Because of the way society views larger people, when I started getting really sick, my doctor would tell me to lose weight, exercise and eat better. He didn't believe that I worked out 3-4 days a week at least 3 hours and ate healthy. Because of years of no one listening, I ended up with Stage 4 Lipedema and Lymphedema. It was bitter sweet once diagnosed because it finally explained why my body kept swelling and why my body never responded to diets and exercise.

About 17 million women suffer from Lipedema in the USA alone. Too many are going to early graves because the medical community doesn't teach doctors about this disease. After finding out I had Lipedema we discovered my mother had it and it is genetic. My mom wasn’t nearly as bad as me but it took her life on September 24, 2015. She passed away from complications of Lipedema. She had Bilateral Thrombosis, the same thing that happened to me back in 2011, but I survived.

It was clear that my life was spared to help spread awareness and help other women get the treatments that they need and help fix the stigma when you see a plus size woman. Shortly after my mom passed away, I started taping the TLC documentary titled My Legs Won't Stop Growing that aired July 25, 2016.

There are research organizations for Lipedema but there is nothing to help the women who can't afford the treatments that insurance won't cover. That is why I sat down, got together my Board and started The Lipedema Queen organization. We worked very hard to get our 501(c)3 non-profit designation so that we can be tax exempt and offer our donors tax receipts and help suffering women.

We are sponsoring an AquaRun 1K on April 22, 2017 at the New York Sports Club in Livingston, NJ from 2:00-5:00 pm to raise money to help buy compression garments and supplements for women suffering from this disease. This marathon is to show that a woman at any size can run a water marathon and one should never judge a book by its cover. Women who suffer with Lipedema every day are a blessing because this disease can steal so much and every day is a gift. We would love to have NAAFA members attend our event. Come celebrate life with us. You can register for our event at http://www.thelipedemaqueen.org/tlqs-aqua-run-1k

Hello NAAFA Friends,

I’ve been working with some folks who have purchased my new book titled Easy Fitness for the Reluctant Exerciser. What we’re noticing is that the reluctance is often trickier to navigate than the exercise. I believe that is because exercise reluctance is an appropriate response to all the pressure and lousy fitness messaging, so it’s hard to get past it. But if you want to stay or become more mobile you may want to find a way to build strength. Strength is the key to more stamina and mobility.

Here is a question to think about: Do you think your wellbeing is supported more when you are happy or when you are ornery? When you are frustrated or when you are satisfied? What I teach people to do always and in my new book is to purposefully think a happy (or optimistic or eager or easy or satisfying) thought and then do something small like a butt squeeze. Then relax and repeat.

When you feel good you are in the flow of wellbeing and so that is the time to take your next step. Try it now. Let your mind find something that makes you smile then squeeze your butt. To give the butt squeeze more umph you can make it a Tush Tilt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDQBv-rYhL8

Try to purposefully find your own flow of wellbeing and enjoy the feeling. If you’d like to join the Easy Fitness Pathway check out the book and free classes here: http://EasyFitnessBook.com

Here’s to standing strong, moving forward and being easy!

Love,
Cinder

I first learned about NAAFA from a staff person at my college back in the early '90s, but my first real connection to NAAFA came when I was invited to coordinate the fashion show at the NAAFA conference in San Francisco a few years ago. Since then, my commitment to NAAFA has deepened at the same time as my participation in the world of plus size fashion has expanded. I’m excited to continue helping NAAFA members and supporters learn new and interesting information about fat fashion. In March I had the pleasure of collaborating with model Saucye West and fashion designer Bertha Pearl for the second edition in NAAFA’s 2017 Webinar Series. Our subject for the day was fat fashion (specifically, “Fatshion as Action - Having Fun With Clothes While Changing the World!”).

We spent an hour and forty-five minutes discussing everything from fashion vocabulary to the challenges of being a fat runway model to why fashion is important when there are so many serious civil right issues we could be focusing on instead. Rather than recap the entire presentation here, I’ve selected my favorite quote from each presenter. I encourage you to check out the full presentation, and I hope you have as much fun as we had! The recording is available on the NAAFA website at https://www.naafaonline.com/dev2/community/events.html There is also a PDF handout available for download which includes a list of fat fashion bloggers whom Saucye and I like and we think you might like, too.

The most important takeaway from the webinar is that fashion is more than just fun: self expression through fat fashion has a ripple effect by increasing fat visibility, supporting fat and fat-loving businesses, and enhancing community through the relationships we make while having fun. Fat people have the right to wear what we like, and as activists, we should support those in front of the camera, those behind the sewing machine and everyone in between who are expanding our options.

“When our focus on fat clothing is just about hiding our fat, that’s a very different psychic energy than when our focus is on feeling good about ourselves so we can go out and do the work we need to do in the world. So that’s why [fat fashion] is important.” -Tigress (@ioftehtigress)

“It’s important that out there fat people who haven’t been exposed to fat activism actually see fat bodies in clothing, actually see fat bodies feeling fabulous, looking fabulous, being out there. So that they know they don’t have to hide themselves anymore . . . Here’s your rolls. The ones that you think you have to hide, you don’t have to hide them.” –Bertha (@sizequeenclothing)

“I want to highlight the things on my body that I love the most. And I think that me using fashion in that aspect of activism is so awesome because it just shows women that, ‘You know what, if Saucye can wear it, I can wear it!’ And then they’ll walk down the street and they’ll be inspiring someone else. And it’s just like a domino effect. Because that’s what activism is. It’s an extension of self-love.” – Saucye (@saucyewest)