My First Vlog!

Hey guys!

I tried to type my blog and include regular pictures but something happened with this phone and computer. Basically, I don't know what I'm doing. So, I made a video blog (vblog). My voice is very soft and raspy,  so, if you have a hard time hearing me. Everything I talked about is below:

Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vw7rXjd-rtY

1. Bottled water
2. Almond milk
3. Oatmeal
4. Truvia 
5. Sweet potato
6. Yopa greek yogurt with black cherries
7. Bear Naked granola, banana nut flavor
8. Activia Vanilla Yogurt
9. Cascadian Farm Organic Cereal, fruit and nut granola flavor
10. Lemon Juice
11. Salmon
12. Tilapia
13. Ground Turkey
14. Almond Butter
15. Mangoes
16. Spinach
17. Brocolli
18. Lettuce
19. Skinless Chicken Breast
20. Feta Cheese
21. Naked smoothie juice, Green machine flavor
22. Minute Maid, pomegranate and blueberry juice
23. Oranges
24. Macadamia Nuts
25. Coconut Water
26.  Egg whites
27. Ginger
28. Whole grain pancake mix
29. Bell pepper
30. Onion
31. Celery
32. Grapefruits
33. Bananas

Until Next time! Bye.

I have this, but I want that..

Temptation by definition means the "act of tempting or the state of being tempted especially in evil." An example of temptation is enticement. Which is to attract artfully or adroitly or by arousing hope or desire. Too often the ideology of success lies in the amount of money, popularity, and labels. People get so wrapped  up in the things they want they forget about the things they have. Often, letting the things they have become the things they had.

Everyone has dreams, but not everybody knows how to make their dream a reality. Why? because people are not willing to put in the work to attain their goal. Everybody wants the "quick come up", but fail to realize the faster things come, the faster they go. Nobody every said success would be easy they said success is worth it. Also, what's not always mentioned is nobody is gonna give you anything, if they do it comes with a price. That price can be paid through your mind, body, or soul.

It's hard not to compromise when you're being introduced to things that you've always wanted. But you still have to remember at the end of the day those things don't belong to you. Their given, and what's given can be taken away. But, what's earned can never be took away from you. As a result,  "To whom much is given much is tested"

More often than not greed begins to take control. People begin to change and devote time and energy into a plan that includes, using someone, hurting someone else, and lowering themselves to be lifted up by the world. But these are the things that are not seen through the lenses of cameras, it's an internal struggle. As a result, the highest  people up , have the lowest self-esteem. Be careful what you wish for!

A message to young girls: There is nothing wrong with wanting the finer things in life. Just make sure you're getting those things for yourself. That new gucci bag feels wayyyy better when you buy it. It's imperative to remember that everything that glitters isn't gold, and just because something sparkles doesn't mean it's a diamond. Also, know the difference between love and lust. it's easy to lust somebody for the things they have. But it's hard to love someone for the things they don't. Love is accepting someone, not tolerating them. One last thing, when a man sees a woman going for her own things he'll want to help, that's fine. However, don't let your dream become his, and hand over the key to your happiness.


Tip: This blog  is based off of the movie "temptation" by Tyler Perry. A must see! it's a very good eye-opener to the real-world!!

New Year, New Me.

In November, I discussed my weight loss journey. Now, I'm back with an update on fitness tips, my body, and motivation. So, far I have lost thirteen pounds, going from 186-173lbs. My weight loss goal is 140 pounds. I plan to be at my goal by March 1st! "I changed my lifestyle because I want to live longer, have more energy, have better skin, avoid diabetes, cancer, heart disease etc. and look good naked! :-)"

What I do:

Workout: 1 hour a day, min 3 days a week and max 5 days. I usually take a day of rest every other day if I choose to workout 3 days a week. For a 5 days a week workout, I will exercise 3 days in a row, one day of rest, and 2 days in a row back in the gym, than rest. My personal preference is working out 5 days a week. However, with my workload and school schedule for the past few weeks I've been doing 3 days a week and my results have declined. 

My Workout Plan:

20 squats

30 lunges

10 calf raises

50 sec wall st

30 leg raises

20 chin-ups

50-100 crunches

Treadmill

Elliptical 

My suggestion: workout 5 days a week!!

Eat healthy: I had to discipline myself so that I wouldn't make eating right a choice, but a lifestyle. My first step: Changing my grocery list! If junk food isn't in my reach I know that eventually I'll forget about it. (logically speaking, it takes 28 days to break a habit, I've been on this journey since November)..  I also had to cutback on eating out. (which was hard, living in a dorm with a terrible cafe). But it's possible, I bought a hotplate pots, and pans and did what I had to, NO EXCUSES! 

My grocery list:

Bell Peppers

Onions

Olive Oil

Green Tea

Tazo tea

Water

Lemon Juice

Lettuce

Apples                                                      

Oranges 

Mangoes

Brown Rice

Banana Chips

Dried Cranberries

Yogurt Covered Cranberries         

Eggs

Light Soymilk

Raisin Bagels

Potatoes

Tilapia

Salmon

Turkey 

skinless chicken breast

broccoli

flax seeds

olives

avocado

light butter (low in cholestrol)

feta cheese

blue cheese

Spinach

Grapes

Dates

Granola 

L-R: Olives (target store), water bottle is lemon juice and water DETOX, spinach and feta cheese omelet, healthy snack, banana chips

L-R: Lipton tea, Kashi granola cereal, Nestle drinking water

helpful apps: Spark recipes, and calorie counter

Detox: I detox at least twice a week. In order, to get healthy you have to get unhealthy. My favorite is the lemon juice and water.  Flush all the unwanted waste from your body, greasy foods, junk foods, etc. Also, I have eliminated beef from my diet, since it takes longer to digest than turkey. Beef sits on the stomach causing that excess bulge that is so hard to get rid of. One of my favorite foods is hamburgers, but I had to leave that behind because as much as I love burgers, I love me more. 

Self Motivation: In order to achieve anything you must think it first. Come up with a plan and execute it! Through Rain, sleet, and snow I still make it to the gym. However, before I had access to a workout facility I used in home videos, apps on my iPhone, and nature to help achieve my goals. I would run the "Big Dam Bridge", walk around the track of my school gym, and do yoga right in my suite. My slogan is "have a summer body all year around." In fact, old pictures are sometimes enough motivation to keep the weight off. My recommendation is to always track your progress, if you see just a pound drop that means there a more pounds to shed. Good luck!!

Suggested Instagram Pages to follow for healthy eating and motivational quotes:

1. fightforfit

2.instagramfitness
3. drcmd (me)

My Progress (Pictures):

Top: November, Left: about a week ago, Bottom: Goal!

This coat made me look 3 times bigger, but the style was to sag, not fit, I started to let myself go. Glad I caught myself, I'll never lose me again.  (Right side: October, Left side: December)

My face begin to clear up, no more outbreaks. Why?No more  pop/soda! Water only, or tea if I really need flavor (don't use too much sugar!)


P.S. Congrats to my President Barack Obama, I am very proud of him! I hope the Obama's enjoy their day of history!!

When You Look Good, You Feel Good!

Hey Everybody!

 As women, we have all had that time where we look in the mirror and decide to change something about ourselves. Whether it is weight, hair, or make-up, we have all been guilty of wanting more or less of something. One day when I looked in the mirror I decided to change my body not only on the outside, but the inside as well. I decided to get healthy and in shape, so I started with a simple google search, "what is the appropriate weight for my height and age".

After reading the results I ran across an app known as CALORIE COUNTER, featured on Good Morning America. The app helps me to log my daily physical activity, food, and water. Each day I start with a total of 1400 calories, and log my breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Than, I submit a daily report amongst my supporters, which is really cool because I get positive feedback from random people who want to see me achieve my weight loss goals. 

Not only do I have a support system with calorie count, I also earn points which can be redeemed for gift cards and coupons! In addition to counting my calories, I rearranged my eating habits. I switched from eating out to cooking more, which is less expensive. Also, I traded in processed foods for more organic and nutritious items. Last but not least, I started to get back in the gym! My favorite exercise is running so I run twice a week and picked up a motor skills course at school three times a week to stay fit!

Tip: Eating sugars, salts, and fats weighs your energy level down, making the statement true, "you are what you eat"!

My belly within a 5 day period of using calorie count, now I have to get that pug down!

Spark Recipes, a healthy eatring app great for brkfast, lunch and dinner!

Some of my supporters on calorie count!

Dinner: Feta cheese and spinach stuffed chicken breast with zucinni and squash

Catching up.

I haven't made a post since the Spring! Wow! time flys!

Recently, I have been enjoying this weather, autumn is my favorite season. I have been trying to find a peace of mind with all the craziness in my beautiful life!I can't complain though I have truly been blessed. I'm in the process of a new venture, I hoping for strength and clarity. I am understanding that I must be careful about the things I say and do in the dark, they will come to light... Be back really soon with fashion trends, and more pictures!

follow me on Instagram @ Drcmd

 

 

 

Birthday girl!



Random: Autumn



Seasons change, like people



Be back soon. xo

 

Where you are and where you want to be..

"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like."
Lao Tzu
In life, anyone who aspires to be someone analyzes their life. The good, the bad, the hurt, the lies, the joys, and the sorrows. At some point we realize our mistakes and may quickly regret them, but suddenly realize how/why it happened, the lesson of the situation. In order to go through life you have to grow through it. Lately, I've been thinking my love affair with New York has yet to die, but I can't just leave my situation. I know my capabilities but I also know my dreams are bigger than me sometimes, and everything that I want I can't get in the time I allot myself, leaving disappointments. I'm going to keep in mind my goals and take the appropriate steps to reach them, but along the way to my big dream I won't be afraid to venture out and take a chance at my life, you only live once. Like Michael Jordan said " I can accept failure, everyone fails at something,but I cannot accept not trying. STAY TUNED guys!

Happy birthday to me!!!

Yesterday was my birthday and my first birthday outside of Chicago. I had fun here in little rock, though I would've preferred the downtown Chicago lights, the big buildings, and the sound of cabs blowing their horns. I also missed the big crowd of people.. what can I say, I am a city girl! All of my family and friends were calling me, skyping me, and making me feel loved. 

My college friends were very loving and made me feel welcomed and right at home yesterday, they're from Chicago too, so they know what it's like to not be home and have to adapt to a smaller environment. I was tremendously blessed yesterday, and even though it was my birthday, I still had lessons learned and self-evaluations. My self-evaluation overall was to take more responsibility and control for my actions. I’m legally grown now and everything that I do from this point on is on me, not my mom! So, I’m prioritizing better, and making better judgments and decisions in my everyday life.

 I realized being an adult means sacrifices, so I am ready to sacrifice fun for business! My birthday taught me to enjoy yourself no matter where you are because wherever you are it's a place you are meant to be, so there is something there for you, you just have to find it and boy did I find it! Copeland's a New Orleans style restaurant in Arkansas, DELICIOUS! :) Thanks for reading see ya soon!

Tip: Make the best of your situations… “count your blessings, not your burdens”- LALA Anthony

Birthday girl!



my dinner was great!

Chicago! i miss this!!