you and your handbag these days! Well, I’m not mad at them. I had a membership for 3 months with Bag Borrow or Steal but it wasn’t my cup of tea. It’s fun to browse the site though and decide on which bag I want LOL! If you haven’t check it out, its a rent-a-bag membership service.

Technorati Tags Spa-reView

Ok so one of my resolutions for 2008 is to really put spa-view.com into motion, and give it more effort, help me set sail!! I’ve added a newsletter opt in that you can see if you scroll down a bit, plus I’ve scoured myspace.com to link photos of us girls who post here. Aren’t we fab???!

My 37th birthday is around the corner, and I’m going to spend it…at the spa, of course!

More later.

Technorati Tags Everything-Else, SpaBlog

Grub on some wild salmon the next time you are out at a nice restaurant and don’t know what to order, or out to lunch with friends. The omega 3 fatty oils will aid in making your hair lustrous, your skin glow, plus it will help your joints, heart and cholesterol. There’s nothing worse than spending a pretty penny at Nordstrom’s on some Creme de La Mer and then eating a greasy beef hamburger and fries for lunch - I mean why bother?

WebMD.com states “Omega-3s are most prevalent in fatty, cold-water fish: Look for wild (not farmed) salmon, herring, sardines, and mackerel. Aim for two-to-three servings a week. Other forms of omega 3s are available in fortified eggs, flax seed, and walnuts. These superfoods have the added benefit of being high in monounsaturated fats, which can lower cholesterol.” Also containing omega 3 are dark green leafy veggies.

Eating 3 servings a week of omega 3’s will help target Vericose Veins, Hair loss/ hair thickness & regrowth, moisturized skin, regulation of blood pressure, mood fluctuations
arthritis, depression and anxiety. Let’s get good ya heard?

Technorati Tags eco, flaxseed-oil, GreenSpa, omega-3, superfoods, thinning-hair, vericose-veins, wellness

How exciting can 2008 get? I’ll tell you how - Susan Powter is IN Tha House! Remember the Stop the Insanity infomercials back in the early 90’s? I totally do, I got in tip top shape, bought a red and white striped tube top and Rocked the House!

Susan TV is online now too where you can actually do yoga with Susan right from the site.

No need for tivo, no need for cable, just click on the link and get your no-bitching-allowed yoga on. Yay!

Technorati Tags Fitness, SpaBlog, wellness

Saaphyri is on the move ya’ll! Winner of Mo’nique’s Charm School on VH1 last season and infamous for scrapping some chick on Flavor of Love season 2 and offering her some ‘lip chap’, Saaphyri Windsor has officially launched her site selling 5 flavors of the fabulous balm - Mojito, Pina Colada, Bubblegum, Wintergreen and Cookie Dough.

AND you know you LOVE her site, because yours truly hooked it up thankyouverymuch…

AND Wait, there’s More (ok so I’m totally having sleepless nights and overdosing on the infomercials) you can also buy hair for your hair extension needs from Saaphyri’s Ultimate Indian Hair - there’s color charts and lengths available here.

Technorati Tags AromaTherapy, Home Spa, Product-Reviews