One quarter of the way there!

Now that I'm done with pregnancy and healing well from my c-section, it's time to start getting into the weight loss routine again.  I weighed myself this morning and found that I am now 50 lbs less than what I weighed one year ago, that is 1/4 of the way to my original goal.  I realize that once I've lost the 200 lbs I will need to lose a bit more but I wanted to get that first part done first.  I think that breastfeeding Ayden is certainly helping me burn calories and I will continue to eat healthy meals (even though I need a few more calories).  I haven't been exercising yet, I'm waiting for the all clear from the Dr.  I am only 2 weeks post postpartum but I think walking is just fine for now.  I also have a nice double stroller so I can push both kids for the extra resistance.  Right now I'm really self conscious about my shape.  After having a baby, things are naturally stretched out and icky looking and it's no different for me.  My tummy is really saggy and hangs down uncomfortably.  I will have to work at tightening those abdominal muscles again but right now I have to be pretty careful.  It will happen in time I'm sure, I just have to start slowly again.  I hope you all continue to read my blog as my journey recommences.

Summer is nearly over!

Summer is drawing to a close and I realize I haven't updated since the middle of June before it even really started here.   A lot has happened since then and the weight loss has continued which is great.  In late June I found out that I'm expecting my 2nd baby!  Even though my energy level has been extremely low and my appetite really high I've managed to lose 8 pounds since finding out I was pregnant.  Unfortunately some of that came back on but I'm still working on it.  Just this past week I was able to start the longer 2k walks again.  Before then I was too exhausted to do much but I'm taking advantage of the energy rise in my second trimester and will start adding in some other exercises as well.  My dr said she was fine with me continuing to lose weight at least for a few months, I expect that eventually she will want me to gain some.  With Olivia I only gained a few pounds until I got pre eclampsia and swelled up really badly.  I also lost some at the beginning of that pregnancy.  I'm in my 13th week and things are looking good with my blood pressure so far.  I feel fine, aside from some gassiness and constipation.  I'm hoping my state of health before I got pregnant will assist me to get through this one much easier than with Olivia.  We've had one ultrasound and there was one baby in there, looking just fine (and pretty cute if I do say so myself). 

Walmart Walk for Miracles

We did the walk for miracles this morning even though it was a bit of a late start. Our human alarm didn't wake us up until 9 am which is quite surprising. Usually Liv is up at 7 am, even on weekends. We finally got out of the house at 10 am or shortly after. It was not especially warm but we stuck with it anyway. The gps wasn't working properly until halfway to our destination so I just reset it when we got halfway and calculated distance by doubling it. We walked 2.08 km which is 1.29 miles in about 40 minutes. I took one short break to sit while Olivia threw a fit in the jogging stroller because she was "tuck". She wanted to be moving or free from the stroller. She whined for most of the way home until daddy started playing peekaboo with her. It really wasn't that difficult to do this time and I hardly felt it afterwards, I was just tired. I am surprised at myself. I was able to walk more than 2 km without hurting too badly and if you told me I'd be able to do this 5 months ago I would have said no way. Good news, the scale is being replaced by the company we got it from but it's from Hong Kong...it may take another 6 weeks or so to get here. If only we'd been able to find the receipt so we could return it to walmart. This week is supposed to be sunny and warm so we set up the pool this evening in the hopes it will warm up a bit by tomorrow or Tuesday. On Wednesday we're going to Cochrane to see the polar bears which will also involve quite a bit of walking.

Down another 8

The walks have been helping immensely! Jake has kept me accountable to walking as much as possible. We even took a walk alone without Livvy and Shawn the other day as I was trying to map out our 2k walk for the Walmart Walk for Miracles. We'll be doing that on June 14th so if anyone wants to support us or join the team, click on this link I've recently gone back to resistance training and boy is it tough. I'm doing 10 minutes each on upper body and lower body. So far the upper body is much harder because I think I've been more lax on it in my wii fit workouts. There isn't as much for upper body on the wii fit so my lower body is far stronger. I've been looking at the Wii active but my mom says it's awfully hard for her to do. That makes me wonder if I could even handle it and I've been working out 5x a week since February. Anyway I'm excited because I've lost 8 pounds in the last week. The work is paying off and my goals are in sight!

What doesn't kill you...

Only makes you stronger...I think this is actually true in the exercise world. I can remember reading this quote on the wall of the gym I used to work out in when I lived in Thunder Bay and at first I would think "yeah right, if it doesn't kill me it surely will eventually". I think after time though I agreed and found that perseverance and confidence that I can do what I set out to do came naturally. I've been exercising for four months now and I have stayed true to my diet plan and exercise regime although I'm finding some of it a bit stale at this point and I can only thank God for giving me that confidence and stamina as well as the motivation to keep going. He puts people in my life to encourage me and prods me to get up off my butt by reminding me why I'm doing this. Today I was doing tricep extensions and by the time I got to 18 of 20 on each arm I found it so hard to keep going. I felt like I would have to stop but then I remembered I'd done all 20 many times before and I could finish. It hurt, my arms were shaking and afterward I could barely lift them but I felt good that I had done it! I think there is always a point in the workout (if you're doing it right) that you will face the I can't moment. It's then we need to focus on something and just push through it. I'm inspired by my baby sister who is going to run the Calgary marathon this Sunday. I know she's faced many "I can't" moments and yet look at how much she's accomplished. Sarah, you're my hero!

My weight loss buddy

Today we brought home a new member of the family. His name is Jake and he's the cutest weight loss buddy you could ask for. He needed a home because his owners are moving away and I needed someone to go on walks with me. I have had success this past week which is very encouraging. I'm down a total of 27 pounds now so I feel pretty good. Last Friday we walked to the mall and back which was over 2.2 km and more than an hour of walking. Unfortunately I have bad arches and injured my right foot. I bought insoles right afterwards but I'm still recovering. I'm still planning on my wii fit strength training this evening but I'll be very careful when doing so. Thanks for your support yet again.

Disappointment

I wish I could say something inspiring today, I really do. But the truth is, somehow I've put back on 3 pounds and I can't figure out how. Possibly it's just water weight but I don't know. I've been working harder and watching everything I eat with the exception of yesterday as it was mother's day and we went out to dinner. I was still very reasonable with what I ate aside from dinner. I'm disappointed and more than a little discouraged. That doesn't mean I'm giving up though. I just need to re-evaluate things yet again and see what I can change. Today as I sat in my despair I listened to my husband and decided to try his suggestion. We'll go for a walk every day in addition to my regular workout which will double my exercise time to 40 minutes. If I can sustain that for the week I hope I will see some benefit from it. I really wish things were going better though. I really want to lower my blood pressure and weight without weight loss surgery.