Happy Memorial Day!!!

I love a good ol' fashioned barbecue. There’s yummy potato salad,peach cobbler, and mouth watering ribs that fall of the bone smothered in BBQ sauce mmmmm (flashback- Brother’s Ribs in Newark, NJ sopping the bread in gravy..ohhh and ahh!!!) okay I'm back to reality now. Despite the calorie packing foods on the picnic table there are plenty of healthy options.

1) Grilled Meats

Many people who barbecue offer a healthy array of foods to put on the grill besides the regular hot dogs and hamburgers. You can ask the host to grill some chicken, a lean cut of steak, or a very lean turkey burger. If the host doesn’t have these items on the menu do yourself a favor and pick some up. (Caution bbq meats do contain a lot of carcinogens but just be cautious not to grill too much.)

2) Kabobs

Whether it’s chicken, steak, shrimp, or a combination kabobs are fun healthy and easily portable meal for an outside celebration. Roasted peppers, onions, and mushrooms make a great additions to these fun treats.

3) Low Calorie Desserts

I found this gem on fitness magazine.com It’s Greek Yogurt with Oranges and Mint. All you do is add oranges, honey, a mint, and plain yogurt . It’s only 200 calories has 11 grams of protein, 34g of carbs, 5 g of fiber, and og of fat!! Can’t beat that. They have a quite a few low calorie/fat desserts to select from. Click here Write down your favorite and impress your friends

4) Low Calorie Alcoholic Drinks

The more alcoholic content of your beverage the more calories it has. For instance 80 proof vodka has 64 calories but 90 proof vodka only has 73 calories. Most glasses of wine have 125-150 calories depending on how big the glass is J Beer fans steer better at ordering light beer to soothe your taste buds. Chain restaurant drinks are just a no no. TGIF’s mudslide for instance has 1100 calories!!!

So eat smart, choose your appetisers wisely, and do what the Barcardi commercial says and drink responsibly!!

Have fun peeps!!

…..The Father, The Son, And The Holy Biscuit...Amen!!!

As I sit here watching our President give the commencement speech at Notre Dame I am filled with a a few emotions and thoughts.
1) PRIDE – To see my President at my Alma Mater (Go IRISH!!)
2) DISGUST – At the controversy of him giving the speech (COUGH…BUSH…COUGH….CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.)
3) AND FOOD

I know you are like, “Huh!! What does food have to do with the President speaking at the number one Catholic school in the country?”

Well a few weeks ago at my job, I was lucky to sit through a Lunch & Learn. One of the jewels the speaker dropped was the history of eating three times a day. According to the speaker back in the 1200’s the Church wooed people to Christianity during the crusades by offering food three times a day. Every time the local countrymen ate (courtesy of the church) they paid homage and reverence to God…THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT.

However it is 2009 and it’s time to eat smarter. Eating three times a day is not good for you. When we wait five to six hours to eat, we send our blood sugar levels in a tail spin. Waiting too long to eat can cause your blood sugar levels to dip low which can cause fatigue. Also when people wait long to satisfy their hunger they tend to overeat and consume nutrient poor food. This as a result causes people’s blood sugar levels to spike and your pancreas releases insulin into the blood stream. Over time eating inconsistently and poorly can cause a person’s body to lose insulin sensitivity. High levels of insulin helps convert the excess sugar into fat…HELLO DIMPLES ON YOUR BUTT CHEEKS!!!! Solution – Eat more often and eat smaller meals. I eat every 2 to 3 hours . Think about it..this way. Your body is like a store. The quicker a store sells through it’s inventory, the more profitably it becomes, and the more inventory it needs to stay in business !!! Well your body is the same way and your inventory is small healthy portions. The more you eat (healthy….that is), the faster your body turns it over, and the more it needs to keep going.

So go to your local farmer's market and get some healthy and hearty eats!!!

Enjoy your Sunday everyone :)

The Grave Yard Shift

Yesterday, a long time friend of mine gave birth to a beautiful and healthy boy. I know there are billions of people on this Earth but I am still amazed at how women push those things out. In like a banana, and out like a pineapple….ouch and ouch!! Naturally my home girl was in the worst pain in her life and she was hungry azz hell, so she relied on that good ol Irish restaurant for some cuisine, McDonald’s. (Side bar yes I said to myself, “Oh God not Mickey D’s!!” but after seeing what she went through she deserved those french fries).

Anywho, it was a little after 10pm and I was worn out, hungry, and I wanted my bed ASAP!!! I could only imagine how my girlfriend felt but then I glanced at the nurses and I said to myself, “Ummm how in the hell do they do this for a living?!?!?” Almost everyone on staff looked tired and just worn down, not to mention they were all overweight. When I left, I walked passed the nurses station and overheard them ordering food and none of it was healthy. I couldn’t help but think to myself, "well there lies the source of the problem".

Working the late shift is unhealthy on so many levels. First off, the longer you are up the more you are going to eat. Secondly, if you are up late at night you will rely on the quick food sources to quell your hunger pains (vending machines, diners, pizza parlors, omg I am having flashbacks from college Poppa John’s bread sticks with garlic sauce…yummy!!!!) You get my drift, you are not eating salads! Lastly, you really are not motivated to workout. You are drained as all hell and not to mention when you get off of work it’s hard to go to sleep because your body is not used to that sleeping pattern or you have errands to run (taking the kids to school). A simple solution would be to change shifts, but that is not reasonable, but if you have a good game plan anything is possible, and here are a couple of tips:

First of all go food shopping!! You are just going to have to pick a day out of the week or every other week and go to the grocery store. Secondly once you get the food put it into a thermo container so it will keep your food at an ideal temperature (see an example here). In order to get your burn on at anytime of the day, why not join a 24 hour gym so you have no reason not go? On the days you have off from work, make it to the gym and push yourself to go at least one day out of the week that you do work (that way you workout at least 3 days a week).

I know that it's hard, but YOU ARE WORTH IT to make any and all sacrifices in order to better yourself, and of course with no excuses and definitely No Apologies!

AND the Tortoise Wins by a Hare!!! (Part 2)

Hi my No Apologies Family

Guess what??!!!! I took first place at my show this weekend and I am so stoked!! This was really a long time coming ladies and gents. I first began competiting in 2008 and it has been a long and exhausting journey. I remember my first show. There were 20 girls and I didn’t place top 5. I wasn’t disappointed by this placing because it was my first show, I lossed a lot of weight, and I later found out that I placed 6…just shy of the top spot. However, the next show I did was a major blow to my ego. I messed up in my presentation and again I wasn’t called for top 5. I was hurt because I felt that I looked tons better than the first show and I felt I deserved a better placing. Two weeks later I earned my first NPC trophy by placing in the Surburban classic, but I still wasn’t satisfied. I felt I deserved better than that, so I decided to step my game up a notch.

I asked my uncle for training advice and I began training with him mid- December for a Valentine’s Day show. At that show I placed 1st and 2nd in figure and the fitness model category. Needless to saly, I was very encouraged by these results. I pressed forward with my training but then I hit hard times in the second phase of my training when my friend (Salamon Legend) died tragically. I don’t know where I found the strength but I forced myself to make the commute to my uncle’s gym (a cool 30 minutes away) in the weee hours of the morning . Even though I broke down crying on the treadmill I kept training and resaying my motto over and over in my head “NO ONE STOPS THE SHOW!!”

I’m so glad that I continued with my training. It was great to win but it was even more satisfying that the win came after a year and some change of training. Had I won right out the bat or placed top 5 at my first show, I would’ve been full of myself and thought that I was unstoppable. Each show I competed in made me more focused and determined to be in the coveted top 5, and boy did it work. Check out some behind the scene shots below.

My Spray Tan the night before...yes Black people must do it too!!

Getting all oiled up before the show

Practicing my turns before I head out on stage.

Pumping up!!

We are all lined up and ready to go.

Front pose

Side Pose

The money shot

First Place

So don't give up peeps. Keep on moving and stumbling with every twist and turn. It's the dead ends that make us stronger. No Apologies people.

AND the Tortoise Wins by a Hare!!!

I remember when I was about seven or eight years old watching the "Tortoise Beats The Hare" cartoon. Here you had the cocky and boastful hare who was just convinced that he was going to beat the slow ass tortoise. But all the while the tortoise remained cool, calm, and collective. No matter all the sensational hype of the hare the tortoise kept firm in his abilities and stuck to his guns. When it was Showtime the hare blew the tortoise away…in the BEGINNING. But in the endurance phase of the race he lagged behind and the tortoise won. And we all know why right?

BECUASE HE PACED HIMSELF!!

I see this all the time when the weather heats up or with a dawn of a new year. Those who were afraid of the blistery cold weather and the dark morning sky all of sudden turn into seasoned Olympic athletes with boundless energy . Determined they venture to the gym morning, noon, or night or sometime morning, noon, and night!! They are so excited that they tell anyone who has ears how early they woke up and all the hard core ab exercises they did. They insist that going to the gym nonstop is okay because they are motivated and you got to strike the iron while its hot!!!

This superhuman effort makes them feel powerful but then……. it happens. “Hey (insert name here) you want to go to Chili’s with us at lunchtime????" You say to yourself no…but then you start to bargain and say, “Well I can order from the healthy menu and still stick to my diet”. Okay I will you that but then some generous person orders the triple play and then you say to yourself, “Gee just one, no two, I'm sorry three little buffalo wings won’t hurt...besides it's protein and my body needs it to build muscle.” (LMAO..ok..and all that fattening sauce is just what you needed…anyway back to the story) Well before you know it you had the appetizer, margaritas, a healthy entrée (side eye and stare) and 3 spoonfuls of apple crisp with French vanilla ice cream that you are sharing with three other people, but that's okay because you didn't eat the whole thing. (ummm..okay..lol)

While you are not completely thrown off course you have started to pack your bags to “Square One Land.” Soon the trips to the gym slowly began trailing off and then you say the kiss of death, “You know what!!! I just can't seem to get out of bed. Or I don't like the crowds at the gym with all those people staring at me... let by this treadmill or workout tape instead. Besides look at all those sucess stories!!” If you find yourself here well CONGRATUALTIONS !!!You just collected another piece of dust for your house.

My point is that the battle of the bulge is a marathon not a sprint. Although it would be nice to lose 15-30 lbs in a month it is not feasible nor is it healthy. To stay in the game I say do the following:

1) Join a gym – I'm sorry working out at home will not give you the same results as going to the gym. Unless you plan on buying $15,000 worth of equipment in your palatial 3 bedroom home then it’s not going to work. You need to rely on your community to help you…you are not an island!!

2) Seek professional help– Personal trainers don’t just tell you how to use a machine. Hell that’s what the diagram on the machine is for. They are there for emotional support!! You are going to want to stop and they will tell you why you have to fight. They will switch your boring routine to something new and challenging. And if they are really good..they will give you the right nutritional plan to jumpstart your metabolism.

3) Start off going to the gym only 3- 4 times a week. If working out isn’t a regular activity you slowly have to get your body adjusted to the extra hour or two you will be up. Yes it’s hard to wake up early or to extend your day. But we are sophiscated animals and just like a plant we adapt to our environment. Pretty soon you'll do it like it's nothing.

I’m just saying folks you can’t expect to go from Aretha Franklin to Halle Berry in 3 months. It’s time, determination, and persistence…and that only comes through time…

If you’re having a problem staying in the game…leave a comment below…it doesn’t hurt to ask.

Spring Is Here...

Hi all,

It’s almost May and pretty soon 80 degree plus days will be the norm. So that means no more hiding underneath your clothes . As usual there will be a mad dash to gym and people will start trying all of the fad diets (cabbage soup, 3 day diet, atkins, south beach).

Before you get caught up in the hype it is important to pace yourself. I hate to say this to the “hit and quit it” generation but the key to long and sustained weight loss takes time. Less than 5% of the people who use fad diets to jump start their weight loss efforts keep it off !!! Your best defense is to plan, plan, plan. Your biggest allay in the weight loss game is the grocery store. Once or every other week make a trip to the grocery store and prepare your lunch and work snacks the night before.

If your work life is not the typical 9 to 5 job, don’t fret. Here are few things you can do to beat the fat game. I'm sure you can put yourself into one of these categories, I know I can!

Truck Drivers, Auditors, Sales Man (or anyone who finds themselves on the road a lot):

If you have a job that puts you on the road a lot put all your meals in a Thermos container. I suggest the RubberMaid 5- Liter Thermoelectric Travel Cooler and Warmer.

It’s less than $35 and you can buy it at Walmart. Whether it’s a hot soup, sandwich, fruit, or a yummy chicken and veggies this container will keep your food at the desired temperature and it will always be handy.

Anyone who works more that 10+ hours a day: (This is so me)
If you find yourself at your job from sun up to sun down then you must pack all of your meals the night before. You can go to any store walmart, target, kmart and get a food bag. Pack of all your meals breakfast, snacks, lunch, snack, and dinner. If you are in meetings all day don’t bring coffee make a protein shake put it in a container and bring to the meeting with some unsalted nuts. If your team orders out and you run out of food order a salad with fat- free or light dressing (balsamic vinaigrette) with lean protein (chicken or fish).

My job is like college and socialization is the key:
If you find yourself at a restaurants or bars to stay in the “I’m a team player” game you can leave satisfied and not cheat on your diet. If you see something you like but it covered in fattening sauces,or is fried ask the waiter to make it dry and to grill it instead of frying. If you don’t see anything at all order salads with lean chicken, or steak. If you want to drink. Sip on red wine or any clear alcohol will do but watch out for that nasty wine headache and vodka hangover.

The bottom line is to stick to your guns and don’t allow yourself to get sucked into the fold. Don't allow yourself to have any excuses, and when you do stick to your guns, have No Apologies about it!

Until next time...