Happy Friday: Project Natural Glow!

I hope you’re all having a great start to your weekend!

First of all, don’t forget to enter your maple syrup recipe for this week’s Blogger Secret Ingredient!

Last night, I made two kinds of cookies.

These: Crisp Salted Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies, aka my new favorite cookies EVER.

and these:  Tangerine Orange-Lemon Meltaways. Well, I tried to make the meltaways.  The dough was super dry and crumbly when I went to slice it, and I was too tired to deal with it.  So it was back into the fridge for the dough!

I added a little oil today, which seemed to help.  They are in the oven now.  I’ll let you know how they turn out!  They smell good, at least…

I had  too many some of the oatmeal cookies this afternoon.  They have the perfect texture, both crunchy and chewy!

Non-cookie eats of the day included an Empire apple and an Empower Glo Bar,

massive amounts of mixed veggies (I was really craving veggies, obviously!)

a tiny bit of leftover chili,

half a slice of Tomato Basil bread

and a Green Monster.

I had some books to return to the library this afternoon, so I decided to run there.  It is so nice outside… almost 60 degrees, which is unheard of in November in Wisconsin…that I needed to get out.  Running with a bag with three books was a little awkward, but it worked!

Distance: 2.4 miles

Average Pace: 10:45

Hooray!

I’ll probably end the night with a bit of yoga or Pilates, as well.  I still can’t believe I ever stopped doing yoga!

Project Natural Glow

The other day, I was reading one of my favorite blogs, Oh She Glows when I came across Project Natural Glow.

From Angela’s site,

Project Natural Glow is similar to Project Glow except that I am challenging myself and all willing participants to try using natural cosmetic products. My goal is to use products that are safe for the environment, animal friendly, vegan, organic, and/or free of chemicals. Of course, not every new product I buy will fit this perfect bill of health, but I am going to try my best to read product labels and read reviews of new products before buying them. Things such as shampoo, conditioner, face wash, body lotion, and make-up often include many harsh and sometimes dangerous chemicals. This is a challenge to start to become more aware of what you are putting on your body, not just what you are putting in your body.

The part that really hit home with me?  “This is a challenge to start to become more aware of what you are putting on your body, not just what you are putting in your body.” I have been so invested in eating less processed, chemical-laden food, because I know my body feels better when I do.

Does that carry over to what I am putting on my body?  Will I look and feel better if I switch to more natural products?  I want to find out!

Here’s the really tricky part for me:  my skin is super-sensitive.  As in, I have been advised by a dermatologist not to use any shampoo, lotion, body wash, etc that contains any herbal extracts.  My skin just can’t handle it.  Within 10 or 15 minutes of using a scented lotion on my hands, for instance, my skin will be red and itchy and painful.

Clearly, I’d like to avoid these effects.  I know my body will not feel better if I am using products I am sensitive to!

There was never an official allergy test to determine exactly what in my old products was causing the reaction.  The dermatologist hypothesized that it was the herbal extracts that came from “weeds,” since that’s what several herbs actually are.

So, in my quest to participate in Project Natural Glow, I will be doing my best to avoid products that have a high proportion of herbal extracts.

I bought four natural beauty products at Whole Foods this week.  Over the next week or so, I will be reviewing all of them here for you.  Check back later tonight for my first review!