Turning The Corner of Weight Loss

Ground hog day is over.  I have finally lost a pound!  I know, I know, big whoop, but when you do not lose one single pound in over three months after gaining over 60 pounds during pregnancy, trust me, this is great news!  I was not one of those women who lost a lot of weight after giving birth.  I only lost 15 pounds and this includes the 10 pounds combined birth weights of my little boys. The first 2 1/2 months the weight literally fell off of me.  All I had to do was breathe and woo hoo I lost a little more.

Then the weight loss stopped — came to a screeching halt, would be a more accurate description.  Since I was cleared to work out by my doctor I started doing some light exercises and stretching.  I have never dieted before, mainly because I never needed to.  I was always a healthy eater, plenty of veggies, fruits, water and a disdain for processed foods and beverages.  I enjoyed working out and have been involved in some sort of sport or dance since I was 6 years old.  This was new territory for me.

Four months after giving birth, I looked like I was 5 months pregnant (with a single baby, not with twins at least- still I looked pregnant).  I did not experience post partum depression but I absolutely hated my new body.  I would cry when I looked in the mirror, which I avoided like the plague.  The lack of change in my body was especially frustrating because I was working out 5 days a week with exercise programs on t.v. and online exercise plans.  I started a portion control eating plan.  Since I was breastfeeding (still am) I could not diet using appetite suppressants and such. I was diligent in all of my efforts for 2 months which is no small feat with two little ones.  Every week sometimes sever times a week I would step on the scale and it was the same.  Then I gave up for a week and ate what I wanted to in whatever quantities I felt like, and guess what – nothing happened.  My weight was stuck hard at 162 pounds.

After two weeks of eating recklessly I did manage to see a change on the scale, obviously, in the wrong direction.  I gained two pounds which I lost right away when I resumed my portion control diet.

Message boards on the Bump listed tons of women who claim that after they lost weight, they a) were either back in their pre-pregnancy clothes within 2 weeks, b) had nurses and doctors alike exclaim how they had never seen someone snap back to their pre-pregnancy body while STILL IN THE HOSPITAL AFTER DELIVERY (For real, I kid you not) or c) had definitely lost all but 5 pounds of the baby weight within 4 months after birthing their little ones.

Four months after I gave birth all I had was consolation from my mom and my hubby.  Mommy said, “It takes 9 months to have a baby and it will take 9 months to get back.”  Hubby said, “Listen to your mother,” and, “You look beautiful.”  See why I love them so much!  At this point the weight did not bother me so much as the shape of my body did.  I hate, hate, HATE having a belly!!!!

Five months after giving birth I became convinced that I had some rare condition that caused my uterus to swell unnaturally.  I can laugh now, but I was dead serious then.  Hubby even cosigned me getting a tummy tuck if I wanted one.  To make matters even worse, I had to select a travel wardrobe for a trip that we are taking later this summer.  Everything that I ordered or tried on looked terrible or was not available in the larger size that I need.

Two weeks ago I got my first iPhone.  I also got the My Fitness Pal App (My Fitness Pal is free and has a website also) and downloaded Jillian Michael’s 30 day Shred to my phone.  My goal is to lose 1/2 pound a week.  I can’t do anything too drastic because I am still breastfeeding.  I take the boys on a 45 -60 minute walk at a brisk pace 2 – 3 times a week and I do at least 2 of Jillian Michael’s work outs a week.  I have finally lost weight.  My scale registered at 160.8 and I am so pleased!  Even more than the weight loss is the fact that I am losing inches in my waist!!!

My boys will be 6 months old next weekend.  I can’t wait to see how much I weigh then!  I have to return a dress that I got in the mail because it is too big!!!  One pound is just a start but it means that I am on my way!  A little hunger, a lot of sweat and tons of patience are steps in the right direction toward being the Hot Mom On The Block.

I hope that this helps new moms struggling to lose weight.  You are not alone.  There is hope.  You just have to find what works for you — this includes getting a wardrobe that will fit you right now.  I will post pics of my new self once I get to my goal weight!

First Road Trip With Twins

Went to Tampa recently with the boys for their first road trip.  I am still exhausted and we did not even stay overnight.  It was a great trip though.   It is always good to reconnect with friends and to have a change in scenery.  Road trips are the palate cleansers for your life.

I realized a few things while we were out.

Hubby and I were delusional to think that we could have kept our old car, a Subaru Impreza Hatchback, for two more years.  We have a Toyota Venza now which I love!  There is so much room to stretch my legs out, even in the back seat. I can comfortably sit between the boys’ car seats and play with them during a long ride, but after adding–

• 2 pack n plays
• 1 double stroller
• 1 play mat
• 1 activity center
• 1 Medela hospital grade breast pump
• 1 cooler
• 1 diaper bag
• 1 miscellaneous bag
• 2 babies
• 2 adults
• 2 Winnie The Pooh Security Blankets
• 2 Sophie the Giraffes

I am almost positive that our next vehicle will be an 18 wheeler.

The boys did really well on the 2 1/2 hour trip until we inevitably took a wrong turn when we were oh so close to our destination — we were 7 minutes away.  At the moment when my husband needed me to put on my copilot’s hat they started screaming their little heads off.  My big boy loves to roll around and kept attempting to do so while strapped in his car seat.  Contorted with his left cheek flush against the seat, chest straining to follow and legs flailing, I shared his frustration.  My little one just screamed because his brother was screaming.  He rejected my logic when I explained to him that he did not have to cry just because his brother was crying.

20 minutes later we pulled into the driveway.  30 minutes later we were able to relax after hugging old friends, unloading all the gear, setting up all the gear and getting the boys settled.  As soon as they were settled, I had to pump.  Not much relaxing goes into visiting friends when you have two babies but we had a blast  It was a great test run for the big trip that we will take later this year.  It was a great test run for the overnight trip that we are going to take in a few weeks.

Two things that we have to keep in mind on our next trip.  The boys, apparently, will not sleep anywhere except at home.  We followed our usual routine to no avail.  They kept trying to fall asleep around their usual sleepy sleep time but they could not relax enough to do it.  They would nod off in hubby’s or my arms and their little eyelids would fly open as soon as we put them down.

The second thing is to survey the room where I breastfeed my baby boy.  I don’t always feed him from me because I also give him my milk in a bottle.  Sometimes though it calms him down to spend this special time with mommy.  Since we were away and he was a bit anxious, I decided to borrow a quiet dim room to feed him.  He is at that age also where he is so busy.  Honestly, he is the busiest person that I have ever known.  It takes a bit to get him to focus on eating.  He started to eat and then he stopped.  He puffed out his little lip and his eyes started to well up with tears.  No sound had left his mouth so I tried to distract him.  I stood him up on my lap to sing his favorite song (The Twist). He stuck his lip out even more and started looking all around the room for an exit.  Then the wailing started.  This is very unusual for him so I got up to walk him around while holding him in an effort to calm him down.  When I turned around, I saw the two deer heads on the wall.  My poor baby was absolutely terrified.  Once we left the room he calmed down immediately so, long story short, avoid deer heads when traveling with babies.

They fell asleep as soon as they were strapped into their car seats and did not wake up until they were home.  Once back inside of familiar surroundings they laughed and cooed and rolled around with joy.

Good times!

BTW- Enjoy the pics that I have posted.  They are from Odessa, Florida.  Feel free to use them if you like.  Just list me as a photo credit.