How did those classic beauties do it?

Hollywoods finest, they are the weight loss inspiration for many. Even those deemed "Curvaceous" are often still perfectly toned. In the 70's and 80's, in the hey-day of Jane Fonda, many women opted for intense cardio and weights, gym's were filled everywhere with new classes and gym-goers often went on crash diets since that is the common stereotype of a celebrity- that they don't eat.


Ofcourse, in some cases this is true, present day young starlets have become sickeningly thin, to the point where they either look ill and emaciated or 12 years old.


So obviously, anyone advising you to "not pay attention to celebrities, do not use them as a guideline for what is "normal"" would be very right in saying so, but then, these people are human, many of them are technically normal, and many struggle with their weight! The difference between us and them is that they have to lose weight very quickly, their livelihood depends on it, while we can take the more healthy route of slow and steady.


In saying that, it isn't necessarily bad to look on someone who has had a goal in mind, and achieved it, as inspiration. While I wouldn't condone trying to "be" someone else, I find many stars who look good while still maintaining a womenly appeal and healthy weight, very encouraging.


So today I've been looking around finding some of my favourite older and more recent stars who I find most inspiring for beauty.


1. Sophia Loren 

While very small, you can see in her arms that she is not underweight, or unhealthy. This classic Italian star of hollywoods golden age has maintained her beauty and weight well up into her 70's.
In her book, "Women and Beauty" she explained the range of exercises she did to keep that svelte waistline. A very similar set of exercises can be found here: http://www.livestrong.com/article/380060-exercise-for-curves/


Her current figure has incited endless praise, especially after appearances made in 1999 at the academy awards, showing how good 64 can get. "Loren opts for daily exercise: 45 minutes of stretching and abdominal crunches and a one-hour walk. She also keeps a lid on la dolce vita (the sweet life). She eats European style: a light breakfast of decaf and an English muffin, mid-morning sandwiches, a large lunch (usually pasta, chicken, salad and fruit) and little, if any, dinner. "She weighs now what she did years ago," says Hollywood fashion designer and friend Nolan Miller. "I don't think it would ever enter her mind to be a size 6.""


but ofcourse its not all exercise, 


"Loren's beauty secrets? "A lot of rest. Good thoughts. Exercise," says the star. She rises most days at 5 a.m. and usually goes to bed by 8 p.m. In between, her daily beauty rituals are decidedly low-maintenance. She washes her hair with baby shampoo and colors it herself when necessary. (Lately, she has been road-testing blonde streaks, "because every teenager does that," she says.) She does her own manicures and her own makeup, using products blended to her skin tones by a movie-makeup-artist friend from Italy. Her only indulgences, she says, are the potions—such as an eye cream containing vitamin A and a rosewater face lotion." 




If you would like to read more about this inspiring beauty and praised actress:
http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20128361,00.html




2. Vivien Leigh

If you've seen Gone With The Wind, then you'll this as none other than Scarlet O'Hara, the minx like southern belle who in a time of civil war, still rose to success through sheer stubborn will, and looked gorgeous throughout!


The petite Vivien Leigh herself was a strikingly beautiful screen and stage actress for most of her life, constantly challenging herself and her craft.

"Miss Leigh still has her Scarlett O’Hara figure. “I love food.” she confessed, “so I do not give up the pleasure of eating to make my clothes fit. When I must I go on a quick five-day diet. The secret is not procrastinating. A brisk walk Is my favorite form of exercise. We must use our muscles to keep them from getting stiff, and walking does this.”"

"To be assured of a flat stomach, Miss Leigh does this routine daily. Lie on your back on the floor. With straight knees raise your legs to a 45-degree angle, lower them slowly almost to the floor then raise them again. Balance yourself with palms under your spine. Make three minutes your ultimate goal, but work up to this limit slowly."

If you would like to know more about this timeless beauty and very talented actress: http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeschooling/2010/06/twenty-interesting-facts-about-vivien-leigh/comment-page-3/

So far, what I've found from my research is that these women have both left an impression everywhere they went. Beauty isn't simply being "thin", it is being in proportion: not focusing on only one part of your body, and, Taking care of yourself: Don't neglect your skin, exercise and diet are great, but ensure you drink plenty of water and are getting adequate vitamins and minerals to keep that glow about you, a little moisturiser doesn't hurt either. Remember: Its easier to prevent problems with skin then to cure them. 

 My last and final choice of inspiration is..

 3. Dolly Parton

Always smiling, this charming singer and songwriter dubbed "The Queen of Country Music" was and still is an icon of beauty for women the world over. Some may call her fake or gaudy but whenever I've seen her she has been nothing but ladylike and respectable, ofcourse that isn't to say she doesn't put on a good show! Delivering hilarious interviews, and awe-inspiring concerts with the unique twist that only comes from a unique personality. Over her multi-decade career, dolly has maintained her figure and looks without the help of trainers and nutritionists. She has never sugar-coated her diet and exercise regime, or pretended it was easy. “It’s a bitch any way you look at it. You either starve or you get fat. ”The singer admitted that her exercise regime is basically “a tiny little bit of squats and sit-ups.” But she is still conscious of the scale. “I’m very short, so I just have to watch my weight because I have a big appetite,”

In many articles the "cabbage soup diet" appears to be the main weight-loss secret for this bombshell, and although I wouldn't usually encourage strict or short-term diets such as this, it doesn't appear to be too extreme, and according to many comments and other articles, others have found it quite effective also. http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/soup/vegetable-soup/dolly-parton-diet.html. I personally am quite happy with the diet I'm currently on, but this soup could be a nice addition sometime, always tweek your diet to suit you.

Tips from Today:


* Don't be jealous or discouraged by others achievements, be inspired!


* The above women were chosen based on their overall appeal, not just dress size. I appreciate beauty on someone who has made the effort and put aside the time for it,  not just starved until they were "the right size", there is no "right" size for anyone, but there certainly is a healthy size. They also behave confidently and respectfully, that could make anyone attractive, hence "beauty is on the inside".




Exercise, Eat Clean and Moisturise!


Rosie.x

Paved with good intentions...

As you know, I prioritise working out before dieting, I think people should play to their strengths and thats mine. Of course diet is still important, otherwise you would just be wasting your time getting all sweaty, but thankfully because I've made working out a sort of habit ~ its just another part of my day ~ I don't find it nearly as hard as some people.

"My weaknesses are food and men, in that order"- Dolly Parton 

Its always when we're doing well and making gains that something comes along to test us! and my not-currently-dieting sister is exactly that. It was just a normal day, I'd picked at a few non-diet foods during the day so I was just planning to have a cup of soup for dinner before I worked out. My sister had another idea though, she'd had a bad day and was tired, understandably she just wanted to order pizza and watch TV. She's supportive to a point, but she hates it when she eats junk food and I'm sitting there holier-than-though with my soup. This went on to make me feel bad for making her feel 'judged'. So I conceded that fine, we could have a pizza night, its just one night right?  

As I thought about it more and more it dawned on me, I always intend on only eating 2-3 pieces then backing off, but I usually end up eating half a pizza, oh yes, I can put it away when I want too lol. But this time, really? This is what always happens when I do well, I ruin it! Sending myself right back to the start. So instead I set it up as a challenge for myself, 2 pieces, thats it, I'd leave it alone, I just couldn't stand the idea of doing it all over again.

and... drumroll... I did it! I know I know some people would still think thats bad or whatever, but in my case it was quite the achievement, an hour later I had an awesome workout and you know what, didn't have any water weight gain issues the next day either.

The whole point is, small victories! Whatever we do, regardless of whether it has changed your life, or just wasn't the setback it could have been- if it was hard, but you did it anyway, then you did great and should be very proud of that! Every time we prove ourselves wrong, go beyond what we thought we could do, even if it was only small, it brings us closer to our ultimate goal- to no longer be ruled by stupid habits.

Tips from today:

* Remember the people around you, a lot of dieters say they have issues with family and friends sabotaging and discouraging them, but try to think about why that may be. Losing weight is a personal choice, everyone thinks they should do it, or wish they could, but many are either too scared to start or simply can't fit it in to their life. It can be all too easy to feel like this is your chance to get a few people back for making you feel bad about yourself in the past, but take this opportunity to be the better person, this especially applies to those who have struggled with weight for a long time. Regardless, they will still feel like they are being judged even if you haven't been so try to be kind and don't take it to heart when people try to discourage. Ignore it and keep the diet on a need to know basis, on the down low as they say.

* Never under value those small victories, because its one less habit you'll have to kick in the future!


and most importantly, have fun! On that note, I'm going to a belly dancing class tonight, just to see if I'd like it, besides I hear its good exercise ;)

Don't forget!
Eat clean (if you can), exercise like crazy and moisturise!
Rosie.x

To Pay or not to Pay?

Is a diet sold at a flat rate trustworthy? and if this really was the big secret to weight-loss, why isn't it everywhere? Why don't doctors recommend it?

If you walk into your local pharmacy you'll see aisles and shelves filled with diet pills, supplements, and ofcourse countless meal replacement products. If you talk to your pharmacist, they don't tell you which diet they use, or whether they have personally seen any evidence to support the claims on this product, but  they will still sell you something. The fact is, the 16 year old behind the counter reads the label and her guess is as good as yours, but we still trust their opinion because of the medical affiliation. 

(I could have found any picture, but it was hard to pass up this cheerfully suspect fellow passing out pills)

Currently, I am on my own diet, and it has actually been working quite steadily! Being so close to my goal weight, and within a technically healthy weight range for my height, I can't expect massive losses at a time, that only happens when you are sincerely over weight. When it comes down to it, resilience is key. Over the course of one week I may only lose 1-2 kgs, this may go up and down, but by the end of the month, I've usually lost 3-5 kgs, which is a massive difference at a smaller weight, every kilo lost is extremely obvious in my overall appearance, its actually kind of shocking. This is why you should never give up, even if a lack of immediate results is a little discouraging. 

So anyway back to store or online bought diets, and whether or not they're worth the price.

In my experience the only store-bought diet I would endorse is a meal replacement, as most meal replacements work off of the same concept: The meal is reasonably filling, low- carb and/or low- fat. Meaning you don't overeat as the size and portion of your meal is completely controlled. A good quality meal replacement will also have a healthy portion of vitamins and minerals to replace those you miss out on from food and will have a very detailed explanation of the science behind their product, how it works, and what the ingredients are. Taste is another matter, some people find them bland, chalky, and not at all like the flavour on the wrapping, but as I said these diets are for the most part similar in concept and effectiveness so if you dislike the taste of one brand, try another! Many brands offer free samples of their wares so try as many as you need too until you find something reasonably edible. I personally love the flavours of the Celebrity Slim range, cookies and cream is my fave ;)

Now diet pills, I haven't taken many of these as I've never found their explanation of how the theorised weight-loss will occur entirely plausible. Infact, in many cases I have found they don't even cause a loss of water weight, I honestly believe they do absolutely nothing other than putting the dietee in the mindset of a dieter, helping them to make better motivated decisions on their diet throughout the day. 

My older sister, one of two, works in a pharmacy, selling these exact pills all day long, and she herself has admitted in seeing no dramatic weight-loss in her customers. Early last year she was given a free box of ThermoBlast ® diet pills, which work by increasing your metabolism, heating your body temperature ever so slightly, helping you burn more calories throughout the day. She gave them to me to try and after two weeks, nothing! They made absolutely no difference. 

I have two sisters, the other has tried many diets with me, and is sort of my weight-loss buddy. Together we tried drinking "Metamucil" for its fibre benefits which claim to detox your system, increasing weight-loss and oh yes, we were detoxified. Unfortunately, a fight to the death with your sister for the bathroom isn't the most convenient diet. 

One day we were walking through our pharmacy guru sister's store, and we saw a huge poster of Kim Kardashian standing next to a diet drink. We were intrigued and both bought the concoction which the gorgeous socialite herself claimed to have helped her lose pounds and, no surprise, increase metabolism! I don't think anyone actually understands what this "metabolism" is, its been so hyped and overused by advertisements and the like. 

Regardless we both followed the instructions to the letter and, other than losing a bit of water weight, it was a waste of money. 

Many of these diet drinks, where you still eat food and "the drink helps you lose weight",  work off of the idea that many athletes follow to meet their weight requirements. When we drink excessive amounts of water, our kidneys release the excess and then some, of the fluids retained in our body, in this way we can indeed lose massive amounts of weight, water weight.  

So diet pills and drinks? I wouldn't recommend them. 

Meal replacements, provided they are good-quality and don't cause any malnutrition or tiredness in the dieter, can be quite useful especially if you are particularly overweight and have trouble with portion control. 

...........................................................

Now that we have covered diet products, what about diets involving actual food? 

We've all seen the ads, gourmet meals delivered to your door, a book filled with low-fat recipes to follow, and even perfectly planned, balanced menus consisting of easy to find foods and ingredients and all you have to do is buy the book, pay for the food and/or deliveries and follow it! 

This approach is quite plausible, although I think it would work best if you had everyone in your household on board with it, just to keep those less than healthy foods in the house to a minimum. Otherwise, the "diet book, balanced menus of food you buy yourself" concept could be a better option. There's only one payment not including your regular groceries and what you do and don't eat is completely up to you, I think this would be especially good for those of us who like to cook. 

Whatever you decide, do your research! 

Check product reviews, read the fine print, and don't be afraid to take your questions to a qualified professional like your local GP, some of these products can be dangerous, others are completely useless so know your facts first! 

By the way, I would love to hear from some of my fellow dieters out there about your successes and failures! Which products you stand by and anything your unsure about eg. "Portion control", "How many grams of carbohydrates should I be eating?" etc.

As always, 

Eat clean, Exercise and Moisturise!

Rosie.x