A Filipina Mom Blogger

Your body is the baggage you must carry through life. The more excess the baggage, the shorter the trip. Arnold H. Glasgow

If you have seen me recently, you will notice that I lost significant weight. Actually I lost a lot of weight before I became a blogger. My pre-blogger weight of 129 pounds ballooned to 148 pounds (check weight loss photos.) Before that weight loss, I was borderline obese at 165 pounds. Thanks to food media events, I gained so much weight. Ack, I try to avoid food events as much as possible and exercise diligently.

Now how to go back to my old 129 pounds at my prime time age when metabolism slows down? It was a dilemma I faced ever since I got invited to events in mid 2006.

I discovered something that really made me enjoy exercising..the Boom Boom Pow of Black Eyed Peas. Dancing, or workout in the treadmill made me it just so much fun that I forget the time and end up exercising more than 30 minutes. The opportunity to meet my favorite band became a reality when the Department of Tourism held a soft launch of the Apl.de.ap Take me To the Philippines in Singapore last month. I was terribly excited to meet them and to personally thank them for their music. Before leaving Singapore, I checked my weight and was surprised it dropped to 128 pounds but no one really noticed it until a few weeks ago.

As luck would have it, I got to watch their concert at F1 Rocks and danced to their live rendition of Boom Boom Pow.

It was the following day that I met the rest of the Black Eyed Peas at an exclusive party at the Supper Club in Singapore.

Finally, I met Taboo, a member of the Black Eyed Peas. I got up from the oversized bed, sort of knelt down and extended my hand to thank him for their music. As I shook hands with the charming Taboo, he then gave me a high five for my compliment. We talked briefly and I found out he married a Filipina and he proudly pulled out photos of his son. What a proud father. Gosh I loved his dance moves too.

I was able to thank Apl.de.ap too but Will.i.am came in late and photo ops were forbidden during the private party or else risk being thrown out. Fergie didn’t attend the party. Still, it was so much fun dancing along with them as Apl.de.ap became the DJ (is that the word?) did some spinning which was just my type of music, the hip-hop.

I realize that the hip hop music is for the youth but I believe I am still young at heart. The rest of the media danced along too. The music makes me happy and helps nurture my inner child , the fun loving, happy, frivolous, joyful, humorous me.

Age is just a number to a prime time woman like myself. Though I know life can be bleak, I keep my optimism high by viewing the world as beautiful, happy and carefree as I groove to hop-hop music.

Being young at heart means that I can be child-like without being childish. That’s how I lost weight, I enjoy the music, stay positive and nurture myself. Nurtured people are effective in their work and in their relationships. We learn to feel loved by ourselves so much that we can truly love others and let them love us.

Aside from losing weight to an acceptable level of 128 pounds, I continue to pamper myself.

1. Avoid negativity if possible. I stay away from reading negative blogs without positive resolution or just plain negative people who whine all day long.

2. I take women’s multivamins and minerals from GNC.

3. Take Fish oils

4. Exercise for 30 minutes at least 3 times a week or not dance to some music you enjoy grooving to.

5. Once a week visit to the salon just to have pedicure and manicure, massage or facial.

6. Continue to read self-improvement books.

Nurturing is about how we show love for ourselves. I needed a loving relationship with myself that works so I can have a loving relationship with others that work. Losing weight was just one way of nurturing myself.

One of the bonuses about loving myself is that I get to feel good. I feel great!