My Homemade Meals

Hey everyone! Below are some photos of my homemade meals. If you want to try any of them out. Ask me how I made them by sending me a message on Twitter or Instagram at @FemmePolitique. You can also find photos of my other dishes on my Instagram page. 

Egg muffins with spinach, bacon, tomatoes, onions and mozzarella cheese.

Roast beef, zucchini, onions, tomatoes, green peppers, pepper jack cheese wrapped in a homemade tortilla and a side of corn tomato basil soup (the tomato soup was not homemade, got it from Trader Joes and added basil, corn and other spices). 

Spicy teriyaki glazed pork with sweet potatoes and broccoli. 

Salmon and tomatoes over pasta in an avocado cream sauce topped with freshly grated parmesan cheese. 

Pseudo Mexican Food -- Chicken made in a spicy tomato stew with fresh cilantro, basil and other fresh ingredients. Yellow saffron rice, mixed rice and black beans on the side. 

Reflect, Remember and Recover: Falling Back Into Old Habits and Getting Back on Track

Hey y'all,

So for the past couple of weeks, I've been struggling to write on a couple of topics and trying to figure out why it was so hard to write about clean eating and living a healthy lifestyle. It felt like I was going through writer's block, but I knew something else was amiss and kept me from publishing new posts. One day last week at work, I came to the conclusion that I couldn't write about a healthy lifestyle because I wasn't truly living it. At least not by my standards. I felt like I was losing control over my eating habits when I wasn't at home, which is a lot. Even though my workout habits hadn't changed, they started to feel like a chore. I was still eating right at home, but eating out the house started to become my downfall. Luckily, my clothes hadn't gotten tighter and my weight hadn't gone up on the scale. However I knew if I didn't stop, that would begin to happen. Hmm, I'm sure I even started seeing a loss of muscle definition too..maybe. 

For the record, I work in a restaurant where I get a free meal per shift. I'm fully aware of the nutritional information and still chose to eat the bad foods over good ones. I chose the bread sticks, pastas, wraps and thick creamy sauces over salads and soups. If I went to a baseball game, I chose to eat sausages on pretzel rolls with crab dip on top and crab dip waffle fries. I chose the cheesesteaks, pancakes, bacon and burgers over the lighter and healthier options on the menu. One cheat meal became one cheat day, which became one cheat week, which became a cheat month.

At home? I'm about my eggs, tomatoes, kale, spinach, homemade peanut butter, bananas, and Greek yogurt. I'm all about my homemade meals made with fruits and veggies from my mom's garden. I measure my portion sizes to make sure I don't overeat. It started to feel like I was one person at home and another in public. 

So, for the past week, I've been trying figure out what triggers my impulses to eat badly in public. Why can't I seem to control myself? What steps do I have to take to get back to the point where I can say "no" to certain foods and choose healthier ones? Why is it so easy to eat clean at home but extremely hard in public? 

I'll start with the easiest question to answer: Why it's easier to eat clean at home but harder in public.

• At home, my mom and I grow most of our own produce. We grow tomatoes, lettuce, kale, cabbage, squash, zucchini, fresh herbs and a bunch of other things. So, when we go grocery shopping, the main things we buy are meat, eggs, some fruits, bread, and grains. We rarely have any junk food in the house. I think the worst thing in our kitchen is our vegetable oil and my mom's homemade ice cream (which is way healthier than any store bought ice cream). By having a clean kitchen at home, I put myself in a great position to succeed when it comes to eating clean foods. 
• I firmly believed that by eating most of meals at home, I was less inclined to eat badly in public because my body wasn't used to junk food. I felt better eating clean foods at home. I felt more energetic, my mind was clearer, and felt like I was truly in control of myself and my choices. 

To answer the other questions, I took small steps to get where I used to be. I looked at old progress photos, pictures of meals I've made, and looked at the progress the ladies in my support group have made for inspiration. I went back to cooking on a fairly regular basis to keep myself from eating out. And, not only did I go back to making my favorite foods, I started creating new recipes. At work, I started saying no to certain ingredients and fell back on eating too many bread sticks (I still have one every now and then). I switched up my workouts by playing different music and got my mom to run a 5k with me. I used my original methods of losing weight and eating clean to create new ways of making health and fitness fun again.

Then I remembered why I started on this journey. Sure, my progress (to me) has been slower than others, but I'm happier than I've ever been. Health and fitness became my life, hell, they ARE my life. That's the person I am now, and for about six weeks, it felt like I lost that person. But I've fought my way back and now I'm working on being better.

It's times like these when it's important to remember why you started something in the first place. It's times like these when I'm glad I created this blog to describe how I'm feeling about my weight loss journey. As I said in another post, making the transition to a healthy lifestyle isn't easy nor is it supposed to be. It's a process where you get to know yourself. You try new things you've never tried before. You constantly push your limits to find out how strong you are. Of course there will be times where you have moments of weakness, skip workouts, and see your weight fluctuate up and down. But, you remember how much your hard work has paid off and you keep going. You never quit and stop trying to improve yourself. This is what getting fit and being happy and healthy is all about. 

And it feels damn good to start to feel that way again.  

Talk to you soon, 

The Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl 

Bathing Suit Blues

Hello Everyone!

Alright, its that time of year! Summer is here! Well, technically, its still spring, but it feels like summer. It's also beach weather, which means its time to bust out the bathing suits. Whoo hoo, right? Nah. Not over here. I have major issues when it comes to wearing bathing suits and I try to work on them every year.

But --

This summer was supposed to be different.

This summer I was going to strut my stuff even if I didn't have flat abs.

This summer I was going to rock a bikini even with some flab on my back and belly.

This summer I was going to walk tall despite my tiger stripes (stretch marks).

However now, at this moment, I don't feel like I should strut, rock or walk tall in a bikini. I feel like I need to cover myself, hide in a one piece and a t-shirt.  Truth is, I'm scared. While I feel like I'm in the best shape I've ever been, I don't have my flat abs, I still have back flab and my tiger stripes still cover nearly every inch of my body. What exactly am I afraid of? Others peoples' opinions? How do I view myself? I tend to view myself as a beautiful human being, especially with regular clothes on. How can I possibly preach and give advice on health and fitness when I don't have the perfect beach body? Isn't that hypocritical?

The funny thing about this dilemma is, I know I shouldn't have anything to be afraid of. If no one likes my stretch marks, that's not my problem. They're permanent, and I can't do anything about them except embrace them. If people have a problem with my back fat and belly pouch, that's not my problem. And, I'm working on toning my body and having success, therefore I feel comfortable giving advice on how to live a healthy lifestyle. I know confidence in myself is key to rocking any bathing suit and I need to have that same confidence as if I were wearing regular clothes. I know all of those things.

What I found even more interesting is that last year, I wasn't this scared. I proudly wore my bikini and I was in worse shape last year, but had been exercising and eating right for at least 5 or 6 months and was really excited to wear a bikini. What's my issue now? Did I expect too much of myself to look like a SI model and probably disappointed I don't look like one (yet)? Am I still worried how I'll be perceived? Or is it just cold feet that I'll get over once my toes touch the sand?

What are your thoughts? Comment below or tweet to me @FemmePolitique on twitter.

Thanks for reading!

Talk to you soon,

The Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl

Chalean Extreme Review

Greetings everyone!

After a hiatus for the past few weeks, I am back and ready to post some new material! I've been busy wrapping up the semester, spring cleaning, relaxing and getting used to not going to class. Here are some topics to look forward to:

- Stretch Marks, Self Esteem and Body Image
- Calorie Counting: Why I vouch for it and why I stopped
- Natural Hair and Exercising
- P90x Progress
- My favorite healthy recipes
- Cheat meals and eating junk food in "moderation"

I'm looking forward to discussing all of these topics, one is a very personal topic and for the first time I'll be talking about it publicly. Anyway! On to this week's topic: Chalean Extreme!

Chalean Extreme is a strength training program by celebrity fitness instructor and creator of the Turbo Jam series, Chalene Johnson. The 90-day program is designed to build muscle while shedding fat by lifting heavy weights. It also contains two cardio workouts and a yoga workout to increase flexibility and strength potential. The program is also split into three 30-day phases: Burn Phase, Push Phase and Lean Phase. Each phase differs by the amount of reps and how heavy each set of weights should be.

FYI -- You do NOT have to use free weights during this program if you don't want to, you can also use resistance bands. One of the ladies in the video uses them and she gets a good workout too (plus, she's 60 years old -- NO EXCUSES!). I used the resistance bands for some of the exercises and they are no joke. Chalene will also teach you how to create your own resistance too.

Anyway, towards the end of each week (for all phases), you have the "Burn Intervals and Ab Burner" and "Burn It Off and Recharge" workouts. Burn Intervals consists of intense cardio and strength endurance circuits followed by a 10-minute ab workout. "Burn It Off and Recharge" is a 35 to 40 minute cardio workout followed by a 20 minute yoga workout.

The overall structure of Chalean Exteme is as follows:

Burn Circuit 1 -- Rest Day -- Burn Circuit 2 -- Burn Intervals and Ab Burner-- Burn Circuit 3-- Burn It off and Recharge -- Rest Day.

The above schedule is applied to the Push and Lean phases too.

In the Burn Phase, Chalene has you slowly lift weights heavy enough to fail within 10 to 12 reps while working one part of the body at a time. For instance, she may have you do bicep curls using 15 lb weights. And she stresses -- not just for the Burn Phase, but for all of them -- YOU MUST LIFT HEAVY ENOUGH TO FAIL BEFORE THE EXERCISE ENDS. This means, if you're doing bicep curls and you get to the 12th rep easily, it's time to get heavier weights or find a way to create your own resistance.

After every few exercises or so, Chalene will tell you "It's time to get extreme!" and at that moment, its time to flex your muscles and perform three intense reps of whatever exercise she tells you to perform. Trust me, you will need to do a gut check and break those muscle fibers down! It's the only way to get stronger.

In the Push Phase, you must lift weights heavy enough to fail within 6 to 8 reps. This is the month where you'll be building most of your strength. Just like the Burn Phase, after every few exercises or so, you'll get Extreme with three intense reps to break the muscle fibers down. By the end of this phase, I had quads, hamstrings and calves of steel!

In the Lean Phase, you're back to failing within 10 to 12 reps, BUT, you're working more than one body part at a time. So instead of doing simply bicep curls, you're doing exercises like bicep curls with a lunge. This is the month where you'll see the most drastic results, but not just because you're working multiple body parts, but because you're getting Extreme after every exercise! In my opinion, this month was the most intense one. Even during the last week of the program, I still had trouble keeping up with some exercises.

One of the biggest changes I noticed while doing this program was how hungry I became during the Burn Phase. It became a struggle to keep myself full as I started building muscle. I think I started noticing this change within 2 or 3 weeks of the Burn Phase. This continued until I was about 2 weeks into the Push phase and at that point, I was able to feed myself the right foods to diminish the hunger.

Here was my typical diet plan for this program. For the record, it's not much different than how I usually eat now and the main thing I changed was how frequent I ate.

Breakfast - Scrambled eggs with spinach, onions, and red peppers or tomatoes and a two slices of turkey bacon. The alternative to this was oatmeal with 2 to 3 teaspoons of brown sugar and one teaspoon of cinnamon.

Snack - Peanut butter and bananas on toast or greek yogurt, chocolate chips, banana and peanut butter.

Lunch - Turkey sandwich or wrap with spinach, a little bit of mayo and lemon pepper seasoning.

Snack - Greek yogurt, chocolate chips, bananas and peanut butter again. (I really like that combination)

Dinner - Salmon with brown rice, asparagus or kale, maybe with carrots too and in a dill sauce.

I had my days when I moments of weakness (which I'll get into in another post), but those moments didn't happen too often. But when they did happen, I was usually very hungry and I would eat pretty much anything at that point (like a triple dipper appetizer from Chili's--yum!).

Okay! On to the part you've been waiting for: my results! Below is my transformation photo. Top left is Day 1, top right is Day 30, bottom left is Day 60 and bottom right is Day 90!

As I stated earlier, my diet didn't change much because I eat clean 85 percent of the time anyway. Here are my measurements:

Day 1                                                                                                        Day 30
Waist: 42 inches                                                                                        Waist: 36 inches
Breast: 46 inches                                                                                       Breast: 41.7 inches
Hips: 44 inches                                                                                          Hips: 39.5 inches
Weight: 210 pounds                                                                                  Weight: 198 pounds

Overall, I lost 6 inches off my waist, 4.3 inches around my breasts, and 4.5 inches around my hips! And I lost 12 pounds! 12 pounds may not seem like a lot, but the inches I lost are the results I'm proud of the most. I definitely got leaner and saw definition in my arms and legs and I feel STRONGER! Plus, its good to know I'm burning calories while I'm resting. I encourage anyone to do this program, even beginners. I was a beginner and I ended up getting through the program just fine! Also, the 90 days goes by really fast once you settle into the routine.

This is the first exercise program I've been able to complete from start to finish, therefore, I'm very proud of this accomplishment. Give this a shot, Chalene is here to help you. You can even modify this so it works for you! This is a program where failure means success.

That's all from me this week! Talk to you soon! Look out for my next post!

With love,

The Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl

NNFG Update

Hola everyone!

Just wanted to give a quick update on NNFG and why I've been MIA lately. I haven't abandoned the site, it's just that school and work has taken up a lot of my time lately. And as finals get closer and closer, I get busier and busier. But I've started working on several new posts and will start publishing them within the next week. 

Can't wait for you guys to read them! Also, shoot me any topics you'd like me to talk about or any recipes you think I should try and write about. You can contact me on Twitter: @FemmePolitique. 

Talk to you soon! 

Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl 

Its Not A Diet, Its a Lifestyle Change

One of my biggest pet peeves today is whenever someone refers to my weight loss as me being on a "diet." In fact, I find it pretty insulting. However, I try not to get too upset because that person probably doesn't know that I'm not on a diet, I just changed my habits and therefore my lifestyle. I hate the term "diet" because in my opinion, it means that I'm only eating right and exercising to get to a particular weight only to go back to junk food and skip workout sessions. That undermines my efforts to become the best version of me.

So I repeat -- losing weight and KEEPING it off:

- Does not mean going on a diet.

- It means changing your lifestyle.

Seriously, I can't stress enough how much you have to change when you decide to change your body. I can't stress enough how there are no shortcuts or easy fixes to weight loss. You simply have to put in the work and change each bad habit one at a time. For instance, one of my bad habits used to be going to McDonald's every morning for breakfast on my way to class. The food was cheap, good and could hold me over for a couple hours until I could get lunch. Here's what I'd get:

Sausage Egg McMuffin with cheese:
- 440 calories
- 850 mg of sodium
- 27 g of fat

Hasbrowns (2):
- 300 calories
- 620 mg of sodium
- 18 g of fat

That's a 740 calorie breakfast that also contains 45 grams of fat and 1,470 grams of sodium. I ate that five days a week. Which adds up to: 3,700 calories, 225 grams of fat, and 7,350 miligrams of sodium. That was just breakfast. For lunch? I usually switched up my fast foods everyday, so I went to places like Moe's Mexican Grill, Hibachi, Subway, Jimmy Johns, Waffle House or one of the dining facilities on campus. I did better with dinner, I guess, I always cooked something healthy every once in a while. That's a small victory right? NO! Absolutely not. I probably would have had to spend hours at the gym just to maintain my weight at that time.

I changed that particular bad habit and started cooking breakfast. My typical meal became two eggs, two slices of turkey bacon and whole wheat toast.

Eggs: 140 calories, 130 mg of sodium, 10 g of fat
Turkey bacon: 70 calories, 280 mg of sodium, 5 g of fat
Toast: 120 calories, 1 g of fat, 220 mg of sodium

That's 330 calories, 630 mg of sodium, 16 g of fat, and 24 g of protein for one breakfast. It's also 1,650 calories, 3,150 mg of sodium, and 80 g of fat over a period of five days. The McDonald's breakfast contains more than double the fat, sodium and the calories.

Making better breakfast choices led to better lunch choices which led to better dinner choices. I started saving calories and money, and the money I saved went to the supermarket so I could continue to buy healthy food. Also, my love for cleaner foods grew the more I experimented with different recipes using my favorite ingredients. Plain scrambled eggs became scrambled eggs with tomatoes, spinach, onions and garlic. Roasted chicken was no longer accompanied by white rice, but brown rice and/or kale greens and carrots. Why buy canned tomato sauce when I could buy fresh tomatoes, blend them and make my own pasta sauce? Why buy crystal light when I could just add flavor to water by simply adding a splash of lemon or lime? Why buy the flavored Quaker oatmeal when I could buy plain whole oats and add my own brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins? Why add a lot of salt when I could use herbs, spices and sauces like basil, garlic, cayenne peppers, and vinegar to season my food? Its those little changes that add up and make a difference. The changes in my body weren't the only things that were noticeable, my attitude towards food did too. My cravings for junk food weren't as frequent, I could taste different kinds of seasonings in my food, and I was more open to trying new fresh foods and even started taking trips to the farmer's market!

The better I ate, the better I felt. I became happier, more energetic, even a tad more patient. I was happy to nourish my body with the things it needed. Even exercise became more fun! Exercise became my way to give me energy for the day, a way to unwind after a long one, and my outlet for whenever I had a bad day. I became addicted to running and the runner's high that followed. I loved going for morning and evening walks and working out to my cardio DVDs. I was freed from the days where I'd sit around, eat bad foods and do nothing. I was able to think clearer and make better decisions when it came to other aspects of my life like work and school.

So, no. I didn't go on a diet. I really changed my life. I couldn't continue to eat all the junk food in the world and exercise whenever I felt like it. I had to get out of my comfort zone and make change happen. I had to change my mindset and ask myself, "Am I willing to do it whatever it takes to get where I need to be?" If the answer was anything other than "Yes", then I wasn't going to see any results. There you have it folks, if you're going to commit to losing weight, you have to commit to a healthier lifestyle. It's the only way to make true progress and then you'll realize life is better the healthier you are.

Talk to you soon,

The Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl

How I Began My Weight Loss Journey

Every now and then, I think about that moment I decided to make a commitment to change my body. I think about how I looked, how I felt and the expectations I had for myself. I think about that time whenever I put on an old pair of jeans that  previously couldn't fit or whenever I look at my progress photos. I think about that moment whenever I want to recognize all of the hard work I've put in for the past year. So, I'd like to actually tell you about that time. Here we go.

I was on vacation in Las Vegas in December 2012 after the fall semester of my junior year of college. I was wearing a long sleeve lime green shirt, bright denim jeans and a navy blue blazer. While getting ready to go to a casino, I noticed my waistline was larger, my thighs were bigger, love handles showing through my shirt and the back fat was being displayed despite my wearing a blazer. I couldn't believe that person in the mirror was me! I couldn't even remember where all of the weight came from. Then I remembered all the times I went to McDonald's before class for breakfast, the Waffle House trips, the late night junk food when I was studying, more junk food for dinner and lunch. Do I even need to mention weekends with my friends? I wasn't paying attention to what I was eating. Yeah, I did the occasional workout and I thought that was enough to balance out my food choices. I didn't even notice the weight gain because I was wearing hoodies, big t-shirts, or sweatpants most of the time. I couldn't tell that my clothes didn't look good on me anymore.

I remember feeling disgusted, disappointed, angry and a little depressed. Disgusted because I couldn't look in the mirror without hating myself. Disappointed because I had no one to blame but myself for my weight gain. Angry because I wish someone had told me (kindly) to exercise more or suggest healthier food items. Depressed because it damaged my self-esteem, I didn't feel comfortable in my own skin. I couldn't jump into another body or snap my fingers and lose weight. I felt like I lost control over everything. At this time I was having academic issues and questioning my own potential and future. The last thing I needed to feel bad about was my body. I wasn't happy, in fact, it was the first time I'd felt truly unhappy.

So, I told myself, like I had told myself many times before, that I'd start eating better and exercising regularly once the New Year began. I said this time, its going to be different. I've seen my weight go up and down since I was in middle school and I couldn't keep living like that.

Once the New Year came around, I did some research on how to lose weight and keep it off and how to ease myself into the weight loss process. I found Erika Nicole Kendall's website, "A Black Girl's Guide to Weight loss." Kendall's website had an answer to nearly question I had: food, exercise, self-esteem, and how weight loss changes your life. Her own story motivated me to take my health seriously. Her website changed my life! But I knew I couldn't simply just read her advice, I eventually had to act on it. So, I decided to sign up for a 5k race that would take place the following February. I figured if I paid for a race, I'm going to train for it. The next day, I went to the park and walked and ran 2 miles. I wanted to cut my legs off the following morning. That same week, I threw away any and all bad junk food in my apartment and wrote a grocery list for cleaner foods such as fruits, veggies and whole grains. I researched healthy recipes and dedicated myself to cooking at home more often.

February came and I finished my first race, a 5k, 3.1 miles in 43 minutes. I was on a runner's high, I was proud, and I wanted to run another race -- and that was the moment I knew everything changed. This time really was different. I was going to keep going and never look back unless it was to see how far I'd come. I was transforming into a new person and I couldn't be anymore excited.

Oh. I never mentioned how much I weighed when I started my journey. Well, I was 245 pounds. Now? Well, I'll share that in another post about the scale being your worst enemy. However, you can certainly guess how much weight I've lost based on my progress photos below.

Everyone has to start somewhere. Losing weight is not a sprint, its a marathon. It's also a lifestyle change, but its a lifestyle that improves every aspect of your life. Even though I'm not at my goal weight or jean size, I've come so far. I think about the girl in the mirror every now and then, and that keeps me motivated and on the right path. It sounds so cliche to say, but never give up, it's all worth it. Even slow progress is still progress, which is always better than nothing. 

Until next time, 

Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl 

My Progress Photos from when I was heaviest--2011/2012 to January 2014. 

After my first race in February 2013. There was a medal and t-shirt involved! I felt like accomplished something huge! 

Greetings everyone!

Hello everyone!

Welcome to Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl! This is my first time blogging and I'm excited what experiences I'll have with this website. Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl is about my journey as an early 20's college student trying to get into the best shape of her life. While I've made much progress in my year long journey, there's so much I need to learn about health and fitness. However I want to share what I've learned and the thing I will learn with you! I want this blog to grow as I grow. My goal is to have inspire my readers and be inspired by them.

I understand how hard it is for college-aged girls to maintain a healthy lifestyle. We're constantly eating at the dining hall, fast food restaurants, Waffle Houses (if you've never experienced the greatness that is Waffle House, you need to), and not to mention drinking all the red bulls, sugary coffees, sodas and alcohol. The combination of those food and drink items with the lack of exercise and sleep leads to excessive weight gain. No wonder we experience the freshman, sophomore, junior and senior 15! And it's extremely hard to lose the weight and keep it off because all of those bad foods and drinks are cheap and easily accessible. I constantly battled my weight in college, but I found a way to lose weight and maintain weight loss that works for students on a budget.

So why is the name Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl? Where did it come from? Well I'm so glad you asked! At first, the name of the blog was going to be Nappy Nerdy Fit Girl because I have natural hair, I'm a nerd and I love fitness. I changed it to Nubian because I recently read that Wonder Woman has a black twin sister named Nu'Bia. Therefore, Nu'Bia is also Wonder Woman, she shares the same powers and was made of the same clay as Diana Prince (Wonder Woman). Wonder Woman is my inspiration, even though she's a fictional character, she's exactly how I want to be: strong, assertive, beautiful, intelligent with an awesome body. She's an equal partner to Batman and Superman, two of the most popular heroes in comic books, heroes that most boys/men want to be. So when I found out about Nu'Bia, I was ecstatic! There's a Wonder Woman who looks like ME! She had the dark skin, the wild kinky hair, and all the characteristics of the original Wonder Woman.

There's a Wonder Woman in all of us. She may be a fictional character, but to be honest, she shows that women are a force to be reckoned with. We are super heroes!! So that's why I changed the name to Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl. This is why I started this blog, and I can't wait until we find our inner Wonder Woman.

Hope you're looking forward to the next post, I certainly am.

Until next time,

The Nubian Nerdy Fit Girl