Tata checks ... don't put it off!!

My 10/8/2016 mammogram said there were abnormalities that required immediate follow-up. Call after call ,from my primary care physician and imaging facility, I would dodge for the next two months straight. Now, here it is, more than a year later I'll have THAT follow up. November 2, 2017 is THE day.

Why did I wait so long you say? FEAR! I lost my FAVORITE lady, my Grandmother Barbara, to breast cancer on 06/10/1988 ... the day I graduated from high school. A day I will never forget. So now I ask, could the issue seen on the previous scan now be worse? POSSIBLY. Could my vegan lifestyle have changed some things? ABSOLUTELY but it does not take away the thought of my being positive for breast cancer.

I'm not looking for pity, sympathy or prayers (you don't want everybody praying for you when you don't know their prayer life and if they even have one) but THIS post is to encourage EVERY female to take care of your breasts. We should all do self-checks monthly and follow up as instructed by your PCP if there is a need. No matter my outcome I'm trusting and believing that the Most High will be with me every step of the way.

Loving the VEGAN LIFE!!

It's been a little over a month since I have decided to totally change my eating habits and go FULL VEGAN!! August 1st marked the beginning of the third 21 day vegan challenge of 2017 for me. The first one was a bust, the second one was a bit easier and this one was a no brainer! Through out the year I stuck to many of the vegan ways but still ate chicken (my one time weakness) and seafood. Approaching this third challenge and dealing with some health issues was when the final decision was made to get rid of all diary and animal products.

As told in a previous blog, I also began juicing. That has been a blessing in itself. The ability to make my own juices instead of constantly buying Bolthouse Farms (my favorite) has saved a lot of money. This is what a typical day looks like for me, not shown are Ezekiel toast with organic peanut butter topped with sliced bananas and cinnamon drizzled with agave nector, black beans, brown rice and zucchini. This is the goodness of what meal prepping normally consist.

Let me tell you, this is not a cheap lifestyle at all but I had to weigh my options. I can pay less for unhealthy food and pay more for frequent doctors/hospital visits and prescriptions OR pay more for my healthy lifestyle and only visit my doctor as needed, hospital for emergencies and no prescriptions. I have not had to use my asthma inhaler as frequently as I used to and have not used my nebulizer since the first of the year. My headaches have decreased, I sleep better and I feel MARVELOUS! I attribute every piece of this (in Tony Bakers voice) to my lifestyle change.

Upon completion of my third 21 day vegan challenge I was supposed to blog my results but life happened. I was preparing to return to school as a SENIOR (ALMOST DONE) and accepting a new management role at my job so it fell through the cracks. So lets discuss now. My goal, as it was for every challenge, was 12 lbs. That's an odd number, sure, but 10 lbs seemed to every day'ish and 15 was a bit much in my opinion for a 21 day challenge. The first 2 challenges I lost 9 lbs, both times and gained that PLUS back. In March, I was my heaviest weighing in at 210 lbs. I had not been that heavy since 2012 when I began using the Body By Vi program. I lost 50 lbs total over a years time (see previous blogs) and felt great but was a bit too skinny for my liking. I had gotten down to a size 6 and weighed 160 lbs. Of course, once I began school in 2015 I gained a little over 30 of those pounds back. This year I had to make a change and I did! On August 21st, weigh in day, I jumped on the scale happily and here are the results.

I exceeded my goal by .5 lbs! That's not a lot but to know that the previous challenges I failed and this one I exceeded my goal felt awesome. This was the kicker to my remaining vegan on top of how great I was feeling. I looked back at a few pictures from the college tour I was blessed to be a part of in March with the Jacksonville chapter of the 100 Black Men and I was in awe! I had gotten up to 210 lbs. and was very embarrassed at how I'd had let myself go. I did not take a picture of that because earlier in the month I'd taken a picture and it said 203 lbs.

I could not believe I had gained 7 lbs in a time span of about 2 weeks. I had not been that heavy since 2012 when I started my first major weight loss journey as mentioned above. So I grabbed that picture from the tour and made a grid with some pictures I had taken recently. I was more than pleased with what I saw.

What did I do? I totally changed my eating habits. I am a line dance aerobics instructor and an avid bridge walker. That's my physical activity but nothing overwhelming or too hard. I never stepped foot in a gym, it wasn't necessary. There were no gimmicks, no cutting corners just simply changing what I put in my body. I even cut out alcohol. I am not a VEGAN LIFE ADVOCATE so don't think this is to persuade anyone to stop eating meat and live healthy BUT if it does GOOD FOR YOU! I am looking forward to living a long healthy life. I have grandchildren that I want to see become great members of society and that starts with taking care of myself and finding peace and love for myself. I think I have done a great job of that. This is a never-ending journey and I am ALL in.

Juice Day!!! #21DayVeganChallenge

Greeting Kweens and Kings! It's day 16 of my #21DayVeganChallenge and I am down 10 lbs total since August 1st, when the challenge began. The administrator likes to throw in twist during our challenge and on Monday, Day 14, our twist was to go all day on juice only. They could be smoothies or fresh juicing as well as water, of course. You have to stay hydrated.

When I started this challenge I weighed 190 lbs. My goal is to lose 12 lbs. The previous 2 challenges I was only able to lose 9 lbs both times. This time I have a weapon ... JUICING!!

I have noticed QUITE the difference in this challenge with the addition of juicing. I have thoroughly enjoyed them although they are an acquired taste. I was looking for the Bolthouse Farms tasting drinks but OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH NOOOOOOOOOO!! Not even so I add a little agave nectar when I make them. My kitchen smells like the lawn man has handed me a handful of grass, freshly cut, out of the catching bag and the clean up is another story in itself BUT I wouldn't trade it for the world.

So, on to the juice day which was an absolute success as a result of my new found love for juicing. I have to say I did miss chewing my food. I didn't even chew gum and for those that know me, they KNOW I am a habitual gum chewer so this was tough but I made it through. I had a smoothie for breakfast and post-workout, the rest of my day was all juice and lemon water.

I do not like beets, no matter how they are prepared, so that particular juice blend was not high on the list to drink. They smell like dirt and taste like dirt too BUT in all honesty, it ended up being one of the better tasting blends. I will be revisiting that drink and soon. I lost 1.5 lbs. on that day making my total weight loss on the challenge 9.5 lbs. The plan is to remain in the vegan lifestyle after this challenge is over and I am looking forward to it!!

So tell me, what are you doing for your health???

21 Day Vegan Challenge - Day 14 - All Juice Day

Greeting Kings and Kweens, it has been a few days since I have blogged about my vegan and no complaining challenges. I have had a few snags along the way, all kinds of things that could go wrong WENT WRONG but I did NOT complain! I actually did my usual, countdown from 10 slowly and think of all the positive things that were a part of the negative situations. It was also brought to my attention that we were going into the August 2017 retrograde (started August 12th) which made ALL the sense in the world. I have but one wish for us all during this time.

If you are unsure what the retrograde is, take a moment to do a little research. You won't be disappointed as it may shed some light into some things that may be going on in your life right now.

So, let's talk about my vegan challenge and the twist that has been given to us on Day 14 (tomorrow). Day 14 is an ALL JUICE DAY! This means we can have smoothies and use our juicers but nothing else. I have prepared all of my juices for tomorrow and will make my smoothies using almond milk and coconut water at the time I will consume them, which is breakfast and after my workout. Here is what 4 of my meals will look like along with my daily intake of lemon water.

I am not fond of beets so I can see that being chugged with a closed nose. Beets are awful in my opinion but I know they are good for me. I added a splash of agave nectar as well to give them a small jolt of sweetness. Those green apples do NOT cut it! If you have never juiced, let me tell you, it is an acquired taste. It is not the Bolthouse Farms or Naked tasting drinks, not at all but I drink them knowing my body is getting all it needs. After watching WHAT THE HEALTH I made a conscious decision to continue on with the vegan lifestyle if this 3rd challenge goes well and thus far it has. So well, in fact, that in the first 11 days I lost 8 lbs!

Yes, I am past due for a pedicure but look beyond that and check the number on the scale! I dropped 8 lbs in 11 days! I can say the juicing played a HUGE part because it is truly a sludge mover! When you can look and say "when did I have corn" you KNOW shit has just been sitting in your body! Get that stuff out of there!!

I'll be sure to blog about it on Day 15 (not the corn but juice day) as well as possibly do a weigh in, if the group calls for it. Collectively my challenge group lost over 72 lbs., there are only 6-7 of us participating. All have different goals, most to lose weight but some are just to be healthier. Mine is both and my goal is 12 lbs, I have 4 to go and 8 more days to make it happen.

I had to start over on my #NoComplaints challenge so I am now on Challenge 4.0 and today is Day 7. Instead of taking it every 24 hours I used a 7 day challenge chart I found online. I will write a blog tomorrow about how the first 7 days went. As trying as some of the days were I still made it through.

Have any of you tried it yet? If so, lets talk about how it has gone for you. We can support and encourage one another this way. I hope to hear from some of you.

Days 7 thru 9 - 24 Hour No Complaint Challenge

Hey there beautiful people! I started writing this on Day 9 of Challenge 3.0 #NoComplaints, which was Thursday ... the day I failed this challenge. I had been taking this challenge day by day and felt I had gotten pretty good at this positive energy emission. You know how? Why? First (the how), when I want to complain I count down slowly from 10. This allows me to think before I speak. Secondly (the why), I think of the positive thing in the negative situation of the moment and act on that. I have to say the outcome has been really rewarding with all the positive energy around me so the real question is really why wouldn't I take the challenge and be good at it? The steps are fail proof!!

So lets talk about ...

This was the day after my daughter and son-in-love departed for home. I truly enjoyed their time here. Needless to day, I was a little emotional on Day 7 and speaking with her didn't make it any better. I really want both of my children in the same state where I reside but it doesn't work out that way so I instead I enjoy the times I have when we are all together.

The departure picture from Day 6 ... it makes me smile.

The best way to get through the day was focusing on the fun times and my #LeoKing, he makes all the hurt go away. Today started the 21 day vegan challenge and he's said he would join the ride with me. Not too many men will commit to no meat but my King did. Day 7 was spent working and enjoying time with him getting additional groceries for the vegan challenge. It's a great feeling when you and your mate can partake of challenges together, especially ones that benefit your mind, body and soul.

The day came to an end without a complaint in the world. #Day7wasreallygood

Day 8 was supposed to be my day off BUT I was asked to come in. I quickly obliged because working that shift would give me a 4 DAY WEEKEND soooooo yea, you know I went in. The 9 hour work day popped off without an issue and home I went. Sauteed me some veggies as well as juiced some fruits and veggies. Juicing has been AWESOME! This was Day 2 of the #21dayveganchallenge and after watching WHAT THE HEALTH this was definitely an easy decision to make. Nothing exciting happened and definitely nothing to make me complain. I didn't see my #LeoKing but as always we spoke. After that, I carried it on to bed as I prepared for the 4 day weekend and the GIRLS TRIP scheduled! SUPER EXCITED!! #Day8wassmoothsailing

Day 9 ... the mess up that ended Challenge 3.0. I won't even go into the full day because to be honest life actually sucked this day. My GIRLS TRIP weekend was cancelled (just for me) and life as I knew it was full of BS! STRAIGHT BS! That's how I ended challenge 3.0 and the unfortunate part is, it hasn't gotten any better since that day SO what I intend to do is get it all out of system, regroup and start fresh with Challenge 4.0 on Monday.

So tell me, have you started the #NoComplaint challenge? If so, how has it been for you? What has been your struggle and/or success? I would love to know as it may assist me when I begin again.

Life is full of challenges

Hello beautiful people. I hope all is well with everyone who has taken the time out to read this and any other blog I've written. We all have challenges in life right? Some unwanted and some we choose for ourselves. Right now I have chosen to partake of 3 challenges, all are for the bettering of my mind, body, soul and pocket!

Challenge 1: No complaint challenge. If you're a reader of my blog you already know about this. I have been on this one for 28 days, taking it 24 by 24. I'm on Challenge 3.0 now, third time having to start over. I've heard the third time is a charm and it has been good thus far.

Challenge 2: 21 day vegan challenge of which this is the third for the year. It gets easier each time. Difference this go around is that I'm considering remaining in the lifestyle once the 21 days are up. Have you seen WHAT THE HEALTH??

Challenge 3: No eating out for 30 days to save money. The rule I really like is that I can go if being treated BUT I must eat healthy. I picked a GREAT time to start this, didn't it?

Let's see how it all goes. Feel free to join in any if not all AND share with me how it goes. Lets encourage one another to do and be better. Have a wonderful Wednesday!!

WHAT A WEEKEND - 24 Hour No Complaints

I decided to hold off on the blogs for the weekend. My daughter and son-in-love were here and I knew there'd be so much to blog about. Days 3-6 were absolutely wonderful!!

My daughter and future son-in-love visited for the weekend. They arrived late Thursday/early Friday morning. It had been since May that we'd seen each other. It's always a great time when we get together.

Friday, Day 3 of Challenge 3.0 #thestartover was an AWESOME day! My daughter drove me to work, bought me breakfast AND picked me up (no JTA today boo boo). Work was great, as it has been for the past 2-3 weeks with this challenge. After work, we all chilled until time to meet up with my #LeoKing for dinner and drinks. She had heard so much about him over the phone in the last month and a half, it was time to finally meet. No, I didn't need her approval to date him but when you are dating and you have children I am a firm believer that all should meet and see how they vibe. Children, no matter the age, tend to pick up on things we may miss. They were actually able to talk and have a great time!

What a blessing it is when everyone can get along. Even my son was accepting, in his own way. He usually talks about everyone and likes no one ... I have not heard ONE word from him. Anyone who knows my son KNOWS that is damn near magic for that to happen! #Day3wasaGOODday

What a dope day Saturday Day 4 of Challenge 3.0 turned out to be. Hit the beach with the young adults for some line dancing with my line dance family. THAT'S how you start a day the right way.

This awesome activity was immediately followed by time with my 4 favorite girls.

I didn't get to see my #LeoKing at all but we spoke several times so all is well with the world. There was absolutely nothing to complain about on Days 3 and 4. It's like all the positive energy in the universe aligned itself with my vibrations and gave me back what I was doing my best to give! THIS is what you call a NO COMPLAINT R.O.I. (return on your investment)!! #Day4wasaGREATday

I had to work a long shift so that meant I had to leave all of my babies. I wasn't happy, after all it was the first time ever that all 4 of my girls were together but I had to go get that money and God willing I will see them all again, together, soon! Work, as always, was short handed with the usual call out but what that does is make for a faster day ... or so I thought. Yesterday had to be the slowest, longest day on earth! (laughs loudly) That is NOT a complaint but an observation. I can't quite remember a slower day to be honest but I made it through. Day 5 ended with all the grands gone but it still come to a wonderful close. My daughter and son in love took me to dinner.

We enjoyed the LAST SUPPER together before they depart tomorrow.

Don't let the absence of full smiles fool you, we enjoyed ourselves but we were all tired. Besides, we were smizing! Dinner was followed by convo with the #LeoKing and sleep. This is how I brought Day 5 to a close, with him on my mind and in my heart which made for a great nights sleep. It also took me away from the thoughts of my daughter leaving. Although my son resides here we rarely cross paths so it's like living alone. #Day5wasanEMOTIONALday

So how does this all end?

Monday, today, Day 6 was a good day even though it continued on an emotional track. Why? It is the day my daughter and son-in-love leave for VA. I wish she lived here with my son and I but as I said previously, at some point the adult child must leave the house. One of the bright spots of the is we were able to have a 2 Kweens and 2 Kings lunch with my #LeoKing before they hit the road. I have to admit I watched them as they ate, walked through the grocery store and finished packing for their departure. The more I watch the sadder I became. I never once complained about them leaving, 1) it wouldn't change anything but 2) I was too thankful for the time we had together. That's how you remain complaint free, find the positive in EVERYTHING because EVERYTHING does have a positive side.

Thankfully, it's my favorite day of the week ... MARVELOUS MONDAY ... the day I teach line dance aerobics. Dancing always makes any day better. It was a smaller class than usual but that gave me a chance to do more dances because I didn't have to break too much down.

So now, let me ask, have you gotten on-board for the 24 Hour, No Complaint challenge? If so, have you been successful? Share your trials and triumphs with me and other readers who may need some inspiration and motivation. Tell us how it's going because we all know attempting to get and keep positive energy is tough but remember, we fall down but we get up.

If you tried and failed ...