Backslidin....

      I cut out bread, white rice, and milk.  Well tonight after a LONG hospital visit with a family member I came home a little hungry. While waiting I went out for spinach and chicken salad which was delicious. I had a yogurt when I got home because I was a little hungry. Rather than down some water I had a saucer of my old fave from Maggianos....riggatoni D......... Well the D stands for DUMB tonight. My stomach is not happy. I'm lactose intolerant but I've had this dish many time without such stomach issues. The fact is, I can't eat whatever I want. At least not without paying the price. 

This may sound like what I posted here.   

    Its so important to remember that our choices have consequences. Sitting in that hospital I kept thinking about how vital it is to take charge of my health now rather than end up a patient. The truth is, it takes patience (no pun intended) to change and sustain change. One thing that can help you in making life long changes is thinking about your actions. Also, keeping yourself focused with what you read and watch is beneficial. So while I may have taken two steps back tonight, I'm determined to take many more forward. After this prescription run (I'm fine, someone else was the patient) I'm popping in Insanity.

 

    I no longer have the mentality that one mistake means all hope is lost. One mistake means an opportunity for growth. And that's what I'm gonna focus on while I sweat it out...oh and I already planned on doing Insanity before the pasta faux pass. I'm serious about this but not obsessive.

What about you? Do you backslide?

chic hurr

I went to a natural hair fashion show hosted by Naturally Curly dot com  a few months ago and never posted anything about it.

The good: The gift bag for press people was amazing. Full size bottles of Matrix products. I met some bloggers I follow. And they were all cool.

The bad: I hadn't really gone hard on blogging yet and so didn't really do any networking.

The ugly: The models and stylists were 95 percent white...the audience was 99 percent black......and did I mention this was a natural hair fashion show? Wish there was more natural hair.

Bonus:
But hey, I did meet Kim Coles aka Sinclaire from Living Single. I watch that show almost every day and its one of my favorites of all time so that was the highlight of my night. Pardon my crazo look in the photo. I was excited. But I didn't go stalker I just said sorry to bother u can I have a pic? She was super chill and even asked if it came out ok. I was so happy I was like its fine....oops lol.

My First Weight Loss Vlog!

Chicness

This blog is about being both fit and chic and so.....I bring you a shoe post. I picked up these bad boys at Topshop last yr and I plan on wearing them forever. They're actually more comfortable than before now that I broke them in. The arch support and antislip pads help too. I hope to wear these at my open mic this weekend. More pics coming soon!

Oh and while we're speaking chic, check out my cousin color blocking it up in Central Park! She is serving it honey!

Fitspiration

Our Greatest Fear —Marianne Williamson

it is our light not our darkness that most frightens us

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won't feel insecure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of
God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people
permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.

—Marianne Williamson

How Bad Do You Want It?

I love this video. Not simply because of the immense hotness of the dude, but the point couldn't be more clear. "When you want to succeed as badly as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful." This is so true and applies to every area of life. If you want something bad enough then you make sacrifices in order to attain it. That is true of both the physical and spiritual body. Hope this video moves you like it moved me. 

My First 5k!

I finally did a 5K! The last time I attempted to do one Hurricane Irene touched down so it was canceled. On May 13th I did the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Philadelphia. My friend's step mother is a survivor so a few of us went to join my friend in showing support. I walked the whole thing in about 45 minutes. That may or may not seem like a big deal but the fact that I can now do 3 miles in under an hour is progress. I'm looking forward to my next one in June.

A view on the way to the 5k...we had to park really far. 

Who doesn't love baby geese?

I love Philly. 

We had cheerleaders! I felt special. 

The scenery definitely helped the time to pass. 

This is my official work out hat. It's comfy and dare I say,  stylish. 

I was so happy to pass this on the way home. Gotta visit this museum again. 

The walk to my friend's car was another mile...at least! 

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly-Week 2

Friday I had some alcohol...and I'm talking more than one or two beers. I drank it over many hours but still...hmmm. And Saturday I had a beer. I ate a pretzel at the 5K. It was free and delicious but not part of the no white plan. I've cut out white flours, rice, and white potatoes. Yet I also ate white rice for dinner. My steamed veggies were good but everyone else  had rice with their Chinese and I wanted some too. 

I lost 2 pounds! Woo hoo! And yesterday I did my first 5k! (post on that coming soon)
That's the good. 

Then there's the bad...
 I ate white rice at dinner and a pretzel during the 5K. White rice and flour are not part of the weight loss plan! I should have just stuck with my banana for healthy carb energy. Not to mention, I ate plenty of carbs Friday and Saturday.

The ugly
I was hungry yet again when I got home...actually hungry though, not just greedy. I had no healthy options at home so I made an egg and turkey bacon sandwich...on potato bread! Which is full of artificial ingredients and packs 100 calories a slice. Not to mention I drank yet more beer (and way too many chips)....I know, I know, I said I was done. So definitely gonna improve during the week and I'm going to plan my meals for the weekend so that this doesn't happen again. All week I'm super healthy and I fall off the wagon on the weekend.


*The best part of this is that I didn't just continue eating. I ate more chips but then I cut myself off. The self-sabotage is finally becoming a thing of the past. At happy hour on Friday I had steamed veggies! And I loved it! So I know that I can choose healthier options with ease. And next happy hour I'll have water with lemon rather than a beer. It may seem extreme but alcohol has no health benefits so I'm not depriving myself. And I'm allergic to wheat so it makes me bloated and causes sinus headaches. I'm doing myself a favor here.   I automatically try to choose healthier choices and sometimes I slip but I don't consider it the end of my journey and start all over. This is part of the journey. It's been a long ride but I've got the hang of it and I'm gonna keep going.

Sober

I thought this song was appropriate for this post. Oh how I love the lyrics. While I can totally relate to the lyrics as I think of my college days, these days I'm only a social drinker. I have an active social life and I just downright enjoy the taste of alcohol. Do I drink it daily or weekly? No. But occasionally I do want a break from water and tea. Unlike my "Weekend Love" post from my other blog back in January, I know realize and appreciate the fact that my body needs nutrients. Everything else will get stored as fat (source). Since fat is what I'm trying to lose it makes NO SENSE to drink something that will ultimately turn into more fat! So I'm on a hiatus from alcohol for the month of May. I'm going on a girl's weekend next month and I'm sure we'll go out for drinks. I will have a beer or shot (shots of Patron are lower in calories by the way) and enjoy it. But I'm now at a point where I only want to drink on rare occasions.

A beer gut is not part of the plan. I'm not about that. 

These two quotes have really been at the forefront of my mind these days: 

"The first wealth is health." -Ralph Waldo Emerson 

"Those who do not find time for exercise now will have to find time for illness." 

How about you? Is alcohol something you would ever cut out? 

Walk it out....

Real women walk! 

This was my jam when it came out..don't judge me. 

Yesterday I walked a total of 6 miles. Today I walked 3.5 miles...in 45 minutes! I do get some side eyes from people at times, but I walk when I have a destination to get to-and I walk like I've got somewhere to go. 

Michele knows how to do a good side eye. 

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly...Part One

The Good
I walked a total of 6 miles today.
I said no to carbs and made healthy food choices.

The Bad
I only drank 3 bottles of water today...I usually have 5


The Ugly
I had three Coronas this evening....That's 360 calories. Which basically cancels out half my workout.

So the plan is to lose 3 pounds this week through hard core exercise. I'm gonna pop in the Insanity dvd and my walk from work is about 2 miles. I plan to eat clean and work out twice a day, every day. I enjoyed the beer today because I'm not having any more beer this month. I actually enjoy the taste of beer. But I enjoy the taste of victory much more.

Enter my universe

Truth: There are very few weight loss focused blogs by black women. So this is my contribution. My testimony of sorts. Basically I'm an emotional eater as well as a woman who simply enjoys food. So today I ate cake and went out to dinner and ate what I wanted. I make no apologies in spite of the fact I'm trying to lose weight. I'm all about eating right and exercise. So in my quest to achieve both with consistency, I bring you, well, me. This is MY blog and I hope you can take something from it. I hope you'll find the truth in your own experience and this will encourage you as you continue on your journey. WELCOME