Stress Weight Gain

Janice in 2003 as account executive for a major airline. This was a stressful job that consisted of driving the Chicagoland area to call on travel agents. Our family diet was take out and fast food because  of my hectic schedule commuting all over Chicagoland. I had little time to prepare meals at home. My weight soared to the highest in my life.

Before Photo 2004

My Herbalife Days 2004 - 2005

After photo 2005

Now I am focusing on weight loss with change of diet and lifestyle habits with more walking, yoga, Zumba. I spent thousands of dollars on weight loss products. My journey forward is more a simple and inexpensive approach that will last a lifetime.

What diets or products have you tried in the past?

Food Should Taste Good

Food Should Taste Good Product Review & Giveaway

Food Should Taste Good Sweet Potato Chips are a staple in my house. I've got my husband hooked on them and I don't mind because they are sooo healthy. Anyway, I was excited to get the opportunity to sample the other varieties of Food Should Taste Good Chips. I was able to try Chocolate, Multi-grain, Sweet Potato, Olive, and Lime. Sweet potato is still my favorite but the Olive chips are absolutely delicious. The Multigrain go great with some hummus or salsa. I was not too thrilled with the chocolate but they are pefect for the chocolate lover. The best part is all of them are so incredibly healthy with ingredients you can pronounce plus they have fiber and protein.. Check out the nutrition facts for the mutli-grain chips.

You know we love doing giveaways, 2 Lucky Winners will get to try five varieties of Food Should Taste Good Chips. To enter the contest you have to email us at nubianfitnessgoddess@gmail.com and comment on this post. Also, check out their website for coupons and other promotions www.foodshouldtastegood.com

Is Being Healthy Really Not About the Dress Size? You tell us...

"I'm just thick"

"I'm bootylicious"

The labels go on and on for black women who don't consider themselves overweight but women who are genetically blessed with curves and don't fit the toothpick frame we usually see praised and admired in the media.

I recently read an article in Women's Health magazine entitled: "Can You Be Healthy At Any Size?" This caught my attention becuase I truly believe that in our culture, we celebrate thick-bootlyicious body frames instead of healthy lifetyles. In fact, according to the Office of Minority Health, African American women have the highest rates of being overweight or obese compared to other groups in the U.S. And did you know that about four out of five African American women are overweight or obese? We have the highest obesity rates compared to women of different color. We need to take a step back and examine why!

But there is another side to this debate. The government and medical community determine who is overweight by the BMI measurement. I don't personally likee the BMI measurement as a gold standard for determining if your obese or not. I know for a fact that I do not look like the number I weigh. Not every woman can fit the set standards, because no woman is average. Did you know that being heavier helps fend of osteopoprosis and people who fit the "overweight" set for BMI have a lower risk of mortality?

So maybe it really is good to be thin and bootylicious besides filling out those cute outfits!

The debate goes on and on, and I encourage you to read the Women's Health article for more information. (Side note/complaint: I love this magazine, but I find it funny that in this "fat acceptance" article, they actually include pictures of black women: Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce, and Mo'Nique. I like to see these ladies in the magazine more, have a better representative of what our society truly is--multicultural! Just saying...but I guess that's why we need a blog like Nubian Fitness Goddess to fill the void!)

For those that what to get to the point, here are the numbers that everyone should monitor, according to Women's Health magazine:

-Blood Pressure: Healthy range is 90/60 yo 120/80 (systolic/diastolic)
-Resting Heart Rate: Healthy range is60 to 100 beates per minute
-Cholesterol: Healthy range is LD below 100, HDL above 50, VLDL under 40, triplycerides below 150
-Fasting Blood Glucose: Healthy range is 70 to 100
-Waist-to-hip ratio: Healthy range is .6 to .8

So tell us, do you agree that "everyone can't be a size zero, but can be healthy, big people" or do you think it important to focus on the BMI measurement? Can one be "thick" and healthy?