Skin and Hair Care Resolutions

We are in the 2nd week of a  new year and in true fashion I am taking this time to reflect and determine the things I want to do better in this upcoming year. I want to be better mind, body and soul and since I work daily on my soul and I focused on mind/life goals via my Passion Planner in my last post, I figure it's time to focus on body today.

I'm not saying my body is perfect, but I really don't focus on it like I used to. My curves are in all the right places and I physically feel good 80% of the time, but stress and bad habits have had my skin and hair suffering lately. With that being said, here are a few skin and hair care rules I plan to live by this year. 

I will wash my makeup off every night. Why is this so hard to do? Cause your girl be tired, but I will try my best.

I will drink water everyday. I don't think an explanation is necessary with this, it's just a healthy thing to do.

I will do more mole checks. Dark skin can get skin cancer too, so doing monthly checks on those new moles that keep popping up will pay off in the long run.

I will exfoliate twice a week. Nothing keeps that skin looking baby fresh like scrubbing that tough layer of rough skin off.

I will not become a product junkie. I repeat, I will not become a product junkie. Because of the way my bank account is set up, this shouldn't be a problem, but I still have to remind myself.

I will stress less. Easier said than done.

I will not pop my pimples. Again, easier said than done. Popping them makes them worse before they get better but it is so satisfying when you do. #struggles

I will always keep my eyebrows on fleek. Yaaasss!

I will continue knowing that what works for some may not work for me. And that's okay. All skin and hair was not created equal.

I will wash my hair more often. Once or twice every two weeks is my usual schedule. Anything past that and it's a mess to deal with.

Water will be my main moisturizer. Water is my friend.

I will wrap/ cover my hair nightly. Even if I do look like Aunt Jamima, I have to protect my hair at night. And for added protection, a satin pillowcase will help too.

I will learn the true meaning of protective styling. Braiding my hair up and not cleansing or moisturizing my scalp defeats the purpose.

I will stop being lazy. See above.

And most of all, I will love the skin I'm in and rock whatever texture grows out my head.

Those are my skin and hair care resolutions. What are yours?

Wishing you Love, Peace and Soul Deep Beauty,
Rhonda

Since when is a candy bar healthy?

So I was laid up in the bed this past week-end, suffering from pain that was caused from weight training. I am on a mission to lose 30 lbs. I'm just gone put it out there because it's time to hold myself accountable. By putting it on paper (and the world wide web) I can't hide from it anymore. But, anyway I was clicking through the channels and came across an infomercial that was talking about how to lose weight by still eating your favorite foods. I was intrigued and I put the remote down.

The infomercial started off by saying that you have to break your meals down to having a  protein, a slow carb and a fast carb and then snack wisely throughout the day. I sat up. It went on to say that the plan was designed to keep your glucose levels from spiking which can throw your metabolism off. The program came with several cookbooks and meal plans, including one for eating at restaurants. And of course, there were "free" gifts that came with it, like a couple of 12 minute work-out DVDs. The phone was now in my hand. Everything included was valued at over $190. I pushed the talk button. And it would only cost me 6 easy payments of $20, plus shipping and handling. Wait a minute, let me do my math...$120! I put the phone down and decided to do some research instead.

The first thing I needed to figure out is the difference between a slow carb and a fast carb. And what it basically comes down to is how fast or slow the body breaks a carb down. Slow carbs release glucose gradually into the blood stream and helps keep you full longer, while fast carbs break down so quickly that the body stores the excess as fat. And the best way to lose or maintain weight is to keep glucose levels the same all day. You can do that by paying attention to the food's glycemic index, which is a ranking of a foods immediate effects on blood sugar, and eating every 3 or so hours. If a food has a high glycemic index of 70 and up, it is a fast carb, if it's low, or 55 and under, it's a slow carb.

So I printed up some lists that gave me the glycemic index to some food choices. Of course, just about every cereal  I like is on the high end, as well as most breads. And here I was thinking I was doing something by eating rice cakes and they have a GI of 80. I'm better off eating a slice of cheese pizza, which is 60. But, low and behold, I found a diamond in the ruff: a Snickers bar has a GI of 41. I'm just going to give you a minute to let that soak in. I can finally eat a candy bar and not feel guilty about it. According to this chart, it's better for me to eat that candy bar than it is graham crackers or watermelon.

Now I know that whatever I eat, has to be done so in moderation. But, I have always disliked diets because I don't like the feeling of depriving myself. If I want a cookie, dog-gone-it, I'm going to eat a cookie. This slow carb/ fast carb program just might work for me. As a matter of fact, I'm going to make sure that I eat a Snickers this week. (Smile)

I liked when I read, "Eating is a part of our lives and we should not have to sacrifice tasty foods in order to stay healthy." Now that's what I'm talking about. I'm starting my slow carb program this week, who's with me?