Girdle Stories from Long Ago

Girdles have been around for a long time and they are here to stay; albeit in a very different form called 'shapeware'.

Here's a very entertaining video of a girdle fashion show from the 1940's in Britian. In one scene we see a mother of nine children. Yep, nine children. I doubt she has time to put on girdles. They are foster babies and she spends her days changing diapers, washing them, and putting them on the laundry line outside. And you thought you had it rough!

Ugly Betty talks about Appearances

Beautiful America Ferrera, who stars in the very popular new sitcom "Ugly Betty" (produced by Salma Hayek) was interviewed a few years ago and had this to say about appearances;

So, definitely, just growing up in America, whether you're skinny or not there's just way too much attention placed on the way we look. It overshadows more important things in life like loving yourself, loving who your are and finding yourself on the inside. Not just what kind of clothes you like to wear and who's your favorite designer. My generation, you ask a kid, they'll definitely know who made the shoes they're wearing and what shirt they like. But they can't answer, who's your favorite artist? Or what's you're favorite book? They can say (they) love this magazine or this...singer. Or "I wish I looked like this person." But they know so little about themselves.

Trans Fat is a Hazardous Chemical

New York City is joining Chicago in proposing a ban on trans fat in foods served at restaurants. Trans fat is the worst type of fat and causes serious health problems as the body is not able to digest it properly.

NYC's mayor has even gotten Robert de Niro into the debate. De Niro owns several restaurants in New York but they are all trans fats free.
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Photo by Tuppus

A Vegetarian Body Builder

I'd assume only a small minority of bodybuilders are vegetarians, but according to Robert Cheeke, there is no reason to eat meat if you want big muscles.

Cheeke has competed in body building competitions around the world. He weighs only 176 pounds, works out six days a week and relies on a protein-rich diet of nuts, grains and green vegetables.

He has a vegan bodybuilding site which goes into the benefits of a plant-based diet. Though he grew up on a farm, he stopped eating meat while at University after seeing an animal rights protest and learning about factory farming.

Breakfast is the Most Important Meal?

Everybody has heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Whatever you do, don't skip breakfast. Nobody questions this. I't almost a religious dogma in the realm of nutrition and dietary rules.

A few days ago there was an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times about this. There are a few scientists now questioning the basis of this 'fact'.

"They're not challenging the practice of sending children off to school with some oat bran or eggs in their belly. They acknowledge the many studies reporting that children who eat breakfast get more of the nutrients they need and pay more attention in class.

They do say, however, that the case for breakfast's benefits is far from airtight — especially for adults, many of whom, if anything, could stand skipping a meal.

"For adults, I think the evidence is mixed," says Marion Nestle, professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University who hasn't eaten breakfast in years because she is just not hungry in the morning.

"I am well aware that everyone says breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but I am not convinced," Nestle wrote in her book, "What to Eat." (She later received many e-mails from readers telling her that they were relieved to hear it.) "What you eat — and how much — matters more to your health than when you eat."

A few scientists go further than this. They say it may be more healthful for adults to skip breakfast, as long as they eat carefully the rest of the day.

"No clear evidence shows that the skipping of breakfast or lunch (or both) is unhealthy, and animal data suggest quite the opposite," wrote Mattson, possibly the ultimate anti-breakfast iconoclast, last year in the medical journal the Lancet. Advice to eat smaller and more frequent meals, he wrote, "is given despite the lack of clear scientific evidence to justify it."

Mattson admits that he hasn't proven his case yet. His studies are still preliminary.

But already, his findings have attracted a cadre of followers who started to skip breakfast once they heard of his results. Meanwhile, a diet plan that involves breakfast skipping — the Warrior Diet — is attracting followers in the U.S. and worldwide. "

Read the full article about the merits of breakfast here. The photo above is by Ahmed Rabea.

Sexy Halloween Costumes in Plus Sizes

There's a really good selection of plus sized Halloween costumes available online these days. If you're planning on attending a Halloween party and want to shell out about $40 or $50 for an outfit, you'll have no end of outfits to choose from. Here's just four samples from the 'sexy adult' costumes' category I found in the plus size section at Annies Costumes.

The black one on the top left is a Warrior Princess costume. For under $40, it includes the teddy, kilt and guantlets. It's only available in dress sizes 16-18.

The "Sexy Robe" costume on the left is available in dress sizes up to 22. It includes a black double knit robe with an attached hood and red lining and costs about $44.

Ruby, The Beauty Pirate costume is a corset top with attached sleeves, a skirt, hip wrap and head tie. It's available in sizes 18 to 24. It's $38.

Lastly we have the sexy prep school delinquent. This costume sells for $56 and includes the jacket, shirt, a pleated skirt and a neck tie. It's available in XXLarge and 3X sizes.

What is it about Chocolate?

As the days get shorter and colder, I reach more often for the chocolate. Especially the dark and heavily caffeinated kind. It's been one of those days.
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'Self explaining addiction' photo by Procsilas

Gallbladder forces a Lifestyle Change

Angie Brown, 28, was forced to change her diet when her gallbladder began giving her serious health problems. At 5'4", she weighed 200 pounds at the end of 2004. That's when she found out she had gallbladder disease. But instead of having surgery, she decided to radically change her diet. She cut out most saturated fats from her diet and all soft drinks. And after losing thirty pounds, she started walking and jogging regularly. She now weighs 130 pounds. Congrats to Angie on her newfound health and weight loss success!

Walking Clubs for Fitness Motivation

I know a woman, a friend of a friend, who has a gorgeous figure. She's slim and has a very healthy glow about her. She's no young pup in her twenties. She was born the same year as me.

And the secret to her fit body and vibrant looks is a regular walking regiment. She started this a few years ago, when her two kids were still in elementary school. She wasn't the type of person who enjoyed solitary walks so she joined a local walking club. She's been very serious about it since and walks at least twenty miles a week. Although she's a very social person and has always attracted lots of friends, the four or five women she walks with regularly have become her closest friends by far.

The walking club seems to provide much more than a way to get fit and healthy. The friendships that she's developed there go a long way in making life much more interesting and joyful. Why pay a psychiatrist $150 an hour to discuss your problems when you can walk and talk it out every day with an understanding friend?

I set a goal of walking at least twenty miles a week almost a year ago. But I've failed to do this. Maybe I should consider a walking club. It's not easy to do when you've got a toddler but this is what I've been thinking about lately. These days it's easier to find the local walking clubs in your area. You can just type in 'walking club' and your city name and get some good leads. But the local community centre is probably the best place to start inquiring.
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The lovely duck walking photo above is by Pieter Pieterse

Girdles and the Post-Baby Flabby Stomach

While we're on the subject of girdles, I just read at The Mirror about another celebrity who says one of the secrets of looking fabulous just four months after giving birth is her expensive girdle from Agent Provocateur.

Nancy Sorrell says, "I wore them every day except when they were in the wash. They basically just pull everything in. I'm not sure if they worked or if I would have lost the weight anyway, but the whole area has tightened up."

Agent Provocateur has this to say about post-pregnancy flab and their $120 girdle solution; "After birth a vacuum in the womb is created. This waist cinching brief features a band of super elastic applying pressure to the lower ribcage without being constricting. The brief flatters the waistline and has sexy detachable suspender straps."

Mind you, Sorrell, 32, who is 5'9 (and gained only 28 pounds while pregnant with twins, and is now a British dress size 10), has worked very hard to get back in shape. It's not the girdle she puts on every day. She also walks a mile a day with her stroller, goes swimming twice a week, and lays on a Swiss Ball and does sixty sit-ups daily. (Phew, makes me tired just visualizing all this.) Here's the likely girdle she wears from Agent Provaceteur (bottom photo) and a second post-natal girdle for about half the price that's very popular on Amazon right now.

Starbucks and Calorie Excesses

A recently released report points out that a regular habit of buying Starbucks or other coffee chain 'special drinks' can really add up your daily calories consumed.

For example, how many calories would you say are in the Starbucks' blackberry green tea Frappuccino?

Three hundred? Guess again. It's 560 calories! One could eat a nice meal of grilled chicken and a heaped plate of tasty vegetables and still not come close to this kind of calorie dose.

Such high-calorie drinks are now very popular in coffee shops across North America. But they add zero nutritional value to our daily diet.

The photo of girls in black enjoying Starbucks is by Malingering.

Beyonce Wears a Spanx Girdle?

It's interesting to see that even young celebrities with perfect bodies are wearing the modern equivalent of girdles - SPANX - when they want to cinch the waist and slim the hips.

But no one uses the word 'girdles' anymore. These evolved girdles are called 'slimming shapewear'.

Here's a photo (taken by Splash News) of Beyonce Knowles in what appears to be SPANX tummy control nylons. It's made of a special spandex weave giving "seamless, leg-shaping support." And it's designed "with a soft, nonbinding waistband."

This photo of Beyonce will probably be a bigger boost for the SPANX company than any advertising they've done in their short but successful history to date.

How to cook Corn on the Cob

This is the season for fresh corn. Eating corn on the cob is a great way to fill up on a delicious, nutritious and low calorie food. Corn is very high in fiber. A one cup serving (at 177 calories) will provide you with about 18% of the recommended daily value of fiber.

Corn is also high in folate, (19% of daily recommended), Vitamin B1, (24%) and Vitamin C (17%).

I bought six corn on the cobs to make for dinner tonight for my husband, toddler and me.

Corn on the cob is one of the easiest fresh vegetables to cook. I husk the corn and pull off any excess threads. Then I boil water in a large pot and put the corn in when the water is boiling. I then turn the heat off, and leave the corn in the boiled water for at least five minutes. Some people like it less cooked and would take it out sooner.

I usually put a little butter and salt on my corn when eating. But I've heard flax seed oil would make a good and healthy substitute.

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The photo above is by Akash k.

Jessica Simpson and Her Personal Trainer

Jessica Simpson has her own personal trainer, just like many other celebrities. His name is Mike Alexander. He's actually an old friend from highschool who she hired to create her eating and fitness regimen when she was preparing for filming the Dukes of Hazzard. He lived with her for three months during this time and she worked out six days a week.

Now her personal trainer is establishing a name for himself in Los Angeles. On his website he says he molded her "from an adorable Newlywed into a rock-hard Daisy Duke". Since then he's also become a personal trainer for her sister, Ashlee Simpson, as well as Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks.

Mike Alexander's personal trainer website is not really up and running yet. But we are to watch this space for his basic exercise and nutrition tips.

Skinny Models Get Rejected

Models that are too skinny to be healthy are being banned from next week's prestigious fashion show in Spain. Being too skinny to qualify for this show is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of less than 18.

The government in Madrid has decided to take the lead in breaking the dangerous cycle of excessively skinny models being role models for young girls who then go on to starve themselves and endanger their health.

About a third of the models who took part in this fashion show last year were rejected this year because their BMI was less than 18.

As an example, if a model is 5'9", she would be banned from working at this show if she weighed less than 122 pounds.

The fashion show organizers say they want to "help ensure public opinion does not associate fashion, and fashion shows in particular, with an increase in anorexia, a disease which, along with bulimia, is considered ... as a mental and behavioral problem".

Pound to Kilogram Calculator

I've added this handy pound to kilogram (and kilograms to pounds) converter on the sidebar of this site.

It would be much simpler for all of us if the whole world converted to kilograms, but for now I don't think in kilos, can't visualize them and always have to convert kilo weights into pounds.

The photo here is 'Parmesan cheese by the kilo'. It's taken by Jyri.

Check out the instant calculator on the sidebar below.

A Virtual Model for Weight Loss

I've just added this virtual model to my sidebar. It's based on your body mass index (BMI) which is a function of your height and weight. Given your height, what you see at different weights is what you might look like at different body mass index (BMI) ranges. It's fun to see and quite motivating.

To see how overweight I was and how I could look if I ever reached my goal weight, scroll over the 'start' and 'goal' buttons' you see on the right.

Celebrity Makeovers have just released this virtual model and I'm guessing it could be a popular weight loss tool for people to add to their personal sites.

Sardines are a rich source of Omega 3's

It's harder to eat less when the food you eat leaves you nutritionally starved or even somewhat deficient.

This is a key premise of a new book, The Sardine Diet. Here we learn that sardines are one of the richest sources of Omega-3 essential fatty acids.

Most people are not eating enough Omega-3 and this type of fat is far more important in fighting obesity and even depression than many people realize.

We are getting depressed and fat partly because the Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acid ratio in our diet is so out of whack. The typical person consumes thirty units of Omega 6 for every one unit of Omega 3. But the healthy ratio is four to one.

Many people know that the highest sources of Omega 3 are in salmon and flaxseed. But sardines actually have almost twice as much omega 3 as salmon per ounce. And they can be a lot cheaper and easier to eat on a regular basis.

My cupboard is stocked with sardine tins. Now I just have to get into the habit of eating them.

Examining those Pesky Vices

Julia Harvey (pictured here) used to be a 290 pound single mother. She went on to lose 130 pounds and has kept the weight off for over ten years.

She's just published her second book, The Vice-Busting Diet: A 12-Week Plan to Break Your Worst Food Habits and Change Your Life Foreverand it promises to be an interesting read.

Instead of prescribing a rigid diet with only certain foods, she discusses how it's more effective in losing weight in the long run to examine our vices and let go of these. For example, a very common vice for people is soda or soft drinks. Some people drink three or more liters a day. It is quite easy to lose weight if one can only drop a vice such as this. Other common 'vices' are fast food and television.

Her book focuses on a 12-week plan for eradicating your vices. It also includes an exercise plan and a nutritious recipes section.

The World's Fattest Man

The world's fattest man weighs 1,210 pounds. Manuel Uribe, 40, says, "People think that I can eat a whole cow, but it's not just overeating, it's also a hormonal problem."

Uribe is scheduled to have weight-loss surgery in Italy soon. He's been bedridden for the past five years. The english version of his website is at Manuel Uribe. He updates it with his laptop while lying in his iron bed.

A Super Fit Body

Here's some visual motivation to help me stick to my fitness and weight loss goals over this Labor Day long weekend:-).

The photo is titled "Material Girl" and was taken by Ryagalesie.