Active Girl's Guilt-free Pancakes and My Lifestyle Change

Woah! The spring has certainly hit Krakow this weekend! Friday and Saturday were ah-mazing, sunshine, almost +20C and the riverbanks were full of joggers, couples and friends on walks and everyone seemed as if they had woken up from their winter sleep full of energy and happiness.

Saturday's fresh lunch and make up free look.

 I've also been running and walking this week not only to enjoy the springlike weather but because I want to tone up before July and the wedding. I used to be able to shed a few kilos without any problems but as I've gotten older and since I finished studying and took on a full time job, losing that extra fluff has proven to be harder than ever.

From Saturday's powerwalk in the beautiful sunny Krakow.

I started a lifestyle change gradually in 2013 after looking at some holiday pictures and realizing that I had sneakily gotten chubby. I've always even at my skinnier days been still relatively normal but now I had stepped on the other side, where my body was no longer normal but just chubby. I think unconsciously I knew I wasn't in the best shape of my life but since the cents had piled up evenly it was hard to understand the scope of the whole thing. I visited Finland in October 2013 and going back to your childhood home you look at yourself in the same mirrors as back when still living in Finland and you realize how big the difference really is. Shocking.

In Portugal 2013.

Summer 2013 in Portugal.

Now there could've been two ways to approach this dilemma A) go in full speed and lose the extra (read, muscle mass and a little fat most likely) with fast pace B) take your time, no permanent solutions are fixed over night. I went with B and I think the first seven months I did the work without even thinking I was doing anything by looking at what I was putting on my plate.

After gym session in hotel, March UK 2015.

In January 2014 I faced the facts that I needed help with exercising as unlike before, I couldn't get excited about moving anymore on my own. I felt like I had let my old active self down, I was ashamed of myself and I needed to humble down and face the facts: I was out of shape, felt bad about it, I need to do this right this time around.

The gym in my building had closed down in the summer 2013 because of financial troubles. It didn't help my case at all. I told my fiancé I wanted a personal trainer to get back on track again and he called a place called FitNow that's a personal training gym in my neighborhood. He got me an appointment for first meeting and I was signed up with my own trainer the next week.

At first I was ashamed, I was in horrible shape, sweating like a pig after first 15 minutes of the one hour session and thinking I'd not survive. I again had two choices A) accept the situation and put your work to it B) pretend you don't have that big of a problem and stay on your comfort zone. I chose A and I have never regretted it. Sure I was red faced, one hell of a sweaty Finnish chick who cursed a lot but I did the job - for myself. I hated the way my belly fluff were bouncing when I had to do skipping and saw myself in the mirror but that also helped to get a little bit of pride back - instead of being home eating crisps on the sofa and drinking beer on a Friday night, I was there getting myself back.

January 2015.

I changed trainers in the spring and got to train with this wonderfully funny guy whom I learned so much from. Training sessions were hard, I changed my training from fat burning circuits to free weighs and heavier weighs which was a whole new area for me. In September/October 2014 I quit the personal training and moved to train on my own, I had learned to love moving again and to some level accept my body as it is, a work in progress.

Fluff slowly turning to muscle, I'll get there. October 2014.

I've realized a lot of things these past two years. Short term solutions do not work and although long term work is the difficult choice, it is the one you should go for. You see results quickly in the beginning but things slow down after that. In the meanwhile all you can do is trust the process. No quick fixes exist.

At my bestie's gym in Stockholm, November 2014.

I have experience from starving myself, eating less than 800kcal a day, walking every day and feeling horrible even if I was at my skinniest. I have also experience of completely letting myself go, eating too little but the wrong things, things that a stressed mind shouldn't eat as the body hangs on to fat and sugar like a drowning man to his lifejacket, you ending up piling kg's on your hips and belly. As boring as it sounds "everything in moderation" is the way to go and you need to move especially if you do a 9-10h sit on your ass by a computer thing like I do.

Post run excitement this week :)

The learning I've gotten from all this is, that you must be true to yourself, face the situation in its full mightiness (whatever it may be: too skinny or too chubby, or just unhappy) and most importantly be kind to yourself. Don't put yourself down in front of a mirror. Don't call yourself with names.

Forgive yourself for the wrongs you've done in the past and enjoy the present, dream of things for tomorrow. 

Once you learn to love to move and eat well the results will follow. But you must enjoy the ride because it's a lifelong one. I still eat pizza, enjoy a beer and take popcorn in the movies but I don't do it everyday. I try to listen to my body telling me what it likes and I've banned deep fried foods from my diet a very long time ago as I simply feel nauseous if I eat them. I fight my sugar tooth on a weekly, sometimes daily basis but I've gotten better. No more everyday Snickers or Coca-Cola.

Enjoy the little steps on the road, the little successes, they are what makes this journey so great. When you go for a run and without pushing it go 5km longer than before, cherish that win! Most importantly, never ever compare yourself to others out there. This is your life, your success story, your competition against yourself. So what if the chick next to lifts 20kg more than you or the girl on the next locker has a six pack - so what!? Someone else's success is not away from you, the same way yours is not away from them. We all have different challenges and when we manage to beat them, we should enjoy that and not think that someone else did twice better - that person might struggle with something completely different that in your universe is no problem at all.

So don't waste the head space by comparing yourself to others, keep track of your weaknesses and moments when you've conquered them. The only thing you need to compare yourself to is you - and you are pretty awesome!

Active Girl's Guilt-free Pancakes

makes 5-6 small pancakes, time 15min

1 banana

2 eggs

handful of sugar free instant oats

pinch of salt

(half scoop natural protein powder)

Mix all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Heat the frying pan to mid high temperature and put a little bit of coconut oil on the pan (or other). Put a little amount of pancake mix to pan and once the color turns from shiny to dim, flip the pancake over. You'll learn with practice how to make these the best and cooking time depends on the stove your using. I'd recommend lower temperature and a little longer cooking time to avoid black pancakes. 

Serve with fresh or defrost berries and sprinkle walnuts on top. Add honey if you need a little sweetness.