One last summer evening at the beach…
I don’t normally post on Saturdays but I’ve had such an eventful weekend (more on that Monday)! I wanted to give you a quick update on some of the things we’ve been talking about on here that I didn’t think warranted their own post. Read if you’re interested, otherwise carry on Happy Weekending!
Jeans
After literally ripping the butt out of my own jeans last week, I realized that the time had come to finally be a grown-up and buy myself a real pair of pants that didn’t come from a thrift store or a hand-me-down from a friend. Even though I’d rather shop for swimsuits than denim, I marched myself into the nearest mall and handed my “athletic” thighs off to a girl who not only was half my age but whose thighs were half my size. Oy. But she’d come highly recommended by several friends so I sucked it up. After assessing my body type (which was awkward considering I am awesome and wore a maxi dress to the fitting thereby necessitating that her and I cram into a dressing room together so I could flash her), she picked three brands that would flatter me and brought me like 50 different pairs of jeans to try on. After an hour of wiggling in and out of dark wash denim, I finally settled on a pair that made my butt look fab, made my thighs look decent and overall looked adorable. I’ve been wearing them all week and I gotta say they feel amazing. (Which they better be considering how much they cost – eek.) They’re stretchy but they hold their shape. There’s still a little gap at my waist but it’s livable. And best of all my strong legs have plenty of breathing room! TA-DA!
Not because I’m advertising for them (believe me when I say I did not get these for free!) but because I know someone will ask: They’re Silver brand “Suki Surplus Curvy Fit” style with a mid rise, relaxed hip & thigh, bootcut leg.
I do believe my thighs are relaxed! The world is safe for squatting again.
Why yes I AM taking a picture of my butt in the mirror with my cell phone to post on the Internet. Stay classy, Charlotte.
Dairy
Milk is not my friend. It’s official. I’ve been off of dairy entirely for about three weeks now and not only have I not had any panic attacks but I’ve not even had a flutter of anxiety. Which is nothing short of a miracle for this girl. I haven’t felt this even in years. I know how kooky this sounds. (When I told my sister she said “Wow, you’ve officially become that girl. Next thing you know you’ll be pounding wheat grass shots and braiding hemp into your hair.”) But I’ve done a lot of research on lactose intolerance and dairy intolerances – a condition which over half the population has (90% if you’re black, 100% if you’re native American) – and I think what I’ve been calling panic attacks are really just a bad reaction to milk products. Most people think of lactose intolerance as bloating and gassiness but vomiting, diarrhea and severe pain are not unheard of. And I think that I would then panic because I was afraid of the pain and also because it was really painful. But placebo effect or read deal, it’s working and I’m sticking with it.
There was a lot of discussion in the comments of my post on this about whether this is just my same eating disorder, different day. And I really appreciate everyone who brought that up – it makes me feel really grateful that I have so many people in my life who care about me and want me to be healthy. So here’s the difference in my mind between my taking dairy out of my diet and my previous restrictions related to my EDs: 1) I am 100% open about this. I’m not hiding anything. I have discussed this in depth with my therapist, my MD, and my nutritionist. All of them are on board. 2) I’m not doing this to try and lose weight. I’m not actively trying to lose weight at all. And I’m not losing any weight (so far as I can tell from my clothes since I haven’t weighed myself at all since the debacle a couple of months ago). So please do stay on top of me in regards to the eating disorder stuff. It’s something I need to stay constantly vigilant about to avoid a relapse. But at this point in time it feels like nothing but utter relief to me. Losing ice cream is nothing compared to how calm and even I’ve felt the past few weeks.
Cheerleaders
Remember when I got to workout with the Minnesota Vikings cheerleaders? It was super fun and I wrote it up and did a slideshow for Shape.com. It went so well that I also wrote it up for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and they made it their front page feature of the variety section! Unfortunately there’s been a lot of controversy about the headline of the piece: “Vikings Cheerleaders: ‘Tougher Workouts Than Marines’ ” I did not write that headline. (Little known fact: most writers do not write their own headlines. Editors do. And the #1 criteria for a good headline is how many eyeballs it can catch. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!) The ensuing discussion has been interesting, entertaining and slightly insane. But if you read the whole article I think you’ll get a better sense of what the cheerleader meant when she said that.
Your Most Embarrassing Moments
Remember when I shared my top 10 most embarrassing fitness moments and asked you to share yours? Those of you who volunteered have your (hilarious, awesome, crazy) stories on Shape.com now! Thank you SO MUCH for your help!
Other Stuff I Wrote
Why It’s Great to be a Sports Fan: I’m really not much of a sports fan so when I posed this question on Facebook I was utterly amazed at how much meaning, joy, education and entertainment so many of you get from being a sports fan. I laughed, I cried, and I might have even changed my mind about watching a football game…
What Every Woman Needs to Know About Self Defense: Sensei Don made a comeback to give Gym Buddy Megan, Intern Brittney and I a primer on self defense. While you can’t learn everything you need to help protect yourself in 8 slides, he gives you some great places to start and skills to practice. (Plus this was one of the most hilarious photoshoots I’ve ever done. “Okay, now pin Megan down by her arms. Yeah, now straddle her. Can you stop looking so happy Megan?? It’s not THAT kind of picture.” Good times.)
Get Fit Tips From Fierce Women in Football: Didn’t know there were women in the NFL? Neither did I until I discovered these 10 amazing women.
What have you got going on this weekend?!
I bought jeans yesterday for the first time in 2 years! I like to get my jeans from Old Navy… they’re cheap-ish. Interestingly enough, they make a variety of ‘fits’ and I found I am different sizes in the different fits. I thought it was interesting seeing as how it’s all the same store!
I often find that jeans sizes are never the always the same. For me the different fits/styles were always a couple sizes different. It made for some very interesting time while I was losing weight… I was all over the place in sizes LOL.
Yay for new jeans! I’ve never had any luck with Old Navy but I’m glad you found some that work for you. And I too have found their sizing to be alll over the place!
It has been 2 weeks since I have been off my anti-depressant completely (1st 2 weeks were 1/2 does and then nothing) and I have had no symptoms at all. Maybe it is a combo of the gluten and dairy? I had been off dairy for a few years before going off gluten and didn’t have any relief from depression/anxiety and was not successful in coming off my meds. I am so excited. Happy for you too! HOpe it continues!
Me too! And I’m so glad that the combo is working for you! My nutritionist said that gluten and dairy issues often go hand in hand. I need to do more reading on it though to see if research supports the link…
I’m built very similar to you and I’ve got the ripped jeans to prove it. Silver jeans-Suki fit are my favorite! I’ve had two pairs for over 6 years each–they’re worth the investment.
I’m not sure if you have a Maurices near you, but they frequently have Silvers on clearance. I just scored a pair for $16!
Oooh thank you for the tip!! Now that I know what I like I’ll be on the lookout for them.
Oh this is something I need to do, and soon! Over the past 3-4 years I’ve shrunk by 30lbs, and currently sitting at 14-15% body fat which has meant that whilst shrinking I didn’t want to spend $$ on clothes so I shopped at thrift stores or bought cheap (walmart) clothing. Now though I’m realizing nothing goes together, and my clothes are falling apart. I have some spare cash so I just need to suck it up and go shopping, oh yeah didn’t mention that part – I HATE SHOPPING! I think I was born without that girly “yay shopping” gene!
I love Levi’s. I think it’s 505’s I have. Low rise (sometimes mid) boot cut.
I did put on an old pair of Calvin Kleins I got from a charity store yesterday, they fit like a glove! Totally slimming, but a bit dark for my tastes however my legs look AWESOME so I’m dealing with the darker color 😉
Yay for jeans that make your legs look aMAYzing! Congrats!
Love your jeans! Actually love that white sweater even more! 🙂 glad you found some squat worthy ones, id probably have less to complain about if all my jeans didn’t come from a thrift or dress for less outlet!
And I’ve been off milk 2- 3 months. Best decision I’ve made!
Hahah thanks! I love thrift stores too! And I’m glad to know that taking milk out has been helpful for you too – this is kind of new territory for me…
Is it just milk your off or all dairy foods? What about yogurt?
Sue
At the moment I’m not eating any dairy at all. My nutritionist said that as my gut heals I may be able to add things like yogurt and kefir back in. But for right now I’m staying off all of it.
What about calcium?
Sue
So jealous! Those jeans look great on you! I walked into the mall in search of jeans yesterday, wandered around in some of the big department stores wondering why everything was sooo disorganized, tried on like 3 pairs, and then fled. I think I lasted maybe 30 minutes and that even included eating a protein bar for sustenance that bought me like 10 extra minutes. Ugh! I ended up leaving with no jeans but a new pair of Mizuno’s. I think I know where my priorities are!
But I’m going to try it again next weekend with the fiance for moral support. I did find one pair that was okay but they didn’t have longs in the dark wash in my size (in addition to all the other issues I need longs too!) but by that point I was so shell-shocked I’m not totally sure. Figure I’ll try ’em on again and if I still like them I’ll order longs online. Plus I looked up and there’s a shop I didn’t check that carries Silver Brand so I’ll try that too.
Charlotte, I’d love to know where you went shopping for your jeans. I’ve decided to go with an awesome pair of tailored, blingy jeans for my wedding and would LOVE a recommendation!
I love Silver Jeans. I am an “athletic” build as well and the stretch in the Silver jeans is enough to allow me to sit at a desk, but still have some shape (without saggy butt) when I get up. I get mine from the junior’s department at Macy’s (MOA). The junior’s section is a little nutty, and the dressing rooms are scary, but the jeans section is off to the side. I think they may be cheaper in the junior’s section. Herberger’s sells them as well, and with some of their sales they can be a little more affordable.
Coming out of being a creepy lurker (ahem…reader) here! I know how much a good fitting pair of jeans can do for you self esteem! I’ve always had a love hate relationship with jeans, I’d so rather wear comfy jersey dresses, which thankfully I can do in Houston, but I’ve always fallen prey to buying jeans thinking eventually my body will change and I’ll fit them better (for me meaning that I”ll just keep eating a lot of desserts and spontaenously grow a butt haha) and then I have a bunch of saggy jeans that I hate. Then when I find a form fitting pair, I think oh no! But what if I gain weight, is it worth spending the money? My solution has also been to have like 12 pairs from the goodwill store that are at least cheap. AND I’ve found really expensive brand names so it’s not a bad deal!
Speaking of desserts, I can’t do dairy at all! Feels like I’m dying but I’ve never associated it with anxiety, I should see if there’s a link with me too. For ice cream, there’s TONS of options! Coconut milk ice cream is amazing and doesn’t just come in coconut flavors, check out so delicious, nada moo, and tempt brands. I don’t understand why even non lactose intolerant people eat regular ice cream anymore 🙂
Yay for no more panic attacks and anxiety. I’ll eat some ice-cream for the both of us then 🙂
I wear Suki’s too! Gotta love them!
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