So I've been getting a lot of questions from people who want to know about my braces experience because they're either getting them on soon, or just wondering because I now have them off.
I got my braces I believe in November of 2014 and I just had them taken off on June 17, 2015.
My teeth had no real issues beforehand, they were just a little bit crooked because I used to suck my thumb and I had a terrible sledding accident where my two front teeth were knocked out by my neighbor's head (fun right?).
Getting my braces on was totally painless, only a bit awkward. You initially have no idea what to do with yourself because now you have these spiky metal things in your mouth. But, you quickly adjust to feeling and you actually forget that they're there.
So of course the ortho is going to give you this giant list of things that you cant eat (and you wonder how you're even going to survive), but you can honestly just ignore it. Yes, don't just dive into eating gum and corn on the cob, but as long as you're careful with your braces then they will be fine.
I did not have any rubber bands put in my mouth because I didn't need them, so I'm sorry if you have questions about them. What did happen was I had to get on new wires that were tighter and thicker than the ones before, and the first few days that you wear them, they make your teeth so sore. That was honestly the worst part of my braces overall, so you have nothing to worry about.
Basic Braces Care:
All I did was brush my teeth per usual, day and night. As for flossing, its pretty much impossible to get that little string around your braces, so you can just use braces picks, or a water pick. A water pick is this machine that shoots out this line of water so you can flush out things that are stuck between your teeth. (Be care though because my brother almost shot his eye out.) If your wires poke the back of your mouth or cheeks, you can ask the ortho to cut them down for you, or take little pieces of wax (that the ortho should provide) and cover up the wire with them.
Overall, getting your braces on should not be frightening or worrisome. Almost everyone has/had braces and just think about how great you'll look once they're off!!
Good luck, Reese Regan <3

Before:

 After:

(I look like I aged 4 years)

Fitness Progess - 3 months

Yay!! So it's been a little over 3 months since I have joined the gym and I could not be happier or healthier. Here's a quick update of my progress:

June's abs are looking hella good!! I need to start including my legs in progress pictures because they have definitely improved a lot from the beginning, plus I know legs are a major focus for most people. Overall, my arms are super toned and awesome looking, and not the same-noodley-thickness the whole way down. My abs and core are better than ever, and totally ready for bikini season. And like I mentioned about my legs, although you can't see them, they have slimmed down and are slowly losing extra fat and starting to tone up. (*thighs and hips are usually the last place on a girl to lose weight)

I hope you all are inspired by this!! Keep pushing forward!!

How The Gym Has Made My Life Better

Hey everyone!! It's been a while since I've blogged, but I really wanted to just dedicate a blog post to how much the gym has improved my life.

I signed up for the gym I believe April 4, and now that it is a month later I feel like I can really talk about it.

First things first, I have definitely seen improvements in and on my body (because I know that's what you're all wondering). Here's a progress picture of my first month:

As you can see, I was fairly skinny and toned before in March, but in April there are major improvements in my abs (& my legs and arms that aren't really being shown). Now, I work very hard at the gym and go almost 5 times a week, so don't think you can just sign up too and see improvements as quickly.

Not only has the gym changed my physical health, but my diet too. It is so motivational to workout then go home and eat a salad, or eat a big fruit salad for breakfast. The gym has made me be cautious of what I eat, and I honestly find eating healthy really fun. It's refreshing to try new recipes that cater to your healthy diet (plus, cooking is just a favorite hobby of mine).

Going to the gym & eating healthy combined has made me such a happier person. I'm not as stressed, I don't feel sluggish, I stay fuller longer, I don't crave as much; my life has just improved ten-fold. Also, it has helped me become more accepting of myself due to the changes I am seeing and how happy they make me.

Now I'm going to answer some questions you all asked about my health/diet :-)
Q: What was your diet/lifestyle like before?
A: I actually was pretty healthy for a teenager, I didn't eat much processed foods because they kinda made me sick, and I already drank tons of water, but joining the gym has just been that extra little push to truly get me "healthy".

Q: How do you get motivated to workout?
A: Honestly a lot of the time I don't feel like working out due to homework and such, but just thinking how great I'll feel afterwards, and proud of myself for going and working hard, keeps me motivated.

Q: What is your gym routine like?
A: I haven't created a steady routine yet, but I start of with a warm-up of cardio for about 10-15 minutes, then I move on to the machines where I do probably 3 different machines per each body part (arms, legs, butt, & abs). On the machines I do 3 sets of 15 reps. Then I go to the back of my gym, where it's like a mat with all the weights, dumbells, and medicine balls, and I do lots of squats, lunges, crunches, and arm movements.

(I think I'll make a video on specific tips & tricks for starting a healthy lifestyle/going to the gym so when I do I'll link it here: ____________)

I hope this post is inspiring to some of you and/or answered some of your questions about my healthy lifestyle.
xoxo, reese regan

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter everyone! I hope you had a great day - here's how my day was:

 today's makeup: white eyeshadow on lids and browbone, nude pink in the crease, & chocolate brown on the outer corner. finished it off with a thin line of liquid eyeliner and mascara!

 today's hair: loose curls only on my top layer with a 1&1/2" curling iron.

today's outfit:

dress - american eagle

denim jacket - target

shoes - white converse

easter bunny was good to me :-)

went to brunch with the fam and stocked up on some creme puffs (i live for creme puffs)

Photoshoot

So today I was really super bored so I ended up dressing in my Easter outfit and having a little photoshoot... with myself. I love photoshoots because they're simple, fun, and great for days worth of instagram posts. Here's a few pics:

                               (^this picture is my personal favorite^)

New Blog!

okay so I really don't know how to work this thing quite yet but I'm figuring it out and really excited about it because I've wanted a blog for so dang long - let's do this!!