Meeting the Seemingly Impossible Goal

Have you been looking at the days dropping off the countdown calendar and thinking today is the day I am going to put down that brownie and start the gym? You have already set a goal in mind, 20 or 30lbs to loose between today and January 31st, especially since you registered for your costume a size or two smaller than what you are now. Then, as each day passes and you still haven’t signed up that gym membership card, or curbed that craving for sweets panic sets in. The frustration comes as you make a half hearted attempt to do some exercise, starving yourself thinking you MUST loose those pounds and then you say to yourself it is impossible to loose that much weight before Carnival, so why even bother.

This is not something unique to Carnival, women set weight loss goals for different reasons and events, it could be a wedding, vacation or school reunion; whatever the reason there must first be that desire then the second catalyst is motivation. One such success story and my inspiration that it CAN be done is a young lady who I met in person this year. When I first saw her svelte body at One fete I could not believe that this was the same person from her “before” photo; she looked not only much slimmer but also younger. Then she shared her story with me, and I am going to share it with you:

Jan before:

It was August when *Jan learned from her doctor that she weighed 167 lbs, at 5feet 6 inches tall this was more than she weighed when she was pregnant. That doctor visit led to her taking the first steps to loosing the weight and in September Jan joined the gym. With a personal trainer and 3 months of working out 4 times a week she had dropped from 167lbs to 144lbs when she weighed in December. The routine with the personal trainer went like this; for 2 days it started with 15 minutes of Cardio to warm up, then one hour of weight training (squats, lunges, abdominals) and 30 more minutes of cardio. The next 2 days would be 45 – 60 minutes of cardio on the bike, treadmill or cross trainer.

In addition to working out 4 days a week Jan changed her eating habits, “diet” was not something she was comfortable with so she tailored her meals to incorporate low carb options as well as she stopped her “vice” of soft drinks and alcohol, even having an alcohol free Carnival! For Christmas, she had no pastelles or ponche a crème, a sacrifice that was well worth it! Even though Jan did not continue her daily workouts at the gym when the New Year rolled around, she continued loosing weight and by Carnival her total weight loss was close to 30lbs. Not only did she surpass her goal weight of 145lbs but her bra size went from a DD to a C; as you can see in her before photos the costume was too big, albeit she had the foresight to order the bra in a smaller size.

Today Jan has admitted to regaining “some” weight but she is happier now and at the achievement made for Carnival. Though her success may not be as easy or typical for some it surely is motivation enough for ALL of you (myself included) who have vowed to shed the extra pounds for Carnival. So, what are you waiting for? There is still time left, 3 months and 13 days to be exact! Step away from the cookie, start walking around the block or to the gym and JUST DO IT!!!

p.s. If anyone would like the name and number of Jan's trainer please send me an email at trinicarnivaldiary@yahoo.com

*Jan is an alias

Image Nation Launches La Brea

Image Nation held a private launch of their 2008 Carnival offering "La Brea" on Sunday. There is a little write up about the "soiree" in today's Trinidad Guardian as well as the website has been updated with a review as well as photos from the event.

However, where are the costume photos? There are many shots of the fashion show that preceded the launch, and just ONE costume photo....hmmm. Looking forward to seeing all the costumes on the website very soon.

PHOTO SOURCE: IMAGE NATION LTD

Carnival Tights - Part 2

Not all of you ladies can wait until you get to Trinidad to shop for tights and might be considering purchasing them either at a department store or online. The one caveat with shopping online is that you cannot compare and match the shade correctly nor do you know how sturdy the tights will be for two days of wining and jamming. Luckily one of the bloggers has reviewed several other available tights on the market and shares her experiences.

Just click on the highlighted name of the tights to be taken to the website:

VITA BASS 20 Pantyhose:

This one has a higher denier and held up better than the one I used on Tuesday. It is a bit more difficult to match to more 'tanned' folk. Hence I thought they looked slightly smokey/ashy on me, but I am also very very picky about the shade of stocking I wear for carnival.

Brazil 15 No Waist Pantyhose:

This one is my fave. It matched my skin tone better out of the two, but it is mot as sturdy as the first. I attached a pic of me wearing it on Tuesday. You can hardly tell that I am wearing stockings

Vanity Low Rise Sheer to the waist pantyhose

Then there's these. Alot more expensive, but there is actually a testimonial from someone who said that she wore the Solida Vanity 30 in Trinidad for Carnival in 2k6 and they were perfect! I cant offer any testimony to any of these though; I haven't tried them as yet.

And finally,

De Paree Low Waist Seamless Panty Hose

I had two issues with this one
1) there is not much skin tone option and darker-skinned people ( i.e. many of us) will have to dye them to match. I dipped mine in either coffee or tea. But this is not a problem for some. Also, that reinforced waistband that seems really apparent, I think will not show up once it matches your skin tone.
2)It was a bit thin and my fingernail got caught in it when I was rushing like a bat outta hell Tuesday morning and I totally ruined them....

So I think that's all I have for recommendations. I hope this helps some people. But remember buying them online is always a risk when it comes to the colour choice.

These all turn out to be more expensive than just buying them at home, but if you want to avoid the MILLIONS of people in Samaroos, Wonderful World and any other obscure place that decides to profit from the Carnival mayhem, buying your leggings online might be well worth it.

Carnival Tights Tip: When putting on your tights remember to use gloves to prevent snagging on your fingernails.