The Premiere episode, Making Peace with My Body: A Conversation About Size, Weight and Wellness is a love letter to women of color. A letter to remind us that 1) our bodies, our weights and our shapes ARE healthy; and 2) the current standards of weight, beauty and wellness weren’t created with our bodies in mind.

The prevailing current standard includes the Body mass index (BMI), a standard health assessment tool developed in 1832 to easily identify and detect obesity in adults, that has long been criticized as an ineffective measure of health and/or obesity, yet is still used in most healthcare facilities today.

According to Newsweek, an increasing amount of research shows that BMI and weight are not necessarily the main indicators of a person’s health. Additionally, what’s considered an unhealthy BMI—a number that may predict the onset of chronic diseases—is not the same across all races and ethnicities. Many who question the use of BMI in clinical settings point out that it’s a health metric that’s resulted from decades of research mostly conducted on white people.

Research also suggests that weight distribution or where you carry the majority of the weight on your body matters. For example, carrying weight around the middle of your body near vital organs is particularly troublesome; whereas, carrying weight around your hips, thighs and booty are significantly less risky to your overall health These are also. areas of the body where women of color have historically carried a great proportion of their weight.

I say all that to say that the game may not be rigged, but it certainly ain’t fair. We need healthy examples of body image, weight and size that were created with us in mind. Until then, accept this love letter as well as the reminder that YOU GOT IT GOIN ON, GIRL.

Join Syd and special guest, mother, wellness coach and momfidance coach, Dr. Tangie Grate  as they discuss how to make peace with and love on your body during EVERY phase of your wellness journey (otherwise known as life).

Dr Tangie Grate is a full-time, working community pharmacist and part-time wellness coach. She is married to her college sweetheart, and they share an adventurous toddler. Through her work as a wellness coach, Tangie is on a mission to help women feel confident in their current bodies  , by helping them to developing sustainable habits that promote self-love and weight loss. She believes that a wellness routine can be effortless, energetic and empowering.

Want to work with Tangie? Click here to join her community: https://linktr.ee/drtangiegrate

SHOW NOTES

On this episode of The Sugar Free Podcast, Dr. Tangie Grate shares her journey to wellness including the lessons she’s learned along the way. Lessons that she uses to coach her wellness clients and that she has also so graciously shared with us.

Unhealthy Habits that contributed to weight gain for Dr. Tangie

• Eating quick fast meals (spaghetti_
• Eating fast food
• Eating late
• Drinking alcohol
• Not drinking enough water
• Not eating fruits/vegables
• Drinking Energy drinks
• Not exercising
• Not sleeping and/or resting enough

The turning point. The turning point for Dr. Tangie when she realized she needed to make a change in her lifestyle was becoming a mother. She wanted to be healthy for her future children and she also didn’t want to gain additional weight from child birth without having healthy habits in place to get it off. In short, Dr. Tangie got to the point where she was tired of herself and the way she was feeling and decided to make a change.

Dr. Tangie’s Best Advice for Loving Your Body

1. Do NOT rely on the scale as your only measure of wellness. The scale CAN be a good tool to keep you accountable on your wellness journey, but it should not be the only thing you use to measure your success. Check to see if you are getting stronger (i.e. can carry heavier weights than you used to), or your clothes are fitting less snugly or your endurance (ability to move for longer periods of time) is increasing. Finally, if the scale is making you feel bad about yourself because you don’t like the number its displaying, STOP USING IT.
2. Stand in the mirror naked (if you can), find something you love about your body and say it out loud. Mirror work and affirmations are wonderful tools for learning to love your body.

How to Get Started on Your Wellness Journey

1. Identify your why for starting your wellness journey. Determine how you feel about your self and assess how you feel both physically and mentally. then decide whether you like how you feel or what you need to start doing in order to change
2. Find a supportive community. No journey should be undertaken in isolation. You need a supportive community to help you stay accountable and consistent on your journey..
3. Start small. Develop small, healthy habits. You don’t have to start with working out for 60 minutes a day. Start with 20 minutes a day 3 days a week to develop consistency. Doing small things consistently is better than doing large things sporadically.

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