June 5, 2020
The Mirror is truly magical, an alternative to foot cream and my May Beauty Pie delivery.
I got The Mirror and it might be the best thing ever
Honestly, I don’t know when I became the “workout person,” because that was never, ever my thing. Without any significant exercise history whatsoever, I started with a gym membership in an effort to lose the almost 80 pounds I gained while pregnant 12 years ago. Then I got obsessed with Pilates and ran with it until my husband caught wind of how much it was costing every month. (After that I pretty much stopped for about five years and started back up when we joined a country/beach club.) Fast forward to about two-and-a-half years ago when I decided to join a Pilates studio with an unlimited membership, which meant I was literally there every day. Then coronavirus happened, and I paused the first week of March.
While I couldn’t get to the studio, I tried countless apps from Peloton (not enough class options without the bike or treadmill) and Obé (which is actually really amazing) as well as virtual classes I was able to access through my Club Pilates membership, but I felt myself needing more accountability. Enter The Mirror, and it has changed everything.
Although my son initially resisted the addition of this piece of equipment to his chill-out loft, who could argue with the seamless integration of what appears to be nothing more than a full-length mirror? But we all got so much more than that after waiting more than three quarantine weeks for it to arrive.
This unobtrusive décor accent has become our go-to for our daily fitness, especially since it’s become too hot outside to even take a leisurely (or speed) walk. In the two weeks since I got The Mirror, I’ve done Pilates, barre, boot camp, kickboxing, stretching and other workouts geared specifically for muscle toning. My son also uses it daily to keep his cardio up since all of his sports (and camp) have been cancelled.
First thing in the morning, I check out the day’s lineup of live classes, and if none of those work, I have an entire library of workouts to choose from. I have absolutely loved the sheer variety of classes I have to choose from and being able to sync my Apple Watch to track my heart rate and calorie-burn makes it even better. Even better, even the “encore” (i.e. not live) classes make you feel like you’re participating in real time. And the interaction via submitting emojis based on how the workout is making you feel—as well as the app’s tracking of you weekly progress—makes it all the better.
With the help of what I can only describe as a hologram of the instructor in a mirror, you can make it as easy or as difficult as you’d like. I’ve definitely been pushing myself—and today I worked out in a sports bra and bike shorts for the first time ever. Yes, a loose top is usually an essential piece of my workout wardrobe, but I suddenly don’t feel the need either because I’m exercising within the confines of my own home, or maybe because I feel better about my body in just a few short weeks.
The Mirror is far from cheap, but the initial price of $1,500 (plus the $40 monthly fee) has already been majorly offset by stopping my Pilates membership in early March. At the end of the day, I’m saving so much time by working out when I want to in the comfort of my own home, and I’ll ultimately be saving $160 a month by sticking to The Mirror at home (especially when I don’t foresee being comfortable returning to my Pilates studio anytime soon).
Finally, I am counting on The Mirror to help offset the effects of the near-constant cooking, baking and snacking—because the thought of not being able to fit into any of my pants with non-elastic waistbands when this is over is worse than the current state of my roots.
I've been going about foot cream all wrong
Am I the only one who (for whatever reason) associates foot cream with bedtime? This obviously makes sense as we don’t want to be slipping and sliding around in our shoes all day, but slathering a rich cream on my feet at night poses a few challenges for me. First, I hate sleeping with socks, but if I don’t the cream gets all over my bedding. Second, I usually have to get up to go to the bathroom at least once during the night, which leaves a trail of greasy footprints (that now translates to extra housework in order to clean). But with all of this said, foot cream is essential for keeping my heels soft and smooth, so what’s a girl to do?
One solution: These toe-less gel socks, which definitely stop cream from getting everywhere and let my little piggies roam free. The gel lining also helps prevent the actual socks from sucking up the moisture and forms an occlusive layer that helps foot cream penetrate even better.
But yesterday I was testing my new Beauty Pie foot cream for the post about my latest haul and I had an epiphany. Now that I’m home all the time, I can totally apply foot cream, slip into socks (or not), slide on my rubber “house” Birkenstocks and get the same sole-softening benefits ON MY SCHEDULE—and without the extra task on my cleaning to-do list. Things are looking up!
May's Beauty Pie delivery...
Yup, another month down. It’s strange how it seems like virtually no time (or a very, very long time) has passed since my April Beauty Pie order arrived, but here we are at the end of May and I have another one under my belt.
May was (almost) all about my feet, and my most recent delivery included the Dr Glycolic Soft Feet 7-Day Peel Socks and Footopia Super Softening Foot and Heel Cream. The peel socks ($3.53) are essentially Beauty Pie’s version of Baby Foot, but 100 times better. I’m pretty sure this is due to the fact that these Beauty Pie’s booties require 60 minutes to work their magic—and I literally spent two weeks wearing socks to prevent dead skin from getting all over my house (now that I’m the housekeeper). The peeling was major, and my resulting soft, smooth soles are as well.
The foot cream ($6.94) made for the perfect post-peel follow-up, and my feet are still as supple as a baby’s bum. The formula features urea and cactus enzymes for exfoliation along with cocoa and shea butters for maximum moisture—and the hint of mint provides a nice soothing sensation after spending what feels like at least half of my day on my feet cooking. (It also contains probiotics to help control foot odor—but that hasn’t ever been an issue for me.)
The candle-of-the-month for May was the Pomegranate & Baies Rose Luxury Candle and we have another winner. Though fruitier than I had anticipated, the sweetness is offset by its floral notes and it has made working in my office all that much more pleasant. It made for a lovely olfactory segue into summer even if the current season doesn’t really carry all that much significance these days.
If you haven’t tried Beauty Pie yet, perhaps my most recent purchases will sway you. After all, we all need something to look forward to and waiting for online orders to arrive is one of the few things I can get excited about these days!