Wrong Way!

My belly is going the wrong way! ;p

Current weight: 184lbs

EDD: July 18, 2012

So, I'm 50lbs lighter than when I started with Big Sister... Looking forward to a healthier, happier, easier pregnancy. My husband says we can't call it a "surprise" pregnancy when we know what causes it. But as close to a surprise as it could be! We had planned to start fertility treatments 6 months down the road, as we needed them the first time. This was the best unexpected thing to ever happen to us :) I definitely attribute the surprise easy conception to my improved health and weight loss, and, dare I say it, veganism?

So I don't know what I'm doing with this blog. Prenatal yoga-addicted tandem nursing vegan momma blog? We'll see.

Progress

When I started getting serious about getting healthy (July 8):

Me tonight (October 29):

I have taken a break from c25k due to a knee injury that I can't seem to heal from. I also quit power90 a pathetic 3 weeks in. Instead, though, I am still running 3 days a week without a plan and doing p90x instead of power90. We also went vegan. LOVING that so far. Woo! I had been feeling discouraged that I wasn't getting anywhere (I STILL weigh 189lbs!), but then I remembered it was a photo progress day and I feel a lot better seeing that I AM getting somewhere! :)

3 month progress pics

July 29

Aug 29

Sept 29

July 29

Aug 29

Sept 29

Power90

Day 1

Weight: 190

I started Power90 today, I'm pretty jazzed :) And as you can see, I finally moved a bit (more) on the scale. Finally.

I guess I need to do my check in photo as it's the 29th, I'm just sooooo tired. :p

The Difference a Week Can Make

So, after much deliberation as to the possible causes of me hanging on to extra weight, my husband and I decided that I would stop hormonal birth control. I researched and researched and got pretty inconsistent results regarding the effects of birth control on weight. I read anecdotes on both sides of the equation, read package inserts, even talked to someone who was in a birth control/weight related study. But, at the end of the day, my gut was what was telling me it was time to give it a try.

We had previously decided, after a 4 year long battle of infertility, that I would never be on hormone birth control again. However, his military schedule got turned on its head this year and our little plan of "let's see what happens" seemed reckless when we found out he was coming home from deployment months early to take nine month orders to California. Nine month orders. No birth control. Moving with a newborn - AGAIN. I couldn't do it and without a second thought, I took the prescription to the nearest pharmacy and started taking the pills.

Well, until that point I HAD been losing weight, effortlessly. I have had a huge year emotionally and I'm sure a lot of the weight loss was the unhealthy kind of weight loss. So it really wasn't that surprising that I started putting the weight back on when he got home. But after three months of pretty consistent progress in cleaning up our lifestyle (and at least thrice weekly work outs and changing our diet a LOT) I hadn't lost anything and I was discouraged. So we looked at everything and decided to try taking me off the hormones, just to see...

Well, all the Internet research aside, I feel confident I made the right choice. This was after 5 days without hormonal birth control. Without making any significant changes to my diet or exercise. And the scale has finally moved. 2lbs. In a week. The recommended amount to lose with healthy diet and exercise.

I'm not announcing some brand new breakthrough, recommending anyone do what I did, or anything like that. I'm just SO GLAD we figured out WHY **I**'ve been retaining water (or fat or whatever it was making the scale stay stuck at 193).

So I'm happy.

PS -- For the record, this is not a "trying to conceive" announcement.

Mama Called the Doctor, and the Doctor Said...

No more pre-diabetes jumping on the bed!

:)

I'm so happy! We're still a bit baffled as to why I'm still tired and not losing weight, but, my blood tests results were in the normal range for EVERYTHING. Thyroid, cholesterol, a bunch of other stuff I can't remember, and glucose! The glucose one is super exciting because I was pre-diabetic before I got pregnant (with really high sugars), then I had gestational diabetes. My results came back for the a1c and regular fasting test and I was holding my breath as he pulled the report out. 80! EIGHTY! Woohooo!!!!! I am so happy. In other words, even though I haven't lost any weight, I have reversed my pre-diabetes. This is so exciting!

We talked about my weight and he said that I only need to lose 10 more lbs and he doesn't want to see me lose any more than that. I was floored. I thought for sure I needed to lose another 40 or so. So, it just goes to show, quick Internet searches for your ideal weight are no substitute for your doctor's advice :p He said I look very healthy already, so yay!

What an encouraging appointment!

It was followed by a terrible run :p But I had a great run last night! 2.30 mi in 3/5/3/5 min run intervals with 90 sec and 2.5 min walks in between. (w4d3 for any c25k'ers). This coming Friday is my first 20 min run without walk breaks. Eeeee!

Oh and I'm at a little over 15 miles for my 30 in 30 goal, so I'm more than halfway a little early!

c25k w4d1

So tomorrow is my week 4 day 1 and I'm totally intimidated. I better wear a CUTE running outfit so that after I kick this workout's ass I can take an awesome picture of myself smiling :D

And just remember, my friends:

3 Posts in 1 Day.... Why not?

An action shot :D Don't let the apparent puniness of my "cute little yellow" kettle bell fool you. ;)

I rocked my run today. Best run to date (1.45 mi; Duration 0:25:08; Calories Burned 232; Average Pace 17:21 / mi; Average Speed 3.46 mph). Again, don't mock the puniness. I'm getting there. Followed it with 30 min of kettle bells while Bee slept in her stroller. Good day.

OK, Just Kidding

At the prompting of a dear friend, I decided to look at how I LOOK not just the scale, so I did take pics. July 29 on left, Aug 31 on right.

1 month/2 months

So I've been running 3 times/week for a month now and I walked 3 times/week for a month before that.

I'm up to the mid-190s. Insane.

I HAVE lost 1.5 inches on my thighs though. I'll take the small accomplishments.

I am seeing a doctor about my weight GAIN despite increased activity and eating healthier. He ordered a panel of 8 different tests and I'll get the results in a few more days. Until then, I'm just going to keep running I guess.

I'm NOT doing a progress picture at the end of this month as I gained so much :/ Well, I'll take one but I'm not posting.

It's disheartening. I REALLY hope the doctor finds something wrong, because, uh, I am doing things right :*( I have no energy, barely enough energy to even finish 30-40 minute work outs..... blah.

Running and Kettlebells

:) I've been doing c25k for a while now, but somehow find myself only on week 2? I did w1d1 so many times because I didn't want to move forward until I could do all the intervals. Turns out pushing a 50lb stroller (kid included ;) ) up and down hills is WAY different from running stroller-free in the park, who knew? So now that I've ditched the stroller I am doing much, much better and feeling much stronger and like I'm moving in a positive direction and gaining momentum. I can even run and chat at the same time -- I never would have believed that was possible for me! I'm excited to up my intervals some more, but I am also pretty determined to follow the program, especially because I have had problems with my knees.

My weight is fluctuating but I think it's about to start dropping again soon. I gained a lot and now I have to lose it. But once it's gone it's gone, of that I am totally determined. My amazing and inspirational husband has lost 20lbs in 2 months! Isn't that awesome? He is working out 2 hours a day and eating a very healthy and reduced calorie diet. He is so awesome to have around for inspiration and support!

In the morning, we start working out with kettlebells together. I'm super excited. Then tomorrow evening it's our run.

I keep finding myself in excited anticipation of working out... That's a change!

July Progress

I feel like we're still recovering from our stressful move. Sigh. I wish I were further along on this journey, but this is where I am today. My July progress:

Slightly Discouraged

What a bummer. We finally found our Wii Fit balance board (aka the only scale we have) and weighed ourselves this morning. Ugh. We KNEW our cross-country move and an incredibly stressful couple of months had affected our diet and exercise negatively. But what a bummer to step on the scale and see I've gained 5lbs! :(

I do know that I probably actually gained more than that and I've since lost it, but, goodness, what a discouraging setback. Especially considering the dietary and activity changes we've made. Oh well.

I will just keep focusing on that little quote I found on Pinterest. Because I am stronger. I can walk and run further. I have more energy. I am making better choices.

This is Me

Right now. Ish.

Well, it was me a couple of weeks ago. But give or take a couple of pounds and this is pretty much what I look like.

I am actually relatively happy with how I look. I love my curves. I wear them proudly. My breasts nourish my (almost 25 month old) daughter, my hips carry her weight (for in my arms is her favorite place). And, besides, I've lost ~60 lbs already. So I have a lot to be proud of.

I wish I had a true "BEFORE" picture to show you guys. But, when you are obese and miserable with your life, you don't let people take pictures of you (well, I didn't anyway). So I don't have anything to show. When I get my computer back in a few days, I'll see what I can come up with. My heaviest weight was the day I started fertility treatments. I weighed 234lbs. Today I sit somewhere in the mid- 170s. (I'm in the middle of moving and I don't have a scale). Interestingly, though not surprisingly if you subscribe to the theory that pregnant bodies expel toxins by morning sickness (I do subscribe to that theory for my particular case), I lost weight while I was pregnant and have stayed under 216lbs ever since the first few weeks of very frequent vomiting.

I'm not entirely sure where this blog will go. In a few days, I'm starting a vegan detox. I plan to share my experiences with that. I hope to also go back in time and share a few things about my journey... Like how I went from below 120lbs in high school to over 230 in a VERY short amount of time, and how I had to throw out a superpower to start losing weight (you think I'm kidding...)... But we'll see.

Today I walked a mile. Just one. Not a lot, but, you know what? It was a mile more than the days I used to spend sitting on the couch all day long. ;)

I guess I'll probably talk about that stuff too.

:)