weight woes.

april 2012 to feb 2013, and 50 lbs lighter.

Cora has gained a few however... like 14 lbs and walking legs! Yay Cora!!

Well I am super excited to say...that today... I am finally at my pre-pregnancy weight! Eesh. That took only 10 months. Yay!! Now, even though the scale says I am 170lbs... it's a new 170lbs. My body really doesn't look at all like it did before pregnancy. I am saggy, floppy, and stretch-marked. I can fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes, however I look different in them. If I want to get toned, it will take some serious work. Maybe its that I'm 29....or maybe its that having a baby takes a toll on my body. Either way, I'm pleased with my weight loss...and its okay if I have to wear mom-jeans forever. After all... I am a mom.

It all started back in October Matt and I decided we had enough of our chunky bodies. We were lugging around this extra weight...feeling bad about ourselves...for what? A few tasty beers and french fries? Silly really. I was realizing that I made enough excuses for myself...oh, I'm pregnant (okay..that one is semi-justified) or...I just had a baby.... or... I'm breast feeding... and then I ran out of excuses. I didn't just have a baby, she was 6 months old....I couldn't ride that wave forever.

We needed to do something immediately, because if I didn't start loosing weight, getting healthy, or being fit...I'd just have another baby and get bigger and bigger. Pre-pregnancy I was already a size large at 170 lbs (I'm almost 6' here...I've never been tiny)...so they start to run out of sizes for people like me. After baby, I was an XXL, and snug at that...and a consistent 196 lbs- not 195, not even 197...196. wtf. I wasn't loosing any weight after pregnancy- which I talked about a few times on this blog. I thought the weight would "fall off" with breast feeding- kind of hilarious actually...in that sad, crying into a glass of wine kind of way.

So we chose to join a gym...matt and I. I started off with 5 sessions with a physical trainer. It was grand. I was quite nervous about using weight machines. So the trainer helped me to feel more comfortable- that I too can belong in the gym. I also learned most importantly what my body needed to get these goals:

1. get to pre-pregnancy weight of 170, then maybe 10 more pounds of weight loss (in progress).
2. have a strong core (my abdominal muscles are shot after pregnancy)
3. get nice toned arms and legs (to play endlessly with our little cora)

Matt had similar goals... but a little more weight loss and to sculpt a bit more muscle mass. We also drastically changed what we ate for a few months...about Nov-Jan. We cut out 100% of alcohol (if you know us.... this was a biggie- matt loves his beer, and I love a glass of wine here and there), lowered carbs, ate healthy, no sugar, no eating out, increased protein. This extreme diet was a bit ...well...extreme- we knew we couldn't endure this forever- we love eating. But it could get us down to our target weight...to then get a more workable baseline and teach ourselves how to eat in moderation and healthfully for life.

I actually almost started sobbing during our first work out... here I was actually in a gym, as a mom...doing it. I thought back to pushing out a human being from my body... I am strong, I can do this. I am doing this. I held back the tears, mind you. But gosh, this was a huge hurdle for me. Then I looked over at my husband... he was doing it, and rocking it. He can run on a treadmill? Floods of emotions. Emotions that I just don't get from a candy bar (well, sometimes I think I do). So we keep going. We are succeeding at this. Its not easy, but the way we feel from eating healthy is amazing.

This is what 35 lbs looks like for matt. (sept 2012- dec 2012) Oh, I'm so proud of him.

Longer term goals:
-To be able to do an overnight backpacking trip with Cora like the old days pre-cora
-To maintain a healthy weight...where we feel good and look good.
-Next time I get pregnant to be healthier and maybe not gain 50 lbs.
-To be able to have an active lifestyle with our kids

So, its hard. From about Feb-March...we've gone out to eat, had tasty things, alcohol... its tricky. Matt is starting to go back to the gym. I am going to eat healthier- cut out the processed foods. Its a work in progress. With warmer weather I plan on playing a lot outside with Cora... I can't wait. But this weight loss feels better. It's something, phew! 50 lbs gone. Yay!!