The Weekly Well Vol 3.
Hi friends!
Hope it’s been a good week. Mine was pretty emo and weepy — I’m guessing was due to a mix of the full moon energy and the fact that I had the Taylor Swift album on repeat 24/7. Plus maybe some PMS due to the hormones I’m taking for post-birth control symptoms (full breakdown of this coming soon!) and where I was in my cycle. But after a fun weekend with friends & family and pulling T Swift from the Spotify rotation I’m happy to report the weepiness has ceased and I’m feeling better…
Things are looking up though — I’m going on a girls trip to Turks & Caicos this week with my sister, aunt, and cousins. I haven’t been on a trip since last August (crazy!) so I’m excited to get away after doing some serious nesting the past few months.
Having a minimalist wardrobe has majorly simplified packing for this trip. Less options means less packing decisions, and I also just feel like I’m able to bring less, not only because it’s easier to plan outfits but because everything goes together, I can mix and match to create different outfits. I’ve found some really great pieces from some of my favorite sustainable brands that I’m excited to bring with me. Follow along on IG as I’ll be sharing those outfits along with alllllll the wellness travel tips and hacks.
And on that note, I’m currently in the kitchen whipping up a batch of homemade sugar-free ginger chews. Gin Gin’s have always been my go-to for travel nausea but I’ve been looking for a lower sugar alternative. The ones I’m making are made with just fresh ginger and allulose, which is one of my favorite sugar alternatives because it doesn’t mess up my stomach like erythritol. Will definitely share the recipe if they’re good!
Until then, here are a few things I found interesting and wanted to share this week:
Good On You — Sustainable Fashion App
Good On You is an app that ranks fashion brands based on things like sustainability, materials, and ethical practices. It’s basically like the website I’m building, Welpr, but instead of non toxic products they’re ranking fashion brands.
I haven’t had a chance to play around on it much but they have a good brand selection of ones I know along with some new ones I want to check out. Seems like most are Australian (which makes sense considering that’s where they’re based) and I’m ok with this considering I’m obsessed with Australian fashion.
Check it out here
Natural Clothes Dyeing
Okay, so my friend sent me this a few days ago and it’s such a cool idea! It’s a natural dyeing service where you can send basically any garment - clothes, bedding, towels, fabric, etc. I love how they use natural dyes (one of their April colors, Moss, is made from pomegranate rinds), but also the sustainability aspect of being able to revive something you no longer wear or use rather than tossing or donating it. I personally haven’t tried this yet and therefore can’t speak to the quality, but I am considering sending in my old white pair of linen sheets at some point if they ever offer some sort of light brown or beige dye color.
Check it out here
Oobli Chocolate
Found a new chocolate this week that I am LOVING — Oobli is a super low sugar chocolate (less than 4g per serving) made with what I would consider “clean” ingredients, no artificial sweeteners, and instead with coconut sugar and proteins from the oubli fruit, a shrub found in Africa. The milk chocolate contains dairy but all of the dark chocolate flavors are dairy free. I got the dark chocolate sampler, which comes in 4 flavors: almond toasty, sweet n’ salty, silky smooth, and razzle dazzle (raspberry). I really enjoyed them all, but almond toasty was my favorite with raspberry in close second.
You can get them on Amazon here or on their website here.
“Anti-Fat” Controversy
This article, titled “Let Them Eat…Everything” has stirred up quite a buzz in the wellness world this week. The article is about author and “anti-fat” activist Virginia Sole-Smith, who has been gaining attention on the internet due to her latest book “Fat Talk-Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture” and her presence on social media. Smith advocates for navigating anti-fat bias with children, and one way she does this with her own kids is by allowing them to eat whatever they want, whenever they want, and criticizes things like minimalism and heterosexual marriage for being synonymous with toxic diet culture.
When I first came across her page, I respected (or so I thought) her efforts towards body image positivity. But after reading into things further, I found her message to be extremely concerning. I’m all for body positivity but this woman is just downright anti-health, which I strongly disagree with and find her message concerning.
Parents are responsible for taking care of their children, and with that comes the responsibility for their health. This means teaching them about the nutritional value of food so they understand how their choices affect everything from their health, cognitive abilities, athletic performance, mood, and yes, even weight. Letting your kids eat brownies for dinner and doughnuts for breakfast is just blatant disregard for their health and wellbeing. I am also by no means saying that parents need to be perfect here - I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the occasional treat as long as kids are being educated about nutrition.
In the article, she comments that kale and doughnuts hold the same “moral value” in her household. I find this so hypocritical, as she openly criticizes healthy eaters for thinking we're morally superior by choosing local, organic foods. Now she’s the one assigning moral value to foods. Food is about nutritional value, not moral value, and kale and doughnuts do NOT hold the same nutritional value, and kids need to be educated on that.
On top of that, she acts like she’s all about “body inclusivity” but her critique of influencer ballerina farm shows anything but that. She seems to have a problem with anyone with a “thin” body who eats healthy, works out, or does basically anything considered healthy. How is this body positivity? God forbid we eat some protein.
As someone who's all about real, wholesome food and fixing our food system, I can't help but speak up against “influencers” who push unhealthy ideals onto parents and kids. While I don’t have kids myself, it still affects all of us in so many ways. I know I could have avoided years of eating disorders had I been better educated on nutrition and how my food choices affected me.
While I have much more to say on this, I’m going to keep it brief for purposes of this newsletter (and because I need to pack). Hope everyone can read the article and get involved in the conversation in support of health.
xx Camille
