Love Your Body; All Shapes and Sizes

We all have insecurities. But will you let it go your way before you finally reach your goals or keep up with your dreams? Whether it’s a physical or other types of insecurity, you are not alone. There’s someone out there that will definitely help you feel confident whatever path you are taking and help you obtain your life long dreams.

As it calls to their goal of giving everyone a fashion that no matter what shape, size, or age you are, you can express yourself through clothing. And that is actually what all women needed. No to body-shaming but to drive self-love and acceptance.

So here comes the plus size waist trainer that will definitely give you positivity. They come in different presentable designs that can best fit any type of your workout or training clothing or whatever you decide to wear. Why not combine them while you train to see how effective and good the result will be?

LoverBueaty has a wide range and array of best waist trainers to choose from. They also have different colors that will surely fit your preference. Wouldn’t you like to try this one, both beneficially inclined on encouraging a better posture plus being so fashionable? You can find it at LoverBeauty’s best waist trainer collection!

Item: Loverbeauty Rose Print Double Belts Waist Cincher

But that doesn’t end here. Waist trainers are also found to give good results. You can simply browse the benefits of wearing a body shaper to learn more about the things it can do to you as you show love to your body.

 
Item: 2 in 1 Sweaty High Waist Adjustable Thigh Trimmer
Boost your confidence and self-worth now and try these amazing waist trainers! It’s always never too late to feel sexy and look great. Wear your favorite dress and slay being beautiful inside and out!

Isn't it perfect? LoverBeauty even have a loving deal for you this coming Black Friday. Enjoy up to 60% off on their wide choices of amazing waist trainers online. Grab yours now!

Is Cycling a Good Exercise: A Fact or A Hype?

From a scientific point of view, nothing should be accepted without scrutiny. From this consideration, one may wonder is cycling a good exercise? Or, it is a hype of bicycle manufacturers to increase their sales. After all when fake is so common, who knows that cycling manufacturing companies may unite and create a commotion on the web that cycling offers dozens of health benefits including curing cancer. Their sole purpose is to increase their revenues. So let's find out is cycling really a good exercise?

What Do Researchers Say Regarding Cycling?

Since bicycles are centuries-old human-powered transportation, the pros and cons of cycling is a favorite research topic of researchers. They have identified that there are 11 convincing facts that prove that cycling is one of the best exercises and quite beneficial for health. Below is a brief discussion on those conclusive facts regarding cycling.

1. Less Overeating
The simple reason why people gain more weight is when they eat more but work less. It is found that people who do exercise like riding a folding electric bike every day as a form of workout are more concerned about overeating. For example, they think twice before gobbling two donuts together and often satisfy their appetite for a sweet snack with just one.

2. Burns Fat
According to sports physiologists, cycling pushes the body’s metabolic rate. The elevated metabolic rate causes burning fat and calories. They have found further that for 30 minutes of continuous cycle riding the body’s metabolic system continues to burn fat for another two or three hours.

3. Boost Digestion
According to the researchers of Bristol University, the effects of cycling extends further down your core. Physical activity like cycling boosts your digestion. The activity decreases the time food requires to move through the large intestine and the absorption of water back into the body leaving soft tools that are easier to expel from the body.
Other good effects of cycling are it accelerates your breathing and heart rate and stimulates the contraction of your intestinal muscles. The squeezing of your intestinal muscle will help you from the feeling of bloated and protect you from suffering from colon cancer.

4. Lung Exercise
Cycling is a useful lung exercise. One evidence of it is health experts found that you inhale 10 times more oxygen when you ride a bicycle in contrast to when you sit comfortably in front of TV. Cycling forces lung muscles to work harder which requires your body to inhale more oxygen from the air. In the recent COVID-19 pandemic, doctors are giving much emphasis on breathing exercises to strengthen lung. Biking can give you a good breathing exercise.

5. Lose Weight
The correlation is simple. Since cycling burns calories, the activity will also help you to shed extra body weight. Further, cycling is better than running for obese people. It is because when heavy people run, the extra body weight puts a heavy load on their feet making them tired quickly.

6. An Aerobic Workout
Cycling is a useful aerobic exercise that stimulates the brain to release a hormone called endorphins. Thanks to this hormone cyclists feel better the aerobic exercise is beneficial for the brain, blood vessels, and heart.

7. Builds Muscles
During the power phase of cycling that is when you press the pedal downward several muscles of your body come into action which includes gluteus muscles of buttocks, quadriceps of thighs, and soleus muscles of your calves. Cycling also requires the use of your other muscles like abdominal muscles to keep your body balance and keeping body upright, your arms, and shoulder muscles to hold the steers and handlebars. To sum up, cycling is a good workout for all of these muscles.

 
8. Builds Bone
According to a health expert, pushing pedals causes the pulling of the muscles and then the muscles react by pulling the bone. These subsequent actions of muscles and bone increase bone density which is quite important to prevent osteoporosis which is a bone-related disease.

9. Beats Illness
One unsubstantiated claim is if you eat an apple each day, you will be able to keep the physician at bay. However, what researchers found that low-impact exercises like cycling boost the body’s immune system. The immune system then acts as a barrier to keep the body free of disease.
One evidence of the claim that regular cycling keeps the body free of disease is a research finding of the University of North Carolina. The researchers of the university found that people who ride bicycles 5 days each week for 30 minutes take less sick days in comparison to people who are habituated with a sedentary lifestyle with no physical exercise.

10. Heals Heart
The researchers of another US university, the University of Purdue found that cycling reduces the risk of heart disease by 50 percent. British heart foundation also found a good outcome of cycling. It founds that cycling not more than 20 minutes each day significantly reduces the risk of heart disease.

11. Live Longer
Dr. Lynn Cherkas, a researcher of King college London, conducted extensive research on regular cycling and its impact on the body. He found that regular cycling greatly reduces the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and even cancer. All of these diseases reduce people's life significantly shorter.

Baked Sushi: Following a Trend in The Philippines

I should stop lurking on my social medias. They've been the reason why I keep on making these trendy foods I saw online. But hey, there's not that much to do and I am kinda tired of the things I cook, so yes, why not explore?



So for today's food sharing, here is one of the hot (literally and figuratively) dish that made our chilly summer a little bit cozy.

My family in both sides love sushi. It is very easy to make, as you can see in my previous post here, We Always Love our Sushi Nights. But sometimes, rolling takes a lot of time. So this trend in my home country is one of the best alternative on enjoying sushi without losing that much time on preparation.



You might think that this will make no difference, but I tell you, it is so good that we finished the whole pan.



Unlike how you make the typical sushi, you need to lay your sushi rice as the foundation. Of course, you need to season it beforehand with white wine vinegar, sugar and salt. Here, I added this seasoning that I recently bought at an Asian grocery. I do not read Japanese but I believe that this is Furikake, (振り掛け / ふりかけ) a dried Japanese seasoning that you can sprinkle in all sorts of dish.

I also added some nice thin slices of carrots to add a nice vibrant orangey color. There should also be fresh slices of avocado to make it creamier.



We always eat fried eggs that's separate from the sushi, it is called Gyeran Mari in Korean, but this time, I placed it on top of the avocado to seal this creaminess together with the rice. I might sound nonsense here but trust me, it will work.



Here I have a mixture of high-quality mayonnaise, surimi or crab meat imitation (you can use real crab meat), smoked salmon and a dash of sesame oil. Spread it just all throughout and press it down so there will be no air sack in the dish (it makes a difference you know, hehe).



Of course, it will never be complete if I will not use cheese while living in the land of good cheese! Sprinkle some on top and put in a preheated oven of 200C for 15 minutes.



After waiting for like an eternity, it will look like a tempting cassava cake! You have the choice to make it cool first before digging in or eat it as is. Just be careful if you will have it right after you bake it. The rice will be so hot that it may cause burn.



You may now prepare the table, some good wrapping salad (like the one you use when you eat Korean BBQ), some small cuts of nori sheets (seaweed) and your favotire sushi sauce. We also love to have ginger slices and wasabi to complete the sushi feel.

I wasn't able to take a photo of how you eat it, but it is simple. Precut the sushi bake in small rectangular sizes and place a slice in a small nori sheet. Here's a photo I got from the internet to show you how it looks.

Source: https://www.foxyfolksy.com/

It was really good that I can eat it everyday!

Have you heard of this trend? Would you give it a try?

Rock & Roll with Chili's Inspired Burritos

From my post here: Lunch Date at Chili's PH, you will really see how I instantly fell inlove with this restaurant. It was my very first time eating there and happily, we visited them again when we were back in The Philippines few years ago.

But since we cannot go back home yet, there are just food that I keep on missing. One of those is this burrito of Chili's! I've heard that there's a branch in Germany but I cannot get out of The Netherlands at the moment.



Not to feel homesick so much, I made my very own Smothered Pork Burrito (copied from their signature Smothered Chicken Burrito).



It was actually very easy to make! I just sauteed the pork with a little bit of taco seasoning, added rice and corn, and mix everything well.



Assembling the burrito is not that difficult either!



I just laid a corn tortilla, sprinkled with some cheese (they say Mexican cheese works better!), avocado, cucumber, tomato and grilled paprika (add chilis if you prefer it spicy).



Add a generous amount of rice then start rolling. I also preheated the oven to 200C cause I'm baking it!



When all of the rolls are in the baking pan, brush a good amount of sour cream, sprinkle with more cheese on top and bake for atleast 15 minutes. When it's done, remove from the oven and sprinkle chopped cilantro on top.

There we have it, my version of Chili's signature burrito. Like what I've said, this one is very easy. I did not even taste it before serving, and everyone loved it! I am happy that there are a lot of easy recipes that I can do for my family.

Does this post opened your eyes to a lot of possibilities now? Or did I just made you hungry. Hehe

First Cafe Visit After Quarantine: 't Voorhuys Restaurant Grand Cafe

The day I came to The Netherlands was the day that they declared the intelligent lockdown. Just imagine how sad I was at that time because I was so excited to meet with friends, to try out new restaurants and to visit some attractions again. But of course, we need to follow directions. Happily, all of my family is well up to now. And I couldn't ask for more.

Four months later, the curve has subsided and it started to flatten. The offices started functioning again and the restaurants started to operate. Finally, the day I've been waiting for since I arrived. We are now allowed to eat out again, but of course, with strictly following social distancing and handwashing thingy.

We are fortunate to receive a complimentary stay at 't Voorhuys Hotel in the nearby neighborhood so we grabbed it. It was just a one-night stay but still, we weren't really able to enjoy our wedding anniversary the previous month which supposedly gonna happen in Germany for a few days.

It was just a 10-minute drive from home and it was actually fun being a local customer. There were still a lot of things we haven't tried so why not start today, right?

Grand Dessert

We already finished having dinner so we just planned to take some good beer and dessert.



My husband was bold enough to get a set of five dessert tastings even though we had good slices of pizza at home. It consisted of mango sorbet, berry pannacotta, Tony Chocolonely salted caramel mousse, tiramisu, a slice of cake (I think) with whipped cream in the middle.



I thought I was modest enough when I ordered a serving of raspberry berry pannacotta with vanilla ice cream on the side.

But after finishing the desserts, we had another glass of beer, draft this time, also my first time to have beer straight out of the cask. It isn't nice to drink beer alone. So we got a cheese plate with two kinds of cheese, olives, onions, bread, seasoned butter, dips, and sausages.



Yes, I thought we were already full.



It was just so nice having drinks, small finger food to accompany it. We also talked about a lot of things and I really love that.

I cannot stress enough how stuffed we were with the food we just enjoyed having. But it was worth it. We finished the day with a small walk in the centrum and finally headed to our hotel room. It was great. I loved it! It might not always be the same way cause of the new normal but I am happy that we can still enjoy these things again.

Have you visited a cafe/restaurant after the lockdown?

My First Ever Purchase Online While Abroad: GreetzNL

I made it a habit that every time we are going to celebrate our wedding anniversary, I will give my husband a bouquet of flowers which means that not only girls receive flowers, men deserve to receive such too!



Last year, we celebrated our special day at home. There was actually no way for me to get out of the house and buy. SO I asked my sister if she can do it for me. Later the afternoon, she came at our door holding a box and a bottle of wine. The box contained twelve roses and the wine came from my loving parents. He was so touched that he had tears in his eyes.



This year, for our second anniversary, my sister is not there to help me carry out my plan. I am also shy to ask my in-laws. Two nights before the D-day, we were already lying in bed, ready to sleep. I remembered this card we received from my parent-in-laws so I looked it up online.



The website is in Dutch but that did not hinder me from browsing it. Since I am learning the language, it is actually pretty easy to manoeuvre. I came across a dozen of white roses and it is very affordable. My Paypal fund isn't much. There was also a discount code that I got somewhere and I used it when purchasing. It's all done in a couple of minutes. My husband beside me doesn't have any clue.

Because I was so anxious that the package will arrive late, I kept on messaging them to give me updates about my order. They were pretty responsive and I know that I am talking to real persons.

My husband received his white roses and we had it in the living room for nearly three weeks. The flowers stayed fresh for an ample days and I loved it.

I am so proud of myself cause I was able to live up on what I've started, giving flowers to my man every anniversary. Next year, I don't have any idea where we will be at. But I am pretty confident that I can do the same again.

This is not a sponsored post. It is an appreciation post to Greetz for living up on my expectations. We also ordered a card just recently for my brother-in-law's wedding anniversary.

So if ever you need to send flowers here in The Netherlands, I recommend them.

Mini Pancake Cereals: Another TikTok Trend

I was never a Tiktok-er. I have never had a chance to visit the platform. It is interesting they say. But hey, I got tons of social media apps on my phone already. I don't think I can manage if I still add one more. I also have this blog to run and post content regularly. So yeah, I skipped that one.

The app contents can be shared on other platforms too, so what my friends post in that media, it also appears in my Instagram and Facebook dashboard. How convenient is that! This time, these cute little pancakes appeared. And because they're so mini, and lovely, how could I resist?

So then, I gave it a go.

Before having a video conference, I made myself busy dropping a small dollop of pancake batter in the pan. Yes, it was time-consuming. So for the rest, I just made normal sized pancakes, I don't want to be late on my meeting!



After transferring everything into a bowl, I was surprised to see the beauty of small things. This is genuinely attractive.



To finish off, I added a good splash of soya milk (which I find very fitting, and yummy too) and some maple syrup into the bowl.



Urrggghh! It's really gorgeous.

You can find the recipe in this post: http://www.myxilog.com/2013/09/homemade-pancake-recipe-and-tutorial.html

What To Do With Leftover Beef Steak?

On my previous post (Our Anniversary Celebration At Home), you saw that we have some good slabs of beef for our dinner. And yes, with all the side dishes, the cake, we weren't able to finish all the meat. But it would be a waste to throw them away since you can never reheat it as good as the first time you cooked it. The came the idea of making something out of it.



After our anniversary day, we planned of going out of town and celebrate outside as well. Then we need to pack some food so we do not need to find stores to buy stuffs.

Happily, we have some leftover cream cheese from the cake that we made, we also have wraps from the burrito that we ate the other night. It was perfect! Everything we need was there from the wrap to the filling.



I tried to cut the steak as thin as possible so it will be easier to have them in the wrap. Thankfully, my MIL owns a very sharp Japanese knife, made the job easier.



On the wrapper, spread a good amount of cream cheese, squeeze some garlic mayonnaise (you can use plain), place the beef strips, top it with some roasted red peppers and sprinkle with nice green salad (arugula, lettuce, cucumber, or whatever green vegetable you have).



Roll them tightly and cut them into pinwheels or to your desired size (if you don't want to cut it, it's okay too!). I remembered making it with tuna when one of our friends had their farewell party, it was actually G's idea. He loves pinwheels, easy to make, not messy and convenient to have.



So if you are going to make one tonight, or on the weekend, here are the ingredients to recap:
- tortilla
- leftover steak
- cream cheese
- mayonnaise
- roasted red pepper
- salad (your choice of greens)

A friend of mine made it with salmon slices and it is a nice lunch for a small trip to the zoo. I hope you can try to make one too!

Our Wedding Anniversary Celebration At Home (During Lockdown)

Every anniversary deserves a celebration. Last year, we stayed at home in the morning, played some video games together then in the evening, we visited a club house and had an unlimited buffet for dinner.

This year, there is no way that we can go out to a restaurant due to the pandemic. They only sell to-go food and most of them were snacks and fries. To make it memorable, we went out of town to visit the nearest Asian grocery store. There we ate Chinese take out and bought ingredients for some dish in mind. We also walked around the city center and bought some good scented bath bombs, a pair of shoes and some fresh strawberries and raspberries. The night before, I've actually made a cake already. It is a gluten-free and lactose-free strawberry vanilla drip cake.



For our main course, we had good fresh slabs of beef steak. It was my very first time making one and I am a bit worried that I might overcook it. G saw online that you just need to cook the sides first until brown then the front in back for about 8 minutes, while flipping it to prevent it from burning. The thing is, the meat we bought was already seasoned so I thought I do not need to add anything else. I was wrong.



I did added some more butter to the oil, some crushed garlic and fresh thyme leaves. But I did not reseasoned them before serving. I could have been more palatable to the taste if I just did that. It's okay, I learned my lesson. For next time. :)



Finally, it was time to eat. G finished setting up the table at the back of the house and he did it very well. What do you think? I love how romantic it looked, of course with matching background music from a group that plays saxophone.



It was so memorable. We had our own meal at home, but still as glamorous as the one in a restaurant. There were also sides that were available in the fridge, just threw everything in and viola!

There we stayed until its so late that the ambiance became even more romantic. Our light was the candles on the side giving it a nice redish color (refer to the cake photo on top).

And that's it, we finished the day with an amazing night and awesome homemade food.

Here are the videos of how we celebrated our wedding anniversary last year. Enjoy!

Making Spring Extra Special with Vietnamese Spring Rolls

In the middle of the spring season is the best time to serve this fresh and light dish that I love from the land where I left my heart, Vietnam. There's still no way or even a chance to be able to visit that country again so I am recreating their traditional dishes. My husband is one of an avid lover or Viet food so I thought of making some for dinner.

Here's Gỏi cuốn or commonly called Vietnamese spring roll. One of the main ingredients of this dish is shrimp. But because I cannot have it due to my allergy to the crustacea group of shellfish. Sad right? I altered the recipe with fried pork belly in butter, seasoned with salt, pepper and hoisin sauce.



Back home, I only use the meatloaf in can, SPAM, because it is cheap and easy. Surimi, or imitation crab meat stick in another option.

The fresher the greens, the better. Here I am including fresh romaine lettuce (I like how subtle it taste), rice vermicelli (which I soaked in boiling water for 4 minutes, drained and rinsed in cold water), cilantro, basil, mint, cucumber, carrots, bell pepper and celery.



At first, my wrap was a little bit loose. But in the end, it feels like I've finally mastered rolling it. It takes time to firmly roll them but the end result is almost near to perfection (just like the authentic one).

It is so fresh and truly satisfying. With the Vietnamese fish sauce on the side, it feels like we flew back to Vietnam.

So if you are going to make one tonight, or at the weekend, here are the ingredients to recap:
- rice wrapper
- romaine lettuce (or any kind of lettuce that you want)
- cucumber
- carrot
- celery
- basil
- cilantro/coriander
- mint
- rice glass noodles or vermicelli
- shrimp / pork / chicken



For the dipping sauce, you have an option of the fish sauce or the peanut sauce. I am only used of having the fish sauce (Nước Chấm) because that's what they always have in Hanoi (the northern part of Vietnam). But in Ho Chi Min (Saigon), peanut sauce is commonly used. They both taste good so you can even have both.

Do you like this dish too? And have you made your own Vietnamese spring rolls?

We Always Love Our Sushi Nights

Who doesn't love sushi? My family in The Philippines and my in-laws in The Netherlands were all fond of sushis. I'm so happy about that! Why? I love making them. Once or twice a month, we have sushi nights.

It is now easier to get ingredients than before. That is where we live back home and even here in Europe. Well guess what? There are more available stuffs for sushi here than in our place in PH. Here in NL, I can easily buy smoked salmon (easy to cut and readily available in the supermarket), pickled ginger (we need to make one ourselves though it is not that difficult), and even miso soup (which I never found in our local grocery store).



Yes, it amazed me how things are so available at hand here. I really appreciate the small packages of ingredients if someone just feels like making some. Most of the people living in one roof vary from one to four. Just like this pack of nori sheet that contains five pieces. For a small family, it is better to have a choice of this than that of ten. With our situation of having four people at home, this pack is just perfect. We cannot eat more than five rolls of sushi. They even have a sushi kit that contains everything you need, from the sushi rice to the bamboo mat. (This is an organic review, not sponsored.)



I also love including some egg omelet rolls on our sushi nights. They're very easy to make. I just whisk some eggs, season with salt and pepper, and fry just like what they do in Japan or Korean (fry, roll, repeat). Sometimes I add bell peppers, tomato, onion, and other vegetables. It is called Gyeran Mari in Korean.



Here are my base ingredients:
For the Sushi Rice:
Japanese / short grain rice
White vinegar
sugar
pinch of salt

Cook rice. Place rice in a mixing bowl to cool. While still warm, add vinegar, sugar and salt.

Basic sushi filling:
Nori sheet
cucumber
smoked salmon/sushi-grade salmon
Avocado
Mango
Surimi / Imitation crab stick
Spam / Canned meatloaf

Sushi Dip:
Wasabi
Light soy sauce
Mayo
Pickled Ginger (optional)



And here's my plate of the sushi I made and picked. I'm now going to enjoy eating!

Products mentioned are from http://www.saitaku-food.com/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreSaitaku/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wearesaitaku/

Do you like sushi too? Do you make sushi at home?

1-Minute Chocolate Chip Cookie That Will Save You From Your Cravings Any Time!

Every girl has their own cravings. Most especially when it's that time of the month again when they are turning to be more emotional, vulnerable and frail. I have to admit it, I am one of those who want sweets from time to time. I love sugary food when I feel sad. And yes, that's exactly when my period will come.

Happily, there's just one thing I like to eat on these days. I'm easily satisfied with cookie dough ice cream (love that pint of Ben & Jerry's classic ice cream!) or a big piece of freshly baked chocolate chip cookie. But if these items are not available at hand, why not make one ourselves, right?



If you have a microwave at home, give thanks to your parents or the one who made it available for you. Your chocolate chip cookie craving is to be satisfied!



Here's what you need.

In a bowl, mix together;
1 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp white sugar
1 egg yolk
little vanilla

Then add:
3 tbsp flour
pinch of baking powder
pinch of salt
2 tbsp chopped chocolate/chocolate chips
splash of milk

Mix everything in a bowl and microwave on high (1000W) for 60 seconds. You can also use dark chocolate or white if you like.

It's so easy that everyone can do it. Thanks to my husband who made it even though it was already late last night. Try it and let me know how it came out!