This Fat Black Chick

Low Carb is a lifestyle not a fad. So I allow myself to cheat. It has gone from once a week to once a month as my cravings have changed. For me cheating has rules…

1. I ask myself if what I want really worth it? I won’t waste my 1 cheat.
2. It’s only one meal not an entire day. I’ve seen a whole day throw me out of low carb induced ketosis which can take days to get back.
3. I promise to exercise no matter how minor like a walk around the block.
4. I never cheat alone. This eliminates overindulgence.
5. I eat slowly savoring every last bite.

I wanted ice cream, the kind worthy of being a cheat. So off I went with a few friends on a 3o min. drive to Maggie Moos. Yep, 30 min. just to be fat. We got there and I tasted every flavor they had cheesecake, brownie batter, &  even fresh banana. Then I purchased a waffle cone filled with Red Velvet ice cream, Brownies, Pecans, Fudge, and Marshmallow Sauce. I could only get such a thing 30 min. away. It was PURE HEAVEN!!! I cherished every last drop. It was an approved cheat so I  felt not one bit of guilt. I jumped right back on my diet until next month that is.

I LOVE TO COOK! I’ve baked my first cake from scratch at 7yrs old and spent every Sunday in the kitchen making the most delicious Soul Food meals my Big Moms & Aunt Ida could turn out. As I reached my teens you’d find me in the kitchen with my friends parents learning the different spices and cooking methods from my little “Rainbow Coalition” of friends as my brother called us. Next thing you knew Sunday dinners had Arroz Con Pollo, Eggplant Parm, Curry Chicken, & Beef with Broccoli Stir Fry. I was horrified when my doctor told me Low Carb was my new lifestyle!!!

After months of eating the most bland diet foods I crumbled and was quickly back to my normal eating habits. Well now I have to stay on for health reasons, but it surely won’t taste like before. I’ve found away to not give up the tastes I love.

In this section you will be able to find some great recipes that reflect my love of flavorful food. My meals reflect my love of Soul Food, Caribbean, Latin, Italian, and even Asian Cuisine.  You may not believe it but all of these recipes are Low Carb! You can use them on the Atkins Diet, South Beach Diet, a Low Glyemic Impact Diet, or any Low Carb Approach.

One day I was forced to buy a pair of jeans cause my last pair were worn to bits.  I’ve always had a hard time finding pants due to my curvy shape. It seems to me designers rarely take a body type like mine into consideration when designing plus size clothes. I have a waist, GASP!!! Even though I carry a lot of my weight in the middle I have this Booty which makes my waist more prominent.  So everything gaps around the middle sometimes a good 4 inches that a belt can’t fix.

So I just grabbed a pile jeans not looking at sizes and marched to the fitting room head down preparing for fat girl torture, facing myself in huge retail store mirrors that NEVER, I repeat NEVER seem to flatter! After what seemed like ages I found a pair of jeans with about a 2 inch gap in the waist, the hugged my thighs that bubble out in the front just the right amount to suck them in, and of course were boot cut to hold my muscular calf.

I picked up the tag to check the price and was stunned to see the size 24W staring back at me. Some how my thick size 14 body had been replaced with a freaking 24W. Stunned into a zombie stage I bought the pants got home and just stared in my mirror. I took out what once was my favorite dress years ago holding it up to me. I was almost twice my size. My face was fat, hair thinning, adult acne was every where,  & stretch marks were on my arms and belly. What in the world had happened to me!!! Life hadn’t placed me where I felt I belonged, I was in a relationship that was trying, and I was FAT, 282 lbs!!! I vowed then a change was gonna come.

I ran into a brick wall online the other day. Yeah, I know IMPOSSIBLE! I was searching for a blog or website by a fat black chick like myself that was working on improving herself inside and out. Bam!!! Brick wall!!! The lovely Google genies failed me. I found lots of blogs and sites geared towards weight loss but time after time the face staring back did not reflect my own. Now I know that weight loss is rarely looked at from a racial perspective as far as approach, but I have learned it needs to be sometimes. For mainly one reason, the worse four letter word in regards to shedding pounds FOOD!!!

Growing up on fried chicken, collard greens, corn bread, mac & cheese, peach cobbler, and sweet tea makes dieting a bit hard. Our taste buds have been conditioned to love lots of flavor. Well NEWS FLASH: most diets are full of tasteless menus. BLAH!!! I want to see someone dieting without the torture of constant bland food. I want to see someone getting healthy not to be a size 4 but a shapely women proud of her curves. I want to see someone constantly learning and challenging who they are. Hell, I want to see ME!

Watch me tackle life and dun… dun… dun… LOW CARB!!! (my way of course)