Dear CeCe,
I’ve been following you for a while and I’m so inspired by your journey. Every year around this time, I make a commitment to start moving more and eating better.
But, if I’m honest I’ve been trying to “get healthy” for years, and every time I start, I lose steam. I keep asking myself: “Where do I even begin?”
xo,
Starting and Stuck
Hey, my Starting and Stuck doll—
Oof. I feel this deeply. And let me say this upfront: you are not behind. You are not broken. You are definitely not alone.
I hear versions of this question almost every week from women who are smart, capable, and still struggling to get traction in the health department. So today, I’m answering five of the most common questions I get when someone is ready to work on their health but keeps hitting walls. I think giving you a glimpse into what your fellow curvy dolls are navigating and how I advise them to move forward will be helpful to you (and our community reading along!).
Let’s talk about what’s really going on and how to move through it, with grace.
1.) “CeCe, I don’t even know where to start with getting healthy. What do I do first?”
My advice? Start with structure, not pressure.
You don’t need to overhaul your whole life today—you just need a rhythm you can return to.
Here’s what I recommend:
⏱ Eat at regular times. Choose a 3–4 hour rhythm between meals to start training your hunger cues.
📓 Write down your “why.” Not just “I want to lose weight,” but why you want to feel better. More energy? Confidence? Longevity?
📱 Set one reminder. One. Not five apps, not a color-coded spreadsheet. One simple phone alarm that says “Nourish Yourself.”
🚶🏾♀️ Walk for 30 minutes a day. It doesn’t have to be fancy or fast—just consistent. You can even break it into 3 ten-minute walks if that works better for you.
And if walking outside isn’t an option every day (been there!), I’ve got you. My cozy Manhattan apartment also serves as a motivating home gym when needed. I created an “Easy Home Gym for Small Spaces” Amazon store for you including mini treadmill options that support up to 400 pounds. Because every body deserves to move in ways that feel good and accessible.
Click Here to shop my Easy Home Gym set up for small spaces
2.) “CeCe, when I mess up, I just give up. Then months go by with no action towards my goals. How do I stop doing that?”
Please, doll… Let’s kill the myth of perfection, once and for all.
If you miss a day, make a less-than-ideal choice, or fall off completely, it doesn’t erase your progress. One off-day is not failure. It’s life. Here’s what helps:
🌱 Zoom out. Think of your habits like plants. Missing one watering doesn’t kill the whole garden.
🌀 Reframe “slip-ups.” Try asking: “What triggered that decision? Was I tired? Emotional? Unprepared?”
🔁 Bounce back faster. The goal isn’t to never fall off, it’s to shorten the time between falling off and getting back on.
Consistency > Perfection. Always.
3.) “CeCe, I work from home and I keep snacking even when I’m not hungry. How do I stop?”
Been there, doll! Snacking isn’t a moral failure. It’s often a signal.
Before trying to eliminate snacks cold turkey, try this:
🥗 Make your meals more filling. Add more protein, fat, and fiber. A sad little salad won’t hold you for 4 hours.
💧 Check your hydration. Sometimes we’re just thirsty and the body’s like, “Cool, snack it is.”
📱 Track your snack triggers. Are you bored? Stressed? Scrolling? Try swapping the snack for a 5-minute walk, stretch, or text to a friend.
Give your body structure and compassion, it’s probably just asking for one or the other.
4.) “CeCe, I do great during the week, but the weekend ruins my hard work. What can I do?”
Ha! As a recovering mimosa brunch princess, This is so real to me. In my experience, it’s not about discipline. It’s about predictable chaos.
Weekends disrupt routines. That doesn’t mean you need to restrict more, it just means you need to plan differently.
📆 Make a weekend version of your weekday habits. If you normally eat breakfast at 8am, maybe aim for 10am instead of skipping it altogether.
🛒 Stock your kitchen. Most weekend slip-ups happen because we’re outside, hungry, and decision-fatigued.
🎉 Leave space for fun. That wine night or brunch? Don’t “make up” for it, plan with it.
Don’t aim for perfect weekends. Aim for intentional ones.
5.) “CeCe, I’m working so hard and still not seeing results. What am I doing wrong?”
Yikes, doll. This one hurts because you’re showing up and it’s hard when your effort doesn’t match the outcome. But here’s what’s true:
🎯 The scale doesn’t measure everything. Your energy, your focus, your confidence in front of the camera, those count too.
📈 You might be in the “silent progress” phase. That window where your body is adjusting but the visual results haven’t kicked in yet.
📖 Start logging your wins. Even if it’s “I drank more water today” or “I didn’t skip lunch” those stack up.
If nothing else, remember this: If you're being kind to your body, you're not doing it wrong.
So now what?
Let’s be real, dolls—no matter what method you choose (natural, weight loss surgery, GLP-1s, etc.), you’ll hear the words “lifestyle change.” And if you knew exactly how to achieve one, you would have done it by now.
Undoing years (or decades) of unsupportive habits isn’t easy. That’s why I created the 2025 Habit Transformation Guide to walk you through the daily shifts that actually move the needle.
For me, success isn’t about chasing a number on the scale it’s about chasing the best version of myself. And that starts with daily habits that align with my goals without pressure or perfectionism.
💛 Let’s make this our season of strength, consistency, and glow-ups—inside and out.
Ready to transform your habits? Click Here and I’ll send the guide your way.
With you always,
CeCe