Ain’t it funny how most folks always think that Memorial Day Weekend is the official start of summer when, actually, the summer season doesn’t kick off until June 20 (or 21, based onhow the summer solstice plays out)? This means that if you’re still trying to get your summer body all the way together, you’ve still got some time because (this year) summer doesn’t end until September 22.
Okay, but what do you do if you want to look oh so very right in your monokini, yet you also want to enjoy some of the best that food has to offer during this time of year, too? If that’s your personal dilemma, you’ve come to the right place. I’ve got 10 tips for how you can have a ball with food, remain healthy, and still have a snatched body in the process. Let’s do this.
1. Try Breakfast Salads in the Morning
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If you grew up hearing that breakfast is the most important meal of the day,more research is revealing that if you skip it altogether, it’s not quite as detrimental to your health as we were led to believe. Still, that doesn’t mean that ifbreakfast is your thing, it doesn’t come with some major benefits. It fuels you for the day. It boosts your metabolism. It can also lower your risks of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. The key is to consume a breakfast that’s as healthy as possible, and two options that are pretty popular right now arebreakfast salads and breakfast toast.
Since a lot of the ingredients that go into both are full of fiber, protein, and essential nutrients, going with a meal that is light and “brunch-able” is a great way to start off your day, no doubt. Check out some easy-to-make breakfast salad recipeshere and delicious breakfast toast oneshere.
2. Make Your Own Smoothies and Popsicles
Speaking of breakfast foods, although breakfast isn’t my favorite meal, I will get down with a smoothie, preferably a homemade one. It’s definitely one of the quickest, easiest, and most convenient ways to get a lot of nutrients into your system while you’re on the go. Plus, if you’re someone who isn’t a big fan of raw fruits and veggies, by combining them into a smoothie, you can get them into your body in a way that is easier to “take in," not to mention the fact that smoothies are great for maintaining gut health and they can even help you to lose weight if that is a summertime mission of yours.
The key is to balance how much sugar you put into them (men only need nine teaspoons a day while we only need six). Oh, and if you’re “smoothie-d out” or you want to try another option, make your own popsicles or slushes. You can put fresh fruits in those as well, and they can help to keep you hydrated while giving you a healthy sweet tooth fix. Check out some summer smoothie recipeshere and DIY popsicle recipeshere.
3. Enjoy All of the “High Water” Foods
When it’s hot outside, you actually need to up your water intake in order to stay well-hydrated. Some health experts say that this means men should consume 15 ½ cups a day while women should have no less than 11 ½ of them.
If water isn’t really “your thing,” one way to still get your fluids in is to eat foods that have a high amount of water content in them. Some of those include watermelon, strawberries, cucumbers, melons, lettuce, tomatoes, and cauliflower — all of which are light and “cool” foods to eat during this time of the year.
4. Have Carbs Before 2 P.M.
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If you can’t see going throughout summer without some ice cream, French fries, or even sushi (rice is high in carbs) — no one says that you have to. The key is 1) to consume high carbs in moderation and 2) try and eat them as early in the day as possible. Since most of us tend to be more active during daytime hours, if you’re worried that some chocolate gelato is going topack on the pounds or cause your blood sugar levels to skyrocket, having it while you’re taking a walk or before your evening workout can make it more of a stress-free delight for you. Science backs it.
5. Support Local Farmers (and Farmers Markets)
Aside from the fact that supporting your local farmers and farmer markets is a fabulous way to financially back your community, there are some health benefits that come from doing it as well. The food is fresher, there is less of a need for preservatives in them (because they aren’t being shipped from state to state), and you don’t have to play so much of a guessing game when it comes to figuring out exactly where your food sources are coming from.
Hmph, let me tell it, a great first or second date is meeting someone at a farmers market early in the day. Then, if things go well, have a picnic with some of the produce that you purchased in a park later that afternoon. Thank me later.
6. Snack Healthy
One of my goddaughters isn’t a big eater; she is a huge snacker, though. If you were raised to believe that is a big-time no-no, honestly, snacking throughout the day has its benefits. It can give you more energy,help to keep you from overdoing it when it’s time to have an actual meal and it can provide you withsome essential nutrients that you might not (automatically) receive at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
The key to snacking well is eating healthy foods.Some of the ones that are great for this time of the year include nuts, berries, hummus, dark chocolate, cheese and crackers, beef jerky, olives,cherries, Greek yogurt, and guacamole (in moderation on that last one; guac can be a bit onthe fatty side).
7. If You Are Vegan or Vegetarian, Watch that Sodium Intake
Most things in our culture are fads;veganism isn’t exempt. However, if you do happen to be a vegan or vegetarian, it does you no good tolook down on (us) meat eaters if your meat substitutes are loaded with sodium, preservatives, and additives. That said, if you plan on putting some meat alternatives on the grill this summer (more on grilling at the end), definitely read the labels on the packages beforehand. Heart disease continues to bethe top killer of Black women, and too much sodium in your system can contribute to that on a few different levels.
8. Have Water with You Cocktails and Mocktails
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Remember how I said a little earlier that remaining hydrated is super important, especially during the summer season? Adding to that, it always trips me out when I read that a whopping 75 percent of Americans aren’t just dehydrated —they are chronically so. And since summer is when a lot of outdoor parties and vacations go down, I think it would be ridiculous of me not to put on record thatalcohol is a diuretic (which means that it definitely has the ability to dehydrate you).
So, if you’re gonna turn up, try and have (at least) one cup of water for every twococktails that you consume. And what if you prefer the non-alcoholic version of cocktails known as mocktails?Sugar has the ability to dehydrate you as well and since many mocktails are loaded with that, the same water rule for cocktails should be applied.
9. Grill Lean Meats
If you do plan on enjoying your fair share of grilled meats over the next few months, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. One, althoughgrilled meat is certainly better for you than, say, frying it,the smoke and carcinogenic compounds that can come from preparing meat in this fashion do have the ability to increase your cancer risk.For the record, doing things like removing the fat, marinating the meat beforehand, lowering the temperature of your grill, and grilling for shorter periods of time can all help to make grilling a healthier experience. So can eating leaner meats becausethey are lower in saturated fats yet they canstill give you the nutrients that you need.
10. You Don’t Have to Go to EVERY Cookout. Lawd. LOL.
Let’s not sit up here and act like one of the best things about summer is going to somebody’s cookout.Problem is, some of the unhealthiest foods (and drinks) are oftentimes served there, from hot dogs and ribs with barbeque sauce to potato salad (with all of that mayo) and sodas. That said, just make sure that if you are invited to more than a few cookouts, either you don’t attend every one or you eat something healthy before you attend. That way, you’ll eat one hamburger instead of three or one rib instead of an entire slab. Feel me?
Now that you know how to do it responsibly — enjoy the taste(s) of summer, y’all!
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A Goddard College graduate, who earned an MFA from Pratt Institute and was awarded an honorary doctorate from Marymount Manhattan College, Mahogany offers unapologetic realness with a side of grace and empowerment. "I started touring locally. I started creating chat books so that those poems will go in the hands of the people who were sitting in the rooms," she shared.
"And then I started facilitating poetry workshops, so I used my chat books as curriculum. And that, in turn, allowed me to further invest in my art and show the community and people who were hiring me that it wasn't just a one-off, that it's not just, you know, a fly by night—that I am invested in this art as much as I am invested in your community, in your children's learning, in our growth."
Mahogany has a special way of moving audiences, and her superpower sparks shifts in perspective, post-performance introspection, and strengthening of community bonds, especially among Black women. (One can undeniably recognize her gift for arousal of the spirit and mind merely from her listening to her insights from the other side of a Google Hangout call. I can only imagine the soul-stirring, top-tier sensory encounter when watching her perform in person.)
In this chat with xoNecole, Mahogany reflects on sustaining a creative career, the aftermath of writing a banned book, and using poetry for both healing, community-building, and activism.
Anthony Artis
xoNecole: What are three key things that have laid the foundation for a sustainable creative career for you?
Mahogany L Browne: What has helped me is that I'm willing to go in being an expert at knowing poetry and knowing the way in which art can change the landscape of our lives, not just as a poet, but also as a poetry facilitator. How you move through classes, those things are mastered, right? So when I go into another space that's maybe tech-heavy, I don't mind learning and being, you know, a student of the wonder of how we can make this magic, work together.
Two, you’ve got to know how to pivot. Sometimes we say, ‘Alright, this is what my life is going to be. I'm going to be a New York Times best-selling author. I'm going to, you know, have an album that's Grammy-nominated. And then, say you get dropped from your record label. That doesn't mean you can't make an album anymore. You can also still create an album that can be submitted to the Grammys. So, what does a pivot look like as an artist who doesn't have an institution behind them? Pivot being a student of the wonder.
Relationships also really help. How do I serve the community? And in turn, that tells me how the community can show up. For me, I have long-standing ties with a community that will outlast my one life. So, what does it mean to create space where these relationships can develop, can be nurtured, can be rooted, can be cultivated? Creating space—it happens through relationships.
xoN: With today’s economic challenges, what does your current creative process look like, and what are you working on?
MB: I’m always thinking five years ahead. I just reviewed the pages for two children’s books and recently released a YA novel. I’m drafting an adult fiction manuscript now.
Anything I create is founded with the root of poetry, but it can exist in captions. It can exist in commercials. It can exist as a musical. So that's where I’m at now.
xoN: You started performing "Black Girl Magic" in 2013, had an acclaimed performance of it via PBS and the work went on to viral success shortly after. Talk more about the inspiration. And what do you think about the continued relevance more than a decade later?
MB: I wrote it as a rally cry for the mothers who had been keeping themselves truly in harm's way by, you know, being a part of the community right after the death of their child or their loved one. They are usually mothers of victims of police brutality—and just seeing how they showed up in these community spaces, they are devout to the cause but obviously still grieving.
"I wanted this poem to be just a space of reclamation, of joy and of you, of your light, of your shine, of your brilliance, in any which way in which you fashion. Every room you enter is the room you deserve to be in. What does it mean to have a poem like that that exists?"
And the first time I did the poem, the Weeping that occurred, right? It was like this blood-letting of sorts. The next time I performed it, I'm moved to tears because I'm seeing how it's affecting other women who have just been waiting to hear, ‘You belong. You deserve. You are good. We see you. Thank you, despite everything that they said to make you regret being born in this beautiful brown, dark-skinned, light-skinned, but Black body.’
Black women are the backbone—period. Point blank. And so, that that poem became a necessity, not just to the fortitude of Black women in the community, but like you know, in service of healing the Black women.
xoN: One of your books was banned at a school in Boston, and it was later reinstated due to parental and activist support. What was that experience like?
MB: Well, I think it happened because they were racist. That's it. Point blank. The reversal of it was empowering, right? I realized, oh, I thought we just had to sit here and be on a banned book list. But no, parents are actually the leaders of this charge.
So to see that, the parents said, ‘Nah, we're not gonna let you take this book out of my baby’s school just because it's a Black kid on the front saying, ‘Woke’ and they're talking about being a global citizen. They're talking about accountability. They're talking about accessibility. They're talking about allyship, and you don't want them to have compassion or empathy or have even an understanding, right? So no, we rebuke that, and we want this book here anyway.’ To see that happen in that way. I was, like, reaffirmed. Absolutely.
xoN: You recently organized the Black Girl Magic Ball at the Lincoln Center in New York. Honorees included author and entrepreneur Rachel Cargle and National Black Theater CEO Sade Lythcott. What impact did it have and what expanded legacy do you hope to leave with your creative works?
MB: I was really interested in not celebrating just the book, but celebrating the community that made the book possible. And so I gave out five awards to women doing that thing, like, what does it mean to be a Black girl in this world?
I just thought it was gonna be an amazing time. Everybody's gonna dress up—we're gonna celebrate each other. And boom, I then realized that it responded to like a gaping hole. There was a missing thing for Black girls of all walks of life, all ages, right?
"It's very intergenerational. That was intentional to come together and celebrate just being us."
You have all these instances where just being you is either the butt of a joke or it's diminished and not worthy of a specific title in these larger institutions. So what does it mean to just to be loved up on and celebrated?
It felt like a self-care project at first. You know, for the first couple of years, folks were coming and they were getting that sisterhood. They were getting that tribe work that they were missing in their everyday lives.
I love the Black Girl Magic Ball because we got us. If I go out with a bang, they'll remember that Mahogany worked her a** off to make sure all the Black girls everywhere knew that she was the light. We are the blueprint.
For more information on Mahogany L. Browne, her work, and her future projects, visit her website or follow her on IG @mobrowne.
Featured image by Anthony Artis
