Review: Dyanna Spa’s Placenta Facial

I had first heard about the benefits of placenta facials on CNN awhile back but never thought twice about getting one.  However, I was recently offered an opportunity to get a placenta facial at the Dyanna Spa located in the Gramercy-Flatiron area of NYC and I am super excited to share my experience.  (FTC disclosure: the Dyanna Spa was very generous and performed the facial free of charge)

First of all, I’ve never gotten a facial before, so I wasn’t sure about what to expect.  I did read this article beforehand so I at least knew not to wear makeup .  Dave also came with me to the appointment to help me take pictures.

Nervous!

The spa itself was small but very neat and clean.

The front

The waiting area

After waiting for about 5 minutes, my esthetician, Alla, led me to my room where I changed into spa gear.

Ready to go!

Alla wrapped my hair up and started the first treatment- a facial massage with steam.  The massage was very relaxing and the steam really calmed my nerves.  She said that this treatment helps open up my pores and stimulates blood flow to my face.  I was glad that this was the first treatment because I needed to be calm for the next stage, PORE EXTRACTIONS!!!

Pore extractions were pretty painful.  For more experienced spa goers, I’m sure that y’all are used to it- but for a first timer like me- I was in pain!  Luckily, Alla had over 20 years of experience giving facials and knew exactly how to distract me.  She told me a funny story about how she used to bribe her husband and son with food to let her practice on them- now, they are begging her to do it .

After the pore extractions came the masks.  Alla used 2 different masks on me targeting different areas.

Glad pore extractions are over!

She then performed a high frequency treatment on my face.

Lights on…

Lights off!

Finally, it was placenta time!

The number 1 question that my friends have been asking me about the placenta facial is if the mask smells like placenta.  Well, I’ve never smelled placenta before so how would I know?  Honestly, the mask didn’t smell like much, as there were no artificial fragrances in it.  If anything, the mask smelled like a bottle of unscented lotion (if that even makes sense).

After Alla peeled off the placenta mask, she applied serum and lotion to my face and I was good to go .

A little red but my skin feels like silk! Dave said that my skin was glowing the whole day .

She also gave me an awesome skincare tip!  She said that as soon as I feel a pimple or blemish coming on (when it’s just starting to become pink), I should dab a bit of drying lotion on it (preferably overnight) and it’ll go away ASAP.  Since I do get hormonal acne (ladies, you know what I’m talking about) I can’t wait to try her tip!

Overall, I had a wonderful experience at the Dyanna Spa, the facial took about an hour and a half including getting changed, and I felt comfortable during the whole process.  This is not a pretentious spa with snobby receptionists or ritzy decor, this is a spa for people who want great results.  Let me know if you check it out and be sure to ask for Alla if you’re getting a facial.

Note: I would not recommend getting a facial the day of a big event because your face may be a bit red from the pore treatments.

Update: It’s been about 4 days since the facial and my skin still feels incredibly soft and smooth!  I can’t wait to go back and try their other treatments!

Review: Uncle Sam’s Original Cereal

I had picked up Uncle Sam’s Original Cereal with a coupon I received during Healthy Living Summit back in August.  I had planned on writing this review awhile ago but I just didn’t have a chance to until now.

So, what’s so special about it?

Well, Uncle Sam’s Original cereal is EXTREMELY high in fiber and EXTREMELY low in sugar, which makes it the epitome of a “healthy cereal.”  It has 10 grams of fiber and less than 1 gram of sugar.

Check out the awesome ingredients and nutritional information:

Does it taste “healthy”?

In one word, yes.  This cereal makes Kashi GO Lean Original cereal (the one with sticks) seem like Fruit Loops.  I couldn’t detect any sweetness or any specific flavors in it.  The texture was very crunchy and went well with ricemilk.

Well, did you like it?

Honestly, it took a little bit of getting used to, but I did enjoy the cereal immensely after I added a bit of maple syrup to it.  I like that the cereal is unsweetened so that I can customize the amount of sweetness to add.  It’s kind of like why Ina Garten always uses unsalted butter– it’s because she can then control exactly how much salt goes into her recipes for uniform cooking.

Cost:

I don’t remember exactly how much the box of cereal cost but I believe it was over $4.00.  Drugstore.com has it at $3.29 but also has ones at $4.29.  I think that it’s pretty pricey for a box of cereal with only 5 servings in it.  I usually purchase cereals for around $3.00 with 8-10 servings per box.

Accessibility:

This cereal was pretty easy to find at my local Whole Foods.  The red border on the cereal box really helps it stand out.  You can also find this cereal at most major supermarkets, i.e. Shoprite, A&P, Kroger, Jewel, etc.

Final Verdict:

I would rate this cereal 6 stars out of 10 stars because this is not a cereal for everyone.  I took 2 points off for price and 2 points off for taste.  I think it’s a quality cereal but many people would be turned off by the price and by the taste.  If you are looking for an extremely healthy cereal and don’t mind its lack of flavor then Uncle Sam’s Original is for you.  I haven’t tried the other Uncle Sam’s cereals so I can’t comment on them.

Review: Fitlosophy’s Fitbook

I had heard so much about fitbooks from reading other blogs and lucky for me, my wonderful boyfriend Dave bought one for me!  It came in the mail last week and I have been using it ever since.

So, what is it?

The fitbook is a journal made by fitlosophy that you can use to set fitness goals for yourself.  Fitlosophy’s website describes it as, “the personalized, flexible and functional fitness journal that offers a unique system to plan for success, track your progress, and reach your goals.”

Each fitbook lets you log up to 12 weeks of your food intake and workouts.  It also encourages you to set weekly short-term goals for yourself and also a long-term goal over the course of 12 weeks.

What does it come with?

The fitbook comes with a pen (blue ink) that conveniently hooks into the spiral binding of the book.

The book is kept closed by a black elastic band that wraps around the edges.  In the back of the book, there is a card slot in which you can put your gym card, credit cards, cash… etc inside.

Dimensions:

I measured the fitbook to be almost a 6 inch square (website says 5.5 inches), and it is a little more than a 1/2 inch thick.  It weighs about 9.8 oz without the pen.

Why did I buy it?

After hearing about the fitbook from Melissa’s review, I knew I had to have one.  I tried to find a similar type of journal at the local Borders but just couldn’t find one that was both practical and aesthetically pleasing.  Most of the fitness journals that I found were targeting those who want to lose weight.  Although they similarly offered food and workout logs, I didn’t care for the other information included.  I really like that I can control what I want the fitbook to be.  I don’t want to be carrying a diet journal around at the gym if I’m not on a diet.

Practicality:

This is where the fitbook gets extra points.  The fitbook itself is very small so that it can easily fit into any workout bag.  What I love most about it, is that it has plastic covers that are kept closed by an elastic band.  This protects the inside pages from both getting wet and getting damaged.

One of the highlights of the fitbook is how easy it is to use.  The book lets you log your strength training, cardio and flexibility exercises separately.  There is also a section that allows you to write notes and rate your workout.  What I like about this is that I can write encouraging notes to myself (yes I’m a dork) and use it to motivate myself to workout harder.

On the opposite side of the workout log is the food log.  In addition to logging your food intake, you can also write notes about your meal and rate how you are feeling at the time.  I love this feature because I can see if I’m eating because I’m hungry or if I’m eating my feelings.

The best part of the food log is the nutrient tracker at the bottom of the page.  The nutrient tracker lets you check off how many servings of each food group you’ve incorporated into your diet and also your water intake.  On the side is a food pyramid that shows you the recommended servings you should be getting daily.  As someone who is constantly dehydrated, it’s a great way for me to keep track of how much water I need to drink per day.

At the beginning of the fitbook there is a section that lets you fill out your 12 week goal.  It was a little overwhelming at first for me to fill it out, but luckily fitbook has sample pages at the beginning to show you how it’s done.

In addition to the 12 week goal, before each week there is a section that allows you to write down your weekly goals.  It’s great because it keeps you motivated.

My lofty goal at the end of the 12 weeks is to run a 24 minute 5k.  It makes me a little queasy to think about it, but with weekly goals like, “run 15 miles this week,” I am able to keep myself on track.

Sample weekly goals

Here is my weekly goal:

Oops, I missed yesterday’s workout!

Cost:

The cost of a fitbook is $20 plus shipping.  The price is both a pro and a con for this product.  Yes, it’s much more expensive than your average fitness journal but the high price motivates me to use it more often.  In addition, if you use your fitbook for the 12 weeks (84 days) it averages to about $0.23 a day!

Aesthetics:

The fitbook is very aesthetically pleasing.  I think it’s so cute!  Many people at the gym have seen me whip it out and have asked me where I purchased it.  It has a great look for both men and women.

Accessibility:

This was a slight con for me.  As someone who likes to inspect products before purchasing, I could only find the fitbook online at fitlosophy’s website and amazon.com.  However I can’t complain too much because Dave bought it for me.  I know that they do sell fitbooks at some 24 Hour Fitness centers, but none of them are located in Illinois.  I have linked a list of locations where you can buy the fitbook offline.

Final Verdict:

Overall I would give this product 9.5 stars out of 10 stars.  I deducted 1/2 a star for accessibility because of my personal preference.  This is a great tool if you are serious about your fitness.  By writing everything down, the fitbook holds you accountable for what you do.  I really like this product and plan on repurchasing one after I fill my current one up.