Anyone interested in a glow-up support thread for tips and accountability?

[MrsWhites]

Is anyone interested in a glow up support thread? I thought it might be nice to have somewhere to keep me accountable, share tips and things to avoid etc.

Glow up can be for any reason, summer, anti-aging, wedding etc?

I’m just about to turn 42, always looked young but in the past few years I have noticed age creeping up on me. I need to lose a bit of weight, need to improve tone and texture of my arms and legs. My face is dull and suffers with open pores so lots to work on for me 😂

Would love to hear from anyone else looking to work on their appearance too 👋

It’s wardrobe day for me! It’s been decided by the grey drizzly weather (where is my heatwave???) and I am going to get everything out into one place, and sort it out Stacey Solomon style. Everything else can go.

I didn’t do my gleam strips, but I did colour my hair so that’s a plus.

I now have about 8 weeks until I go on holiday, maybe 7? I need to motivate myself the start a daily toning routine, just a few little moves with dumbbells. But I just can’t seem to muster up the energy.

I've lost a few pounds and improved my ab separation quite a bit so I'm feeling good. We're having a party today so I'm currently lying in bed with a face mask on and trying to hydrate to prep for the warm weather and cocktails!

@thenewaveragebear1983 I hope the weather brightens up for you!

I have had a bit of a down week as Mum has had a hip replacement and had my annual review at the GP which didn't give me great results. It was probably the worse timing with regards to stress and cortisol 😁

I've pulled myself up by the boot straps and looked at the positives. I have lost 10 or 11lb since April. I have come off hrt and am managing the side effects better. I am consistently doing a small work out with weights five days a week and am walking more. I am 1lb off of coming out of the obese category. My diet has improved massively and I am remembering to take my supplements. I am thoroughly enjoying this thread!

Goals for next week, increase cardio, chuck out the small amount of cheese I eat and replace it with a small portion of nuts and cheese.

Hand and feet, which didn't go as planned this week.

It's 4 weeks on Saturday to the family wedding I have coming up so that's a good motivator for me to keep going. I've lost a few pounds but had a week of indulgence celebrating my dc birthday which I've loved. I'm ok with that as I'm not looking to crash diet. I'm looking to eat healthier overall and do more exercise with more of a long term health goal in mind...

As I now have about a month to the wedding my plan is

• stay on track with food as much as I can especially with salad and veg (no more parties or nights out planned between now and the wedding)
• exercise consistently 3+ times a week specifically arms (I want nice toned arms!) and abs (my tummy is already much better since I started the DR exercises)
• moisturising body regularly which might help my skin
• taking collagen, biotin regularly
• get a bra fitting as I think a good bra makes a huge difference to clothes

Before the wedding I will need to dye my hair, get nails done, hair removal etc.

My glow-up investments list for you...

• Botox (Allergan original)
• Tretinoin (Monderma/Renew+Me etc)
• Laser hair removal, if you are a good candidate
• Highlights, if they suit your colouring
• Teeth whitening, ideally professionally but also Crest strips
• Diet high in veg and fish, under 2,000 kcal/day or calorie deficit
• 2.5l of water daily
• 7/8 hours sleep

If the goal is maximum visible improvement per £ spent.

@ Chocolatecoffeecup

I really must get a bra fitting organised, though might wait until I lose a bit more weight.

@ Freyarw

I am also on the renew and me serum in a bottle tret and am very pleased with the results.

Bra fitting is also on my list of things to do (I haven’t been measured properly since before I had my youngest who is now 6!).
Would also like to book a hygienist appointment (again embarrassingly I haven’t been for years!)

Hello all hope you were ok in the heat!

I added in some cardio on my walking pad this week and managed to get up at 6am until the heat heat defeated me Weds. I think I can manage 40 mins of exercise five days a week.

I also bought a few things in the Amazon Prime day. The medicube zero pore pads are love. I also loved the Caudalie dry oil spray suggested so thanks for the person who suggested that. I have added in a simple hand care routine. I love gardening so my nails are awful. I'm massaging them with almond oil twice a day and using up a tube of number 7 retinol hand cream last thing.

The current body mask seems to be making a difference too.

I haven’t done much in the way of glowing up this week, have just been trying to survive the heat! I did do an exercise class and have lost 1lb so am 6lbs down now.
I have the zero pore pads too @Neuronimo and really like them!

Finally sitting down after a really busy day of jobs, I’m exhausted.
I’ve made £120 on vinted this week after my clear out last weekend, I’ve Been listing in blocks of 10 items and getting them sold and posted off.
my diet hasn’t been great and I have drunk a lot of wine! I have been running and working out though, and hopefully now it’s cooler I will be able to do more this week.

I’m at the hygienist next weekend, info highly recommend if you can afford it, it really does improve the overall health of your mouth. I haven’t been keeping up with my gleam strips though.

i was feeling quite down about myself on and off this week. I don’t seem to be able to stick to my diet, I feel too tired to workout, I feel like I constantly compare myself to everyone else all the time and it’s really exhausting. In reality i think I need better quality sleep, I need to block Facebook (I don’t use instagram anyway) to stop the constant barrage of videos and ads, and just need to focus on what actually works for me. So that’s my “glow up” this week, plus I’m going to get my 30 plants in and stick to my calorie limit.

I used some Retinol serum (at night) for a few weeks , not sure if it's made any difference yet , it's a sporadic if I can remember thing and not going out in the sun the next day
Bought some SPF facial cream , I will definitely need some for when we're away , no escaping the sun then.

Dental Hygienist appointment -tick
Hair cut was three weeks ago-tick
Hair dye - probably need another in a couple of weeks .

Eyebrows need done (dye)
Steps have been okay , I don't manage much at work though.

@LBB2020

Could I just ask please, how often are you using the zero pore pads? I was thinking two to three times a week as I use tret in the evening.

@thenewaveragebear1983
I think it's amazing that you have managed to run this week if you are in the uk. Sorry you a having a bit of a tough week. It is hard not to compare yourself to others, with all that is thrown at us in the media.

@Neuronimo i have been using them every other day. I have quite sensitive skin so got the mild ones too

Is it too late for me to join in this thread? I've really lost my way and think that perhaps taking part here will give me some ideas to get back on track, keep me motivated and give me a place to be accountable.

Have you got a "target" to aim for like a holiday , wedding , birthday etc ?
I find my motivation is more if there's something on the horizon.

My last one was a Big Birthday .
The one I'm aiming for now is a holiday .

I try to do a list that is achievable and go on the theory that if you do something for 21 days it becomes a habit .

It's always drink more water . cleanse properly ( I don't wear make-up often so don't double cleanse) , brush and floss , do my hair dye before the dreaded roots
Use my nice showergel at the weekend . I want to smell nice , I don't wear perfume . On workdays , it is standard soap or showergel (I just need to be clean not primped )
Take my vitamins
Buff nails ( I don't wear polish)

And what I don't want -
Don't buy clothes I don't need
Don't buy new shampoos , I keep with my Aveda as everything else disappoints
Don't hang onto clothes that really don't suit me or don't fit me . A therapeutic cull is inspiring .

I don't want to set myself up to fail , but a few changes gave good results before my birthday which I was really pleased with .
Last week with the heat had been an effort to do anything really .

So , write your list and come back to it and see how you;re doing

Which do you order, and do they work?

@Freyarw I have the Medicube mild zero pore pads. My skin looks clearer and smoother since using them and they haven’t caused any irritation on my sensitive skin

I’ve been a bit off track with family stuff going on but I’m finding this thread really motivating. Sticking to skincare and eating well and just trying to make daily habits stick .

Can you recommend somewhere I can buy Crest teeth whitening strips please?

If you can’t get them boots do the spotlight ines which are good

@Neuronimo Sounds like you're doing well. I'm tempted by a walking pad...

@thenewaveragebear1983 How are you feeling this week? I missed your posts on the other thread so was glad to see you'd updated on here. Do you think it would help to have a break from any sort of plan maybe for a week or 2 and sort of reset? It's really frustrating when you feel like you're not making progress but your health and fitness must be pretty good!

The walking pad has been really useful. Less impact on joints plus it's small enough to pack away under a sofa.

@Chocolatecoffeecup I have stuck to my calories with renewed focus today and that always makes me feel better. I just find it so tiring. I don’t really know what else I can do to lose weight, I’m knackered and I can’t really exercise any more (well, I guess I could, but then I’ll be even more tired!) and I do actually need to work and clean my house and just…life.! I think sometimes social media is so negative, just constantly being told everything you’re doing is wrong. I always feel better when I go back to basics and just do the basics right.

@70isaLimitNotaTarget I don't really have a target to aim for, I just want to look better and feel better in general and make some new habits. Although, having written that I am aiming to lose some weight by the end of December.

My list is:

• Lose 10kg. I'm aiming for 1kg a month, so 6kg by the end of the 2026
• Look after my hands and feet - so manicures and pedicures
• Buy some nice underwear including some bras that fit - I would be seriously embarrassed if I was taken to A&E as an emergency.
• Sort my wardrobe out & buy clothes that suit my style and personality rather than grabbing anything in the shop and thinking "this will do".

@ thenewaveragebear1983

I think is really hard not to measure yourself against the standard of others, but social media is such a filtered and curated window of the world isn't it?

I find it very hard to be the only over weight sibling in my family, but I'm trying hard to look at my milestones in context with my own starting point. Someone told me recently that over exercising can stress the adrenal glands and so it can be counter productive. It is better to feel well isn't it?

I have just ordered a kindle book called Plant Powered Plus, which looks quite interesting.