Am I allergic to working out?

By now you may think that I'm a hypochondriac and it's possible that I am lol. Sorry this post is so long, but I know I'm not the only person this is happening to so I want to make sure I explain what's happening thoroughly.

I decided that I will once again try to get in shape. I feel like I'm always hitting a wall that I don't have control over everytime I start working out.

In 2009, when the fall semester started I did pretty good for a while. Then I noticed I was having trouble breathing after working out and also when I was faced with drastic temperatures changes(when going from indoors to outdoors). Up until that point my doctors always told me that while I suffer from both food/atmospheric allergies and eczema I did not have asthma. Well...I ended up in the ER in desperate need of a few breathing treatments, given an inhaler, and prescribed Singular. All this put my workouts on hold(more like a long time break). Last September, I tried working out again then I gave it up to give support to my friend and new born baby.

So here I am...its January and I started working out again. I joined the group workout sessions on campus in hope that I would be more motivated. This time I love the sessions. However, when I do cardio immediately following the inside of my nose burns like hell, I start sneezing like I just stuck my nose in pepper, then eventually all the drainage give me a sore throat. My first thought was that it was my allergies, but what kind only flares up after a workout. The first couple of times after blowing my nose and sniffing all night I was good as new the next morning. However, this past Wednesday it got progressively worse so I laid off the workouts and did a little research. By Friday night, my body was sore, more throat felt a little swollen, and I began to have a congested cough. I really could find anything but suggestions to take ACV for rhinitis, sinuses, and asthma so I started back drinking it. I also grabbed some off-brand Emergen-C and I felt better everyday. This morning I drank my usual ACV and attended a Turbo Kick workout this afternoon...once again the inside of my nose is burning and my nose is running like a faucet. Ugh!!!!

I did more research and it seems that exercising are inducing my allergies....see told u I'm allergic to working out haha. Now I know what's wrong, but I don't know how to solve it. I don't want to add more allergy meds to my life so I'm looking for a natural remedy. ACV helps with a lot of my issues, but I don't think its strong enough to deal with this allergic reaction. For now, I will up my water intact(aiming for 2 qts a day), continue my ACV and Emergen-C, try to remember my three a day Flaxseed pills(I can't take Omega-3 since most are derived from fish oil), plus my Singular and Allegra whew!!! Ideally, I would like to opt the allergy prescriptions, but I don't know how. Right now it's too much!!

Let's Give Castile Soap a Try(Pt. 1)

So I used my liquid black soap on my face, body, and hair for about 2 months. I can really tell my face loves it, but I still want to keep trying other ingredients I have under by bathroom sink. I still have a small amount of black soap left that I will continue to use on my face. My next experiment was with my peppermint castile soap.I found a few recipes that I thought I would try out. I can't remember exactly what I used, but it consisted of distilled water, castile soap, and a few oils(I really wish I remembered the ones I added so I can repeat it again :( ).

I decided to take my ACV toner up a notch. I found a recipe that used strong green tea brewed with distilled water. I added 3 organic green tea bags and about 1/3 cup of distilled water in a small saucepan. I heated the water and moved the pan to a cool stove eye. The plan was to leave it out for 30 min(I forgot about it until the morning). I added some ACV(not a lot), the tea and some rose water. I use this toner twice a day after washing my face and it leaves my face o so clean. The combo of this stuff plus the black soap works wonders for me. Short story: I was out of the state interviewing for couple days and didn't keep up with my face regime. A day later I noticed an ugly pimple on my chin. I used this stuff and I noticed it shrunk super fast. I touched it a couple times throughout the day but it hadn't disappeared yet. The following morning it was still there. I applied my ACV mix and I swear I couple hours later it was completely gone. I'm keeping this stuff as staple for sure!!!!!

Recently, my hair felt sooo odd before my wash and I knew it was time to clarify. I threw together some ACV and some oils. I normally would have added a ton of water but my only free bottle at the moment was tiny so while my head was full of lather I gave my hair some sprays of the ACV clarifier.

I also tried a dc I made with mayo, rose water, vitamin e, and jojoba oil. I detangled my hair while it was still in my hair. SN: I think its time for me to get a wider, BIGGER comb.

Finally, after I washed my hair I let it air dry and I tried my roomie'sMy hair turned out pretty nice and I liked the product more than I thought I would. My hair felt very soft and my front(my problem area) stayed in place better than normal. Although, when I applied the product it was very oily(bc it basically only consisted of oils) it absorbed in my hair quickly. Me being cheap I have a mind to find the oils in the cream myself and make my own. .

Progress Feels Good

So today I'm at work Yeaa...not! But I'm taking full advantage of my time here. I was blessed enough to snag up a lab assistant job on campus that allows me to do homework 99.5% of the time. Yes! Seriously, I go over and beyond what is required of me and they encourage us to do homework. The only downfall is the low pay...can't win them all lol.

Anyways, last night when I got off of work I pre-pooed with grapeseed, castor, and coconut oil. I was tired and couldn't quite remember whats supposed to go in a pre-poo so I just threw some oil in a container and applied them to my head. I braided my hair in a few sections and put on a shower cap to sleep so I wouldn't get my pillow all oily. Then, I washed my face with diluted castile soap and used my acv as my toner. Finally, I applied EVOO to my face as suggested by Tania. This morning my face didn't have any new bumps or anything so thats the first good sign :)

When I arrived to work I finished my resume. Yes! I'm so happy to be done with it and it looks good. An intelligent, diva I've known for years helped be with it and its looks great! Hit her up she's really good at what she does. We have to support each other ya'll.

Write to Success --- Write Your Way to Opportunity!
Resume Writing Expert
312.399.6812
write2success@hotmail.com


It's only 10:15am on a Saturday and I've already:
Prepared my hair for washing/dc
Walked/Fed my doggy
Taken my Vitamins
Sent a Happy BDay text
Polished off my resume

When I get back home I'm going to wash with the black soap I liquefied(It's been setting for 3days now). Then use up the rest of my commercial purchased condish(It's actually a decent product, but I'm still not getting more) mixed with EVOO as my DC. Lastly, I'm going to put in a fresh set of mini two-strand twists. My bf's mom always using a comb so I'm going to try her method this time to get the true longevity of the style plus use a method I sorta made up. Keep ur fingers crossed with me haha.

That is HIGHLY impressive for me. Thank God for another productive day. Have a blessed weekend Loves.

Hair Confusion

I have been searching for staple products for years now, looking to find the ones that "work" for me. What the heck does that mean exactly. Not brittle?...uh none of my products leave my hair brittle. Besides that....what are other ways beyond the shine of ur hair that lets u know ur doing something right. Breakage hasn't been a problem since I've been natural so that doesn't help. Spilt ends?...maybe I could be more aware of that if I actually looked at my ends more often(Yea that's definitely on my lists of things to do).

I think my main obstacle is that I'm trying to kick all commercial products to the curb. This is in regards to my hair, face, body(including lotions), and maybe even deodorant. This has been a hard task, not so much because I like all the products I already have so much but because I'm too cheap to throw it all away lol. I currently have a few commercial products left, but the majority of my tote of products are oils, shea butter, black soap, castile soap, acv, and the list continues.

I've been told so many things about what our hair needs from so many ppl I don't know who to trust now lol. I'm worried that I'm going to f up my hair to tell u the truth. Maybe I should continue with my trial and error and cross my fingers that nothing will go wrong.

Soooo I'm definitely still looking for a few concoctions(or a element) for the following:

Hair

• Deep Condish(Do I really even need it now?)

• Hair Moisturizer/Leave-In(Is it true that an oil might be all I need? If u can prepoo with just castor/coconut/evoo/jojoba oils and it does wonders with ur moisture after washing it out y can't I use it as a moisturizer on a frequent basis?)

Face

• Mild Face Moisturizer (Both Coconut and Shea Butter break my face out on during warm months)
  
• Toner(I'm using ACV and it keeps my face ok just ok)

As far as my face goes its too the point that I don't get break outs anymore, but I want to work on my blemishes and splotches.

~Sista in Need lol

Ready for the Sun

The spring semester is finally over but the summer semester has just begun...yay :( It seems all I can think about is warm weather...the warm weather that comes with summer and the warm weather that I will be living in after I get a great job after graduation next year. I'm speaking my future into existence. Even when I was a little girl, I got so excited when the summer season was near in Indiana. It seems we only get about a solid month of summer here and I hate it. I'm determined to have a career somewhere south of Indiana lol.

I had a great semester and I am very proud of myself. My hair is also doing pretty well. I have been sticking with low manipulation styles...its the way to go with me. The last time I washed my hair I decided I would do my version of a lazy prepoo and coat my hair with almond oil several hours before washing. I then used a random condish mixed with shampoo(I'm trying to use up everything I have in my closet). I also am using the tip of my bff and now using castor oil added to my dc. The result? Greatness. My hair had such a glow to it and stayed moisturized for days. I should be washing it this wknd so I will let you know if it had the same effect again.

I almost forgot. Some of you know I live by ACV. I ingest it for my acid reflux and asthma issues. Apply it to my skin for my severe eczema. I clarify my hair with it. Now I even pour a little in my dog's water and it gives her a shiny coat. She had a nasty, huge hot spot and it seemed like no over the counter methods helped. The vet urged that I come in...im broke so it wasn't an option. I began to dilute the ACV with water and apply it to the sore several times a day. Problem solved. She left the spot alone and it healed quickly. Lastly, my sister started using diluted ACV on my two year nephew. I just got a report that his eczema is 95% gone. It's great I tell u.


Toodles.