Take the Transit: Diet Wright

First, a lil' Catching up!

As many of you are mentally preparing to listen to long lectures by college professors, I ,on the other hand, am preparing a vibrant classroom with the intent of teaching 5th grade Language Arts- auditoriums filled with seats are for old people! In my preparation, I've enjoyed moving my millions of boxes, unpacking, decorating and organizing my classroom. All of which I've endured in temperatures of 80 degrees as they've turned the air off to save money on the school budget. However, I've been prepared: toting bottles of gatorade, recycling by refilling with fountain water and eating every now and again to make sure I don't faint!

Through all of this, I thought of you! I apologize for my absence! But u do understand-life has REALsponsibilities!! This fall will mark my 3rd year of teaching and each year as the school year starts I create a diet plan to include a morning breakfast, snacks throughout the day, a filling but not trytophan induced lunch and an after school snack as I usually stay until 5 PM. This food plan isn't necessarily created to follow the daily servings but enough to ensure that my stomach doesn't croak like a FROG in the middle of teaching!

As I began to make my list last night, I realized that I eat so healthy through the school year and straight up pig out during the summer! From August to June, my diet is jammed packed with proteins, minerals, nutrients and water! Perhaps this is the reason I see an abundance of growth at the beginning of each school year! Today, I spent about $50 on food that should last me at least two weeks. Normally, I don't have much time to eat and allow my food to digest as I move around the classroom, so I try to stick to grab and go foods that are nutritional.

Now, onto your diet

The following is my shopping list of healthy foods that just happen to promote healthy hair or hair growth! Now, don't go grab your purse and head to the local grocery store once you're done reading! First create a diet plan and a means to stick to it! Just like in a well managed classroom, routines are key. Look at your daily schedules and determine where you need an energy boost, when you have time to eat and how much time you can devote to eating. Once you've created a diet plan, then you can head to your grocery store!

Remember, hair is a protein, so by adding yogurt, eggs, tofu, fish and beans you are creating a diet rich in protein!

Tilapia: I'm not a big meat eater, unless I go out to eat, so I try to stick to light "meats." Fish is a great alternative and is high in protein and omega 3! I usually just season, put it in the oven at 375 for about 15 minutes and waa-lah!


Romaine Salad: Why Romain and not house or ceasar? Well, for starters it's greener and crunchier: personal preference. I don't eat it alone, I usually add it to a sandwhich to give me the idea of eating more! All green vegetables are high in Vitamin A and Vitamin C which help your body to create sebum!


Whole Grain Bread: Be careful as there are several bread companies to choose from! Not all bread is good bread! I choose Arnold as it contains double protein, 12g per slice, 19g of Whole wheat and a few other fru-frus that I was like "Oh Wow!" Whole wheat promises to give you energy and tons of Vitamin B which makes for a great midday sandwich!


Dairy Products: Anyone who knows me knows that I can have cereal and be left alone! Dairy is a great source of calcium, whey and casein, the last two being proteins! Try adding low-fat cream cheese to a bagel, skim milk with a bowl of cereal or yogurt as an afternoon snack. Granted it wont fill you up, but it'll keep you from pulling into the drive-thru line.


Orange foods: I'm sure you heard eat your greens, well eat your oranges too! Carrots, yams, sweet potatoes and oranges are a great source of Vitamin D! This vitamin helps to ensure a healthy scalp, which is vital to hair growth.


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Now, these are foods that I try to eat throughout the week, with a goal of atleast once a day. Test out your research skills: Do you know of other foods that promote healthly hair growth?

HAIRstory #1

TEMP or PERM?

I say BOTH bc the FLORIDA temp encouraged me to get a perm! In 2004 I was elected as Sophomore Attendant for FAMU. If we rewind a bit, I got my hair cut Thankgiving 2003, hair colored Xmas 2003 and then I was rocking a short bob. I decided to get a perm in April 2004 because of the humid temperature in Florida. After 7 years of having natural hair, I had to change my hair care regimen. Don't get me wrong, my hair was heat damaged for sure, but I was able to do more with my hair than wear it straight.

With permed hair, it was a weekly wash, blow dry and straighten. Then I would have limp made bouncy hair that blew in the wind. Each night I would wrap my hair, on occasion pin curl the front to create more bounce, but more than likely wake up the next morning and curl the crown for the effect. The texture of my permed hair is very similar to type 2, including the silky sheen. With that in mind, any sebum (natural scalp oil) on my hair - I was done and I would have to wash my hair all over again and blow dry and flat iron and curl...tedious. I thought that by perming my hair I would eradicate this process of doing my hair as often! Wrong, I was doing my hair more with a perm than without.

So, I kept the short cut, even kept the perm. In some ways it was easier than my natural hair. It was faster, the process of straightening my hair. It was straight as soon as I washed it! Give me 20 minutes and I was ready! I'm not sure what shampoo I was using or what conditioner, I defintely wasn't using any oils because that weighed my hair down and I'd have to start all over-AGAIN!

But I do know that my hair was missing something. Look into my eyes in the picture. It's almost as if I am asking you, "What do you need me to do?" I'm on a bus in this picture...very true..everything else was in control of my life at this point. Being on the Royal Court is such a demanding job. You don't get the opportunity to enjoy your college experience. It's fun, don't get me wrong, but my sophomore year, shruggin, all I remember is an orange suit, an orange dress, a khaki suit, a crown, a sash, a pair of ugly brown shoes, sitting up straight, waving to the crowd, long bus rides, seclusion, not being able to get my own food, not eating in public, the slurs, the snickers, LET ME STOP LISTING!

Getting a perm was easy! A 20 minute process that left me without a clue of what to do! So I came up with this idea: I'll wash my hair once a week on Sunday and this way I'll have fresh hair for the week. Remember no oils! Just wash, blow dry, flat iron. Slowly but surely I was draining my hair of it's life, my environment was doing the same to me. I wouldn't find the answer to how to take care of my hair and how to take care of me for another 2 1/2 years. 30 months is a long time to travel without a road map. A month of Sundays with no sunshine, just clouds.