HEALTHY LIVING - How I went from a size 12 to size 6/8

Hi sweeties....hope you're all having a great week. Today I'm focusing on something entirely different - I'll be inspiring you on healthy living and also showing you (ladies) some of the products I use. Most people ask me what cream, make-up etc I use so I'll be talking about that in this post.

The first thing I'll focus on is your eating habit. Believe it or not, I was on the verge of hitting size 12 when I was in my third year in the university, all I knew was food and sleep. I had just returned home to do a 6 months IT (industrial training) and the only real work I did was normal house chores. I ate breakfast, brunch, lunch, after lunch, dinner and late dinner; I could never get enough of mum's sumptuous meals. The shocker was that every time I stood in front of the mirror, I saw myself as the world's hottest model (lolll).  My love for food was insatiable and immediately after meals, my eyes started to feel dizzy and that meant SLEEP...zzzzzzzzz. I finished my IT, went back to school and all my friends were surprised at my size but I didn't care cos I loved the extra bum (*covers face* ignorance). Fast-forward, few months after graduation a neighbour stopped me on the way (an elderly woman) and these were her exact words, "Lynda, I have noticed some changes in your body and as a woman I understand what your body is going through. I also know that you may not know how to tell your parents, but I'm here to help you. I can speak to them on your behalf if you want me to". I stood in amazement with my eyes, mouth, nose, ears wide open and I was like "huh?" In order not to say something that will cause wahala, I just told her thank you and walked away. In my head, I thought to myself "was she trying to say I'm preggy"? Next episode happened when I was standing with my mum after church service and a close family friend walked up to us and said to my mum, "how's Lynda? When is she coming back from school?" My brethren and sisthren... I was standing right beside my mum and this my aunty didn't even recognize me (AARRGGHHH...was it that bad?).  I finally got the gist... the message had been delivered to my brains. You may wonder why these people acted the way they did... that's because yours truly (me) used to be lepa' (very very slim). My nick name when I was younger was fido-dido. Remember the 7-up bottle... u can't forget it. Yeah...that's exactly how tiny I was so most of my clothes had no fitting and would swirl round my waist. I began to fast and pray for extra bum, 

hips, boobs, anything fat. I started eating anything and everything edible ... if it had extra calories, that's the one I want. If it's oily, extra fat-I'll definitely want it. Little did I know that all these fat consumption were piling up somewhere and getting ready to manifest (mehnn the devil is a liar, loll). So I moved from Fido-dido to Michelin Tyre. Ladies and gentlemen, at this juncture, hmmm... I decided to repent of my sins bad eating habit and give my life to Christ exercise, healthy living, fruits, vegetables and total body work-out. It wasn't easy but it was worth it. I'm now a size 6 above & size 8 below .. if you know what I mean.

My message today is not to talk about being fat or being slim; but to encourage you to live a healthy life for yourself and for those who love you. Think of how you want to be in the future and start taking care of yourself now. Won't you prefer to be a strong and agile grandpa/grandma? Ladies, our bodies go through a lot of transformation after child-birth so even before you get married & get pregnant; you need to put a check on the things you eat. Guys, esp some Ibo African men (my nna bros & co) I love you guys but biko (pls) a pot belly no longer means chopping money or living large. Make sure you take some time to do some exercise; you burn those calories when you work out. You don't necessarily need the gym (I haven't bee to the gym at work since I joined), you can do indoors workout, zumba dance, jogging on the spot, skipping etc.

Lynn's routine: less carbohydrates, less oil (I'm trying to cook jollof/fried rice without oil), more fruits, vegetables. I haven't taken fizzy drinks (coke, sprite, anything fizzy) since  December 2011. If I have to take it, I mix it with water. No artificial juices, only freshly squeezed, from non-concentrate and smoothies (home-made). The pictures below are what I'm having this week straight from Lynn's Kitchen. Chicken soup with broccoli & cauliflower and fruit smoothie #teamhealthyliving 

CHICKEN SOUP WITH VEGGIES

Broccoli, cauliflower and chicken - Boil the chicken and add your spices. When the chicken is ready, add the vegetables inside and stir. Leave to steam for 2 - 3 minutes

Finished product - Chicken soup with veggies (very healthy)

SMOOTHIE

From R - L: Peach, banana, apple, mango, strawberry (you can mix any fruit of your choice)

Cut fruits into smaller bits, add apple juice and blend - Smoothie is ready

Let's talk about exercise - Like I said, I haven't used the gym at work cos most times I'm rushing off to a meeting after work or have to stay back extra hours to finish off some work. All these are excuses but I don't miss my morning work out sessions with Jillian Michaels or Fitness Blender. Looking good is good business.

2007-size 12; 2010-size 10; since 2012 to 2013-size 6

I know I promised to include beauty products to this post but unfortunately I may not be able to. Reason is I didn't know this post was going to be this long. I'll definitely post an article about that.

PLEASE stay healthy for yourself; for those who love you and for your future. I don't know about you but I'm gonna be a strong, sexy and yoppy grandma :)