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Love Yourself!
In our first campaign we urged people worldwide to love themselves, to accept themselves and not to be victims of the media, which at times distorts reality and sets up unattainable models. For this International Women’s Day, we wanted to send a new message from women to women: “Love Yourself“. Aija Barzdina, Elisa D’Ospina (myself), [...]
Open Call for Plus Size Models. Ford+ and Vogue.it are launching an Open Call to find the star plus size models of the future
Things are changing! Maybe we can all love ourselves a little more if the women in the magazines are a bit more like us. I am happy that we are beginning to see these gorgeous size 14 women in fashion magazines. The stunning photograph below is of Ford + model Marquita Pring. If we can [...]
Curves in magazines The curvy wave is spreading throughout the main fashion magazines.
The only exception being the US (though something is moving there too) Vogue Curvy, French Glamour, D2, Elle France, Evans UK, V Mag, the june issues of French Marie Claire and German Vogue, and now Fantastic Man… What do these all have in common? Mentioned above, are the international magazines and retailers who have featured [...]
Jane Fonda and the optical dress
The actress appeared on the Cannes red carpet in an optical dress ideal for curvy woman.
Oh Lynnda and Toni, it’s time to consider this year’s Girlfriend Getaway!
I have been putting in a great number of hours lately and daydreaming about my last getaway to Arizona. It’s time to start planning for the next trip so I can be forward thinking with anticipation! Remember that it’s not just the trip but the time we spend looking forward to the arrival of an [...]
The Puebla International Mole Festival
Last week I was lucky enough to get to speak at the International Mole Festival in Puebla, Mexico. Why Mexico? My interview with Mexico City food writer Lesley Téllez (copied below and originally posted here) explains a bit abou…
Hotness comes in all shapes and sizes! New Levi’s advertising…
After the “Levi’s Curve ID” campaign attracted protests for not representing a range of different body shapes and for using “curve” to describe a slender model, the brand has a new slogan: “Hotness comes in all shapes and sizes.” It suggests that all women from US size 2 to 16 will be able to [...]
Bariatric Nutrition \ Post-op Eating
No Meat, No Dairy, No Problem – by Mark Bittman
December 29, 2011 No Meat, No Dairy, No Problem By MARK BITTMAN Among your other resolutions — do more good? make more money? — you’ve probably made the annual pledge to eat better, although this concept may be more often reduced simply to “lose some weight.” The weight-loss obsession is both a national need and [...]
Confidence and Self Image \ Fashion and Beauty \ Mainslider \ Positive Attitude and Gratitude
Everything you see I owe to spaghetti – Sophia Loren (size ten)
While perusing Facebook I noticed on my personal wall that Italy Magazine had posted an article touting that Italian Vogue had broken with tradition in that their June issue used ‘plus-sized’ models on their cover. When I am at the hair salon, I love to page through Vogue as it is a great source [...]
Living Well... \ Post-op Eating \ Support Group Topics
How to Dine Out Like a Health Pro
How To Dine Out Like A Health Pro Posted: 03/17/2012 By Leslie Barrie You’ve heard how diet-unfriendly dining out can be (2,120 calories for cheese fries with chili and ranch dressing at Chili’s!), but healthy, low-cal options do exist at your favorite chain restaurants. “You just have to know what and how to order,” [...]
& Nibbles - sugar free \ Appetizers & Party Food \ Cocktails \ Shirley Temples \ Vegetarian \ woo woo
Charred Edamame – I have an addiction
PrintCharred Edamame – I have an addiction Prep Time: 30 minutesCook Time: 10 minutes Serving Size: Serves 4 I spent a few days at Sanctuary at Camelback in Scottsdale Arizona for a girlfriend getaway with friends Lynnda Shepherd and Toni Towe, who also happen to be hosts of BTV. While the scenery and of course [...]
Post-Bariatric Plastic Surgery Talk
Ear Doctors Performing Face-Lifts? It Happens. NYT – New York Times
SML NOTE: For many years now I have been an advocate of making absolutely certain that your plastic surgeon is a board certified plastic surgeon and not a doctor with a different specialty who has simply made the decision to offer plastic surgery procedures. Big difference! Most people do not know that any doctor can [...]
Holiday Food Challenges \ SML Dining and Travel
Iron Chef Judge – Susan Maria Leach at the RC Reynold’s Plantation
Ty and I are empty nesters save for a gang of kitties we brought in from the outside years ago who are essentially wild but live in our condo with us. We have time to travel and since kitties don’t need cars and they don’t go to college, we have a few extra dollars to [...]
BE / SML Travel Events \ SML Dining and Travel
Travel to Italy with SML – Tips for Rome
Naples Sorrento & Rome with Susan Maria Leach – 05/03/2012 to 05/11/2012 Click for information on the SML trip to Italy Join me for this trip of a lifetime to Naples Sorrento & Rome along the Amalfi Coast, with excursions to Pompeii and Capri. Dance the Tarantella, listen to opera, sample fresh mozzarella, olive oil [...]
Adios mi Amigos! See you later Playa del Carmen.
We spent our last night at the resort’s traditional Mexican Fiesta where we were met at the door with Tequila and Margaritas by the Mexican dancers in traditional dress. We enjoyed a superb Mexican buffet while we watched audience members hit Pinatas and drink tequila shots. We laughed and toasted our last night while enjoying [...]
Malbec Wine Pairing Dinner at Le Bistro… a good time was had by all.
Ty and I went to dinner this evening with our wonderful friend Helen, who is so busy working for Apple Computers that she has very little spare time these days. Her favorite restaurant is Le Bistro – if you have ever watched Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, you may recognize Chef Andy Trousdale and his beautiful [...]
Chef Andy Trousdale \ Le Bistro \ SML Dining and Travel \ Springtime in Paris - Cooking Class with Ty.
Le Bistro, Chef Andy Trousdale, Springtime in Paris – Cooking Class with Ty.
Springtime in Paris – Flowering Artichoke, Asparagus Beignet, Goat Cheese Tartin, Salmon en Papillote, Jumbo Marshmallows – avery tasty and cool cooking class! My friend Helen and I have a nice tradition of attending each months Le Bistro Restaurant cooking class as it forces us to make time for each other. Life passes you by [...]
Post-Bariatric Plastic Surgery Talk
Choose the Right Surgeon – Post Bariatric Plastic Surgery
I had lost 143 pounds and couldn’t wait to have my abdominoplasty procedure. I had worked hard to change my life and couldn’t wait to have a smooth stomach for the first time in my entire life. The decision to have bariatric surgery is one of the biggest commitments we will ever make. Once we [...]
Want Bariatric Recipes? We’ve Got 400+
COMING SOON! Check out our latest seasonal and themed recipe features, including Perfect Holiday Foods and Our Best Pumpkin Desserts! Like all SML recipes they’ve been refined and perfected in our test kitchen. Susan Maria Leach is the author of Before & After – nominated for three International Association of Culinary Professionals awards. You’ll soon [...]
Fashion and Beauty \ Getting Help
I’m Fat Free!
I am not sure as to the year of this publication, but I am quite certain it is in the 1960′s and that someday I will recall it vividly in past life regressions. Thank goodness we no longer do this to our little girls – I am sure there are men with tales of equally [...]
Bariatric Nutrition \ Support Group Topics
Sunday Morning breakfast. Cracker Barrel is truly ridiculous.
On Sunday morning Ty asked me if I wanted to go to breakfast at Cracker Barrel and I said sure. I know that everything on the menu is large, so it really doesn’t matter what I order, most of it will go uneaten. However this morning I really thought country ham would taste good so [...]
Living Well... \ Post-op Eating \ SML Dining and Travel
The Kid’s Menu is Not the Answer for Small Portions!
It’s 8pm, I have been working all day here in my hotel room and I’m exhausted. I don’t feel like getting dressed and having dinner downstairs – too formal and I am too busy. I actually love curling up in my room at a nice hotel in my soft robe to enjoy the peace and [...]
Deficiencies and Complications \ Living Well... \ Mainslider \ Support Group Topics
Post-op low blood sugar is serious Busines
I just returned home from a business trip to NYC where I had a very bad low blood sugar incident. Many of us have these episodes and either think they are the only ones having them or believe they have done something wrong. As a ten year post op who has achieved balance between food [...]
and Social Dynamics \ Bariatric Nutrition \ Dating \ Friendship \ Positive Attitude and Gratitude \ Post-op Eating
Why We Need to Cook.
Cooking is really important — especially now. Over the past decade, many studies and books have shown that children from families who eat together do better in school, that eating whole fresh food is healthier, that eating sustainably will help to save the environment. No one has pointed out that the only way to achieve [...]
Living Well... \ Post-op Eating \ Support Group Topics
My Best Tip for a holiday food weekend!
My Best Tip: Remember that Bariatric Surgery is part of your life. There will be days that are not perfect, but the surgical changes don’t go away. Its important to always move forward with mindful choices and a positive attitude. JUST KEEP MOVING FORWARD! I have read time and time over this past week on [...]
Girlfriend Getaway – Sanctuary at Camelback
I spent a few days at Sanctuary at Camelback last week for a girlfriend getaway with friends Lynnda Shepherd and Toni Towe, who also happen to be hosts of BTV. While the scenery and of course the company was wonderful, the highlight of the trip for me was dining at ELEMENTS, the busy restaurant of [...]
SML Dining and Travel \ Support
BE Members and Fans of SML Bond on Vacation
BE Fabulous – Boobies, Bellydancing, Botox, and little Black dresses! The entire room filled with women let out a collective nervous laugh as the instructor repeated for us to push out our stomach muscles. Our arms were high in the air, brightly colored silk coin skirts tied around our hips, and after forty some-odd years [...]
Living Well... \ Uncategorized
Obesity Is Not the New Smoking, and Fat Is Not Our New Tobacco
Yoni Freedhoff M.D. Posted: 06/27/11 02:05 PM ET God how I hate seeing those quotes. Smoking is a singular behavior. Now I don’t want to minimize the difficulty of nicotine addiction, or the impact of factors such as … Continue reading →
Empire State Of Mind ~~ Obesity Online Symposium (Part One) Ethicon (EES) & Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) • NYC
I have just begun to finally recover from a whirlwind event in New York City hosted by Ethicon Endo-Surgery (Johnson & Johnson) and the Obesity Action Coalition – ‘Obesity Online: A forum to discuss the online dialogue around obesity and surgical weight loss options’. EES and the OAC brought together a couple of dozen folks [...]
Imperial No. 9 – No. ONE (part deux) Ethicon (EES) & Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) • NYC
I had checked the box for ‘car service’ as my preferred mode of transport from Laguardia as I know it’s better than a taxi. My driver Laurence was an eloquent man from Nigeria. I was going to ask him how he felt about the Nigerian prince soliciting help from me via email in transferring his [...]
