What Did I Get Myself Into? (Musings on Fear)

Prefer to listen? Click below. Don’t give in to your fears. If you do, you won’t be able to talk to your heart. A client joked recently, “Tonya, I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I signed up to work with you.”Yes, I challenge my clients to do incredible, scary things, […]

Are You Feeling Trapped? Here’s How I Set Myself Free!

Prefer to listen? Click below. She was becoming herself and daily casting aside that fictitious self which we assume like a garment with which to appear before the world. Over the course of my life, I think I have tried to fit into about 100 boxes.  That’s more than 3 boxes a year. Exhausting! I’ve […]

Frenchie Friday: How I Lost Weight and Finally Made Peace with My Body

The magnitude of pleasure reaches its limit in the removal of all pain. When such pleasure is present, so long as it is uninterrupted, there is no pain either of body or of mind or of both together. Fifteen years ago, my body was carrying around 75 extra pounds. Yes, you heard me right… 75. Underneath that […]

Frenchie Friday: Wine + Weight Loss

A good wine is like a gentle kiss, its effect throughout the meal is scintillatingly sensual in an elegantly understated way.  I’ll admit that I use to be that girl who would pour herself a glass of wine (or four) to “relax” after a long day.  Then, there were the other occasions where it was used […]

Frenchie Friday: Want to Peek Into my French State of Mind?

He showed the words “chocolate cake” to a group of Americans and recorded their word associations. “Guilt” was the top response. If that strikes you as unexceptional, consider the response of French eaters to the same prompt: “celebration.”  If you could have been a spy in my head 10 years ago, I’d imagine you’d find […]

Frenchie Friday: 3 Words to Consider as to Why French Women are Slim

People have been trying to demystify the French paradox for years, including me.  Really, how do all those people eat cheese, chocolate and baguettes while sipping wine and not be obese? The truth is that there are many factors involved in the slim physiques of French people (ones that I teach in the Slim, Chic […]

A Lady’s Guide to Halloween Candy + Book Giveaway Winners

“Last year, I ate my son’s entire bucket of Halloween candy,” Stacey confessed. I was so embarrassed that I went out at 2 a.m. to buy an assorted mixture to replace it, so that my son wouldn’t find out that his mom is a pig,” she continued. “What did you eat?” I asked, curious about […]

French Feminine Secret: Make Everyday an Active Affair

Prefer to listen? Click below. An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day. If Americans have done one thing quite well…. It’s been to confuse a very simple concept:   Moving our bodies. Does exercise seem like a daunting task that you’d rather avoid?  Are you confused about how to move your body? […]