Happy New Year, Happy Valentine's Day, etc....

I know, radio silence.

I joined 2 weight loss challenges (diet bet-style) in January. My goal was to lose 4% of my body weight. I faltered around the first few weeks of January, but got my act together the very last week and started really researching macros again. On January 31, my weigh out POINT THREE POUNDS from my 4% goal. I can't explain how irritated I was at myself for letting that happen! BUT between Jan 25 and the 30, I dropped over 2lbs. JUST following my macro numbers TO A TEE.


I saw so much success in just those few days with macros ("IIFYM") that I have been following this religiously for the last several weeks. My weight continues to go down and - maybe more importantly - I don't feel restricted or "bad" or wrong if I eat something "off plan" - because there is NO OFF PLAN!

Whole30 is amazing - I think everyone should try it - but it's just not a way of life for me. If I had discovered a sensitivity or allergy to a food or food group, maybe it would be easier to tolerate. But I have a problem where if you tell me I can't have something, I want NOTHING ELSE but that one thing and when I do have it, I have ALL of it.

The other thing about IIFYM is that I think I'm finally giving my body enough calories of the right quality. I'm meeting a protein goal of 144g/day (my objective is to hit +/- 5g of my goal), my carb rate is 206g and my fat is 73g.

I actually quite enjoy playing "Macro Tetris" at night to see what will fit with my leftover macros. I need to get better about spreading them out throughout the day for sure - One day last week I had a 227g of Greek yogurt with 1 1/2 servings of almond flake cereal haha!  So my goal is to start averaging out my macros and hitting specific numbers at each meal.

I'll get putting my progress pictures up. I will say, January wasn't a total bust. I lost 7.5 lbs total and 10" over my body in general! Now that the baby is sleeping (WOOHOO) I have been excited to get to the gym more and work out! I am re-starting Jamie Eason's LiveFit training - day one was last week. However due to schedule issues, I will be stretching it out a LOT more than I did last time. I was generally on point with Phase 1, but I know as the workouts get longer, I will need to make adjustments to how many times a week I go. Plus - I am DYING to get out and run! We moved to a new area last June and there is an amazing people trail that I CANNOT wait to get on with the jogging stroller!

So the next few weeks, months will be balance - balancing my family with my health, balancing my macros, balancing my time.

Slow....

Slow progress. Slower results. More backsliding. 

I was on a good clip in November... hit my lowest weight since I had Miss M, but fell right back into bad habits and lost it. 

I printed out the first week of Jamie Eason's Post Pregnancy training tonight. It's all stuff I can do at home, while M naps or plays in her jumperoo. It's been hard to get to the gym regularly, trying to balance the schedules for both the big kids in school, plus sports. I have a hard time shutting down and going to bed early. I have a wicked sweet tooth. All of these are just excuses, I know. I keep waiting for that moment when we fall into a routine, but it just isn't happening.  There's always something "extra" going on that messes with our schedules, if even just holidays and special events. 

I've been doing a decent job on water (have really focused on getting 100+ oz a day) and trying to get good food in my system. I have a hard time in the 3-5pm time period. Goal is to keep chugging water at that time instead of stuffing my face. M is sleeping better now, so I feel like I'm coming OUT of the "survival mode" time and it feels like the right time to ramp up my focus and training.  But even if I can only make it to the gym 1-2 times a week, I am hoping that I can get my food choices (primarily the sweets!) under control. 

So... this is just a brain dump. It's been awhile since I posted here so maybe keeping accountable here will help too.    Tomorrow I plan to take my measurements, but I likely won't start the Jamie Eason plan until Wednesday as I have (yet another) project that will take up my "free time" tomorrow. 

I'm baaaaccckkkk *almost*

It's been a minute, hasn't it?!

40wks, 4days pregnant

While I haven't posted in quite awhile, I kept working out throughout my pregnancy. I think I went to my cardio class for the last time around 38 weeks. I felt amazing. I gained around 30lbs total (far cry from the 45-50 I gained with the other two!)

On July 20 (5 days late!!), Miss M was born. Perfection in a tiny bundle <3 Even though my OB had me convinced she was going to be a GIANT at 10+ lbs (based on A's weight and being my third baby, then the fact that she was so overdue!), she turned out to be a tiny peanut at only 7lb, 9oz.


Now here we are, six weeks later! I'm about to get my go ahead to start working out again (WOOHOO) and I'm in the midst of researching how to work out safely without jeopardizing my milk supply, which is obviously my first priority.

I am going to start easy - a few "runs" (not sure how this will go!) and some at home workouts. I want to start using the awesome resistance band set we have to build my strength. I am hoping to do these while M sleeps and A goes to school.

I plan to renew my gym membership this week, but will have to find some alternate times to go since I am hesitant to put Miss M in childcare at such a young age - especially with big kids just going back to school and alllllll the germs floating around in childcare environments right now!

I'm going to take my measurements tomorrow (sometime after I can find my tape measure!! Moving messed me ALL up!) but my starting weight is 186lbs.  Goal? No idea. To feel comfortable in my own skin. To fit into the majority of my clothing. To be a happy woman and the best mom I can be.

And for goodness sake, to PR my next half marathon ;-)   That race, however, is still TBD. :-) 

Day 5 and Done.

 Day 5

M1: Cherry pie Lara Bar

M2: 2 hot dogs, 1/2 avocado, pineapple

M3: BBQ cobb salad with no cheese or dressing. Confident that there was sugar in the bacon and the rub on the chicken. 

By M3, I had realized I was probably done with Whole30. I had barely eaten that day and forced myself to eat. I promised myself I would quit if I hit two conditions - skipping meals or the loss of 5lbs. 

Well, yesterday I hit the "no appetite, would skip meals" place. Then this morning, when I stepped on the scale, I had hit the 5lb loss. 5lbs in 5 days ORDINARILY would be amazing.  No appetite and no cravings ORDINARILY would be awesome. But right now in my pregnancy, those aren't things I am looking for.   I am done with Whole30-ing until after the baby comes. I am not worried about my weight gain so there's no reason to do it for that. I am hoping to keep my sugar cravings under control so that I don't get to the binging place that I was at before I started this. 

So, on to the next thing. I am continuing to move, not FAST but I'm moving!  I honestly can't WAIT to get back to hard runs, Jamie Eason's LiveFit training and a real Whole30 once things settle down around here! 

Whole7ish Days 3-4

Today. Was. Hard.

I started hitting the dreaded wall today. I was able to force myself to eat so I will go on another day with my Whole7ish. I don't know how much longer I will make it, but I am going to try my hardest to make it to at least 7 days!! I think I can, I think I can! 

Day 3

M1: Eggs, bacon, avocado.
M2: Spaghetti squash, meatballs, broccoli with Tessamae's balsamic.
M3: Salsa chicken on salad with avocado, sauteed potatoes. 

**Snacks: Apple pie Lara Bar & a microwaved apple with cinnamon and coconut oil. 

Day 4

M1: Leftover sauteed potatoes with bacon and 2 fried eggs. Fresh pineapple.
M2: Applegate hot dog, grapes, broccoli with Tessamae's.
M3: Apple cider vinegar pork chops, sauteed apples with cinnamon and coconut oil, curried cauliflower.

**Snacks: Paleo "cereal" (walnuts, pecans, dried bing cherries, raisins, unsweetened coconut shreds with about 1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk) & a banana. 

**When I did my first Whole30, I followed the "no snacking" rule very closely, but being pregnant, I have been using snacks to make sure I am getting enough calories to support growing a person :-) 

Whole7ish Days 1-2

So far, so good.  The wonderful thing about Whole30 is that it's kind of like riding a bike.  Even though it's been a year since I've completed a full 30 days, we've done 3 "refresher" rounds, so Whole30-minded eating has never been far from my mind.  This time is no different. I am back to my "typical" meals and I am ok with that! I don't mind having the same food day in and day out, so it works for me to be doing leftovers and extras.

Day 1: 

M1: 3 scrambled eggs, 3 slices of Wellshire paleo bacon, 1/2 avocado, power greens. 
M2: Trader Joe's grassfed burger (from the frozen section!) with mustard and pickles, carrots, TJ's green olives and purple grapes. 
M3: Baked chicken, boiled green beans, large sweet potato with cinnamon only.
Snacks (I wouldn't be snacking if I weren't pregnant!): Apple with almond butter, 2 bananas.
Workout: 1 hour, 13 minutes of cardio (treadmill walking and elliptical)

Day 2:

M1: 3 scrambled eggs, 3 slices of Wellshire paleo bacon, power greens. 

M2: TJ's grassfed burger, boiled green beans, sweet potato with cinnamon, olives. 

M3: Spaghetti Squash with Well Fed meatballs (marinara sauce from Aldi! Compliant!), broccoli/cauliflower mix. 

Snacks: Key lime pie Lara bar, banana, almonds.

Workout: 75 minutes of Yoga.

Trying to keep reminding myself that this is only 1-2 weeks. I am already sleeping better (and waking up without as much hassle, which is always my favorite part of a Whole30!). I've been having some hip pain in relation to my pregnancy and I am HOPING that if I can stick with Whole30 long enough, that will go away (fingers crossed!) 

Updates & What's Up Next

Well it's been awhile. Sorry about that! Things have been CRAZY around this house between trying to find a new house and getting ready for the baby (as much as possible knowing we are moving before she comes!)

Yes, if you caught that, it is a SHE!  I am 25 weeks this week. I can hardly believe it because time is moving so.fast!







I don't have any perfect way to remember, but if memory serves me, by this time in my pregnancy with my first two, I had already gained 25 lbs. So far this time, I have only gained approximately 15! I have tried to keep moving, although running just feels downright awful now. I can sprint (I should say "sprint" for me now means max of 5.5 on the treadmill!) for a few minutes, but then my hips start to feel all out of whack and I have to slow way back down.  I'm trying to keep lifting a little, DEFINITELY doing squats (they are supposed to be super beneficial for childbirth!)

Haha excuse the face. 

My food choices have been.... less than stellar. I find afternoons are the hardest and I have fallen back into a frenzied "eat all the things" place if I have any one little treat in that time. I am doing a "Whole7" with a few friends. That is usually enough time for me to reset my cravings, get my eating right and feel better (maybe my sleep will be better too!) Seven days should be enough of a reset but not enough for my body to get the the scary weight loss/stop eating place that I've gotten to the last few rounds I've attempted.

I stocked up today on veggies, almond butter, eggs and greens. Hoping to get to Whole Foods to get bacon (yay!) and some other protein sources.

So that's the update for now! Nothing amazing going on for sure.  I will try to update how this Whole7 goes, though., once we get started. :-)