- 2 days ago
More Black people are turning to the keto lifestyle as a way to take control of their health, energy, and overall well-being. As conversations around nutrition, metabolic health, and food education continue to grow, keto is becoming a powerful tool for weight management, reversing chronic illness, and sustaining a healthier lifestyle. This discussion will explore why keto is gaining traction in the Black community, how to adapt it to cultural food traditions, and the myths surrounding low-carb eating.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00We got some more amazing things we're going to talk about today on this stage.
00:04You know, if you just had a cocktail, you got to balance it with some good food.
00:07And sometimes we don't always eat as healthy as we should.
00:11And these days and times, you don't know what they put in the food half the time.
00:15You got to do a little better.
00:17Make sure you know what you're putting inside your body.
00:20Make sure your engine's running properly.
00:22And there's a lifestyle that's catching on in a lot of places around the country.
00:26Some people have been doing it for a while, but it's the keto diet.
00:29So if you know anything about that keto diet, a lot of people are doing it to get better, to get healthier.
00:34And we have some professionals today that are going to talk about it.
00:36Because it's one thing to help you manage chronic illness.
00:40It improves your energy.
00:42And it helps us take control of our health.
00:45So today it's all about self-care.
00:48It's about eating right.
00:49It's about doing the right things.
00:51And we have a conversation.
00:53We have some professionals.
00:54First off, we have Keto Coach E coming up.
00:58Keto Coach E.
01:00What's up, Big E?
01:03He got that fresh green on.
01:05He got that fresh.
01:06That's the summer color this year for the guys.
01:08Get that fresh green.
01:10Also, we have Carlene Roy.
01:12Give it up for Carlene Roy.
01:14That's Carlene.
01:16All right.
01:17All right.
01:17And last but certainly not least, we have Essence editor, Dominique Fluker.
01:25So give it up for all of them.
01:26She'll be moderating this one.
01:27How are you today?
01:29You're good?
01:29Oh, hey.
01:30How are you?
01:30I haven't seen you.
01:32All right.
01:32Let's kick it off.
01:33Thank you all so much for joining and participating in this very important conversation because health is wealth.
01:46So let's hop right into it.
01:48The first question is going to go to Coach E.
01:51A few years ago, Keto was widely discussed as a great approach to weight loss by firsting the body to burn fat.
02:01Can you speak to why it's more than just a short-term trend and has value for long-term wellness?
02:09Definitely more than a short-term trend.
02:12The way I was brought to the ketogenic lifestyle is I was diagnosed with prediabetes.
02:17After, you know, a lot of y'all ladies, I know y'all got a man somewhere at home, and he don't take his health that seriously like I did.
02:24And I went to the doctor.
02:25The doctor said, hey, you're prediabetic.
02:28You're going to need to do something.
02:29And I said, oh, well, I need to start getting to work.
02:32And I took on the ketogenic lifestyle.
02:33I was privy to a conversation.
02:35I knew I wanted to decrease the sugar I was taking in.
02:37And it's been nine years at this point I was able to reverse that prediabetes diagnosis
02:43and not be able to take that medication that I had to take.
02:47So there are a lot of studies out there that show the relevance of the ketogenic lifestyle
02:51that I definitely could share at a better time.
02:53Yes, I love that.
02:55Now we're pivoting over to Ms. Carlene Roy.
02:58Doesn't she look amazing?
02:59Hello.
03:00So do you.
03:01So do we.
03:01We kind of have a matching vibe going on right now.
03:03We do.
03:03We do.
03:04Earthy things.
03:05Earthy.
03:05I love it.
03:06And so you have gone through such amazing weight loss transformation.
03:12Can you tell us the importance of eating healthy, working out, and just your secret
03:19on maintaining excellent health?
03:22So I've been on a wellness journey for the past five years, and I've lost upwards of 80
03:28pounds.
03:29I saw a picture of myself one day, and I said, who the hell is that lady?
03:34I was so big, I saw it in my face, I saw it in my skin, and I saw it in the spirit of
03:40me.
03:41And it was at that moment where I said, I have to make a change in my life, and I have
03:44to make a change in my lifestyle.
03:47And keto was actually one of the first diet styles that I tried.
03:50All the girls in my office were doing it.
03:52It was all the rage, all the rage.
03:54So that is where my curiosity started with wellness.
03:57But on the other side of fear is the life of our dreams, is the body of our dreams.
04:04And there's the doctor report of our dreams.
04:06I've never heard of a woman living alone time because she kept her hair done.
04:11You live alone time because you work out.
04:14You live alone time because you put yourself first.
04:17And some of the hurdles that us as black women are experiencing or makes us resistant to losing
04:22weight as far as, I don't want to mess my hair up, or I have some place to be, or I have
04:28to go to work, I don't have time for that.
04:30I really started shifting the energy in my life to being the main character.
04:35We talk about being the main character, but I shifted that energy, and I put me first.
04:40And it has got me the life of my dreams by taking my health seriously.
04:45I love that.
04:46And shout out to being the main character and staying in that energy.
04:50And it's so important to make sure that we are not losing weight for optics.
04:55And especially when it comes to that doctor's report, I've had a few medical scares myself
05:02when it comes to health.
05:03And I want to ask Coach...
05:05Wait, I want to jump into that.
05:06Yeah, go ahead.
05:07She said losing weight is not about optics.
05:09Yes.
05:09Before a lot of people, myself included, it was about optics first.
05:12I just wanted to look good.
05:14I just wanted to be smaller.
05:16It was maybe two or three years in when I said, oh, this is about living longer.
05:20This is about being healthier, sleeping longer.
05:24So I feel like it started off as optics, and sometimes it just transferred to inner beauty,
05:30inner wellness.
05:31Yes, definitely.
05:32And I know that, Coach E, you focus, too, on holistic wellness for everybody.
05:39You can give us the male perspective.
05:41And I really want you to address the crowd with how it's so important for black men specifically
05:48to take their health very seriously.
05:51Can you talk about that and your journey with the keto diet and also how you're helping others
05:57to really live that lifestyle?
05:59Yes, for sure.
06:00So in general, like one out of three individuals are diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes, right?
06:08But in our community, it's 50%.
06:12So everybody, you know how they say in church, look to your left, look to your right, say
06:16neighbor.
06:17If you look to your left and you look to your right, two of y'all got diabetes or prediabetes.
06:22So that was one of the things that really stuck with me because I saw my grandparents with
06:27diabetes.
06:28I saw my parents with diabetes.
06:30So we really have to do better with that because really 50% of our population has diabetes
06:37or prediabetes.
06:38If you listen to commercials nowadays, you know, the jingles used to be about fast food,
06:43right?
06:43And if I started singing some of the jingles, y'all could go along.
06:47Nowadays, the jingles are about what?
06:49Rebelsis.
06:51Wagovi.
06:51If we started singing it, y'all probably could all finish it, right?
06:58That's our jingles of today.
07:00And all of those jingles are telling us A1C is down with the name of the company, right?
07:06It's about A1Cs.
07:08It's about being able to manage your blood sugar.
07:11And A1C is a three-month average of your blood sugar.
07:15So some people get caught up in the word keto and like, oh, that's a fad.
07:21It's not necessarily about the word keto.
07:23It's about managing your blood sugar because 50% of us in this room are dealing with diabetes
07:29or prediabetes.
07:31We have to manage our blood sugar because once we can manage our blood sugar, we can manage
07:36our weight.
07:37And we know that weight alone is one of the biggest things that a doctor will look at and
07:43say, hey, you know, you definitely need to improve on that.
07:46Yeah, definitely.
07:48And I also want to ask, what are some of the misconceptions about the lifestyle?
07:54Biggest misconception is cholesterol.
07:56So there's so much teaching about cholesterol.
07:59I have a background in science, so I can go all day about this stuff.
08:03So when we talk about cholesterol, we have good cholesterol and we have bad cholesterol,
08:08right?
08:09But we're not being taught that there is a harmless component to the bad cholesterol.
08:14So just because you're bad cholesterol, which is LDL, so let's say HDL is the healthy cholesterol,
08:20LDL is the lousy cholesterol, there's actually a harmless component to the lousy cholesterol.
08:27So if we talk about the New Orleans, the New Orleans Pelicans played the New York Knicks
08:33and they scored 250 points.
08:38Your next question is probably going to be who scored what?
08:41So when we look at cholesterol numbers, they're just giving us the final number.
08:46They're not telling us what our good cholesterol looked like versus, well, they're telling us
08:50what the good cholesterol looked like versus the bad cholesterol, but they're not telling
08:53us about the bad cholesterol that has a harmless component.
08:59Thank you for that.
09:00As a person who unfortunately has high cholesterol, I just learned this, I had to change my diet
09:08and I want to pass it over to Carlene because you have done such an amazing job really sticking
09:15with fitness and eating healthy.
09:19And so we want to know the secrets and we definitely want to know from you too, Coach E.
09:23So we'll start with Carlene first.
09:25I would say the secret to success is consistency.
09:30I think find a consistent fitness style that you love, whether that's walking every day
09:35after work or maybe you're a Pilates girly or you like to go to aerobics.
09:40I think one, find a style of fitness that you like.
09:44And then second, I would say stick to it.
09:47Everybody not going to be Sha'Carri Richardson the next day, okay?
09:50Or The Rock, you know?
09:51It's like we got to give ourselves some grace.
09:53So I say slowly find a rhythm that works for you.
09:56Maybe consistency is every Monday.
09:59Maybe consistency is for you every Sunday after church, after we eat dinner together as a family,
10:04we walk around a block and kiki and catch up on whatever it is.
10:08So I would say find something that you love and find something that you can stick with
10:13to make it part of your lifestyle.
10:16Fitness should not be something that we are resisting.
10:19It should be part of our hygiene.
10:20We don't have to remind ourselves to wake up and brush our teeth in the morning.
10:23And you for sure ain't got to remind us to wrap our hair at night.
10:26We should be incorporating fitness in our life to make it consistently a part of our lifestyle.
10:32Absolutely.
10:33Coach E.
10:34Some type of resistance training.
10:36So you definitely want to do some type of resistance training.
10:38You want to get a little burn in those muscles because basically your muscles will be working while you're sleeping.
10:44So when those muscles repair, so when someone's lifting weights or they're doing resistance training,
10:49there's that soreness because you tore the muscles a little bit, right?
10:52And when they're repairing overnight, you're burning fat.
10:56So you want to get some type of resistance training in.
10:58Get some bands.
10:59It doesn't have to necessarily be weights.
11:01And I know sometimes our ladies are like, I don't want to get bulky.
11:04Do higher reps.
11:05So if you don't want to get bulky, don't do four sets of six until you burn out.
11:11Do four sets of 20 so you can get more of a leaner look.
11:16So definitely get some type of resistance training.
11:18You got to push and pull things, and that will help you to burn fat.
11:23I want to give you guys, if I can, some context.
11:26I know we come to these conferences and we hear these buzzwords.
11:29Consistency, disruptor, all these words.
11:32Consistency, think about everything that is chaotic in your life or things that aren't moving how they should be or things that aren't yielding the results that you want them to yield.
11:42It's because we aren't consistent with it.
11:44My edges were refusing to grow.
11:46I am not consistent with the oils I'm supposed to be doing.
11:50I know I'll be going to bed sometimes without wrapping it.
11:53That's why I'm not getting the results that I'm supposed to get.
11:56I'll be having all these hopes and dreams about what I'm going to do on Instagram.
12:00And then I go three weeks without posting it.
12:02And then I got to start back up from scratch.
12:04I'm not moving how I should because I haven't been consistent.
12:07But I've lost 80 pounds.
12:09I got the body of my dream.
12:11I'm finally not afraid to show my arms in a short-sleeved shirt because this is the one thing that I've been able to keep consistent.
12:17So on the other side of what we want is just sticking to a rhythm to make it part of your lifestyle.
12:23Right.
12:24Absolutely.
12:24And I think it also starts from eating healthy.
12:28And so I want to ask, what's in the pantry?
12:31What's in the fridge?
12:33I'm guilty already.
12:35What'd you say?
12:35I'm guilty already.
12:36Uh-oh.
12:37Because you know what?
12:38You know what?
12:38To be honest, I had a piece of beignet this morning before I had anything else.
12:42So I'm guilty too.
12:44I know.
12:45I had to.
12:46I'm in New Orleans.
12:47But I want to know that is a big part of consistency, eating healthy.
12:53So we need to know what's in the pantry, what's in the fridge.
12:57And I also want to hear some snackable, bite-sized tips on how this audience can incorporate healthy foods easily without doing too much.
13:08We have to ease into it.
13:11Go ahead, Ekoji.
13:13Well, in the pantry, not much in the pantry, right?
13:17Because I basically say the ketogenic lifestyle, the low-carb lifestyle, the diabetic-friendly lifestyle is nothing more than meat, veggies, and a healthy fat.
13:28So fat is what I call the lost macro.
13:31So they call carbs, protein, and fat macronutrients.
13:36So I call it the lost macro because most of the time they're not telling you about eating fat.
13:40And I'll tell you why.
13:42Because if we're pushing a calories-in, calories-out narrative, one gram of protein and one gram of carbs is four calories.
13:53All right?
13:53And that same one gram of fat is nine calories.
13:57So if I'm teaching you to count your calories, I'm afraid to let you eat healthy fat.
14:02What does healthy fat look like?
14:03It looks like macadamia nuts.
14:05So you talk about what's in the pantry.
14:08Macadamia nuts, you eat that between meals.
14:10It's not going to spike your blood sugar, but it has 20 grams of fat per ounce.
14:15So most of y'all are probably like, oh, 20 grams of fat.
14:18You're afraid, right?
14:19It's 20 grams of healthy fat per ounce.
14:22Macadamia nuts, pecans, Brazil nuts.
14:25You eat those, you're going to be full.
14:27There are more calories.
14:28What are calories?
14:29Calories are a measure of what?
14:31Energy, right?
14:32So that's the basic definition of what a calorie is.
14:36So don't be afraid to eat healthy fat because when you eat it, you're going to get more energy, which means you're going to eat less food.
14:41So, yes, the calories do matter.
14:44And if you incorporate some of those healthy fats, the nuts and the seeds, the avocados, my wife will tell you, she's sitting right there.
14:52I would have not eaten an avocado to save my life.
14:56But now I love them.
14:57I'm going to the store and buying avocados because one avocado is 20 grams of fat.
15:01And therefore, I'm not eating all day long.
15:04I eat two meals a day for the most part, and I'm not hungry.
15:07One of the biggest misconceptions is that people doing the keto or low-carb, diabetic-friendly diet don't eat.
15:14So people always think I don't eat.
15:16No, I eat.
15:17I definitely eat.
15:18But I'm either fasting or I'm feasting.
15:21So I'm not eating like a bird.
15:23I'm fasting or I'm feasting.
15:24Fasting or feasting.
15:26I love that.
15:27Carleen, you want to weigh in?
15:28Yes, Dominique said two things.
15:31A healthy diet gives us a balanced lifestyle or gives us a healthy lifestyle and what's in the pantry.
15:37I think in addition to healthy eating, yes, being better for us, but I also approach my weight loss with balance.
15:44I'm from Memphis, Tennessee.
15:46If I'm going home, I'm eating barbecue when I go home.
15:48Okay.
15:49But I'm also getting myself up in the morning and I'm going for a walk.
15:53If it's somebody's birthday, I'm eating some cake.
15:56But I'm also maybe going to go take an extra Pilates class that week.
16:00So I think it's important to embrace life and not feel like we have to be so restrictive that we can't enjoy.
16:07And, you know, food is socialization.
16:09Food is love.
16:09I never wanted to be the people like, I can't eat that.
16:12So anytime I had the moment to lean in, I would.
16:15And as far as what's in the pantry, nothing.
16:18Because I'm a hot girl and I live my life like a bachelor, all right?
16:21So I don't be having a lot of food because I'd be expecting people to take me out to dinner.
16:26But when I do have to be in the house, my house is stocked with as many whole foods as that can be.
16:32Whole chicken, salmon, fruits, veggies, things of the sort.
16:37One of my favorite things to snack on is popcorn.
16:41It's one of my favorite snacks.
16:42But as much as I can incorporate whole foods, I will.
16:45And if I'm drunk after leaving a party at Essence, I may just pull over and get a beignet.
16:50You know, who knows?
16:51Who knows?
16:51But, you know, I want to be realistic with my weight loss approach.
16:55No, and I love that.
16:56And I think there's a way to find balance on two spectrums.
17:01And getting to the portion control, because I know that's a hot topic in our community around, okay, are we gorging ourselves?
17:11Are we overeating?
17:12Should we be measuring our foods?
17:14Do I need to measure my rice and my grains?
17:17And I would love to hear each of your perspectives on how much portions we should have with each of our meals.
17:24And as you said, you eat twice a day.
17:28And, you know, sometimes I do that, too.
17:30I might snack a little bit in between.
17:32I'm working on me.
17:33I'm working on me.
17:33Give me patience.
17:34But would love to hear just about portion control.
17:38Is it a hot button topic for you?
17:41And how are you encouraging others to kind of navigate it their own way?
17:46So portion control is one of the things that I don't have to talk about much because when you incorporate the healthy fat and the protein, I promise you, you're going to be full.
17:54You're not going to be hungry.
17:55And it's sustainable energy.
17:57It's going to last.
17:58So we talk about turning your body into a fat-burning mode.
18:01And that's what happens.
18:02Your body is going to choose one of two things for energy.
18:05It's going to choose carbohydrates first.
18:07Your body is going to choose carbohydrates first.
18:09So if you consume a lot of carbohydrates, your body is never going to get into that fat-burning mode.
18:15So once you're able to decrease the amount of carbohydrates, we're not zero.
18:20Just decrease it.
18:21And we talked about that cake.
18:23My wife will tell you.
18:24I ain't missing no cake.
18:25My favorite thing is a cupcake at somebody's party.
18:29I love it.
18:29But you do that so that when it's time to have the party, you haven't had your blood sugar up for 80 days.
18:36You know you're going to have it up for that one day, and you've changed your body.
18:39It's going to come back down.
18:40So basically, when you incorporate that healthy fat and the protein, you're not going to be as hungry.
18:45And I think that's one of the biggest misconceptions with low-carb, keto, or the diabetic-friendly lifestyle.
18:51Did you say you come from a scientific background?
18:55Yes.
18:55So I have a degree in biology.
18:58And I do not.
18:59Okay?
18:59I'm an artist, and I'm sensitive about what I got going on.
19:02So I am not approaching portion control in that way.
19:06I'm approaching it more holistically and energetically.
19:10Instead of eating my food on a big old plate like I used to, now I'm eating in a smaller saucer-type plate.
19:16Okay.
19:16That's how I control my portion.
19:18Okay.
19:18Another way, I'm never counting or measuring things.
19:22I do enough work.
19:23I don't want to have to come home and do a science project.
19:25Right?
19:26I'm eating until I'm full.
19:28Right.
19:29That's how I have been approaching portion control and the science and the measuring of it all.
19:36And so what are some easy ways that this audience and the audiences that are watching at home could approach a healthier lifestyle?
19:45I know we said consistency.
19:46I know we said healthy eating and fitness.
19:49But are there any other ways that they could just instantly be changed?
19:58Coach E?
19:59Well, one of the ways that you can instantly be changed is next time when you go to your room tonight, when that A1C commercial comes on, I want you all to think about Keto Coach E.
20:12Because you're going to see it because they know that 50% of people at the Essence Festival have diabetes or pre-diabetes.
20:21I saw three of those commercials this morning getting dressed just before we came here.
20:25So all I could ask for you to do is start paying attention to your blood sugar.
20:30You do not have to be diabetic or pre-diabetic to go buy one of those little $20 devices to prick your finger and see what your blood sugar is.
20:38Because it might be very eye-opening to you to see where your blood sugar is.
20:42So I would say start to think about your blood sugar.
20:45Don't worry about the word Keto and all of the buzzwords.
20:50Let's just think about blood sugar.
20:52Let's start managing the blood sugar.
20:53And the biggest sign is those commercials because the people that are making the medication know that if you want to lose weight, you have to control your what?
21:05Your blood sugar, your A1Cs.
21:08They know that.
21:09That's why they're giving us this medication.
21:11So we have to pay attention to that.
21:15And if I could ask one thing of everybody in this room, go home and start to manage your blood sugar.
21:20It doesn't mean you have to be Keto.
21:22It doesn't mean that.
21:24I just want you to start paying better attention to your blood sugar and your A1Cs.
21:31And for me, I would say a key to getting started, I would say first would be to date the idea of having a healthier lifestyle.
21:39We're not going to be Flojo the next day.
21:42Try Keto.
21:43See if it works for you.
21:44Maybe you like intermittent fasting.
21:46Maybe you like a program like Weight Watchers.
21:49I would say first date the idea of getting better.
21:53You never used to run or you never used to go to the gym.
21:57Maybe sign up for a new Pilates class or a walking group.
22:00So take your time.
22:02It's just like with relationships.
22:03Our personal relationships among humans is the same with food.
22:07You don't meet someone and say we go together the next day.
22:09I mean, I wish it happened like that, but it doesn't.
22:11And it's not going to be the same approach with weight loss.
22:15And then also I would say give ourselves grace.
22:17We didn't gain the weight overnight and we're not going to lose it overnight.
22:21So give yourself some time to figure it out and, again, come up with a rhythm that you love.
22:27Love that from both of you.
22:29I would also love to know how has this healthy lifestyle positively impacted each of you in your individual lives and also the relationships that you have?
22:41I mean, I'm still on my wellness journey.
22:45At least you're on it.
22:46Yes.
22:46Amen.
22:49But I've been encouraging my friends.
22:51I'm like, let's go on a hot girl walk or let's go on a Pilates class.
22:55Girl, what are you eating?
22:56Like, why are we always going to get chicken and waffles?
23:00Let's vary it up.
23:02So I'd love to hear that.
23:03We can start with Carleen first.
23:05One way fitness has or being well has positively impacted my life is I always say influence starts at home.
23:15Before we get on our phone and scroll in, like, influence starts in our environment.
23:19I have two nieces, age six and seven.
23:22When they see me, they want to work out.
23:25They want to jump rope.
23:26They want to be active.
23:27And they always say children who have healthy women in their lives grow up to be happier children.
23:33I have cousins who used to just drink soda and Flamin' Hot Cheetos and all other type of craziness.
23:40Now they're going to the gym.
23:41Now they're drinking water.
23:43So it has positively impacted my life because I've been able to influence the people that I care the most about, and that's my family.
23:51Love that.
23:52The positive impact on me is if y'all take a close look, y'all can see my knees are not twins.
23:58So my knees are not twins.
23:59I've had three knee surgeries.
24:01I only have two knees.
24:03So that means I've had.
24:04You're supposed to have more knees, more than two?
24:06No.
24:06Okay.
24:06But I've had three knee surgeries.
24:08So that means one of them had to get cut twice because I love the sport of basketball so much that I was willing to go out there and hurt myself three times.
24:15But now I can go in the gym.
24:18I can shoot the ball around.
24:20I can show.
24:20I can demonstrate to my players and things like that without a problem.
24:24Right.
24:25I can move around.
24:26So I don't feel restricted physically.
24:29Honestly, I'm 51 years old, but I feel better than I did when I was 40.
24:34Wow.
24:34So sprinting, things like that.
24:36I go out, and I'm an athletic director.
24:38I go out and I run with the team sometimes.
24:41My wife going to kill me.
24:41I go out and I do a little jog with the team sometimes, a little jog with the team, a little jog with the team sometimes.
24:49So I can do those things.
24:51I can do those things with teenagers and still feel good about myself.
24:56And I talked about my blood sugar being up.
24:59So my blood sugar was up.
25:00My blood pressure was up.
25:02As old folks say, right, my pressure, my pressure was up.
25:05I had to take medication for that.
25:07And that was what really has changed my life is when I made that decision to start managing my blood sugar, I started to lose weight.
25:14And I also started to lose some of those medications that I had to take.
25:18Amazing.
25:19Amazing.
25:19And that is such a good testimonial because when we get our blood pressure taken, sometimes they immediately go to medication.
25:31They want to slap medication on everything, right?
25:34And while I'm not dismissing the need for medication, these issues like high cholesterol, high blood pressure can be solved by eating healthy and clean eating.
25:44And like Carlene said earlier, consistency.
25:48And so with that, as we close this conversation.
25:52It's such a great conversation.
25:54Shout out to Essence for organizing this.
25:56You got that on tape?
25:57Social media.
26:00But to close out this conversation, I'd like to ask each of you one word to give to the audience, one empowering word to help them on their health and fitness journey, their clean eating journey, because you know it will be a journey.
26:17And we have highs and lows, pits and falls, but we get up at the end of the day.
26:21So, Carlene, I'd like to start with you.
26:23So, I'm going to say my one piece of advice to leave you guys with is slow and steady rinse the race.
26:30Take your time.
26:31Take your time getting to know yourself.
26:33Take your time learning, exploring new ways to eat.
26:36Take your time finding a fitness routine.
26:39And like they say, the last shall be first.
26:42You will get to the other side, which is happiness of self.
26:45Amen.
26:45That was a word.
26:46I felt that.
26:47I got some chills.
26:48Did we get some chills?
26:49I got to go after that.
26:49It just became an Essence first stage.
26:51Yes, and come on, Coachie.
26:53I know you got a good word for us now.
26:55Intentionality.
26:56Oh, I love that.
26:57Be intentional.
26:58Be intentional.
26:59So, when you go home, I want you to be intentional about managing your blood sugar and understand that we're still on the journey.
27:05I'm still on the journey.
27:06I'm sure Carlene's still on the journey.
27:07It's a marathon.
27:08It never ends.
27:09Marathon.
27:10So, every day is a new day.
27:11It's still a journey.
27:12So, we're all on a journey together.
27:14You know, hopefully you follow Carlene and you follow her journey.
27:16She gives you some inspiration.
27:17You follow me, you get a little bit of inspiration on the journey.
27:20But the journey never ends, y'all.
27:22So, it's no destination.
27:24It's going to be a journey.
27:26I love that.
27:27And I'd like to add one for myself.
27:30And for me, it's all about purpose.
27:33Think about what you're doing.
27:34Like I mentioned earlier in this conversation, weight loss is not only, you know, it can be for optics.
27:41But really think about your health.
27:42Keep health top of mind.
27:44And find your purpose of why you need to change your diet.
27:49It might be, you know, you got a bad health report from the doctor and you really need to change it up and quick.
27:55Or you really want to show yourself as an example for your children, for your community and family.
28:02So, as I leave you all today, be encouraged.
28:07Start small.
28:09Right?
28:09Okay.
28:10Start small and make sure that you're doing this for you and no one else.
28:15Amen.
28:16Have a good one.
28:17Be encouraged.
28:18I love that.
28:18Can y'all give it up for Dominique?
28:19Dominique, yeah.
28:21Thank you, Essence, for having us.
28:22Thank you so much.
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