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Big Diva Headquarters – Where Big Girls Go to Become Big Divas

Happy New Year!!

Hello my Big Divas and Big Divas in Training!  Happy New Year!!  I sincerely hope that you all had joyous holidays!

You know what they say:  New year, new beginning!  Out with the old and in with the new: new attitude, new good habits, new relationships, new experiences.  It’s time to reassess the things that happened last year and make a plan for what you want to happen in the new year.  It’s time to move forward.

Before the end of the year, I heard so many people say that they could not wait for 2009 to be over.  Here’s an example of some of the complaints:

  • This was such a horrible year.  I’m 37 and still unmarried, all of the good guys are taken or dead. 
  • I lost my job. 
  • My neighbor and I aren’t speaking ever since he parked in a spot that I shoveled out from under 2 feet of snow. 
  • My kids are so bad; and the list continues.
My question is this:  How is 2010, (or anytime in the future for that matter), going to be any better, if the focus is on the negativity of last year and / or prior years?  How is it possible to move forward and start anew that way?    The answer is that this year and future years will NOT be any different than the prior years and it is NOT possible to move forward SUCCESSFULLY that way.  Here’s why…

A new year + a fresh start + new goals + new hopes + the SAME PERSON, (dragging baggage, negativity, and all) = THE SAME EXPERIENCES!  Everything in that equation is new, except the person.  Did you notice that?  A change of scenery, a new job, a new significant other, a new whatever is not going to change anyone’s life unless some changes are made internally.

Entering into this new year complaining about things of the past, gives those things power over the direction of your life.  Focusing on the negative guarantees that there will be even more negativity in the future.

Every year, many of us start out with resolutions.  You know the main ones: lose weight, exercise more, get organized / declutter, cut back on spending and save more money, quit smoking and / or drinking, and get out more and enjoy life.  It’s a great idea, but most resolutions don’t last.  That is because most people don’t bother to make any internal changes, which could help to make lasting positive external changes.

Long lasting change starts with an HONEST assessment of yourself to figure out where there are blockages.  These blockages may require forgiveness and letting go.  We’ll go deeper into that in another post.

So for now, shift your focus from the negative aspect of last year to the positive.  Look at some of your complaints and search for the positive in them.  Let’s take a couple of the complaints from above:  “I’m 37 and still unmarried, all of the good guys are taken or dead.”  We can flip this to a positive by saying, “I am grateful for being single last year.  It gave me time to focus on my children.  It allowed me to work on myself, tend to my needs, and helped prepare me for a positive relationship in the future.  Now, I am ready to get out there and find my partner.”  That is a good starting point, and from there you can figure out how you are going to do that.

Another complaint mentioned above was the loss of a job.  That complaint could be flipped by saying, “I may not have been ready to lose my job, but I am strong and am sure that I will come out on top.  I know that all things happen for a reason and in the right time.  I have faith that everything will work out just fine.  I can use this time to work on my career goals.  There are so many things that I can do with this time to cultivate my other interests and skills.  I have it in me to dig deep and prosper.”  So many people have used this time to take classes, change their career focus to another industry, and even start their own businesses.

What were some of the complaints that you made at the start of the year and how can you flip them into the positive?  You still have time to change your focus and change direction of your new year.  I guarantee that!

In the coming blog posts this month and next, we’ll talk about personal responsibility, forgiveness and letting go, goal setting, money, the importance of water, the power of affirmations, and more.  I’ll share with you the bloggers that have helped me along my journey to Big Divadom with the hopes that they, too, can help you.  I’ll also be introducing exercises, homework assignments, and my 30 day experiments.  This is going to be a big year for BDHq!!  Be here and present!

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Ode to Aging

bodies

Ahh youth…  Such a wonderful thing.  I’m here to tell all of you spring chickens to take note.  Cherish your youth!  Revel in it, enjoy it, appreciate it, LOVE IT!!  Things change when you get older.

I used to laugh when my mom and my aunts would warn my sister and I about the changes they had gone through with aging.  Now, everyday I am reminded of what they were saying.  I’m in my 30s and I deal with aging on such a small scale compared to others.  Even though I have just a few gray hairs and no wrinkles, I can still tell that I’m going through changes.  Not THE change, (menopause), but changes.  lol

Some examples:

My stomach jiggles.  My stomach has always been big, but pretty stationary.  Now it jiggles, like a bowl of jello type jiggle.  It never did this before.  When I lose weight, the top of my stomach shrinks inward, but the bottom seems to do what it wants.
 
I have cellulite.  My legs in high school were like steel.  I had Beyonce’s legs.  A bit thicker, but very muscular.  I could probably do lunges from Philly to DC in heels with a grown man on my back.  Cellulite wasn’t happening anywhere.  It wasn’t even in my mind.  It came out of nowhere.

Here’s more:

My face wasn’t this chubby.  The sides of my face were not as shaded as they are now.  My eyesight hasn’t been great since the 2nd grade, but every prescription gets stronger.  My hearing isn’t as sharp as it used to be.  My feet are bigger and wider.  When in the hell did hair start growing over my top lip and under my chin?  The Girls are singing, “Swing low, sweet chariot…”  Losing weight is not as easy as it used to be.  But you know what?  I am becoming okay with that.  These are simply my observations, not complaints. 

I tell you this, because when you’re young, you don’t think about how your body will change.  You don’t appreciate your body at all.  You pick, prod, poke, and complain.  You stand in the mirror hating the way it looks and wishing it was more like *insert celebrity’s name here*.  You spend your time hiding your body, not realizing that one day it will be different.  You have children, your metabolism slows down, gravity takes it’s toll, and / or life happens.

It all changes and that is when you wish that you could go back to the days before the stretch marks, saggy boobs, gray hairs, wrinkles, jiggly or jigglier parts, and so on.  Back to when you could drop it likes its hot and not regret it in the morning.  lol
 
For those who are young and still have vitality and good “snapback”, you need to end the war with your body.  For those who are not as young and the “snapback” isn’t what it used to be, you too need to end the war with your body.  Stand in the mirror and admire just how beautiful you are.  Stand in amazement at how wonderful your body is and how great it has been to you.  Give yourself a hug, profess your love, and say thank you for all that your body allows you to do.  Do this everyday!  We are bombarded with images, commentary, and commercials whose sole job it is to make us feel like we are not good enough exactly the way that we are without whatever it is that is being sold.  A kind word or a number of kind words can do wonders for the psyche.
 
So what we could probably stand to lose a little weight.  Yeah sure, we could be healthier, but this is not about neglecting our health or putting the blinders on to our body’s signals to problems.  This is about loving our bodies unconditionally!  This is about forgiving ourselves for the choices that we’ve made in regards to our bodies and our health.  This is about letting go of the pressure that we put on ourselves to fit in this perfect little box when it isn’t possible.  We are perfect now! 
 
When you love yourself and your body, you treat yourself better.  You make decisions based upon what is truly best for you.  You pamper yourself and you give your body what it needs to be well.  No guilt.  No pressure.  No criticism.  No worries.  Hakuna Matata!  *Please, don’t make me sing it.* 
 
I found two great body positive mantras.  Below are portions from both.

i will realize that everyone jiggles. EVERYONE. thigh jigglies, stomach jigglies, arm jigglies, EVERYONE JIGGLES. i am not the only one, and i should not shake my pooch and then count the seconds, mesmerized, until the jiggling stops… this body is my body, and it is a blessing. i will appreciate it for what it is, reward its strengths, accept its shortcomings. i will strive to wake up each morning feeling good about myself and thanking it, and god, for all it has done for me, today and in the days to come.   – Oh Honey.  No.

Second one:

My shape is unique to me, and is not meant to look like anyone else. There is no “perfect” shape, and there never will be. The human race will not eventually conform to one appropriate body type, so neither should I. Energy spent on “if I were only”s will always have been better spent elsewhere. My thighs are not a curse, they are a reminder that I am strong. My soft stomach is not a sign of sloth and gluttony, it’s a sign of fair hedonism and proof that enjoying life is not less important than being “beautiful” in the eyes of the media.

I will not hold myself back from trying things because I’m worried about how my body will look or act. I will not skip dessert solely because I do not want the calories. I will treat my body as a temple, and there’s no rule that says “No Dessert in the Temple.” I will exercise my body because it needs it to function well, not so I can look like someone else, or obtain someone else’s figure.  – The Demoiselles

So stand up and say this out loud like you mean it!

I AM PERFECT NOW!  MY BODY IS PERFECT NOW!  I LOVE MY BODY!

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Baluga_Whales
 
Saturday night, I was hanging out on Facebook and a party promoter wrote this on his status,
“The Philly whales are out in full force tonight…lol.” 
 Keep in mind that he was referring to his own event.  Our subsequent conversation went something like this:
Me:  This is a great way to promote openness at your events. 
 
Promoter:  The events are open to all shapes, sizes, colors, genders, etc.  Green is green.
 
Me:  That wasn’t the impression given by your status. 
 
Promoter:  Life is too short to get mad about a joke.  That is the problem with society.  Some people take things too seriously. 
 
Me:  If you don’t think anything is wrong with insulting the very people who made it out to your event, then there is nothing else that I can say.  Have a good evening.
 
That post pissed me off.  It wasn’t because I took it personally, but because he was content to take money from the “whales” and then talk like thar about them.  I wanted to make a point and let him and others know that this was not ok to do, as an entrepreneur especially.  However, in the back of my mind, I was thinking about how I didn’t want to make waves.  That old nagging feeling implored me to shrug it off and keep what I really thought to myself. 
 
Nonsense!!  I am not the same person that I was years ago.  I’m not one to go along to get along anymore.  I don’t tip waitresses for poor service.  I don’t return to patronize venues where I’ve been disrespected or wronged in some way.  With that thought in mind, I wrote:
  ”I will not be attending any parties thrown by company name, because there seems to be a problem with big girls in attendance.  My money and I will party where we’re both truly welcomed.” 
I paused for a minute after typing it.  That nagging feeling was strong.  But you know what?  I was stronger.  I pushed the send button and posted it to the status of BOTH of my FB pages, (roughly 600 friends, 40 of whom are mutual), my FB fan page for my blog, (now at almost 200 people), and BOTH of my Twitter accounts.  Talk about empowered!
 
I discussed it with my mom and she told me about how in the 70s when she was one of very few black people in administration for a big oil company, some of her coworkers would make negative comments about black people in her presence.  When she spoke up, they told her that it was just jokes and that she was being overly sensitive.  She said that she had no intention of remaining quiet just because they tried to make her feel guilty by their claims.
 
The next evening, I received a personal apology from the promoter through my inbox.  He said that he didn’t mean to disrespect anyone by the comment and that he hoped that we could remain FB “friends”.  I haven’t responded yet, but by the time this goes up, I will have.  A la Carrie Bradshaw speak, (for all you SATC fans), I couldn’t help but wonder, was his apology even genuine?”  If he thought that I was being sensitive, then why apologize?  Also, why wouldn’t he post an apology in his status to all of the big girls in his 5000 “friends” roster.  I’m sure that I wasn’t the only big girl that didn’t get the “joke”.
 
Think about it for a second.  All of those big girls went out in cold and icy conditions to a party they learned about through a promoter they happen to be “friends” with on FB.  The promoter may have greeted some of them at the door, thanking them for coming out.  They probably had a great time at the event only to come across a post in which the promoter called them “whales”.  How do you think they felt?    I pose the question to you guys.  How would you feel if that happened to you?  I am off here?
 
I decided to check his page to see if I might have missed a posted apology.  I noticed that the comment had been deleted.  Also, instead of an apology, he posted a comment about his amazement at how one of his real friends defriended him after his “whale” comment.  Actually, he said he was defriended after a joke he made about “big beautiful women.”  He mentioned again that some people take FB too seriously.  Am I alone in thinking that this post makes his apology seem moreso like damage control now?
 
Of the 17 responses to this comment, including those from a few big girls, most were in agreement with him.  One big girl in particular said something along the lines of: 
I’m a big girl and and I took no offense.  It’s your page and you can say whatever you want.  If the “whales” don’t like it, f*** them and they can bounce. 
She has a valid point, except that his page is used partly for business.  If this were solely a personal page, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.  Also, I wonder how all of them would feel if this were a matter of race and it was a white promoter who posted disparaging remarks about black people in attendance at his event, (like calling them the “N” word).  Would they agree that anyone who took offense was being sensitive?  Would they be insulted by the promoter’s comment?
 
The other thing to mention is that the commenter knows him personally.  I, on the other hand, do not.  I don’t know anything about his personality, nor can I tell when he is joking or not.  Simply putting “lol” after a statement only means that you laughed, not that you’re kidding.  Of the almost 5000 “friends”, I am sure that I am not the only who doesn’t know him enough to be able to tell.  As a result, do we really know how many big girls amongst his FB “friends” were offended, especially if they chose not to say anything?  Do we really know how many decided never to attend his parties again?  Do we know how many people they complained to about the comment who also decided never to attend his parties?  No, we don’t, but best believe that the bug is out there whether the comment is still on the page or not.
 
One thing I’ve told people when they ask me about social media is that they really need to be aware of what they are saying, because it gets out there.  You never know who is reading your posts.  This is especially important if you are using your page to network for jobs or gain business.  Personal posts and bad jokes could offend someone whom you want to work for or someone of your targeted demographicA large percent of marketing comes from word of mouth and social media intensifies its power.  Just by pressing the “like” button or commenting on a message on FB, all of your friends can read it.  On Twitter, the same thing happens with a “retweet”.  It appears on the timeline of all of your followers whether your followers follow the original poster or not.
 
The point of this post is to let all of you big girls and non-big girls know that no matter what anyone says about you, you have power!  Regardless of who they are: family, friends, neighbors, people at school or work, strangers, the media, whoever, you have the power to shut them down and keep them from negatively affecting you.  I know it’s hard, but it’s a MUST for self-preservation!  You have the power to ignore them or speak up and walk away.  You have the power to distance yourself or totally cut them off.  You have the power to let their negativity fuel your successYOU DECIDE!!  If this is an entrepreneur or a company that employs said offender, you have BUYING POWER and the power of your voice, solo or as a community!  That, my friends, is some serious leverageUse it!
 
As for the promoter, I have no hard feelings at all.  I’ll be honest, I’ve never been to any of his events, but it has not been for lack of interest. I had planned to attend with friends once my schedule permitted it.  After this, I can’t say that I ever will, but I do accept his apology.  I truly believe that he wasn’t trying to be malicious. 
 
Let this be a lesson to watch what you say about a group of people, especially if you want their business.  You could be joking, but part of communication isn’t what you say, but how it is interpretted by your audience.  Source:  Marketing 101  *wink* 
 
My loyal readers and friends know that I am all about gratitude and the silver lining, (shout out to my tweep, @FreeYourHeart for the reminder), so I must THANK the promoter for providing me with the opportunity to stand up for my beliefs.  And thank you for inspiring a new lesson to share about the power of our voices… and our dollars.  lol  I sincerely wish you peace, wisdom, and blessings.  Now THAT is empowering!  *smile*
 
I love each and every one of youThank you so much for reading, commenting, sharing, friending me, following, retweeting, subscribing, pressing the “Like” button, and giving me feedback!  Be blessed and be a blessing today and every day!
 
Biba aka Ms. Pillowz

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handgun_I knew that I didn’t totally want to lose that fire that I felt right afterwards, but I was fading fast.  Indecision, lack of direction, and not accomplishing any goals was sucking the motivation right out of me.  One day at work, somehow I found Oprah’s The Secret episodes.  I had heard about The Secret before and even bought the audiobook a couple years ago. I found the music and the Australian accent distracting, so I never finished it.  I don’t think that I was truly ready to hear the message at that time.

I watched both episodes as well as her after show specials, and something clicked.  The points that the authors made resonated with me completely.  Her guests included James Ray, Lisa Nichols, Dr. Michael Beckwith, Jack Canfield, along with Rhonda Byrne, the author.  I scoured Youtube looking for videos by them.  (I’ll be sure to post a few later.)

The gist of the show was that my thoughts, conscious and unconscious, were creating my reality.  I could see that.  An example would be whenever I set my mind to something, opportunities would come out of the woodworks.  Then I would say to myself that I was not good enough to get it done and I wouldn’t do it.

A couple weeks later, an I-Tunes update popped up on my screen.  I don’t typically use I-Tunes, but I decided to see what it was about.  I found a ton of FREE podcasts with interviews from many of The Secret guests.  I also found Law of Attraction related podcasts as well as podcasts about hypnosis, detoxification, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), weight loss, goal setting and achievement, Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), affirmations, meditations, and the power of gratitude.  I listened to different ones every day for weeks.  My mind was opened up to a ton of new ideas that I began incorporating into my life.

Since then, things have really shifted.  I have even more confidence now.  I’ve learned and fully accepted my purpose.  Before, I never really made goals that I’ve stuck with.  I’ve waivered on them, which is why it was difficult to see any achievement on the few long term goals that I set.  I’ve since set goals for almost every area of my life: health and fitness, career, relationship and family, financial, legacy, personal, and recreation.  (I’ve included an interview with Jack Canfield, one of my absolute favorite contributors to The Secret, at the end of this post.)

The reason I chose to share this story was to hopefully light a fire within you.  You don’t have to wait until some kind of near death experience to change the direction of your life.  Don’t wait until you can’t do any of the things that you’ve always wanted to do.  Don’t wait, because tomorrow is not promised to you.  Besides death, accidents, debilitating illnesses, financial emergencies, fear, and other circumstances can change the game for anyone.  Don’t wait.  You only have one shot at this life.  Don’t waste it!

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The Saddle

English_saddleI have to apologize.  Not only do I owe you the conclusion to a story, but I owe you a better effort to keep posts consistent.  I haven’t posted in a month of Sundays.  *Sidebar: Can someone please tell me where the that saying came from?*  I digress. 

I had this laundry list of the reasons that I haven’t posted in so long, but I balled it up and threw it away.  I don’t necessarily want to focus on falling off the saddle except to acknowledge it and apologize for doing so.  I’m not even going to say that it won’t happen again, because that would be a lie and it is important for me to be honest with you.  I can, however, say that I hope that it won’t happen again.

Instead, I’d like to focus on the blessing or the silver lining.  Through not posting, I realize how many people read and enjoy my posts despite the lack of posting comments.  The other positve is that I have come to know that a part of me that I’d hoped was gone is not.  

Since high school, I had this tendency that when things were going well: diets, exercise programs, schedules that I set for studying, things that I set up to correct a behavior, something within me had other ideas.  It would throw a monkey wrench in my spokes and sabotage everything.  It was completel out of control.  The motivation and encouragement that I had to continue the good things that I was doing would suddenly disappear and turn into this bored and lazy attitude.  Then things would go back to the usual.  I’d go back to eating like before, quit exercising, and then gain back every pound that I’d lost.  My studies fell off and my goals would be left unachieved.   I didn’t understand what it was in the beginning.  I thought that there was something wrong with me and that no one else had this issue.  Turns out that I was wrong. 

I’m not sure why, but I noticed it a lot less these past few years.  Since so many great things have been happening lately, I thought that it was a thing of the past, but it has creeped back into the picture.  To be totally honest, I’m not sure that it ever left.  *sigh*  This is so frustrating.  I don’t know why the self sabotage is happening.  Maybe it is fear of change or of being successful.  Maybe it is just about remaining comfortable.  Maybe it is my subconscious playing a preprogrammed and out of date tape.  Whatever it is, knowing that it is still there is a blessing.

I firmly believe that I have what it takes to acheive all of my goals and be succesfull.  I believe that I can have the life that I want down to the type of rims I want on my car, but if there are some things in my subconscious that I don’t deal with, then either it will be much harder to fight with myself to acheive my goals and / or my successes will slip right through my fingers. 

Acknowledgment is the first step to dealing with any issues and now that I have acknowledged the self sabotage,  I am prepared to get back in the saddle and find a solution to deal with it and not let it hinder me any further.  I will keep you updated on my findings and I will also be posting the conclusion to “How a Drive By Changed My Life” very soon.  Thank you for sticking around!  I hope that all of you had an wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

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How a Drive By Changed My Life – Part II

handgun_

I sat in my car crying for what felt like hours.  I just could not move.  I was so wrapped up in everything that I was feeling, I forgot to even call the police.  I took a deep breath and it came to me.  “You are still here,”  I said out loud.  That one sentence filled every cell in my body and every organ.  It completely resonated with me.  I felt warmth, enveloped in love and vibrancy, and I felt an extraordinary amount of energy.  I started my car and drove back home.
 
The entire trip home was spent in gratitude.  I was grateful to be alive.  Grateful to have so many great people in my life who inspired me and loved me.  I was grateful for everything that I’d been through, including the drive by, and I was extremely grateful for where I was in life.  I’ve been through a lot: self destructive behavior, depression, bad relationships, more issues than a newstand, and plenty of bad choices.  At the time it all felt horrible.  I felt helpless, desperate, and unworthy of goodness.  Despite it all, eventually it passed, as it always does.  On the other side of that mess was victory.  I became a much stronger person because of all of it.
 
I’d certainly come a long way, but I still had a ways to go.  There were still many things that I needed to do.  I would love to tell you that from that point on, I turned everything around and got busy fulfilling my dreams, because I didn’t.  I would love to tell you that right afterwards I got my act together for good and completely changed my life immediately, because that isn’t true either.  I can tell you that I became very focused on goals.  I wrote out pages and page of things that I needed to do.  I had my own personal “Honey Do” list going.  The thing is, a To Do is not the same as goals.  Goals provide you the overall direction in which to go.  The To Do list makes up the steps that you should take to achieve the goals.  I didn’t have goals.  I just had lists of things to do, which lacked focus. 
 
Besides the lack of focus, the lists were overwhelming.  I had no idea where to start.  I picked at little things here and there.  I was doing a lot and not accomplishing anything.  I became discouraged and fell back into old habits.  I was back to procrastination.  I made no effort to write out and solidify my goals.  My eating habits were back to being out of control and I was living in front of the tv again.
 
I thought back to the drive by some times.  It made me think seriously about the current direction of my life.  I honestly wasn’t happy where I was.  I definitely wouldn’t be content to continue on this path and live out the remainder of my life this way.  I wasn’t fulfilling my purpose.  As a matter of fact, I had no idea what my purpose was.  I believed it would all come to me if I sat still and listened, so I got quiet.  
 
To be continued… 

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How a Drive By Changed My Life

handgun_

I wanted to see my little nephew, Dr. Kryptonite, and my sister.  It was a gorgeous sunny day, perfect for opening the sunroof and enjoying the warm air.  I took the same route that I always did.  It was automatic at that point.  A friend called, so I sat at the light while talking to her.  I noticed a black SUV with tinted windows pull up to the light across the intersection.  Nothing out of the norm.
 
The light turned green.  I proceeded slowly into the intersection and then everything went by in slow motion.  Before we crossed paths, the back passenger window rolled down and I could vividly see a hand holding a handgun come out.  Shots were fired down the street that I was crossing.  Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!  I slammed on the breaks and my hand hit the horn.  The truck sped off down the street and I gunned it to get as far away from that scene as possible.
 
I could feel the adrenaline coursing through me.  My hands were shaking so hard that I had to pull over.  I didn’t know what to make of what just happened.  Was anyone hurt?  Were they shooting at someone?  Who does something like that?  My mind was racing a mile a minute.
 
I started thinking about the things that I did and questioned my own actions.  ”What were you thinking about blowing that horn like that?  Why did you stop?  Where are the police?  Why are you still sitting here?”  These were just a few questions I had.  The thing is, I had no control over my actions at all.  I don’t remember doing anything except driving away.  Something else took over completely.  I don’t remember throwing or dropping my phone.  I can’t tell you why I blew the horn.  Nothing. 
 
Suddenly it hit me.  I could have died!  Everything happened before we passed each other.  I wasn’t directly in the line of fire, but they could have easily shot and killed me right there.  I called my sister to tell her that I wasn’t coming over.  Right after the words were out of my mouth, I burst out into tears. 
 
I cried, because I was in shock.  I cried, because I had to release all of that nervous energy and adrenaline.  I cried, because I realized that I didn’t want to leave this world at that time and in that way.  I had so much to do.  I had so much to give and I hadn’t done much to fulfill my purpose.  I felt… regretful.  It was one of the worst things that I have ever felt in my entire life.
 
To be continued…

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Results and Questions for After the Cleanse

Results:
 
This past Saturday was the last day of the cleanse.  I extended it to 14 days so that I could be supportive of my mom, who started later than I did.  By the end, I lost 15 pounds.  I’ve gained back 2 pounds already, which is to be expected since I am back to eating regular food, although I am not eating meat until next week.  I wish I took my measurements before I started though.  I can say that I’ve lost inches off of my waistline, hips, and thighs.  Now if I lost some inches from my head, I’d be in business.  I have a big head!!  lol 
 
The best part about the cleanse had to be my energy level and productivity.  I’ve been snapping necks and cashing checks as Will Ferrell said in Step Brothers.  Another positive is that I’ve craved nothing but fruits and vegetables.  Before I started, I knew that in order to maintain any weight loss and lose even more, I would have to reevaluate my eating choices.  I needed to add more fruits and veggies and do less processed foods.  Last week, I ordered 2 cookbooks,  Fast Food Fix by Devin Alexander and Cook Yourself Thin,so that I’d have more healthy meal options.  I get bored eating the same thing everyday and once I get bored, I head back to old favorites.  Meals also have to be quick and easy to prepare.  I don’t want to spend the last few hours I have before bedtime cleaning, chopping, marinating, seasoning, cooking, and then eating. 
 
Early Saturday morning, I went out and bought a ton of fruits and vegetables.  There were no pretzels, Cheez-Its, Wheat Thins, frozen dinners, or any other processed food in my cart.  I was pretty proud of myself, I have to say.  After I put everything away, I officially ended the cleanse by indulging in a big glass of organic orange juice from Trader Joes.  I added water to it to cut the sugar, because it was so sweet.  I swear that the cleanse changed my taste buds.  I made sure to sip slowly, but it was so refreshing that I really wanted to take it to the head.  That is a no-no!!  It is REALLY important to end the cleanse properly as described by Stanley Burroughs in The Master Cleanser.  If you start eating regularly right at the end, YOU WILL BE SICK!  You can go back to eating what you want, but there is a process that you have to go through in order to reintroduce your body to food.
 
Once you’ve finished the cleanse and the process, here are 10 questions to answer to evaluate how it went for you:
 
 
1.  How long did you do the cleanse?

2.  Did you have any difficulty coming off of the cleanse at all?

3.  What were your physical results? Did you achieve your goals?

4.  Did you achieve the non-physical goals, that you listed before starting?

5.  What were your harderst days?  What were some problems that you experienced?

6.  How did you work through them?

7.  Now that it has ended, how are your cravings?

8.  What type of changes have you made to your diet so far? What changes do you plan to incorporate later?  What will you do to maintain your progress?

9. Would you ever do the cleanse again? If so, how might you incorporate it into your life?

10. Would you recommend the cleanse to others?

I’ve talked a lot about the Master Cleanse these past couple weeks.  I will definitely revisit the MC since I have chosen to do it once every quarter.  If at any time you have questions or want to provide feedback of your own, please feel free to contact me or share it with the readers in any of the MC posts. 
 
    

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10 Questions to Answer Before Doing the Master Cleanse

First, I would just like to thank my readers for all of the feedback that I’ve gotten from my posts about the MC.  A few of you mentioned that you are even thinking about giving it a try.  I’m really happy that you are considering it and if you do go through with it, I hope that it works out well for you.
 
One thing that helped me during my first cleanse was to prepare for the worst, so to speak.  I wrote out and answered 10 questions, which made me think about different possibilities, so that I was better prepared if they actually happened.
I’ve posted the questions here for you to review and think about before you start. 
 
Feel free to post your answers here or if you have some good questions that can help us prepare, please share them as well. 

1.  Why are you participating in the cleanse? What do you hope to achieve as a result?

2.  What are some goals that you hope to achieve, other than physical ones, while on the cleanse or shortly thereafter?

3.  What, if anything, would you like to change about your current diet?

4.  After the cleanse, it’s highly recommended that you change to a raw diet. That may not work for some of you, so what kind of changes could you make to maintain your progress?

5.  What might be the reason that you would quit before 10 days?

6.  What could you do to keep from quitting?

7.  What if you don’t achieve the results that you want or had expected?

8.  I’ve read that it is best to rest and keep yourself busy so that you don’t think about food or hunger. What can you do to occupy your time, which doesn’t require a lot of energy?

9.  I’ve also read that at some point your energy level increases. It’s been said that it is good to get involved in some physical activities as an outlet. What are some things that you could do?

10. Would you consider doing the program for longer than 10 days?

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5 More Benefits to the Master Cleanse

A couple days ago, I posted 5 Benefits to the Master Cleanse.  Here is the final installment with 5 more benefits of the program.  Enjoy!

1.  Increased energy – After work I would go home, eat, and park it on the couch to watch tv, because that was all that I could do.  I felt no energy to use the remainder of the day to get my personal stuff done.  Six pm might as well have been midnight.  Now, when I get out of that bed in the morning, I am charged.  When I get home, I am still pretty charged.  I can get things done for me and I feel good doing it. 

2.  Reworking eating habits -  All of the trouble that you go to when you go through detox and seeing what comes out will definitely change some things.  You will not want to put that same stuff back.  I thought about the kinds of things that I would eat once the cleanse was finished, BEFORE the cleanse was over.  Once I did that, I went through my kitchen and cleared it of the things that were not good for me and restocked with the good healthy foods.  Most of the things that I no longer wanted I donated.  I didn’t give myself a chance to go back to those old eating habits.

3.  Getting in touch with the body – When you’re focusing on how you feel and symptoms from reactions that you are having while detoxing, you become a lot more sensitive to your body and it’s signals.  You have a better sense of when you are hungry, when you’re getting sick, and of your emotions during this process.  You appreciate how amazing the body truly is.  It is so astounding how this vessel works for us and how well it works.  You want to treat it better.  You see and feel the connection between what you put in it and how well it does it’s job and you want it to be optimal.  It’s pretty spiritual really.

4.  Realizing your strength – There are so many things that go through your mind when you consider doing the cleanse.  “Damn!  Ten days is like forever.  I can’t possibly last 10 days without eating.  I would gnaw off my own hand.  It’s impossible!”  You decide to do it.  You barely make it through day 1.  Day 2 is tough, but not like the 1st day.  Day 3 is much better.  It almost feels like easy street.  Then day 4 comes and goes and so on until day 10.  You realize that both you and your body are stronger than you give credit for.  If the impossible is clearly possible, then what else are you keeping yourself from doing?

5.  Finding time – You notice how much food takes up space in your life.  Since you can’t eat, you fill all of that time with activity, from going to the gym to weatherproofing your house.  You find time that you never thought existed.  My weekends fly by just like everyone’s does, but while doing the cleanse, they’ve felt like extended holidays.  I’ve always had enough things to do, more than enough actually, but now I have the time and energy to do them. 

I am sure that there are more things that I am not touching on.  For those that decide to do it, I want to leave it up to you to experience these benefits and come up with some new ones.  Please feel free to comment about it or comment on some of the other posts that I’ve written.  Next post:  Concerns and Myths of the Master Cleanse.  I hope to see you back!  :-)

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