The Bombshell Factor™

Hello Bombshell!

Are you loving your life right now? I am!! There are so many exciting things happening I can hardly contain myself!

Today we are talking a bit more about tolerating and what I have been tolerating.

So for the last several years I have been gaining a little weight each year. Not 50 pounds, but enough that my clothes no longer fit me like I like them to fit. I managed to go up one size and it looked like I might be getting closer to going up two sizes. I had enough and I knew I had to do SOMETHING to get back into my Bombshell clothes! Perhaps you are thinking “What are you talking about! You weren’t that fat!” Well, no, maybe I wasn’t. But let me tell you a secret my dear Bombshell…pain is pain. So whether someone needs to lose 10 or 15 lbs. or 50 or 100lbs, pain is pain. Tight clothes are tight clothes. And my clothes were getting TIGHT.

As I started to research what might be happening to me to cause me to gain weight (other than age and perimenopause!) I came across something very interesting. I found some information about food sensitivities and that I might have some! I never had allergies, but I did have food cravings…like peanut M&M’s and Mexican food! Like EVERYDAY. I had sensitivities to food I was eating almost everyday and THAT was what was making me fat. Now I just had to figure out a way to release that proclivity to eat stuff that was making me fat and never look back.

So I started to research and figure out a way to get this handled once and for all.

I came across a homeopathic hcg diet.  Let me just say I have never been a dieting kind of girl.  Never.  But it was time for me to grow up and get this handled.  So I did.

In a nutshell, I lost 17 lbs in 23 days. Yes, 17. My goal was to lose 10, but the first two days of the diet you are to food load (sounds WAY more fun than it is!) I gained 4 lbs on the food load (I call it gorge!) so that brought me up to needing to lose 14 pounds. And I lost 17. That was right after Christmas and I didn’t gain one pound back. Not one.

The reason I am telling you this is this: SO many women, because of their weight, tolerate feeling that they can never be better than they are in this moment…that life somehow dealt them the chubby card…the slow metabolism card…the “I love my fat and you should too!” and the ever popular one amongst my crowd (the southern folks!) ”I don’t come from skinny people” card (which was my favorite card by the way!) We make up all kinds of excuses why we don’t show up fully in the world. And you know what Bombshell? My confession is that maybe I was not showing up fully in the world either…by hiding behind my excuses for putting on a little weight I could hold off launching my big vision…I wouldn’t dare appear on video and show you eye to eye how to become more Bombshell fabulous because there was NO WAY I was doing that! I could drag my dream along a bit more slowly so that people around me could feel better about who they are in the world. I could dim my light a bit so that everyone else would feel better about themselves and not get weird on me because my light was shining brighter than their expectations of themselves.

Well my dear Bombshells… that girl that was so afraid to shine her very brightest is gone. She has been replaced by a new and improved model. One that can eat when she wants to eat and not when she has a weird craving. I choose my clothes instead of my clothes choosing me. I feel amazing and it feels awesome to have everything in my Bombshell closet fit me like a dream! It’s very cool really…that I got this weight thing handled…because when you get the weight thing handled you realize it’s not the weight thing at all…it’s that we sometimes forget the magic words that we are born with and life tries really really hard to take away…

I LOVE ME.

XOXO Gigi Belmonico

p.s. Want to see my little video and know more about what I did to get here? http://www.thebombshellfactordiet.com

Hello Bombshell!

So, did you remove a few things from your closet that don’t make your heart sing?  If you did, WOO HOO!!  Good for you!!  Didn’t that feel GREAT?! 

What would it feel like if every single time you opened your closet you did the happy dance because your closet is now your favorite room in the house?!  How COOL would that be??  Make this the year that you eliminate EVERYTHING in your closet that isn’t YOU. 

Uh oh.  Did that hit a nerve?  As in, “If I eliminate everything in my closet that isn’t me, I will only have 4 things to wear!!”

Precisely.  And that is why I am here dear Bombshell.  To help you move through this amazing transition with relatively little discomfort.  Don’t believe me?  How about you just try it and let me know how it goes?  Because I PROMISE that if you eliminate all “non-you” things in there,  in a short period of time you are going to be a very HAPPY Bombshell!!

You don’t have to do it all at once.  How about this: when you get dressed in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and STOP.  Listen very very closely to the words you are saying to yourself.  Are you beating yourself up because of the  little pooch on your tummy?  STOP.  Are you feeling like you look 100 years old because of a few grey hairs?  STOP.  Are you just plain mad at yourself because you don’t look, well…PERFECT??!! STOP STOP STOP.  These are all lies that we tell ourselves from our HEAD so that we don’t have to show up fully in the world.

What about if you listened to the words coming from your HEART?  You know, the ones that go something like…”I love when I wear blue because it makes my eyes look really blue like my Mom’s…and gosh do I ever miss her.”  Or, how about….”I love wearing this sweater because I feel really cute in it!!”  or my all-time favorite “WOO HOO!!  I SO feel like a Bombshell today!!”

Maybe you have some questions about who you are and what might look great on you…I am here to help you every step of the way.  Please sign up for my very occasional newsletter for even more Bombshell fabulosity!  I will teach you more about body types and fashion personalities and all things Bombshell…and I PROMISE not to overload your inbox!

So tell me Bombshell… are you ready to start becoming the REAL YOU today?  If not today, when? 

Because when we feel really good about who we are we can feel really good about what we are doing here.  XOXO Gigi Belmonico

Hello Bombshell!

I hope your world has been full of joy and the magnificence of the season!

My post is going to offend some people.  While it is never my intent to do so, I am compelled to write about something that deeply disturbs me and will accept the fallout without apology. 

WHAT IS WITH THE ELECTRONICS AT THE TABLE?? I  have noticed lately that texting/twittering at the table is almost an obsession.  What’s up with that?  An even bigger question is WHY??  Why is there such a frenzy to deliver earth-shattering news from a dining table??

Bombshells, if you are guilty of this, STOP.  STOP NOW.  Part of being a Bombshell is being present in the moment and enjoying the company you keep, even if that company is only YOU at the moment. 

 I have been asking around to see if someone could give me a great answer, a definitive answer, about why texting and twittering at the table has become so commonplace.  I wanted to get some kind of answer that was so thought-provoking, so perfect, that I could drop this subject.  The answers stunned me to the point that I could no longer remain silent.  One said they thought it was cool to tell friends what was happening while they were away.  Okay…this came from a grown-up, not a 12 year old.  I’m serious.  So instead of being present and engaging 100% with present company you are communicating with someone that didn’t want to couldn’t be there at the expense of an in-person connection?  And the point is…?

Another answer was that  ”this is my job so I really have to tweet many times through out the day!”  Uh, okay.  My job is to teach women how to be fabulous in their own skin and love who they are…but I don’t make a practice of stopping a delicious meal to go apply lipstick to another guest in the restaurant because she happened to show up in sweats and no makeup!  And I haven’t seen a physician stop his rare moment of relaxation to go table to table and make food recommendations that are heart-healthy.  And it’s been quite a while since I saw an etiquette consultant stop her meal and give lessons about which fork gets used first.  Have you ever seen a speaker get up and make a speech in the middle of a meal just because well, that’s her job?? 

I could go on and on, but my point is this.  There is a LASTING LEGACY that you are leaving in this world…an imprint of who you are…so when you are out with family/friends and you are checking email or tweeting about what a great restaurant you’re at (which is a great idea by the way–and guess what? It can be tweeted AFTER you eat!)  you are sending a very strong message to the world about what you value.  And you are sending an even stronger message to your loved ones about what you value!!  Is this the legacy you want to leave in the world?  That you chose to connect electronically more than you connected in person?  Is that REALLY what you want written on your tombstone? 

A question for my single Bombshells (and friends of Bombshells of course!)…do you want to put out the vibe that you are unavailable?  If you are sitting alone enjoying a coffee and are staring at your electronics then I assure you Mr. Wonderful has little to no interest in approaching you.  He will be more apt to approach the Bombshell that has a secret grin on her face as she people watches!  On another note, if you are a guy reading my blog (thank you very much!!) and you are guilty as charged, the Bombshell across the table has a line of suitors willing and ready to show her FULL attention!!  Is it worth losing an amazing woman? 

Studies are showing that just because someone has 2000 friends on twitter and a huge fanbase on Facebook, it doesn’t mean that they have a ton of friends that they actually spend time with….and sometimes the opposite is true-that they have many online friends and NO offline friends.  Is that you?

Bombshells….there is an amazing, wonderful life out there!!  Don’t miss out on one drop because you are too busy texting!   Just try it.  Engage fully at your next meal.  Your loved ones will thank you.

All the very best to you my darlings~XOXO Gigi Belmonico

Hello Bombshells! How fabulous are you today?  In my last post we discussed the power of a compliment.  How did that go?  Are you giving and receiving compliments with Bombshell ease?  Thank you to all of you that so graciously posted a comment here for the world to see–I appreciate you!

Today we discuss the power of Encouragement.  We can all remember a teacher that said something that so deeply resonated with us that we never forgot that teacher.  I recall one of my favorite teachers of all time…Mrs. Filbert, my Home Ec teacher and amazing Bombshell in every way.  Don’t get me wrong, she wasn’t my favorite teacher because she taught my favorite class–far from it.  Home Ec was my all time WORST class.  I had absolutely NO interest in ever being a homemaker or learning to sew (Which were the typical subjects of Home Ec in my day!)  But Mrs. Filbert did so much more than teach me about homemaking and sewing. 

I well remember the day that she changed my life.  We had just finished a term of working in a small daycare learning how to care for children.  I had no intention of ever running a daycare, (God bless those that do!!) but I was the type of girl that gave my all to anything I did.  I brought back an excellent report and shared it with her.  I remember what she said as if it were yesterday (and trust me it was a LONG time ago!) She looked at me right in the eyes with her beautifully gentle Bombshell spirit and said “Young lady, you are gifted with people, young and old.  You are going to make a big difference in this world and will succeed at whatever you do.”  It brings tears of gratitude to my eyes just writing this for you now as I recall her amazing words of wisdom and ENCOURAGEMENT.  If you were raised in an encouraging environment, this may seem like nothing profound at all.  But I wasn’t raised in that kind of environment–I always made excellent grades and was a leader throughout my entire life, so it was always expected that I do well.  Her words were a gift that I treasured then and to this day– not only did she inspire me to become a writer and a speaker and to fully love working with people as an Image Consultant, she inspired me that day to become an ENCOURAGER…to be able to see people for who they are inside (and love helping them bring that to the outside!)  Since that day I have looked for ways to encourage others, whether it be a compliment or a praise or SOMETHING that shows them that I SEE THEM. 

And just so you know…I see YOU.  I see your struggles and desires to be all God called you to be in the midst of taking care of family, home, career, elderly parents and SELF.  I see your fears about what it takes to step out of your uncomfort zone and go for it.  I am right with you Bombshell!! 

So how does this move us Bombshell forward?  Here is your assignment: find one person this week that you know would be blessed by your encouragement and go ENCOURAGE them!  Send a note, a card, a tweet about their Bombshell fabulosity for the whole world to see.  You will be amazed at how great it feels to encourage others.  Kind of like that compliment thing…when you encourage others it fills YOUR bucket even more.  And it means so much coming from a Bombshell like you!! XOXO Gigi Belmonico  p.s.  Thank you to Mrs. Filbert for helping me become all that God intended me to be…including being a homemaker!!heehee

When you think of the word ”Bombshell” what image comes to mind?  Is she an overly bleached blonde with a ton of cleavage and wearing a too-tight and too-short skirt?  Think about a woman that is beautiful to look at from afar but when you get closer you notice something.  She is making demands, being unfriendly, cursing, and using poor manners.   When you get close to her you realize her energy is actually quite draining and her beauty is overshadowed by her lack of…lack of everything BUT beauty.  Somehow her beauty diminishes before your very eyes. When she leaves the room, you are disappointed that such beauty is wasted on someone so unappealing. 

Now picture this: An attractive woman enters the room, dressed in clothing that accentuates her shape without being immodest or over the top.  All eyes are on her. Instead of being rude, she is genuinely friendly and gracious to all she comes in contact with. Her warmth and generosity of spirit melts even the most cynical onlooker.  She looks at you and is not only interested in what you are saying, you feel like you are the most important person in the room…because to her, you ARE.  Her outer beauty is only magnified by the energy and inner joy she exudes.  When she leaves the room, all you can think of is WOW.

Which one is the Bombshell?  And which one are YOU?

Well, my darlings,  THAT is the question you must answer for yourself.  Are you going to continue doing what you’re doing, accepting the fact that “You’re just not Bombshell material”?  Or are you ready to embrace your God-given feminine power and inner AND outer beauty?  To not only attract what your heart desires but be a blessing to those you come in contact with on a daily basis?  If you are READY TO BE A BOMBSHELL, read on.  And if you’re not, that’s okay too.  We will welcome you back with open arms when you’re ready….Bombshells are friendly that way!

Bombshell Wisdom for today:   As you read, being a Bombshell is not just about beauty.  Beauty is a component of being a Bombshell, and perhaps the easiest to attain.  Yes, there are women that are naturally drop-dead gorgeous.  But beyond the age of 30 the pool of women that are absolutely stunning without a little help from the cosmetics counter, Image consultant, and tailor are very very few.  EVERY woman benefits from doing things that enhance her beauty….and face it, we ALL feel better when we put our best foot forward aesthetically.  So if the “beauty” part of being a Bombshell is one of the easiest to do, and you haven’t been doing all you can in that area, ask yourself why.  Is it because you’ve been duped into thinking that all good-looking women are born that way and it doesn’t take effort?  Or have you believed that it might take too MUCH effort and you don’t have time nor inclination to spend two hours putting your face on in the morning?  Truth is, every woman that turns heads IS wearing makeup (for better or worse!) and with a little practice, it takes about 10-12 minutes to apply makeup that will help you feel confident about how you look.  Now another important question:  Are YOU worth spending time on?  I believe you are.  And if you are ready to embrace YOU and ready to be a Bombshell, stay tuned.  Your life will never be the same. XOXO GigiBelmonico