Being Brave…

I decided to start writing again, even before I came up with a title for this post. Not really sure what I want to say and where this post or blog is even going…so much has changed, yet so much has stayed the same since I started this blog so many years ago.

I know it’s time to change the name, that’s for sure…why? Well, I’m still fluffy ☺️ and while the journey has continued it has moved from weight-loss, to acceptance of who I am to unconditional love of who and where I am on this journey of life, well most of the time!

Yes, there are times that I want to weigh less, truth is, I am more concerned about my health and how I feel, than fitting into that size 10. While that would also be great, it’s more important to me to be the best and healthiest version of me…which is not always easy for sure. I’ve learnt so much about me and seen the world change.

Maybe I’ll keep the name bye bye fluffy for a time longer as I continue on my journey of self acceptance, we all have those days of not loving ourselves enough or worse, comparing ourselves to others. So I’ve titled this post being brave as that’s what I’m doing by sharing glimpses of my inner journey with you…

Is it May already???

Well the journey continues and I am so excited that this time the reason for me not blogging has nothing to do with me not working on saying goodbye to ‘fluffy’.
The last few months have been part of an amazing journey that I am on to rediscovering self, getting healthy and feeling confident in my own skin. And folks the most important thing is to feel confident and happy in your skin, no matter your size. No point being thin and unhappy!!!

So I’m definitely not at my ideal weight yet and I still have a long way to go. However I’m excited…my clothes are fitting better and my mom is no longer stressing me about by weight, which is definitely a plus! In fact she’s been brilliant over the last few months. You see we had a little chat and I even sent an email, explaining how I was feeling and how her ‘helpful’ comments that were sometimes not so helpful. My mom is an amazing woman and I’m glad to say that not only did she get it, she has been extremely supportive. It helps that she created an environment that was conducive to talking openly and building trust.

So what have I been doing? Well my mom and I went on a ‘RAW diet’ yep that’s right. Admittedly it was more for identifying food allergies and intolerances than losing weight..that was a great added bonus though!! It was really helpful in getting me to look at my relationship with food and how my body reacted to certain things. Since returning to live in Jamaica and getting ChicV, my body has been doing all sorts of funny…including swelling. I was tired of the swollen ankles and knees and had to do something about that and the weight. So going on RAW helped as it isolated foods for me and the swollen ankles and knees….they all but disappeared.

I’ll be honest it was hard to doing the 21 RAW diet challenge…there were times that I was really emotional and so so so sad!!! The minute I reintroduced meat, I was happy again 🙂 It was interesting, instead of craving chocolate and sweets, I was craving meat and I’m not talking chicken. I wanted steak, oxtail, liver. I spoke with a nutritionist briefly and they mentioned that the craving to meat could be associated with my blood type…I found that really interesting. If you like me have battled with weight, you would have heard of the blood type diet…might be worth investigating.

What I realise for me though, is diets don’t work for me because life happens. So instead it has to be a complete lifestyle change…and that’s what I’m working on…..

Happy New Year in February…

So I am finally picking up my pen and paper (so to speak) and getting back into the swing of things. I have finally come to terms with the fact that I am a routine girl. I work best when there is some sort of structure and the same is true for my health – diet and exercise.

So Christmas was good and although I enjoyed myself and enjoyed the food, I didn’t overindulge. So I didn’t gain any weight, I didn’t lose any either. Instead of beating myself up about it..I’m moving forward. 

Inspiring people….

During this journey towards the perfect weight (and for many people that term means very different things), I am encouraged and inspired by a very good friend of mine, someone who I would call a sister! Nina Blakemore is an international model, radio and tv presenter among a number of other things including being one of the most beautiful individuals I have every met. Nina’s beauty goes beyond what you see. One of the lessons that I am learning from her is to ignore the negative comments from people in regards to my weight or to be honest the ‘helpful’ comments…you know the ones where those under a size 10 feel that it is their duty to tell you what you need to do…Anyway, I wanted to share with you a little about Nina and I asked her to write something for the blog….her journey inspires me and her positive body image encourages me to love me as I am even while I’m losing weight.

Nina touches briefly on some of the issues that impacted and still impact her, if you want to know more please add your questions in the comment section…thanks for tuning in!!!

         

My name is Nina Blakemore and I have worked as a curve model for nearly 20 years now. I started off as a straight size model all those years ago but could never maintain a size 8 figure. Unfortunately, I developed an eating disorder but managed to get it under control. Now, I work closely with B-eat, the eating disorder charity in the UK. I go into Schools and Colleges and talk about body image and help young people who are in the same position I was. I tell them all about my career and the fact that I have worked more as a size 18 model than I ever did as an 8. My work has taken me all over the World. I have met some amazing people and visited some beautiful places. I have taken part in some awesome photoshoots, catwalk shows and appeared in numerous tv shows, my main goal is to always promote a healthy body image. I am proud of my curves and truly believe that you don’t have to be a size zero to be gorgeous.

I now work as a curve ambassador and believe all women are beautiful no matter what shape or size. I still model but am moving more into presenting and am really happy to be accepted for the size that I am now which is no mean feat in the media World! I definitely think opinions are changing, yes, I am always going to get negative comments, I have had to listen to them all my life but finally, at the age of 37 I am proud to say that I am learning to love my body. We all have good days and bad. I have always carried weight on my bottom half and have recently been diagnosed with lipoedema. I always knew there had to be a reason why I could never shift my bum and thighs like my top half but you know what, I am who I am. Good job my man loves a beautiful booty! 😉 I wish you all happiness and peace with your body 🙂

www.ninablakemore.com

www.lipoedema.co.uk

www.b-eat.co.uk

Water

Mona Dam, Kingston, Jamaica

Over the past year the importance of water has really hit home especially with the drought the island has experienced. Even now most folks are still rejoicing when it rains, even when they have to cope with the challenges that come along with the downpour. From me, the drought has increased my being aware of how much water is wasted when washing the dishes or how much water is wasted from taking long showers and being cautious about drinking tap water and having to buy bottled water, which has resulted in me reducing my water intake. The tap water just not tasting right…

Feeling great….

What an absolutely fabulous two weeks, I have to admit that I am feeling great and I’m in a really good place. So last week not only did I go walking twice and to Zumba, you really do have to visit Chai Studios, I also went on the Digicel 5K Run!!! Okay, so I didn’t run all the way, I did run at the start and at the end and I completed the race within 1:15mins even though we stopped along the way.

A good week…

So what defines a ‘good week’ when saying bye bye to the fluff! Well for me, it’s more than just losing a pound or two…cause if it was, I’d be in trouble, be feeling down in the doldrums of despair and wanting to give up as no pounds were lost this week. Of course if I lost a pound or two or three, I would be thrilled and jumping round like a ‘jack-in-the-box’.

Smart choices…

Okay so when it comes to food, I can honestly say that I don’t make all the right choices. What I can say, is that everyday I am making smarter, healthier choices. For the past two weekends, I have indulged to say the least and I’ve had to pay the price, especially when it comes to my weight-loss goals.

MY TOP 7 FOODS FOR FIBROMYALGIA

I found this blog really informative and useful…hopefully you will too!!

Monique Amado

I shared recently about what I did (and do) about Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Symptoms. I really hope it helped someone because I know a lot of people struggle with these and other inflammatory problems.

One of the keys to feeling good, I have found, is getting enough high alkaline foods, but also enough of the right fats.

So here’s a list of which foods are part of my regular staple and make a huge difference to my health and my life…

LEMONS

I start each day by squeezing half a lemon into a glass of warm (not hot) water. Lemons are possibly the highest alkaline food on the planet. Squeezing some lemon into my water when I first get up gives my system a kickstart and starts cleansing my body before I’m even fully awake. Easy peasy.

WATERMELON

The other highest alkaline food on the planet is watermelon! How…

View original post 693 more words

Helping hands….

So this week a good friend of mine, who religiously goes to the gym, yeah that’s so not me. Invited me to go to a free event being hosted by Chai Studios at Emancipation Park. The truth is I hate the gym, for lots and lots of different reasons. Including feeling fat – its a gym right so going there to lose the weight makes perfect sense. Well for me I seem to have an aversion to the gym, so agreeing to go to this event shocked even myself. I do want to stress that if the gym is your thing or if you like spinning or yoga or anything like that, you should check out Chai Studios…they are fabulous and have lots of choice.