Ashanti's Secret To Being Body Goals? Two Cheat Days A Week
Ashanti's bawdy has been goals for over 10 years, and you're foolish if you think that came without hard work and dedication.
Summer is coming quicker than I can renew my gym membership and spring can be considered crunch time for everyone who's gotten behind on their annual fitness goals. It's just our luck that some of our favorite celebs are dropping their fitness regimes and dieting tips just in time to get us summertime fine for the new season. Ashanti is the latest star to drop the deets on how she keeps her snatched physique all year long.
According to the 38-year-old star of the new musical, Stuck, colonics, squats, and fasting are the keys to shedding a few pounds and keeping them off. She told PEOPLE:
"It's good to fast. Also, this may be TMI, but colonics are great, too."
Along with those methods, Ashanti said that it's important to wear clothes that are flattering to your specific body type. Nothing's worse than a night out spent tugging and pulling on your clothes because you're insecure about how they fit. Do yourself a favor and wear something that not only looks good but feels good too. Ashanti explained:
"As women, we already have to wear uncomfortable shoes, so our feet are always hurting. So if you can find an outfit that looks amazing, fits amazing and it's comfortable, you're winning."
Along with these dieting and style tips, here are a few other things we can learn about working on our fitness fromthe "What's Luv" singer:
Finding Balance
All work and no play makes you a very hungry woman. Take a page out of Ashanti's book and master the art of balance by allowing yourself at least two cheat days per week; just make sure those cheat days don't turn into cheat weeks. She told PEOPLE:
"To have balance, you have to eat clean and you have to work out. You have to allow yourself at least two cheat days so that it doesn't become too strict."
Other Fish In The Sea
Lately, stars like Adrienne Houghton, Beyonce, and Issa Rae have been dropping gems about their trendy alternative diets and these meal planning options are taking the internet by storm. Along with going vegan, paleo, and vegetarian, going pescatarian is another way to achieve a healthier lifestyle. Ashanti, who has refined her meat choices to only sea animals, says going pescatarian and cutting out GMOs is part of the secret to her snack-worthy bawdy.
"I cut out a lot of meat. I think again, self-health and self-awareness are so important. All of that stuff is so important to maintaining your body, knowing what's in your food, the GMO's and the chemicals, and I'm super aware of this stuff."
Consistency Is Key
If you're like me, working out is great… until you make it to day three. Some people say that as you work out more, it'll become easier, but I am not a testament to that theory. After a work out, I'm always glad I did, but the struggle to get my sports bra over my gigantic chest and muster up the energy to go to the gym definitely rains on my parade. Ashanti told PEOPLE that having a trainer has helped her on her fitness journey because he's intentional about maintaining consistency:
"I feel like it's very necessary to just be aware of what you're eating. I have a trainer and we try to go five days a week when I'm home and then when I get to another place, he's texting me a workout or he'll FaceTime me and say, 'Are you still in the bed?' We try to keep it going."
Ashanti's latest feature film, Stuck, is in theaters now and by the looks of the movie premiere red carpet, Ashanti will be serving us fitness goals the whole damn movie.
Originally published April 20, 2019
Featured image by Tinseltown / Shutterstock.com
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Taylor "Pretty" Honore is a spiritually centered and equally provocative rapper from Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a love for people and storytelling. You can probably find me planting herbs in your local community garden, blasting "Back That Thang Up" from my mini speaker. Let's get to know each other: @prettyhonore.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Another season of Love Is Blind has come to a close, and almost two months later we’re still unpacking the drama that is Clay and AD. The finale, reunion, and post-interviews with Clay and AD after season six of Love Is Blind left millions of people wondering - why couldn’t AD see the signs? Clay told her he had a fear of marriage, his parents experienced infidelity, and he seemed to have many doubts about saying, "I do."
After changing his mind at the altar and hearing AD question why she feels like she’s never enough, I was finished watching. I didn’t need to hear anything else because, at that moment, I realized this wasn’t about Clay; this was about AD feeling inadequate before she ever met Clay.
If I’m honest, I don’t watch much dating television. TikTok keeps me updated with the clips that I need to see in order to be kept in the loop, but it’s difficult for me to watch an entire season of dating TV because seeing Black women settle for less and questioning their beauty is a trigger for me. In many ways, there were points in my life where I was AD, settling and ignoring red flags because I wanted to be loved.
Now, on the other side, it doesn’t feel good to see Black women lower their standards on national television. There have been many hot takes on this couple and who was in the wrong. Did Clay play in AD’s face or did she not listen to the truth of what he told her from day one? Was his reason for joining the show to promote his business and not to find the one?
We’ll never know the truth, but what we can do is learn tactics to better our self-worth. Founder and CEO of The Self Love Organization Denise Francis shared her expertise with xoNecole on what tangible steps to take to improve feelings of worthiness. “Self-love blooms in a garden where self-worth is planted, nourished, and whole. However, when your self-worth is challenged, displaced, or broken, it could be difficult to rebuild," Denise explains.
How To Rebuild Self-Worth
During her self-love coaching sessions, Denise likes to walk her clients through the cornerstones of rebuilding self-worth: grace and self-compassion. To her, self-worth is never lost, it's only displaced, so practicing self-compassion and giving yourself grace is a must. "We tend to place our self-worth in entities and people of ourselves such as relationship status, physical appearance, material possessions, social media followings, what others think of us, and more. Self-worth is not something to be measured by anyone or anything outside of ourselves because we all innately hold value and worth.
"Self-worth is not something to be measured by anyone or anything outside of ourselves because we all innately hold value and worth."
"When we place our value into people or things, we tend to feel that we are not enough, worth it, special, or important when relationship status, job titles, friendships, and physical appearances are lost or changed. We then tend to feel lost within ourselves because we’ve placed our value outside of ourselves. Using grace and compassion, you can rebuild your self-worth by returning home to who you are at your core," she concludes.
How To Return Home To Yourself
Denise advises taking a step back and using self-reflection through journaling by answering the following journaling prompts:
First, ask yourself, "What do you tend to attach your self-worth to and why?"
Is it your relationships, your job title, your finances, your appearance, etc.? Why do you think you place so much emphasis on external status? How does it make you feel when you are defining yourself through these entities and/or people outside of yourself?
Then, ask yourself, "Without these things, who am I?"
Once you have your answers, show yourself kindness, remove the shame, and, as Denise says, "Redefine yourself by detaching your value from the things and people you have no control over and no longer serve you. Challenge yourself to define yourself outside of titles and societal values."
"By returning home to your core, you find value in who you are as a person. You begin to find value in the way you love instead of your relationship status, your compassion instead of your popularity, your drive instead of your income/job title, and your heart instead of your physical appearance," she adds.
"By returning home to your core, you find value in who you are as a person."
"Be intentional with healing your self-worth by leaning into the people and things that nourish your core values. Surround yourself with the people who love and cherish you, they will always remind you just how valuable you truly are."
It all goes back to self-compassion and grace. As Denise explains, leading with those two things as you heal and rebuild your self-worth allows you to reduce negative self-talk that might come up for you. "This weakens thoughts like, 'I am not enough... why am I never enough?'" she shares, "And 'I don't deserve this while strengthening thoughts like 'I deserve better,' 'I am enough,' and 'I am worth it.'"
Denise continues, "Once you return home and remember the irreplaceable person you are, you can rebuild your self-worth by placing it back where it belongs. It belongs to you."
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Featured image by LaylaBird/Getty Images
