Short and Sweet!

 

Felt it was about time to update you all on my ventures!

BWL Golden Chance - As you may have seen, this time around, I wasn't selected for the next Phase.

Although it was an amazing experience and I was extremely flattered to be invited to that stage of the process, I have so much going on in good old Basingstoke, I realised I wouldn't want to leave!  I couldn't leave what I have here behind. Every cloud and all that! Always better to focus on the positives of situations than to dwell on the "What If"s or "Why not me?"s


Mia Cucina - I love food / cooking and creating - and providing healthy meals for those that don't have the time is a big passion of mine. I hate admitting defeat and quitting, so this is really hard.

I have so many things going on, something had to give - with 2 jobs, training/competing and my health, I have decided to put Mia Cucina on hold for a while - I will still continue to create dishes and share recipes and hope to revive it once I have more time. I will of course continue to provide for the EBW Day Cures when needed!

Extra EBW Class - Friday at 6pm - This is to start next week and again is a Female Only Weight Training class, mainly being an introduction to weightlifting and building confidence within a gym setting to enable further development - and of course working on those Bikini Bodies! I am really excited to start training a new group of ladies, in blocks of 6 week focused programmes! The class is open for up to 8 ladies, and I think all the spaces have already gone!

Endometriosis UK - This is probably the biggest piece of news I have. Last Year, I had a few interviews with Endometriosis UK and on Friday 6th of January, I attended a training course at their main office in London to become an Official Volunteer Support Group Leader for the Charity.

My task is to set up the first of it's kind in Basingstoke, plan and run at least 6 meets a year for ladies of all ages who suffer - and also a place for partners or fathers to come to for further information on the condition to help support their loved ones.

Each session will be varied, where we can share experiences, provide information on how to manage the condition and most of all, create a warm, inviting environment for those who feel they have no support elsewhere.

This is a huge opportunity for me, and luckily I already have a few willing helpers, as well as a local journalist and sufferer Emily Brown who also plans to train up to support the running of the group with me. (She also wrote the lovely article about my Fundraiser last year!)

We plan to launch our first group in April / May, but before then, we are running another fundraiser - and this time it is on a much Bigger scale..

When and Where?!

Saturday March 21st and is being held at the Tea Bar at the Top of Town, from 2pm. The afternoon will be one of socialising and entertaining, including live acts performing on the day and of course a raffle! Prizes have already started coming in; Bombay Sapphire Distillery have donated 2 tickets for a tour, Official NFL Merchandise is up for grabs, as well as a Family Portrait and FHC Vouchers and of course Training vouchers from EBW - and more to be confirmed. If anyone wants to contribute to the prizes, and gain some local promotion free of charge as a result, please let me know!

For more info, here is the link to the event - Free Entry too! And if Tea and Coffee isn't your thing, there's always the bar!!

 https://www.facebook.com/events/385010941659705/392179724276160/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity

We will officially announce the first date for the group meet at the event!

Like I said, Short and Sweet today - I wanted to share all the excitement - as always!

Over the next few weeks I will be posting a few more updates on my training, including how I am faring with 6 training sessions a week plus yoga, when my next competition will be and what my next set of goals are!

Have a great weekend guys!

Franki xx

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Twitter: @fnapolitano2
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Body Beautiful

What is Beauty and how would you define it? Someone's smile? Their bodyshape or hair style? Their confidence, determination, courage?

There is too much pressure on us from society to conform to a norm, this we already know and are well aware of. We all know damaging it can all be.

As I reflect on this year past and what I can expect from this one coming, my mind is drawn back to that wonderful week I spent in the sunshine in Spain. I recall feeling happy with myself and for once, not feeling conscious of how I looked or what others thought of my body in a bikini.

Sitting round the pool for a few days opened my eyes to the way in which women's body confidence can be so vastly different. For instance, the difference just between Spanish and English women was amazing.

I picked up on the behaviours of four women that week and each one with their own story. 2 women of about a UK Size 14 and 2 of a UK Size 8.

The Size 14 English Woman was noticeably shy about her body - despite having an impressive collection of beautiful bikinis, she covered herself up in a sarong each time she got up - even to just adjust the umbrella she lied beneath. When in the water, she kept all of her body below the water and when her kids asked her to join in in water games she refused and would retreat to her sun lounger. You may think she just sounds like she was shy all round - but she would happily chat to others and constantly laughing and smiling.

In stark comparison, was a Spanish mother, of around the same size. She had no noticeable worry about strutting around in a thong bikini, constantly jumping in and out of the water with her little girls and certainly didn't seem to mind her tummy rounding when she sat on the pool edge. I was in awe of her body confidence - it almost felt like SHE felt she was beautiful and almost celebrated her curves - as we should!

On the other end of the scale were the Size 8s - The English woman had a great figure, but would always walk around the pool with her arms crossed over her tummy and prodding it when she laid down. She would also noticeably suck her tummy in when walking past people - which we can all say we have done at some point, but she really didn't have to. She was also constantly looking at other women, again as we all do and clearly what I was doing this particular day.

The Spanish lady's confidence mirrored that of the other Senorita; confident, happy and seemingly un-fazed by her  surroundings. Again, a beautiful figure, and a very small bikini, and didn't seem bothered about the roll of skin over her tummy as she sat down (which most others would hide with a book or something).

My point here is perception - 2 women of the same size, both with different attitudes towards their bodies, which have most likely have been formed from the differing pressures from our societies. I have spoken before about the media bombardment in the UK on ''The Perfect Body'' the gossip columns that belittle someone for going up a dress size and the inundation of quick fixes to slim down. Did you know there is now a powder available to buy that you simply tip down your throat to create a sponge like substance in your stomach to stop you feeling hungry?! Jeez!

I don't feel the pressures are as harsh in the rest of Europe - especially in Mediterranean countries where the fuller female figure is celebrated and heart disease and cholesterol issues are lower.

OK, so what prompted me to write this piece today...

Katie Hopkins - My Fat Story, a two piece documentary on Katie's Mission to get fat and then slim down again to show ''fat people'' that by moving more and eating less, you can lose weight without the need for fad diets and an expensive gym.

Those of you that are familiar with Katie and her controversial rants on This Morning will know there is a divided opinion on her and whether or not her comments cross the line. Well here is my view;

I thought the documentary was very good - it highlighted a lot of issues that most people are ''afraid to talk about'', like asking an overweight person why they are so. Or Being told you look too scrawny and in fact un-healthy. I loved the fact that Katie even went along to, and guest judged, a beauty pageant especially for the curvier woman and developed more of an appreciation for women who celebrated a more feminine / curvy figure.

I think what got lost in translation though was the differentiation in those ''fat'' she was referring to - some I would consider merely overweight, but they were made out to be obese, which wasn't fair I feel. On the flip side, Katie was accused of ''Fat Shaming'' by size acceptance campaigner Kathryn Szrodecki, who actually called the police to report her for a hate crime - after voluntarily taking part in an open discussion about size and the industry view. This seemed totally unwarranted - an no, Katie wasn't reprimanded (not yet anyway...!)

Again, some of it revealed deeper issues to weight gain and the difficulty some find when it comes to shedding the pounds - for example, upon visiting a 55 stone American woman Nicky, Katie was asked to leave the property when she told  Nicky she didn't believe her when she said she was ''happy with her size and wanted a bigger butt'' and that there must be something that triggered the start to her eating - and with this, I agree. Overeating is just as much a deep routed, psychological issue as other eating disorders.

In all, I praise Katie for the documentary - although I didn't agree with everything, she did prove the point she set out to make. I would highly recommend giving it a watch - I would be interested in hearing your views!

Funnily enough, going back to the poolside in Alicante, it was reading Katie's column in The Sun Newspaper which triggered my idea to blog about the Big Bodyshape debate - and now she has bought it back to me.


So, I'll ask again. What Makes Someone Beautiful? I know what my answer is, and I'd love to hear yours!

Franki xx

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Twitter: @fnapolitano2
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My First Fundraiser

Think I have found my new calling...!



I absolutely loved every stressful moment of Saturday. From the planning and preparation, the networking and sponsorship hunting, the whole experience was Fantastic!

I feel very proud and privileged to know so many thoughtful, generous and helpful people who all attributed to the success of the fundraiser.

I had over 20 prizes to give away on the raffle which sold over 500 tickets! I was very lucky to have so many great prizes donated from Local Businesses and owe a lot to those that contributed.







My biggest gratitude goes to those that helped me run things on the day;

My Beautiful Greeters

Georgie and Zuz for Meeting and Greeting,

 

No one can say no when kids are selling raffle tickets!

Mia and Ellie for expertly selling raffle tickets and encouraging people to bid on the Amazing Pants Cake,

Charlotte and Katie for busily selling all the brilliantly made cakes by several of my friends and family, Who managed to dodge any photo opportunity!!

My Family

 

 

My Mum and Dan for making sure everyone had their free teas and coffees! -
And for running to Sainsbury's at 12:50pm when I realised there was no milk for the hot drinks!!





Marie from Bombshell Hair and Beauty doing Vinylux nails for Charlotte

I also had Becki and Marie on site, promoting the new Fake Bake Beauty Products and Offering Small Pampering treatments respectively. Marie kindly spent the afternoon doing nails and massage for donations and I know plently of my girls who took full advantage of this!!

Fake Bake Beauty with Becki

Well Done to Adam Wilson who won the Pants Cake made by Robyn - and what a good sport he was, he split it with Ben of EBW - means us coaches have some to tuck into this week too :) I mean...just look at and not eat at all....

 

Just in case you haven't yet seen this Masterpiece!

My last thank you goes to Ethan, my brilliant little raffle ticket picker! He did a great job, quite the confident little lad!


Ethan Drawing the raffle tickets!

Lastly, my Fundraising total has just gone over £500, double what I expected to raise. I cannot express how grateful I am of everyone's generosity. I can't seem to stop saying Thank You. But that's it, that was my last one!

Anyway, everyone loves a photo, so here are just a few more from the day - so, oops, one more Thank You needed!! I'm lucky enough to have a very talented photographer as a friend, so Thank You To Maddie for taking such beautiful photos and capturing the fun of the afternoon!

And I thought I would run out of Cake..!

Ethan's beautiful Mummy and my Dear Friend Rachel

 

 

Waiting for the Raffle!

Two Elite Females, Zoe and Zuz,
 




Very popular Chocolate and Cream cake made by EBW Client Ros





My oldest friends, the girls from school & college , love that they came to support
 



Cupcakes courtesy of Georgie, Ali and Dru

My Favourite photo - Ethan finding out the cake looked like girly knickers, because that's what they were!
 

Looking forward to running more events in the future, it was great fun! Now to bank it all and get it over to Endometriosis UK!!

 

 

 

Franki  xx

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Twitter: @fnapolitano2
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Doing My Bit For Charity

A few months back, I told you I was planning on doing a Charity Fundraiser....and I still plan to!

In fact, I have booked a date for it;  on November 22nd 2014, I will be holding Franki's Mad Pants Tea Party!

Who For? Endometriosis UK http://endometriosis-uk.org/

Why? I have suffered with this disease for over 4 years.

Endometriosis UK is a Charity that works with sufferers on the management of the disease, offering support and guidance, as well as campaigning for sufferers to receive better treatment and care - and hopefully, as with all causes like this, find a cure.

It is something that effects roughly 1.5 million Women in the UK alone and can be truly awful. There have been days were it has been a struggle for me to walk.

Or the pain comes on so suddenly it stops me in my tracks (can you imagine this happening to you whilst you're driving?! Scary to say the least!)

For some, it can be so debilitating, getting off the sofa is about as much movement as you'll get in a day.

It can even lead to Female Infertility due to the slow process in which diagnosis can take place. I was told several times my symptoms were ''Irritable Bowel Syndrome'' ''A Pulled Muscle'' and even, insultingly, ''It's All In Your Head'' ..... all the while, I was suffering with what turned out to be ''A Pretty Severe Case'' - a diagnosis I eventually got after seeking a third opinion from a walk in clinic who immediately referred me for scans....and so my Endo Journey began....

Unfortunately, like several other diseases, there is no known cure, only quick fixes which usually result in a trip to the hospital for surgery - and this has happened three times to me.

Luckily for me, although the pain I suffer can be at times unbearable, I am able to still carry on day to day life, and even train - I think I have only not trained a handful of times due to it... I don't let anything stop me...! ;-)

You already know how passionate I am about Health and Wellbeing, and I feel it is so important to support this from all angles. Raising awareness about Women's Health, for me, is as equally important as it is to raise awareness for Eating Disorders - Two areas that don't get enough recognition for the serious diseases it encompasses. When it does, it's usually a negative story - this should change. This is why I want to raise awareness and money for a cause that closely effects me.


So what's a Mad Pants Tea Party?!

Well, it's pretty much just that -  a Tea Party, except you wear a token - a pair of Pink Pants :-)

Venue is still to be confirmed, hoping to get this sorted next week - in the meantime, if anyone can recommend one, it would be most appreciated!

The theme for the Tea Party will be Pink Pants, but as long as something you wear is Pink, you'll fit right in :)

I plan on running a few little competitions such as;

 ''Guess the Weight of the Cake'' - Winner gets the cake,

A Cake ''Auction'' - a special Pink Pants Cake that will be sold to the highest bidder

Along with a Lucky Dip, Good Old Cake Sale and of course a Raffle with some great prizes to be won!

A £2 Entry fee will also be asked for, and you will get a free cup of Tea or Coffee on entry :)

I hope to raise a bit of cash for a great cause and would be most grateful if anyone else is willing to get involved, either by volunteering to bake some yummy cupcakes to sell, can donate any prizes for the raffle or to simply help me set up and tidy away on the day. Ooh and take plenty of photos!

I will be doing promotions for this through the Gym, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, so you have no excuses to forget the date ;-)

Oh, and the Event won't be exclusive to just the ladies, guys are most welcome too! But you HAVE TO wear pink pants ;-)


I hope that you are able to support me in this venture! Over the next year I am hoping to do a few more fundraisers for them....their next one is Tough Mudder - https://toughmudder.co.uk/   but I don't think I am quite up to it yet...!

Do you do any fundraising? If so, what inspired you to do so?

Franki xx


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