Monthly Archives: November 2011

A Tommie Copper Coincidence

Posted on by Renée
2

I swear this is completely coincidental.

I’ve been thinking of trying compression garments (that sounds so “old-lady”, right?) for quite a while. In fact I believe it was Suzi Storm who turned me on to Tommie Copper on twitter (we were talking about the benefits in general of these products).

Because of my little knee thing I’ve got going on, I asked the physio the last time I saw him if I should try something like a brace or compression garments. He said “no”. In fact I was pretty amazed he just came out and said no. So why do people rave about them all the time? Surely there was a good reason!

So yesterday I decided I was just going to take the chance. The thing is Tommie Copper not only ship internationally, they also allow returns or exchanges within 30 days of order. Assuming my order is not on a slow boat to China, I figured, it doesn’t work out, the most I’m out is the money to ship them back. So I ordered two (yes two, because I like pairs) knee compression sleeves in black (what else). At the end of my order form there was a space for a note or comments about the order. I mentioned there that I had heard good things and was hoping that I’d gotten my measurement right to place the order correctly.

Now normally companies have these things available to fill in, but really… do they ever really answer? Well Cassandra Badini answered it RIGHT AWAY:

    Hi Renee,

    Thanks for your message, we hope you enjoy your Tommie Copper Knee Sleeves. Please feel free to give us any feedback after you’ve worn them! Hopefully the large fits, but if you would like a different size, we would be happy to issue you an exchange as long as it is returned within 30 days from today. Just include the original packing slip with your return and instructions on whether you are returning or exchanging your purchase.

    Please feel free to contact me if you have questions or need any assistance. Our Customer Service Team is available every day from 8:00am – 6:00pm at 1-855-692-8291.

    Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

    Sincerely,
    Cassie

This was one hour after I placed my order! Can I already say I love this company? I’m so very impressed with customer service these days – and if the product is the right size and works I am going to be THRILLED.

So…

Imagine my surprise when I see that Ali over at Running w/Spatulas is having a TOMMIE COPPER GIVEAWAY!!! I saw the tweet and quickly checked if it was open to residents outside of North America, held my breath and got my answer:

Damn straight I’m entering this contest!! I would love to win the compression tee – I think it would help my back pain at work especially when I know I’m going to have a long day, plus I think it would support whilst travelling. But if I don’t win… I’ll probably buy it anyway!

Check out the Tommie Copper Website here
and Ali’s review here

Feel free to enter but I really feel with this coincidence… VICTORY WILL BE MINE!!!

Week In Review:: 20 Nov – 27 Nov

Posted on by Renée
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So, yeah. No idea what happened. Actually, yes I do know. Work happened. A LOT at work happened. It was a very stressful week.

I didn’t even get any photos for my Friday Foodie Post. That’s how bad it was.

I did prepare food again last Sunday for my lunches and that really came in handy. I can’t recommend planning enough! BUT, I also did the emotional/stress-eating again which pisses me off, but doesn’t seem to stop me doing it *rolls eyes into back of head*.

Plans were to run on Tuesday evening and go to the gym on Thursday evening. Neither of those things happened. I worked late Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday (I was really late Weds), Thursday I worked from home (thank God because I was exhausted), Friday I felt somewhat “normal” again. I actually rode my bike to the station Friday because I was going out with colleagues after work and thought it best to have transportation home rather than having to wait for a bus or take a taxi so late. (Remember, I’m two hours from home generally when I’m in Amsterdam; the plan was to leave at 10pm which would put me home at midnight – turned out there was a massive problem with the trains and I ended up leaving around 8:30pm, still only getting home around 11pm).

Good Old Frida

So at least I got some exercise in on Friday – though I’m sure that didn’t counteract the starters, burger, fries and cocktails I had at the Hard Rock Cafe :D … maybe the sprinting to the train helped that a bit as well (I spent a LOT of time sprinting for trams, trains and buses last week…)

Saturday morning I woke up late – 11am! WOW I needed that sleep!!! My first thought was “well, I guess I’m not going to the gym”, but then I immediately turned it around; “Why not?” I asked myself. “The gym is open until 1pm. Get yourself a sandwich, a coffee and get dressed and get yourself to the gym!” So I did :) And I rode my bike there as well.

So here we are Sunday, I’ve made wentelteefjes (french toast/ eggy bread) (mostly) for the kids and I’m still deciding what to do the rest of the day. Probably some cleaning, maybe a run and definitely some planning for the week. I have to be serious about next week as I have a friend coming to visit from Sweden which means my whole weekend is dedicated to my guest (ie I have to go to the gym during the week!!!).

Not much of a weekly review, but honestly, I hardly had any time for myself that would be noteworthy to mention. Here’s to the new week!

That Kind of Week

Posted on by Renée
1

You know, when you think you are going to do things in a certain way and you’ve got it all planned out? Yeah, that didn’t happen.

Lots of overtime this week, a bit of the candy jar again (it’s stress and I know better!), too little sleep…

No running. No gym. Looks like I’m gonna have to hit that hard this weekend.

Week In Review:: 13 Nov – 20 Nov

Posted on by Renée
8

Reflections this week

Right. Let’s just get it out there. I have an important announcement to make.

I am no longer on a mission to lose weight.

Nope. I’m fine the way I am.

I’m not going to write about how much I gained or lost or maintained yet again because let’s face it, it makes me totally unhappy and what is the point of doing something continually when it just makes you mental and totally unhappy?

So, I’m done.

What does that mean, exactly, you are asking yourself? She is QUITTING?

No. There is nothing to quit. I just am no longer focusing on the scale numbers. I’m going to continue what I’m doing now because it works as far as 1) not eating too many calories goes and 2) what and when I’m eating is keeping me from being ravenous. From now on I’m all about healthy food, living life and staying fit. I’m also going to continue running and working out at the gym. I’m going to stay active. So you see? I’m not quitting anything. Weight loss simply is not the goal anymore.

I’ve had several comments that I’ve taken to heart in the past week and my husband has also mentioned several times that it’s time to start living and I am fully on board now. You all are right. It’s time to let go.

So that’s out of the way. Moving right along…

This week was good, bad and then good again. I planned, I cooked, I prepared, but I had a few off days where I felt like complete crap. As I mentioned here I basically took a quick downward spiral and felt myself saying SCREW THIS yet again because of the damn number on the scale. After a couple of days, I picked myself up again and I’ve ended on a high note with a brilliant run today.

As far as fitness goes:

Thursday I ran – 6.35 KM / 10 min walking then 10 min running + 2 walking x 3
Saturday to the gym, first biking, then gym, then a long loop back for a total of almost 12KM
Today an awesome run of 8KM/ 1KM walking, 6.5KM running, 500m walking (then unofficially walking a bit more home)

The run today in particular gave me such an amazing feeling! Running pain free is SO AMAZING!! And for some reason I feel like I’m running differently now. It’s hard to explain but I’m more upright, more confident, more fluid, if that makes any sense? It feels more natural for some reason. Maybe simply because I have been struggling for so long WITH PAIN that I was too rigid in how I was holding myself. I don’t know … whatever it is, I feel great and I’m really looking forward to Egmond aan Zee Quarter Marathon on 8 January!!

I want to sign up to do about a million races at this point, but I know I need to not get ahead of myself. I just know now more than ever, I’m a runner, this is what I do and THIS is what makes me happy!

Friday Foodie Post

Posted on by Renée
4

Yes I know it’s Saturday. What of it?

I planned again this week, though I have to say at some point I went off course and purposely at that.

Honestly all of this is just too, too much. I’m tired people. At some stage you have to Let Go and Move On.

That did not stop me from tasty eats though:

a delicious salad with Rio Mare Tuna in Oil (yes in oil) with steamed broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, 50g of jasmine rice:

Roasted vegetables, 100gr of Kamut and a 100g chicken breast, with some herbs and spices of course (with a few chunks of roasted garlic to boot!) – the colleagues were jealous!

I had eggs several times this week, a very easy, healthy and low-fat/calorie meal, in the train of course (here with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes and I think there was a laughing cow wedge melted within the whole thing)

Our seasonal drinks were just way too tempting to pass up; a tall (8oz) white mocha cranberry latte (made here with only 1 pump of white mocha instead of 3 and non-fat milk, but no I didn’t skimp on the whip!!)

Even today (I know, it’s Saturday and this is Friday Foodie Post) after the gym I had a salad with tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, Mediterranean corn (corn with black and green olives) and Rio Mare tuna:

So, I may not lose weight, even though the numbers say that I *should* but damn I eat well!

Here we go again

Posted on by Renée
11

I felt it coming on. That feeling of sadness. Frustration. Anger. I knew it was coming and I *think* I tried to stop it but eventually it washed over me.

That feeling that no matter what I do, it doesn’t matter.

That feeling that no matter how much I think of other good, positive things, the number on the scale eventually makes it’s way into the “importance” section of my brain.

Of course I’ve only given my all for what, a little over a week? Sure, it takes time. I have to be consistent. There’s no way I can judge how things are going if I’m not consistent, right?

But isn’t that what the last two years have been? Or not?

What am I doing wrong?

How many times can I try something different?

How many times can I try something new?

How many times can I switch things up a bit?

I have followed the advise of two dietitians, tried Weight Watchers (again), calorie counted, ditched carbs, added only complex carbs back, changed how and when I eat, used smaller dishes, drank more water, less coffee, less dairy. I even took some supplement that was supposed to keep me from getting hungry (and a friend of mine has something else for me to try from Herbal Life) and that did f*ckall. The only thing I haven’t tried are particular strict diets (though was more than willing to try Dukan, just didn’t want to shell out the money for the book) or juice fasts.

Honestly. What do I have to do?

Yesterday Hubs said to me “2 more years of this and then you are going to start living”. I thought, “my G*d! If I have to go two more years LIKE THIS I definitely will go off the deep end!” I challenged him and asked him why he assumed I wasn’t “living” now. Basically he said because it makes me so unhappy. He’s right.

Maybe I need to start living again now. Why should I wait until I’m 45? What sort of age is that? Why don’t I deserve to live now?

I just have no idea how to stop thinking about it ALL THE TIME. It’s consuming. It really does become an obsession after so long. I don’t recall ever feeling this frustrated when I was actually losing weight. That’s probably because when you see results on the scale (you can try as much as you want to “not care” what the scale says) it propels you further, it gives you the strength and motivation to keep going.

I understand and have experienced maintenance before and I know this is exactly what it’s like to be in that phase. Problem is, I’m in that phase when actually the number needs to go down a bit more.
Why “needs”?

It’s not the magic number. I think I may have mentioned several times before –I don’t want to be “skinny”. I don’t even need to be the weight that the charts tell me I should be. I know how I FEEL at 70-72 KG and I felt good then. Fit, healthy, not blobby or uncomfortable. Things were more in place. Tighter. It’s not just a number you see? It’s the feeling.

Yesterday I did what I always end up doing. I just thought “screw this” and had a chocolate muffin. Then later I had a biscuit. Then later I was in Starbucks, waiting for my train home and I thought “yeah I’m just going to shove a caramel brownie down my neck since it doesn’t really matter.” I got a coffee and a chocolate coin instead. It didn’t make me feel better (same result as always).

So. Here we go again. Another attempt at another day in another year at the same place I was before.

Planning Works

Posted on by Renée
3

But can be boring. I’ve got to really think hard and come up with some ideas for next week. I did what I set out to do (for the work week) as far as food goes. But by lunch time today I really thought “roasted veggies, again. whoop-dee-do”. Sure it’s not important to be excited about food all the time because food is sustenance and what you need to fuel and take care of your body. But damn I was EXCITED on Monday! Today, meh, not so much.

Breakfasts:
Oatmeal (Steel Cut Oats, Peanut Butter (lite), 1/2 a banana, cinnamon, 1 day I had 10g of Neal’s Yard Omega Seed Mix)

I already started with oatmeal a couple weeks ago. I think I like the Seven Grain Hot Cereal more, or maybe I just like that it takes less time to make it in the morning:

eggs with vegetables (bulky, filling)
Monday and Wednesday I had eggs with spinach and mini-mushrooms (2 eggs, 2 egg whites, 150g spinach and 100g mushrooms + Pam cooking spray)

Thursday I had the 2+2 with Kamut and black beans (OMG how delicious was that????)

Today I had it with asparagus, courgette (zucchini) and the rest of the mushrooms:

I have no problem eating just about anything in the morning. Seriously. But today it was a little bit difficult. Maybe it was just too much (I ate ALL in that photo). It was like 325grams of veg. But let me tell you I had no hunger issues WHAT SO EVER.

Lunch Monday, Weds and Friday was the roasted vegetables I mentioned last Sunday, plus the Kamut (100g each meal) that I cooked up and the 100 g chicken breasts I buy from the freezer section already cooked (so all I have to do is thaw and then “cook” in the morning with my own seasonings). In principle a great meal, maybe just not 3 times in a week. I meant to take a photo after I’d warmed it up at work but kept forgetting so you get a photo of it in it’s box ready to go to work with me.

Thursday I worked from home and whipped up this beauty from my freezer: shrimp, frozen veg (what a shock, cauliflower, broccoli and carrots…) and some noodles I had in the cupboard. A little bit of olive oil, some salt, pepper and Moroccan spices and voila

Dinner this week was not all that exciting. Twice I had soup and a sandwich. Once I had a Salad from the supermarket (to go – had it in the train). Once I had the pasta salad I tried last week and really liked (chicken, pesto, sundried tomatoes and peas):

I did that so that the hubs and I could run when I arrived home. The night I had the salad I had been out with a friend and again had my dinner in the train. A lot of train meals this week.

So. Hmmmm. What am I going to eat next week!!

Damage. Control.

Posted on by Renée
3

One of the things I decided on Sunday was that I was going to stay in control this week. I think something that I’ve lost control of a long time ago is my belief in myself. It sounds strange maybe, but when you “do everything” possible to see the scale move downwards and it doesn’t happen for two years on you come to realize that maybe, just maybe… you aren’t doing “everything”…

Let me explain.

I really think that day after day, month after month, it’s so easy to just become so complacent about the situation. I mean I’m not losing anyway, so why not have a piece of chocolate cake at work? Or hey there’s extra dinner left, I’ll just have a second helping. It can’t be *that* much right… Hmmmm, that looks like 50g of cheese I just dumped on top of my pasta, even though it slightly resembles Chamonix… it can’t possibly be over my daily intake goal.

I’ve tried so hard to accept. Acceptance is so important, right?

But actually trying is important too.

I mean like really trying. Like being honest. Like really NOT dipping into the candy jar at work. Like really, really, really being in control.
I’m not saying that I haven’t been honest. I’ve been logging and tracking and being perfectly honest about what I’m eating. I’m not lying to you or anyone else including myself. BUT. I’m NOT being honest if I say I’m doing “everything” I can to lose weight when clearly that’s not true. Eating junk or saying f*ck it once I’ve dipped into said candy jar is not doing “everything” I can to lose weight. Drinking too much alcohol is NOT doing “everything” I can to lose weight.

So time to stop the damage. Time to be in control.

This week I just want to be in control. Every day I want to do what it takes to stay in control. I’ve got this negative self-talk in my head that says “see? You’re never really going to do this, are you?” I need to put an end to that voice. Can you imagine if I had a friend who spoke to me like this, for real? Would I really hang out with her for long? No! That’s not a good friend! It’s time to be my own best friend! To treat myself the way I treat others!

So tonight after work I was meeting up with a friend of a friend who is in the Netherlands for a few weeks – I knew we only had a few hours together so we were most likely just going for a drink – I literally saved my “spare” calories from yesterday to take care of today. I know before I went out I had a little over 600 cals left for dinner, I bought a salad to eat on the way home which was 520 cals and I had two beers worth around 320 cals total which puts me over for the day, but still fine for the week.

I just want to say, on my way back from the bar walking to the station I saw and had about 30 milliseconds of thought to: McDonald’s, 3 pizza places, fries, a falafel bar, KFC (and ugh, no, never! Remind me to tell you the salmonella story one day) and several different dutch snack bars… this is what I mean… just because I have two beers DOESN’T MEAN I HAVE TO JUST UNDO ALL OF MY HARD WORK! I focused. I walked to the station. I picked up my salad. I got on the train.

So I stopped the damage. And I stayed in control.

And I’m going to do it all over again tomorrow.