I would normally call a hair update “Today’s Hair” but, my goodness, my hair looks absolutely terrible today and needs to be washed. This is from a few days ago, maybe a day or two after undoing my twists.

It turned out pretty nicely and this is the first time in a long time that I’ve had such small twists in. The definition is lovely, even after being in twists for 2 weeks. I’ve gotten a lot of compliments this past week.

I am going to do my hair today and am pretty sure I’m going back in twists. My hair just grows better when I twist it on a regular basis.

In other news, the triathlon that I was supposed to do happened this weekend. My good friend, was a participant. She did really well! I was crowd watching while I waited for her and took notice that there were only two African Americans participating out of the 400 or so competitors.

One of them as a woman and someone that I recognized from my first and only triathlon. Not only is she a sister, but she is also natural and wears a low fade. I meant to approach her, but I could never get to her before the race started. However, I found this great picture of her on the local paper’s website.

Go girl! Whoever you are! LOL! I aim to meet her one day and interview her. Doesn’t she look cool?

Ladies, I had a challenge going over on my other blog Running in a Fat Suit. It’s ended now and I have posted before and after pictures of those who submitted them.  I would really appreciate it if everyone would head on over and  vote for the winner!

Thanks much!

Those of you who say you don’t have enough time to workout, please check out this video and article.

Do any of your ladies practice HIIT? If so, share your experience!

So I’m still doing the straight thing. Getting tired of it quick and will probably do a wash n go sometime this weekend. Today I’m rocking a big old messy bun made with two satin scrunchies. (TIP: Satin scrunchies can be found at a lot of BSS and are great for making pony tails and buns if you experience breakage from hair bands. They don’t get the hair as tight as the elastics, but are much more gentle).

I am going to try and do a bun tutorial. Ya’ll please be patient with me, I know I said I was going to do another puff tutorial, but it just hasn’t happened yet. But it will!

So here is my workout hair for this week. I’ve had some reversion near the nape and at the roots a bit, but it’s still ok considering I’ve been sweating like a pig. I did the high ponytail and then banded the rest of my hair.

I also have my trusty headband firmly in place to soak up the sweat.

If you’d like to try this but your hair is too short to get into one ponytail, do 4 or 5, however many you need. Make sure the roots are pulled taunt for when you start sweating.

I posted this also on my fitness blog,but I thought it would be nice to post it here as well. This woman eats clean, runs 80 miles a week, and lifts weights everyday. Her hair (not sure if it’s relaxed or what) but it’s quite long.

I still firmly stand by exercise and healthy hair going hand in hand. I would love to look like her NOW let alone at 72!

Alright, I’ve been working on my newer blog and it’s still not got everything that I want included (I have a new banner in the works) but it’s working and I’ve started posting new articles.

Sooo…introducing: Running in a fat suit.

It’s still a work in progress, but let me know what you think

So here are my weight loss update pictures. This year I think I’ve lost about 10-13 pounds. Not a big deal , I suppose, but better than gaining or not losing at all. I’ve also gained muscle tone and am probably more physically fit than I have ever been.

I am a bit ashamed to report that I did not complete my half marathon that was scheduled this past Saturday. I had been sick and missed a lot of runs, along with a few other excuses I won’t go into. The point is that I did not do it. It’s not often that I set my eyes on a race and don’t do it.

Hair related: I’m upset that I didn’t get to wear my newest Tomoka’s Twist that the owner Carmen was kind enough to send to me just for my race. (Thank you!) I will wear it, this I promise you!

In other health related news, I had an appointment with my gyno yesterday and she was very happy with my weight loss since last year. She’s a big proponent of losing weight slowly. She says that the slower one loses weight, the more likely one is to keep it off.

This is true, I’ve read it time and time again. Therefore, I am trying to look at my slower weight loss in a more positive light.

Here’s something I’d like to get everyone’s input on…I am thinking about starting a weight loss/fitness/racing blog. I would love to know if there’d be any interest in it.

Triathlon season is starting up in a few months and I’d like to do a few in addition to more runs. I don’t want to overwhelm Newly Natural with fitness posts, though I know that many of you enjoy the combination. That’s not to say that I would never have health/fitness related posts on NN since hair care often ties into fitness.

If you don’t want to comment, you can leave an anonymous post or email me at kcurly@newlynatural.com. I always appreciate honesty, even if it’s not something I agree with.

Thanks for reading! I’ve got some more giveaways coming up in the next few weeks, stay tuned!

My half marathon is in approximately 2 weeks. And here I sit wrapped in my blanket, propped in my recliner, sniffling, aching and with sinus pressure out of this world. I have been feeling ill since last Sunday. I haven’t run in over a week, probably.

Correction: I was feeling a little better this past Tuesday, attempted to run and couldn’t even make it one mile because my body was so not ready.

I am frustrated because I feel like I’m not getting rest enough to fully recover. I’ve cut the exercise out completely but there is still a lot to do when you have to take care of a 3 year old who is also sick and go to work for 12+ hours (my paid sick leave in dangerously low so unless I’m unable to walk, I need to go to work).

I said all of the above to say this: I am not going to be able to run my full half. I just feel it would be dangerous to do so. Therefore, I will probably be walking a good deal of it. It kind of makes me sad, but it’s better than nothing.

Here’s an article on CNN.com that I found about working out while sick. I agree that one should listen to their body during these times and not try to “push through the pain” so to speak.

I tell people to listen to their bodies. If they are sick, their body is telling them something is wrong.” said Dr. Rick Kellerman of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Even though it may be tempting to not break an exercise routine, working out may actually prolong the illness,” Kellerman said. And, in rare cases “viruses can damage heart muscles,” he added.

Kellerman said it is a myth that you can sweat out germs and toxins. He acknowledges that “low levels of exercise increase endorphins and benefit the body, but an intense workout that creates high levels of endorphins can wear down the immune system.”

In other words, “Don’t count on endorphins to heal you,” he said.

Kellerman advises his patients to skip their workout if they have a fever. It puts too much stress on the heart, which already is beating faster because of the higher body temperature. If you’re suffering from chest congestion, coughing and shortness of breath, he said, you also shouldn’t work out. And exercising with a stomach ache will probably make you feel worse, he added.

But if you have the sniffles and milder symptoms of a cold, moderate exercise is probably OK, Kellerman said.

I’m a big procrastinator.

I admit, but I’m not either proud or ashamed of it. I try to keep myself on task for most things (you know, important things like hair) but a lot of things I tend to put off until “later”. This undisclosed time of “later” can be several hours or several weeks. But I’m realizing that sometimes, things don’t need to wait until “later”.

Weight loss and getting healthy is one of those things. The fall is a crucial time of year for people. The holidays start coming and with it, a lot of stress, a lot of get-togethers, and a lot of food! People just tend to eat more around the holidays. Personally, I know that there have already been a ton of treats and candy that I’ve had to say no to. If  I thought Halloween was bad before, Halloween with a child has been murder. Everything involving children is like a magnet for terrible (and delicious) foods.

So what do we do during this crucial time? All summer we worried about losing weight to look good in that swim suit or summer dress. But with the holidays coming, a lot of people toss that to the side. They eat and eat and eat because “It’s Christmas”, “It’s thanksgiving” , “It’s Kwanza”.  “I’ll do better in the new year”.

It’s a vicious cycle…one that I have been through a few times. After the guilt of all the holiday eating, everyone runs to join the gym and starts a super strict diet of celery sticks and baked chicken. For about a month, the gym is packed to the brim. The usual memebers take in all in stride. They may grumble a bit, but they wait it out.

Because they know what I know: Only a small percentage of these newly hardcore gym goers will be there in a month. Eventually, they fall back into their old ways, maybe pick up the exercise a bit for the summer, hit the holidays again, and the cycle continues.

So you might say, what’s the big deal? You may have read in the media that the average person gains seven pounds during the holidays. It turns out that the truth is closer to one pound a year for the average person. For the person who is already overweight, the weight gain is closer to five pounds.

The results of this study:

The prevalence of obesity continues to rise and controversy remains regarding the underlying specific causes of this trend. Recently, the magnitude of holiday weight gain and its contribution to annual weight gain were examined in a convenience sample of 195 adults. On average, weight gain during the 6-week winter period from Thanksgiving through New Year averaged only 0.37 kg. However, weight gain was greater among individuals who were overweight or obese, and 14% gained >2.3 kg (5 lb). In addition, among the entire population, weight gain during the 6-week holiday season explained 51% of annual weight gain. These results suggest that holiday weight gain may be an important contributor to the rising prevalence of obesity, even though absolute values for weight gain in this study were less than anticipated. Further studies using representative populations are needed to confirm these findings.

One pound a year still not a big deal? This article written by the National Institute of Health says that the problem lies in the fact that most people don’t lose that one pound. So in ten years, you have an extra ten pounds.

Of course holiday eating isn’t the sole reason people are overweight,but every little bit hurts when you’re trying to get healthy.

I am facing a lot of temptation right now and there’s more around the corner. I do have a treat now and then, and I know I’ll have more this season. But I’m still exercising and I’m stopping when I’m full. I also say “No thanks” to a lot of sweets that I would’ve gobbled up in the past.

But somehow I have persevered. I am losing this weight slowly but this fall I am  down 3 pounds thus far. That may not be a lot to some people, but slow and steady wins the race I’m told.

So, my point to this article?

You can still enjoy holiday food in moderation. You can still keep up your exercise through the holiday season. Make it a family activity after the Thanksgiving meal and take a walk around the neighborhood. Or play with your new Wii fit after Christmas dinner.

Whatever you do, don’t say “What the hell, it’s Christmas, I can just work this off in January”, eat two more pieces of pie, and then go veg out on the couch.

Know that I’m right there with you trying to keep myself in check!

A few of you have asked me what I’m doing with my hair while it’s straight and I’m working out. I’m no expert at being a straight natural and to be honest my roots are not perfectly straight, so there has been some reversion. It’s something I accept and that happens when exercising heavily.

However, my hair is fairing much better this time around than a prior time when I was working out quite a bit. Winter/Fall time is definitely the best time to do the straight hair thing if you’re going to.

Hair that says "poof"

Work out where it’s coolest

One big contributor to my hair lasting this time is that I am working out a lot outside. It’s around 40-50 degrees in the morning here so the sweat pretty much doesn’t have a chance to buildup. If it’s the summer time and you want to flat iron your hair, try working out inside in air conditioning if possible, preferably under a fan. That may help some, but I really have to say that the cooler weather has been a big plus for helping me keep my style.

Pull hair back

A member of LHCF named Pinkskates is a straight natural that works out on  a regular basis. She always suggests putting your hair up in a high bun or ponytail when working out. I’ve tried this and though it works, I’ve found that putting the hair up in 2-3 buns works better for me.It just seems to keep the roots taunter. If your hair is shorter, you may have to do 5-6 buns instead.

The pictures below are of my hair today before working out this morning. I did 2 high ponytails and then rolled the ends under, securing with a large hair pin. Do not tuck your ends near your roots where you will be sweating the most.

Here you can see my roots starting to revert some. Most of my hair has stayed pretty straight though.

I tried to show here that my ends are firmly tucked in the middle of my hair, not near my roots. I also rolled the ponytails to the front and not to the back where I seem to sweat more.

Here‘s Pinkskates website if anyone is interested. I believe it has both hair and fitness info . It’s not a free website though, just be aware. I can’t vouch for any of the info there.

Wear a cotton scarf

I always try to wear a scarf that will absorb the sweat aroudn my edges in addition to pulling it back. I know some of you are probably cringing, but having it on while you are heavily sweating for 30 minutes won’t killl your edges.

I’ve recently been wearing a linen head wrap that I have. It soaks up sweat and keeps my ears warm. I have tried satin scarves, but they get soaked easily and then the sweat has nowhere to sit but on my hair.

Double buns with linen wrap

Keep ends out of the way

Do not let your ends come anywhere near your face or any sweat. It’s much easier to hide puffy roots than it is puff ends. You may want to braid your hair up and pin it.

Let it dry

However you secure your hair prior to your workout, leave it alone until it dries completely.

Right combo of products

Make sure you start out your straight hair with good anti reversion products. Aveda Antihumtecant Pomade has been my HG for this. It really helps to keep my hair from going “poof”. However, this may not be the one for you. I also make sure to oil my hair with coconut oil and/or jojoba oil everyday. This makes my hair product heavy, but I believe it helps repel some of the sweat. I liberally oil my scalp with Burnt Sugar Pomade as well.

(If your hair feels too oily, squeeze sections of your hair with a cotton scarf to soak up some of the oil.)

Tried all these tips and it’s still not working for you?

You can still work out. Please do not stop working out entirely because of your hair. Avoid the rain, don’t go swimming, but please work out. If you don’t want to do strenuous cardio, try to do some yoga or weight lifting instead. The closer you get to wash day, the more intense your workouts can become.

That’s about all I’ve got ladies. Nothing ground breaking, nothing earth shattering. But it’s been working for me. Feel free to share your own routines for working out with straight natural hair!