How I Grew To Love My Belly

I have talked about my self esteem struggle many times on this blog. Too many damn times. Lol. Falling in love with myself and my body has been an uphill battle but I am winning!
For the past few months I have been seeing the fruits of all my inner labor. The praying and believing inspired me to take the actions that changed my life. No more young, wild living. Taking care of myself is now a top priority.
The inside is good, now I'm focusing on the outside. First thing's first, I have to get my body and fashion together. I blogged about fashion for the first time in my last post. Expect more, too. :)
As far as my body goes I started working out using a high interval intensity workout called Turbo Fire. Ever heard of Insanity? Well, Turbo Fire is the same workout only put to music and catered to women. I love it! My body has started to change shape and I'm slimming down nicely after only a couple of months. I'm feeling myself so much that I posted the above pic on Instagram showing off my progress with the caption "Fat & fabulous is the mission..." Meaning, I don't wanna be skinny just in love with the skin I'm in.

I was even inspired to go strapless last week. Can't even remember the last time I did that! Not to mention that this denim one-piece is a size Large when I was buying 2X and 3X. What a freakin' difference!

So to all of you ladies that are fighting the battle of the bulge I encourage you to keep on pushing. It is possible to reach whatever goals you set. It's simple to do, but it's not easy so it will take some motivation and strength but you can do it.

If you have any tips on how I can become a slimmer, sexier me or want to share your weightloss journey hit up the comment section below.

Smooches,

Rashida :)

Rashida Reviews: "Success Never Smelled So Sweet" by Lisa Price

Who hasn't heard the incredible success story of Lisa Price, creator of the Carol's Daughter brand of products? Lisa started creating her products for herself in her kitchen at home. Carol's Daughter has grown into a multimillion dollar enterprise with Oprah as one of it's biggest fans and Jay-Z as a major investor.
To say that this book inspired me would be an understatement. Lisa went through low self-esteem, betrayal, death, being broke and so much more. No matter what though, she pushed through it. In this book she not only shares her life story, she also shares business advice, a little food for the soul, and some recipes for scrubs and creams to get you through those tough times. This is a book for businesswomen as well as just us regular ladies. There is no way that you can read this book and not want to chase your dreams.

Pride and Inspiration

At 57 years old, my mother decided to go back to school to get her GED. This shocked me! My mom has been through so much in her life. She grew up suffering abuse from my grandmother so she left home at 15 and had my oldest sister at 16. By the time she was 22 years old she had 4 daughters and she was struggling to take care of them on her own.
She went back home to get some help from my grandparents and it backfired on her. Shortly after moving in, the constant arguing and fighting with my grandmother got to be too much for her so she left my sisters there while she got on her feet. Soon after my sisters were adopted by my grandparents.
My mother got a job, found an apartment, and settled down and had me and my brother. She continued to be an important figure in my sisters lives. It was hard because they had been brainwashed for years into thinking that my mother was a horrible person who left them because she didn't love them. My sisters endured the same abuse that my mom, aunts, and uncles did from my grandmother. So once they became teenagers, they left and came back to my mom.
For years my mother and father worked and supported my siblings and I. We weren't rich, but I was never homeless or hungry. I had a great childhood, for the most part and I thank my parents so much for that.
When my grandparents got sick my mother, father, and I moved into their home to take care of them. She put her life on hold to make sure that they were okay even after the hell they put her through for her entire life.
She suffers from heart disease, she still supports my father through his alcoholism, and yet she found the strength to put the peices of her life back together. The pride and inspiration that I feel now seeing her go to class everyday is unexplainable! She's overcome so much in her life but she never gave up. She was never depressed. She was never bitter.
She was only strong and determined to live. My hero!