Black Hair Care & Obesity? Naturalista voices her opinion

According to the US Department of Health and Human Services,  4 out of 5 women in the United States are overweight or obese [1]. 4 out of 5! We can do our history, and look at how this came to be. Many factors come into play. Geographic location, economic status, society, and so on. But what about black hair care? Is there a strong correlation between the two? I spoke with a Naturalista (a woman who practices natural hair care). Click below to read her views on this topic as well as her personal tips for black hair care!

Sugar.. cause of the obesity epidemic? [Video]

Dr. Robert Lustig is a renowned pediatrician at University of California San Francisco. His famous 90 minute Sugar: The Bitter Truth lecture has been viewed by over 3 million viewers on Youtube. In the lecture, he supports why he believes sugar is the cause of obesity and illnesses sugar as diabetes, heart disease, hormone deficiencies, and more. Click below to watch him on Good Morning America 

What are MACROS Part 2?

Are you guys ready?

Like I said in part 1, this post is more educational. I don't want to only give you guys recipes and work out tips, I want you guys to learn the ins and outs of this stuff. Once you understand, you'll be amazed and appreciate your body for the beautiful machine it is!

Read more below!

Are cheat days/meals worth it?

This past weekend my boyfriend took me to the movies.
Instead of hitting up our usual theatre we decided to go
visit a new one..... big mistake! 

What are MACROS? Part 1

You may have heard this term, "if it fits your macros" thrown around a few times. Macros consist of the major nutrients that come from our food...

Fall Challenge 2013

The summer has been an eventful one for me. I've traveled and partied like no other! As the temperature slowly gets cooler and people are heading back to school , reality is starting to set in. Fall is right around the corner!

Change in Game Plan Part 2

So in Part 1 I went over why eating a VLCD is not the way to go when you are trying to lose weight and keep it off. Some quick notes are:

1) Your metabolism will be affected as the TRUE CALORIC MAINTENANCE you need to keep your weight level is lowered.

2) Your muscles will eat itself.. you will increase body fat.. while looking "skinny fat" aka flabby

3) Your hormones will go out of wack. Acne..hair loss..lower sex drive...mood problems and more

Change in Game Plan Part 1

First off, I would like to thank all of you who take your time out to read my blog! My blog has finally reached over 1,000 views in just a few short months! While most of my viewers are from the US (Aslaska..yeah you too! I see you ha).., I would like to give a shout out to whomever is reading out in South Korea, Germany, and the Netherlands! Thank you so much and I hope you guys continue this journey with me...

Before I begin, I will have to list out some of the acronyms I will be using.
BMI- Body Mass Index, BMR- Basal Metabolic Rate, TDEE- Total Daily Energy Expenditure, Cals- Calories, VLCD- Very Low Calorie Diet

So long story short.. I was 196 3 years ago.. dropped down to a whopping 151 by decreasing my calories to about 1200 and did several workout DVDs and gym workouts. The weight loss was nice. I was slim. But few years later, I have gained 15-20 lbs back, still eating at a VLCD. I've been at a plateau (not losing or gaining weight) for a few months now. Even through my excessive workouts and dieting.. my scale is not budging. Now this is when I knew something was wrong.

It is not healthy to go under 1200 at all. 1200 cals is the minimum. Minimum for someone who is mini like a 5 foot petite woman. I took that number, ran with it, and my body has adapted to 1200, thinking that it is my maintenance calories. Do you know what that means? My metabolism is shut, done for, depressed, exhausted, weak.

The last couple years, a few weird things began happening to my body. One of them was, I was beginning to develop hair loss in certain areas of my head. Secondly, I was developed really bad acne. Not regular acne, but acne that I've never seen before. Third, I was going through major MAJOR mood swings.. sorry.. to all my exes out there.. and my current boo.. he's dealt with it the worst! Fourth, I was diagnosed with insomnia. Lastly, I experience moments of vertigo where I feel like im going to fall over. One time it got so bad, I had to leave work and go straight to my doctors office.

Eating at a VLCD is awesome for quick weight loss. I'm not going to deny that. But when you get very close to your goal, or reach your goal, and you want to up your calories to maintain.. you can't. Why? Because your metabolism has adjusted to the 1200 calories you've been eating as normal. So when you up to 1500 calories, your body will think it's eating more than your maintaining calories even though your actually under it (for me to maintain my  weight its 2458 cals..just so you understand how low I've been eating.) So from doing that, you have not only eaten under your BMR (the amount of calories you need for your organs like your brain to function), you've probably develop hidden thyroid problems, and other issues that will sneak up in the future. Like it did to me...

This is just part 1... this topic is so deep that I CANNOT fit it into one post.

Leave your comments below!
Follow me on IG @jaysicka_
twitter @_jaysicka
MFP @blackgirlfit
and to contact me directly.. officialbgf@gmail.com

Xoxo,

Jess

Eating Clean : Food Diary 5/5/13

Today was an amazing day! I feel so energetic, happy, and clear-headed. As you can see, all my meals were clean. I drank about 11 cups of water as of 8pm. I might drink 1 more before bedtime.

I went to the gym and burned about 600 calories doing 1 hour of cardio and strength training.

Breakfast: Green smoothie
Snack: Boiled egg and ham wrap
Lunch: Naked Green Machine
Dinner: Brown rice, spinach, baked chicken


I ate 1240 calories today, burned 607. Myfitnesspal calculated if I continue eating and exercising like this I will be 150.7 lbs in 5 weeks. Just in time for 4th of july!


Add me on these social networking sites
IG: @jaysicka_
Twitter: @_jaysicka
Vine: @jaysicka
MFP: @blackgirlfit


Leave a comment if you have any questions! Also leave a comment let me know how you're doing on your eating regimen!

Xoxo, J

JUNETOX (Detox month)

So I bet you're looking down at your scale...and asking yourself.. "wtf?!" Where did the last 6 months go? I'm with you! But this is not when to get discouraged. June is mid-way through the year.. you still can hop back in the game!

Sometimes, its difficult for us to lose weight because we just jump into a weight loss program and our body goes into shock! It's difficult for us to get use to our new eating regimen and we slip up. But this month.. I am doing a detox! Everyone can go at their own speed until they feel they are ready to go to the next level. Each level should be no longer than 7 days. If you're capable of doing two phases at once you may.

Here it goes!

Phase 1: WATER ONLY (this is a great way and natural way for the body to detox. It flushes out your system and helps clean the livers and kidneys. water makes your skin clear, fights belly bloat, and speeds up metabolism.)

Phase 2: ALCOHOL, COFFEE, SMOKING, DRUGS  (During this time, you want to make sure you aren't putting anything into your body that can manipulate the detox process.)

Phase 3: FAST FOODS (No Mcdonalds, no dunkin donuts, nothing that has a drive through. Nothing that is flat out a cheap restaurant. Avoid all restaurants IF possible. If you must eat at a restaurant.. choose an item from the health conscious menu

Phase 4: ALL SUGAR, REFINED, PROCESSED FOODS (No cereal, no bread, no pasta, nothing with more than 5 ingredients in it. No candy)

Phase 5: DAIRY & MEAT (Opt for almond milk if you must have milk. stay away from cheese and yogurt. Eggs aren't considered really dairy so its fine. If you must have meat, choose lean proteins.


BONUS***

This is where it gets good :-) If you want to take it a step further...

Phase 6: CARBS (no brown rice, potatoes, yams.)

Phase 7: JUICE FAST!



The ultimate goal here is to ease your body for the juice fast. I am aiming to juice on Sunday 6/16/17 - Sunday 2/23/13. So far, I am done with Phase 1. I'm moving on to phase 2 and 3 simultaneously.


What phase are you guys on?? IG me @jaysicka_
tweet me @_jaysicka


LETS GET IT!

So whats with this juicing thing?

If this is not the newest craze of 2013, I don't know what is! Yes juicing. Lets get to the point and skip all the non sense, shall we?

What is juicing?

Juicing is extracting juice from fruits and vegetables. Thats as simple as it gets. Juicing takes away all the skin and just leaves you with the vitamins and nutrients. Vitamins and nutrients that most of us lack due to the unhealthy things we feed into our bodies. The human body is made up of many cells that need healthy food to keep them replenish, vibrant, and energized. Healthy cells promote healthy digestion, skin, hair, immune system, heart and more. Juicing fights against heart disease, cancer, acne, diabetes, and other health concerns. It flushes out all the bad toxins out your system.

Why is juicing so awesome?

Besides all the points I made above, juicing is like a restart button. Juice contains no fiber, which allows the juice to go through your body without really working too much on your digestion. What does this mean? This means your body can chill and sit back while all the vitamins and nutrients do its work. Its like drinking water with a load of extra loveliness inside. 

How long should I juice for?

This is all up to you. Some people juice once a day, on top of their regular meals. Some juice twice a day. Some do juice fasts, that last anywhere from 1-30 days. It all depends on your personal goals. I personally juice once a day.

Is juicing for weight loss?

NO! This is where people fail. Juicing should never be looked at as a quick gimmick to lose weight. Yes you'll lose numbers on the scale, but most of it will be water weight. Juicing does aid in digestion by cleansing you from the inside out, but you should not view juicing as a fast weight loss program. 

Organic? Non Organic?

Its best to go organic all the way, because there aren't no pesticides. But there is nothing wrong with non organic. Just make sure you thoroughly wash your fruits and veggies before you put them in the juicer.

I hope I answered some of your questions! You can buy a juicer anywhere nowadays! The best juicers for the best price i've seen are at GMC and Walmart. They cost around $50. This is the best investment you can do for your mind body and spirit.  I'll make another post with a bunch of my favorite recipes!

#JUICEORDIE! 

Add me on these social sites!

IG: @jaysicka_ (follow me on instagram!)

Myfitnesspal : Blackgirlfit 

Breakfast : Green Smoothie

I absolutely LOVE green smoothies! They are a great meal replacement, pre/post workout shake, or just awesome as a snack! I drink a green smoothie every morning to replace breakfast. Its quick, easy, and on the go. I also love that it's portable. If you cant finish it all at once, just bring the rest with you to work or class.

There are many variations to this smoothie that you can do. It all depends on your goals, and what truly works for you. Those who are maintaining their weight or toning up can add banana versus, those who want to slim down and shed fat can add half of an avocado.

Bananas are very high in sugar and carbs which can alter your goals if you want to slim down. Those who are insulin sensitive, diabetic, have PCOS, hypothyroidism, or any other health concerns should try to stay away from bananas in their smoothies (or if you love em that much, use only half). It will really make a difference! Avocados are awesome! They burn body fat,  curve hunger, good source of fiber, potassium, vitamins c, k, folate, B6. It also prevents cancer, lowers cholesterol, and aids in nutrition absorbency. Cant beat that!


Here are two of my staple green smoothies! You can decide if you want a banana or avocado based on your needs.


The Hulk Protein Smoothie Recipe

2 Scoops of Lean 15 Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor
1.5 cups of Almond Milk
.5   cup of cold water
1tbs of peanut butter
Handful of frozen or fresh spinach (trust me)
Half banana or half avacado

Give it a good blend! Pour it in your glass and enjoy!

Servings: 2
Calories: 180


Berry Berry Protein Smoothie Recipe:

2 Scoops of Lean 15 Whey Protein Vanilla Flavor
1.5 cups of Almond Milk
.5   cups of cold water
1bs of peanut butter
Handful of frozen or fresh spinach
1 cup of frozen blueberries
Half avocado

Give it a blennnnnnnd, and pour it in your glass! Enjoy!

Servings: 2
Calories : 225