After going to the doctor for my annual visit last week I left in shock. As the physician's assistant moved the slider to 100 then the other slider crept past 30, I knew something had to be done. My real problem is I'm a foodie. I love food.
Lately, I've been busy running from activity to activity and meeting and meeting which has caused me to not eat how I'm used to. I've never been one to gorge on a lot of food but snacking is my downfall, especially if it's sweet or salty I'll eat it. I decided to do some research and came across a few detox diets that would help me get back to my ideal weight.
I haven't told many of my friends about this whole detox dieting plan, unless they invited me to a happy hour or dinner this week and demanded to know why I wasn't coming, because I don't want to hear what they have to say. One of my male friends insisted that I was fine and didn't need to lose any weight. I'm naturally petite and people always ask me if I work out, which I don't and I know I need to. I know what a healthy weight for my body and frame is so I'm not going to be content until I'm back at that weight. After the detox, I have a lot of traveling for work and personal, so I'm going to have to focus on eating healthy and trying to walk more while the weather's still nice.
Prior to starting this detox diet, the only detox I knew about was the Master Cleanse, what Beyonce did when she was trying to lose weight for Dreamgirls a few years ago. Basically it consists of drinking a concoction of lemon juice, cayenne pepper, maple syrup and some water. The detox I'm doing is not even close to that extreme. I'm also only doing it for 7 days, my goal is to lose 10 pounds, but I'd be happy with losing 8.
My meal plan looks something like this:
Breakfast:
Berries (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries)
or a Berry shake with some soy milk, vinegar, flaxseeds
Mid-Morning Snack:
Green Tea (no sugar only honey) w/ orange slices
Lunch:
Lean piece of chicken or salmon with fresh vegetables (broccoli, onions, garlic, sprayed w/ lemon juice and a sprinkle of sea salt) Spinach is also recommended but I don't eat it. They also say to eat "colon-friendly" foods, you know what that means so I'm not going into details.
Mid-Afternoon Snack:
Green Tea (no sugar only honey) and raw carrot sticks
Dinner:
Similar to lunch
The key is to stay hydrated so you can cleanse the toxins out of your body. I do this by drinking at least 4 bottles of water and 2-3 cups of green tea each day.
I'm on day #2 of the detox and as of today I've already dropped 3 pounds, not bad. It actually feels good to be eating better. Hopefully, I will make this a part of my routine and be more careful about what I put into my body.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
Breaking Down Bougie
I'm pretty sure just about everyone knows what I mean by the term "bougie". Just in case there are some who aren't familiar with the term "bougie" is derived from the french word "bourgeoisie" referring to a class of people. Below are some definitions, I've pulled relating to the word bourgeoisie.
Wikipedia definition: Bourgeoisie is a classification used in analyzing human societies to describe a social class of people. Historically, the bourgeoisie comes from the middle or merchant classes of the Middle Ages, whose status or power came from employment, education, and wealth, as distinguished from those whose power came from being born into an aristocratic family of land owners.
Merriam Webster defines it as: middle class; also plural in construction : members of the middle class
I think it's interesting how such a simple word produces so many feelings and issues among Black, mainly African-American, people. Somehow the term "bougie" has been made to be synonymous with stuck up, arrogant, obnoxious, people who think they are better than others.
At first, when people would say that I was bougie, I'd say something back in retaliation but after a while it got old and I figured it was pointless. People assume if you come from a certain upbringing, live in a certain neighborhood, speak/dress/act a certain way, you're bougie.
It doesn't matter to some people that I work for a nonprofit and every week, I spend time doing some type of community service project and involved with a number of organizations whose sole purpose is to make a difference in our community and our world. All they see is a well-groomed young lady who carries herself with some dignity and class and I'm grouped into the category of being bougie.
It always amazes me when people assume that I went to certain schools. I went to your average public high school (although my parents wanted me to go to a private school) and I attended not one, but two, HBCUs for undergrad and graduate schools. I never aspired to attend an Ivy-League. Recently, I went to happy hour with one of my linesisters and met this guy she went to school with. He had already made up in his mind that he knew me. Eventually I shared with him that I was raised in Prince George's County, MD and told him what high school I went this. Can you believe he had the nerve to say, "You hide it well." I was completely taken aback by his comment. I'm never anyone else but me. I act the same exact way whether I'm around Blacks, Whites, Asians, or Hispanics, I've never had the need to act differently in order to assimilate, I am who I am.
While I did grow up in Jack & Jill (there's a certain reputation or stigma that comes along w/ being a member of that organization, I'll probably blog about that later down the line) and my parents are members of a fraternity and sorority and in organizations like The Links and The Boulé. Being in Jack & Jill exposed me to many new things. I would never say it made me better, but more well-rounded. We were being taught the importance of proper etiquette for young ladies, went to teas, dinners and various cultural events, and had the chance to wear elegant formal dresses and be introduced at a Cotillion. I never thought that gave me an edge up on anybody or used that as an excuse to think that made me better than anyone else. I never looked down on people who weren't apart of the organization and I can't stand when people question the relevance of such organizations.
I learned a long time ago the saying "Perception is reality" is true. Whether or not it's my own reality or what someone else perceive me to be, is going to be their reality and there's nothing that I can do to change their minds. Call me what you want, but I know who I am, where I came from, and what I'm here to do. So whether you think I'm Bougie or not, I'm just me!
Wikipedia definition: Bourgeoisie is a classification used in analyzing human societies to describe a social class of people. Historically, the bourgeoisie comes from the middle or merchant classes of the Middle Ages, whose status or power came from employment, education, and wealth, as distinguished from those whose power came from being born into an aristocratic family of land owners.
Merriam Webster defines it as: middle class; also plural in construction : members of the middle class
I think it's interesting how such a simple word produces so many feelings and issues among Black, mainly African-American, people. Somehow the term "bougie" has been made to be synonymous with stuck up, arrogant, obnoxious, people who think they are better than others.
At first, when people would say that I was bougie, I'd say something back in retaliation but after a while it got old and I figured it was pointless. People assume if you come from a certain upbringing, live in a certain neighborhood, speak/dress/act a certain way, you're bougie.
It doesn't matter to some people that I work for a nonprofit and every week, I spend time doing some type of community service project and involved with a number of organizations whose sole purpose is to make a difference in our community and our world. All they see is a well-groomed young lady who carries herself with some dignity and class and I'm grouped into the category of being bougie.
It always amazes me when people assume that I went to certain schools. I went to your average public high school (although my parents wanted me to go to a private school) and I attended not one, but two, HBCUs for undergrad and graduate schools. I never aspired to attend an Ivy-League. Recently, I went to happy hour with one of my linesisters and met this guy she went to school with. He had already made up in his mind that he knew me. Eventually I shared with him that I was raised in Prince George's County, MD and told him what high school I went this. Can you believe he had the nerve to say, "You hide it well." I was completely taken aback by his comment. I'm never anyone else but me. I act the same exact way whether I'm around Blacks, Whites, Asians, or Hispanics, I've never had the need to act differently in order to assimilate, I am who I am.
While I did grow up in Jack & Jill (there's a certain reputation or stigma that comes along w/ being a member of that organization, I'll probably blog about that later down the line) and my parents are members of a fraternity and sorority and in organizations like The Links and The Boulé. Being in Jack & Jill exposed me to many new things. I would never say it made me better, but more well-rounded. We were being taught the importance of proper etiquette for young ladies, went to teas, dinners and various cultural events, and had the chance to wear elegant formal dresses and be introduced at a Cotillion. I never thought that gave me an edge up on anybody or used that as an excuse to think that made me better than anyone else. I never looked down on people who weren't apart of the organization and I can't stand when people question the relevance of such organizations.
I learned a long time ago the saying "Perception is reality" is true. Whether or not it's my own reality or what someone else perceive me to be, is going to be their reality and there's nothing that I can do to change their minds. Call me what you want, but I know who I am, where I came from, and what I'm here to do. So whether you think I'm Bougie or not, I'm just me!
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