This is also a great graduation style!!

Congrats to all of the graduates out there!

That is a HUGE accomplishment and you should be proud!!

Here is the curl former video that I’ve been talking about! Now yes, of course I have natural hair, but actually this style can work on any hair type! In fact, curl  formers were not even made with African Americans in mind! But they are perfect if you want beautiful, soft, heatless curls! :0)

For my first experience with curl formers, I must say it was a success. I really liked how they came out! I just wish they would have lasted longer! But it was a perfect hair style for a nice Mother’s Day afternoon! (Mom’s you truly are appreciated!) The weather was perfect!

All together it took about an hour and 20 minutes to put them in. I slept with them in that night … no wait… I tried to sleep with them in that night! lol! Then I took them out the next morning.

I had 48 curl formers, and I used every single one! I used extra long/wide and long/narrow. I was worried at first, but I really liked the two different sizes, it added a little volume to the style! I will definitely be doing this style again!!

I posted some pics on my facebook page of some different styling options, click on the picture below, and it will take you right there! :0)

I hope you guys like it!

I wish I could have kept them in longer, but I had a tough workout the next morning, and they didn’t last. I kind of figured that was going to happen though. But if I were trying to preserve the style, I would have used the pineapple method that I used with the flexi rod set.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

(… and one of them I think is a MUST HAVE!!)

The FIRST Accessory…

Wireless Head Phones!

I love these headphones! I don’t get tangled in my chord, and it doesn’t get in the way while I’m lifting weights. I might be a little anal, but the chord was so annoying because it was aleays in the way and a bit distracting. Now, I don’t even have to have my iphone or ipod on my bnody if I don’t want to!

It’s pretty cool, you can adjust the volume, and talk on the phone if it rings in the middle of your workout. You can also charge it so that it doesn’t waste a bunch of batteries, and isn’t too heavy.

My headphones don’t, but my husbands headphones can even skip songs and control which playlist he listens too. Pretty sweet!

The Second Accessory…

The MUST HAVE! :0)… A Heart Rate Monitor!!

This is a great way to see if you are working hard enough, or if you need to step it up a bit! It’s also great for if you want to stay in a certain heart rate zone. A perfect example is…

I like to stay in my Fat Burn Zone! I want to burn fat, but not the muscle that I work so hard to build. So I need to stay in a certain zone. My watch will beep if I let my heart rate get too low, or too high! Have you determined your target heart rate, or your heart rate zones!? If not…click on the link below and see what it is!!It’s super fast and easy!

You can easily find your Target Heart Rate (thr) with this simple method. Subtract your age from 220 (226 for women) to calculate your Maximum Heart Rate (mhr).

Healthy Heart Zone (Warm up) — 50 – 60% of maximum heart rate: The easiest zone and probably the best zone for people just starting a fitness program. It can also be used as a warm up for more serious walkers. This zone has been shown to help decrease body fat, blood pressure and cholesterol. It also decreases the risk of degenerative diseases and has a low risk of injury. 85% of calories burned in this zone are fats!

Fitness Zone (Fat Burning) — 60 – 70% of maximum heart rate: This zone provides the same benefits as the healthy heart zone, but is more intense and burns more total calories. The percent of fat calories is still 85%.

Aerobic Zone (Endurance Training) — 70 – 80% of maximum heart rate: The aerobic zone will improve your cardiovascular and respiratory system AND increase the size and strength of your heart. This is the preferred zone if you are training for an endurance event. More calories are burned with 50% from fat.

Anaerobic Zone (Performance Training) — 80 – 90% of maximum heart rate: Benefits of this zone include an improved VO2 maximum (the highest amount of oxygen one can consume during exercise) and thus an improved cardiorespiratory system, and a higher lactate tolerance ability which means your endurance will improve and you’ll be able to fight fatigue better. This is a high intensity zone burning more calories, 15 % from fat.

Red Line (Maximum Effort) — 90 – 100% of maximum heart rate: Although this zone burns the highest number of calories, it is very intense. Most people can only stay in this zone for short periods. You should only train in this zone if you are in very good shape and have been cleared by a physician to do so.

A couple things to remember… always place the chest strap directly on your skin! Not on top of your shirt, not on top of your sports bra… on your skin! And always remember to wet it first, it will adhere to your skin better and make sure to give you an accurate reading! What good is it if it’s not accurate right!? Take a look at the video below and I’ll show you a bit about both!

Talk you you all soon!!

And hopefully you’ll have burned tons of calories by then!! :0)

A few of you asked if I could go over how I used the hair steamer, so

here you go!

Most of the time when I deep condition, and wash my hair, my hair is twisted. But every now and then I like to change it up a bit.

This time I deep conditioned my hair while it was loose. I washed my hair as usual with Trader Joe’s Nourish Spa Shampoo, then coated my hair with Organic Root Stimulator Hair Mayonnaise and sat under the steamer for a total of 25min. Then I rinsed out the deep conditioner and detangled and styled as usual.

If I sit under the hooded dryer, the steps are pretty much the same, just the dryer is in place of the steamer, and I will cover my hair with a plastic cap. As always… let me know if you have any questions!!

LBN <3

Well, no gym membership… no worries! :0)

I started putting a few videos together and I have quite a few more on the way! I’ve posted them below, so go ahead and check them out! If there is anything you want to see, just post it in the comments section at the bottom of this page!

Here are some links to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube where you can stay motivated, inspired and get some health and fitness tips on a regular!

Like the Facebook Fan Page for articles, tips, motivation, and inspiration!

Subscribe on YouTube for updated health and fitness videos!

Follow on twitter for quick tweets!

Alright… see you in the next video!

I’ve tried many different variations…

I’ve tried it on wet hair, dry hair, damp hair…

And as much as I want to use it…

I have to say…

R.I.P Shea Butter!

For some reason, my hair just does not like Shea Butter! Now… If it’s an ingredient in a product, no big deal. But the raw/pure shea butter, that seems to work wonders for other people, does nothing but make nightmares for me. I’ve tried mixing oils with it, creating whipped shea butter, everything!

I gave it one last try and it’s final!

Enough is enough! I am done with pure shea butter!

Some people have suggested I try different types of butters line mango butter? … That doesn’t sound right… I might have that wrong. But apparently there are some different types of butters out there that work really well. Maybe I will look into that.

But hey, for now… if it ain’t broke…

Don’t fix it! lol!

This is a style that I turn to quite often. It lasts a long time and it is very easy to do.

And of course… I just think it’s a cute style!!

The products and tools used are as follows:

      Spray Bottle w/ water

       Rat tail Comb for parting

Styling Product (in this case I used Miss Jessie’s Curly Pudding)

Butterfly Clips

Detangling Tool

I love protective styles that you can turn into something else later. You get the best of both worlds, with half the work!

Those styles usually last a little longer too!!

It was very simple to do… Check out the tutorial!

As always… Let me know if you have any questions! :0)

See you in the next video!

According to an ancient Chinese proverb; “It’s better to be deprived of food for three days, than tea for one.”

Well, I’m not sure about that, but I do know it’s a nice treat when I want something other than water, yet still healthy… green tea is my #1 choice!

Instead of; an apple a day keeps the doctor away, it can now be

A mug of green tea a day,

keeps the doctor away. haha! :0)

Green tea is rich with epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which is a powerful anti-oxidant. This anti-oxidant itself is responsible for

- lowering cholesterol level

- killing cancer cells without harming the healthy tissues of the body

- reducing blood clot formation which decreases the chances of heart attack and stroke; two of the most common and feared diseases across the US, especially in the African American Community!

–
Green tea is not just helpful for heart patients or people who feel the need to lose a bit of weight. It also benefits patients with cancer, Rheumatoid arthritis, high cholesterol levels, infections, or someone who just wants a healthy refreshing beverage without all the sugar and calories in soda pop.

But of course, you should consult your doctor before gulping down mugs of green tea. Moderation is key when it comes to everything!

Drinking green tea cleanses the body of toxins that can cause harm to us. It also makes the skin glow, destroys unwanted bacteria and purifies the inner body. Many creams and deodorants are now being made with green extracts; in fact it even helps prevent tooth decay, which is why you may be starting to see it in toothpaste as well.

There is caffeine in green tea, so if you are caffeine sensitive, I wouldn’t drink it too late in the day. And of course make sure you consult with your doctor before you start guzzling mugs of green tea every day. Moderation is key, as with everything else! *wink, wink*

If more people replace green tea with drinks such as soda pop, we could have a much healthier and more fit society. A society that won’t have to worry about paying doctor’s bills every month.

So I’ll ask again… Green Tea Anyone!?

I started a new channel and Facebook Fan Page!!

Be one of the first to ‘Like’ & Subscribe by clicking the links below!!

‘Like’ the Facebook Page!

Subscribe to the new channel – LuvBeinFit

For those of you who like my fitness videos, this page is just for you! But it gets even better! I have decided to enter a Figure Competition and I am going to document my every move for those who are interested! My workouts, my nutrition, my mental state (lol!), EVERYTHING! I’ve already started tracking my progress, and I can’t wait to share it with you!

I hope you will follow along, or maybe even join in!

Even if you don’t want to be a competitor, it will be great if you just want to get fit, lose weight, eat healthy, get active… anything fitness related!

Below is my first video on LuvBeinFit! And, this will give you an idea of what I will be eating to prepare for this challenge! I’m going to have to think of some way to spice things up, because I don’t know how long I can do that! lol!

Take a look!

7 Days of Healthy Lunches & Dinners in 1.5hrs! AND a clean kitchen!!

Below is the link to my channel page! Go ahead and subscribe!!

Subscribe!!

loveislandbeauty

Jody Walker

If you’ve never come across loveislandbeauty, then you are in for a treat! I started watching her natural hair videos on YouTube – of course! :0) – and quickly noticed her simple yet sexy style and amazing make up! I find myself trying to re-create some of her make up looks… lets just say, I need a little more practice! lol!

Check out her answers to the LBN Spotlight Questions!

How long have you been natural
I have been natural for a little over two years now. I transitioned for three months and big chopped November 20th 2009. It was the most liberating feeling in the world! Free of relaxers and completely ME.

What made you decide to go natural
Personally I feel a woman is most beautiful in her natural state. A strong, bold, fierce DOPE beautiful natural woman is breathtakingly refreshing. I wanted that. Compliments on my hair are so much better now that my hair is completely natural and mine! Before going natural I always wore weaves, and braids. The styles were cute, but they were fake. Anyone could recreate it. But my natural hair is my OWN. No one will have my curl pattern. No ones twist out will look exactly like mine. It’s a very rewarding and gratifying feeling.

Did you big chop? Or Transition?
I guess I did a little of both. Since I only transitioned for 3 months, when I big chopped my hair was extremely short. I got to enjoy every stage of going natural. I will never cut my hair again, so it was nice to go through the extremely short stage.

Do you think anyone can go natural?
Ofcourse! It just takes a little research on possible styles, products, and wash and twist routines that could work for you and your hair type. Youtube is a great place to start. Youtube.com/loveislandbeauty! J J lol

Is it ‘Just Hair’ or do you feel it’s more than that?
I feel It’s more than that. Natural hair is beautiful and a way of expressing your self. Everyone who goes natural and WORKS it kills the idea that natural hair is ugly and should be relaxed. It’s a movement! J

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There are so many different styles possibilities, all with one simple accessory!

I’m going to make sure to post the many different styles as I wear them!

Here is the first one!!

For this particular style, I started with a braid out that I braided on dry hair the night before. I used a little styling product and some leave in conditioner as I braided.

Make sure you are careful when using the Ez Comb. It can get tangled when you take it out if you don’t insert it carefully.

I purchased it from Marsh (my local grocery store.) I’ve also seen it at Walmart. There are lots of colors too!

Here’s the Video!

Let me know what you think! Also, share some of the styles you’ve come up with!

Talk to you guys soon! :0)

LBN <3