Gym OOTD

Today I went to body pump. I don't think I have been pushing myself these days so I loaded up an extra 5 lbs on my back tracks (20 lbs in total).

It was difficult but I don't feel like I am getting a tough work out, or I don't feel like I'm not trying hard enough to finishing my sets and not trying to maintain the correct stance.

Anyhow, here is my OOTD. As a warning, it is quite a frumpy outfit...

Missing are my Nike Lunar Eclipse+ 2's. These pants are by Adidas, which are good at wicking away moisture, but I'm not such a big fan of the sheen/the shine of the pants. They are not compressive so my bottom half looks like... their usual state. I prefer my Nike Dri-fit crops because they are thinner, has no sheen, and are shorter. The adidas pair is longer, coming down to my calves (they are pulled up in the picture above). These are more prone to the camel toe effect than the Nike's... so that's a big no-no for me. I got this pair from TJ Maxx for $25.

My shirt is New Balance, from TJ Maxx for $8.99. They only had it left in Medium but it's too baggy on me, and it is quite longer on the torso. Long tanks make my legs look short, and make my stomach look wider than it already is...

But the best part of the outfit is something you can't see! It's my sports bra and it's my favorite sports bra ever.

These are the mesh sports bra, from The Body Collection by Marika. I got mine from TJ Maxx, in size small, for about $11. Mine are slightly different to the picture above as mine have thin bra-like straps.  I've never heard of this brand before and I didn't expect much from this. These are so breathable and provide great support without cutting into my armpit area and causing that armpit fat that some sports bras create. They have excellent removable padding and are so so so soft and feels nice against the skin. I know it's kind of weird to say how nice your bra feels against your boobs but trust me, it feels so nice. The mesh is so great because it provides great wicking properties, and the mesh makes it thin enough that it doesn't cut into your back fat. I hope i can find more of these sports bras at TJ Maxx!

Maybe it was the frumpy outfit that made me uncomfortable looking at the mirror while working out. The awkward length of the pants and the long baggy tank didn't exactly make me feel indestructible... 

Lesson learned... feeling good about yourself can make a difference in your workouts.

Gym OOTD

Today's workout was body combat. I like to wear tight fitting shirts for body combat so it doesn't fly around when I throw punches and kicks.

It was a Nike day today. The nike 'swoosh' from top to bottom!

I don't remember the official name but they are some Nike crops with Dri-Fit technology. I think these are similar to Nike Filament Capri's.

I never invested in workout leggings before because I thought, what's wrong with normal leggings? Well, these pants changed my mind. They have this Dri-Fit technology that makes it super wicking. I never feel disgusting like how I used to after wearing normal everyday cotton leggings. They have this triangle / diamond shape seams at your crotch so you will never get that camel toe effect. Whoever invented that design is a genius. They have these seams that square in your knees so when you do squats or anything that requires constant bending of your knees, your pant's won't get dragged down. I rarely ever have to pull up my pants at my waist. They are the perfect length for me at 17" inseam as I am 5'7 / 169 cm. I think the back of the legs have a shorter inseam, which is great so they don't run up over my knees. I tried on both small and medium, and I chose the medium. The small fit fine but I was afraid of its sheerness near my butt area. As you can see below, my butt is flat, a bit saggy, and quite wide. I like to credit its appearance to the length of time spent on studying. I am trying to lift them up because it's causing my legs to look short and unfortunate.

My tank is also Nike and I bought it for $10 at TJ Maxx. It has a built in bra with padding. I don't buy built-in bra shirts if it has no adequate padding. I don't like to mix sports bra with shirts with built-in bra's because the combination feels bulky and restrictive. I am not that well-endowed in that area so just a built-in bra provides enough support - the only time I am thankful for their miniature size.

My shoes are Nike Lunar Eclipse+ 2. These are so pretty and I am always happy putting these babies on. I usually wear size 7 and 7.5, and I chose 7.5 in these because 7 was too small in length. Nike's usually run narrow, and I was afraid that these would be uncomfortable because I have wide feet. However, they are so comfortable and don't feel restrictive at all.

I took this picture when I first got these. I have worn them for five months now and they are great for treadmill running and cross training. I did notice though, that my feet slip out on the elliptical but I have been blaming that on my laces not being tight enough. Nevertheless, one or two elliptical mishaps won't change my mind about these shoes. I did own Nike Lunar Fly's before and they were comfortable too, in size 7.5. They were more breathable and lighter than these but looked a bit clunky on my feet.

It's amazing how a change in shoes can increase your run-time by a LOT. I switched from a random pair of Asics trainers that I got in freshman year of college, to Nike's and Nike's provide so much more stability that I can ran further and longer. The eclipse's are very good with stability, which is what I needed as I tend to underpronate a bit (putting greater pressure on the outside of the feet), which causes strain at my ankles. Ever since my soccer days, I developed some sort of problem with my ankles but my ankles have never been sore in these shoes!

The Jank's Fitness History / Les Mills

When I watched the Olympics in elementary school, I told my parents that my goal in life is to become  the 100 meter gold medalist. Watching the games on TV, I thought they were quite slow and I believed I was faster than all those world record breakers.

Fast forward 15 years or so, and I can't even run a 5K.

But, I have been active all my life, pre-college, that is. I did gymnastics and swimming during elementary and played soccer during high school. My coach always put me as a right wing (right mid-fielder) because I tended to foul play a lot (major elbow action!) and he figured that the ref wouldn't see me foul play if I was on the side (and he always encouraged my foul play. yeah. insert smug smile here). The disadvantage to this position is that you are required to run for the whole game. I ran and ran, up and down the length of the field and I rarely got subbed off because I was quite the dirty player. I have always gone through the finals for 100m sprints for school competitions but coming near last as a  long distance runner. So as you could imagine, I felt like dying during every game. Running 60 min per game, along with training twice a week, as well as at-home Pilates exercises and 100-200 crunches before bed, kept me in shape during high school.

I went to college and I had random spurts of going to the gyms on campus. I went on treadmills, ellipticals, kickboxing classes and Pilates classes. My cycle consisted of going every day for 2 weeks, pause for one year, repeat. They never got regular and I blamed my laziness on my busy school life.

In the summer of 2011, my friend forced me to buy the 3 month pass for Hot yoga. And to make myself feel less guilty about the $150 I unwillingly gave away in cash, I went 5 times a week. Yoga has such incredible benefits. You have to try it to believe it. I improved my tolerance, my focus, my attention and my calmness. Then, I managed to go to the gym and run on the treadmill every few days for about a month. I took this habit back to New Zealand and got a concession card at my local gym and found Les Mills. Since then, I have been hooked!

Les Mills was founded in NZ and is the world's largest provider of choreographed exercise-to-music group fitness classes (thanks wiki). Luckily, the nearest gym to my apartment here in New York offers Les Mills classes. Mondays and Wednesdays are my Body Pump days, Tuesdays and Thursdays are my Body Combat days.

Pump is a high frequency / low weights type of class, and it works every single muscle group in your body. At first, it can look very intimidating as people enter the class and start getting their weights, bars, clips, mats, risers, etc... I was very intimidated but I just followed everyone else and it was pretty easy to follow what they were grabbing. For your first time, I recommend just grabbing the lightest weight (2.5 lbs, 1kg), with the bars and the clip things, and as for the risers/steppers, follow what other people are getting. I noticed it's better to follow along with the correct form using the lightest weight in the beginning, so you can load up later when you are comfortable with the movements.
I use less weights than the long-time regulars as I have been only going for three months. Here is a list of my current weights:

• Warm up: 5 + 5 = 10 lbs 
• Squats:  15 + 15 = 30 lbs
• Chest: 7.5 + 7.5 = 15 lbs
• Back: 7.5 + 7.5 = 15 lbs
• Triceps: 5 + 5 = 10 lbs
• Biceps: 5 + 5 = 10 lbs
• Lunges: 7.5 + 7.5 = 15 lbs
• Shoulders: 2.5 + 2.5 = 5 lbs free weights
• Abdominals and Core.

The weakest group in my body is my biceps because 10 lbs feels like a lot for my little ones, and also my shoulders. Most people in my classes use 10 lbs in total for free weights (shoulders) but I can't go higher than 5. The strongest I would say is my back as I am planning to go higher than 15 lbs next time round. And glutes (for squats) should be everyone's strongest I believe.

Body Combat is a high intensity kickboxing/muay thai type of class. It helps if you are thinking about something that is annoying you and pretend you're punching its guts out. After regularly attending for only a month (4-5 times a week), I started to see better definition alongside my back and shoulders. I thank the 'hooks' for those. You will come out with a red, sweaty face, huffing and puffing for water. Pure beauty right there.

Both are incredibly fun! I get so bored on the treadmill or the elliptical. Even if I am watching the TV screen, I find myself getting bored and tired... Which is what I have to deal with on Fridays and Sundays when Les Mills classes aren't offered. In Pump and Combat, the music is LOUD and gives you so much energy. The instructors are funny and they pump you up hard... They are literally screaming along with you. I highly recommend them if you find yourself getting bored at the gym, or if you're intimidated by the free weights... I'm sure free weights have their own benefits, but when you're new, we all get scared of stepping to that side of the gym. As a note, I have never lifted free weights because I don't really know how much I should be lifting, or the correct posture or form. I would like to get a personal trainer at one point to teach me the ways... but for now, body pump is fun enough for me.

This is the longest streak of me attending a gym, and currently going at the rate of 4-5 times per week. So that says something about Les Mills classes!

There are other LM classes such as Body Step (step class), Body Flow (yoga/tai-chi type of class), RPM (spin class) and Body Jam (zumba-ish dancing class). I have only attended Flow but I do prefer the regular vinyasa yoga. I do not think Jam is my kind of thing... I am very un-coordinated and can't 'get-it-down' for balls. I would love to try RPM one day but I remember going on the bike in college and my womanly-crotch got sore. Us woman are not completely armor and steel down there. Well not mine, at least...

Look for the nearest Les Mills classes near you! If you're the type that needs motivation and energy from your surroundings, try it out. It could be the beginning to the newer, healthy you.

Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation Mineral Makeup SPF 15

What Bobbi Brown says:

• A unique blend of mineral powders perfects skin's appearance without leaving an unnatural and artificial looking sheen.
• Vitamin C & E Complex helps protect against skin-aging free radicals.
• Glycerin, Soybean Extract & Ceramides help soften and smooth skin.
• Sodium hyaluronate helps prevent dryness and caking.
• $38.00

I have very few experiences with powder foundations. Bare Minereals mineral powder is the only other loose powder I have tried. Make Up For Ever powder compact and Chanel Double Perfection compact are the two pressed powders I have used in the past. I have combination-dry skin so liquid foundations tend to look more natural on me. But after going on a long makeup hiatus, I somehow convinced myself that I needed a powder foundation.

I got "Extra Light" which is the second to lightest shade in the range.
Here are the liquid foundation colors I have used that I can remember:

• Bobbi Brown Oil-Free Even Finish Compact Foundation in Warm Ivory 1: true yellow undertones - perfect match.
• MAC NC20: leans slightly pink.
• Hera HD Foundation (Moist) in 21 and 15: Combination of both give me the right color but it does lean pink.
• Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in B10 Beige pastel: a tad too dark/pink.
• Nars Sheer Glow in Deuville (light 4): a tad too dark/yellow.
• Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream in No.21: too grey? then oxidizes into pink.
• Make Up For Ever HD Foundation in 117: Perfect match in the beginning and oxidized into pink.
• Chanel Teint Innocence Compact [discontinued] in Cameo 1.0: Slightly pink.
• YSL Teint Resist in 02 Blond: Perfect match - maybe even a little too light.
• Givenchy Photo'Perfexion Light Foundation in #4 Light beige: Slightly pink.

As you can see, I am very critical of anything that makes me look pink. I have acne scars and redness around my cheeks so I do not like any pink in my foundations. I find that many French brands' yellow-based colors are still too pink for my liking, such as Chanel, MUFE, Givenchy and Lancome. I believe the lightest yellow-based Lancome shade is too pink for my liking. Bobbi Brown's "Extra Light" is suitable for someone who would wear Warm Ivory 1 in Bobbi Brown shades.

Applied on left, bare faced on right. Taken under sunlight.

Applied on both sides. Taken under sunlight.

It is light coverage - just enough to cover redness of your skin. No, it does not cover your pores or acne scars, but it leaves a nice sheen on your face without making you look caked on. Surprisingly, the sheen doesn't accentuate the pores, but rather it enhances some glow at my cheeks. In the picture, you can see that the sheen bounces light off my face, whereas my barefaced section looks dark and sallow.

Instead of removing the peel-off sticker, I pierced holes through the sticker so it wouldn't cause too much of a spillage. I tap this onto the lid and  apply this with a kabuki brush. The MUA said, "a little goes a long way!". Well I don't know what she's smoking because I pour this stuff on my face. You can never achieve full coverage or caked-on coverage so it was nice to see a natural finish after buffing it in a million times onto certain areas on my face. My mouth area is on the dry side but it doesn't crease or accentuate dryness as much as other powder foundations. Actually, I would say it looks the same around my mouth as when I put on liquid foundation. This is more finely milled than Bare Minerals because yes, it is possible to cake Bare Minerals on your face.

As for oil control, it is quite a nice surprise to find my face to not feel so sticky after 5 hours of wear, which is what happens with use of liquid foundation + finishing powder. As I mentioned before, the powder doesn't cover my pores. So when I start getting oily near my nose (about 6 hours after application), I can see my pores as large as their usual size in the mornings. So I can't say its oil control is the best BUT the most important point is that the powder doesn't crease when oil comes at bay... MUFE Compact, I am looking at you...
As the powder wears off after 6 hours, my redness tends to come back slightly but any woman with a social life would probably go to the ladies room and touch up anyway. As a caution, I have worn this during my gym workouts and I end up coming out with no sign of makeup on my face.

I highly recommend this if you have redness, oily skin, and slight imperfections that you don't care too much to fully cover up. The color range is extremely yellow-based and it can go light without going pink or ghastly white. If you prefer medium-full coverage, this is definitely not for you. I chose this primarily based off it's natural finish with nice sheen that doesn't emphasize the pores, and its perfect color match.

MakeupAlley has it currently rated 4.0 with 30 reviews.

My first China glaze

I entered Sally's beauty supply with no intentions of buying anything and I ended up leaving with Sally's rewards card, heel callous remover, pumice for callous removal, hair spray and my first china glaze nail polish.

Usually when I enter Ulta, I often steer towards Essie and OPI, but I couldn't find those brands at Sally's. I wasn't very keen on China glaze as their colors tend to be more bold and plain. I find myself attracted to shimmers, glitters and 'interesting' colors. So I picked up this "Shocking pink (neon)" color as I thought it would be look nice with my flip flops. I rarely buy pinks as it's a color I've worn a bit too often in middle school. But since I left 95% of my nail polish collection at home, I decided a neon pink would be a nice addition to my little family. Currently, I find myself wearing light pastels, neutral colors, and DIY french manicure when I have too much time.

As for the formula, it's not my cup of tea. Although it is quite opaque, it had quite a streaky consistancy. After four coats, I was able to achieve full opaqueness. Then, it chipped in less than 24 hours of wear.

The chips at the ends of my nails are pretty evident here. The color itself is a neon, cool, pink, but it does not suit my skin tone. I think this would look nice on pale hands but I recently got tanned and it doesn't look so great. With my currently tanned skin (body: NC30), bold, bright colors seem to not make me look more tan but more so 'dirtier', and hence why I've been steering towards neutrals. The vibrant color seems to accentuate the stubbiness of my nails, as well as emphasize the wrinkles on my hands. With bold colors, I usually prefer the jelly-like look with lots of gloss so that it looks more polished. However, this color is really flat. I think the flatness is the reason behind accentuating the wrinkles and the dry skin at the nail bed area. The color attracts attention but the color is not 'clean looking' enough to make the hand look polished. The fun color also doesn't really fit in with my age and lifestyle so I'll just leave it to the toes for now.

What is Jank?

Who names their kid Jank?
My parents didn't.
My name is Jane.
The name Jank comes from a night of drinking in my early twenties. Precisely speaking, the night occurred at the ripe age of twenty. I used to have quite a high tolerance to alcohol. I will cut to the chase as the story consists of many slurred dialogues exchanged between slurred brains. The conclusion of the story is, I named myself Jank the Tank.
Since then, Jank has been the name I have turned to for when the time called for a superhero name. As an example, Jank is the name I use for my internet network name, because as everyone knows, a superhero-ic fast internet is what every household needs. When I use 'Jank', things always seem to work out. I believe it has something to do with feeling invincible. As they say, confidence is the key to success! Har - har.
So this is my superhero blog. My life is pretty much mundane, just like yours, but I am hoping that The Jank's Blog will output my life as somewhat eventful and glamorous as I would like it to be.

The End.