Losing that extra baby weight (because I didn't have a 50lb baby...)

Recently, several people have commented on how good I looked and asked how I've been able to lose my baby weight so quickly. The compliments are nice because I have been pretty dedicated and it is great to know that my diligence has paid off. I had never been faced with having to lose a lot of weight before and I was pretty nervous about it. I approached my pregnancy with the "I can eat whatever I want, whenever I want" attitude. It was great when I was pregnant but when I didn't birth a 50lb baby I realized that I was going to have to lose some weight on my own. Scary!

I have actually worked pretty hard but I chalk my success up to several things:

1. Breastfeeding - did you know you burn 300-500 calories a day when you breastfeed? I had been told about all of the health benefits for the baby but I was sold when I learned this little fact. It was one of the primary reasons I was determined to breastfeed for at least 6 months.

2. Food - when you are breastfeeding you really are not supposed to cut calories because your baby needs milk full of fatty calories to grow big and strong. I held strongly to that rule the first 6 weeks and continued to eat whatever I wanted. However, I quickly learned that although the baby did need calories, I should try to make them healthy calories -- not french-fried calories. When K.P. was about 2-months-old I started gradually eating better but not necessarily less. Eating less was too hard because you are starving when you first start breastfeeding. You really do need the extra calories for energy -- otherwise you will be running ragged. At 2 months, I eased into a diet of sorts and did little things like limited myself to only 1 diet coke a day, started snacking on fruit instead of crackers or chips and limited myself to a certain number of calories or a range of calories a day. I also cut back on fast food. I don't think I had any fast food for about 1.5 months. Even now, I only get it occasionally (although I still really really really love it). Overall, it is not about dieting but about lifestyle choices, I made a conscious decision to change the way I eat. For example, Andrew just picked up Wendy's for lunch and although nothing sounded better, I sadly declined and ate a turkey sandwich and sugar free chocolate pudding snack. Note: not eating fast food can cause one to experience moments of depression -- especially when one's spouse chooses to eat it in front of her :).

3. Exercise - I should have put this at #2 because I started exercising before I started working on my diet. At about 5 weeks after K.P. was born I started walking. It was hard at first -- I would only walk for about 10-15 minutes around my neighborhood and call it a day. I then found a walking buddy in Jen (a friend who had a baby Charlie 1-month after K.P.). A buddy is the best because Jen and I would walk 4-6 miles a day. It was GREAT because we would talk the whole time and it never felt like exercising. Unfortunately I had to go back to work so we haven't been able to keep up our walks but it was ESSENTIAL to getting me started with my workouts. Since I've started working a workout is harder to fit in but I still try to walk 2-3 miles several times a week and I also try to fit in 3 or 4 days of pilates. I bought a great pilates video titled "Cardio Pilates" at Target and it has done wonders for my body. The walking helps with general cardio but the pilates video has really helped flatten my stomach (which I never in a million years thought would happen after having K.P.). I definitely recommend it to anyone trying to tone up their middle section or "powerhouse" (to those who have already done a pilates class).

4. Family Support - one of the best things about trying to exercise and eat better is that I have the support of Andrew. He and I are both trying to exercise and lost weight and we encourage each other -- it really helps to have that support system. It makes all of the difference in the world to have your spouse right there with you. It would be much more difficult if he were eating cheeseburgers every day while I ate a Lean Cuisine (however, there are moments where we torture (challenge?) each other -- see above statement about Wendys). We set goals for ourselves and have weekly weigh-ins and reward ourselves when we reach our goals. We are both competitive people so contests work really well for us :)

5. Goals - I think one of the most important things is having small goals -- goals that are not necessarily focused on weight. When I first started I would set a goal of how many work outs I wanted to do a week. I did not focus on how much I weighed or how much weight I wanted to lose -- I knew that would come with the workouts. I then set goals for food (e.g. 1 diet coke a day; no more kolaches for breakfast; only apples for a snack; a certain range of calories allowed for a day). I would try the goals for 1 week. Once I saw results I was hooked on the changes and would implement more for the next week...then the next. I think it was key to not focus on weight at the beginning, only the lifestyle changes I was trying to make.

6. Motivation - Anyone who has ever tried to lose weight knows that it is a mind thing. If your head is not in it, it just isn't going to happen. You have to be motivated. Over the last couple of years my motivation has definitely been lacking. However, this year is different for 2 reasons: 1) I had a baby and 2) I am turning 30! Both of these things coupled together gave me the motivation that I had been lacking in the past. I made a goal to lose the weight by the time I went to Vegas to celebrate my 30th birthday. I may be turning 30 but I'm going to do so fabulously :)

7. Good genes - Although I have worked hard and been disciplined, I must also give some credit to the fact that I have been blessed with good metabolism. I've always been slender and have been able to maintain my weight. I think that has to do with genetics so thank you Mom, Dad or whatever distant relative I may have inherited this trait from. I really appreciate it!