What weight lifting has done for me

If you would have asked me 2 years ago how much I squat or bench I would have thought you were crazy. I used to be someone who thought that women do not belong in the weightroom and should stick to cardio. I used to think that if I would lift a dumbbell a few times that my arms would immediately start looking like a man's. I still regularly get weird looks when I tell people that I lift weights, this is also mostly followed by ''be careful not to get too big and bulky!''.

I have been lifting for more than a year now, but I have only been taking this serious for a few months. I have never felt better about myself and I have definitely not gotten too big and bulky. A few things that have happened however:

*I am the smallest I have ever been, even since my high school days.

* While I am smaller, I feel strong. There is nothing more empowering, especially being a woman,   than feeling strong. A few days ago I was at the gym doing squats and one of the regular muscle dudes stopped what he was doing and watched me and as I finished he gave me the nod and a thumbs up. I offcourse politely smiled back and gave him a thumbs up back (while thinking in my head DAAMNNNNNN RIGHT DUDE!). That there is an awesome feeling!

* I feel feminine. I keep seeing curves which I never knew existed. Can you say BOOOTAY?

* I appreciate my body so much more. While I still occasionally have a love-hate relationship with my body, I definitely respect what I have put it through and what it is possible of. 

* I am proud of myself. Last week when I picked my daughter up from daycare she asked me to come with her to a room which they made into a dark and spooky haunted house for halloween. I took her hand she told everyone that her mommy is very strong so she can handle the dark. Proud mommy moment right there!

I never imagined that I would love lifting as much as I do right now. I have always enjoyed working out. Even when I was bigger I went to the gym often and I even did Step Aerobics up untill I was 37 weeks pregnant! My diet was rubbish though and I was training incorrectly. I never thought that you would need to lift weights to get a firm and toned body. I wish I knew what I know now much sooner. Lifting is now my therapy and makes me happy and I can not imagine my life without it. So here is to many more years with my iron friends!

xxxNatasha

Zombie Rush 2015!

Today I did the Zombie Rush obstacle run. It was loads of fun. I have done 1 obstacle run before in April this year, but never got to finish it as I injured my ankle after a few meters. This time I wore an ankle brace and was abit more careful.

This run is a so-called fun run and was held in the forest in the middle of nowhere (Soerendonk to be exact). www.zombierush.nl . It's a 5km run with obstacles along the way, but the real challenge is to reach the finish without getting infected. You have a belt with 3 red flags which represent your lives. Along the route there are zombies who are aiming for your lives. Reach the finish line with 1 life still attached then you can say that you have survived the zombie acollapse!


Getting ready and having fun with the zombies! 

The zombies were great and the make-up was very realistic! The obstacles were not super challenging but as this is my first obstacle run I don't have anything to compare it with. It was fun none the less! And there was plenty of super girly screams whenever a zombie came near!

Different groups leave at different times, so people are spaced out and you don't need to wait too long when you get to an obstacle. We didn't have to wait very long when we got to an obstacle.

There was also a few obstacles where you could win back a life. One of them was to run through a tent where paintballs were shot at you. I have a nice round bruise on the back of my leg from this one! Another one was putting your hand into a dark container and trying to fish out a finger like here below:

A few more kilometers and a few more obstacles- even a mini foam-party!

And then we were finished!

I also thought that I would attempt to do a little vlog, but I am so technology challenged that I can not even call this a vlog. The music went missing somehow, but you can hear us scream like little girls :-) . Tips are welcome!

To the haters

Yesterday I shared my story on Fitgirls.nl ( http://www.fitgirls.nl/transformatie-natasha-viel-60-kg-af-in-16-maanden/ ) . The whole day my phone was beeping with messages, mostly saying what an accomplishment this is and how inspirational it is (which was also the point of it all!), but for the first time I have also received some hate messages! Most of these messages (ok , 5 messages) came through Facebook messages. These messages made me literally go ''What the fuck?'' out loud. 

Do these people really not have anything better to do with their time? Also did their mother never teach them that if you don't have anything nice to say you don't say anything at all? 

Message 1: ''This is a fake story because the before photo has dark hair and the new photo has blonde hair''. Really? Again WTF? Blonde suits me better and there is this magical invention called hairdye. You can even dye your hair purple. (nooooo you don't say????)

Message 2: ''This can not be the same person because you have no loose skin''.  This was also mentioned publicly on the original post and people mentioned that when people on reality weight loss shows lose less than 50kg they are left with lose skin. Firstly I do have SOME lose skin, but lifting weights has helped keep the damage to a bare minimum. Also these people on weight loss shows lose weight extremely fast and are most likely on very low calorie diets. 

Message 3: I saw something about hair colour and deleted it immediately. Go dye your hair purple please. 

Message 4: ''This can not be natural, which pill did you use?''. Firstly WFT once again? And errrrrr it's this pill called get off your fat-ass and go to the gym and eat right. 

Message 5: ''This is not realistic as not everyone can afford a personal trainer and not everyone can find the time to go the gym. You must also have a nanny and cleaner and this is not fair.'' . Yes I have a personal trainer, which I am extremely grateful for but which I work hard for to afford. I am not saying everyone should get one, it can be done alone, but you will need to invest abit more time and effort into it yourself. I do not have a nanny. I do not even have family living here. I have a partner who supports me and helps me juggle things around. I am not saying that everyone should do things the way I do it, I am merely showing my journey and how I have achieved it. Life is not fair, get over it. 

A few more comments were written on the post itself like ''fake'' and a few other nasties.  I don't even feel like I need to justify myself against these people. And you know what, this has actually caused a boost in motivation! 

To all the kind messages, thank you, my love runs deep and this keeps me motivated. To all the other mean people out there........

 

How do I stay motivated?

I am part of an awesome group on Facebook: SleekGeek SA (Sleekgeek is completely community driven platform with endless amounts of inspiration, motivation and profound camaraderie found within) and yesterday I posted a transformation photo (as you do on #transformationTuesday!). This photo received 1382 likes and 112 comments! Every person praising me and saying how amazing I have done and that I am a true inspiration. The boost I get from these type of messages is unreal, it motivates me to push harder and keeps me on track. A lot of people also ask how I stay motivated, and this is abit of a tough question as I am not entirely sure myself. So I have thought about this and tried to write down some points which I believe helps me stay motivated: 

* Set goals  
You need to have a plan, something to work towards. Whether it is losing 5kg or getting to run 5k without stopping. Set a goal, tell the world, and go for it. Renew your goals every once in a while as well. My original goal was to lose weight, but now I am more focused on getting stronger and my goals are more performance based, like for example I would like to be able to squat 100kg and do 6 unassisted pull-ups before the end of the year. In which ever you find yourself, find something to work towards and do it. 

*Be prepared
Plan your meals in advance and mealprep. Make time in your diary to work out. When you are not prepared it is easy to get caught off track. For eg. you didn't plan your lunch and you need to go out to get food and you end up getting something which does not fit into your current mealplan. Once you have done this is easy to say ''Oh I didn't eat right today so there is no point in going to the gym today''. See the downwards spiral?

*Look at your progress
Take photos! Sometimes it is still difficult for me to see the changes in myself, but comparing photos puts things into perspective. Also look back at where you started - 1 year ago I could not run for more than 10 minutes without being out of breathe, today I can run 10km without breaking out in a sweat. 

*The scale sucks
Don't become too fixated on the number on the scale. The times where I have noticed the most change in my body is where the scale stayed the same. Do record your weight, but don't let this get you down. 

*Don't deprive yourself 
Find a diet that fits in your lifestyle. Don't stave yourself as you won't be able to continue with this. This what I love about IIFYM, if I plan correctly I can have chocolate and cookies every day. Also allow cheatmeals/days. 1 bad meal will not ruin your progress! So have it and ENJOY it! 

*Stop being so self aware
I get asked very often whether I am intimidated stepping into the gym. At first yes it was scary and people usually think that people in the gym stare and make fun of other people. This is however not the truth, the people in the gym are normally too involved with themselves to notice you. So realize that the only person judging you is you. 

*Have fun
Find something that you enjoy, whether this is running, weightlifting, yoga or crossfit. 

xxNatasha

What's the deal with aspartame?

I think it is pretty safe to say that everyone has heard that they should not consume food or drinks containing aspartame, you know Coke Zero, chewing gum, Fat free Yoghurt, Monster Zero, Red Bull Zero, the list is endless. So is it really that bad? 

Well let us start from the beginning:

What is aspartame?

Aspartame is one of the most commonly used artificial sweeteners which is made by joining together the amino acids aspartic acid and phenylalanine. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins and are found naturally in many foods.
Aspartame is used in many foods and beverages because it is about 200 times sweeter than sugar, so much less of it can be used to give the same level of sweetness. This then makes it low in calories(Yay!).
Rumors claiming that aspartame causes a number of health problems, including cancer, have been around for many years.This is why whenever you are holding a can of Coke someone will tell you that it is bad for you. Ask them why and they won't be able to back it up because they just heard it somewhere and as with most things, if you read it on the internet then it must be true, right?
Aspartame is a highly studied food additive with decades of research showing that it is safe for human consumption.

Aspartame is also knows as E951 (and here comes a whole other discussion regarding E-numbers). Did you know many natural foods also contain E-numbers? If you look at the ingredients of an egg you will see that they contain E306 and E101. Or a banana: E515.Fun fact : E-numbers are not all bad! It's all about moderation. I believe in eating healthy (according to my own individual goals) but also enjoying.

Now I am not saying you should start drinking 5 liters a Coke Zero a day and you will have no health implications. I am simply saying that it not all that bad. Drinking an occasional energy drink does not make me less healthy or in more danger of some type of horrible disease. Do your research and then make the decision for yourself.

ENJOY RESPONSIBLY! 

I am counting calories and macros to achieve a specific goal and some of the above mentioned products containing aspartame are a big help in the process. I will for instance have a can of Coke Zero when I am craving something sweet. This to me is a much better solution than reaching for a bag of jellybeans. But this is me in my personal situation and this does not mean that someone else's way is not the right way. If you want to eat 100% clean and have only super-food smoothies then go for it! What I am getting at is that there is no right or wrong. If you want to have an occasional can of Coke Zero, go ahead and know that you are not serving  the devil. And don't let people who tell you that it is bad for you get you down - tell them that pretty soon oxygen will become toxic so they better watch out!

Another fun fact from a aspartame-will-kill-you-friend: I heard today that you can also clean your oven with Coke! This was used as an argument why you should not drink it. Another fun fact from my side: You can also clean your oven with an Orange or Lemon peel. 

X Natasha (while licking my spoon after my last bite of Optimel fat free yoghurt...)

Healthy Chickennuggets!

A few days ago I saw a recipe for making chicken nuggets with oats on a blog that I follow (www.esmeetrouw.com) and I have been waiting to try this recipe. I made this for lunch today and it is a great succes! Even my kids loved it- they asked for seconds and thirds! Esme even said it tatses ALMOST just like McDonalds. So me making the world a better place once again, I am sharing this recipe:

You will need:

* Some chickenfilet cut into pieces ( I tried to stick to McDonald's sizes to make it as authentic as possible!)
*25grams of oatmeal (you can buy this or just take regular oats and put it in the food processor like I did)
*50grams of oats
*1 egg
* Spices of your choice
*Coconut oil (But Olive oil or anything else should work aswell)

Method:

 Mix the oatmeal, oats and spices in a bowl or on a (deep) plate. Whisk the egg, and then take the chicken pieces one at a time and into the egg and then roll them in the flour with oats. Make sure the chicken pieces are well coated with the oatmeal, to get them nice and crispy.

Heat a pan with the coconut oil and bake the pieces of chicken until they are golden and crispy. And then ENJOY!  

Red beans and quinoa salad by Marta

 My friend Marta is a whizz in the kitchen and her food always , not only looks amazing, but it also tatstes heavenly! I have asked her to share a high protein recipe and this is what she fixed together!

Ingredients:
150g red beans cooked
Red and yellow sweet peppers
Cucumber
2 tomatoes
1 avocado
1 celery stick
5 brussel sprouts (stir fried for 2-3 minutes with ghee)
100g cooked quinoa
1 carrot
Handful of fresh mint and parsley chopped

Dressing:
1 teaspoon of honey, 1 tableapoon of apple cider vinegar, 2 table spoons of olive oil, spash of balsamic vinegar and 2 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice

Seasoning:
Salt, pepper, turmeric, cayenne pepper

Method:
Cook quinoa and beans. Cut brussel sprouts in half and stir fry for 2-3 min using ghee. Add the rest of the veggies ( all must be raw) chopped into small squares. Add chopped mint and parsley. Sprinkle with seasining and dressing. Mix well together. Bon Apetit!


Martaxx

If you would like more delicious recipes check out Marta's food diary: www.123matata.blogspot.com