The Fat Girl's Guide to Living

We asked, and you answered: “What’s the FIRST word that comes to mind when you think of yoga?” From your 100+ responses, we randomly selected a winner:

::drumroll::

Sherri, who wrote “***energizing***” as her one-word association with the word “yoga.”

Congratulations, Sherri!

Please email your mailing address to: letters AT fatgirlsguidetoliving DOT com so we can send your copy of Plus-Sized Yoga: Beginners Yoga for People of All Sizes by Donald Keith Stanley.

Thanks for playing along, everyone! Tee and I got a kick out of your creativity and humor when answering this question. And Sherri and anyone else who picks up a copy of this book: please write to tell us what you think of it–we love reader mail! Stay tuned, as we’re planning more reader giveaways in the future.

One of our first Fat Girl’s Guides covered how to practice yoga when your boobs and belly are, shall we say, significant enough to render certain poses difficult without a skilled instructor to offer alternatives. Now we’d like to offer our readers a free copy of Plus-Sized Yoga: Beginners Yoga for People of All Sizes by Donald Keith Stanley. A yoga student for many years, Stanley worked with yoga instructors and students to develop this guide for “the rest of us,” dispelling the myth that you have to look like a cover model to practice yoga. The book also covers the many benefits of yoga, including improved posture, stress relief, and improved focus and sleeping patterns – benefits Toni can happily attest to since returning to practice at the beginning of this year.

To enter, comment here with the FIRST word that comes to mind when you hear the word “yoga,” and you’ll be automatically entered in the drawing. (One entry per person and you must enter a valid email address).

The contest closes Wednesday, March 10 at 11:59 pm CST. A winner will be chosen at random from the comments, and will be notified by email within 24 hours after the contest closes.

“Better than Chocolate” – clitoral vibrator by Nomi Tang

Whew! The first Wednesdays of each month are quickly becoming known as “sexy Wednesdays” around here, with Peony’s hot new monthly column, Sex and the Single Fat Girl, and now a sexy giveaway from brand new FGG sponsor Eden Fantasys.

Popular blogger, FGG reader and sexy Eden Fantasys liaison, Cecily Kellogg, wants to give away a decadent Better than Chocolate clitoral vibrator to one lucky reader. To enter, comment here with a one-liner about your favorite chocolate snack or dessert, be sure to enter a valid email, and you’ll be automatically entered.

Contest closes Saturday, January 9, at 11:59 pm PST. A winner will be chosen at random from the comments, and will be notified by email within 24 hours of contest close. Only one enter per person.

Good luck, ladies!

I’ll even add a hot sparkle for emphasis

As 2009 lumbers on out of here, taking the first decade of the new century with it, we thought this would be a great opportunity to bid the year farewell. Why? Looking back and letting go allows us to make room for new and better things to enter our lives.

We know how hard women can be on themselves, and we fat girls can sometimes be even more brutal in our self-talk. So today we invite you to use the comments to kiss off whatever didn’t serve you in 2009. I’ll post in the comments, too. Ready? Set? Pucker up!

My self-portrait project was both scary and liberating

Can you tell we love to see your self portraits? We’re always elbowing you to get in on the FGG Girls Flickr group, and now we’re willing to materially reward you for it. That’s because we know how powerful a self-portrait series can be…especially when grappling with body image.

So I’ll get right down to it. This week’s mid-week mini challenge is:

Join a Flickr self-portrait project group like 52 Weeks or 365 Days, upload your first self-portrait, then commit to at least one self-portrait each week for a year.

When you’ve joined the group and added your photo (which should be taken just for this project), come back here and link to that photo in comments. You’ll be entered to win the mini-challenge mystery prize, and we’ll choose a winner at random on December 31. As for the rest of next year, well…you’ll just have to be on the honor system to stick with it.

Deadline: 11:59 pm (PST) December 30, 2009. Edit: We’ve extended the challenge till the end of the first day of 2010 (11:59 pm PST on January 1, 2009)! Post links to your first 365 Days or 52 Weeks images in the comments either in this post or here.

Fun with my honey, from Kelle Sparta

I loved the contrast of this-is-a-serious-portrait background and clothing against the absolutely infectious, laugh-out-loud silliness in this photo. The palpable comfort and closeness between Kelle and her man makes me smile.

So what about you? What are you going to show us about how you’re really living this coming week? Share photos of yourself with us over at the FGG Girls Flickr group, and we’ll pick one to showcase each Sunday, and a winner from each of those to win a prize each month. Hope to see ya over there!

Self Portrait by Apple Green Amy

No post-turkey-day cooking photos landed in the FGG Girls group this week, but there’s a bunch of great new sassy images there, including this self portrait. I love the color pop in the eyes, lips, and hair – and the “up to something” ‘tude. That’s the FGG spirit!

Every week we select one photo from our Flick group as the FGG Photo of the Week. At month’s end, the girl behind the camera for one of those weekly photos wins a prize! November’s winner of our “cooking” challenge is photobonnie, for her entry “Stirring the Pot.” Congratulations, Bonnie! We have a custom-made FGG Book Bangle from Lonna’s Etsy shop for you. Email us at letters@fatgirlsguidetoliving.com so we can send it your way.

December elbows its way into our lives in two days, so grab that camera and  show us how you’re living.