Maintenance

Once I reached my goal weight and I actually lost another 5 pounds on top of it, I decided to stop losing weight and switch into maintenance mode. I am currently 140 lbs. and I plan on staying here for the rest of my life, pregnancy aside. However, in order to do that, I will always have to make healthier eating choices and continue to watch my calories. A few times over the past couple of months, I've let my guard down, and I've actually gained back pounds at which point I have to switch back into weightloss mode again for a couple of weeks to work my way back down. As long as I don't eat more than 1800 calories a day, and I exercise 3 times a week doing at least 45 minutes of cardio and then 40 minutes of strength training, I can stay a size 4. :) I hope I can help and inspire others. I'd love to be a free personal trainer for anyone who wants to succeed.

Week 21: Down 25 lbs.

I've gone from a size 10-12 to a size 6. :) I've lost 25 lbs. and I feel great. My BMI is 21 and I'm pretty much where I want to be. It's been hard, but I feel wonderful. Now the trick is to keep it off. Since I'll be traveling soon, we'll see how successful I am. One of my friends is going to start blogging about her weightloss experience, and I'm so excited to follow her journey. Here are my pics. What do you think?

Before: (6 weeks Postpartum)



After: (6 months Postpartum)




my progress
Week 1~
Weight: 170 lbs.
Chest: 44 inches
Waist: 33 inches
Hips: 39 inches

Week 2~
Weight: 167 lbs.
Chest: 43 inches
Waist: 32 inches
Hips: 38 3/4 inches

Week 3~
Weight: 164 lbs.
Chest: 43 inches
Waist: 31 1/2 inches
Hips: 38 1/2 inches

Week 4 ~
Weight: 163 lbs.
Chest: 42 1/2 inches
Waist 31 1/2 inches
Hips: 38 1/2 inches

Week 5 ~
Weight: 162 lbs.
Chest: 42 inches
Waist: 31 inches
Hips: 38 inches

Week 6~
? Oh well :)

Week 7~
Weight: 161 lbs.

Week 8~
Weight: 160 lbs.

Week 9~
Weight: 159 lbs. :)
Chest: 42 inches
Waist: 30 1/2 inches
Hips: 38 inches
Thighs: 21 1/2 inches

Week 10~
Weight: 158 lbs.
Chest: 41 1/2 inches
Waist: 30 1/2 inches
Hips: 38 inches
Thighs: 21 inches

Week 11~
Weight: 157 lbs.
Just above the Knees: 14 1/2 inches (I want this # to go up because it means that my quadriceps are getting stronger and will hold my knee cap in place better.)

Week 12 ~
Weight: 156 lbs.
Chest: 41 1/2 inches
Waist: 30 inches
Hips: 38 inches
Thighs: 21 inches
j.a.t.k.: 15 inches :)

Week 13 ~
Weight: 154 lbs.
Chest: 41 inches
Waist: 30 inches (stubborn!)
Hips: 37 1/2 inches
Thighs: 20 1/2 inches
j.a.t.k.: 15 inches

Week 14 ~
Weight: 153 lbs. :)

Week 15 ~
Weight: 152 lbs.

Week 16 ~
Weight: 152 lbs. (sigh)

Week 17~
Weight: 151 lbs. :)

Week 18~
Weight: 150 lbs.
Chest: 40 1/2 inches
Waist: 29 inches
Hips: 37 inches
Thighs: 19 1/2 inches
j.a.t.k. 15 inches

Week 19~
Weight: 149 lbs.

Week 20~
Weight: 147 lbs.

Week 21~
Weight: 145 lbs.

Week 13: Recap and photos

So here's a Recap on my weight-loss journey.

I'm not sure how much I weighed in 2008 but I was not happy with my appearance at all. Here are a couple 'Fat' photos:
(I can't believe I'm sharing these: oh well)


In May 2009 I started exercising but not watching the amount of calories I was eating so I got up to 185 lbs. (Yuck!)

Anyway, I was determined to change that before I even thought about having another baby so I worked out really hard and ate 4 meals of 400 calories each and dropped down to 165.

Then I got pregnant. The day before I gave birth to Clara I weighed in at 194 lbs.

6 weeks postpartum I was down to 170.

Now I'm down to 154, I can't believe it, it's WONDERFUL! I keep losing weight and it's become easy to watch my calorie intake and I'm always motivated to exercise. I have finally gotten rid of a lot of my 'Fat' clothes and I went out and purchased some NEW smaller clothes since I feel as though I look a whole lot cuter than I did 15 months ago when I was 31 lbs. heavier.

For those of you who still think that 154 seems like a lot of weight remember that I'm 5' 9" so my BMI is only 22.74 which really isn't bad.
If I had the same BMI and I were only 5 '4", I'd weigh 132.5 lbs.
I think I'd like to drop another 14 lbs. and get down to 140, but we'll see what happens. I'm feeling healthy and cute and happy and I NEVER want to feel chubby again. I want to be Super Sexy for my husband when he returns from his deployment and I know I can make it happen.

Here are a couple of pictures from last week:



Getting in shape seems hard at first, but once you've developed healthier habits, it can come rather easily as long as you're not looking for the quick fix. I lose 1 or 2 lbs. every week and that works for me, maybe it could work for you too. :)

Week 11: Runner's Knee and Carpal Tunnel

I'm trying to get myself to the best me possible which includes fixing ailments etc. This week I went to visit the Orthopedic specialists and Occupational Therapists to see what could be done to not have knee or wrist pain anymore.

Although I did my seated leg raises, I have still been having a lot of knee pain. Well, the awesome specialist told me I have 'Runner's Knee' and he gave me a Quad strengthening exercise routine. Then once that's done, he also gave me a 'Walk to Run' program. So, after a few weeks of focusing on building my Quads I can resume my goal of running a 5K. :D He told me to go home and measure my leg right above my knees so I can see my progress as my muscle builds!




As for my wrists, I saw the Occupational Therapist today and he gave me some guidelines to follow to help my pain go away. I'm not a fan of surgery until you've done everything else possible! I don't have the typical numbness and tingling that people associate with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS), instead I have a constant dull pain that radiates toward my thumb and I have a relatively weak grasp. Anyway, for the next few weeks I'm going to NOT be doing things like pushups and pull-ups or anything that requires constant/repetitive grasping/flexing. I am allowed to use the arm machines at the gym that don't require a grasp so I'm not giving up my arm strengthening goals. Tomorrow I go in and get some custom wrist splints made too! I'm excited and I'm going to follow the directions I've been given faithfully! :)

Overall, I feel as though I look better in my clothes and I have reason to hope that I won't be in constant pain anymore! Hooray!

Finally, since I said I'd post some pictures of my progress this week, here you go. What do you think? Do I look like I've made progress?

And So It Begins

In highschool I had a pretty decent shape and I stayed active. I am 5' 9" and I weighed 150 lbs. As time went on my weight fluctuated up and down 20 lbs.

While I was pregnant with my son I ended up gaining 40 lbs more reaching 200 lbs. and I was very dismayed when I only lost 30 of those pounds once he was born. As I began nursing I thought I was supposed to lose weight but I was hungry and ate all of the time and ended up gaining 15 pounds back; so, I ended up at 185 my heaviest non-pregnant weight.

I decided that before I even considered getting pregnant again I wanted to get into the best shape I could. I worked really hard and got down to 165 with the same measurements from high school so I figured I must have had more muscle mass.

Anyway, I got pregnant shortly after achieving my goal and I tried really hard this pregnancy to not gain more than 30 lbs. and was successful by only gaining 29 lbs. Once I gave birth to my daughter I was curious to see what my weight loss would be. Here I am 6 weeks later and I fit into most of my pre-pregnancy clothes but that doesn't mean that I like the way they look. I currently weigh 170 lbs., but my measurements can definitely use some work.

This blog will be an account of my diet and exercise program as I get back into a healthy attractive shape. I will offer tips, recipes, and weekly exercise goals that you can try if you'd like to join me on this journey.
After my doctor's appointment tomorrow I will start Week 1 so here's your chance to get on the exercise bandwagon with me.

Here are my before pictures so I have something to measure my progress against. (Please don't laugh too hard.) :D