Up to my first pregnancy, all I was doing was running 3-4 times a week, not even always that consistent. When I found out I was pregnant, I never felt comfortable running while pregnant. Sure I know lots of people who work out while they're pregnant (and even run), but I just didn't know what to do, and I didn't feel like I had been consistent enough before baby to think that I could do it with baby without harming him. I was incredibly nervous! .... So I stopped. We had a dog at the time that I'd take for walks, but that's about it.
After Leeland was born, I tried to get back into running. It was TOUGH!! I don't think I could even run a 1/2 mile without getting winded and stopping when I first got going 6 weeks post partum. (I did manage to make it through the women's only 5k that year amazingly enough, but I wasn't anywhere near quick!)
Fast forward another year of very frustrating and very inconsistent running and I found myself pregnant with baby #2, our little Hayden. Again, I had been SO inconsistent that I struggled with the thought of continuing to work out while pregnant. I remember saying all the time, "I'm pregnant and have a toddler, keeping up with Leeland is my exercise." .... And I didn't just say it, I believed it! I truly believed somehow that supervising and following Leeland around was my exercise. After Hayden was born, I hated my body, was incredibly self conscious about not bouncing back as quickly as I had with Leeland and I was determined to get back into working out. The problem was, I didn't know how. I now had 2 kids to keep up with, Daniel was working a lot (and odd hours), I felt SO out of shape and was scared to begin, not to mention, Hayden was nowhere near sleeping through the night, and I was very frequently nursing him..... How do I make that work!?!
..... Well, it started with more inconsistent running, and then when I finally got to the point of "I need more, this isn't working", I picked up P90x. I had fantastic results from P90x, and jumped right into Turbo Fire after. I can't deny that I struggled through Turbo Fire-- I had injuries and the holiday season was very difficult, but once I got past that, I jumped right into half marathon training, and then completed the "21 day fix." It's been a whirlwind-- a big lifestyle change and I've seen my body change a lot both mentally and physically.
Without further ado, here are photos and stats-- These are NEVER before publicly shared photos. Wearing the exact same shorts and exact same sports bra a year later.
June 20, 2013
Weight: 188.6 pounds
Chest: 39 inches
Biceps: 13 inches
Thighs: 26 1/4 inches
Waist: 38 1/4 inches
Hips: 44 1/2 inches
June 20, 2014
Chest- 34 1/2 inches
Biceps- 12 1/4 inches
Waist- 29 3/4 inches
Hips- 39 inches
Thighs- 24 3/4 inches
Weight- 157 pounds
Total weight loss of 31 pounds and a loss of over 20 inches on my body!
Some things I've learned in the past year along my journey--
1. Give yourself grace! When you think about being healthy as truly a lifestyle change.... It's your life! It's not a crash diet that you need to be strict to for a month. It's life. And in real life, occasionally things come up and you miss a day or two of working out, or you eat something that you wished you hadn't. It happens. Give yourself grace! Don't dwell on it, learn from it and pick yourself up the next day.
2. Don't focus on the scale! I hear all too often from fellow Mommy's about how they aren't yet to their "pre-baby" or "goal weight." It's all about the number on the scale to SO many... and I used to be one of them. But let me tell you a secret-- 5 pounds of muscle and 5 pounds of fat weigh the same thing, 5 pounds. However they look VERY different! Take photos and take measurements and take mental notes of how your clothes fit. I only lost 8.6 pounds when I did P90x, but that 8.6 pounds equated to almost 10 inches off of my body! So... please, don't focus on the scale! The number on the scale doesn't tell you how much more slim you've gotten, how you're down a pant size, or how many more miles you can run than you have before, or how you had to buy new weights twice because you were lifting so much more.
3. It takes time. Diet pills and starvation do NOT work! They call that yo-yo dieting. To get to where you want to be, it takes time! Build up that motivation and determination and start today! It took me a year to get here, and I STILL have work to do.... it does NOT happen overnight. I am at one year and counting... because this journey isn't over yet! Set smaller/short term and realisitic goals for yourself, if you say, "my goal is to have the perfect body in 30 days," or "lose 20 pounds in 2 weeks," you'll only frustrate yourself. But if your goal is simply complete a 90 day challenge, you will feel invigorated and excited when you do and can roll into the next one.
4. Have FUN! You aren't going to like every single workout, and sometimes we just have to do some things that we don't like for the end result, but incorporate some things in there that you DO like! Exercise doesn't have to be a chore, and the end results and energy, and confidence, and happiness is so worth it!
Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. I am NOT being compensated by Beach Body, I do not work for Beach Body and I do not coach for Beach Body. I have received absolutely NO compensation for my high praise of their programs. And all of the programs I have tried, we have paid full price for on our own accord. (Except P90x which we borrowed.) They work and I enjoy them, that is all.
Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. I am NOT being compensated by Beach Body, I do not work for Beach Body and I do not coach for Beach Body. I have received absolutely NO compensation for my high praise of their programs. And all of the programs I have tried, we have paid full price for on our own accord. (Except P90x which we borrowed.) They work and I enjoy them, that is all.
No comments:
Post a Comment