Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity. ~ Margaret D. Nadald

Our Father also gifted us with the nature to nurture, keen sensitivity to the Spirit, selflessness, discernment, and heroic faith. No wonder our Father placed us at the heart of the family and thus at the center of the plan of salvation. We are the Lord's secret weapon. ~ Sheri Dew


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21 December 2011

And Thus it Begins!

Today marks the first day of Weighing in Wednesday! This was the brain child of yesterday's workout... I was trying to come up with a good way to track myself, as well as provide motivation for others. So, every Wednesday I will be getting a weight and waist measurement on myself and sharing it here, as well as giving a rundown of what I was up to excercise-wise for the week, and probably offering some kind of tips/advice/goals. I have no problems throwing all of this out into the abyss and just for my own use, but if you'd like to come along you can either leave comments below whenever you feel so inclined, or let me know that you'd like to start your own Weighing in Wednesday blog post and I'll pay to add a linky tool to my blog so that several people can blog hop each week (which would be even more fun! Motivation AND accountability :-D)

To start with, here's a little info on me. Our 5th child was born 3 weeks and 5 days ago. I am just shy of 5'9", pre-pregnancy I weighed 149lbs (I'll explain the significance of that number later), and the day our son was born I was about 216lbs. No, I didn't have gestational diabetes, my body just likes to gain about 60lbs in my belly and legs with each pregnancy... Which is probably why I find something physically crazy to get it off each time! Last year it was triathlons... This year it's triathlons (I'm hooked after last year!) and long distance races (the ultimate goal is a marathon late next year... Still trying to get the base that we're moving to to schedule one for me :-D).

As of today my numbers are:
WEIGHT: 185lbs
WAIST: 37 1/4"


Last week I was 190 lbs and my waist measured over 40" (I don't remember how far over, enough that I quickly forgot though!) Over the last week I've put in a few miles walking, usually with baby in a sling (because he can smell that I'm trying to workout, so even though he's fed and I've laid him down he'll start crying about 1/4 mile into things! Oh well, I figure he helped me put it on he can help me take it off!) Yesterday I got in 3 miles... actually getting to run 2 of those miles because baby did sleep, and today it was an agonizingly slow 2 miles, but it got my heart rate up, so I can't complain too much. In addition to walking/running a minimum of 1 mile a day... minus Sunday... I love the boot camp DVD put out by Lindsay Brin from Mom's Into Fitness (I have this set, the Bootcamp one goes through 6 weeks of increasingly harder workouts for your core and another set for toning and cardio all in one DVD and only taking 10 minutes a piece!). Her philosophy is that MOM'S CAN GET INTO BETTER SHAPE THAN THOSE WHO AREN'T! I've found this to be absolutely true for me. With each baby I've weighed less at the start than with the previous one and I've been stronger and able to do more physically in the meantime. Case in point? I was something like 167lbs when my husband and I GOT MARRIED, and, asa I mentioned, I was almost 20 lbs lighter than even that prior to getting pregnant with baby #5. So, if you use pregnancy and motherhood for any excuse, let it be the excuse that those things have made you stronger and let's get to work!

My biggest tips for you today goes towards new moms, since that's the phase I'm in. The recommended weight loss for new nursing mothers is 1 lb per week. You'll probably notice that my numbers don't follow this, but consider that "the recommended weight gain" is about 35 lbs... my body just doesn't like recommendations! If yours are lower or higher, then they are. As long as you are listening to your body (i.e. if you're beginning to bleed bright red, pull a muscle, anything hurts unnecessarily... we like good pain though!), slowing or stopping down as needed, and baby is getting fed as normal then you should be fine!

Thanks to the men out there who were willing to sift through that in order to get to this tip for everyone:
Be sure to stay hydrated! Lack of hydration is a big factor when it comes to weight loss, the pounds have a hard time dropping off without it! I reposted from a blog last year on how to find out how much water you need each day... the typical "8 glasses" isn't suitable for everyone so make sure you're getting enough... your body will thank you!

My personal goal is to get back down to at least 149 lbs. I don't have a timeframe for this... I just focus on healthy behaviors in eating, exercise and sleep (when I can). Healthy living is a lifestyle and weight loss and maintenance will be a lot easier if you look at it that way now. I don't do anything when I'm losing weigh that I don't do when trying to maintain :-). The 149 lbs is a number that I strive for because in triathlon you can usually race by age group and then there's the Athena's and Clydesdales. To be an Athena you have to weigh 150lbs or more... there are some absolutely amazing athletes in that category, but I don't want to be one. Mentally knowing that I HAVE to compete in my age range against people who haven't had 5 kids (or usually any for that matter), and can spend more time training makes me work harder!

Let me know if you'd like to "weigh-in" next week either physically or metaphorically!

6 comments:

Mary said...

What as inspirtion. I'm down 32 of my Lbs after having baby two weeks ago (it helps when baby is almost ten of those lbs) about 11 left to go from baby and then quite a few of my own!
-Mary

Tristan said...

Ooo, I hope to join in post-baby and post c-section recovery! My starting weight has generally gone up between babies as I've had 10 pregnancies in 11 years - simply not time to get weight off. Still, my gain has varied from over 50 lbs for a few pregnancies to 16lbs so far for this one (which only has 2 weeks to c-section at most). I'm 5'5" and currently weigh 211. We'll see where I end up. My all time highest weight at the end of a pregnancy was 225 lbs. I shouldn't hit that this time, but you never know!

Way to go on getting motivated already to track things! I'll be using the T-Tapp DVDs and Walk Away the Pounds DVDs I have once the doctor clears me to. I have no idea how long after a C-section before I can start exercise again!? I just know I need to not make excuses once I'm cleared- this is the second time I only had 3 months not pregnant so there is no time to waste in between!

Since I'm still prego for a bit I'll set these goals and hope to check in next week:
1. Drink more water.
2. Eat more fruits and veggies, less chocolate. ahem. And chocolate covered cherries or chocolate covered strawberries don't count as fruit.

Cherie said...

That's great Tristan! I know what you mean about no excuses... I've had a year in between the last 4 pregnancies (even though we wished there was less each time), but the first two I only had 6 months. So, never knowing if or when that next one will be I have to work hard and quick in between!

You crack me up... I'm pretty sure I wouldn't (*cough* didn't) cut back on the chocolate/sweets until recently. My body craves it like crazy! Good luck! It's generally 6-8 weeks postpartum to wait after a C-section with a doctors okay. I know some people that have been ready to go in that time and others that were still a little too sore/uncomfortable. Hopefully you'll get cleared around then and feel up to doing something! Being physically active (and training for races), keeps me sane in a life where everything else is unpredictable.. I wish you the same! :-)

Can't wait to start having you link up with me!

Cherie said...

Way to go Mary!!! It's always nice when baby jump starts the weight loss, nothing wrong with that! (Sorry that baby was so big though!) I wish you the best of luck with that last 11+ lbs! I'll certainly be here with you along the way if you'd like to check in each week. Can't wait to hear how things are going for you!

Regina said...

I have been working hard the last 8 weeks and so far have lost 15 pounds. I lost my weight with my other 9 kids so much faster but this last one is almost three and since I had a c-section, my body doesn't want to lose it. I have been having some problems with my thyroid so that doesn't help but I will do the best I can..! Maybe if I'm accountable I will do better with losing all that I need. I will follow you and hope for the best! Thanks, Regina

Heather B said...

You're so inspiring! Way to go!