#and i like it that way! im empowering myself to say NO to reading goals just read whatever!

[fadeintoyou1993]

see i hate apps that track books personally & for myself because they always have that goal section and i always set up a reasonable goal but then not every book i read is a fast pace read and it will take me months and sometimes even years to finish a book bc i like sitting w it and reading it when i feel like whatevers in there is The right thing for me to read at a specific moment and that dumbass goal will always be at the back of my mind like. it was a reasonable enough goal and you cant even finish that. but im chillin tho. but like its annoying

[nakedbibi333]

hi! im kind of new to law of assumption and old to law of attraction. law of assumption is not a hard concept but im a bit confused. i find myself reacting to the 3D too much and like i find it hard to persist? what do i do to make persisting easier? i think it’s because i don’t know much about what im getting into?? all i know is affirm and persist and etc. i hear things like time is an illusion, the 3D is an illusion, circumstances don’t matter, we are all gods of our reality. but WHERES the proof?? i can’t blindly follow people’s success stories because im not them and if we are truly the gods of our realities, doesn’t that mean someone else can manifest failure in mine? like i want to use law of assumption and i want to believe to get what I want fast and easily BUT i want to know how it works and that im not following a delusion to make myself feel better and in the end, I am just left with disappointment and failed attempts at manifesting that left me with the consequences of my actions. ive been in the community for almost 2 years and i don’t think ive ever gotten results. i am not usually agitated but it’s exhausting. i affirm and persist and nothing shows up and im worried im doing it all wrong so i ask and now I’m even affirming wrong?? I know manifestation is supposed to be easy and not feel like a chore but how can it not when everything I desire is of so much importance to me. I can even dm you, just please help me so I can actually manifest what I want. I’ve done self concept but I keep breaking. I don’t even know what affirmations to use to combat my limiting beliefs. Tbh I’m tired. I feel like if someone explained to me how this works and how to do it with no mistakes and how to keep faith in the unseen, I could actually get what I want. I keep failing and failing because I affirm and persist but I affirm wrong or I have a limiting belief that hasn’t been uncovered yet. I’m so exhausted and I just want to get what I want. I just feel like if someone told me how it works and exactly what to do, I wouldn’t be so confused and find it hard to persist

Hi! Okay, so since this is a very long post, I will try to answer each of your questions/concerns in the order you mention them.

So about persisting, I can understand how it seems a bit complicated. You persist when, after a certain period of time, you still don't see movement of your desires manifesting OR if you see the OPPOSITE of your desires manifest. Oftentimes, when you finally open up your mind to the idea that your mind creates your reality, then some past doubts and fears can manifest as well. Your mind will often try to manifest opposite things in order to make you feel like you are doing something wrong, which is why so many loa teachers say to persist. It can be very difficult for people to persist, which is why so many people feel like they can't manifest, or that manifestation isn't real, because their 3D reality has too much weight in their lives, so they take it as truth and end up giving up on their desires manifesting. It's important to begin to believe that your 3D reality is extremely malleable and is only a reflection of your inner reality. You need to take the power away from the 3D and give it to yourself and your ability to create exactly what you want.

Then you ask about proof of manifestation. It is very true and understandable that other people's success stories are not enough for many people because you want to be able to trust the information that you are going to be getting into. Personally, before getting into manifestation, I already had my fair share of unexplainable success stories in my life, so it just seemed like an answer to the questions I've had all my life. Even with these success stories and experiences, when I first got into manifestation, I still would doubt myself by wondering if it was simply a coincidence these things happened, or worse, that I was becoming delusional. I want to tell you that every single person who is now into manifestation has gone through this feeling. We all worry that we are just doing "wishful thinking" and being delusional because the world we have grown up in has always been so practical. It's not easy to believe in something that seems so impossible without any previous personal experience. So, the only advice I can give you for this is to try to manifest extremely small things to build your faith over time, such as seeing a yellow butterfly, getting your favorite food, or seeing some sort of sign, so that you would know that what we are talking about is actually the truth. Also, there are so many documents that go more in-depth on how our minds create our reality, including CIA documents and books about the science of manifestation, such as books by Joe Dispenza, and books about the subconscious mind, such as books by Joseph Murphy, and many many more. Since the only way, you will really believe in manifestation is by having your own experiences, then manifesting small easy things is probably the best route.

Then, you mention how you're worried about "someone manifesting failure into your reality." My view on this is that you are the only person who can affect your life and nothing can happen to you that you don't specifically manifest into your reality (whether it be consciously or unconsciously). Everyone can manifest, yes. Everyone has control over their reality. You can even manifest people acting in certain ways towards you. But that's in your experience specifically. If we are talking about quantum physics, time is not linear, technically all possibilities of all time, ever, exists right now. We also shift through different realities at every moment depending on our mindset, beliefs, and decisions. So, if someone manifests something in their life that would affect "you" but does not align with your thoughts and beliefs, then it won't show up in your reality. You have control over your own reality, nothing comes into your life without you allowing it, so that's a very empowering thought, in my opinion. I really suggest that you affirm this so that you don't have to worry about others manifesting negativity over your life because you would never personally decide to manifest it into your own life.

I also want to talk about how you worry about affirming wrong or simply manifesting wrong. It's Important to note that these beliefs can also negatively affect your manifestation because that is not you truly living in the end. If you were living in the end, you would know that simply deciding that you want this to happen, means that it will happen and that it has to happen. You never need to doubt your manifesting process because your subconscious mind is so powerful and it is so easy to make it do things for you! Just like what @divineangelbee says, you can COMMAND your subconscious mind and it will listen and give you exactly what you want. You don't have to visualize or affirm or do anything. Simply tell your subconscious exactly what you want it to do and trust that it listens! I really think that the reason that you have not been having too much success is because of this, that you are constantly doubting your methods which keeps you from truly living in the end.

Then, about limiting beliefs. It can be beneficial to people to be aware of their limiting beliefs. However, there has been such an intense focus on limiting beliefs in the loa community (mostly on youtube) that I see so much. Coaches keep you focused on the problem of limiting beliefs so much that they don't actually help you move on from them. Personally, I found that whenever I focused on my limiting beliefs, it was like living in the old story. (if you don't get this reference, I seriously suggest you read or listen to Neville Goddard's lectures in which he talks about the law of assumption. They are life-changing). Focusing on limiting beliefs keeps you stuck in that story you are telling yourself about your life. It keeps you from overcoming them and becoming limitless. It helps me to affirm that my limiting beliefs no longer have the power to hold me back. I don't have any more limiting beliefs because I manifested not having them anymore. Manifestation works in many different ways, and a lot of people don't realize that you can simply manifest your desired mindset as well. I suggest trying this!

So, to make this as clear as possible, I will tell you how I personally manifest (disclaimer: people manifest differently, many different things work for different people, I am not saying this is the only or best way to manifest, but this is just what works for me).

First, I get my idea of what I want to manifest. Usually, I want to manifest multiple things at a time, there really is no limit.

Then, I will decide what will help me "feel it real" and "live in the end." This can include techniques, but I don't use techniques every time. I don't like to visualize because I am personally a maladaptive daydreamer, so visualizing makes me feel like I am daydreaming, which keeps me from really feeling like it's really happening. (But, if it works for you, by all means, go for it) I may print out a picture if it's a physical item in order to trick my brain into having something physical that represents this or adding it to a Pinterest vision board (I am a very visual person, so it always works for me). I also like to make a list of what I want just to keep it in a place that I can go back to and mark off in the future, telling my brain that this is a goal I need to achieve (I find that my brain loves to check things off of my goals, it makes my subconscious mind already start working towards the goal). But most of the work goes into my mindset. I don't affirm a lot because I feel like it becomes a chore if I have to recite affirmations all day every day. I may put up affirmations on my chalkboard or put them on my computer, but I don't make it a habit to really say them at specific times, etc. I really focus on making myself feel deserving of getting my manifestation and I also live in the end. Living in the end is where you feel confident that your desire is already yours. If it helps, which it does for me, I like to believe that I have it already in the "quantum field," or the 5D, or however you believe in it. It is not about being delusional and pretending like you have it, no, it's about feeling trusting in your own power to make this happen for you and it will come, no matter what.

After that, I "drop it." I don't forget about it or stop desiring it, that's not what letting go means. It means that I know that I don't need to do anything or force anything to happen because my subconscious, or the universe, will bring this to me and I don't need to worry about anything related to my desire. I also self-regulate my emotions by meditating, focusing on the things that make me happy, and reminding myself of how powerful and capable I am.

Then, eventually, it manifests. Or, if it doesn't come in the timeframe I wanted it to, or if something that would oppose my desire pops up, I focus on my own self-concept, making sure I genuinely feel deserving of and that I can get what I want, and I persist in that feeling that my desire is still mine. No matter if I got rejected, no matter if they told me I couldn't get the job, no matter if it looks like it won't happen. I still persist. and then it comes.

Finally, I want to mention that I am only here to give advice and I can't make anything physically happen for you. To see actual movement in your reality, you need to be willing to go through failures in order to find out what works for you. I have had manifestations fail, I have had MANY manifestations fail. It's not always a perfect process. I don't charge money, my identity is not on this page, I am not here to be a famous coach or to act like I know any better than anyone else. I am just trying to help you guys reach the point that you deserve to get to in your life. But I can only do so much. I really hope this helps.

[sunshinemellow-fic]

thank you for the tag @kuriousaboutuzumakis !! 

Rules: List 10 things you are thankful/grateful for that happened in 2021:

1. This was my first full year out of school / a very rigorous exhausting program that left me with... 0 sense of self (WHOOPS). So I started watching TV again which sounds silly but I hadn’t watched full shows in their entirety for years! I forgot how nice it was to just curl up on the couch and become a potato. 

2. In the same vein as being freshly out of school, this was the first year I had the bandwidth to do a lot of the Adult Things that I had procrastinated doing while in school! Finding a local dentist / primary care Dr / etc. I was a wreck in terms of my health and had previously just not done any routine checkups (lol) so this was Big for me! 

3. More health stuff-- got blood panels done! I was miserable and had just assumed I was physically healthy bc I was running long distances each week and that all my misery was caused by mental health problems. Finally got nutritional blood panels done and it turns out I’m deficient in like everything related to mood! This tracks, bc I generally eat like an unmanaged 13 yr old boy, but in some ways it was a big relief to know part of my current condition is “fixable” via food and supplements when I had just assumed it was my baseline state.  

4. Made a bunch of Fancy Adult purchases. Got myself a really nice mattress and a really nice bed. And bookshelf. And other unnecessary things to turn my apartment into something that resembles an adult habitat LMAO. It is very nice and light and airy and exactly my aesthetic which feels Good.  

5. Started crocheting again! I’ve made a couple of things that I have given away. Working on a blanket for my grandma now. 

6. Once I was vaccinated, I started hanging out with friends again! Board game nights and museum trips and lots and lots of boba. Went to a halloween party and slept on a friend’s floor bc we were too drunk to make it to the beds HAHAH. Embarrassing but also feels nice to have these early 20s experiences. 

7. Started reading books! In school I took a bunch of lit courses but I had stopped reading books for pleasure rather than study (of course books for study can be pleasurable but not exactly in the same way). I read like a book a week this year which felt Utterly Luxurious given my previous lifestyle. 

8. Started saying no to things when I knew they would impact my health! I used to be the kind of person who would work through the night (I still am, I did a bunch of those this year lol) but I’m getting better at looking at the time and saying, alright I need sleep more than I need to get this done. I am still working on this lol. Working on cutting work off once the weekend starts and keeping my work computer Shut through Saturday and Sunday. 

9. Setting financial goals! I wish this was something that is discussed more but I understand why it isn’t-- it can be very stressful and private. But I built up a several month emergency fund for rent/food if I ever need it! Also contributed big chunks to multiple retirement accounts and got it invested and learned about stonks which was both Stressful and Empowering! As someone who doesn’t have a good relationship with my parents and who cannot rely on them as a safety net (bc honestly, we all will need safety nets at different points in our lives), it was very important that I do this for myself to feel safe! 

10. I adopted my cat in 2020 but I spent this year relentlessly spoiling her. She is a brat and a tyrant and I couldn’t be prouder. 

Tagging (im sorry if u have already done this, I haven’t been online in forever and might have missed it): @birkastan2018 @sleepyfoxfanworks @heyitswrenn @bl1ndbraavosi @gleafbb @x-cloud-x

[taracottta]

Reversing 29 years of self-perception

About a year and a half ago I decided to start my active journey of self-love, acceptance, and perception.  I was tired of getting down on myself, putting myself down, letting my self-esteem hold me back from living my life, and attaining a self-image that really isn't realistic for me.  The first thing I wanted to tackle was my health. I started lifting weights at the gym with my friend.  It was really mild, we didn't do much, but just the act of going to the gym with my friend was a start. We all have to start somewhere!

As I started to become more active, I started to take friends up on their offers to go hiking (something I didn't want to do prior due to thinking I was too fat and out of shape, and lazy).  One day my friend asked if I wanted to try Orange Theory. At first I was SO hesitant. I looked it up and saw that part of the circuit is to run on the treadmill. HELL NO. I still had PTSD from when I went running crazy and would run for two hours a day on the treadmill when I was in high school.  After that I just told myself, running isn't for me and thats that.  I decided to step out of my comfort zone and agreed to go.  I know this sounds dramatic...but that day changed. my. life. I remember some of their beginning questions.   “Do you work out often now?” Maybe 3 times a week. Hows that working out? At this point I looked at the guy thinking fuuuuck youuu what kind of question is that.  But I was just being defensive because...It wasn't working out. I was at the heaviest I have been.  Ever.  I mean I felt better for going to the gym, but I wasn't getting the results I wanted.  Then he asked me, “What are your health goals? Do you want to loose weight?”  & part of my self love journey was to change the way I thought about loosing weight.  I made a conscious decision to not aim for “loosing weight”  I understood that being healthy was a lifestyle change.  To have a goal to loose weight is not having a goal to change my life style.  So my goal became making myself feel strong and healthy.  And that has been my goal ever since, and still is.  I hated EVERY minute on the treadmill when I took my first class. For all 30 min, I flooded my brain with negative thoughts and feeling angry that I agreed to come to this stupid class.  When the class was done, I immediately signed up for an unlimited membership. I felt a high I haven't felt since high school.  I felt positive, I felt optimistic, and I thought HELL YEAH, I can come here three + times a week!  The negative thoughts and feelings that I experienced was the result of me being pushed out of my comfort zone. I resisted it mentally but decided that since I was already there, I might as well kindaaa try.  But the endorphin high I received after quickly help me realize that I DID IT, and I can do it again!  Lizzo also became a huge influence when she started rising in fame.  I didn’t know about her before. I’m one of those mainstream junkies. Anyway.  I read an interview where she explained the origin of “Truth Hurts” the break up song of the year. She explained that she wrote that song by going to her producer and venting about a recently failed relationship.  He put her rant with a beat and there it came.  She said it was a dark time for her, filled with self-doubt and depression, and yet she came up with an empowering song that helped millions of women lift their spirits when they did doubt themselves because of a failed relationship.  I read that interview in awe thinking how crazy it is that someone can be at the darkest point in their life and produce the most empowering and inspiring songs.  When she would speak at her concerts (I’m going to be dramatic again but its true), I would literally listen to her speeches and cry tears of happiness and love because of what she was saying. It really touched me  so deep down into my soul and I want to say that has been a HUGE reason why I have been able to come so far in my self-love journey.  I saw her, a big, beautiful woman.  I didn't think she was fat, I didn't think she was unhealthy, I saw a beautiful woman full of confidence and purpose and I wanted to exude that same energy.  That is when I truly started to look at my body and accept it for what it is.   Before this, I have always wanted to get back to how I looked when I was 16.  I finally realized, that is an unattainable goal, and thats okay.  I was so unhealthy during that time.  I counted my calories, I exercised every day with no break.  There was a point that I was so obsessed, I would only eat 3 100 calorie yoplait yogurts a day and drink 3 5 oz wanters a day in attempts to not put on water weight.  If I wanted to eat unhealthy food, I would chew the food, and spit it out without digesting it.  THAT IS CRAZY.  I was starving myself of food AND water. I never want to get back to that. That realization helped me with my relationship with food.  I want to eat food that is helps build my body, is tasty, and I enjoy eating.  I want to enjoy my food and I also want to eat food that helps me feel strong.  So I do that.  I eat healthy food. But if I want a fried chicken sandwich, I’m going to get it. And because I won't go on a strict diet my body will not be what it can be, and I’m okay with it.  I like the body the way it is now, and am fine with sacrificing a banging bod, for being able to enjoy food when I feel like it.  This is my life and these are my priorities.  A year and a half later, I feel I have come so far.  Yes I’ve lost weight.  Don't ask me how much, because I don't know.  I don't want to live my life by the scale like I did at the peak of my eating disorder. But you know what I have noticed? I feel stronger, I can do more things without struggling or getting out of breath, I can push myself further.  When I run on the treadmill in OTF and I am able to bump up my speed or bump up my incline without taking a walking break I feel STRONG, and I feel ABLE.  One of our coaches likes to say “Your body is capable of SO MUCH” and it “it is a privilege to move!” and, it is! Some people are not able to do everything that most of us are able to do, and I shouldn't take that for granted.  I shouldn't dread getting out of bed in the morning to go exercise.  I should be eternally grateful that I get to move.  Some people don’t have that luxury, and sometime in the future, I will be able to less than I can now. I shouldn't waste my time now, while im healthy and able. I am so happy at where I am now.  I feel solid, I feel strong, and I feel like I can do more.  Even though we are on our second shut down, and our state has robbed me of not only my physical escape, but my mental and emotional escape, I will push myself to exercise, I will continue to keep going and do more.  I have come to terms with what my body looks like and I am starting to not just, be okay with my body, but to love my body.  I have come so far but have so far more to go.  Loving yourself is a life long journey and I hope you all are on your way to the top.

[tayegi]

New Rules is probably my favorite non-published work that I’ve ever read and I really just want to thank you for being willing to share your writing with us! So, I feel like a lot went down in this chapter. I saw another anon say they thought Jk’s issues stemmed from a previous relationship. The girl probably made him feel like relationships in general are toxic, and as a result he’s completely unwilling to put himself in that kind of vulnerable position again? (1/3)

Similar to how the oc is feeling about being rejected, like she was stupid to let herself feel something for him, that’s why I think her barging in and calling him out in front of his friends got to him. (2/3)

All in all though, this chapter was really well written (like they all are lol) and I just wanted to take a moment to let you know how much I appreciate all the work you put into your writings bc they’ve really inspired me to educate myself on feminism and just a lot of things in general I’d never thought about before. Thanks again, Lu! I hope you have a wonderful week 💜💜 (3/3)

thank you so much for this thoughtful review! I won’t say anything to deny or confirm your theory, but i love how detailed you are :) 

and thank you so much for saying that!!!! literally my only goal in writing this fic was to teach my young female readers about feminism and empower them in a fun, digestible way! And im so excited for the next chapter aklsjdfsdf ch 11 was like a climax for one storyline that ive been building since ch 2, but ch 12 is a climax for another story line that ive been building since like ch 4 and im so excited for u guys to see what lesson ive been trying to subtly teach alsdfjlsdf EDUCATION IS FUN, EVERYONE. FEMINISM IS FUN. 

[iseetheinnerme]

Introduction

My goal for this blog is to take you on my journey of self love. I hope that you’ll feel inspired. But most of all, I hope that this blog empowers you to find your purpose in life. Find what gives your soul true happiness. With purpose comes inner peace. Remember to love yourself a little more today.

I never envisioned my life to turn out the way it did. That I would be here creating this blog. That I would have the courage to publicly post my deepest thoughts. That someone would be reading this. Well I guess now that you’re here allow me to introduce you to my world. Because I’m ready to tell my story.

I can’t really pinpoint the exact moment that pushed me to finally start this blog. It had always been a thought in my mind, but not much of a reality. I guess you could say it was the moment I felt completely lost. Well if I’m being honest, I’ve had too many of those moments to count. Yet none of them compare to the very last moment. The one where I decided to finally breathe. It felt as if I was holding my breath in for so long. Until the blood rushed to my head all at once. I finally decided to let go and take a hard look in the mirror. I asked myself who I was, and who I wanted to become. The moment of truth. It felt as if I were walking through a dark tunnel, and I’m completely alone. The only thing I can hear are the voices in my head. They sound exhausted. Emotionless. They’ve given up. You can feel the lack of energy in their voice. It feels completely drained. Until suddenly the voices are gone. Now I’m in the middle of the tunnel, still alone and afraid. I can’t move. Or I don’t want to move. So I stop fighting it. I lay down. The floor is cold and wet. The way your clothes feel after getting caught in a storm. Sticky and moist, and very uncomfortable. As I lay there completely still I wonder if someone will find me. Hoping someone will come scoop me up and carry me to the end. Except, no one comes.

I always remember feeling a certain emptiness at such a young age. 13 years old to be exact. Not the kind of emptiness that you feel when you first enter your teens years. As if the world is against you and no one understands. Im talking about the kind that leaves you up at night wondering if this feeling is normal. Wondering if it’s all a bad dream and it’ll go away once you wake up. As you drag through the rest of your teenage years it feels as if the weight of the world is on your shoulders. The weight doesn’t disappear it just gets heavier. Soon enough trying to lift that weight seems like an everlasting battle. For me that weight really slowed me down. It consumed me, and broke me down until I was shattered in a million pieces. It seems that this generation has the worst case of depression this world has ever seen. Or maybe it’s not just us. Maybe we all go through this feeling. Some longer than others but it’s only a problem until its too late. The problem is nobody ever wants to talk about it. Nobody ever wants to be the first to bring it up in a room full of people. In fear that others might perceive us as weak. But depression isn’t a sign of weakness. And it definitely needs to be talked about. It needs to be accepted. The first step of healing is acceptance.

           For as long as I could remember I’ve battled with depression. On and off for the most part. I spent many years trying to deal with it, which mainly consisted of pretending as if it didn’t exist. I got very good at hiding my emotions. Became a master at it actually. Living by the infamous motto, “fake it til you make it”. I let it kick me down, hold me back, and completely destroy me. Only people who have had experience can relate to this. A feeling of feeling so low with thoughts of no recovery. I write this not for pity but because this is part of my journey. As much as I hate to admit it, this part of my life shaped me into the woman I am today.

           Now this blog isn’t to talk about my hardships. Or the many times I’ve failed in life. It’s to talk about my experiences. My growth. My self discovery. And how they all tie in together. I’m at a point in my life where I can truly say I feel free of those inner demons. I have found my purpose and it has given me value. This blog is what I am most passionate about. It is something that took me out of a dark place and allowed me to feel whole again. I encourage anyone reading this who isn’t in a place that they want to be to find your passion This is the most incredible, life changing, and joyful experience I have ever lived through. My only hope is that someday you find whatever can make you feel this way too. Until next time!

           Blessings

           ~Jessica

[mikazukikannagisjourney]

Know THYSELF: The Importance of Knowing who You are, and why this Matters

Subtitle: This super-long post also has some tips somewhere in the end =)

Hi everyone, I hope you are all doing well.

I was gonna post a spiritual log but I got guided to write this, after I reviewed my own stuff aka my natal birth chart, my human design and the gene keys I was born with. To be honest, knowing the self is probably, and in my opinion the best gift you can give your self, as well as others. Because truth be told, some of the most miffing people out there, (based on my experiences) are those who don’t know what they want, if they actually want want they want, or have no idea how to deal with personal issues and stuff because they don’t actually take time to get to know themselves. Inversely, some people are also annoying because they don’t know how to interact with other people, and are too caught-up im in their own worlds to even care or think that they may have hurt other people by being too-self-absorbed. Spoiler alert: I WAS and probably am still on this entire spectrum so I am not saying that I have transcended this whole dilemma and I am better than anyone else. Lol that would be a dream tho, not.

*If you click the links you can get your own charts generated, just add your birth date, exact birth time, and more or less exact birth location, if you wanna learn more stuff down the rabbit hole*

OK, now that the intro-ish stuff has been brought down with, I shall formally start this very long-ish post by writing stuff about why it is important to know your self.

Partial Self-awareness: The myth that you already know everything you know about yourself right now, but some part of you says otherwise.

Well, that sucks right? I mean, no matter how much you say you know what you want or you are completely sure about something major about your self, there is at least a 10% chance that you may have missed a spot. And this normally won’t make itself known until you start forming relationships outside of your own zone: friends, workmates or schoolmates, lovers, mentor-student relationships, even having pets or kids. Normally when we are by ourselves, at the very least we feel a bit more confidence, strength, even some self-love. Because we see ourselves through our own lenses, albeit tinted at times. However, once we start seeing ourselves through the eyes of other people, as well as getting stimuli that are often beyond our realm of control, we often get surprised, and we start acting out of character. And by that I mean out of the character that we thought we knew, in a negative way. Left unchecked, unassessed, or even ignored, this anger or frustration goes on to become triggering mechanisms that would eventually sap us of our good vibes, our zest for life, or even wanting to go out and get some sun, or moon, or stars. In really worst cases, not knowing the self fully can cause self-sabotage in the form of self-doubt, insecurities, jealousy, having zero initiatives, you know, stuff that can make or break relationships. And if you already invested a lot of emotional, financial, and whatever attachment to these things, losing them can really hurt like hell, which leads to more self-sabotaging behaviors, more ruined stuff, and so on. Like a gut-wreching death spiral that only sees death as an end goal.

But don’t worry, it’s not all doom and gloom, for if you know yourself fully, and chose to heal or change what needs to be changed: attitudes, beliefs, mindsets, perspectives, the stuff that relies on your own perceptions, then at least half of the issues become readily solved.

How?

By learning how to recognize patterns of behaviors and responses that were causing the self-sabotage in the first place, and doing stuff to change them so that instead of feeling down and worthless, you instead regain your self-composure, your balance, and most importantly, you become EMPOWERED. YOu grow to become a better version of yourself. See? I told you the importance of this cannot be stressed even more lol. 

But seriously... You might start asking “How come I didn’t even know these?”

Well, actually, your conscious monkey brain doesn’t, but your deeper than an iceberg subconscious sure knows. Not that it’s smarter than your conscious or anything. It’s just more powerful though, because it has more storage capacity and won’t budge no matter how many times you do your affirmations or what. Not that I bash affirmations, goodness no, They’re very helpful with proper usage. But the subconscious mind is a lot thicker than your skull, and more often than not everything it has learned won’t just simply go away no matter how much motivational speeches or conscious affirmations you do. Well, for me and a whole bunch of people who bashed the Law of Attraction when we first tried it. Around 90-95% of the trial users lolol I am trying to make the mood happy here ok? Also don’t be angry at your subconscious mind, it’s the reason why you can sing sappy songs while riding a bike or driving your car. It’s also the reason why you could just start making pancakes without needing a book, assuming you have been cooking it all your life. It has some cool skills too, you know. But when it comes to chasing our dreams and our happiness, despite our best and intentioned efforts, the subconscious mind can either help us tremendously or be our biggest hater, basher, and even barrier and blockage.

This is because the subconscious mind has greater capacity, as well as a deeper connection to your outer world. It sucks to know and hear this but yes. After doing subliminals for 2 years and just now getting the hang of it and getting some harsh unwanted results due to my own unresolved issues,yes, this is a very painful truth. And this is where the idea of gaining power by knowing yourself comes to play. 

Why?

So you can heal your own wounds. Resolve your own personal issues. Become closer and more connected with other people, in deeper ways. And most importantly, be a better person than ever before. All with the help of your subconscious mind. 

*Quick reminder, the subconscious mind can be likened to a recorder. By itself it does only one thing: PLay recorded stuff. Unless you push “Record” in order to change a track in the tape (or memory card yeah I work with both types lolol), it can’t change the stuff that were already written on it, and it will only play whatever tracks are already recorded in it. Forever. Click here to learn more about this dual-sided nature of the subconscious mind and how such changes can affect our genetics, through DNA methylation. Trust me, we learned this stuff back in college and is only appearing out now.*

Yay, the first part of this post is already done! NOw let’s move on to the next two. I shall base my stuff on HUman Design because aside from it working for me, I haven’t seen anything like it that helped me learn even more about myself, amybe a lot deeper than getting natal birth charts. Not an expert but you can check the materials here. It’s one big rabbit hole if you wanna read more into it. You’ll need your human design chart though.

There are two ways of learning who we truly are: learn directly or indirectly.

1. Learning who the self is, directly.

*If you already got your human design chart, please check if you’re a Generator: Pure Generator or a Manifesting Generator (has the 20-34 channel connected, throat to sacral center aka the red square in the belly part of your diagram) because this is for you. All other types are in #2, but since this is for you to learn who you are, or who you are not, you can read this part too*

Well, that should be easy, right? Well, yeah, easy on paper, but not gonna lie it’s quite challenging to do in real life. BEcause learning how to do it involves a lot of taking risks, gaining new experiences, meeting new people, going to new places, and all that enrichment stuff. BAsically going out of your comfort zone. I’m not saying you should abandon all your core values here. But if you’re only not wanting to do something because you’re scared (i.e. you are uninitiated with meeting new people through dating apps) and not because you’re going against your personal values (i.e. being forced by a bunch of friends to go on a date with someone that harassed you when you already stood your ground and asserted yourself to this person), well the former is a component of your comfort zone and should be expanded, by all means.

Basically, just be open to new and expansion-making experiences. Doesn’t need to be grand. You can start with going back to old hobbies, adding new skillsets to those you already have, read books that you normally wouldn’t read, stuff like that. Or expand your current knowledge on what you already know.

You can also start from scratch, learn something new, or try out something that scares the heck out of you, like learning trigonometry or advanced calculus, or learning the mechanisms of cell-signalling cascades lolol not kidding there though. Meet new people in classes, events, or just try participating in online forums as a noob. Watch a movie that you didn’t wanna watch and never did because of all the bad reviews, but this time with an open mind and heart.

Or do someting cathartic, like CLEANING. Clean your house, clean your inboxes, clean your friends list, your phone contacts, and don’t forget to clean your mind of the subconscious garbage, because seriously that’s a lot more hard work than unfriending a bunch of people lolol but I am serious here. People uinderestimate the energizing effects of cleaning, because it literally removes energetic cords, it clears the energetic field (yours) and I have to tell you that as a person who just moved into a new place, seriously cleaning is both an annoying and a rewarding experience. It can help you assess your values in life, what matters most to you, and what makes you happy. Even before Marie Kondo started her stuff, I was already doing this since college. That was almost a lifetime ago. Dang I feel old, and fabulous lol.

But then you might ask, “WHy am I doing this, exactly?”

So you can learn what you like and don’t like. What gives you joy and what  doesn’t. What makes you happy and what makes you feel effed up. Not that it gives a more solid self-identity, but rather it allows you to be fluid, and gives you a chance to be on both sides of the fence. So that you can give better opinions and suggestions. But at the same time also empathetic to the ideas of people on the other side of the fence. You can even be a better friend or lover or companion who can spread your joy and love, especially since Generators have the type of aura that is welcoming and energizing to others (my Projector friend told me so, she feels great after we had our gabfest and after I give her card readings. lolol shameless self-promo). Comprising roughly 70% something of the world’s population, if all of the generators consistently do their best in knowing who they truly are, miracles can happen, and there would be less annoyance and frustration, and more satisfaction in  our daily lives. In turn, we get to channel more high vibrational energies to everyone else on the planet. As a Generator like you (I’m actually a Manifesting Generator, still same more or less), this is our gift: to share others our enduring strength by energizing ourselves as well as the people around us. Which is why seriously, now is the best time to be open on both sides because in the midst of all the current (and probably will only escalate more) chaos, you only need your inner guide, your personal compass, and knowing that you are confident with your choices because YOU had the actual experience only makes you even more powerful, because you can truly speak from the heart. Not everyone can do that, because the other people who are scared to take this leap just stay on one side for their entire lives. You’re born to be better and stronger than that, so just do it. (Or not, just trust your gut. We are gut peeps lolol no really, that’s part of our design) Also, based on your design (a defined aka solid sacral center, the square under the diamond shape) you have more than the usual capacity to endure, and to allow things to happen for you based on your gut instincts. Even when the going gets tough.

Additional important note: As Generators (the workforce of the world lol but yeah really), because our sacral centers are defined aka solid (especially when combined with a defined solar plexus center aka a yellow triangle at the right side of the square) this means that we innately have a strong sense of self: who we are and what we want, or don’t want. Or we don’t easily get influenced, even if we were conditioned to be. Thus, our power lies in knowing who we are, and knowing who we are gives us consistency, reliability, and ultimately satisfaction in our choices and decisions. That is how we generate our power, by following our gut feelings and following through till we complete our task or goal. After finishing it beautifully as expected (of us lol), it gives us a wonderful sense of completion, and it makes us feel great about ourselves. We trust ourselves better. And this is a form of self-mastery that can really give you peace. However, self-doubt, not following through, or not asserting ourselves takes away our precious power, which leaves us drained, exhausted, burnt-out, angry and frustrated, well, basically stuff that leads to depression and not to mention a really weak physique, and we really need to have a strong body for all of our motor centers aka the stuff that helps make things happen) to be at tip-top shape. This whole shite happened to me way back because I just kept myself getting trampled even though I was already unhappy with my work and how I was being treated, all for the sake of getting some cash. I basically gave my power and self-worth away, and I ended up with a really horrible (now a somewhat chronic) back pain (I am currently having this condition as I type this now. It popped up due to my need to release anger, see previous Thought log lol) and even deeper depression. While it may take us a bit shorter time to recover compared to other types, it still sucks that we have to stay in recovery, and in a whole lot of pain. So preventing burnout by doing what we love (that’s where we get even more  energies to do a whole truckload of work) and attaining a strong sense of self-satisfaction and self-love is really what we need to push ourselves towards self-improvement and to attain a more fulfilling and magical life.

Basically, KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. That’s exactly my point.

2. Learning who the self is, indirectly

*Check your chart if you’re a Manifestor, a Projector, or a Reflector, this is for you. Sorry if the stuff won’t be as rich as the previous one since I have more experiences as a Generator, Also I based these on some Projectors I know lol haven’t met an actual Manifestor or Reflector they’re like around 9% and 1% of the population respectively, so if you’re either, please don’t hesitate to say HI. But if you’re a Generator, especially a Manifesting Generator, feel free to read lol*

So if you happen to read the entire segment on Generators, and you’re not one, I’ll give you a pat on the back (or hugs if you want), that was a lot of stuff to read. And it isn’t even for you. But ironically, if you happened to read it, then you just did some learning about yourself INDIRECTLY. TA-DAH!

But I am not making a bamboozle here. What I said was something that many people actually base or formulate their own opinions with. By interacting with others, they learn more about themselves by hearing many perspectives, churning them into their own brand of butter, and eventually formulating something out of it. Unless you’re a Manifestor, you just say the word and people make your butter lolol yeah really.

But seriously, for people with this method of learning about the self based on outside sources is even better and more effective than trying to figure out things on their own. Having the opinion or experiences of others (most-likely a Generator because there’s more of us lolol the power of Statistics) is a better option in learning (i.e. you watch what experts do instead of doing all of the available options out there by yourself) than trying out what works because having to do stuff through a process of trial and error can actually put an energetic strain on these three types. While Generators can do all of that trial and error thingy because of their scarily solid willpower and their strong energy centers aka the sacral center, because this is not defined aka clear and white as a ghost for Manifestors, Projectors and Reflector types, it means that whatever energies you already had will be readily depleted, and recovery can take a long time, even when you feel like you exerted only a little effort. Trust me when I say that what you did was more than enough if you felt like you just wanna lay down and sleep for the entire day, or week.  

If you’re wondering how I had in idea on why this is so, well...

I don’t know about the other two types since I don’t personally know of any Manifestor or Reflector, but I guess having a Projector younger brother who gets exhausted playing games if he tries to figure stuff on his own and a Projector friend who gets easily drained after getting duped by other people to become a sounding board and later regrets it before ending up in a daze really helps me better understand open sacral center types a bit better. I just compare them to myself in similar situations, and assessing what happens to them after I give them a piece of my mind or whatever. For my brother, aside from watching video tutorials or reading GameFaqs (lol) based on whether I watched him play or not, just chatting with him while he slays demons, monsters, or whatever he’s playing at the moment sorta extends his play time by about 30mins at least compared to when I don’t appear around him to watch. He’s probably unaware though lolol BUt my Projector friend who is also one of my Soul Sisters and is quite familiar with Human Design (because I pushed her to get an overiew aka me explaining her chart to her and she actually realizing how legit the whole thing is lolol Manifesting Generator issues hahaha) actually tells me that each time we chat on the phone, she gets readily-grounded and energized, as well as having a better sense of herself after the call. I won’t exactly know if it’s because of me being a Generator who naturally does it, or because she gets free extended readings (lolol again, shameless self-promo here), or just the combination of getting her questions answered as well as getting her energetic fix. She just tells me that she feels depleted at the beginning of the call, after geting caught up and too-anxious on thinking what to do, why things happen, basically the mind starts running so fast But then she gets super-excited and revived during and before ending the call, because she receives clarity on what she needs to do, even if it makes no sense to me logically. And I weirdly after that can still go on and gab some more, I sometimes even do chores after that.

So what is the point of this segment about Projectors?

Well, it has two points:

Sometimes it is easier to walk the pavement than make it. Unless you’re a Manifestor who initiates things. But (then again, this just means that they’ll make the layout, the others will just do the manual labor) they can only do so much with their own power, and it would be a bit helpful for them to ask aid from other people like filling in the other “back-end” stuff that needs to be done aka follow through with the details. Being humble and telling people what you plan to do, how it can be done, and putting trust on other people that they will do it the best way they can with their power (because probably they’re Generators lol), can revitalize your energy and creative ideas. Same for Projectors, it is better to just create a plan, and assuming that people were already on board with your plan (because your abilities got recognized, your ideas didn’t get rejected and you felt great) to manage people who can do it through delegation and division of labor (they’re probably Generators because again, statistics lolol honestly I wanna be a Manifestor but nope), and just rest. Sorry, I can’t say much about Reflectors though, but I believe that they need a long time to ruminate things and decide, or else they’ll end up being disappointed with their choices and feeling even more disempowered.

Learning about other people’s opinions, knowledge and experiences can be rewarding  because you not only learn about your own needs in a deeper sense through sifting and distilling of the information carefully, but also by having an idea on what makes the people around you tick. This can help you become really good at catching on their current states, which can improve your communication and rapport with them. It also makes them more receptive of you, especially if you’re a Manifestor because let’s face it, you can be quite intimidating and seem angry all the time (or so they say). It also saves the Projector a lot of disappointment due to rejection because they gain a better sense of not pushing their output into the faces of the people and instead waiting for the right chance aka getting recognized and invited by others to share their stuff. Trust me, a lot of people just wanna share their own unsolicited opinions and advices and while some can take the heat when rejected, others just cannot and it is hard for them to let go, to the point that they think it is a personal attack. Hint: it’s not.

In Conclusion: There is no right or wrong way to know more about your true self. 

Any method can actually work for any type, just as long as you don’t feel threatened, compromised, or be under so much stress. Just remember to work with what you’re designed with: Generators can do the trial-and-error thingy, and Manifestors, Projectors and Reflectors can go for other people for their input and other kinds of information sharing so that a consensus can be reached aka you'll get to know better if something is for you or not based on whether you like it or not.  Also, you don’t have to rush things (ahem, GENERATORS, AHEM), sometimes going with the flow is just as important as paddling, sometimes it’s even better and gives more magical results.

I hope this super long-post helped you in any way. I did whatever I can within my knowledge and intuition so that this post can be made. If even just one person helps this make their lives better, then this is all worth it.

Thank you very much for reading. Any comment, suggestions, even just a short reply are most welcome. If it helped you in any way, I would love to hear about it.

Be well always, and may you find the healing you seek.

With love and hugs from Source above,

三日月 🌙

Mikazuki

PS. If you found the information in this post to be very helpful, insightful, and of great value to you and your own personal journey, please feel free to reblog, share and heart/like, or if you feel super-generous, energetic exchanges are welcomed! Please click here and use this email address: may_chan_otaku@yahoo.com

Thank you so much and be blessed!

[health-and-felicidad]

5 Women Prove That Every Body Is Sexy in Empowering Photo Series

All women should feel sexy no matter their shape or size, and that’s what influencer Meg Boggs is out to prove. The 31-year-old mom and blogger joined forces with other influencers to create a campaign that encourages women to feel sexy in their own skin. 

“Sexy looks and feels different on everyone, but we all have it and are allowed to own it,” Boggs tells Health. “We want to encourage and empower as many women as possible to embrace and own their sexiness, too.”

Boggs explained that feeling sexy didn’t always come easily to her.  

RELATED: This Mom Shares Unedited Photos of Her Cellulite and Stretch Marks to Send a Message About Postpartum Bodies

“I never felt it until this past year, not until after noticing other women, similar to my body type, owning their sexiness so openly,” says Boggs. “It felt rare to see, but just in those rare moments, I felt the shift in how I embraced my own.”

Boggs spoke to her friend Bethanie Garcia, and the two came up with the idea to launch a campaign that features women sharing how they came to embrace sexy, too. So Boggs rounded up four other influencers—and the results are stunning. 

Meg Boggs of @meg.boggs

"I would have never described myself as sexy. Sexy, in my previous mindset, was anything but me. It wasn’t a word to describe me or my body. In fact, sexy felt out of reach for me.

I thought sexy looked one way. Had one style. Could only be acknowledged in one body type. Be one certain type of experience. I would read magazine headlines about how to achieve the ultimate sexiness. The very best version of sexy. And I believed that for such a long time. It all felt so unachievable for me. No matter how much strain I put on my body in order for it to change, still, it would never look like what the world labeled as sexy.

Towards the end of my 20s, I began to mourn the loss of my 'sexy dream body' goals. When I sort of realized that it’s something I would never have. But... a shift around me was happening. Every now and then, my eye would catch the glimpse of a woman who looked similar to me... completely owning her body.

Owning her sexiness. Owning who she was as a woman. And it sort of hit me like a ton of bricks. Wait, does that mean I’m... sexy too? Can I find confidence too? My feelings around this were swirling and brewing. Woah. This was big. This was the power of positive influence that was creating this much needed shift.

Little moments started happening where I’d feel it. I’d actually feel sexy. These feelings turned into visual moments. I’d see a sexy body as I locked eyes with myself during mirror moments. And my visual moments turned into flooding thoughts. I’d mix my visual and emotional cues, allowing myself the permission to embrace what was happening.

I was feeling sexy. Because I was. Because I am. Because we are." 

Bethanie Garcia of @thegarciadiaries

"I teamed up with @womenIRL and a group of powerful women to share what makes us feel SEXY in our own skin. Once I became a mom, I feel like all sexiness went out the window. I spent the first several years of motherhood feeling anything but sexy. My body had endured so many changes and I honestly didn't recognize the woman I saw staring back at me in the mirror.

My husband always wanted me and told me how beautiful and sexy I was, but those words didn't make me feel any better about myself internally. They were like little Band-Aids that made me feel better for a moment, but the wound was still open and there. Once I started my journey towards self-love and body positivity, there was a huge shift in my mentality. I started loving my body, appreciating my body, seeing my body for what it was. My body has endured loss, my body has given me four healthy children, my body has struggled with anxiety and depression, my body has overcome.

And once I was actively appreciating and loving my body, I couldn't help but see it as sexy. I started flirting and teasing my husband and wearing lingerie I wouldn't have dreamed of wearing before. I started seeing every roll and curve and dimple as beautiful. I started feeling sexy for living my life unapologetically—regardless of my size. I wasn't worried about what people think or what society's definition of sexy is.

I feel sexy in my skin and I am thankful every day for this body of mine."

RELATED:  This Influencer Opens Up About the Empowering Decision to Get Her Implants Removed and Breastfeed

Hunter Premo of @hunterpremo

"I’m proud to be partnering with @womenIRL and these powerful women to share what makes us feel SEXY. 

So what makes me feel sexy? Looking in the mirror and feeling confident and PROUD of my body. I struggled with an eating disorder for several years and the way I looked consumed my entire mind. I wanted to look perfect more than anything in the world and it took so much out of me. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that there is only one me and I’m comfortable with who I am. I wake up every day feeling happy and beautiful in my own skin... a petite 5’1” gal who happens to have some curves.

I didn’t see anyone with my body type growing up and I still don’t see a lot of it in the media today. In a world filled with comparison on social media, I continually have to remind myself that I am strong, sexy and beautiful just the way I am. My husband, Cameron, has been by my side for 10+ years now, has seen me in every form and his love for me hasn’t changed. Even though he has always made me feel beautiful, there is nothing that can replace  the kind of confidence that comes from within." 

To get more stories like this delivered to your inbox, sign up for the Real Wellness WomenIRL newsletter

Fatima Dedrickson of @stylefitfatty

"I’ve teamed up with @womenirl and a group of amazing women to share what makes us feel sexy in our own skin. Did you notice how I said FEEL and not look? To be completely honest and transparent, last year was the first time in who knows how long that I remember saying out loud 'I feel sexy.' That’s 3 kids later...THREE!!

I remember after I had Kingston, I decided I needed to find myself and that confidence in me again. As a mom it’s so easy to put our needs, passions, hobbies, and ourselves last. I did this and it needed to change. I needed Fatty back. 

Being pregnant isn’t always glamorous. So how do you feel sexy pregnant when you have swollen feet, heartburn, gained weight, feeling sick? Confidence. Its all about how you feel about yourself regardless of the changes. 

As I watch my body go through another phase, I can’t help but smile. Because Im confident in my own skin. I found myself again; I stopped caring what others thought and cared about how I felt about me. I started to appreciate my own journey and realized how far I had traveled. I’m thankful for my body and being able to grow another baby. Sexy has no size. To me, confidence is sexy." 

RELATED: This Influencer Posted a Photo in Her Bra and Underwear to Show the Biggest Problem With Dieting

Christina and Katie Bailey of @babybaileymamadrama

Christina: "I feel beautiful and sexy when I dress up and get ready for the day.  Sometimes it is easy to get used to being in my lazy, lounging clothes when I know I am going to be chasing our kids around all day.  However, when I get ready for the day and do my hair and makeup, I feel like my wife and I are dating all over again." 

Katie:  "I feel sexy and beautiful when I work out and eat healthy.  I feel my best after I know I have done what I can to make sure my body is healthy.  This makes me feel sexy because I like the way I feel in a body that I try my best to keep in good health."

source https://www.health.com/mind-body/every-body-sexy-empowering-photo-series

[hodanibrahim-blog]

Reality of Being a Muslim Woman in Business

Whoever sought the pleasure of Allah though it was displeasing to the people then Allah becomes pleased with him, and will make the people pleased with him, and whoever sought the pleasure of the people though it was displeasing to Allah than Allah becomes displeased with him and will make the people displeased with him" (Ibn Hibban/ Tirmidhi)

This may sound like a very different me. Because it is.

My beliefs about who I am as a women and my role in the world is shifting beneath my feet.

And I wanted to share them.

I've been an entrepreneur for years now. I consciously made the decision at 22 that I wanted to live my life this way.

My dream was very simple: I wanted to make a 6-figure salary working from home.

I am such a homebody. I love the comfort of my home and if I could do what I loved in my favourite place, then that sounded like a good deal to me!

As a young women, I'm blessed to have accomplished a lot alhamdulilah.

I've lived in so many countries like Chile, Egypt, Canada, Dubai and Malaysia. I've written books, started and grown 2 successful companies and met incredibly influential people. Im truly grateful for what I have been able to do as a solo girl who grew up under an immigrant family in social housing projects.

With Allah's blessing, I've gotten so far because my mother instilled the belief of God in me and the fearlessness to do whatever I set my mind in. She taught me wealth was always in my heart and I always wealthy. It made me always feel like I was in a state of abundance and could have whatever I wanted. She gave me the attitude to be successful.

But as with everything, success can also have a downside.

Success is probably one of the most dangerous words in the world today. How we define success can make your life happiness or total hell.

The general definition success is materialism. The more you have, the more successful you are. However, the consequences of that is so utterly devastating when a person figures out, like many, that "stuff" cannot buy you happiness.

What I didn't realise that what was to come was a feeling of deadness in my heart once I got what I thought I wanted. It felt like an emptiness - a hunger that could never be filled.

I suppose looking back, I had it coming.

When Success Becomes a Survival Mechanism

I define success for years, albeit unconsciously, as revenge. Revenge for the world that push my parents out of the only land they knew and belonged in, Somalia. Revenge for a system that was built against me. Revenge for never finding anyone that looked like me or understood me. It was pure revenge for living and being because the system told me. Revenge for having spent 16 years in public prison(ie education system) and only becoming how I am in spite of it, not because of it.

Success was everything I was not. And come anything, I was going to get it.

But success & empowered meant something totally different when it happened.

If You Lose Your Hayaa, You Lose Your Eeman

Haya according to Islamic is modesty. It holds such a huge importance in our faith. Our believed Prophet Muammad(s) said:

“Haya’ (modesty) and Iman (faith) are two that go together. If one is lifted, the other is also lifted.” [Recorded by al-Hakim]

The more time I spent in business, the more my hayaa became compromised. Haya and eeman are one. Once you lose haya, you lose eeman.

The beauty of Islam is that our deen offers the women such a dignified position in society that, once you learn about it, it is very hard to accept otherwise.

The Western narrative likes to shame a women who wants to stay-at-home and raise kids. It likes to shame women if they don't want to be in the public life. It shames people who follow tradition instead of modernity.

I grew in an ultra feminist society that encouraged women to do whatever men could do. But now I am questioning this narrative having live this reality for so long: is this the best way I can live as a woman?

I've spent most of my life in the public eye and with no male guardians in my life,  I have also spent most of my life exposed to the world. I had to take full responsibility for myself.

It's not about only being physically protected; being emotionally protected is something society doesn't afford to women. Women are most vulnerable for that reason.

More than that, I want to look at what have I sacrificed to get here?

This is what I want to talk about.

Living the startup world rat race, I have nearly lost my soul. Really, I learned first hand that money and success is not where happiness lies.

Happiness is from Allah. Its a journey, not a destination. You can never arrive at being "happy" and this realization made me realize I was more happy sleeping on a mattress on a floor for almost a year to build my 2nd company than ever being able to achieve anything materialistic.

As a women in business, you lose a lot in the process of getting to the top. You lose your modesty especially if you work in male driven environments, which I have exclusively worked in. Modesty is the first thing that has to go because it is the one veil you need to remove in order to thrive in a male-driven business environment.

You adopt characteristics of a man because you have to in order to survive

But unless you hire them, most men don't take you seriously in business. Men take other men seriously in business.

I've been harrassed, abused, taken advantage of, disregarded just because I am a woman. Say what you like about gender equality but it doesn't exist and I don't believe in it.

Sure - men can respect you. That isn't what I am talking about.

The fundamental belief that caused my suffering for so long is the idea that men and women are the same. And because they aren't the same, they can't be equal!

If they were equal, I would not have had the experiences I have had. I would not have had to work harder; I would not have had to look pretty or feel that I need to "dress up" or simply change my demeanor in order to be more favourable in a business deal; most men wouldn't have hit on me and would have treated me like an equal - but alas it never happened.

It's a painfully sad reality. My work ethic and idea were never enough to stand on their own.

I was always that young, nice girl "trying" to do stuff. And this led to a cycle where I had to become more aggressive to go after what I wanted and compete even more to "prove" myself worthy.

As I said, grew up in the most secular, liberal feminist society and from an early age was taught to believe I could be and do what a man can do. Hypothetically, my capacity to accomplish my dreams is unlimited. I can and fully intend to accomplish all my goals insha allah, with Allah's help.

The reality I have come to is women sacrifice way more than men in their way to success and building their own legacy.

I remember reading Anne Marie Slaughters, the first women director of policy planner in the US State Department, who wrote article in the Atlantic years ago on "Why Women Still Can't Have It All". There was a little voice inside of me that hurried with such enthusiasm when I read it.

Years later, I am living a little piece of what she has lived: I don't want to play a game that makes me work harder to reach the same results as men.

You know why? I wasnt built to play this game.

I was built to live in the complete honour it is to be a women and not have to sacrifice my femininity, my honour and modesty to get business deals.

Any deals I've closed: a man had to be next to me or I had to look pretty to do it. Why? Majority of those cutting my checks were other men.

What does the future look like?

Taking the step to changing the way I do business is hard but neccessary. First step is that I wanted to share my thoughts because I know there are many Muslim women in my place who've experienced the uncomfortable inequalities of being a working women and have had no outlet

I understand many women work like I do.

I understand being abandoned by one of your parents- I have.

But the cost of building business to leave legacy and lose myself in the process, I will not do it anymore.

Second step I've taken is to go back to wearing the niqab. I briefly wore it when I was 17 and stopped wearing it due to pressures in my life as a young teenager.  

For me, the niqab always represented continuous beauty in striving for the pleasure of God - quite literally turning your back on a world; the very world I've chased for so long.

Be clear: covering yourself as a women isn't my way of excluding myself from society or separating me from others. It's a way for me to participate in in the world in a much more dignified way without compromising my haya. It is a way to protect my faith.

Lastly, I wanted to start a whole new blog - Women of Tahira - for Muslim women in business. I wanted to document stories that don’t get told; offer new ways for Muslim women to live as Muslimahs without getting lost in our chaotic modern world and still live the lives we have always dreamed of; I wanted to share my journey to building very success businesses and a life without compromising my values.

The Journey Continues

So this new chapter being a businesswoman but taking a new approach to building my businesses will be interesting.

I will finally be able to do the business I want on my terms. No compromising.

Ive always believed living with a mindset of freedom. This is my freedom.

Nothing in this world is more important for me than my faith in Allah. He is my protector and provider. He has been the only being to be there for me and support me. The only reason I have reached the success I have is from Him(swt).

Business as a woman is difficult and in the accomplishments and success I have achieved Alhamdulilah. But I absolutely  will not lose my soul in the process.

There is a lot of fitnah living a public life. I want to be sure to protect my honour and eeman in the process and give other women the courage to do so.

Ultimately, taking away a woman’s modesty moves her away from her faith and the natural inclination with which she was created.

I want to show women that you can adhere strictly to your values and traditions and still achieved your goals on your own term.

You don't have to model yourself into what society wants you to be to find your rizq or success. You don't have to do what "you think" you have to do to find success.

Understand your sustenance is only from Allah and you should only rely on Him(SWT).  I am fully confident my rizq will come to me no matter where I am - nobody can take it away from you.

My happiness is only with Allah and my success is with Him. As such my trust should be in him 100% also.

[neokaylion]

Life As We Float In’t

so I am writing this out and words like what are you doing pop up, I want to answer ever so profoundly but all I have is that i am writing only but a short story about floating. I don't know what this might mean to you but we are fucked. At least some of us are. I don''t seem to gather all the right again profound words to articulate what you will read as my opinion even after I just said that it was a short story that began as soon as you stumbled your hopeful eyes on this... On a random day in the quarantine episodes I got to chat with a very intelligent young lady, 13years younger than I to be exact I. She came by initially to drop off some pastries and decided to read into my Ora I would like to believe. I would to as I was frequency riding all day vibing to the colour grey all days since I to would have walked in and had something to say. She asked if I was okay and what I was up to so we spoke about "life" in the now after I said Im alright just tired of being locked down. Allow me to just reflect for only a few seconds right now as I just remembered my first church fellowship youth camp at GBC #...UNLIMITED. One guy questioned my being as I was sitting by myself excluded from a group of friends. This young fellow having observed me waited for a group exerciser one where you sit and converse with a person outside of your circle of preferences. He approached me to asked what it was that I was doing chilling by myself? I answered nervously that I was thinking and meditating. In condescension he asked me thinking about what? Then dared me not to give him Life as an answer. So there I was stunned thinking; how dare he! Who died and made him Judas? The truth was that I was thinking about life and how pretentious people are and how I could be speaking to my crush instead blahblah blah> I was round about the same age as this 13years younger than I young lady that I am now so fond of for inspiring me to just write even if it wont read right; and perfect because life. So this that you are reading is a very short story on how we are all floating.LIFE Chapter1 I've never really had a true sense of being absolutely sure of what the plan for my life is and what I really want to settle in as or rather let me say that this after young adulting disappointments and turn downs. I say settle because I know that every passion, goal or drive requires a sacrifice and that sacrifice should settle well, either with your loved ones, or your spirit/ SOUL when it or they are at their weariest. I want to believe that no one wants to settle for less but what is less to you is more for me thanks shout out to the gym bunnies. See Floating translates to not settling, fluctuating, on the surface of water suspended... now if we were reading this on a higher and higher puns intended floating level, we would break down each of these words. Fluctuating, Surface of Water Suspended fluctuating haLOL! You would have covered a lot of my ground work and made ground were there wasn't any really. To keep you with the matrix I will have to say that there is absolutely no point in troubling your soul with what You have zero hold on, be it people or life or an opinion. All these things can not be saved by anyOne persons. See the power of One is what got us to this very point in our lives. Where we seem to be floating. The school system teachers us 1+1 a whole Educational system of well educated generations answer is equal to two. Never thinking of a way out of the shitstew recipe. I am not saying counting is bad I just wish I could do that in my own Language number one and number two. I wish it wasn't so predictable. I hate maths but I love solving problem you follow. So if I was able to do the ngwe + ngwe =pedi which I can just dont ask me to do it till tshilela. I would still have a problem cause I hate math but I love solving problems. And my passion for solving problems is the half buried thing that is only solved by washing the dishes. I planned to be a politician but my problems there are as deep as learning how to professionally speak and teach professionally my home language which mindoo (mind you) I speak everyday I can even do(speak) it in my sleep. My name is full proof Neokananelo the poetry the works. The Passion to this odyssey though is floating and so half buried, For I know no better but experience, I hate math I am Kind&odd and I am a no-one cause I don't think like anyone thats "made" it in this life. Am I weak minded because I can not for the love of relationships solve math problems or better yet Algorythems for this new smart city world the polotitians are investing in. Mindoo with our blood sweat and tears... Cause if I was a shots caller I would call on all the best shorts. Imagine these frames Frame one No Onemindedness. All of us that share the same ideas and interests are welcome to huddle and grow here is R700 000 invest in your development and empower. if you don't follow the mass, that is very okay too, here is your R700 000 to build on what you think would be a suitable pursuit for you maybe you might convince others maybe not but do it for you and then ultimately be able to empower.. Frame two No malicious intent within yourself or for others. The Exercising of authentically pure empowering thoughts is a real thing here in our land. Frame three Empowerment in the liberation is to be celebrated. Now here is my petition Lets live liberated form fear of all things especially people and ourselves. Be a Legend and be a sweating rock, The end of floating is near said the Sagittarius these words would have been properly convincing if they were coming from one of the other zodiacs like Cancers and Piecies. I would sure like to believe that the studies are true but I would like to leave it there before I suffer from the passion of the dis-ease of the numenon, disturbing Life As We Know It.

[uncle-ak]

Size 16

I look in the mirror twisting and turning, examining this body of mine, I grab any lump, pull up on loss skin, suck in my gut, hold my breath, and pose in a manner that would make me look 20 pounds lighter. I starve, eating one or two meals a day and drinking only water the rest and maybe some veggies in between. I run or walk depending on how motivated I feel at the moment. I spend an absurd amount of money for a 7 day gym membership, only to attend 3 days out of the week, depending on my schedule. I spend hours of my free time watching others workout, learning new ways to burn my fat, wishing my body was tone and lean. Reading blogs upon blogs about different body types and how to lose weight based on my body type, then I read more blogs about how other stuck to their goals and how easy it is to lose weight and stay fit. I obsess and depress my soul hoping I will one day fall under a “normal body range”. 

Then I relapse, slinging back like a rubber band. Months of hard work get swept under the rug. I eat, burgers, fries, chicken wings and and drink lots of those shakes you get from chick-fil-a. Those single ice cream tubs I walked past the frozen aisle last week are buy one get one free, I take 8 minutes to devour 1 in the car before heading home. I skip gym days, running, walking, or any strenuous activity that will need any serious muscle action, instead I spend my time eating popcorn and chips. On the days I don't feel my best, I cover up wearing baggy clothes and staying away from the mirror. On My confident days I wear clothes that compliment my body. But through those days, confident or not confident the thought of my weight still remains weighing heavy on my shoulder. “How will I lose this weight, is it just me or does this all seem impossible?”

It has taken me years to love the body I live in, still an ongoing battle to see myself as beautiful, in a world full of misreptionations of women who have a 36 inch breast size, a 26 inches waist and wide 37 inch hips, making their body shape a perfect hourglass shape, ya know kim K or the blac chyna. I mean do you blame me, we live in a time of perfection and acceptance. We accept “all” and shame “none”, but no, we don't like unhealthy people, they promote unsafe beauty standards. No one wants a fat girl or boy, he or she might rob you of your money because all they want to do is eat out. They take up too much space, they are depressed and angry, and are very unhealthy.  

According to medical professions I am extremely obsese, with a BMI of 37.8. I have to lose 40 or more pounds from my initial weight, which I will not list for the sake of mothers blood pressure. They tell me all the side effects of bearing this unhealthy body of mine, how it increases my chances of a heart attack, diabetes, high cholesterol, and other fear causing factors. My doctor once demanded I lose weight before my next visit, I came back 2 pounds heavier. Opps.

You might be thinking, is this chick serious? YES, I take my health very seriously thank you very much. I may not look like it, but I do. We can't all justify our healthy habit based on eating vegetables and fruits, and working out one hour out of our day. There are many ways one like me can live a healthy lifestyle. Staying away from fast food and anything that is high in calories. Drinking plenty of water, limiting the juice and drinking no sodas. Consider some activity, it may not be going to the gym but a simple walk around the neighborhood before sundown or sunrise. Just to name a few simple things that i have tried to do, but have seen very little results. 

Things were never like this. I had a “healthy body” once upon a blue moon. I was lean, skinny with a flat tummy. I had the easy to shop for size, things weren't limited, they were cheaper, and they fit better. I got compliments about my body's physics, I felt good.  Then I started to “blow up” someone once told me. Now i'm called fat and told this is not good, and go back to my regular size. To all who feel this way, I wish there were a time machine to make us all happy. But there is not, so we will all have to dwell in the reality that is me. 

I am not writing this to justify why I'm choosing to settle with my body or to praise big people. I am writing this to express the challenges of being big, the difficulties of trying to win but only losing. I am a working progress, love my body today and maybe not tomorrow. I am not giving up, I know my limits, and I know what saturated fat is. My body may not be the healthiest, be at its finest, or shaped like an hourglass. I battle with losing, loving, and embracing the curves I have. It doesn't happen overnight, this is a months maybe years in the making. 

So, I say this to all who battle with their weight, give yourself a break, look in the mirror twist and turn, examine that body of yours, grab any lump, don’t suck in that gut, breath, and pose in a manner that empowers you. When you're done, hug all your imperfections because they are perfection.

A little message to those who shame fat people, next time you open your mouth to talk about someone's weight, bite your tongue. You may not know what they are going through, the pressures they are facing, the feeling of shame, embarkment, disappointment, and maybe even worse depression. 

What does body postivy mean to you?

“We should accept and appreciate all body types” -C.Finjap

“Just caring for yourself” -S.Ruiz

What makes you feel comfortable in your own skin?

Loose clothes or lots of black, basically anything that makes me look thinner. -annaomys

What is something that makes you feel worse about you body?

“Before it was my own fiaml;y and tbh social media, I got mad depressed” -E.Tawoes

“Bloating” C.Finjap

“Tight clothes that show my rolls.” -annamoys 

What is one way you celebrate your body everyday?

“Drinking water” -M. F

“Going to the gym or staying away from fast food” N.Mba

“Just plain loving the fact that im thick” -annamoys 

[tayegi]

Ohhg God Mijoo really got her I gasped thru the whole conversation I can't believe I never really noticed but oc really doesn't talk much about jimin as an individual but really as this beautiful warm light and it totally makes sense that she was just idolizing him also I was sick thru all the angst girl I just really want her to be happy but the moment in the sea!!! Oh my God I'm screaming I just gosh I'm really rooting for her :( for them :( (PS hobi is making me uncomfy nd I don't know y)

Anonymous said:mijoo and the oc should just date

Anonymous said:BCH I am living for that friendship scene between mijoo and y/n where theyre staring at the stars ahh such a lovely scene

Anonymous said:this is the third time that i try to write this ask and i can’t still find the right words to express how much i love mijoo and the oc’s friendship. i love their interactions, i love how they both work hard to resolve a conflictual situation. i love how mijoo always tries to make the oc happy & how the oc is ready to put aside her deeper feelings in order to not hurt mijoo. there are many interesting relationships in nr but nothing will top mijoo & the oc beautiful empowering friendship

Anonymous said:honestly... i think the oc and mijoo's relationship is the most beautiful one you've written, and i've read most of your writings if not all. sure, the oc's relationship with jungkook keeps you engaged and is the main focus, but the way the oc's friendship with mijoo is written? the ups and downs? the flaws? the reading each other better than themselves? the REALISM? how female friendships really are the strongest and so lovely and amazing? idk man i just love you for this. thank you!!

Anonymous said:I love the friend relationship between Mijoo and OC but I also lowkey ship them together idk i'm confused.

Anonymous said:Lu, i'm emotional... As always. There are so many things in every chapter that makes me feel a lot of different feelings, and observing the OC relationship with mijoo totally warms my heart. I was one of those persons who hated mijoo for what she did in the past and well... thanks for open my eyes. The scenes of the OC and her in this last chapter were for me even more intenses than the kissing scene, i was actually feeling it. GREAT chapter, the end tho got my heart stopping. Lots of love 💕

Anonymous said:I want a best friend like Mijoo! We all need a Mijoo in our lives. The way she finally had enough and called the oc out for being so stubborn and stagnant in her relationship that's not a relationship was pretty intense, but I agree with you, your best friend should promote growth when they can. I love how she came back and apologized, too, without making a big fuss, just a simple "I'm sorry, I love you, and I'm always here for you" 😭 beautiful as heck!

Anonymous said:gosh this chapter just caught me off guard! the scenes with y/n and mijoo led me to tears. mijoo really loves y/n and vice versa. it's a beautiful best friend dynamic. they're both so human and flawed, they call each other out on their shit and they could end up hurting each other's feelings but at the end of the day, they'll apologize aaa i think that's the nuanced beauty of friendships! :-'(( AND THAT SCENE when y/n finally said her repressed feelings for jk out loud, god I JUST FELT THAT

Anonymous said:Me @ Me: u r doing fine and the best u can Mijoo @ Me: HoNeY wHAT iS U DoiN Me after reading their argument scene and getting “my” shit called out Me @ Me: HoNeY wHAT iS U DoiN Mijoo gave “me” tough love. “I” end up avoiding on solving my problems by wanting to drink or say some self depreciating joke and at first I was defensive bc I would act 100% like the way the character is but then pulling away from the intense scene, I was like “alright. U got me there. Gtg get my shit together.” 💋 Mijoo

Anonymous said:10 chapter. Just when I woke up. I read it. Amazing. Specially I like this part with Mijoo. Clearing the situation between two of them it was something that they needed a long time ago. And there’s only one thing left why I can’t fully compare my self to the main character. When it comes to her feelings she is speechless. And I understand that she’s afraid, but at least you can reject and don’t do what you don’t really want to. you don’t have to. Waiting for the next chapter. Love. 🍓

Anonymous said:Lu... I’m really on the verge of crying rn, I’m emotional and about to start my period and ch. 10 is the most emotionally affecting chap for me so far; I adore the way you portray female relationships in nr. The scenes with mijoo just reminded me of my own closest female friend group who are the relationships I cherish most 😭 they have been there for me since early high school and now we’re well into college and even tho we don’t see each other as often, we’re always looking out (1/3) -💝

Anonymous said:For each other and want what’s best for them 💜 like mijoo I would give up any guy in a heartbeat for them bc their friendship is truly irreplaceable. Sorry for kind of rambling,, it’s just I feel like I don’t see the depth and pure love that female friendships can have explored in fics that often which is weird bc when writing about life, I feel like female friendships are a huge part of a lot of girls’ lives!! And the part with hyejin, reminded me of how awesome girls are. I have so (2/3) -💝

Anonymous said:much love for my girl friends and girls in general and it just warmed my heart to see that reflected with the nuance and care that you put into new rules :’)) legit crying rn (3/3) -💝

bamlix said:can mijoo be my bff irl pls ty

Anonymous said:I really love Mijoo, I wished I had a friend like her 😭🤧🤧🤧🤧💖💕

Anonymous said:OK BUT WHAT WAS THAT, oc and mijoo's friendship goals!!!! I love their relationship with each other more than ever, and the thing mijoo pointed out about the OC and jimin is sooo true, is something I keep discussing with people, the difference between really liking someone and only being interested, you can't like/love someone that you don't know for reaal, like all the things mijoo pointed out! I loved that dialogue so much!!! AND THE CLIFF HANGER AT THE END, I LOVE YOU!

Anonymous said:the scene with mijoo really got me tho in chap10 because of how loyal they both are to each other? i just absolutely love how they are literally each one's #1 fans and ugh everyone just needs a mijoo in their life tbh

Anonymous said:when mijoo slipped into the ocs bed my heart just went 🌸💖😩😭👩‍❤️‍👩🧡💛💚💕❣️💗💓💞💜💚💕💖💓💞💝 i genuinely want all good things to happen to the oc and mijoo

Anonymous said:i havent finished ch 10 yet but MIJOOOOOO SHES THE BEST SHE REMINDS ME OF MY BFF MY HEAART IS WARM

Anonymous said:aaaa im still reading chapter ten but you've done it again lu!!! i love the way mijoo confronted the oc about her crush on jimin. she was mature and respectful while addressing the problem with the oc's thought process about jimin. i've considered myself a feminist for a while, but this series alone has gotten me closer to a more fair and truly equal perception of gender. thank u so much!! - yoongi trash icon

lajsdfklsdjf this sudden outpour of love makes me SO SOFT!!! esp since all the disgusting misogynistic hate she’s gotten over the past chapters. like F I N A L L Y lol. NEVER FORGET GUYS, CHICKS > DICKS

[apsbicepstraining]

Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross On Pregnancy, Fitness And Retirement

Sanya Richards-Ross is a four-time Olympic track and realm gold medalist, reached entrepreneur and soon-to-be new mom.

She went tothe University of Texas in 2003 and rapidly returned pro after her sophomore year, going on to competeat the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympicsin the 400 meter and the 4400 meter relay.

REX/ Shutterstock

After supporting the deed of No. 1 400 -meter runner in the world for much of her job, Richards-Ross passed her final hasten last year and is currently embracing retirement( if you can call it that, because shes busier than ever ).

She andher husband, two-time Super Bowl Champion Aaron Ross, are excitedly expecting their first child a son afterwards this year.

Recently, Sanya partnered up with Capital One for its Banking Reimagined Tour a hands-on digital knowledge on wheels that aims to start the conversation about planning for your financialfuture.

The connection between business and sportings is actually pretty simple when you think of it in terms of goal setting.

With summer around the corner and taxation season only wrapping up fitness, snacking healthy and not maxing out your credit card onrooftop happy hoursare all extremely timely topics of interest.

And if theres anyoneyou want to take advice from when it comes tofood or fitness orfinances, 32 -year-old Richards-Ross isdefinitely a solid choice.

Elite Daily got the chance to sit down and talk with Sanya about her retirement, her pregnancy, how shes abiding fit post-competition and her admonition for millennials when it comes to money.

ED: How difficult was your decision to officially withdraw last year ?

SRR: I had been running since I was 7, so for all of “peoples lives”, all that I knew was to be on the line and emulating But I truly is argued that every good thought was necessary to an expiration and I was truly consecrated throughout my profession to have some of the greatest events of my life.

When I was 9, I told school teachers Id be an Olympic champion and I actually reached it. When I loped my final race in 2016 in Eugene at the Olympic Trials, it was bittersweet. I desired the experience of stepping on the racetrack one last-place occasion and I was surely very emotional about it, but I did feel like it was the right time and I think in life that we all follow up modulation and so Im just excited about this phase in my life.

Im certainly going to miss it a lot, but yeah, Im really grateful for all the success I had on the track and Im hoping those events will fuel me to move forward to some other great things in my life.

When I was 9, I told my teacher Id be an Olympic champion and I actually achieved it.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What do you think ranging and playing at such an nobility height learn you about life? How did it prepare you for your works off the track ?

SRR: Ive actually started three jobs already, some of them during my busines and one very recently since I adjourned, and I only feel really good about trying and if it doesnt design, learning from my mistakes and pushing forward toward my ultimate goals.

REX/ Shutterstock

I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat. I think thats one of the greatest readings Ive learned from boasts. And goal fix and hard work and proficiency all of those thoughts clearly restate but I do think that in every business speculation there are always brand-new thoughts that I have to learn and I have to be prepared to study and do the work.

In track, parties ever articulate put in your 10,000 hours before “youve been” stand on that rostrum and so we do those same concepts in our business. We put in those work hours and then believe we can be successful.

I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What was your diet like when you two are training and how has it changed since retirement ?

SRR: You know whats entertaining, my diet hasnt really changed much Were from Jamaica and my mom and dad never ate crimson flesh or pork. So I ever only ate white meat, chicken and fish, and Im kind of a boring eater, as well. I think that has been reflected throughout my career I exactly kind of chew to live, I dont live to devour. So I ever continued a really clean diet.

I had high-protein diets. I would have lots of chicken breasts and I would juice my fruits and vegetables to make sure I was having a really good colorful diet. I sucked tons of irrigate and too when I was learning I would supplement with protein shakes because of course with the load face-lift and all the running, youre burning so much that youre putting in the protein to feed your muscles.

So always exactly a very clean diet high protein, low carbs, lots of liquids. And lots of rest. I mean, I always say that ingesting is one thing, but its also about your residue and recovery and all those things that help you to be an society athlete.

ED: How has your fitness routine changed, specially now that you are pregnant ?

SRR: I recall more my mental approaching than my physical approaching has changed to my practice. I used to go in the gym and I would have really high-pitched purposes, lofty points that I would go in there and ever attempt to achieve, but now I go in and I only want to listen to my body. I have fun when I work out. I still do a lot of the same thoughts. So Im still weight face-lift. I was ranging up until very recently but Im still doing biking and stair-master and elliptical and weight promoting with my mummy, which has been a lot of fun.

Instagram

I think for me, since I desire being active, I know its going to benefit me when I give birth but I dont applied a lot of pres on myself. If I go one or two days and I get too busy to work out, its a different attitude. Before that never happened, but now I give myself to have those days.

ED: What manufactured you want to partner with Capital One for the Banking Reimagined Tour ?

SRR: I think that this is an rousing time in my life and for so long Ive been a career woman, but even then, I havent always find very confident about my own personal business, and so I feel like this is kind of the perfect occasion for me, and I think so many beings out there are just like me who want to feel more empowered about their personal finances.

I feel like Capital One is doing just that with their cafes, their fund managers that really help to kind of drill down into what your life the objectives are, your furies are and how you can fulfill those events by being financially responsible.

ED: Why do you think this campaign is specific relevant for millennials ?

SRR: I conclude the younger “you think youre”, its kind of the right time for you to become more aware and in touch with what you should be doing with your personal investments. As canadian athletes, I always only focused on loping. I was very fortunate to have good beings around me who took good care of me, but even I care I would have expended a little more day places great importance on how I could have invested my coin better and how I could have prepared myself for my future.

So I make for young people, its the perfect time to have opportunities like this and when I think about the tour and just how visual it is and the touch-screen and all these circumstances[ young people] have become so accustomed to, I think theyre perfect parties to take advantage of the opportunity.

ED: Is there anythingyou wish youcould tell your younger self when it comes to coin? Do you have any advice for college students or those only graduating ?

SRR: I guess what I would have told my younger self would be just to take some time out to go to neighbourhoods that can educate me on my personal investments. So like now, with this cafe, I think about how many times I have sat in a Starbucks and talked to acquaintances about things that, yeah they seemed cool at the time, but they wouldnt have the lasting the consequences of being able to speak to a fund manager or life coach.

So I think its all been about exactly taking a little bit of time out of your planned were concentrated in business make at the end of the day its genuinely at the base of all that is we do

I absolutely think its just about taking the time out to find the insight I feel like opportunities like this help you to really fine tune that and get you on the right track.

ED: Is there anything that has astonished you about pregnancy ?

SRR: So Ive had a exceedingly very good maternity. I havent had any morning sickness and most of the times I forget Im pregnant, but the funniest happening is one of my favorite cheat daytimes, campaign I used to on my diet allow every Saturday and Sunday Id have a cheater era not a cheater era, a cheater banquet, so not the entire daylight Id have like pizza, or ice cream or french fries or something. Andmy cousin told me, Ill never forget, she was like, Wait til you eat pizza pregnant, youre going to love it. And I havent!

I cant believehow blah pizza has savor since Ive been pregnant its saddening So hopefully Ill get my pizza tastebuds back after the newborn!

ED: What do you want to educate your son about health and fitness ?

SRR: My spouse and I have both agreed that were certainly not going to push our son into athletics Theone thing that he and I both agree on was that when we were younger, the best part of boasts was just having fun and experiencing it It really is the importance of a healthy lifestyle and that goes well beyond football or line and domain. Just to have really good habits when youre young because that helps you to have a longer and healthier life.

I think a good parent exactly kind of navigates and gently parts you in the right direction So thats what my husband and I want to do when it is necessary to health and wellness and fitness and everything that were going to approaching with him, were going to do everything in our power to do it that way.

Sanya also has a book, Chasing Grace, coming out June 6, which she describes as an inspirational memoir with many of[ her] most personal stories and strives, and then of course[ her] enormous victories and triumphs.

To take Sanyas advice and genuinely start “ve been thinking about” your financial purposes, you are able to check out the Banking Reimagined Tour here. For moreinspirationfrom an fantastically fit and driven mom-to-be, her Instagramis a great region to start.

The post Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross On Pregnancy, Fitness And Retirement appeared first on apsbicepstraining.com.

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[viralhottopics]

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: ‘Can people please stop telling me feminism is hot?’

The novelist has been accused of making equality mainstream: isnt that the point? Plus an extract from her new Feminist Manifesto In Fifteen Suggestions

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was in Lagos last summer, teaching a writing workshop as part of an annual schedule that sees her time divided between Nigeria and the US. For much of the year, Adichie lives in a town 30 minutes west of Baltimore, where her Nigerian-American husband works as a medic and the 39-year-old writes in the quiet of a suburban home. When Adichie is in Nigeria, where her parents and extended family still live, she has a house in the vast city she regards with the complicated love and condescension of the part-time expat.

Its an ambivalence with which many Nigerians regard her, too; last year, the workshop ended in a question-and-answer session, during which a young man rose to ask the famous novelist a question. I used to love you, she recalls him saying. Ive read all your books. But since you started this whole feminism thing, and since you started to talk about this gay thing, Im just not sure about you any more. How do you intend to keep the love of people like me?

Adichie and I are in a coffee shop near her home in the Baltimore suburbs. We have met before, a few years ago, when her third novel Americanah was published, a book that examines what it is to be a Nigerian woman living in the US, and that went on to win a National Book Critics Circle award. A lot has happened since then. Half Of A Yellow Sun, Adichies second and most famous novel, about the Biafran war, has been made into a film starring Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton. Her essay, We Should All Be Feminists, adapted from her 2013 TEDx talk, has remained on the bestseller lists, particularly in Sweden, where in 2015 it was distributed to every 16-year-old high-school student in the land. The talk was sampled by Beyonc in her song Flawless. Adichie has become the face of Boots No7 makeup. And she has had a baby, a daughter, now 15 months old.

Adichie is still somewhat in the blast zone, not entirely caught up on sleep, but has published a short book, Dear Ijeawele, Or A Feminist Manifesto In Fifteen Suggestions, an extended version of a letter to a friend who, after having her own baby girl, asked Adichies advice on how to raise her to be feminist. I have had twin girls myself since our last meeting, so I am curious about her approach, not least because one of my two-year-olds currently identifies as Bob the Builder and the other as Penelope Pitstop. I would like to equip them to be themselves, while resisting whatever projections might be foisted upon them. We show each other baby photos and smile. Welcome to the world of anxiety, Adichie says.

The success of We Should All Be Feminists has made Adichie as prominent for her feminism as for her novels, to the extent that now I get invited to every damned feminist thing in the whole world. She has always been an agony aunt of sorts, the unpaid therapist for my family and friends, but having the feminist label attached has changed things, and not just among her intimates. I was opened to a certain level of hostility that I hadnt experienced before as a writer and public figure.

This is partly why she has written the new book, to reclaim the word feminism from its abusers and misusers, a category within which she would include certain other progressives, and to lay down in plain, elegant English her beliefs about child-raising.

Dear Ijeawele is, in some ways, a very basic set of appeals; to be careful with language (never say because you are a girl), avoid gendered toys, encourage reading, dont treat marriage as an achievement, reject likability. Her job is not to make herself likable, her job is to be her full self, she writes in reference to her friends daughter, a choice Adichie has come to elevate almost above any other.

That day in Lagos last summer, her friends were furious at the cheek of the young mans question, but she rather liked his bravery and honesty in asking it. She replied in the same spirit. Keep your love, Adichie said. Because, sadly, while I love to be loved, I will not accept your love if it comes with these conditions.

Having a baby has made Adichie think differently about her own parents, particularly her mother. Grace Adichie, who had six children and worked her way up from being a university administrator to the registrar, taught her daughter to love fashion as well as books, and was a very cool mum whom she idolised as a child. Nonetheless, and in the manner of most snotty young adults, young Chimamanda went through a phase of being very superior to her mother. Now, the novelist looks at her daughter and gulps.

Adichie recently came across her own kindergarten reports. My father keeps them all. You know what the teacher wrote? She is brilliant, but she refuses to do any work when shes annoyed. I was five years old. She laughs. I couldnt believe it. My husband couldnt believe it. I must have been an annoying child.

Its not as if she comes from a family of radicals. My parents are not like that. Theyre conventional, reasonable, responsible, good, kind people. Im the crazy. But their love and support made that crazy thrive.

Unlike Adichie, who was raised exclusively in Nigeria, her daughter will be raised in two cultures and subject to slightly diverging social expectations. Already, Adichie says with a laugh, friends and relatives from home are concerned that her mothering is insufficiently stern.

A friend was just visiting and she said to me, Your parenting is not very Nigerian. In Nigeria and, I think, in many cultures you control children. And I feel like, my daughter is 15 months, she doesnt have a sense of consequences. And I enjoy watching her. So she tears a page of a book? Whatever. She throws my shoes down. So? Its fun. I love that shes quite strong-willed. The joke between Adichie and her husband whom, to her intense annoyance, their daughter looks much more like is that her character cleaves to the maternal side. He says to me, Well, at least we know where she got her personality from. Shes quite fierce.

In the new book, Adichies advice is not only to provide children with alternatives to empower boys and girls to understand there is no single way to be but also to understand that the only universal in this world is difference. In terms of the evolution of feminism, these are not new lessons, but that is rather Adichies point. She is not writing for other feminist writers, and shows some frustration at what she sees as the solipsism of much feminist debate.

That morning, on the way to see her, I had read a review of a new book by Jessa Crispin, entitled Why I Am Not A Feminist: A Feminist Manifesto, a critique of everything that is wrong with feminism today. If one can get over the eye-rolling aspect of books by feminists decrying the feminism of other feminists for degrading the word feminist by being insufficiently feminist, the book does raise questions about where one should be focusing ones efforts.

Fashion blogger Chiara Ferragni wears Adichies Dior T-shirt during Paris fashion week, January 2017. Photograph: Edward Berthelot/Getty Images

The proposition is that feminism has become so mainstream as to be an empty marketing tool, a mere slogan on a bag or a T-shirt. Without being named, Adichie is implicated in this critique, given that last year she collaborated with Christian Dior on a T-shirt bearing the line We Should All Be Feminists; depending on ones view, this is either a perfect example of pointless sloganeering or a brilliant piece of preaching to the unconverted.

Im already irritated, Adichie says. This idea of feminism as a party to which only a select few people get to come: this is why so many women, particularly women of colour, feel alienated from mainstream western academic feminism. Because, dont we want it to be mainstream? For me, feminism is a movement for which the end goal is to make itself no longer needed. I think academic feminism is interesting in that it can give a language to things, but Im not terribly interested in debating terms. I want peoples marriages to change for the better. I want women to walk into job interviews and be treated the same way as somebody who has a penis.

Still, one can see a theoretical obscenity about the Dior collaboration: the words of a movement that should be concerned with helping low-income women, used to promote and make money for a wealthy company. On the other hand: what is the damage?

Yes: whats the damage? Adichie says. I would even argue about the theoretically obscene. Theres a kind of self-righteousness to the ultra-left that is hard for me to stomach. Its approach to poverty can sometimes border on condescension. I often think that people who write a lot about poverty need to go and spend more time with poor people. I think about Nigerian women who can hardly afford anything but who love fashion. They have no money, but they work it.

Adichie mentions a TV soap opera that used to run in Nigeria called The Rich Also Cry, a terrible drama series, she says, that was very popular. But sometimes I think about that title. So, the creative director of Christian Dior is obviously a woman of some privilege. But does it then mean that she doesnt have gender-based problems in her life? Because she does. Does it mean she doesnt have this magnificent rage about gender injustice? Because she does. Wanting to use that slogan was it going to make the world a better place? No. But I think theres a level of consciousness-raising and a level of subversion that I like.

She doesnt believe it was a cynical marketing ploy? No. Sorry. Feminism is not that hot. I can tell you I would sell more books in Nigeria if I stopped and said Im no longer a feminist. I would have a stronger following, I would make more money. So when people say, Oh, feminisms a marketing ploy, it makes me laugh.

The bigger issue here is one of range. Adichies irritation with aspects of what she thinks of as professional feminism is that it runs counter to her ideas as a writer: that people contain multitudes. She is a brilliant novelist and a serious thinker, and she is also someone who makes no apology for her own trivial interests. Life doesnt always follow ideology, she says. You might believe in certain things and life gets in and things just become messy. You know? I think thats the space that fiction, and having a bit more of an imaginative approach, makes. And that the feminist speaking circuit doesnt really make room for.

There is much in the new book about double standards, including those governing the images of motherhood and fatherhood. I think we need to stop giving men cookies for doing what they should do, she says, and goes on to explain that her husband, who needs less sleep than her, tends to get up in the night to tend to the baby. On the one hand, I realise that my husband is unusual; on the other, I feel resentful when hes overpraised by my family and friends. Hes like Jesus.

He probably senses shes about to go off the deep end, I suggest, and Adichie smiles to acknowledge how impossible she is. I did all the physical work to produce her! Theres something fundamentally wrong with the way weve constructed what it means to be female in the world.

Photograph: Stephen Voss for the Guardian

This is something she writes about in a lovely passage of the new book about hair. As a child, Adichie and her sisters and every other girl she knew were routinely tortured with a metal comb to subdue their hair, something her brothers were spared. Im glad I wrote that, Adichie says. We had just come back from Lagos and my sister, God bless her, had already had a talk with me about my daughters hair. She said, You need to do something about it. With my family, theres an eye-roll and a here-we-go-again with her, and she said to me, Do you want me to send you a set of combs? And I was like, No, thank you. And I know its going to keep happening. But, no, Im not going to conform in that way. Im not going to have my child go through pain because society expects a certain neatness. It happened to me, its not going to happen to her. And Im ready to have all the battles I need to have.

The original letter on which Dear Ijeawele is based has been shared on Facebook, and while Adichie was in Lagos, a woman whod read it approached her in a shop and said, Heres my daughter, look at her hair. She had very loose cornrows that were not neat according to Nigerians. And she said, You inspired that. My daughter is happier, Im happier. And do you know, it was the highlight of my month.

This is not just a question of image. It is also about time. Women have less time than men, in almost every arena, because their responsibilities to look or act a certain way are more onerous.

It is one of Adichies bugbears that as someone who loves fashion, she is by default not taken seriously. When Boots approached her to be the face of its No7 makeup range, she said yes, because she thought it might be fun; in the end, she says, it became vaguely alarming. I have no regrets, but you wake up one day and think, what the hell have I done? There were too many of these pictures everywhere. Her point, however, is that its not that Im a feminist and made a strategic choice to speak about makeup and fashion. Its that I was raised by Grace Adichie in a culture in which you care about how you look. Its a part of me I once hid, because I felt that I had to to be serious. Now, Im just being who I am.

Recently, Adichies identity has been tested in new ways. I wonder if she is less affected by President Trump than an American, on the basis that she is less invested in the American story. Quite the opposite, she says. Because theres a part of me that needs a country I can think of as being one that largely works. Which is not a luxury that Nigeria can have. She laughs.

Someone said to me, Now that this is happening in the US, do you think of moving back to Nigeria? And I thought, no, because its not any better there. I admire America. I dont think of myself as American Im not. So its not mine. But I admire it, and so theres a sense that this thing I built in my head, its been destroyed.

There is also, she says, something familiar about it all. American democracy has never been tested. You might have disagreed ideologically with George W Bush, but he still kind of followed the rules. Here, it feels like Nigeria. It really does. Its that feeling of political uncertainty that Im very familiar with, but not a feeling I like. Its ugly. But even worse, because America is so powerful, and so much at the centre of the world, these things have consequences for everyone. Nigeria doesnt have that kind of reach, so our problems remain our problems.

In January, Adichie and her husband joined the Womens March in DC. It was fleeting, and symbolic, she says, but it gave me the smallest slice of hope. There are all of these people who seem to realise that America has changed by electing an unhinged person. On the other hand, theres a part of me thats very sceptical of too much sentimentality. I hope it translates into people organising and going out to vote.

Long before talk about piercing the filter bubble, Adichie instinctively subscribed to rightwing blogs and newsletters. She was an early watcher of Fox News, until it became too unhinged and ridiculous. But she has carried on, because Im interested in ideological concerns and how people differ, and how we should build a society. Whats a welfare state? People who have less, are we responsible for them? I think we are. And I think I can make a selfish case, which is apparently what appeals to people on the right. People on the left say we should do it because we should be kind. And people on the right think, Excuse me? But if you say to them, If these people dont get healthcare, they will go to the ER and your tax dollars will pay for it, suddenly they sit up.

Adichie with her husband, Ivara Esege. Photograph: DDAA/ZOB/Daniel Deme/WENN

As a result of her reading, rightwing ideology is not something I think is evil, she says. Some. A bit. But, in general, I dont. I have friends who are good, kind people who are on the right. But Donald Trump is an exception. Its not an objection to a conservative, because I dont even think hes a conservative. My objection is an objection to chaos. Each time I turn on the news, Im holding my breath.

Trumps erosion of language is one of the most frightening things about him, but even progressives, Adichie says, can be sloppy on this front. In response to her new book, a reporter emailed her the question: Why not humanism? (instead of feminism). To which, she says, I thought, what part of the fucking book did this person not read?

Its like the people who go around saying All Lives Matter, I say, in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. Right, which I find deeply offensive and very dishonest. Because we have to name something in order to fix it, which is why I insist on the word feminist or feminism.

This, she says, in spite of the fact that many of her friends, particularly black women, resist that word, because the history of feminism has been very white and has assumed women meant white women. Political discussion in this country still does that. Theyll say, Women voted for… and then, Black people voted for… And I think: Im black and a woman, so where do I fit in here?

As a result, Many of my friends who are not white will say, Im an intersectional feminist, or Im a womanist. And I have trouble with that word, because it has undertones of femininity as this mystical goddess-mother thing, which makes me uncomfortable. So we need a word. And my hope is we use feminism often enough that it starts to lose all the stigma and becomes this inclusive, diverse thing.

This is her goal and her defence, although she still doesnt see why she needs one. Her understanding of feminism is intertwined with her understanding that we all want to be more than one thing. And anyway, she repeats, Can people please stop telling me that feminism is hot? Because its not. Adichie looks magnificently annoyed. Honestly.

Beware feminism lite: an extract from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies letter-turned-book, Dear Ijeawele

Be a full person. Motherhood is a glorious gift, but do not define yourself solely by it. You dont even have to love your job; you can merely love the confidence and self-fulfilment that come with doing and earning. Please reject the idea that motherhood and work are mutually exclusive. Our mothers worked full-time while we were growing up, and we turned out well at least you did; the jury is still out on me.

In these coming weeks of early motherhood, be kind to yourself. Ask for help. Expect to be helped. There is no such thing as a Superwoman. Parenting is about practice and love.

Give yourself room to fail. A new mother does not necessarily know how to calm a crying baby. Read books, look things up on the internet, ask older parents, or just use trial and error. But, above all, take time for yourself. Nurture your own needs.

I have no interest in the debate about women doing it all, because it is a debate that assumes that caregiving and domestic work are singularly female domains, an idea that I strongly reject. Domestic work and caregiving should be gender-neutral, and we should be asking not whether a woman can do it all, but how best to support parents in their dual duties at work and at home.

Photograph: Stephen Voss for the Guardian

Beware the danger of what I call Feminism Lite; the idea of conditional female equality. Being a feminist is like being pregnant. You either are or you are not. You either believe in the full equality of men and women, or you do not.

Teach your daughter to question language. A friend of mine says she will never call her daughter princess. The word is loaded with assumptions, of a girls delicacy, of the prince who will come to save her. This friend prefers angel and star. So decide the things you will not say to your child. You know that Igbo joke, used to tease girls who are being childish What are you doing? Dont you know you are old enough to find a husband? I used to say that often. But now I choose not to. I say, You are old enough to find a job. Because I do not believe that marriage is something we should teach young girls to aspire to.

Try not to use words like misogyny and patriarchy. We feminists can sometimes be too jargony. Teach her that if you criticise X in women but do not criticise X in men, you do not have a problem with X, you have a problem with women. For X please insert words like anger, ambition, loudness, stubbornness, coldness, ruthlessness.

Do you remember how we laughed and laughed at an atrociously written piece about me some years ago? The writer had accused me of being angry, as though being angry were something to be ashamed of. Of course I am angry. I am angry about racism. I am angry about sexism. But I recently came to the realisation that I am angrier about sexism than I am about racism. Because in my anger about sexism, I often feel lonely. Because I love, and live among, many people who easily acknowledge race injustice but not gender injustice.

Teach your daughter to question men who can have empathy for women only if they see them as relational rather than as individual equal humans. Men who, when discussing rape, will say something like, If it were my daughter or wife or sister. Yet such men do not need to imagine a male victim of crime as a brother or son in order to feel empathy.

Teach her, too, to question the idea of women as a special species. I once heard an American politician, in his bid to show his support for women, speak of how women should be revered and championed a sentiment that is all too common. Tell her that women dont need to be championed and revered; they just need to be treated as equal human beings.

This is a condensed and edited extract from Dear Ijeawele, Or A Feminist Manifesto In Fifteen Suggestions, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, published on Tuesday by Fourth Estate at 10. To order a copy for 8.50, go to bookshop.theguardian.com

This article was amended on 4 March 2017. It originally referred to Lagos as Nigerias capital. This has now been corrected.

Read more: http://bit.ly/2lsdiJb

from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: ‘Can people please stop telling me feminism is hot?’

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Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross On Pregnancy, Fitness And Retirement

Sanya Richards-Ross is a four-time Olympic track and realm gold medalist, reached entrepreneur and soon-to-be new mom.

She went tothe University of Texas in 2003 and rapidly returned pro after her sophomore year, going on to competeat the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympicsin the 400 meter and the 4400 meter relay.

REX/ Shutterstock

After supporting the deed of No. 1 400 -meter runner in the world for much of her job, Richards-Ross passed her final hasten last year and is currently embracing retirement( if you can call it that, because shes busier than ever ).

She andher husband, two-time Super Bowl Champion Aaron Ross, are excitedly expecting their first child a son afterwards this year.

Recently, Sanya partnered up with Capital One for its Banking Reimagined Tour a hands-on digital knowledge on wheels that aims to start the conversation about planning for your financialfuture.

The connection between business and sportings is actually pretty simple when you think of it in terms of goal setting.

With summer around the corner and taxation season only wrapping up fitness, snacking healthy and not maxing out your credit card onrooftop happy hoursare all extremely timely topics of interest.

And if theres anyoneyou want to take advice from when it comes tofood or fitness orfinances, 32 -year-old Richards-Ross isdefinitely a solid choice.

Elite Daily got the chance to sit down and talk with Sanya about her retirement, her pregnancy, how shes abiding fit post-competition and her admonition for millennials when it comes to money.

ED: How difficult was your decision to officially withdraw last year ?

SRR: I had been running since I was 7, so for all of “peoples lives”, all that I knew was to be on the line and emulating But I truly is argued that every good thought was necessary to an expiration and I was truly consecrated throughout my profession to have some of the greatest events of my life.

When I was 9, I told school teachers Id be an Olympic champion and I actually reached it. When I loped my final race in 2016 in Eugene at the Olympic Trials, it was bittersweet. I desired the experience of stepping on the racetrack one last-place occasion and I was surely very emotional about it, but I did feel like it was the right time and I think in life that we all follow up modulation and so Im just excited about this phase in my life.

Im certainly going to miss it a lot, but yeah, Im really grateful for all the success I had on the track and Im hoping those events will fuel me to move forward to some other great things in my life.

When I was 9, I told my teacher Id be an Olympic champion and I actually achieved it.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What do you think ranging and playing at such an nobility height learn you about life? How did it prepare you for your works off the track ?

SRR: Ive actually started three jobs already, some of them during my busines and one very recently since I adjourned, and I only feel really good about trying and if it doesnt design, learning from my mistakes and pushing forward toward my ultimate goals.

REX/ Shutterstock

I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat. I think thats one of the greatest readings Ive learned from boasts. And goal fix and hard work and proficiency all of those thoughts clearly restate but I do think that in every business speculation there are always brand-new thoughts that I have to learn and I have to be prepared to study and do the work.

In track, parties ever articulate put in your 10,000 hours before “youve been” stand on that rostrum and so we do those same concepts in our business. We put in those work hours and then believe we can be successful.

I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What was your diet like when you two are training and how has it changed since retirement ?

SRR: You know whats entertaining, my diet hasnt really changed much Were from Jamaica and my mom and dad never ate crimson flesh or pork. So I ever only ate white meat, chicken and fish, and Im kind of a boring eater, as well. I think that has been reflected throughout my career I exactly kind of chew to live, I dont live to devour. So I ever continued a really clean diet.

I had high-protein diets. I would have lots of chicken breasts and I would juice my fruits and vegetables to make sure I was having a really good colorful diet. I sucked tons of irrigate and too when I was learning I would supplement with protein shakes because of course with the load face-lift and all the running, youre burning so much that youre putting in the protein to feed your muscles.

So always exactly a very clean diet high protein, low carbs, lots of liquids. And lots of rest. I mean, I always say that ingesting is one thing, but its also about your residue and recovery and all those things that help you to be an society athlete.

ED: How has your fitness routine changed, specially now that you are pregnant ?

SRR: I recall more my mental approaching than my physical approaching has changed to my practice. I used to go in the gym and I would have really high-pitched purposes, lofty points that I would go in there and ever attempt to achieve, but now I go in and I only want to listen to my body. I have fun when I work out. I still do a lot of the same thoughts. So Im still weight face-lift. I was ranging up until very recently but Im still doing biking and stair-master and elliptical and weight promoting with my mummy, which has been a lot of fun.

Instagram

I think for me, since I desire being active, I know its going to benefit me when I give birth but I dont applied a lot of pres on myself. If I go one or two days and I get too busy to work out, its a different attitude. Before that never happened, but now I give myself to have those days.

ED: What manufactured you want to partner with Capital One for the Banking Reimagined Tour ?

SRR: I think that this is an rousing time in my life and for so long Ive been a career woman, but even then, I havent always find very confident about my own personal business, and so I feel like this is kind of the perfect occasion for me, and I think so many beings out there are just like me who want to feel more empowered about their personal finances.

I feel like Capital One is doing just that with their cafes, their fund managers that really help to kind of drill down into what your life the objectives are, your furies are and how you can fulfill those events by being financially responsible.

ED: Why do you think this campaign is specific relevant for millennials ?

SRR: I conclude the younger “you think youre”, its kind of the right time for you to become more aware and in touch with what you should be doing with your personal investments. As canadian athletes, I always only focused on loping. I was very fortunate to have good beings around me who took good care of me, but even I care I would have expended a little more day places great importance on how I could have invested my coin better and how I could have prepared myself for my future.

So I make for young people, its the perfect time to have opportunities like this and when I think about the tour and just how visual it is and the touch-screen and all these circumstances[ young people] have become so accustomed to, I think theyre perfect parties to take advantage of the opportunity.

ED: Is there anythingyou wish youcould tell your younger self when it comes to coin? Do you have any advice for college students or those only graduating ?

SRR: I guess what I would have told my younger self would be just to take some time out to go to neighbourhoods that can educate me on my personal investments. So like now, with this cafe, I think about how many times I have sat in a Starbucks and talked to acquaintances about things that, yeah they seemed cool at the time, but they wouldnt have the lasting the consequences of being able to speak to a fund manager or life coach.

So I think its all been about exactly taking a little bit of time out of your planned were concentrated in business make at the end of the day its genuinely at the base of all that is we do

I absolutely think its just about taking the time out to find the insight I feel like opportunities like this help you to really fine tune that and get you on the right track.

ED: Is there anything that has astonished you about pregnancy ?

SRR: So Ive had a exceedingly very good maternity. I havent had any morning sickness and most of the times I forget Im pregnant, but the funniest happening is one of my favorite cheat daytimes, campaign I used to on my diet allow every Saturday and Sunday Id have a cheater era not a cheater era, a cheater banquet, so not the entire daylight Id have like pizza, or ice cream or french fries or something. Andmy cousin told me, Ill never forget, she was like, Wait til you eat pizza pregnant, youre going to love it. And I havent!

I cant believehow blah pizza has savor since Ive been pregnant its saddening So hopefully Ill get my pizza tastebuds back after the newborn!

ED: What do you want to educate your son about health and fitness ?

SRR: My spouse and I have both agreed that were certainly not going to push our son into athletics Theone thing that he and I both agree on was that when we were younger, the best part of boasts was just having fun and experiencing it It really is the importance of a healthy lifestyle and that goes well beyond football or line and domain. Just to have really good habits when youre young because that helps you to have a longer and healthier life.

I think a good parent exactly kind of navigates and gently parts you in the right direction So thats what my husband and I want to do when it is necessary to health and wellness and fitness and everything that were going to approaching with him, were going to do everything in our power to do it that way.

Sanya also has a book, Chasing Grace, coming out June 6, which she describes as an inspirational memoir with many of[ her] most personal stories and strives, and then of course[ her] enormous victories and triumphs.

To take Sanyas advice and genuinely start “ve been thinking about” your financial purposes, you are able to check out the Banking Reimagined Tour here. For moreinspirationfrom an fantastically fit and driven mom-to-be, her Instagramis a great region to start.

The post Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross On Pregnancy, Fitness And Retirement appeared first on apsbicepstraining.com.

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Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross On Pregnancy, Fitness And Retirement

Sanya Richards-Ross is a four-time Olympic track and realm gold medalist, reached entrepreneur and soon-to-be new mom.

She went tothe University of Texas in 2003 and rapidly returned pro after her sophomore year, going on to competeat the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympicsin the 400 meter and the 4400 meter relay.

REX/ Shutterstock

After supporting the deed of No. 1 400 -meter runner in the world for much of her job, Richards-Ross passed her final hasten last year and is currently embracing retirement( if you can call it that, because shes busier than ever ).

She andher husband, two-time Super Bowl Champion Aaron Ross, are excitedly expecting their first child a son afterwards this year.

Recently, Sanya partnered up with Capital One for its Banking Reimagined Tour a hands-on digital knowledge on wheels that aims to start the conversation about planning for your financialfuture.

The connection between business and sportings is actually pretty simple when you think of it in terms of goal setting.

With summer around the corner and taxation season only wrapping up fitness, snacking healthy and not maxing out your credit card onrooftop happy hoursare all extremely timely topics of interest.

And if theres anyoneyou want to take advice from when it comes tofood or fitness orfinances, 32 -year-old Richards-Ross isdefinitely a solid choice.

Elite Daily got the chance to sit down and talk with Sanya about her retirement, her pregnancy, how shes abiding fit post-competition and her admonition for millennials when it comes to money.

ED: How difficult was your decision to officially withdraw last year ?

SRR: I had been running since I was 7, so for all of “peoples lives”, all that I knew was to be on the line and emulating But I truly is argued that every good thought was necessary to an expiration and I was truly consecrated throughout my profession to have some of the greatest events of my life.

When I was 9, I told school teachers Id be an Olympic champion and I actually reached it. When I loped my final race in 2016 in Eugene at the Olympic Trials, it was bittersweet. I desired the experience of stepping on the racetrack one last-place occasion and I was surely very emotional about it, but I did feel like it was the right time and I think in life that we all follow up modulation and so Im just excited about this phase in my life.

Im certainly going to miss it a lot, but yeah, Im really grateful for all the success I had on the track and Im hoping those events will fuel me to move forward to some other great things in my life.

When I was 9, I told my teacher Id be an Olympic champion and I actually achieved it.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What do you think ranging and playing at such an nobility height learn you about life? How did it prepare you for your works off the track ?

SRR: Ive actually started three jobs already, some of them during my busines and one very recently since I adjourned, and I only feel really good about trying and if it doesnt design, learning from my mistakes and pushing forward toward my ultimate goals.

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I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat. I think thats one of the greatest readings Ive learned from boasts. And goal fix and hard work and proficiency all of those thoughts clearly restate but I do think that in every business speculation there are always brand-new thoughts that I have to learn and I have to be prepared to study and do the work.

In track, parties ever articulate put in your 10,000 hours before “youve been” stand on that rostrum and so we do those same concepts in our business. We put in those work hours and then believe we can be successful.

I have learned how to be humble in victory, but also how to be humble in defeat.

Sanya Richards-Ross

ED: What was your diet like when you two are training and how has it changed since retirement ?

SRR: You know whats entertaining, my diet hasnt really changed much Were from Jamaica and my mom and dad never ate crimson flesh or pork. So I ever only ate white meat, chicken and fish, and Im kind of a boring eater, as well. I think that has been reflected throughout my career I exactly kind of chew to live, I dont live to devour. So I ever continued a really clean diet.

I had high-protein diets. I would have lots of chicken breasts and I would juice my fruits and vegetables to make sure I was having a really good colorful diet. I sucked tons of irrigate and too when I was learning I would supplement with protein shakes because of course with the load face-lift and all the running, youre burning so much that youre putting in the protein to feed your muscles.

So always exactly a very clean diet high protein, low carbs, lots of liquids. And lots of rest. I mean, I always say that ingesting is one thing, but its also about your residue and recovery and all those things that help you to be an society athlete.

ED: How has your fitness routine changed, specially now that you are pregnant ?

SRR: I recall more my mental approaching than my physical approaching has changed to my practice. I used to go in the gym and I would have really high-pitched purposes, lofty points that I would go in there and ever attempt to achieve, but now I go in and I only want to listen to my body. I have fun when I work out. I still do a lot of the same thoughts. So Im still weight face-lift. I was ranging up until very recently but Im still doing biking and stair-master and elliptical and weight promoting with my mummy, which has been a lot of fun.

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I think for me, since I desire being active, I know its going to benefit me when I give birth but I dont applied a lot of pres on myself. If I go one or two days and I get too busy to work out, its a different attitude. Before that never happened, but now I give myself to have those days.

ED: What manufactured you want to partner with Capital One for the Banking Reimagined Tour ?

SRR: I think that this is an rousing time in my life and for so long Ive been a career woman, but even then, I havent always find very confident about my own personal business, and so I feel like this is kind of the perfect occasion for me, and I think so many beings out there are just like me who want to feel more empowered about their personal finances.

I feel like Capital One is doing just that with their cafes, their fund managers that really help to kind of drill down into what your life the objectives are, your furies are and how you can fulfill those events by being financially responsible.

ED: Why do you think this campaign is specific relevant for millennials ?

SRR: I conclude the younger “you think youre”, its kind of the right time for you to become more aware and in touch with what you should be doing with your personal investments. As canadian athletes, I always only focused on loping. I was very fortunate to have good beings around me who took good care of me, but even I care I would have expended a little more day places great importance on how I could have invested my coin better and how I could have prepared myself for my future.

So I make for young people, its the perfect time to have opportunities like this and when I think about the tour and just how visual it is and the touch-screen and all these circumstances[ young people] have become so accustomed to, I think theyre perfect parties to take advantage of the opportunity.

ED: Is there anythingyou wish youcould tell your younger self when it comes to coin? Do you have any advice for college students or those only graduating ?

SRR: I guess what I would have told my younger self would be just to take some time out to go to neighbourhoods that can educate me on my personal investments. So like now, with this cafe, I think about how many times I have sat in a Starbucks and talked to acquaintances about things that, yeah they seemed cool at the time, but they wouldnt have the lasting the consequences of being able to speak to a fund manager or life coach.

So I think its all been about exactly taking a little bit of time out of your planned were concentrated in business make at the end of the day its genuinely at the base of all that is we do

I absolutely think its just about taking the time out to find the insight I feel like opportunities like this help you to really fine tune that and get you on the right track.

ED: Is there anything that has astonished you about pregnancy ?

SRR: So Ive had a exceedingly very good maternity. I havent had any morning sickness and most of the times I forget Im pregnant, but the funniest happening is one of my favorite cheat daytimes, campaign I used to on my diet allow every Saturday and Sunday Id have a cheater era not a cheater era, a cheater banquet, so not the entire daylight Id have like pizza, or ice cream or french fries or something. Andmy cousin told me, Ill never forget, she was like, Wait til you eat pizza pregnant, youre going to love it. And I havent!

I cant believehow blah pizza has savor since Ive been pregnant its saddening So hopefully Ill get my pizza tastebuds back after the newborn!

ED: What do you want to educate your son about health and fitness ?

SRR: My spouse and I have both agreed that were certainly not going to push our son into athletics Theone thing that he and I both agree on was that when we were younger, the best part of boasts was just having fun and experiencing it It really is the importance of a healthy lifestyle and that goes well beyond football or line and domain. Just to have really good habits when youre young because that helps you to have a longer and healthier life.

I think a good parent exactly kind of navigates and gently parts you in the right direction So thats what my husband and I want to do when it is necessary to health and wellness and fitness and everything that were going to approaching with him, were going to do everything in our power to do it that way.

Sanya also has a book, Chasing Grace, coming out June 6, which she describes as an inspirational memoir with many of[ her] most personal stories and strives, and then of course[ her] enormous victories and triumphs.

To take Sanyas advice and genuinely start “ve been thinking about” your financial purposes, you are able to check out the Banking Reimagined Tour here. For moreinspirationfrom an fantastically fit and driven mom-to-be, her Instagramis a great region to start.

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