Theory

Before I became pregnant, I thought I would be "that" woman that only gains a small amount of weight, would be able to work out the entire time, and would lose the weight quickly after delivery. Wow, was I wrong! My neighbor has a theory about women who lead us to believe this actually happens... these women are evil. They tell you they only gained 19 pounds, they were in labor for 5 minutes and they left the hospital in their size 2 jeans! I don't know about the rest of you, but that certainly wasn't the case for me. I gained a good amount of weight, was in labor for 18 hours, and still can't fit into my jeans!

Exercising and a proper diet are absolutely essential for getting back into shape after delivering your baby -- they are BOTH necessary, so don't think you can have one without the other! I was reading a book the other day that discouraged weight training because it "made women big" -- I stopped reading the book, and will not finish it because of the bad advice. Weight training is one of the best things you can do for not only yourself, but your baby too. Adding additional resistance to your training builds muscle that will ultimately increase your metabolism. Make sure you're using a challenging weight (at the end of 12-15 reps, if you feel like you could do more, add weight), do a fair amount of reps to reach fatigue, and you'll build "hungry" muscle that requires more calories to function.

Exercises for today:
Props used -- a resistance band with handles
Bicep curls - both feet on the band, curl lower arms up toward shoulders, slowly lower back down... repeat
Overhead presses - one foot on the band, press both hands up toward the ceiling, alternate when tired of using both at once.

Green Light

Great news... the doctor gave me the green light to exercise! I am so happy, but part of me is a little scared -- this means I have no more excuses to drop these extra pounds. I'm sure I'm not alone out there, right? It's easy to fall into that trap of blaming someone or something else! Nevertheless, I was determined to fit some sort of activity into my day today. It's incredibly difficult though -- I also had a million errands to get done and am exhausted from the six weeks of sleep deprivation! My theory is... something is ALWAYS better than nothing when it comes to exercising.

So my exercises for the day:
1. 3 sets of 20 "kiss the baby push ups" -- on your hands and knees with your feet up so they're parallel to the floor, and keeping your hips down (no butts in the air!) Place your precious baby on her back between your hands... lower your upper body down toward the baby and kiss her before you push your way back up!
2. 3 sets of "kiss the baby sit ups" -- on your back with your knees bent, heels on the floor, toes up, place your baby on your thighs facing you. Make sure she stays put by keeping your arms on either side of her (this will become part of the exercise). Curl your upper body up keeping your arms by baby's side - count to 4 up, and then slowly lower your upper body back down for another count of 4. Repeat until you get too tired or baby is too squirmy!
3. Get outside for a walk! I am lucky enough to have a beautiful dog who loves to go for walks, so she holds me accountable for my cardio and fresh air:)

Bottom line -- I need to stop making excuses and get moving! I have to remember that I'll be happy that I did (like today), even if it doesn't seem like enough to be worth it. It all adds up and in no time I'll be fitting into those jeans that are collecting dust in my closet!!

Getting Ready to Exercise!

It's been six weeks since my daughter was born, and it seems like it went by so quickly! I have my first check up tomorrow and am crossing my fingers that I get the okay from the doc to start exercising again! I have been doing my best to make sensible choices when it comes to eating, but like most, I am surrounded by temptations! I am looking forward to putting on some of my pre-Addison pants again, and I'm sure my husband will be happy when I retire the sweats I've been sporting for six weeks (since I'm too stubborn and cheap to buy a new wardrobe!).


My best advice for those of you looking for an easy diet tip -- WATER, and LOTS of it! Anyone that knows me knows how much of a water addict I am. Staying hydrated with good old fashioned water is one of the main reasons that I've been able to lose so much of the baby weight already without a lot of exercise (walks with the dog help too!). It truly makes a tremendous difference in your energy level and with your body's ability to burn calories. Drink up moms! I will check in again this week with some easy exercises you can do at home in a short amount of time (you know, when the baby is sleeping and we only have a small window to do loads of laundry, shower, and all the other things we do!).