{Weight Loss Wednesday} Month 1

When Kevin and I got married I was in a size 4, weighed about 135 pounds, and worked out five days a week. Not long after we said "I do", I got a big girl job and spent less time in the gym but still managed to get in a workout about three days a week. By the time I got pregnant with Harper I was in a size 6 and weighing in between 140-145 pounds. During my pregnancy with Harper I did my best to try to continue my work out but due to some complications, I was taken out of the gym and all of my free time was to be spent at home with my feet up. By the time I delivered Harper I had gained 40 pounds. Fortunately, two months later, I had lost most all of that baby weight. I was in a size 8 and weighed around 150 pounds. But my body just wasn't proportioned the same as it had been. My abs were replaced with an extra layer of skin and a roll of fat, my love handles were more pronounced, and my legs had a bit more cellulite than I remembered from before. But that was all okay because I had a gorgeous baby girl who made my new additions worth it. Since I knew I wanted to have another baby the idea to work out and work off the remaining few pounds I carried just wasn't that big of a deal to me. I kept telling myself, what's the point of losing it if I'm just going to put it back on. And then my Mom pointed out to me about a month ago that the more I lose now, the less I have to lose after baby #2. And sometimes, I just hate to admit that she's right. So I started contemplating doing something about it. And then my friend Stacey inspired me to make a change.

Several months ago, my {in real life} friend Stacey over at Loving Life and Learning Lots began a journey to lose thirty pounds. Over the last several months Stacey has rocked her diet and healthy living goals and has lost over twenty pounds. Having followed Stacey's journey all the way from the beginning, I was inspired to change some of my dieting habits and try to lose a bit of weight and tone up myself. So four weeks ago, with the help of Stacey's guidance and my coworkers' support, I began to start eating healthier in an effort to shed a few pounds.

The first thing I did was download the MyFitnessPal app. It's free and is such a great tool and motivator. I set up a profile in which I added my current weight, how much I'd like to lose, and how much I'd like to lose per week. From there, it figured out the amount of calories I needed to consume each day based on my current weight and height. So for the last four weeks, every thing I have ate has been plugged into that little app. When I say you can find any food on there, I mean it. I can find everything from homemade ranch dressing to McDonald's cheeseburgers. What I love about the app even better is I can plug in homemade recipes and it'll calculate the total calorie content for me. It's super simple and easy.

Next, I started cleaning up my unhealthy drinking habits. Having grown up in the south, I was raised on Sundrop, Coke, and sweet tea. As an adult, those are still the three main liquids I consume. So I decided that was the first thing I needed to clean up. I went from having four cans of  Coke a day to drinking one can of Coke Zero. The rest of the day I drink water or Light Minute Made Lemonade. Though I do allow myself a glass of tea whenever we go out for dinner. I just can't completely cut out my roots (;

After getting my drinks under control, I started working on what I ate. Thanks to Stacey doing this before me, she got me off to a great start on things I could and couldn't eat. I started finding healthier food options for breakfast and lunch and stick to my usual dinners, though I just watch the amount of food I consume at dinner and I choose my seconds wisely. Below are some of my favorite food items you can find me eating and drinking most days.

Breakfast

• Special K Flatbread Breakfast Sandwiches (220 calories)
• Homemade Bacon Egg & Cheese (153 calories)
• 1 whole wheat English muffin toasted, egg white, one slice of turkey bacon, 1 pack of skinny cow swiss cheese
• Dannon Yogurt (80 calories)

Lunch

• Walmart's Fresh Market Salads (230 calories)
• Sandwich Bros Cheeseburger melts (160 calories)
• Sandwich Bros Chicken melts (160 calories)
• Or smaller portions of dinner leftovers

Dinner

• For dinner, I do my best to stick with meat and veggies
• If we're having an Italian dish, I stick to a salad with a small portion of spaghetti/lasagna, one slice of pizza, etc. 
• If we're doing dinner out, I look to my Fitness Pal App for suitable meals with a lower calorie count

Snacks

• Fresh fruit 
• Sargento Cheese Sticks (60 calories per stick)
• Skinny Pop popcorn (39 calories per cup)
• Emerald Cashew and Cashew Halves (100 calories per pack)
• Fiber One Chocolate Fudge Bars (90 calories)
• Twix mini ice cream bars (90 calories)

Drinks

• Coke Zero (0 calories)
• Water
• Light Minute Maid Lemonade (15 calories per 8 oz. glass)

Since starting my journey four weeks ago, I've lost 6 pounds and dropped a whole pant size. My goal was only to lose one pound a week but by eating smaller meals and snacking every so often throughout the day, I've found that I'm actually taking in less calories than I am given. Thus, I've been losing more than I intended but I'm not going to complain about that. And to top it all off, I can't begin to tell you how much better I feel and how much more energy I have by the end of the day! It's truly amazing, girls. All in all I've been very proud of how I've done on this little journey. It hasn't been near as hard as I expected. And if I can do it, so can you if you're considering something similar!

For Mother's Day Kevin got me a Fitbit so this week I've started working out again. I can't wait to see how much weight I've lost and how much I've toned up in the next few weeks. I'll be sure to check in with you ladies next month to share some progress (: And if any of you ladies have some other low calorie meal and snack suggestions, please share them with me! I'm always open to some new healthier food options!

Postpartum Workout

Before getting pregnant, I tried to make it to the gym at least three days a week. I'd usually do some cardio, hit a few weight machines, and take a workout class. When I found out I was pregnant, I was nervous about continuing my workout routine but my doctor assured me it would be fine considering my body was used to it. I knew she knew what she was talking about but it still worried me so I decided to cut back at the gym. In order to try to stay fit, I started walking three miles a day, three times a week. I kept this up until I was about six months pregnant. When I hit the six month mark, I started swelling pretty bad and was told to stay off of my feet. Unfortunately, this meant cutting out my workouts. So needless to say over the last three months of my pregnancy, the weight gain quickly started to rise. With that being the case, as soon as Harper arrived, I was ready to get back in shape.

The only problem was that I didn't have time to go to the gym so I had to start looking for alternatives. At our home, we don't have any workout equipment. We never had the need since Kevin and I both have gym memberships. However, we do have the INSANITY dvd's. Kevin and I have completed the INSANITY workouts twice before and they really do work. The only problem is they're about an hour long and if you stop in the middle of them, it's not as effective. And of course, with a newborn, just as soon as I start the workout, Harper needs to be tended to. So I had to come up with another solution. 

After spending a whole afternoon on pinterest looking up workouts, I finally settled on a few that I could adapt and do at home. It's been two weeks since I started working out regularly and I've seen a big difference in my post-preggo body. So I'd like to share my workout with you new mama's. Maybe it'll help you too!

Leg Circuit

20 squats

30 lunges

40 calf raises

50 second wall sit

100 jumping jacks

50 second wall sit

40 sumo squats

30 alternating leg raises

20 squats

Butt Circuit

20 alternating sliders

20 hip lifts

20 lunge kicks per leg

20 donkey kicks per leg

20 hydrant kicks per leg

20 booty kicks per leg

20 kneeling leg lifts per leg

20 hamstring curls

Ab Circuit

30 second plank

30 crunches

30 sit ups

30 Russian twists

30 V-crunches

30 bicycle crunches

30 alternating leg raises

30 side bends per side

30 second plank

Arm Circuit

10 pushups

20 arm circles (small forward)

20 arm circles (small backward)

10 dips

20 arm circles (large forward)

20 arm circles (large backward)

10 pushups

Each circuit takes anywhere from 10-15 minutes. I usually focus on two areas a day and try to get each circuit in three days a week. Though I feel better if I can get each in for five days a week. But as many of you know, life with a newborn doesn't allow much extra time (: