Dolce-Dolce

New Year's Resolve

For decades, it's been in vogue to deign to make New Year's resolutions, even though many people decry it as silly, naive, and -- most of all -- doomed to failure. This dichotomy is hardly surprising. There is something about our culture that is earnest and almost puritanical of late. Yet it despises -- with a note of false sophistication and ennui -- those who are openly earnest. Too bad. A woman in today's world needs strong resolve to succeed, survive, and flourish.

As North American women, we are embarrassingly rich in opportunity and wealth. Nevertheless, so many of us are trapped by poverty, abuse, or perceived lack of opportunity, and our own limited views. What is often lacking is resolve.

Image: Library of Congress

So many women are fine role models that even on the bleakest of days, I am heartened. I love the way Angelina Jolie has stepped into Audrey Hepburn’s shoes to work for UNICEF, drawing attention to the plight of the world’s poorest children.

I admire a small group of women in Toronto. In a dignified and caring way, they take time every week to help families going through hard times. They quietly shop for the food each family requests all little things little children miss. It is surprising how modest the families desires are, but then again things given with love and care taste so much better.

I am inspired by women such as Helen O'Neil, a nurse coordinator for Doctors Without Borders ( www.doctorswithoutborders.org.) They work tirelessly to alleviate the unimaginable suffering of people caught in wars in global hotspots, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo. They are not jaded; they brim with resolve to make the world better for others.

I am struck by a friend who recently left her job as a successful sports entertainment executive. She is excited to test her mettle in the business world as an entrepreneur. It's a gutsy move that took resolve. Not many people would walk away from her gilded corporate-cage. She's also very concerned about finding a way to mentor and motivate younger women. I think that's terrific!

Karin Pacione's Mentor Hiltrud Kappelman

Christine of Christine’s Fitness (www.Christinesfitness.com) -- our fitness expert this month -- inspires resolve. For 30 years, she has coached, cajoled, and inspired women to reach fitness goals many never imagined. One young friend -- whose resolve keeps me in awe -- lost 50 pounds with Christine’s guidance, and has kept it off by maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

I am in this career today because I was mentored and inspired by wonderful, brilliant, generous women. They taught me I could do anything with resolve and resilience. Someday soon I‘ll share their stories with you.

Resolve can move you forward, lift you up, and help you become all you want to be. So here's to fabulous New Year’s resolutions.

At DolceDolce, we deal with the outside stuff. A lot of beauty and fashion. The fun stuff. But we care deeply about the inside too: fitness, friendship, and family. So here‘s to all of us, and have a wonderful New Year.

Please tell us about women who inspire you. We’d love to hear your stories.

Beauty and the Best

2006 was a great for new year beauty products at all price points. Cosmetic companies are working with science and listening to what women really want. The result: fabulous products that work.

Here are our favourites:

Image: Chanel

Pure luxury and total practicality describes Chanel’s Sublimage. It’s an all-purpose anti-aging cream, designed for women of all ages who want simple, exquisite skin-care in a single jar. It was developed from patented technology that distills specially cultivated vanilla plant from Madagascar to its purest essence. This cashmere-like cream makes skin more radiant, moist, and firm -- and it also evens out pigmentation. The texture is divine and it smells fabulous—not a thing like vanilla.

Avotone (www.avotone.com) is one of the new “topical anti-wrinkle” creams that claims to have a Botox-like effect. No comment. But this avocado oil-based cream is full of peptides, airline, and vitamins. It seems to improve skin texture and leaves behind a nice glow. Agireline is the topical ingredient that is supposed to relax lines. Avotone is also soothing and claims to help eczema and rashes -- makes sense, as it diminishes redness.

Olay’s Definity can’t turn back time, but it can help to even out pigments in the skin and increase luminosity. Glowing fresh skin with an even tone and colour has been shown “scientifically” to be a sign of youth, health, and attractiveness. Smooth, evenly-coloured skin that gleams with health is truly a sign of “ageless beauty.” There is a full product range for all skin types at very reasonable prices.

Also new this year, the best toothpaste in decades: Crest Prohealth. It does it all – whitens, prevents decay, gingivitis, plaque, bad breath, and works for sensitive teeth, too. It comes in mint and cinnamon. It tastes great and actually works – giving you white, bright teeth and a fresh-tasting mouth. It is significantly better than any other brand I have tried. Puts a smile on my face.

No one with normally full hair will ever know the torment women with thin hair experience. Ojon’s Hair Thickening Ritual will not help you grow more hair –nor does it claim to -- but it will make the thinnest hair look luxe. Worth a try. www.ojon.com

Skinny little brows -- over-plucked or just naturally skimpy -- look so “dated” and tired. Brow make-up can look harsh and be difficult to apply. Jane Iredale Super-Shape Me Eyebrow Kit is the solution. It comes in blond, auburn or brunette and has everything you need for including the instructions for perfect browes! It’s elegant, easy, and it works! There are even tiny tweezers and brushes – everything to get your own model-perfect brows. http://www.janeiredale.com

This line also has beautiful make-up shades for women of colour.

Have you plucked so much that your brows finally gave up and never grew back? According to Dr. Liz Hartley (www.menopausehealthclinic.com) you can try to regrow your brows by using the over-the-counter male baldness remedy Rogaine. Apply it carefully to your brows. It will take about 6 weeks to show results –if it’s going to work. Results vary. Sadly it does not work on permanent hair loss due to disease, such as alopecia, or certain hormonal disorders. Consult a doctor.

These are just a few of our new beauty favourites; - products we love because they work, make us feel gorgeous, give great value, and make our lives just a little sweeter. Have you found something fabulous? Would you care to share? We ‘d love to hear from you and share your discovery with other DolceDolce readers. We look forward to sharing all sorts of tips and even treats with DolceDolce readers in the New Year. It’s going to be fun.

Life should be Sweet but Watch What you Eat

What New Year’s discussions could not pass without a little diet and exercise chat? As North Americans, we are collectively obsessed and obese. It’s ironic, frightening, and a dreadful dilemma. Even the most fit and disciplined of us have to focus to maintain our health with today’s busy work schedules. Also, many people have lost the joy of cooking for friends and family. It’s so much easier to go out or send out – and it’s also more fattening. Dining out should be a pleasure, and eating and food preparation should be thoughtful and nourishing to body and soul.

Research shows that most women will gain about 5 pounds a year from estrogen loss after menopause, without serious changes in diet and exercise. Young women gain weight at school. It’s called the dreaded “freshman 15,” and it’s not a myth although -- thankfully – the weight gain is closer actually to 5 or 10 pounds. New studies show many women pick up bad eating habits from new male mates, gaining 10 pounds from a new relationship, and may not lose it even after break-up. And then there are the reported 1 - 5 pounds many of us gain between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It’s all enough to make a girl go scrooge.

Face it, fitness isn’t easy, and if you don’t learn it early it’s even harder. New studies show that it is difficult to absorb calcium after menopause, so be sure not to sacrifice nutrition to weight loss. There is valid research that shows that women who eat plenty of low-fat calcium rich foods (think low-fat yogurt or salmon ) lose weight faster!

What you should not do is rush out and buy a new diet book. While there are many scientists who study the reasons behind serious obesity, there are too many others who market whacky fads and disappointing gimmicks.

What we know about weight loss hasn’t changed a lot in the past years. Just take a look at Secrets from the Golden Door. Debra Szekely Manzzanti wrote it in the 1970s, yet experts give out much of the same advice today.

Christine Steiger of Christine's Fitness has been getting women -- celebrities and “real” women alike – in shape for 30 years and she knows the score. According to Christine, “you need a combination of diet and exercise. You need cardio and weights to lose fat and increase your metabolism and also to build you strength. But women need to understand they also need a good diet designed for their bodies.”

Tips from Christine:

Eat lean protein, low-fat carbs, fresh vegetables, and get rid of empty calories including alcohol and junk food.

Keep a record of everything you eat.

Drink only water and no-cal beverages. Juice is very high in calories and counts as fruit. Check for added sugar.

Hire a trainer and get on a program designed for you. We are all different. If you don’t like your program, you won’t keep it up.

Have a trainer monitor your progress and change your program as needed to avoid plateaus and keep it up. Your body gets used to specific regimes, and often stops responding.

Make sure your club has a supportive environment to help you stay on track. Encourage friends to join with you for fun and motivation.

Join a club that will not only give you an exercise program but an eating plan too. You need both.

Make sure the trainers and dieticians at any club you are considering are qualified and experienced. Ask questions.

Stick with. It works.

If you really “don’t have a clue”

If, unlike me, you were not raised in the “cult of Fanta” -- and haven’t memorized the calorie values of all foods, and are not a compendium of fitness programs since the original Jane Fonda -- you might want a book. Let’s make it a good one not the latest load of tripe.

The Diet Detective's Count Down has more than 7,500 foods with their exercise equivalents and what it takes to burn off food through activity.

Written by nutrition and public health advocate Charles Stuart Platkin, this new book is perfect for people who are still struggling with the cause and effect of eating and exercise.

You on a Diet: The Owners Manual for Waist Management by Michael F. Roizen M.D. and Mehmet C. Oz M.D. The popular Dr. Oz and author of the original You: An Owner’s Manual offer good advice and lots of tips on good nutrition, losing weight, exercising, and staying healthy. It’s a sensible person’s approach one not a celebrity plan.

French Women For All Season’s by Mirielle Guilliano. From the author of French Women Don’t Get Fat. Sensible advice about balancing self control with a little indulgence. Her books weave together tales of personal struggle, fashion tips, and recipes. All this from a lady who sells champagne a la française. She advocates fresh food, small portions, and lots of walking. It can’t be bad for you. So if it inspires you to eat like “the little bird” Edith Piaf and get off your derriere and move, then vivre la France!

While we are on the subject of fitness, I was recently disturbed to see an old scam reappear. It seems “ab-belts” are back. Ab-belts, and any other electronic devices attached to the human body, are not exercise. While it is true that medical therapists and acupuncturists use electronic devices for very effective treatments, they never use them in place of exercise or for weight loss. This is the worst type of hooey. It really makes you miss a nice old-school ThighMaster for only $14.99 anywhere on the net. Suzanne Somers knows her stuff and has the body to prove it.

Too busy to eat well?

Reasons to stray off your healthy eating plan:

I’m too tired to cook after work or school

I never have all the ingredients

I can’t cook

I have no time

I never know what to cook

The overnight-fabulously-easy-I-can’t-cook-orange-chicken-or-salmon-recipe.

On the night before or in the morning, wash and dry two boneless and skinless chicken breasts or two salmon fillets (approximately 4 ounces / 250 grams per person).

Wrap in foil or parchment paper. Place on a baking sheet. If using foil, spray with cooking spray or rub with oil lightly before laying down your ingredients.

Mix together in small bowl:

3 tbsp. frozen orange juice unsweetened. (I keep a can in the freezer just for cooking)

1 large clove of garlic, crushed. (If you don’t have garlic, use 1 tbsp. garlic powder or omit.)

Grate 1-inch fresh ginger. (Again, if you don’t have fresh ginger, substitute 1 tsp. dry or pickled ginger from a jar or omit.)

Add 2 tbsp. of soy sauce to the mixture, or if you don’t have it try 1 tbsp. of vodka or omit.

Season your chicken or fish with salt and pepper. If you have no salt and pepper seek professional help now! Place seasoned food in the middle of a covered baking sheet. Pour the sauce over the chicken or fish and close your parcel tightly. Fold over to make a half moon shape and roll the edge closed.

Bake at 350f/177c for 35-40 minutes. This is remarkably good no matter what you do to it. Try it. It’s healthy, fast, and easy. Serve with a salad or any steamed vegetable. If you cook, you are laughing. If you don’t and you made this, congratulations. Cooking and eating at home is a great way to lose weight, relax, and share with friends.

So darling DolceDolce readers, we all want to wish you a sweet, sweet new year full of laughter, life, love, wonder, and joy. Please save a few minutes for us each week, as we look forward to sharing lots of new tips and treats with you in the new year. Why not share the sweetness and pass DolceDolce on to a friend?

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