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Ajima Jackson

Toi has gone from 235 to 190!

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Much Love to BWLW online community member Toi T. She has gone from 235 to 190 with eating and exercise!

She says, “I started my weight loss journey feb 3, 2012 @ that time I weighed in at 235 pounds ! I am now at the current weight of 190 pounds and my goal weight is 150 or less by the summer of next year !!! My motivation for losing the weight is I got tired of other people talking about me and killing my self esteem in my face , asking me if I was pregnant and I haven’t had a baby in almost eight years and that was just the beginning !!! I take up to nine classes a week cardio combined with strength training, try to eat as heathy as possible , drink lots of water and snack on health treats !!! If I can do it anyone can do it and I am trying motivate everyone that reads this to try it and keep going until you succeed !!!! love you all” Much love to you too, Toi.

Want to know what you really want in terms of health and wellness?

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Try this exercise: Make a list of all the reasons why you can’t eat right, exercise, give up junk food, live a more healthy life, and lose weight. What is holding you back? What habits are too hard for you to let go of?

Then make a list of all the things you would gain if you didn’t have to think about your weight. All the things you would gain if you never had to diet again. What are all the things that would be better if you were in a place where your health was great and your weight was at a healthy, maintainable level. Would you have more self confidence? Would you wear different clothes? Could you better walk up stairs and run around with the kids without getting out of breath. Would you have greater freedom in your mind because your weight is no longer a repeating struggle?

Now, put the 2 lists side by side. Ask yourself: What do I really want? What am I willing to do to get what I really want? Do you want the reasons why you can’t lose the weight or do you want the weight loss? Are you really ready to do the hard things necessary to change? Do you have enough will power and motivation?

Your actions will tell you what you really want. Words spoken and words written only help us to see what we want to have manifest in our lives. It is what we DO once we’ve weighed the options that will determine what our reality is going forward.

Congrats to Ashley on 79 lbs down

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BWLW Facebook member Ashley lost 79 pounds and eating right was KEY!

She says, “I started my lifestyle change May of 2010 by January 2012 I was @ my 79 weight loss total. I changed my eating habits by cutting down my portion sizes and what I ate. I eat more fruits and veggies now and try not to eat after 7. I cut out junk foods and eat very little carbs. I also stopped drinking juices and sodas.I love drinking water especially with crystal light in them. I love eating foods that boost my metabolism. I also worked out every day. I think I’m where I want to be now weight wise. The way I keep it off is I still eat the same way I did to lose the way. I love my lifestyle change!” You look great, Girl!! Thank you for sharing your story.

For more great before and afters, visitwww.blackwomenlosingweight.com

Marci has gone from a size 18 to a size 10

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BWLW Community Member, Marci has gone from a size 18 to a 10. http://blackwomenlosingweight.com/photo/from-an-18-to-a-size-10

She’s gone from 215 to 173!

She says, “I actually started making healthier food choices in Dec of 2011. In January I started working out. It is now August. I tell everyone it took me 9 mos to get rid of 50 LBS! Looking back, I wouldn’t have it any other way! Most days, I eat veggies, lean protein, fruit and drink lots of water.


I did pretty much what we have been told for years.. Incorporate some type of activity 5-6 times a week. (For me, it was workouts at home via dvd.) Also eat your veggies and fruit. I still eat all of the things that I used to except for McDonald’s french fries. However, don’t ask me about the fries at Chic Fila! lol I don’t follow a strict plan for eating. If I want it I will eat it. I just know if I do, put in extra hard work the next day at the gym. Breakfast might be a GREEN SMOOTHIE or oatmeal and fruit. Lunch is fast food, which can be a JR Hamburger from Wendy’s with ketchup and lettuce and tomato and a side salad or baked potato or a sub from subway. Dinner is lean protein (chicken -oven fried Bobby Dean recipe) and sweet potato and veggies!! Lots of water. Honestly, I can’t tell you when I have a soda! I think it would burn a whole in my chest, if I did!” Great job, Marci!For more great before and afters and to connect with other black women who are losing the weight, visitwww.blackwomenlosingweight.com

Day 7 – BWLW September Smoothie Challenge – 7 Benefits of Green Smoothies

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Broccoli, spinach, kale, celery, arugula, or wheatgrass in your smoothie?  A lot of people assume that the taste will be terrible when they see a green smoothie for the first time.  When you give it a try, you find that the fruit and other flavors overwhelm the greens most of the time.  Green smoothies are not only delicious, but very good for our health in terms of allowing the body to easily assimilate a variety of nutrients and vitamins at the same time.  Here are 7 benefits of drinking green smoothies.

  • NO artificial ingredients
  • Easy to digest.  The cell walls of the fruits and veggies are ruptured by blending so the body can absorb them.
  • Green smoothies are fiber rich and good for your digestion.  This is why so many of you ladies are experiencing better bowel health.
  • They taste good, so you want to drink them…unlike some other diet drinks.
  • The sugar in green smoothies is natural sugar, not fake sugars like processed white sugar, corn syrup or artificial sweeteners.
  • If you have an allergy to dairy or gluten you can still do fruit and veggie smoothies.
  • The body can detox and cleanse it’s self because you are eating food with high levels of fiber, high water content, and low processed chemicals.

Add some green to your smoothies today.  The easiest way is to buy baby spinach or kale and add a handful of two to your smoothie.  Using bananas or blueberries is the easiest way to mask any of the taste, but for the most part any sweet fruit will do the job.

Today’s Recipes:

Green Tea Smoothie

  • 1 1/2 cups green grapes
  • 1 cup washed spinach
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1 cup decaf green tea

Green Coco Mango – makes 2 servings

  • 2 cups ripe mango chunks (frozen works too)
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 2 cups unsweetened coconut water
  • 1 sprig fresh mint
  • 2 handfuls of spinach
  • 1 teaspoon agave nectar

Green Berry Tofu – Great source of veggie protein

  • 1/2 cup silken tofu
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 handfuls of spinach or kale (washed)
  • 1 cup of water

Day 6 – BWLW September Smoothie Challenge – I took my own advice

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This post is a bit late because work has been…Crazy as a [beep].  Better late than never.  I’ve got 3 new smoothies recipes for you below.  Check out the previous days posts for other recipes.

I took my own advice from earlier in the week and added 1/2 cup of raw cashews to 2 bananas, water, and 2 cups of strawberries on Thursday morning to make this smoothie.  Yummy and creamy.  In the Nutribullet the cashews were completely broken down, but there were some chunks of frozen strawberry.  I’ll let it blend a little longer next time.

strawberry cashew banana smoothie
Strawberry Cashew Banana Smoothie

Today’s Recipes:

Peach and Avocado Dream

  • 1 ripe avocado, halved and pitted
  • 1 pitted peach
  • 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 9 ice cubes

Mango Parsley Smoothie

  • 1 cup frozen mango
  • 1/2 pear
  • 1/4-1/2 cup parsley
  • 1 teaspoon of agave nectar
  • 1 big kale leaf (optional – little extra green)
  • 1 1/2 cups water

Green Energy Smoothie

  • 12 oz of brewed green tea
  • 4 large pieces of kale
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 cup blueberries, frozen
  • 1/4 cup regular rolled oats
  • 1 handful of almonds
  • 1 cup ice
  • 1 Tablespoon wheatgrass powder (optional)
  • 2 Medjool dates, pitted (you can substitute 1 tablespoon of agave nectar)

Sondra is down 41 lbs

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Sondra has lost 41 pounds by “just eating healthy and alot of walking.”
She says, “The pic on the left was almost two years, ago. I weight 265 pounds. the pic on the right i just took Thursday and I am weighing 224. My ideal weight IS 150. i know i can do it with gods help.” Simple changes over time can make a difference. Thank you for sharing, Sondra.

Black Women Must Support Each Other on this Weight Loss Journey

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Today’s Inspiration | African American women, Let ‘s support one another as we walk this journey to health together. You may not agree with another sista’s methods. You may feel that someone should work harder or is taking an easy route. This should not get in the way of us connecting and supporting each other.

We all have the right to make our choices and have them respected. We are smart women who know the benefits and negative points of the choices that have gotten us to this place in time in terms of out health. Let us lend an ear and share positive encouragement. Let us not be judgmental, but always willing to share our truths and hear the truths of others in kind. Let us see past our petpeeves and opinions to the real issues that our fellow sisters are dealing with and the support they need. Let us be open when our sista’s love feels like correction, but we really know it’s love.

BWLW is a community of like minded Black Women wanting to lose weight as part of their overall wellness goals. Let this be a place of unity and hope. A place of refuge for women who want to connect and share. – Ajima

Tiana went from 250 to 149!

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BWLW member Tiana went from 250 to 149 lbs.  Exercise was key to her success.  She shared her story with us on Facebook.
She says, “My Name Is Tiana I am 24 yrs old and 5’2 in height. about two years ago I was 250lbs I looked in the mirror and told myself something has to change. I was depressed, I didnt feel pretty, my confidence level was really low. So I decided to change my lifestyle and hit the gym. my first whole year I would workout and try my taste buds on all kinda different healthy eats. so I could try and move my lifestyle change along it was really tough just like anyone I struggled, I was lost I didnt really know If I was Eating the right foods and I was wondering if I eating enough, how much of this I should have etc. I managed to lose 45lbs on my own but I knew I just needed something more to help me achieve my goal. thats when I was interduced to a Man name Beau He has a program called Formula55 Website is www.formula55.com. he is a guy that is out of Tampa Fl, his program is made to transform your body in 55 days, his program is made to push your body to levels you never even thought that you would be able to achieve. Beau gives you a personalized nutrition plan, and through out his camp he has different classes you can attend to do your weight traning and cardio. and that is how I made it to my lowest weight at 149lbs I workout at least 5 days a week cardio is my friend but I mostly pay attention now to what I am eating and how much of it I am having. Change has took over me and My healthy lifestyle will not just stop here I have transformed into a new person. for the ones that is in the position that I was in just know that nothing is Impossible and that you can make a change. Like I tell people all the time for the ones that ask for my advice,. If you make at least one new change a day you will start to see your whole life do a 360. team fitness is my new saying and I hope that everyone will join the team to live this healthy and wonderful lifestyle. =]”
Great Job, Tiana!!

Day 5 – BWLW September Smoothie Challenge

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Today I’d like to share a short list of benefits that can come from drinking smoothies.

Hydration

If you’ve been drinking at lot of soda and coffee, you may not have been as hydrated as you think.  Most smoothies contain water, ice, dairy or nut milk.  This gives added hydration.  Also, since you’re not eating dry food, your body doesn’t have to pull water out of your system to rehydrate the food to digest it.  Not a replacement for water alone, but much better than processed drinks.

Calcium and Probiotics

If you are adding yogurt to your smoothies, you will not only get smooth goodness, but also calcium and probiotics.  Leafy green veggies like spinach are also a great vegan source of calcium in green smoothies.

Less Excuses for Eating Healthy

Smoothies are so easy to make that you don’t have an excuse for not trying them (unless you have a health issue or food allergy).

  • You don’t have to buy special powders or mixes.
  • You can get great, healthy ingredients at your local supermarket.
  • You can drink them on the go.
  • You can get a mini blender and use it at work.
  • You can combine the foods you like and leave out what you don’t like.

There is no good excuse for not giving it a try.

You Can Get Added Nutrition with Oils and Nuts

Just as many people are surprised that they can add leafy greens and veggies like broccoli to their smoothies, you may be surprised that with a powerful blender you can also add nuts (raw cashews, almonds, macadamia) and oils.  Fats from oils and nuts added to the carbohydrates you already have in your smoothies will make them more balanced in terms of nutrition.  You can also add oils like flax seed oil or olive oil.  A teaspoon or 2 will do.  I suggest cod liver oil or coconut oil as well.  Nuts and Oils are also great ways to add calories to your smoothies in a healthy way.

Today’s Recipes:

Strawberry & Almond (adapted from the NY Times)

  • 1 heaping cup frozen strawberries
  • 1 tablespoon almond powder (also known as almond flour) or finely ground almonds – (grind them in a food processor first if they are whole)
  • 1 drop almond extract
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 cup buttermilk (you can substitute a cup of plain yogurt)
  • 1 teaspoon honey

Add ice if desired.  Drink right away.   330 calories; 6 grams fat; 6 grams of fiber

Green Coconut Goodness

  • 1 frozen banana (you can make this with 2 if you like)
  • 2 cups kale (chopped)
  • 1 tbsp flax seed meal (optional)
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil (optional)
  • 1/4 cup milk (optional)
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Cashew Kale Shake from Cadry’s Kitchen – Makes 2 servings

  • 4-5 leaves of any variety of kale (without center rib) – about 3 ½ cups
  • 3/4 cup vanilla soy milk  (Can be replaced with any non-dairy milk or water)
  • 1/3 heaping cup raw cashews
  • 2 Tbsp flax seed
  • 3 ripe bananas, broken into chunks and frozen
  • 6 ice cubes