Hair Stats

  So I am so not good at taking those pictures checking length and I never feel like its consistent because of the way I hold my head and other factors.  Instead of doing that I just got out the measuring tape and decided to measure my hair in various places.  So I have the average from the front, my crown and the back. 


I am getting pretty good at my twist outs too! I will post pictures below. I have never had a twist out last more than one day...I went three!  I've learned that using conditioner with silicone ingredients helped because it reduced friction between strands which reduced frizz!  I am attempting a Bantu Knot out tonight on my stretched hair...exciting!




Here are my stats:


Front: 11 inches


Crown: 10 inches


Back: 9 inches


I will take the inches in about three months (July 3rd) and see how I am doing.  I am still using MTG as a growth aid once a week. I am deep conditioning once a month at least, I will do more than that if I feel necessary.  My hair has been unbelievably moisturized because of my consistency in moisturizing properly and covering my hair with a satin scarf or bonnet.  I moisturize using Morning Dew Hair Products. (www.morningdewhair.com)

The best twist out EVER! :)

Day 2...

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Twist and SHOUT!!!!

Hair was deep conditioned and detangled using the Morning Mint Masque...hair was moisturized and sealed using Mango Coconut Sunshine and a personal mix of essential oils. Eco Styler Gel was used to slick down edges and hair was doubled strand twisted overnight :)

Cue the music....
I am really conquering my twist out woes...YAY!


As you can see Im getting good...


This style was inspired by my new favorite youtuber/blogger MahoganyKnots!  I am in love with her hair!!!  


We don't have the same texture but its close enough...LOL!


I'm learning that twist outs are more involved than I thought.  Its all about technique....


I've begun to flat twist my hair especially in the front to get more definition...I will post a video that shows you what I mean by flat twisting.


I've also noticed that to keep the definition of your twist out it requires little to NO manipulation once twists are taken out (at least for my hair).  If I pull the curls too much it will transition to a big poofy mess of tresses.  Once I unravel I usually leave it alone, my hair will plump up given me the big hair I desire.  It just takes a little time. 


Ive started to do more twist/braid outs when my hair is already dry as well.  I do mist my hair with my master mix because I like the way it looks better when the style is "set".  The reason for this is my hair rarely dries overnight...as a matter of fact it NEVER dries overnight.  If my hair isnt fully dry...it also leads to the frizz puff...no bueno!


I love it!


For my growth challenge, Ive also decided to not apply any more color to my hair :(
For a season...Ive grown really close to my red/blonde hair...but Im going back to black for a while....since it needs to grow out....I still have more time to be a red head. Once I reach my goal....IM COLORING AGAIN!!! Probably immediately....lol!


Im running out of MTG...Im thinking of making my own concoction, the ingredients are pretty simple...I will keep you posted on that.  Just have to find the sulfer...which is the most important part.  We'll See....


Till Next Time
Twisting and Loving It :)








Here is what I mean by flat twisting...

I cant embed the styling video but here is the link....ENJOY!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=QZtfEWwlPQ4

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Im Getting Good...

So I have been battling with conquering the braid out as well as my growth challenge.  I haven't really seen any change in my length because it hasn't been long enough to expect to see a change.

I am in fact getting good at braid outs.  As you can see I was able to get results worth busting out the camera for!  YES! Success!  

Its nice to have something different than my typical wash n go's each day.  Its also nice not to have my hair dripping wet every single day...but as the weather gets hotter I may be returning back to my wet roots (literally). 

As far as my growth challenge, Ive been applying MTG to my scalp once a week and massage it well into my scalp.  I also have been wearing protective styles more often like buns and pin ups in addition to my braid outs.  I plan to incorporate more "babying" to my ends each night before retiring to ensure that I retain them.  My ends tend to be very dry, not necessarily split or damaged just rough to the touch.  I will do a light dusting this evening with my shears (its IMPORTANT to have good shears for your ends).  I spotted some stray split ends (which is very normal)  but I need to get rid of them ASAP!  I will check my length at the end of each month.  I use the tattoo on my back as an indicator lol....I want my hair to ultimately be at the end of the tail of my hummingbird...that would be a bit past APL approaching BSL (stretched not straightened)

To achieve this style I separated my hair in about 10-12 sections lightly misted my hair with my master moisture mix (water, aloe vera juice, peppermint oil and lavender oil), sealed in with a small amount of Mango Coconut Sunshine (available at www.morningdewhair.com) and braided each section.  Once each section is braided I rolled each braid with a flexi rod (5/8 inch) and covered my hair with a satin bonnet for the night.  

Till Next Time

Growing Strong :)

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Twist, Braid or Bantu?

Ive been natural for over five years and I still have not master the "outs".  What do I mean...

Braid outs
Twist outs
Bantu Knot outs...I havent even tried this!

It seems as if every time I try...it comes out like something else.  Then I have to  be creative and try and make it look cute...and everyone loves it! Little do they know the FRUSTRATION and AGGRAVATION that goes into perfecting these techniques..

I do know that my favorite "out" is the BRAID OUT!  I get the best stretch and "definition" when compared to my twist outs which seem to shrink into something rather scary...

This is why I tend to stick to the safety of a wash n go...which leaves me in a rut or a routine!

I am so determined to get it right...or is what Im getting just all that there is.  Sometimes I think am expecting something that my hair just cant do...maybe my curl pattern is just stubborn and wont do certain things!  I love my hair texture I wouldnt trade it for the world...just need to know its limitations.

I cant imagine natural hair having limitations...so trial and error will be my teacher.

I am going to master at least one of these techniques THIS SUMMER!

My choice is the BRAID OUT!

I will "plait" my hair most nights to not only set it to style but to protect my ends as well. I will do this throughout the summer of 2012.  Even the days I know I will wear a wash n go..I will still braid up so that my ends will be protected.  I have a tendency to not cover my hair up regularly which is BAD BAD BAD! I know better....I really do.  I will couple this with a grow challenge...using MTG! I know I know all the "toxins" and the warnings that others have reported.  Ive done my own research.

I need my hair to grow...so follow along!

*I am not a cosmotologist anything I do on this blog is from my own experience/research and not professional advise. 

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Approaching Milestone #2

I am approaching my second goal of ten pounds lost...for a total of twenty pounds! EEK! Last year around this time I was at the same place...got a job and somehow somewhere it all fell apart.  I never can remember the breaking point when I give up....IDK.

All I know today is that I am here again currently 17 lbs down.  Excited and not trying to have a plateau at this time.  Last week I barely worked out...and I consistently lost weight everyday...cant explain...dont need to.  PRAISE THE LORD!  Speculation says that every now and again your body just begins to adjust to all the changes youve made and they dont always show up when you start changing.  So I thank God for the rest and for the loss!

I am currently fasting from meat and fried foods.  Not for my weight loss but for spiritual reasons...but we all know a side effect of that sacrifice is WEIGHT LOSS...so I am looking forward to seeing where I will be at my offical weigh in on Saturday.  Im hoping I reach my goal by then....I techinally have all month to do it...but why not get more.

Every now and again I like to do more than the five pounds I have set for each month because there is always a plateau lurking somewhere and I dont know when its coming but I will be ready.  February was one of those months I think I loss a net of about 2 lbs...but because I did so well in January and March my average weight loss is still 5.3 lbs/month.  I want to keep it AT LEAST at this average which will have me at 60 lbs down by the end of the year...which would be a GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENT...and will leave me 20 shy of my overall goal.  Now that its getting warm (well its down right HOT now) I can be outside more...and the sun is going down later...so that leave me more time to be active outdoors as well. 

At twenty pounds...Im breaking out my bike!!!

I try to stagger when I start doing new exercises so that my body doesnt get used to everything at once....

I try to introduce something new at every 7-10 lbs or when I feel a plateau arising....

Till Next Time

Holding on for VICTORY :)

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Optical Illustions...

My eyes are playing tricks on me!  Not sure if this is possible but when I look at my waist (from the front) I can see a CLEAR DIFFERENCE.  Now I have a distinct waist line...but gaining weight has hidden its beauty.  But now I can see it coming back...its nicely pinching inward.  Hallelujah!

So when I bust out the measuring tape....NO INCHES LOST! Actually its a bigger...

How in the world do you lose 14.2 lbs and work out this much and gain inches around your waist when it is clearly smaller?  Doesnt make much sense to me...

I know you are looking for me to reveal what actually happened in a scientific and prolific way but it aint happening today!  I am still pondering what is going on...

For now I will just keep losing...and hopefully the inches will match up with what I am seeing...

Apparently I have 10 inches to lose around my waist....TEN INCHES! That is alot!  Most of my gain is concentrated there so Im not too surprised at that...so if it were to happen evenly (which we all know it wont) I should lose 1 inch around every seven pounds (6.6 to be exact)....

Now that I have that figure I will be checking my inches seven pounds from now....

I will let you know how it goes :)

If you know what is going on...TELL ME!

Until Next Time,

Hiding the Measuring Tape

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Living Food! Eat Some Today...

So here's what happened.  On Tuesday night, I had a craving for a whopper...REALLY BAD!  So I went and got one (a Whopper Jr.)...and a small onion ring too....I know tisk tisk on me...I havent gained weight from it BUT...

For the next two days...I woke up groggy and angry and JUST PLAIN MAD!  I wake up each day at 5am..which I finally gotten used to...but I just couldnt do it on those days...my body REFUSED to comply and I didnt have the energy to work out in the morning like I usually do.

I did muster up the courage to do my 5.5 mile walk on Wednesday night...but it was HARD!  My usual 3.5 mph was only 3.3 mph and it was like lead was in my shoes.  My energy was so low on Thursday that I was not even able to do anything....

I recognized that it was the Whooper Jr that did me in and I focused on eating living food on Thursday...Green Juice, fresh apples, salad and I did have some peanut butter (not sure if its living).  After work I sat down to rest from the day and ended up falling asleep until after 9pm...afterwhich I ran to bed and slept throughout the night....

In the morning my digestive tract thanked me...and MY MOJO was back!  I am full of energy I had my Odwalla Superfood drink for breakfast...I did my Box-Fit on Wii (it was SO HARD because it had been so long).  Today has been awesome so far!  Im so ready for my weigh in tomorrow....I already saw the loss so I am trying to maintain that loss for tomorrow.  Slooooow and steady is what I am trying to acheive!

Eating fresh fruit and vegetables has such a great effects....

How? Well....

Living food keeps the akaline/acid balance in check which is important to managing weight and preventing disease.  You get to eat more enzymes that cooking usually destroys.  These enzymes are great for optimal health. Cooking can sometimes alter these enzymes and create carcinigens (cancer causing agents).  Your body is like a battery that runs on electrons.....you need to feed it more foods that are alkaline as opposed to acids.  Acids accept electrons or STEALS them from your battery life.  Which is why my body was ZAPPED of energy.

Till Next Time,
Charging my battery! :)

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