Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

Why body positivity isn’t always that positive….

Hello readers,

I find it kinda scary to write this. Because such a helpful mindset is going to get some bashing. First is first. Being happy with your body is a good thing and always will be. It’s important to have positive feelings towards your body*.

What I see with a lot of people including myself

I put a little star behind the last sentence, because exactly that shows a problem in my eyes. A lot of people are not connected with their body. It’s like they have their mind and thoughts and the second part is their body. So they are not working with each other, but against each other. For example: ‘I wan’t to be a size (blank) and this stupid body is just heavy and holding me back’.  I had the same, but not size wise. I did everything to get my period back and still I did not get it back. It took 4 years!

Looking back now, I know why. I did everything physically to get it back, but not mentically. It takes these two, to get yourself healthy. And that’s why I find body positivity so good. It learns you to connect the two.

Always being happy with your body…

I think being happy with your body all the time is very unrealistic. For example. Let’s take a pregnant woman. She is happy and proud that she could carry her baby for 9 months. The moment she gave birth and all the months after that are a roller-coaster! She maybe lose hair, have frequent bleedings and maybe she is not that happy with her body doing that. And guess what that’s okey. It could also be with you fitting pants in shop and thinking ‘Aahh why are these pants not looking well on me’. You can have these moments, acknowledge them and move on. Don’t stick with them. I feel that people who want to become body positive, think there’s this rule that you should always be positive. Like ‘unwritten rules’ they make for themselves. This is not your new addiction or coping mechanism. It’s taking the time to get to know yourself, find the positives and hold on to them.

Feeling pressure from the outside world

I am going to give you an example again, but maybe it’s not really the case for you at the moment. What if you had an health influencer. She is totally body positive. Her whole page is about it. This lady is a bit on the heavier side, but for now is healthy. Then there’s a day she heard from her doctor she needs to lose some weight for her blood pressure and eat a bit more healthier. She does, but her followers do not understand. ‘why are you losing weight? I thought you were happy with your body’. It could be the other way around as well. Maybe you have a page as a fitness influencer and you are ripped, but it’s tempering your health. So you need to gain some weight and lose the abs for a while. Choosing to gain weight is the healthy choice at the moment.

They feel pressure from the outside world to look a certain way and be positive about it all the time…

Always choose you and what is best for you. That is being body positive. Having the connection with your body and understanding what it wants. That ‘pressure’ you feel is an assumption you make of people thoughts. And there will always be a group who will try to bring you down, but the group that supports you is always stronger <3

I find it so sad that if people feel that pressure, but understand that you are the most important person in your life.

Certain rules 

Then there is this group of people who make certain rules. about body positivity. You will be only body positive if you do xxx things. Maybe it’s using lotion for your body everyday or working out everyday. Or worse, only yoga is treating your body well… (yickes!).

There are no rules…Period..

If you do something and your body and mind gain strength, happiness or health from it. Go for it!

Much love,

Queeny

Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

What I ate while stuck @home.

Hello readers,

Another what I ate. To be honest; I never put so much afford in making pics of my food. I do not get the fuzz really, but if I can give someone inspiration, sure why not. This week was more of a ‘I wanna eat candy, a lot of candy’. So I did and I must say, I am good for a while now. Ooh! I am trying, working on my picture quality, next week better pictures.

Signature Queeny food. I always eat this in the morning. 48+ cheese is BEA <3.

This is my legit favorite childhood candy. banana flavour with Liquorice.

This was breakfast as well. I eat what I want when I want and I always get my greens in and fruits. So I never get worried and you should not either!

My friend cooking up something from Suriname, I believe.

My friends food @work. She is goals <3. She is a vegan and I love her food plates.

Rice crackers with 48+ old cheese.

My mom made fresh peas and made mash out of it. It was….too healthy.

Haribo!

Favorite of the week! Soy milk, raw oats, mango, dried apricot and banana.

I always eat my fruits. It will maybe be 5 days in a year that I do not eat fruit and I always feel ill not eating it.

Rye bread and 100% peanut butter I had 2 slices but my dumb-ass took the photo too late.

Beets are BEA.

Pizza with beets and tofu.

Pizza Funghi

And done!

Adios,

Queeny

Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

How to handle fearfoods?

Hello readers,

Let’s start out with one thing. Everyone in the ED community has one or more fearfoods. I WILL NOT name a certain food here as a fearfood, because I know people will somehow connect dots and think that food would be bad and somehow will be going to avoid that. So how can you work towards eating a fearfood?

Identify the feelings

I think a lot of foods get the name ‘fearfood’, because it causes a certain reaction. So I am going to take you in this process.

Food item > emotions > reaction 

The food item could be anything. The emotion that comes afterwards could be fear, anxiety, disappointed, disgust or more. The reaction could be; purging, way to much exercise, crying, binge eating etc.

Recognize yourself? Good, then you have some insight in the situation. So try to write down your emotions when you eat a food item. Try it in the same sequence as above. I ate product x > this gave me anxiety > after that I started a compulsive workout.

It may gives some insight in your behavior. I mean your dad, sis or best friend are not having this sequence so why should you?

Turn that list around

I somehow guess you have a list in your head, or in your room, or on your phone with foods that are an absolute no no. Well guess what! We are going to make that a yes yes. If you can put all the time in making a list with foods you cannot eat, well let’s use it for more activities. Like trying the foods :p.

If you do not want to be stuck in the shitty situation you brought yourself in, challenge yourself! Be brave and fight your ED. I can tell you now, it won’t be easy everyday, but it will get better. The only way you get rid of an ED is by doing exactly the opposite from your ED thoughts!

So try at least 5 days (preferable 7 days) in a week a product that you find troublesome. So it can look like the following:

I ate product x > this gave me anxiety > after that I started a compulsive workout > I am going to eat this product on Monday at breakfast.

Keep this in mind, because we are taking it to the next subject.

Use the 0-10 scale

This scale is often use by dietitians. ‘How do you feel on a scale of 0-10? Ohhh its a 5? Why not a 6?’ We will be using this a different kind of way. So let’s take the part we made in the last sub-chapter.

I ate product xx > this gave me anxiety> after that I started a compulsive workout > I am going to eat this product on Monday at breakfast > On a scale of 0-10, I will give my anxiety a 8.

Do this a week later and review your anxiety.

I ate product x > this gave me anxiety > after that I started a compulsive workout > I am going to eat this product on Monday at breakfast > On a scale of 0-10, I will give my anxiety a 6.8.

Keep track of your progress! It’s easy to get lost in the thought there is no progression, but if you have it on paper, your mind can’t argue with that!

Eat and repeat!

I said it before and will say it again. If you can repeat your bad habits everyday, why can’t you repeat the nurturing habits of giving yourself enough food, love, sleep and less stress? I know you can and so do you. You are going to beat your ED by eating a bite more, having dessert after dinner, eating that fearfood and enjoying what you eat.

Best of luck,

Queeny

Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

What are the most easy food swaps you can make?

Hello readers,

In the Netherlands we have/had this great campaign ‘eetwissel’ translated to ‘swapping products. I am a huge fan of this! It is a simple way to get more nutritious foods in your daily foodpalet. A little disclaimer; I do not own these pictures and if you want to know more, check out: www.voedingscentrum.nl Even if you Dutchies missed out, check this out. My general advice for not so healthy foods is that you can have it daily! Make sure that your base is good ( 2 servings of fruit, 200-250gr vegetables, whole grains, (vegetarian) lean unprocessed meats, (non) dairy and healthy fats. If that’s your base, you can sip on some juice, eat a biscuit or so per day.

food swaps

Swap fruit juice for infused water.

Swap gingerbread/cake slices/ biscuits for fruit. I would advice you to make some banana bread too.

You could also swap it for whole wheat bread.

You could also swap this for some veggies with hummus or seaweed chips in my opinion.

Some veggie patties are always a good idea! Try too look for some unprocessed meat replacements (seitan, natural tofu and tempeh)

Ham and other bread toppings that are processed can give you a higher risk on colon cancer. So swap it for eggs, cottage cheese, fruits and peanut butter.

You can make your own Ice tea by using normal bags of tea and let it cool down. Add fruit too it as well! Regular warm tea is just fine.

Always go for whole wheat for the fibers! It keeps you full for longer and it helps with cholesterol.

Do I need to say more…. Skip regular cola and go for diet/zero and preferable water of course!

You can skip the custard and go for some fruits. I would recommend quark or semi-skimmed yoghurt.

White bread, I rather call it acceptable cake! Whole wheat bread is always better!

Take care everyone!

Greetings,


Queeny

Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

What I ate in the second week of the lockdown.

Hello readers,

So this is a little overview of what I ate last week. It is at random and there are no calories involved or whatsoever. Just some Ideas! I ate more plantbased this week and chose for some semi-mono meals, because I felt like it. I have had some hormonal issues in the past, so it is very important to listen to what your body needs. Do you feel like eating eggs go for it! Feel like you need some chocolate go for it! Hormones thrive on fats and carbs. So skip those skinny meals (plain oats with water) and give your body what it needs! And if you have hormonal issues but are overweight or obese; try to find those fats an carbs in more healthy options (a piece of fruit or some semi-skimmed yoghurt).

Some airfry tofu and veggie soup.

Mango as a snack and some banana (I believe I ate an apple on the side with this).

A beef burger on white bread and an egg on it (I am not a foodie, so my photo’s are not always that great).

After I killed it with some ketchup and mustard.

Just some cooked veggies, because I felt like it.

Some fruit (this was packaged by the way, but this tasted so much better than I can remember from my youth).

Some fruit as snack again and something called boterkoek in Dutch. It is translated into ‘buttercookie’. It’s one of my favorites!

White bread with peanut butter 100% (with little bits of peanut). I always add salt, cuz ya girl needs salt.

A grilled cheese with 45+ cheese and 1/2 slice of Italian ham (I almost never eat pork, so this is special even for me xD)

Stir-fry with green beans, noodles, avocado, tofu and zucchini.

Protein-shake made with banana, buttermilk, strawberries and a scoop of prozis apple pie.

My friend found hummus and tahini in the supermarket combined together.. it is @jumbo in the Netherlands.

My friend making a red velvet cake

I chose to have my breakfast solo with fruits.

This was a snack and I chose to put salt on my banana with PB. This was not that bad.

Funny I did not took a photo of it, but I was eating a lot of kidney beans with brown rice this whole week (like 3 times) and legumes soup (dutch erwtensoep) and a bit of ice cream. Well still getting used to taking pictures of my food, so mind me with this one guys. 🙂

Greetings,

Queeny

Geplaatst op Geef een reactie

Do I have to take extra vitamin D because of the corona virus situation?

Hello readers, 

your questions answered.

Do I have to take extra vitamin D when I am at home because of the coronavirus?

Now that many people are at home because of the coronavirus, we receive questions about taking extra vitamin D. This would increase the resistance. It is true that vitamin D is important, among other things, for the proper functioning of the immune system. If you eat according to the Wheel of Five and are outside for 15-30 minutes every day, you will get enough vitamin D. This does not apply to young children, women over 50 years of age and men over 70 years of age, people with a dark skin tone, people who do not come out often and pregnant women. They are advised to take extra vitamin D. Do not take in too much vitamin D. This is not necessary and so there is enough available for other people who need it.

What can you do to get enough vitamin D?

Try to be outside for a quarter to half an hour between 11:00 AM and 3:00 PM every day, with your face uncovered and hands uncovered. Your body produces vitamin D itself under the influence of sunlight. If you are not allowed to go outside because of the measures surrounding the corona-virus, try sitting in the garden or your balcony. Do you have no outdoor space? Then sit in front of an open window. If that does not work, and you stay inside completely, you can take a vitamin D supplement. Then do not exceed the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of 10 micro-grams. If you can go outside again, you can stop taking vitamin D. You can also get vitamin D in part from food. So eat healthy and varied according to the Wheel of Five. Vitamin D is naturally found in fatty fish, such as herring, salmon and mackerel. Meat and eggs also provide vitamin D, but less than oily fish. In the Netherlands, vitamin D is also added to low-fat margarine, margarine and baking and frying products (but not to oil).

Does vitamin D help prevent infections like the corona-virus?

Scientific advisory committees for food within and outside Europe conclude that it has not been sufficiently demonstrated whether (extra) vitamin D reduces the risk of infections. This is because the results so far mainly come from observational research. Cause and effect cannot be demonstrated in this type of investigation. Moreover, studies so far still show too many different results. Whether a vitamin D supplement helps to prevent infections must first be demonstrated in a good systematic manner.

Can I take in too much vitamin D?

The chance of an excess of vitamin D is small. It can only occur as a result of taking too many supplements for a long time. Do not need a supplement, but do you want to take it now because you are not allowed to come outside because of the corona-virus? Look closely at the label and make sure you choose a supplement that contains no more than 100% of the RDI (recommended daily allowance).

Greetings,

Queeny

Geplaatst op 2 Reacties

How to survive the lock-down when having an eating disorder?

Hello readers,

When having an eating disorder and depending in which state it is, it can be that you feel a bit disconnected from the whole corona situation. You don’t want to stay inside, but you want to move. Either in the gym or the park. When having binges or bulimia, you are maybe questioning if you financially can handle another binge episode and if it’s the right choice to go to the supermarket this time. Maybe even your pessimistic side of wishing yourself dead just came a little bit too near this time…

Having an eating disorder is already a form of lock-down if you ask me. By restricting yourself from social events and certain foods it’s already a big punishment to give yourself. So how do you cope with that dreadful anxiety you feel at the moment?

Keep prepping your meals / or follow your meal plan

If you have a structured routine of prepping your meal for the days or are following a plan from a dietitian, please stick to this! Remember your goal(s). Why did you choose for recovery? And stay realistic; your body still needs food every single day… period.

Do not go into your room and sneaky workout!

I am afraid a lot you all are already do this…  (-_-) Don’t lie to the people who love you and don’t feed into the anxiety you feel. If you want to move, I highly recommend that you move with somebody and make it a 30-45 min workout inside. Don’t go on for hours and hours!

Seek online help!

Depending in which country you are, you can chat online with fellow strugglers. In the Netherlands we have Proud2bme.nl. An online platform were they have a forum or an online chat (from 19:00-21:00) daily. You are not alone, how cliché it may sound.

Keep busy or sit down and listen.

For bingers or people who have bulimia tendencies, it can be very hard to fight the urges. You often get the advice to keep yourself distracted. In this case you can watch a movie at home, read a book, talk to someone (by phone or face-to-face). But sometimes if you want to fight the ED, you can stop and just listen to the chatter from your brain. Sometimes you just gotta sit down hear the bullsh*t your ED is telling you.

Keep setting goals for recovery 

Even in lock-down, you can always keep setting goals for recovery. Try some peanut butter on bread, eat your favorite candy or try to eat with your family.

Ask help with the pantry

If you want to binge badly, ask someone at home to put a lock on the pantry or ask the person to go with you when you are taking something from it.

I hope this helped! I never really wrote about this in the past, but I believe writing about this is vital. Even when it helps just one person <3

Greetings,

Queeny