Weight Loss Season Hype- Don’t Get Sucked In
“I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!” This quote is from a very famous 1976 movie called, Network. I was a teen when this came out and I recall seeing Peter Finch brilliantly deliver that famous line as Howard Beale. Now it’s my turn to use it.
It’s April, spring is a comin’ and with that comes the excess of weight loss ads. Even on my Facebook page there’s a push for a green tea bean and how to burn 30 lbs of belly fat per month effortlessly. It’s killing me. Quite honestly, I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!
Right around the time Peter Finch was given his Academy award for his role as Howard Beale, I entered the health and fitness industry. I was four. 
Although awareness about obesity has certainly increased, obesity back in 1976 was 8.7%., and today it is 34.7% . Obesity and its related diseases costs our country 190 billion dollars in healthcare and lost productivity. Yet, health clubs and diet programs grow in popularity right along with the American waistline.
The thing that leaves me scratching my head is why those that desperately need health clubs don’t go. Given my experience from a personal and professional perspective, I can answer that question, intimidation, unrealistic expectations, fear, feeling out of place, indifference from staff and lack of the truth. Now before my health and fitness friends shout at me, there are a number of very honest, ethical health and fitness professionals and clubs I admire. I just wish there were more. However, with every great, honest health and fitness pro, there are 5 behind him or her waiting to push the latest fad diet, supplements and God knows what else.
I was in business for 20 years doing everything I could to educate, motivate and inspire my clients to get healthy the old fashioned way. I hope I made a difference to some. But, thanks to The Biggest Loser and uneducated fitness pro’s that promise 20 pounds in 20 days, my honesty and real life approach was trumped all the time.
So who’s fault is it that our country still battles the bulge and opts for medication over recreation? It’s both sides. 
- Consumers have got to know at this point that anything that sounds too good to be true- is.
- Consumers have to know that it starts with taking a long, hard look at lifestyle and realizing that things have to change, not overnight, but change must occur.
- Consumers have to know that beating yourself up mentally and physically is NOT the way to achieve good health, it’s quite the opposite.
- Consumers need to know that there are health and fitness professionals out there actually interested in helping clients go through the process, safely and effectively so that weight loss isn’t temporary but sustainable.
- Consumers have to understand, work is involved and at times it’s hard. Then it simply becomes a question of whether or not you’re ready. If anyone tells you weight loss is easy, they’re lying.
- Health and Fitness clubs have got to know that for someone walking in to a health club overweight and out of shape, it is terribly intimidating. Please have someone working the front end that gets it, not someone who is bored with their job and intolerant of incoming guests.
- Health and fitness clubs need to welcome and respect those that can’t withstand an initial hour-long class that includes squats and lunges as their first class. (I see this all the time).
- Health and fitness professionals have got to denounce the fast-n-easy weight loss scams out there, stick together and create an alliance for ethical health and fitness practices.
- Health and fitness professionals can play an amazing role in the health and wellness of our country as long as they understand what the deconditioned client needs to be motivated and ultimately successful. It’s got to be a solid partnership.
- Health and fitness professionals have an obligation to put clients first and “do no harm.” Check out IDEA’s Code of Ethics.
I have to say, I dread this time of year as much as I do December, resolution season. Weight loss adverts ad nauseam.
If you’re currently frustrated because you didn’t stick to your goals, don’t be, 98% of people don’t. Instead be more realistic. Don’t buy in to the promises of fast and easy weight loss, thinner thighs in thirty days because aside from all those promises it’s really about you and your health. The only reason you should change your lifestyle if you’re currently inactive or dealing with excess weight is y our health, period. I’ve kept 50 pounds off for over 30 years, not because I’m a rock star but because I remember what it felt like to carry that extra weight and I know what my body feels like now, it’s a marked improvement. At almost 52, I’m medication free.
Save yourself money and frustration. If you need help getting on track and staying there, hire a qualified professional that doesn’t make ridiculous promises. Find someone who puts your health first.
If you remember nothing else when those crazy weight loss commercials come on, remember these three things:
1. If diets worked, obesity would be non-existent. 2. The only way to get yourself healthy for the long-term is find a way to move everyday, even if it starts with a walk around the block, and focus on eating less food with more nutritional value.
3. It’s weight loss season and the hype is here, don’t get sucked in.
Here’s to a healthy spring and a healthy you.
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
No BS Weight Loss Tips
When I lost 50 pounds over 35 years ago, it was the first time in my life that I paid attention to the food I was putting in my body. It was also the first time I fell in love with cooking. Thirty-five years later I continue to learn about food, the good, the bad and the ugly. If you continue to lose your way in the maze of unhealthy diets, perhaps this post may help in your journey toward healthy eating.
Healthy eating starts at home
I have learned over the years that to eat healthy you must have a healthy relationship with food. It really starts with an appreciation of food which is realized when you do your own cooking. I’m not saying you have to become Martha Stewart, I’m simply suggesting that healthy eating begins when you’re up close and personal with food.
When I decided to lose weight all those years ago, shopping, preparing and enjoying my own creations educated me on what foods go together and how to keep all of the flavor while reducing calories, fat and sodium. Had I not learned to cook, I may not have kept my weight off all these years.
There may be some of you who cringe at the idea of having to cook. Even starting with just a few meals a week at home is a start. Keep it simple. But trust me here, the more you learn about the power and flavor of real food, the greater chance of wanting to cook more at home. Cooking at home results in healthier meals and greater nutritional punch.
Culinary Confusion
Since losing my weight, food trends are out of control. Lets walk through them and see which ones may sound familiar. When my kids were little, it was low-fat or no-fat. Then Susan Powter hit the world touting high carb and low protein. Then there was the oat bran craze, cabbage soup, food combining, low carb, Atkins, Paleo and gluten-free. I’m sure I’ve left a few out, but these are the most memorable. Now, what do all of these food trends have in common? They have all been used not for health, but for weight loss. Every time a new food trend hits the media, weight loss is typically the motive behind its success.
I have always believed that there are elements in each one of those diets that are redeeming. However, most of them are nothing more than a fad that helps drop pounds quickly yet rarely if ever is health focused, simply weight focused. Hence why obesity is alive and well.
Get Back to Basics
When I was pregnant I was dedicated to feeding myself and my unborn child well. I gave up alcohol, stayed away from foods that might be toxic (fish) and exercised daily. The idea of dieting was not even a thought. My focus was my unborn child. I believe this is true for most women. So, the question becomes why are we willing to risk our health by doing less than healthy things for our body when we’re not pregnant?
What I have discovered is that you’ve got one shot to make your health a priority. Figuring out the facts and myths surrounding food is next to impossible because there is so much conflicting information out there.
After thirty-five years I have learned the real truth behind healthy eating and healthy weight:
- Trust yourself. Deep down inside you know a good choice from a bad one. Green beans good, French fries not so much.
- Don’t jump on the latest food trends, they will be temporary and if they have staying power, read more about it. Look at the research and educate yourself.
- The healthier the food, the fewer ingredients. Have you ever seen fresh fruits or veggies with an ingredient list? No, because its straight up good for you, solid nutrition.
- Get back to basics. Eating too much is not good for you. Fried foods, processed foods, high sugar and salty foods are not good for you. Less is more when it comes to meat, saturated fat, sodium and portions.
- Eat for yourself, not for weight loss. You’ll likely choose more wisely. Further, a byproduct of healthier eating is weight loss.
Fresh fruits and veggies should be eaten all the time, not as a diet strategy, but as a health strategy.
Don’t choose food for weight, choose it for health.
If there’s one tried and true “secret” that I’ve learned over the years it is, eating for health vs. weight. This approach is actually the best way to lose or manage weight. Think about it, if you’re able to focus on the foods that are naturally good for you, you will weed out the less healthy foods that caused the excess weight to begin with. Sticking with whole, fresh foods is the surest way to a healthier you.
Trust yourself to make the right choices. Focus on your health and understand its a process. I learn something new everyday. I also seek to learn as much as I can so I can make the best decisions for my health. Isn’t your health worth it?
Two of my favorite new reads include: Julieanna Hever’s- The Complete Idiots Guide to Plant Based Nutrition and David Grotto’s Book, The Best Things You Can Eat.
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
Why people fear exercise
Is this the only route to fit?
When I was a trainer, the most common belief amongst my clients was that I jumped out of bed every morning with a smile on my face yelling from the rooftops, “I LOVE EXERCISE!” Truth be told, I don’t. Unfortunately, today exercise stirs up a much more negative connotation versus 50 years ago. In other words, many people don’t even get started because they fear that exercise has to be all or nothing.
When my Grandmother was growing up she was very active. She lived on a farm and got regular exercise. When I was little I always played outside, there was no such thing as video games so I was outside being active and getting regular exercise. No advertisements, no push to exercise, being active was simply part of life back then.
Thanks to advances in technology there are more things today to keep us sedentary versus active. Therefore, we’ve had to connect with exercise in an unnatural way, in that we have to make time for it versus simply being active in our day to day lives which used to be enough. Not to mention that the food consumption was significantly different 50 years ago.
Today exercise is a challenge of the strongest, fastest, fittest people. To just walk is perceived as a less than cool activity which makes Crossfit the antithesis of walking. With each new report that the obesity battle continues, there arises new, more intense fitness programs. Each of these programs brag about their ability to leave participants weeping like a baby on the floor or if they’re lucky, puking their brains out because they gave it their all. That’s where my love or even like of exercise stops.
The idea of exercise which consists of tears, pain and the highly coveted throw-up session is not a draw for me. Now there will be those that say it’s not true, high intensity exercise does not encourage any of those t hings. Well, I will agree that responsible exercise does not encourage nor tout crying for your mama, writhing in pain or hunting down the nearest toilet to let go of your last meal. However, I see hundreds of ads, articles and websites that encourage blood, sweat and tears as a badge of courage.
I cannot in any way take away from those that truly love that sort of challenge. But the promotion and encouragement of that type of activity intimidates many folks that may want to start an exercise regime. I know on the days where I just go for a walk, I feel a bit wimpy. And I’m in the 35% of those that exercise on a regular basis! How must those folks feel that don’t exercise?
The bottom line is this. Exercise has morphed in to this world of fast and furious for it to matter, but that’s not so. Sure, if I do 100 squats and 100 pushups and carry a tire over my shoulder for 50 feet, not only am I a stud, I’m probably in pretty good shape. But the truth is I don’t want to do that, but that shouldn’t make me feel like anything less is pointless.
I want to be proud of anything that I do to contribute to my health and if that means a walk on a regular basis, so be it. If I want to do a yoga class a few times a week and I don’t leave crying because I pushed myself beyond what is normal doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter, it does. Any amount of activity that you can do counts.
I hate the idea of exercising so intensely that I can’t walk for 3 days following. I hate the idea of being so sore that every time I go to sit down my eyes water. I hate the idea of thinking that if I don’t exercise for at least an hour, it’s pointless.
But here’s what I love:
I love when I get some activity in my day-to-day life be it a walk, bike ride or swim. I love when I feel invigorated and proud when I’m done exercising, not exhausted but invigorated.
I love when I finish exercising and look forward to the next opportunity I have to be active, on my terms. I feel incredibly proud when I finish a run especially when my motivation to do it was weak at best.
For the record, I’m not judging someone who enjoys exercising till they drop, God bless them. What I’m trying to get across is for the 68% of people that don’t exercise on a regular basis, if they think they have to kill themselves to be fit, they’ll never do it. Exercise should not be a scary proposition, nor should it hurt. For beginners will it be hard? Likely yes, but that’s like anything new. New things are always a challenge. But the idea of exercise should inspire possibilities for good health, not conjure up thoughts of fear and pain.
A solid walk counts, a great yoga class that respects your limitations counts, heck any class you take that respects your limitations counts. Exercise is about doing what your body was designed to do, move. There is no reason to beat yourself up during an exercise session in order for it to count. Find what works for you, what you like or maybe even love. Only then will you be able to embrace activity and realize that whatever you do to be more fit and healthy is a great thing! You don’t have to kill yourself for it to count!
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!!
It’s National Nutrition Month- Celebrate Your Health!
It’s not about skinny, it’s about healthy!
Over 30 years ago I made the switch from a sedentary, fast-food lifestyle to a relatively active lifestyle eating well most of the time.
I remember Christmas in 1979, it was a year after I lost 50 pounds (note-the weight loss followed my healthy changes, not the other way around). I was heading to my Grandparents house ready to overindulge in holiday fare. I felt that I had deserved it because I really hadn’t eaten any unhealthy food in so long. I picked up my plate and headed towards the buffet table. I felt like a kid in a candy store without adult supervision. I felt that I deserved to eat all of the foods I had been denied for so long. So, I took one of everything.
What I hadn’t realized is although I wanted every morsel of food on my plate, my body had been trained to crave what it needs not what I wanted. At that moment I understood the importance of listening to my body, not my diet head.
What’s interesting is that your body will often tell you what it needs, whereas diet head will scream for ice cream! I had completely dismissed the fact that I felt great because I had let go of junk food. Yet for some crazy reason I felt compelled to knock off an entire plate of sweets and foods I had given up over a year ago. That was until I reconnected with my healthy head.
Remember, it is the dieting lifestyle that sets you up to want the foods that your diet forbids. As long as you continue to follow diet rules you will continue to crave, desire, dream about less healthy foods versus taking the steps to listen to your body and give it what it needs, healthy food.
As we recognize National Nutrition Month try to listen closely to your body. Think about how you feel when you eat well, versus how you feel when you eat garbage. Your body knows and is communicating with you all the time, you simply need to listen.
During the month of March, I will blog about nutrition in my ongoing effort to inspire you to stay focused on what makes you healthy, happy and productive. It all starts with what you put in your mouth!
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
Sally Field Made Me Do It! Gray Expectations 11
67 years and nay a gray!
Have you seen Sally Field lately? Well, here she is! Holy cow, at 66 the woman looks fantastic! I recently saw her on Ellen and I couldn’t believe it was her. Of course the first thing I noticed was- no gray.
Like Sally Field, I am petite. At barely 5’2″ I can’t help but feel that contributes to looking younger than my 51 years. Sally Field is 5’3″ and looks no where near her 66 years. That and the combination of hair color definitely shaves off a few years.
Aside from no sign of gray (yes, I’m sure she colors it) she is vibrant, fit and easily looks 20 years her junior even on HDTV!
At the risk of slighting my lovely gray haired friends, I have to say that if she were gray she may not have caught my attention. I was really amazed at how youthful she looked and how she carried herself. I believe it is a total package. If you’re dying your hair, but feeble and unable to get around, you age yourself. If you’re gray, fit and energetic, you don’t. However, if gray doesn’t compliment you, no matter how fit you are, it will indeed age you. I’m experiencing that right now.
Therefore, I have to acquiesce to those who said gray hair does make you look older. I am beginning to believe it’s true, regardless of health, activity and energy. But here’s what is interesting, I’ve learned that my gray haired friends are not interested in the looking younger piece, they simply like the way they feel with their gray locks. And the same holds true for those who color their hair, they simply like the way they feel.
A quote by Yves Saint Laurent, “I have always believed that fashion was not made only to make women more beautiful, but also to reassure them, give them confidence.” I believe this statement holds true for hair color.
So here’s my deal, I am so not a quitter. At times I can be annoyingly tenacious. Therefore, the decision to go back to coloring my hair leaves me feeling a bit vulnerable. First, I worry I may not have given the experiment of going completely gray a fair shot. So how do I really know? Trust me, I know.
Enough gray to know.
One of my readers wrote, “Nicki it’s winter, no one looks good in the winter.” Though I agree with her comment, I’d like to make the most of the winter blahs by doing something which elevates my self-confidence versus squashing it. Gray isn’t it, for me anyway.
Second, I despise losing. And somehow I feel like I’m losing by not seeing this whole thing through. However at the end of the day, I set the challenge and went in to it blind and excited. Four months later, my sight is back and excitement has waned. Conclusion? My experiment, my choice to change my mind.
So, yes, yes I’m giving up. I’m throwing in the towel (insert dramatic sob here). I’m back tracking on my journey. But wait, here’s the great part, I have not gone through this process in vain. I have garnered some gray-t insight. Here’s what I’ve learned.
- Never make a year long commitment public. It’s like posting you’re going to lose 25 pounds and someone sees you downing a chocolate shake. It sucks to get called out.
- No two people look the same- in anything! I have a whole new appreciation for gray haired women who wear it well and with confidence.
- Pay attention to what makes you feel good whether it’s wearing a certain color, certain clothing or hair style. How you feel about yourself (regardless of what others think) can alter the course of your day!
- Whatever you wear, wear it with confidence.
- I needed a haircut!
- I don’t look good in gray- clothing or hair color.
So, the next time I come up with some great idea or experiment, perhaps one of you will talk me down from the ledge. However, with every new endeavor comes life lessons and during the last 4 months, I’ve learned some pretty great lessons, connected with some great women, and learned color is a personal preference, not a moral decision. Here’s to your fabulous color, whatever it may be.
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
Getting Personal with Gray – Gray Expectations 10
(This is what I thought I’d look like.)
O.K. so I have to be completely honest. I’m sort of over it, the gray thing. No, I’m not going back on my plan just yet but hear me out.
As women, feeling good about yourself is extremely important. I surmise that’s true for just about anyone. For some it’s rockin’ a great outfit, or it may be pretty lingerie. For others it’s having an incredible hair day. I don’t know about you, but an incredible hair day ranks right up there with a chocolate truffle.
But let’s admit it, when we’re having a bad hair day or can’t find a single thing to wear somehow the day just doesn’t have its normal pizazz. When my hair looks great, I feel great. When I have the good fortune of actually pulling together an outfit that matches, (where are the adult Garanimals?) I feel like I’ve won the lotto.
So the gray. I feel like I have perpetual bed head. Remember I was telling you about the different textures of gray? Yeah, well I pulled the short straw, mines wiry.
I looked back on the comments from many of you and was reminded that it doesn’t matter what color your hair is if you feel good! I know it’s early in the game, so how can I really tell? Well, let’s run through a few of the comments I received when I started this project.
- “Why would you want to look old? As long as there’s hair color, I’ll never be gray.” Since I embarked on this experiment, I have met some lovely gray haired women. I can’t really say it made them look older because they wear it so well. So I’m not ready to say I look old. Drab? Yes. I’m beginning to look drab which translates to feeling drab.
- ” I would never color my hair. I’m proud of every gray hair I have, I’ve earned it.” Will wrinkles suffice? God knows I’ve earned those. Further, if you FEEL good gray that’s brilliant. Regardless of hair color, most take the time to get it cut and styled because it makes them feel good. Therefore, it keeps coming back to personal preference- what makes you feel good?
- “The only reason I don’t have gray hair is because it washes me out, but otherwise I’d do it.” Common theme, how one feels. If you look good, do it. But if you don’t feel good about yourself why keep it, right?
Wiry gray.
I’m sure all of you have a color or style of clothing you never wear. You don’t wear it because it doesn’t suit you. I’m a brunette with olive skin, I’d never go blonde. Eeek! Not to mention my contrasting black eyebrows wouldn’t make for a good look.
At this point, it’s not that I don’t feel good about myself, I just feel like I’m wearing something that doesn’t compliment me. These thoughts take me back to the initial reason I started this whole thing.
Will the way I feel internally change? Well, it has a little bit. I’m realizing that going gray is not about wrong or right, it’s what compliments me. I don’t wear hats because I don’t feel good in them, while others do. Some woman glow in yellow, I appear jaundiced. The point is that we don’t wear things that don’t look good on us, and I don’t think hair color is any different.
So here’s where I’m at with this. I will continue on this journey because my curiosity is still alive and well. However, if I notice that I’m avoiding going outside for fear of people seeing my hair well then it’s time to make a change. As my friend said to me, “Life is too short not to feel pretty.” I couldn’t agree more.
So another day, another bit of gray. For now, I’m good. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
Nicki
Will Vanity Prevail? Gray Expectations – 9
Gray confusion!
O.K. I admit it, I’m second guessing my crossing in to the world of gray. This past week I was being interviewed for a video and after the shoot, it was brought to my attention that the videographer had me pegged at 38 years old. “Really? Wow!” Then I was brought back to reality. Ugh, I’m going gray. Six months from now he’d likely guess my real age, maybe even older. (Vanity enters stage right). I immediately jumped to conclusions bringing on a cycle of negative scenarios of my gray choice. Further, this past week I mastered combing my hair as to discretely cover the gray that now dominates my part. That’s not a good sign, right? The fact that I’m still covering it up and now worried that I won’t look younger than my age? Damn the vanity!
O.K. I need to relax. First of all, it’s becoming more evident that the gray I anticipated will likely be salt and pepper. So, I’m not going to be Barbara Bush gray. Second, my hair is a contemporary style and I’m not wearing orthopedic shoes (no offense to those who do). Third, my whole reason for letting my hair go gray was to experience the 
process and see if colored hair not only made me look older but feel older. So, I need to get back to the motive for my experiment vs. my vanity. (Vanity exists stage left).
Maybe this is the first of many lessons of my experiment. What’s more important, how I feel or how I look? In the words of Vidal Sassoon, (here’s a link for you youngin’s that have never heard of him), “It’s more important to look good than to feel good.” Personally, I think it’s more important to feel good internally in order to project a positive exterior. I suppose that means if I feel good about my new hair color, I’ll look good. If I look good, I’ll feel good.
So lesson #1, Lighten up! Embrace the process. If I feel good, I’ll project it, if I don’t, I’ll change it. I’ve just got 10 months and 14 days to embrace the process and the new look.
Is it me or is time passing at a snails pace?
Here’s to never wishing for more time, rather making the most of it!
Gray Expectations – Full Disclosure 7
1994, short.
O.K. ladies let’s talk hair stories, (men feel free to chime in).
I want to talk about 3 things that many of us have or will experience, but never talk about.
First, eyebrow color change. Second, hairline cover ups. Third, hair styles, the good, the bad and the ugly.
In the eyebrow department, I’m good. But until I decided to try this gray experiment, I hadn’t even thought about eyebrows going gray. But like other hair, (other meaning a conversation for another blog) it also goes gray. Hmm. My stylist told me that people who have gray eyebrows have to color their brows to match their colored hair. Now I’m an eyebrow stalker. I always notice people’s eyebrows. Some are barely there, others that don’t quite match hair color, and of course the low maintenance ones, gray that goes with gray. Any of you in to the brow dying?
Dorothy Hamill look
O.K. hairline coverage. I’d like to think I’m not the only dork here that when overdue for a hair color, resorts to my mascara to cover up those pesky gray hairs. Well, am I? I know, I know there are professional products that cover gray between hair appointments, but when you run out, you have to have a backup plan. For me, mascara does the trick. Leaves hair a little stiff, but no one is running their fingers through my hairline, so I’m good.
My last disclosure, the ugly of hair styles. As you can see, this lovely hairdo was inspired by Whitney Houston.
- Whitney
Somehow she looks significantly better wearing this ‘do than moi.
So, how many hairstyles have you had over the years? Between bad perms, pixie cuts, shag, Dorothy Hamill, etc. I’ve had ‘em all. I’m always able to tell what year it is in pictures based on my hairstyle (glasses are the same way, right?) However, there are those that NEVER change their hairstyle, they keep it the same for years.
So perhaps this gray endeavor is simply a phase that will pass, or I may find that I like it and the color will stay. No matter what I choose, styles and trends will continue in the world of hair, so I will find what I like, and try it until the next trend pulls me in.
Cheers!
Nicki
Gray Expectations – Shades of Gray 5
Have you ever purchased a car that you thought was unique both in style and color, only to find out that your choice wasn’t so original? Suddenly every third car is the same model and color as yours. Hmmm.
Susan Axelrod chatting with Caroline Kennedy.
Well, I’m having the same experience with women and gray hair. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve noticed a lot more gray hair on women than ever before. I’m sure that my spidey senses are in overdrive, but the fact is they are out there. (I see gray haired people.)
Just this past week, there was a story about David Axlerod (Obama’s political advisor) shaving off his mustache because the epilepsy foundation that he and his wife Susan started, raised over 1 million dollars. As his wife looked on, I noticed a sassy, silver haired, lovely young woman. I did some research and it looks like she’s always had it and in my opinion, she wears it well.
Since embarking on this fun journey, I have received some fascinating emails and even a phone call from my 5th grade art teacher who is a gray believer. “I just love my hair the way it is. I never thought about it being right or wrong, it was just the way it was meant to be. By the way Nicki, it’s silver, not gray.” Alrighty, silver it is!
A couple of days ago, I ran in to an old friend and she asked,” This is a joke, right? You’re not really doing that, right? You’re just doing this for something to write about, right?” My response was, “No.” She walked away mumbling to herself something about a crazy woman. I didn’t catch all of it, probably because my hearing is going. Right? Doesn’t that happen to silver haired people?
I also received an email from a lovely woman who shared her story as a cancer survivor. She told me that she didn’t have a choice about her hair color. Once she started receiving treatment, she lost all of her hair. While her hair was growing in, she chose to wear different wigs and loved playing with hair color. Her hair came in grey, but she didn’t care much for the color, so she still enjoys wearing her wigs. Hmmm, maybe she’s on to something. She did suggest that I shave my head so that my authentic hair would grow in. You all have said that I’m brave, but I am not that brave. They’ll be no shaved head for this gal. But don’t think for a brief moment I didn’t consider it.
So ladies, and even men, if you’ve decided to go au naturel, please continue sending me your stories. I’ve got a great collection so far that I will share, anonymously, as I move forward. And for those of you that would rather scrape your knuckles on a grater vs. letting your colorist retire, I want to hear from you too!
I love adventures. In 5 days I go to my first “going gray” hair appointment. Photos to follow!
Here’s to a positive spirit that never tells your age!
Nicki
Gray Expectations – Gray Chic- 4
So, who would have thought that gray is the new black? It seems to be among the young Hollywood crowd. If Pink can sport it, why can’t I? Seriously, how cute is this? I know, I know it’s Pink and she’s 20 years younger, and a rock star. But still, it seems Hollywood is jumping on the silver hair bus. You think they’ve been reading my posts? Have I started a trend?
I have to say, I find this fascinating. What do you think? I’m thinking I’m a lot more hip than I gave myself credit for. (My kids will likely laugh when they read that line.) If these young girls are jumping on the silver bus, than this gal is driving!
Although, I can’t imagine any reason young girls would want to go silver – it may have something to do with the cougar thing. Perhaps younger girls actually want to look older. If that’s the case, hell has frozen over!
As I move forward in this journey, it’s nice to know I’ll have some younger company. Let’s see who wears it better.
Here’s to a positive spirit that never tells your age!
Nicki
