Mummy's Girl - My Hair, My Health

Happy New Year!

2011-01-05T17:10:00.000Z

This year, I will post at least once a week... I promise :)

Hi :)

2010-09-21T15:20:00.005+01:00

Been extra busy but will be back to posting regularly from October :) Will be updating my YouTube channel too :)

I'm THREE months natural now!

Some pictures:

Be back soon.

My attempt at mini-twists

2010-07-15T09:00:00.001+01:00

I was inspired by a fellow new natural who had the most beautiful mini twists...

I cowashed and shrinkage hit :)

I think I can get them even smaller... maybe I'll try in a couple of weeks.

I'll try to update more often... :)

Natural for THREE weeks already!

2010-07-11T10:12:00.001+01:00

And I'm loving it :)

I'm so bad at updating this blog! I'll try to be better...

I chopped on June 18th 2010 so I successfully transitioned for 18 months. I am so glad I did this because I love the length I'm starting out with.

My chop thread on LHCF can be seen here: http://www.longhaircareforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=477490

This is a little montage of what I've been doing with my hair since I chopped...

17 Months Post Relaxer :)

2010-05-22T21:00:00.003+01:00

I can't find my camera's battery charger so I used my phone's camera... hence the poor quality pictures:

I've also decided to move my BC date closer.... I planned to BC @ 20 months post on August 20th but I'm thinking - 20th June = 18 months post.

So... I think I have one more month of my transition to go and.... *chop* *cop* :)

It looks like I have enought length to put my hair into a teeny weeny pony, definitely a big enough puff and also 2 strand twists that I can style nicely.

Other Updates
I'm now on low carbs Mondays to Fridays and I indulge (but not too too much) on Saturdays and/or Sundays. I'm loving it :)

I'm still training to be a personal trainer and I'm about to start teaching 2 brand new classes which I am totally excited about - woohoo!

Personal life - I think I am going through a major change... my outlook on life has changed A LOT. I am starting to imagine a future for myself that includes happiness, love and fulfillment and I will get there.

I'll be back before or after my CHOP :)

4 days - Low Carbs

2010-05-09T11:10:00.004+01:00

From Tuesday until Saturday morning, I reduced my carb intake a little more... this was a mini challenge a group of us set and we decided to take before and after photos to see if there'd be any difference at all...

And there was! I was surprised!!!

What I did:
1. Only got my carbs from Fruit and Vegetables.
2. No bananas
3. No rice, potatos, bread, cous cous, etc

After seeing these results, I have made the decision to eat like this on Monday - Friday and relax a little on the weekends. I hope to see a positive change next week too and I will post pictures :)

Hi :)

2010-04-26T18:47:00.005+01:00

I've been so busy!!!

Good news - I'm still transitioning. I'm 70 weeks post now (Just over 16 months) and I plan to go until I'm 20 months post. So my chop date is August 20th 2010 :) Here are some hair pictures from 69 & 70 weeks post:

I passed my Level 2 qualification in Fitness Instructing and next step is Level 3, which will make me a fully certified personaly trainer - yay!

I'm sure I've mentioned my love for kettlebell training :) Here's a picture of me doing a double KB swing with 2 x 16kg kettlebells. I can't believe how much fitter and stronger I am now this past year (and a bit) that I've been training with kettlebells. I'll try to spend more time blogging about fitness related things.

I'll be back to blogging often from now on :)

So busy...

2010-03-18T11:15:00.003Z

Haven't had time to update as I usually do.

Working on my PT Qualification AND my day job. I am so busy!

Last Friday, I recorded a vid on blowdrying (tension method) and a resulting braidout but I just haven't had the time to edit & upload it. I've got so much going on right now...

My hair was in a braidout puff yesterday and I DC'd/cowashed it in 6 braids this morning - I was in too much of a hurry so I applied my leave in and put those braids up in a ponytail. Maybe tonight, I'll take down the braids and put my hair up in a bun for the next couple of days.

I'm almost 15 months post (will be on Saturday)

Oh and I went for a spin class with my hair in the braidout puff yesterday and was able to maintain my style 100%
KEY: Laid edges down with a scarf from before workout till after shower.

Lazy Hair...

2010-03-09T22:16:00.005Z

I've been really lazy with my hair this past week (but not lazy with my regimen - I'm cowashing 3 times a week, DC'ng 2ce and moisturising everyday)... and I probably will stay the same until sometime next week. This is how I've been wearing my hair:

I met up with a friend last week and she said she liked how my hair looked, I was surprised but pleased of course :-)

They're not small enough to be pixies but convenient enough to put into a tiny ponytail... As I continue my transition and trim my relaxed ends off, I want to maintain this length in a ponytail. I wonder if I'll have enough natural hair somewhere between months 20 and 24 (August 20th - December 20th this year)... Only time will tell...

I'm still eating the protein bars for breakfast, then a banana less than an hour later and - so far so good. I forgot to take a starting picture, I'll try to take one soon - I should take one now but I'm ready for bed so - another day :)

I'm going to do a braidout on blowdried hair for a calendar I'm doing for charity sometime next week. My next wash after that, I'll put my hair in my pixie braids until the weekend of April 3rd - My friend's baby's birthday party, I plan to put my hair in a donut bun.

Kettlebells...

2010-03-03T10:01:00.005Z

I have been training with kettlebells for about a year now and I still think they are the most amazing exercise 'tool' I have come across EVER.

My friends (who are personal trainers) started a kettlebell class early last year and I attended the 1st class , since then I've only missed their classes when I've been ill or on holiday. The number of KB classes they teach has increased from 1 to 4 per week - that's how good they are!
I now attend 2 classes a week and my other workouts during the week involve at least 10 minutes of kb.

Now, I help out with 2 of their classes (correcting form/technique, demonstrating exercises, etc), I will teach classes when I'm qualified. I plan to train clients with kettlebells when I'm a fully qualified personal trainer (PT).

If I start talking about kettlebells, I'll never ever stop... seriously. Every single 'swing' (the main move with kettlebells which is a foundation for a lot of other kb exercises) works your glutes and hamstrings to start with... and your core, in fact it's a full body workout.
I am not a fan of staying on cardio machines at the gym, solution = kettlebells. My strength has increased so much... I am not able to military press a 20kg kettlebell and my endurance - 100% improvement. Love it!!!!

Once we upload kettlebell videos on youtube, I will share here :-)

Check out this LINK <-- The picture on the top right, with two women doing pressups with the kettlebells... Guess who I am, lol! That was a braidout late last year :-)

Experiment...

2010-03-01T12:51:00.004Z

My friend and I are going to try something out for the next few weeks...

I workout most morning so my routine will be: Workout -> Have a protein bar (Brand will be mentioned once my friend is ok with me doing so as we will be blogging about it elsewhere.) 40 minutes after workout and a banana for breakfast -> Snack before lunch -> Lunch -> Snack -> Dinner

As seen above, the only change I am making is my breakfast... instead of my usual handful of edamame beans (high in protein) followed with a bowl of oats and a banana (half an hour later), I'll be having the protein bar and a banana.

I should take a before picture in my workout clothes... I'll try to remember tonight.

My lunch usually has a portion of high fibre food and protein... dinner is little to no carbs (which are also present in vegetables) and protein.

Goal: I guess to be slightly leaner and a tiny bit more toned (Especially my abs).

I will be blogging more about Health/Fitness... Before the end of the week, I'll talk about SMR (Self Myofascial Release) - Foam Rolling which helped 'fix' my apparent "bad knee".

Another week...

2010-03-01T09:00:00.003Z

I wore my hair like this from Wednesday night till Sunday night...

I cowashed 2ce while in them. I took them out last night, moisturised and detangled and put my hair up in a bun....

I plan to do about 20 box braids tonight and leave them in for the week. I'll do my pixie braids in 2 weeks...

My Flat Twist & Twistout Videos

2010-02-25T09:00:00.002Z

Resulting twistout:

I went to work with my hair in banded ponytails :-)

2010-02-24T09:00:00.004Z

On Monday night, I applied ORS Replenishing Conditioner to my dry hair in sections and braided each section (6 in total). Covered with a shower cap and scarf overnight... this morning I cowashed with Aussie Moist, applied my leave in (Giovanni Direct) to each section before unraveling and detangling. Then I applied my shea butter mix and a little castor oil to each section before I airdried this way:

Yesterday...

2010-02-23T09:00:00.003Z

I had my hair in a bun:

I am able to get it so smooth by airdrying in ponytails (sometimes banded like @ the end of my video HERE) and laying down my edges with a scarf. I make sure I moisturise, seal and re-bun my hair every night to keep it sleek.

I should think I'd still be able to do this to my hair when I'm all natural because this is 14 months of growth and the longer it gets, the easier it should be to put in a bun.

I'm 14 months post relaxer!

2010-02-22T12:28:00.006Z

And still transitioning... I need my natural hair to be a few inches longer.

I was taking out my braids and decided to do some twists - for practise and also to see how long my natural hair is in twists now. One of my main goals before I cut off what's left of my relaxed hair is to have enough hair to put into a bun while in braids or twists... so I still have *at least* 6 months to go :-)

I had cornrows on the front half of my hair and this is how my hair looked when I took them out:

The more I see my stretched new growth, the more I know I will probably only straighten my hair once a year (if at all)... I love my natural hair - shrinkage and all!

My friend is getting married in the 2nd week of June (I'll be 18 months post) and I have *no* idea what I'm doing to my hair yet.... yikes!!!!

Suggestions?

2010-02-16T17:55:00.004Z

I know my blog is still very new and I don't really advertise it - especially with the new restrictions on LHCF.

To my few readers (who I appreciate A LOT!):
Do you have any suggestions on posts? Both hair and fitness related... your input will be VERY much appreciated.

TIA

P.S. My hair's going to be like this (cornrows in front, box braids at the back) until Thursday night:

50:50

2010-02-15T10:16:00.003Z

I'm officially half natural, half relaxed :-)

In some areas, I'm 70:30... 70% being natural.

I did 10 cornrows on the 1st half of my hair and did single braids at the back - I'll take them out on Thursday night and I've decided my hair will be in a bun/ponytail for Friday (filming for the fitness video).

I'll put up pics of my hair tomorrow..

I can't believe it's Monday already!!!

Friday!

2010-02-12T17:43:00.005Z

My hair's in a bun today... I'll DC (on dry hair before my Saturday morning workout) and cowash tomorrow and put my hair in cornrow for a week.

I ate some chocolate yesterday and I made a pact with myself to do 3 back to back tabatas in the evening when I got home and I did! I did go to the gym that morning and had a really good workout but I just felt guilty, lol. (Good thing is I didn't workout this morning, I make it a point NOT to over train.)

1st tabata - push ups
2nd tabata - tempo squats
3rd tabata - squat thrusts

I was sweating so much at the end of it and I felt good :-) I applied my DC to my hair and covered with a shower cap before this so the steam was really good for my hair :-)

I'd recommend tabatas to anyone and everyone, you can do just about any exercises!

My boss brought in doughnuts today - jam and ring ones ( A LOT of them), I had one... half in the morning, half in the afternoon so guess who's gonna work harder tomorrow morning.... ME!

I'll be back Monday... enjoy your weekend!

I will not BC before I'm 20 months post...

2010-02-11T11:23:00.003Z

I will not BC before I'm 20 months post
I will not BC before I'm 20 months post
I will not BC before I'm 20 months post
I will not BC before I'm 20 months post!!!

Someone who's my hair twin (or sister) and whose last relaxer was a day away from mine BC'd earlier this month

Now, I'm wondering what my hair will look like if I BC'd earlier than 20 months (Like... May/June - 17/18 months)

But I'm reminding myself why I chose to transition for longer:
1. I need more length (I plan to do twists and pixie braids when I'm natural and I want them to be able to fit into a ponytail)
2. I'm having no problems with my transition...

So - I will NOT BC before I'm 20 months post.... I HOPE!

My latest video - checking I had no heat damage:

My Hair's Fine!!!!

2010-02-10T10:27:00.001Z

I clarified...
Then deep conditioned with one egg, EVOO, Coconut Oil and Aphogee 2 min reconstructor for an hour. Rinsed out...
Then deep conditioned with ORS Replenishing Con and EVOO for another hour.

I did all this to make sure I had no heat damage

My hair's fine I was sooo happy to feel all the coils (I recorded a video which I'll edit and upload on my youtube channel - of me checking my hair was back to normal ) It feels very soft and fluffy and it's obviously because it's *very* clean because I haven't clarified in a long long time.

My hair's in a ponytail (ends tucked under) today and I'll do a few cornrows tonight and leave them in for the rest of the week.

I'm not putting my hair back in pixie braids until next weekend cos I want it curly for a photoshoot and also a video for a fitness company I semi-work for (which I mentioned in a previous post).

Health/Fitness Related Posts and Videos

2010-02-08T15:06:00.002Z

... are coming soon :-)

Straight!!!

2010-02-08T12:50:00.008Z

I straightened my hair over the weekend:

I cowashed, blow dried using the tension method (using IC hair polisher heat protectant) and put my hair in a banded ponytail...
A few hours later, I used a friend's GHD flat iron to straighten. I know I definitely put too much heat protectant cos my hair felt weighed down. I won't be flat ironing for the rest of this year but I will definitely blow dry in April or June.

I used this as an opportunity to trim my ends - about 0.5-1 inch and I immediately noticed a positive change in the appearance of my ends :-)

My hair's in a banana clip today, so many people @ work and the gym noticed my hair looked different today and they love it... My friends loved my hair on Saturday night :-) Unfortunately, I'll be back to my usual look tomorrow :-)

To keep it straight at the gym, I put it in a high ponytail (to protect my ends from sweat), although my edges started reverting once I got into my workout. Once I was done with my workout, I applied my shea mix to my edges, brushed and laid down with a scarf and put on my shower cap for my shower. When I was done getting dressed, I took off the scarf, took down the ponytail, moisturised all my hair with my shea mix, combed and put on my banana clip:

My plan is to shampoo wash today, deep condition with egg mixed with ORS Replenishing Conditioner and an egg for an hour, then I'll deep condition overnight with something else.

I have to admit - I have enjoyed having my hair straight :-) So it looks like I'm going to have to perfect airdrying in ponytails to achieve the straightest results possible without heat.

I'm going to try on my jeans tonight :-)

13.5 months post relaxer :-)

2010-02-03T10:46:00.005Z

I am really REALLY loving having my hair out... STILL. I decided to wear it out (i.e. not in pixie braids) for 2 weeks instead of 1 because I'm going out this weekend.

I just got news that we'll be doing some filming (for a fitness company I'm involved with) on the 18th of February... and I don't want my hair in pixie braids for that!

My plan now is: I'll wear my hair out till Sunday the 7th February, then I'll do chunky braids ( 8-10 cornrows in front and at least 6 braids at the back) which I'll have in until the 18th of February. I'll wear my hair out until the 21st, then I'll do my small pixie braids which I'll have in for 3 weeks (until March 14th).

Today my hair is in a curly pony (not a puff cos I pulled the stocking up further), I had it in 2 cornrows yesterday then I took them out this morning and pulled my hair into a curly pony, I like it :-)

I'll continue with my food/workout log tomorrow... I've been eating well (except for the odd chocolate, lol!) and can't wait to try on my jeans on Thurs/Fri :-)

Week 2 of wearing my hair 'out'

2010-02-01T11:24:00.006Z

I'm not looking forward to putting my hair back in pixie braids on Sunday :(
I'm really enjoying wearing it out - braidouts, buns, french braids... Doing the pixie braids is great for my hair because I don't have to manipulate it for 3 weeks and I appreciate it even more when I take the braids out...

This week, I plan to do Flat Twist & Twistout videos (probably flat twist on Thursday night, Twistout Friday morning).

On Saturday, I applied a lot of oil to my hair, put it back in a bun and worked out. I had to help out in a 4 hour gym workshop so I left my hair in the bun all day. I deep conditioned on Sunday night, put my hair in 6 braids (as usual) and left it overnight. Cowashed this morning after my workout...

My hair's airdrying in 2 buns (puffs) and will stay this way all day. I'll do 2 french braids or cornrows tonight.

So... back in pixie braids in 6 days.

Food/Workout Log

2010-02-01T11:00:00.000Z

Exercise: 1.5 hour class @ the gym. As usual, I went for the 1.5 hour Saturday class which had a lot of running then I helped out in a FOUR hour workshop (kettlebells) in which I did a lot of demos and helped people out. I woke up on Sunday morning feeling like I worked out for 24 hours! My glutes, ouch! Every area of my thighs hurt - quads, hamstrings, hip flexors etc... Good pain though, lol!

Post Workout Snack: A handful of Edamame Beans
Breakfast: A Banana and Milk (because a coworker brought chocolates to work and I had some :/ )
Lunch: Mashed Parsnips, Mixed Vegetables, Chicken
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: An Omelette

Indulgences: Chocolate :/

Friday :)

2010-01-29T16:33:00.000Z

It's the weekend again, yay!

I'm 58 weeks post relaxer so I have... 46 weeks of my transition left!

My hair's like this today:

Last night I took down the 2 buns, moisturised and put them back up, covered with scarf. This morning, I took them down, moisturised again and combed into one.
I'll be very happy when I can wear this same style all natural, I know that's over a year away but I'm looking forward to it!

I remember not being happy cos I have fine (but dense) strands because my hair doesn't look very thick sometimes BUT I love my hair so much now and I love that it's not hard work to get it all up into a ponytail :)

Enjoy your weekend!

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-29T15:51:00.002Z

I'm getting close to Feb 4th - when I'll try on my jeans again... Read HERE

Exercise: No exercise today, day off :-)

Breakfast: Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Nandos double breast pitta (no mayo) and mushy peas.
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: Maybe Fish... I don't know.

Indulgences:

New Video - French Braid

2010-01-28T12:56:00.002Z

Cowashed my hair this morning and it's currently in 2 puffs, same as 2 days ago...

2010-01-28T12:55:00.000Z

Exercise: 1 hour of kettlebells circuit class

Post Workout Snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Brown Beans, Plantain and Chicken (no oil was used while preparing this)
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner:

Indulgences:

Hair Yesterday and Today...:

2010-01-27T12:00:00.002Z

Yay! I see I have 8 followers, thank you :D If you have any questions please ask :-)

I airdried my braids in 2 buns yesterday, what I usually do is wait till my ends are dry, then I tuck them under the ponytail holder to form 2 puffs. Last night, I did 2 french braids and recorded a video (which I'll edit and upload soon).

Here's a close up of my new growth when airdried in 2 ponytails = stretched:

When I'm all natural, I'll definitely dry my hair stretched most of the time. I don't think I'll do wash and go's because of shrinkage (and tangles!). If I want a defined look, I'll do a braidout or twistout on stretched hair.

Stretching out my new growth while drying my hair has been very useful during my transition and I think it's a key factor in my confidence that I can transition for more than 18 months.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-27T11:00:00.000Z

Exercise: 55 minute outdoor run - At the halfway point to do a few sprints (5 in total), 15 minutes from the end - 2 sets of 20 step ups with knee raises on left side, 20 on right, 10 elevated press/push ups <- all on a park bench. Post Workout Snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Brown Beans, Plantain and Chicken (no oil was used while preparing this)
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: Peppersoup (Goat meat in soup made from the stock with added spices and some turkey)

Indulgences: Some sweets :/

Stretched New Growth and more hair talk.

2010-01-26T11:30:00.000Z

I'm really enjoying having my hair out.

I was sectioning my hair to apply almond oil (prepoo) and braid (6 in total) and decided to take some pictures of my new growth.

My hair was in a braidout the day before and I left it in very loose cornrows yesterday, I took them out, sectioned and applied oil:

I like :-)

I cowashed my hair this morning and I am airdrying in 2 ponytails today.... Today it looked like I had very little relaxed hair left but I know the truth, haha! The best time to see how much relaxed hair I have is when my hair's in pixie braids. Some areas have equal amounts of relaxed and natural hair, some have more natural hair and very few have more relaxed hair.

By December 20th 2010, I'll probably have only 1 inch of relaxed hair to cut off :-)

I'll try to work on the french braid video tonight.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-26T10:30:00.001Z

Exercise: 1 hour kettlebell class. As with every Tuesdays, I will be helping out with an evening class which will mean demos = a little more exercise

Post Workout Snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana and fresh soy beans
Lunch: Brown Beans, Plantain and Chicken (no oil was used while preparing this)
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: Peppersoup (Goat meat in soup made from the stock with added spices and some turkey)

Indulgences:A mug of hot chocolate :)

New Videos!

2010-01-25T11:00:00.000Z

I uploaded 3 videos on youtube yesterday showing my DC -> cowash -> airdry -> cornrow -> braidout process.

Someone on LHCF asked me to do a tutorial on french braids, which I'll do this weekend.
I will do a few exercise related ones within the next couple of weeks.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-25T10:48:00.004Z

I started the weekend with a 1.5 hour gym class :-)
I was much better with food this weekend.... I didn't eat a lot of rubbish. I treated myself with chicken wings (which I made at home) on Saturday.

Exercise: 1.5 hour class

Post Workout Snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Brown Beans, Plantain and Chicken (no oil was used while preparing this)
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: Peppersoup (Goat meat in soup made from the stock with added spices and some turkey)

Indulgences:

Braid out from box braids...

2010-01-22T11:50:00.004Z

On my natural hair, love it! Obviously my relaxed ends look ridiculous but I wasn't really planning on a braidout... I was taking out my box braids and decided to take pictures of how my natural hair looked.

This is soooo going to be a style I'll rock as a natural and I'm glad to see my natural hair is as shiny as my relaxed ends! Can December come already??? Haha!

Someone at work just told me she liked my hair today, hahahaha... considering I didn't plan on my hair looking this way :-)

I think I'll try a braidout from about 15 box braids with curled ends (sometime next week)... it's worth a try. If it doesn't work out, I'll go back to what I'm used to... although I think I might increase the number of cornrows I use for my braidouts to 7/8.

I'll put my hair in 6 box braids tonight, deep condition on dry hair overnight, cowash tomorrow morning after my workout <-- I plan to do a video on this as well. I'll airdry in ponytails and mos likely do cornrows for a braidout.

Enjoy your weekend!

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-22T11:40:00.003Z

Exercise: None

Breakfast: Quaker Oat Granola with Semi Skimmed Milk
Snack: 2 clementines
Lunch: Parsnips, turkey pieces, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange
Dinner:

Indulgences: Prett Skinny Topcorn (Chocolate Crackle flavour)

Almost time to take out the Pixie Braids :-)

2010-01-21T14:25:00.002Z

My Hair Today (the cornrows are not very neat, lol, but I was tried when doing them):

I started taking them out yesterday with a plan in mind... there was no way I'd have enough time last night, to take them all out. So I took most of the front half out and did a few cornrows.
Tonight I will take out the ones at the back and redo them as bigger braids (3 braids will become 1).

This will cut a lot of time out tomorrow evening when I'll be setting my hair free for at least one week, can't wait!

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-21T13:47:00.004Z

Exercise: 1 hour kettlebell class (I ache in all the right places this week)

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana and a 35g pack of Special K
Lunch: Parsnips, turkey pieces, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Apple and Orange
Dinner: Omelette

Indulgences: None today :-)

I'm on a roll :-)

I'm starting to feel really good and people are noticing the little changes. Good thing is - I'm not really dieting, I am eating healthy like I should be all the time. During the weekends I relax and eat more than I do during the week but I deserve it :-) Especially after a 1.5 hour class on Saturday morning to start off the weekend ;-)

13 months post relaxer :-)

2010-01-20T12:48:00.004Z

Yay! 11 months to go (maybe?)... definitely more than 5 months though, I feel I can definitely go longer than 18 months.

I cowashed my hair this morning and a couple of hours later, I took 2 braids down and this was the result (SHRINKAGE!)

This is the length of my natural hair in braids... One of my main aims is to have enough natural hair to still be able to put my pixie braids in a ponytail when I chop off my relaxed ends.

I got a pen to have an idea of how long my natural hair is... I like that I used this... my hair has to be longer than this pen in braids, before I BC :-)

I prefer to use the length of my braided hair as a goal because, although it appears slightly shorter than my hair really is, it will ensure I can put them up in a ponytail or at least in a french braid when I chop.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-20T12:00:00.000Z

So similar to yesterday, lol... I am really boring with food during the week.

Exercise: 50 minute run with sprints at the halfway marker.

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana and a 35g pack of Special K
Lunch: Parsnips, turkey pieces, mixed vegetables and chicken. An Apple
Snack: Clementine and Orange
Dinner: Fish and Vegetables.

Indulgences:

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-19T17:04:00.003Z

Exercise: 1 hour of kettlebells circuits

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana and a 35g pack of Special K
Lunch: Parsnips, turkey pieces, mixed vegetables and chicken. An Apple
Snack: Clementine and Orange
Dinner: Fish (Mackerel) and some Chicken (I was too tired to cook)

Indulgences: 2 x 35g packs of Special K...

Someone I know (a PT) saw me today and asked if I'd lost weight :-)
On Saturday, while getting dressed at the gym, my friend asked me if I felt any different cos she thought I definitely looked trimmer. It's so nice to get results :-) I will try on the jeans on February 4th... no earlier.

Monday... again :-)

2010-01-18T14:24:00.003Z

I DC'd and cowashed my hair (still in pixie braids) on Saturday and I'm glad this is my last week in them!!! I plan to take them out on Friday night: I'll saturate my hair in conditioner and leave for an hour, then start on them. I'll braid my hair in sections as I go along so I can conditioner or shampoo wash, depending on how my hair feels.

I'm almost 13 months post relaxer and I've noticed I'm finally not bothered: I'm still aware as each week (and day ) passes by but I'm not in a hurry anymore ( that took a whole year!)... I'm just enjoying my hair and trying to treat it as one (hope that makes sense).

I plan to try out Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding for a braidout sometime next week... I didn't buy it, a friend of mine gave me a half full large jar of it last year but I haven't tried it out yet.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-18T14:18:00.002Z

Exercise: 1.5 hours of spin, circuits - bodyweight exercises, kettlebells, etc. (On Saturday, I did a similar class for the same amount of time)

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Parsnips, turkey pieces, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Clementine, Apple
Dinner: Omelette with fish.

Indulgences: I INDULGED over the weekend so I am taking a break from any of this today and tomorrow.

Yay! Friday :-)

2010-01-15T11:02:00.004Z

I have cowashed my braids 4 times in just under 2 weeks so the edges were looking very fuzzy. I don't mind that usually but after 2 weeks, it really doesn't look cute.

Last night, I redid the edges in front (8 braids in total) and that made a huge difference to how my hair looks now. I was beginning to get bored of my hair so this was done at the right time.

Yesterday morning I prepoo'd with oils before my workout, applied Aphogee 2 min for a few minutes before taking a shower, then I cowashed with Aussie Moist.

I plan to DC on dry hair tomorrow morning before going to the gym and cowashing after.

Enjoy your weekend!

*click photo to enlarge

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-15T11:00:00.000Z

Exercise: None... I had a break today :-) I'm helping out with (and maybe teaching!) a kettlebell class tonight so I probably will get a little workout from it.

Breakfast: Cereal with yoghurt and a small pastry (bad!!!)
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Couscous, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange,
Dinner:

Indulgences: That small pastry I had with my breakfast, it really was small so I don't feel too bad. I'm going for a meeting at Starbucks today and the only thing I'm having is a hot chocolate (I love!!)

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-14T13:22:00.004Z

Exercise: 90 minutes of kettlebells + bodyweight exercises.

Post- workout snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Couscous, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange, Apple
Dinner: Yoghurt with blackberries. Some mini hot dog sausages. Cloementine.

Indulgences: 2 little chocolates

Scarves and Headbands...

2010-01-13T20:39:00.005Z

I love scarves and headbands! They have been a huge part of my transition and will obviously continue being so when I'm natural.

I especially love scarves, I use them a lot for my braidouts and my pixie braids too. I don't know how many I have at the moment but I took this picture last year (8):

Since I took this picture, I have bought at least 3, haha!

On to headbands... I took this picture at the same time as the one above:

And... yep! - Since I took this picture I have bought at least 2 headbands and a friend of mine bought me a beautiful one for Xmas that I can't wait to try out (I'll take a picture when I wear it and post here, ofcourse).

Having pretty hair accessories is a MUST, especially as a transitioner!

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-13T13:00:00.001Z

Exercise: 45 minute workout, mix of spin, kettlebells and bodyweight.

Post- workout snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Rice, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange, Apple
Dinner: Smoked mackerel and some chicken (too lazy to cook)

Indulgences: A huge mug of hot chocolate, and some sweets :/

Hair...

2010-01-12T16:59:00.002Z

It's easy to get bored of my pixie braids... I'm almost at the point where I get bored but I'm going to keep trying different styles with them..

Yesterday

Today
There's really not much going on with my hair... I DC'd on dry hair this morning and cowashed after my workout. I'm wearing my hair like this:

For my next set of pixie braids, I might cornrow the front 1/3 of my hair. I hope it turns out nice because I tried it once and after 2 cornrows, I took them out and continued with the pixies...

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-12T14:00:00.000Z

Exercise: 1 hour kettlebell class. Also helping out with a KB class this evening so it'll be a bit of a workout (demos).

Post- workout snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana, 2 oatcakes
Lunch: Cous Cous, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange, Banana, 3 oatcakes
Dinner: I'll be home late tonight so I might have some yoghurt with fruit...

Indulgences:

Monday...

2010-01-11T11:00:00.001Z

I was at a 1.5 hour class on Saturday morning, nice way to start the weekend... especially knowing I was going to be a little relaxed with my eating.

I DC'd on dry hair (pixie braids) before my workout and cowashed after. I miss playing in my hair but I love the convenience of not having to spend time detangling.

I'll keep them in for 2 more weeks.

My hair was under a scarf for most of Sunday, I was home all day.

I uploaded another video :-)

I plan to record at least 2 tutorials when my hair's loose in 2 weeks.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-11T10:15:00.004Z

Exercise: 1 hour class - bodyweight workouts, kettlebells, etc

Post- workout snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Cous Cous, mixed vegetables and chicken.
Snack: Orange, Soya Beans
Dinner: Omelette

Indulgences: Hopefully NOTHING today.

The 1st few months of my transition...

2010-01-08T12:00:00.002Z

I made my decision to transition when I was 7 weeks post. I had gone through natural's and transitioner's fotkis & blogs, and LHCF so I felt I was prepared for my journey.

Luckily, I was already used to stretching for up to 19 weeks so I wasn't expecting any challenges until after the 20th week mark.

My everyday hairstyle was pinning up my hair and using a head/alice band. Very simple :-)

I loved (still love) french braids:

And braidouts ofcourse, this is a braidout pinned up:

My regimen was very similar to what it is now... I cowashed 2-3 times a week, moisturised and sealed 2ce a day, etc. A key thing was making sure I fully detangled damp/wet hair... sometimes I combed ONLY my relaxed ends when dry but stayed away from my new growth

I'd say the 1st 6 months were the deciding months for me... once I got past 6 months, I felt 150% certain I was definitely going natural and as a long term transitioner.

Yay, the weekend's here!! I'm not doing much with my hair cos it's still in pixie braids, I plan to DC on dry hair overnight, work out with DC still in hair on Saturday morning and cowash after.

Enjoy your weekend.

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-08T10:00:00.001Z

Exercise: 20 minutes (random setting) on stepper, 30 minutes of a circuit of spin/bunny hops and kettlebells - 3 exercises at each station, went round circuit 2ce.
I will be helping out with another kettlebell class today, and I'll definitely be doing a lot of demonstrating so that'll be extra exercise for me :-)

Post- workout snack: A handful of roasted edamame beans, 2 ginger oatcakes (sooo hungry after workout today)

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Orange
Lunch: Chicken and steamed mixed vegetables (Boring but I plan to eat more than usual tomorrow)
Snack: Apple
Dinner:

Indulgences:

Yay My first video!!!

2010-01-07T12:00:00.003Z

I finally put together my 1st video :-)

I can't do any recording for now because my hair is in my pixie braids for the next 2.5 weeks... Speaking of those, here's my 2nd video:

I'm glad I finally started cos it'll be easy for me to keep my channel up and running :-)

Video To-Do List
1. How I wash(in braids) and airdry(in ponytails/buns) to achieve a nice sleek bun
2. How I blowdry my hair straight without a comb or brush (tension method)
3. Twistout/Braidout on airdried hair
4. Twistout/Braidout on blowdried hair
5. How to cornrow/flat twist
6. How to do braid

Until my hair's loose, I'll probably do videos like the 2 above and also videos for exercise.

My YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/MummysGirl81

Running - Where I Started

2010-01-07T11:00:00.001Z

I couldn't run for more than a minute so I needed to start from the basics. I found a training plan online and by the end of it, I was able to run all through my 1st 5k... no stopping, no walking :-)

Week 1
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 1 min, walk 1 min. Do 10 times
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 2 mins, walk 4 mins. Do 5 times
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 Run 2 mins, walk 4 mins. Do 5 times

Week 2
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 3 mins, walk 3 mins. Do 4 times
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 3 mins, walk 3 mins.Do 4 times
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 Run 5 mins, walk 3 mins. Do 3 times

Week 3
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 7 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times

Week 4
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 12 mins, walk 2 mins. Do twice
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times

Week 5
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 9 mins, walk 1 min. Do 3 times
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 14 mins, walk 2 mins. Do twice
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times

Week 6
Day 1 Rest
Day 2 Run 15 mins, walk 1 min. Do twice
Day 3 Rest
Day 4 Run 8 mins, walk 2 mins. Do 3 times
Day 5 Rest
Day 6 Rest
Day 7 From this point onwards, you should be able to jog for 20 - 30 minutes and more :-)

I ran my 1st 5k (3.1 miles) in 37 minutes :-)

My current PB (in a 5k race) is 28 minutes :D

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-07T10:00:00.001Z

Exercise (morning): Kettlebells circuit class - 1 hour

Post workout: A handful of dry roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Parsnips cooked with runner beans and baby sweetcorns, and chicken (recipe in yesterday's log)
Snack(s): Apple, Orange
Dinner: Salmon on 3 oatcakes. Mango as a "dessert".

Indulgences: Werthers Original sweets

Random Hair Pictures

2010-01-06T14:34:00.007Z

My Hair on New Year's Eve/Day:
I didn't take any pictures of my hair on New Year's day, this was taken by a friend:

My new growth is very visible now, I love it :-)

This was a twistout on blowdried hair - I DC'd cowashed, applied leave-in. Then blow dried using tension method (I stretched out each section while blowdrying, ensuring my hair dried as straight as was possible). I applied lustrasilk shea butter cholesterol to each section before flat twisting, I bantu knotted the ends. I left them in for about 5 hours... took them out (with shea butter) and fluffed.

My Hair"style" for my Half Marathon last year:

I was almost 10 months post-relaxer and didn't want to have to worry about sweaty loose hair so I did these braids and put them up in a ponytail. When I got back home, from my race, I washed and deep conditioned while they were still in. Thinking back now, it made detangling so much easier (althought I took the braids out while rinsing out the DC) BUT I went back to my usual way of washing, detangling my hair loose.... Until someone shared on LHCF about washing in braids, which I did again and fell in love with.

My hair looking Thick, although it really isn't (I can get my hair to look like this when I cornrow or flat twist it when it's completely dry):

I created my youtube channel and I'm going to work on uploading my 1st video soon...

Running

2010-01-06T13:18:00.002Z

In April 2006, I watched my friend run the London Marathon. It was a rainy day and I thought I'd hate every minute of standing on the sides, cheering him on when he ran past me (2ce in total). I was WRONG!

I loved it! The atmosphere was sooo infectious and it was amazing seeing people - male, female, young, old, etc running and full of energy while running 26.2 miles!!!!!

That day I was inspired to start running...

I couldn't run for more than a minute... I always felt sprinting was my thing. I could run a very fast 100m or 200m but anything more - I ran out of breath in less than a minute!

I was determined to run a race... I registered for a 5k and I have never looked back since then!

So far the races I have taken part in are:

5k - Race For Life June '06
10k - Run London Aug '06
10k - Regents Park Dec '06
5k - Beat The Baton May '07
10k - Regent's Park Jul '07
5k - Race For Life Jul '07
10k - Regents Park Aug '07
10k - London 10k May '08
5k - Race For Life Jul '08
Half Marathon - Windsor Sep '08
5k - Resolution 5k April '09
Half Marathon - Royal Parks Oct '09

This year, I have 3 races lined up and they are all half marathons...
1. Brighton Half - Feb '10
2. Aletsch Half - June '10
3. Royal Parks - Oct '10

As you can see, I enjoy running :-) But I also enjoy circuits, body weight exercises, endurance, strength, interval, kettlebells... and a lot more. It's a lot to fit into a 7 day week!!!

This is why I have reduced my races to 3 this year and only half marathons because I can do 5ks/10ks in my personal time. The distance between my house and the gym is 7.2 miles, which is more than 10k so all I have to do is challenge myself each time I do that run (which I haven't done in along while because my knee's been healing).

I'll blog about my training plan which enabled me run my 1st 5k without stopping/walking :-)

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-06T12:00:00.002Z

Exercise: NONE (I did more exercise that I intended yesterday evening in the class I was helping out with. That coupled with my workout that same morning tired me out... I overslept.)

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Parsnips cooked with runner beans and baby sweetcorns, and chicken (recipe in Monday's log)
Snack: Apple, Orange
Dinner: Chicken (again, I know!) and a bread roll.
Indulgences: 1/3 of a chocolate bar (oops!)

It's That Time Again...

2010-01-05T13:00:00.003Z

.. LOL!

It seems like once every 2 years, I gain 10 pounds and don't realise as they're creeping on. One day I wake up and BAM!

I love a challenge so I took a couple of pictures in a pair of jeans that I haven't worn in a while... now that I think about it, I tried them on a couple months back and when I noticed I was struggling to get into them, I picked another pair of jeans.

I'm training to be a personal trainer so I can't allow myself relax like this anymore. I want to always be an example of healthy living ;-)

Anyway I struggled into the jeans last night and I took these pictures (eek!):

As seen above (Click picture to see large version), I can't zip/button them up. I apologise for the little view of my underwear :/

My goal is to fit into them by March 1st... I know I can do it so I'm looking forward to it :-)

HOW? Stick to my current workout regime which is a right mix of strength, cardio, intervals and endurance training BUT get my eating back on track - Eat right Mon-Fri and treat myself on Saturdays or Sundays.

I'll make sure I keep a log of what I eat Mon-Fri and also my workouts until I fit back into the jeans shown above...

I'll try them on again on February 4th and post pictures.

I'm not going to weigh myself or take any measurements... I'll use these jeans only.

HAIR
Back in my pixie braids... keeping them in for 3 weeks:

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-05T12:00:00.000Z

Exercise (morning): Kettlebells circuit class (mix of kettlebell exercises and body weight exercises) - 1 hour
I usually help out with a kettlebell class on Tuesday evenings, I don't class it as a workout but I do a lot of demos and sometimes do some drills alongside people to help out... bonus exercise :-)

Post workout: A handful of dry roasted edamame beans
Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk & Agave Nectar
Snack: Apple and Banana
Lunch: Parsnips cooked with runner beans and baby sweetcorns, and chicken (recipe in yesterday's log)
Snack(s): Carrots and an Orange
Dinner: Salmon omelette (Salmon again because I need to finish it before it goes bad.)

Indulgences: I'm trying not to have any today...

Workouts and my Hair

2010-01-04T15:53:00.005Z

I workout at least 5 times a week and I sweat profusely on my scalp. Honestly - I sweat as much as one of my guy friends at the gym who everyone thinks sweats too much. YES, that's how much I sweat during workouts... gross but true,

Because of this, I don't bother spending too much time styling my hair during the week... it's just not worth it.

If I'm wearing my hair loose (i.e. not in pixie braids), this is a typical week:
Sunday night: Apply oils and/or deep conditioner (DC) to my hair and go to bed,
Monday: Workout, then cowash and airdry in 2 ponytails:

In the evening, I usually moisturise and do 5 cornrows or flat twists for a braidout

OR, as I recently tried, I put my hair back in the 2 buns and go to bed.
Tuesday: 2 Buns: Workout with hair in 2 buns. After workout, take down buns, moisturise and seal and put hair up in one bun.

Flat twists/cornrows: Leave hair as it is and moistuirse and seal... I usually take the twists/cornrows out later in the day for a curly look. I cowash this evening or Wednesday morning.
Wednesday: Hair's in a braidout/twistout or 2 buns depending on if I go to the gym. I plan to resume going to the gym so my hair will most likely be in 2 buns all day.
Thursday: Workout with 2 buns and moistuirse and seal then put hair up in a bun for the day. Cowash in the evening, airdry in 3-4 ponytails at home and put hair in cornrows/flat twists overnight.
Friday: Curly hair day. Apply deep conditioner to dry hair and leave in overnight.
Saturday: Workout (with DC still in hair). Cowash, airdry and cornrows/flat twists.
Sunday: Curly hair day.

During the weeks I have my pixie braids (w/out extensions) in, my typical week is:Sunday evening: DC dry hair and/or add oils.
Monday: Cowash after workout, moisturise and seal. Airdry braids in ponytail.
Tuesday: Moisturise and seal after workout. Cowash in the evening or Wednesday morning.
Wednesday: Cowash (if not on Tue evening), moisturise and seal after workout.
Thursday: Moisturise and seal after workout. Cowash in the evening.
Friday: Moisturise and seal (I usually don't work out on Fridays). DC on dry hair
Saturday: Cowash, moisturise and seal after workout
Sunday: Moisturise and seal.

NOTE: I moisturise and seal morning and evening...

Food/Workout Log

2010-01-04T14:00:00.005Z

Exercise: NONE (I woke up with a really bad headache and still have one)

Breakfast: Oats with semi-skimmed milk with Agave Nectar
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Parsnips cooked with runner beans and baby sweetcorns with chicken. (Recipe: Skinned and Boiled the chicken with chopped red onions, ginger, chicken seasoning, curry and thyme. Chopped and cooked the parsnips in the chicken stock, added the runner beans and baby sweetcorn for the last 5-7 minutes. I added Nandos Hot Peri Peri Sauce to the chicken after draining the stock and let simmer for 5 minutes. This will be my lunch for Monday to Friday.)
Snack(s): Sugarsnap Peas and an Orange
Dinner: Salmon with something (I haven't decided... maybe with Eggs and/or vegetables). Mango Smoothie as a "dessert" (totally unnecessary but I felt like it)

Indulgences: A lot of Chewing Gum that was full of Sugar (BAD, unnecessary and not something I'd normally do)... One maryland cookie (only ONE not a whole pack, hahahaha).

A little on Healthy Eating

2010-01-02T23:55:00.005Z

... and hair ofcourse, haha!

My transition to natural hair is still going well, it's been 54 weeks since I last relaxed my hair and right at this moment I am really enjoying my hair.

Funny thing is - I'm already missing my hair, although I haven't done my pixie braids yet (I'll do them tomorrow) and I understand I am doing them for convenience and to give my hair a break from a lot of manipulation but I'll miss playing in my hair these next 3 weeks.... :/

I'm going to try to have a food diary here on my blog... I'll do a test run from the 4th of this month (Monday).
I plan to read a lot more on Nutrition because I don't just want to be a Personal Trainer/ Fitness "Expert" (I'm still studying), I want to learn more about Nutrition... especially because of the kind of food I eat (I am Nigerian so I obviously love Nigerian food ;-) ). I want to learn the best ways to substitute ingredients to make my meals healthier... I might sometimes share recipes and take pictures of healthy meals... I'll see...

I'm looking forward to getting healthier and fitter... and also to growing even more natural hair and learning more about it :-)

Happy New Year!!!!

2010-01-01T21:04:00.006Z

Yay! I was relaxer free in 2009 :-)

I'm not really one for New Year's Resolutions... I plan to keep doing what I already started - continue transitioning, eat healthy, keep fit and live/love life.

I ate a lot of cake on New Year's Eve and the early hours of New Year's Day (today) but I don't mind... I'm allowed to OVER indulge once in a while ;-) Especially when I have plans to make up for it :-) I still haven't had chocolate and I choose to remain that way for a while longer, until I get back in the shape I am very comfortable with.

My knee is almost back to 100% :-) I am sooo glad because I plan to run a half maraton in February (My 3rd one), and another in June... and probably another one in October.

I have also been working on getting back to eating well... I don't want to be someone who works out 5 times a week but eats unhealthy more than once a week... I want to get healthy eating back to being part of my everyday life, so that it doesn't feel like an effort.

My main style this week was a braidout, I am so glad my braidouts don't look ridiculous yet with a year's worth of new (natural) growth and a similar amount of relaxed ends.

I plan to clarify, deep condition, airdry in ponytails then do pixie braids on Sunday. I am looking forward to that :-)

This blog will be updated almost everyday... I hope I can keep that up :-)

Have a wonderful 2010.

Long Term Transitioner

2009-12-30T20:00:00.002Z

I am transitioning to natural hair for a long time because I want a lot of hair to play with when I'm all natural (I am going to have soooo much fun).

I was featured on curlynikki.com HERE :-)

I made the decision to be a long term transitioner earlier this year and once I did, I promised myself that it won't be a struggle. I wanted every day of it to be fun... I never wanted to complain about the difference in my natural and relaxed hair textures, tangling, not having any cute styles to try out, etc

So... I decided to do a lot of Fotki and Youtube stalking, there's a lot of knowledge and information out there! I might have had a bad hair day here or there but I don't have periods when I'm frustrated with my hair because I'm transitioning, I don't have days when I want to cut off my relaxed ends or go back to relaxing my hair. I'm REALLY glad about this and I hope things continue this way :-)

In 2010, until I am all natural, my hair will be in pixie braids (no extensions) for 3 weeks at one time, and I will wear it out for a week (braidouts, twistouts, etc), before putting the pixie braids back in. I want to learn more ways to style my pixie braids, cute updos, variations, etc... I don't want to get bored of my pixie braids becaise I must admit - I get bored of them after 2 weeks.

My short term goal is June 20th 2010 (if I chop of my relaxed ends at this point, I won't be too disappointed). My ultimate transition goal will be to transition for 2 years, which will mean until December 20th 2010.

Good Luck Me :-)

My Hair Products

2009-12-29T12:00:00.004Z

My moisturiser - A mix of conditioner (herbal essences hydralicious conditioner), glycerin, extra virgin olive oil and water. I apply this to my hair every morning and night.

My sealant - A mix of unrefined shea butter, aloe vera gel, castor oil and coconut oil. I use this to seal after moisturising. Excuse the crustiness of the mixture, it was an old one, it's usually light and fluffy:

My cowash (conditioner wash) conditioners - I wet my hair, add a generous amount to my hair and leave in for about 5 minutes. Then I lightly massage through hair before rinsing out. I sometimes repeat. Cowashing cleans my hair enough without stripping it of its moisture:

My Deep Conditioner - I deep condition (DC)2ce a week, I haven't used heat in a while. I usually apply overnight or right before a workout (both to dry hair), On the rare occasions that I shampoo wash or clarify, I DC on wet hair after washing: Sometimes I mix Aussie Moist (one of my cowash conditioners) with Honey and Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) and use as a DC, I do this about 5% of the time, especially when I want a very moisturising result and it works.

My Leave-In Conditioner - I love it. I apply it to my hair after every wash/cowash and don't rinse out. It's a great detangler for my hair:

My "styling creme" - This is actually a rinse out conditioner but after seeing that it worked for a few people as a styling creme, I tried it and the rest is history (lol). I use it for my braidouts, twistouts, bantu knot outs, etc:

All the above products are staples, I am not looking to change them anytime soon. The only product I might think of changing is Lustrasilk but I love it!

Travelling...

2009-12-28T14:00:00.006Z

I'll be out of the UK from Tuesday morning until New Year's... I opted to only carry hand luggage, no checked in luggage so obviously the liquid restrictions apply to me. I won't be able to take my hair products in their actual bottles/jars with me.

My plan is to take:
1 sample satchet of PhytoSpecific Intense Nutrition Mask to deep condition once
My shea butter mix in a small jar (less than 100ml)
EVOO/Jojoba Oils in small bottles
My leave in conditioner in a small bottle
My moisturising mix in a small spray bottle

I'll buy a moisturising instant conditioner when I get to my destination, which I'll use for cowashing.

Also my hair accessories - scarves, headbands (of course), ponytail holders (for airdrying) and my wide tooth comb. My main styles will be braidouts and braidout puffs.

Home workout/Hair

2009-12-27T15:39:00.006Z

I worked out this morning - yay!!! I put together a workout which took me 55 minutes. It was a very challenging workout but I feel really good now :-) The only equipment I used were: 2x5kg dumbells (for dynamic upper body exercises), 2x3kg dumbells (for static upper body exercises) and a step box.

Legs: There were a couple of tabatas (an interval training cycle of 20 seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated without pause 8 times for a total of four minutes).
Upper Body: Two 6 minute circuits of 1 minute on 3 workouts x 2.
Press (Push) Up Pyramid - 1 pressup, 2 pressups... up to 10 pressups. Then 10 back to 1.
And a quick abs/core circuit.
Each circuit was followed by 2 minutes of cardio before starting the next one.

I worked out with my deep conditioner in my hair, picture after my workout:Cowashed ('washed' my hair with conditioner) in the braids:

I applied my leave in and detangled each section, I put my hair up in 4 ponytails and I'm airdrying now:

Boxing Day...

2009-12-26T23:33:00.012Z

... and I feel bloated! Haha!

I did really well on Xmas day, I had NO chocolate, well... apart from the chocolatey cake ;-)

Today I ate quite well too.. I had 2 ferrero rochers <-- Worst thing I did so I'm proud of myself :-)

I am not running (or doing any high impact exercises - jump squats, etc) right now because I had a slight knee injury (caused by lack of stretching after long runs and exercise). I've been doing the right things to fix this and it's so much better now :-) But to make sure everything's back to 100%, I have to avoid high impact exercises. I'm SMR'ing and doing specific exercises recommended by a physio (I'll go more into detail in a later post).

Anyway.... I usually would go to the gym for a workout but it's the holiday weekend. My plan for tomorrow (Sunday) morning is to do a home workout which I'll put together myself - I own a step box and a few dumbells.

My hair was in a braidout all day yesterday and today so it wasn't detangled. I parted into 6 sections, lightly finger detangled, applied my Deep Conditioner and Extra Virgin Olive Oil to each section before braiding up and I put a shower cap on.

I'll leave it in overnight, workout with it in the morning and cowash(all in 6 braids).

It's been 53 weeks since I last relaxed my hair :-)

Christmas Day Hair

2009-12-25T11:05:00.004Z

I'll have to admit this was one of my laziest hair days... I cowashed on Wednesday, airdried in 2 ponytails, wore my hair in a bun all of Thursday. On Thursday evening, I moistened with my moisturising spritz, applied lustrasilk shea butter cholesterol to each section and put in my cornrows for a braidout...

Result (Not Bad for 2 day hair!):

Okay, time to get on with my Christmas... LOL!

Christmas Holiday Eating

2009-12-24T11:23:00.000Z

It's so easy to eat, eat and eat some more on Xmas day and during the holidays. Years ago, when I was overweight, Xmas was the period when I gained the most weight every year! The last Xmas before I joined WeightWatchers and lost weight, I gained over 10 pounds!!!

This Xmas I had a plan: Eat VERY healthy the 2 weeks leading to the holiday so that on Xmas day, I can relax and be merry :-) I successfully did this but on Xmas eve I ate some chocolate :/

I decided not to beat myself up about it... I'm just not going to have any chocolate on Xmas Day, it doesn't really matter. It's only chocolate (lol)... When I set myself a target, I LOVE to meet it :-)

My Haircare Regimen

2009-12-23T11:32:00.004Z

HAIR
My regimen has changed very slightly during the course of my transition.

The main things I've stuck with are: cowashing ("washing" my hair with conditioner instead of shampoo) 3-4 times a week, Deep Conditioning 1-2ce a week and moisturising/sealing morning.

During the 1st 6 months, my usual styles included pinning up my hair (and using a headband to lay down my new growth), french braids (1 or 2) and braidouts. I rollerset only 2ce during my 1st 6 months.

Shortly after 6 months post relaxer, I tried out pixie braids... I was watching 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince' in the cinema, started playing in my hair... did about 5-6 small braids and stopped. When I got home, I liked how they looked so I took them out and braided all my hair (without extensions*):

These eventually became a part of my regime and now I put pixie braids in for 3 weeks and wear my hair out for a week, before putting them back in... and the cycle continues.

All through December 2009 (during my 12th month of transitioning), I decided to wear my hair out and I tried new things including - blowdrying (without a comb or brush but by stretching out my hair downwards in the area I was blowdrying), braidout on blowdried hair and a bantu knot out on blowdried hair... I also did a ponytail rollerset which I hadn't done in over a year :-) I've enjoyed this month of playing in my hair and I'm looking forward to my pixie braids in 2010.

I used to airdry my hair in one ponytail earlier in my transition but as I got further into my transition, it got increasingly difficult to get all my hair into one neat ponytail without putting too much stress on my edges. The main reason why I airdried this way was to ensure all my hair was straight anf my new growth was stretched as it dried....

I now airdry my hair in 3-4 ponytails when I'm home:

or

2 ponytails (ends tucked in) when I wash my hair after my workout on workday mornings:

In future posts, I'll go into more detail on everything I've mentioned and all, including products, etc.

* I don't wear extensions, weaves, wigs, etc. Although I'm worried I might have to in June 2010 for my friend's wedding (I'll be a bridesmaid) in our very very hot and humid country... yikes!!! I plan to still be transitioning, I'll start trying out styles in May that won't need me to go out of my comfort zone.

My transition is documented HERE (http://public.fotki.com/MummysGirl/transition-to-natural/)

I'll be back :-)

Brief Introduction...

2009-12-22T18:02:00.002Z

Hi!
I'm Mummy's Girl (I love and miss my Mummy, she passed away in 2008, I'll always love her).

My main interests are Fitness and Haircare, in no particular order.

HAIR
I am currently transitioning to natural hair... I've had relaxed hair for at least 70% of my life so far. Last time I remember being natural was in 2002/2003, this wasn't really intentional, it was more because my hair had suffered so much damage so I was in braids for about a year and wore my natural hair out during my final year @ university (02/03).

I relaxed shortly after graduating and finally took my hair into my own hands (literally) in 2007 and I've loved my hair ever since!

1 year progress picture (Aug 2008 - August 2008, I'd had 2 light trims):

My setback (December 2008):

I'll blog about my setback and what the main cause was very soon.

I decided to transition after my last relaxer and now I am one year post relaxer and aiming to transition for another year (December 2010) but my short term goal is June 2010 (18 month transition).

Here's a current picture of my hair, I picked this because my new growth is visible :-)

HEALTH/FITNESS
I used to be overweight between 1999-2002. In May 2002, I saw a picture of myself and I made an instant decision to lose weight... Two days later, I attended my 1st Weight Watchers meeting and a few months later, I was 40 pounds lighter.
I must admit I have periods when I get too relaxed and gain up to 10 pounds but I've never gone back to the weight I was before I joined Weight Watchers.

I currently go to the gym/workout 4-5 times a week and it's not hard work, it's not an obligation, it's part of my life and I love it!

Also, I'm currently studying/training to be a Personal Trainer because I am passionate about fitness & staying in shape and I want to help people do the same too. I have done one exam so far, which I passed :-) I should be fully qualified by April 2010.

I'd love to share as much as I know about fitness and I will educate myself more about nutrition and share ofcourse :-)

I believe this blog will help me stay on track with everything and hopefully be of help to people who decide to read it.

^^ That was as brief as I could go, lol!