Don't get me wrong, THIS is how I really feel about makeup!

This afternoon I was going over my post from yesterday in my mind (please tell me I'm not the only one out there who does this), and it occurred to me that my last post makes me sound as though I am ANTI-MAKEUP. Record scratch!

Sometimes I wear makeup!

That is SOOOOOOO not the case. I am a huge believer in the POWER of makeup. Really!

I am NOT a huge believer in haters and shamers who try to tell women when they SHOULD wear it. Or that they are invisible if they don't. It's a stupid standard, men aren't generally subjected to it and they still earn way more money than we do.

HERE'S WHAT I LOVE ABOUT MAKEUP:
1. It's FUN.
2. It's CREATIVE.
3. It's POWERFUL

Yes, I actually think makeup can be used to give us an edge-when we want it to. "That's right, I showed up to this meeting, prepared to the hilt, and I STILL had time to treat you all to a kick-ass smokey eye. You're welcome."

I realized the power of makeup in my thirties, when I went from being a "behind-the-scenes" junior designer to being a "in-the-spotlight" designer, speaker and coach. I was never a big makeup-wearer and pretty much slid through the 80s and 90s on liquid eyeliner and occasional bright-red Wet 'N Wild lippy.

When I started to be more in the forefront of my life and business, I started to feel like it was time to either develop some actual makeup application skills or completely give it up altogether. My ratchet attempts at face painting were definitely NOT HELPING. It's hard to assert your authority in your field when your face is strictly from Amateursville.

Fortunately for me, makeup application is a learnable skill. And now that we have YOUTUBE? Jackpot! I have found the greatest products and techniques from some of my favorite Youtubers (a short list is below). It's even become fun for me to play around with makeup. Who knew?

The even better part is that people started taking me more seriously. Like, "Wow, if she can get her face and style together like this, maybe she can help me get myself together, too!" I also started to feel more confident about how I look, on and off-camera, because I knew I could deal with bad hair days or blemishes. I don't think men get the chance to feel that way very often.

HOWEVER, that doesn't mean I have to wear it all the time.

Sometimes I don't wear makeup!

I ONLY wear makeup when I feel like it. I certainly would never refrain from helping people or sharing valuable information on Periscope because I didn't have my "face" on.  I am getting pretty annoyed about these peri-trolls and their "Why are you even on Persicope without makeup?"

I've noticed that most of the men I follow on Periscope tend to look as if they spent as much time on their appearance as I do for my "Word of the Day" pre-workout scopes-only their version is to be unshaven, wearing a baseball cap to hide the bedhead. Know who gives them grief about it? NO ONE.  Of course they would never speak at a conference of appear on television looking like this. But they are sharing on Periscope on-the-fly, just like the rest of us, so WHO CARES if they need a shave? Not me! As long as they are giving me life-improving content, I'm good.

All I'm saying is, can we all just calm down about this? If you're on Periscope to see/chat up hot chicks in heavy makeup, there are literally thousands of other places you can do that. My scope is not one of them. The same goes for pretty much all other social media, too, as far as I'm concerned. Nobody gets to tell anybody what they have to say or how they have to look.

On the other hand, when I am made up and blinged out? You know I'm shooting as much video as I possibly can! Can't let that hard work go to waste!

I guess I'm just complicated that way.

I generally broadcast and post when the mood strikes (like now), and if that means my awesome, annual Fitbloggin selfie with Alan (@Sweating_It_Off) happens with a bare face, year after year...

There's a 3rd one of these somewhere...

so be it.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Are you a makeup lover? Hater? Do you think people shouldn't be online unless they look their very, very best, no matter what they have to say?

Are you dying to find some beauty Youtubers to hook up your makeup game? Here are just a few of my faves:
NATHALIE
CAROL
LORI
MARY
PATTI
SWOOZIE
KATHY
SHARON

Lastly, do YOU have a favorite beauty vlogger? Give them some love in the comments!

Wishing you love with extra cheese-
Nacho Mama

PERISCOPE: What I learned from a "DEAD" CRAB #lawofattraction #motivation #sorrynotsorry

Some of my greatest teachers are crustaceans.

Okay, the cat's out of the bag.

I pretty much always look a hot mess on Periscope. 

No, I don't even take a second to run a comb through my hair. Yes, I suppose it is "unprofessional", but I will probably continue to do it anyway.

Here's what I figure: there are people out there who will be willing to work with me anyway. Right? There must be plenty of folks who would hire me to help them make peace with their bodies while they try to transform their lives (btw if you are one of those people, email me at MyCoachMargo@Gmail.com or visit my coaching site MargoPorras.com for more info/endshamelessplug). There are even people who will choose to hire me to speak or write on the subject.

Plus, I choose to believe my troll-doll bedhead enhances my woo-woo-crystal-bruja-cred.

I don't know about you, but lately I've been noticing that there are literally MILLIONS of people out there who make a great living EVERY DAY without makeup, without beautifully coiffed blunt bobs, even without MANICURES-gasp!

They're called men. Perhaps you've heard of them?
NEXT DAY ADDENDUM: I realized this morning that the above min-rant makes it sound like I'm anti-makeup. Nothing could be further from the truth. I just don't like having to deal with internet haters' attempts to shame me into wearing it before going online. I think there's a post there somewhere...

Today's word of the day was ATTRACT.

We spoke about it in terms of "the law of attraction" (you can view the replay HERE) but later I got to thinking about how what YOU ATTRACT is up to YOU. No one else gets to tell you what get to attract. 

Because appearances can be very, very deceiving, and you never know who is going to teach you something when you are open to learn. It may be a dead crab. Or a live one.

Have you ever been fooled by someone's appearance in a positive way?

Wishing you love with extra cheese-

Nacho Mama

"I feel FAT!" Feeling fat? Why #fatisnotafeeling

Hello all!

Whew! It's been a while, hasn't it? I've been really busy with work and very sick, but now that things have calmed down and I'm on the mend, I finally made a video on a topic I've been wanting to address for a long, long time.

Ever catch yourself saying, "I feel FAT"? I do. I've also noticed that many of my friends and social colleagues have been saying it more lately, too. I've even noticed people saying it when I'm in public, like in the dressing rooms at Ross or on the sidewalks of my neighborhood during Sunday brunch hours. 

But I try to never let that statement go by without probing a little deeper. Here's why:

And another thing I've noticed: nobody ever says "I feel fat" in a positive way.  Which makes me really concerned about the message we're sending our kids about the "f-word". Remember back in the 90s when we spelled it with a "ph" and it meant something that was sooooo cool? I vote we bring that back.

So what do YOU actually mean when you say "I feel fat"? 

Wishing you love (and a beautiful Memorial Day!) with extra cheese-

Nacho Mama

"What I Didn't Say" aka "the one where Steve & Sue make me cry" #JustTrollin

WARNING: this is a long one, folks.

Fitbloggin 2014-photo by Carrie D Photography

Yes, I still have more Fitbloggin posts to write. Recaps of the conference in general (which I'll probably do on the podcast) and sharing my experiences in Savannah. But before I do, there's some unfinished business I have to take care of. Stick with me, I'm...

#JustTrollin

I was really lucky in that I pretty much loved all the sessions I attended during Fitbloggin. Having years of experience at this blogging business has helped me hone my "session-picking" skills at these types of events, so I rarely end up feeling as though my time was wasted. That doesn't mean that every session was a barrel of laughs or a wealth of data. Sometimes the most valuable sessions are the ones that force you to take a good, hard look at yourself. "Fitblogger Tough Love" was such a session.