I hate calorie (or kilojoule) counting. I hate it with a passion. I don't like being around people who do it and whenever I find myself doing it, it feels like I become an annoying, overbearing, obsessive person, and I don't like that feeling. And yet, I have found myself doing a lot of it lately.
I am trying my damndest to be healthy lately. And I could say that it is because my friends and I have a contest going on where the person to lose the most weight by the 20th will be winning a wad of cash. But I don't think that is quite it either. Sure, the contest gave me some incentive to get started, incentive that was definitely needed! But a couple of nights before it was suggested, I was sitting in bed and, inexplicably, I was crying. I just couldn't stop it. The tears were just leaking out of me unprovoked. I'd had a bad day, and it culminated into a bad week, month and year so far with everything that has gone wrong just taking over in my mind. And there have been quite a few things going wrong. Not that things are dreadful, but you know how it happens - you start obsessing about something bad and all of the other bad things come to mind and take over completely until you can't think of anything else. And a big contribution towards that was my weight.
My weight has always been very up and down. It was way down when I was young, and then I hit puberty and it shot up. Around the age of 17, I started getting it back down, and then around 20 it started creeping up again. At age 22, during my year in Korea, I got it back down to where I was fairly comfortable with it (sure, I still wanted to lose some weight, but I was a good 10 kgs lighter than when I had arrived). And then I came back to Grahamstown. And in one year it all came back, bringing its friends along to join in the fun.
I know that weight is not the be-all and end-all of life. I know that being thin does not make you happy. I know that indulging every whim doesn't either. But I also know that exercise releases endorphins, and I know that being comfortable with your body does make you more comfortable in general. I know that I would feel a lot less awkward about going out if I didn't have to try on five different outfits, all of which I feel are completely unflattering.
And so I am one week in. I am dieting, but not crash-dieting. I like to think of it less as dieting in fact and more as changing my eating habits for good. I am trying to cut down on wheat, since I suspect that my thyroid isn't a big fan of it. And speaking of my thyroid, I am trying my best to take my thyroid medication. Everyday. Which I am usually pretty darn bad at. I am also trying to eat breakfast everyday. And I am exercising. I went walking and jogging every day last week and, despite the weather turning bad, I intend to keep at it.
So, there is a new section that you can expect to see in my blog, and that is things that I have been eating. And for the first segment:
Chicken Salad
Italian minestrone and rye bread
Rice cakes with lettuce and tuna
Rice cakes with fat free cottage cheese and lemon chicken
Grilled chicken, salad and baked potato
Portuguese grilled chicken with mixed veg and mint rice
Baked fish with lemon, mixed veg and bakes potato
Turkey and avocado on rye
Fat free vanilla yoghurt
Original rice crackers with fat free cottage cheese
Celery and fat freee cottage cheese
One breakfast rusk with my one cup of coffee in the morning
Showing posts with label Eating. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eating. Show all posts
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Vacation in the Cape
I have a belief, and raise your hand (or like/comment/post/something) if you share it - a holiday isn't a good one unless you come back exhausted.
I know, I know. People have this notions that holidays should be relaxing. My dad has this notion. When he is on holiday, he is happy to just stay in the hotel all day reading the newspaper and (possibly) lounging by the pool. I, on the other hand, seem to take after my mom - trying to fit in as much as I can in as little time as possible. Sure, I can spend a day relaxing, but any more than that and I just get bored and agitated, wanting to do things.
My Cape Town holiday is no different, and I tried to make it as fun-packed as possible. I bustled into town on Thursday afternoon for a short five day trip and intended to make the most of it. Of course, Thursday was pretty much a write-off. I arrived at 16:20 and it was around 5pm when I finally made my way out with my bags in tow. Just enough time to get home, greet the cats, chat with mom, go for a walk and head out to Chinese at Reddies with mom, dad and Michael. By the time I came home, Cherie was back with her visiting boyfriend and we caught up briefly before I decided that it was time to hit the hay.
Friday started off fairly early with Cherie and I dropping mom at gym and then making our way to Tygervalley. Not particularly keen for a shopping trip, I elected to stay in the car and make Cherie do the running around while I planned the rest of my day. By the time she returned (empty-handed), it was time to pick mom up again and make our way into town for the facials that mom had planned. I am not a person who particularly likes having my face touched and examined, but it was quite a relaxing hour and a half. The only part that I did not enjoy was having a mask that was two inches thick plastered onto my face and covering my mouth and eyes. I have never thought of myself as being claustrophobic, but I certainly felt it then! Once that was done, it was a stop at Kauai for a quick lunch before I had my mom drop me at the Adelphi centre in Sea Point. There I met up with Ryan and we took a short walk to his apartment before starting to pack it all into boxes. Yes, I chose to spend my holiday helping someone move, and I have no regrets. I got to see Ryan, and I felt really productive thereafter. Certainly not bored! After moving, Ryan took myself and the two other assistants out for a nice Italian dinner (gnocchi bolognaise for me) before dropping me back at my parents' house in Welgemoed.
I woke up nice and early on Saturday and spent much of the morning in a state of exuberance as I waited for Robyn to pick me up. We had ahead of us a day of catching up and chatting and just general enjoying each others company. We walked around the Slow Market in Willowbridge, had a lovely brunch at Woolies, a cup of coffee at the cafe that her sister works out (which included much mocking of a particular waitress in a teasing fashion) and then headed back to her place (in her new car!) to just have a proper catch up. By late afternoon it was time to head back home and get ready for the braai that was to come. It is traditional whenever I come and visit that the family get together for a braai. It meant that I got to see everyone, even if it was only for a little while, and hear the news and not have anyone feeling left out. It is also a great excuse for a good meal, and we had an awesome one. Once most of the family had left, I stayed up a little later chatting away to Jade and her husband Eric and hearing what was happening in their world. But unfortunately, I had to retire early as I was on medication that had a tendency of making me feel both nauseous and exhausted, a combination that tends to make for bad company.
Sunday was my day for sleeping in, and that I did! Until 8:30!! It was awesome. Then I woke up and started getting ready for the day. Another family tradition is going out for Sunday breakfasts, and the two favourite places are Franschoek and Claremont. As the family had been to Franschoek the week before with Cherie, it was decided that the Gardener's Cottage in Claremont was the place to go. We made our way there (mom, dad, Michael, Cherie and I) and had a lovely breakfast at the restaurant before making our way around the nursery. I'd had plans to have a movie-day with Ryan at my parents', but he had to change it to coffee instead, and he picked myself and Natasha (who was to join for the movie) up and took us to Tygervalley were we got some terrible service at Oppie Koffie. Thankfully, the company made up for it, and we had a good afternoon chatting and laughing away. When Ryan had to leave, Natasha and I made our way to the cinema where we booked three tickets for Midnight in Paris. Michael joined us for the movie and it turned out to be a lovely one! I will have to write a review at some point. After the movie, we made our way home, had a light dinner of leftovers from the braai and had an early night.
Monday was a particularly busy day, as it was essentially half a day spent enjoying myself and half a day spent travelling. It started early with taking my mom to gym, stopping in at the chemist to get pills for mom and dad and stopping in at my aunt's new shop to take some photos. From there it was a rush to the giant sports shop beside Tygervalley to get some running shoes (a job in itself considering how many people had decided that the Monday before school was the day to go uniform and sports good shopping), a stop at home to pick up Cherie and a dash to the airport. We got there on time and I was checked in with time to spare for some lunch, so we decided to go to Mugg and Bean, since it was the closest and healthiest place around. A bad idea if ever there was one. The service was terrible and slow, and I ended up having to scoff down what I could in 5 minutes before jumping up and hoofing it through security. I made it through, but not before being called by the announcer. This could have been highly embarrassing, but they pronounced my name wrong (as they always do) and so I felt far more worse for any Ms Solomon's in the building. An hour and a half later, I walked out of the airport and met Ashlea who took me to my car and I was back on my way to Grahamstown. Usually I drive as fast as possible to get back as soon as possible, but I'd heard that there were a huge number of policemen hiding on the road, so I tried my best to stick to the speed limit and made it in just over an hour and a half.
And so, my holiday completed, I arrived at my house and practically collapsed on the bed. It was the best sleep that I have had in ages. Imagine just how good the holiday must have been!
I woke up nice and early on Saturday and spent much of the morning in a state of exuberance as I waited for Robyn to pick me up. We had ahead of us a day of catching up and chatting and just general enjoying each others company. We walked around the Slow Market in Willowbridge, had a lovely brunch at Woolies, a cup of coffee at the cafe that her sister works out (which included much mocking of a particular waitress in a teasing fashion) and then headed back to her place (in her new car!) to just have a proper catch up. By late afternoon it was time to head back home and get ready for the braai that was to come. It is traditional whenever I come and visit that the family get together for a braai. It meant that I got to see everyone, even if it was only for a little while, and hear the news and not have anyone feeling left out. It is also a great excuse for a good meal, and we had an awesome one. Once most of the family had left, I stayed up a little later chatting away to Jade and her husband Eric and hearing what was happening in their world. But unfortunately, I had to retire early as I was on medication that had a tendency of making me feel both nauseous and exhausted, a combination that tends to make for bad company.
Sunday was my day for sleeping in, and that I did! Until 8:30!! It was awesome. Then I woke up and started getting ready for the day. Another family tradition is going out for Sunday breakfasts, and the two favourite places are Franschoek and Claremont. As the family had been to Franschoek the week before with Cherie, it was decided that the Gardener's Cottage in Claremont was the place to go. We made our way there (mom, dad, Michael, Cherie and I) and had a lovely breakfast at the restaurant before making our way around the nursery. I'd had plans to have a movie-day with Ryan at my parents', but he had to change it to coffee instead, and he picked myself and Natasha (who was to join for the movie) up and took us to Tygervalley were we got some terrible service at Oppie Koffie. Thankfully, the company made up for it, and we had a good afternoon chatting and laughing away. When Ryan had to leave, Natasha and I made our way to the cinema where we booked three tickets for Midnight in Paris. Michael joined us for the movie and it turned out to be a lovely one! I will have to write a review at some point. After the movie, we made our way home, had a light dinner of leftovers from the braai and had an early night.
Monday was a particularly busy day, as it was essentially half a day spent enjoying myself and half a day spent travelling. It started early with taking my mom to gym, stopping in at the chemist to get pills for mom and dad and stopping in at my aunt's new shop to take some photos. From there it was a rush to the giant sports shop beside Tygervalley to get some running shoes (a job in itself considering how many people had decided that the Monday before school was the day to go uniform and sports good shopping), a stop at home to pick up Cherie and a dash to the airport. We got there on time and I was checked in with time to spare for some lunch, so we decided to go to Mugg and Bean, since it was the closest and healthiest place around. A bad idea if ever there was one. The service was terrible and slow, and I ended up having to scoff down what I could in 5 minutes before jumping up and hoofing it through security. I made it through, but not before being called by the announcer. This could have been highly embarrassing, but they pronounced my name wrong (as they always do) and so I felt far more worse for any Ms Solomon's in the building. An hour and a half later, I walked out of the airport and met Ashlea who took me to my car and I was back on my way to Grahamstown. Usually I drive as fast as possible to get back as soon as possible, but I'd heard that there were a huge number of policemen hiding on the road, so I tried my best to stick to the speed limit and made it in just over an hour and a half.
And so, my holiday completed, I arrived at my house and practically collapsed on the bed. It was the best sleep that I have had in ages. Imagine just how good the holiday must have been!
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