Originally written 2/3/12
So, I really debated writing about this and putting it out there for all to see, but I figured it would only make me more accountable, so here it goes...
For the first time in my life, I am "overweight". Since having the babies, I have struggled to get back to my pre-pregnancy/pre-fertility meds weight of about 130 (which even then I wished I were 10 pounds lighter). When I was pregnant, I was pretty much "all baby", or in my case “babies” as they say, and ironically, my struggle was to gain the amount of weight suggested for twin pregnancies. Once I was home from the hospital, I weighed myself and was only 8 pounds more than pre-pregnancy, so I excitedly thought that with breastfeeding, this whole baby weight thing would be a cinch... hmm not so much. I was stuck at that 8 pounds for a while (148 pounds to be exact). Then, about 6-8 months go by and that 8 pounds turned into 10 :( Granted I really wasn't doing ANYTHING to lose the weight (as I was breastfeeding and didn't want to disrupt what little breastmilk I was able to produce). So here I am, almost 15 months later and I am sitting at a depressing 149 pounds. I should also mention that several months ago, I found out I had post-pregnancy hypothyroidism (apparently it's somewhat common, but it usually goes away, but in true Candice fashion, that was not the case for me - awesome). This helped explain A LOT! It explained why I had slowly been gaining weight, why I wasn't producing enough breastmilk, why I was tired all the time (aside from the whole 2 babies thing), etc. So, I have been taking thyroid meds now since August (I think?) and as of my last labs (12/5) - I'm still not quite in the normal range (shocking, I know!), but I almost am! Normal range is between .35 and 5.4 and my most recent level was almost a 7. My doctor upped my thyroid meds and I am about to embark on my personal weight loss journey. I'm scared and a little overwhelmed, not knowing what to expect... I am COMPLETELY out of shape, and let's face it, I love food, especially all the bad stuff that one should stay away from when trying to lose weight (ie: bread, pasta, cookies, pizza, etc). But, like I said before, I've never had to count calories, diet, or watch what I eat - so I'm freaking out a little and worried that this is really going to suck!
My first step in this journey was getting signed up at a gym. Well, honestly I've always been signed up at a gym; I guess I should rephrase this by saying "start actually GOING to the gym". I canceled my membership at the regular gym (the one I have been donating money to for some time now), and enrolled at a place down the street called Private Workout. It's a 30 min circuit training workout that uses weights. I have not been very consistent about going, but starting Monday (I know, I know everyone always says starting Monday, but I really mean it!) I will start going as many days a week as I can (shooting for 5-6 days). It's pretty neat actually, they have this incentive program where you don't have to pay an enrollment fee, but rather you sign a goal contract where you list what your goal BMI/weight is, and they give you 150 workouts to reach your goal (no timeframe is specified), and if you give up, then you have to pay the fee, if you reach your goals in 150 workouts, then you get a lifetime free membership - pretty sweet deal. I am 20 workouts in, but I'm pretty sure you only see results if you go consistently, instead of the 0, 1, 2, or sometimes 3 times a week I had been going. Pretty sure I've already said this, but let me reiterate how incredibly out of shape I am! I'm pretty positive that if I had to run for my life, that I would most certainly die!
Step two of my master plan, is to start a running/jogging routine (hopefully with the babies in the mornings) and try to build up to 3 miles so that I can run in my first 5K - I totally suck at running, so we'll see how this goes. I guess everyone has to start somewhere, right? I am also going to start doing some yoga 2-3 times a week. This I plan to do *at home* for a couple of reasons 1) My physical therapist told me I had to (not the at home part, but the yoga part 2) I am sooooo not flexible and would rather not embarrass myself in public 3) there apparently aren't any yoga studios around me expect for the Bikram yoga place, which I wish I could do, but since I tend to pass out in the heat, especially when working out (stupid vasovagal syncope), I should probably stay away from doing yoga in 95 degree heat 4) it's freakin expensive yo! Soooo, I bought some highly recommended dvds from amazon and plan to start that up as soon as they arrive. Did I mention that it's also a good excuse to wear my yoga pants all day?! Anywhoo... it's probably overkill, but I also REALLY want to do the 30 day shred. I attempted this about 6 months ago (before finding out about the thyroid issue) and can I just tell you, I couldn't even get through the first 10 minutes of the 30 minute workout - LAME! So, I may wait a few weeks to start this one, so I don't completely set myself up to fail!
Now that I think about it, I guess step 1 and 2 really should be combined, but whatever.
Step 3 (or 2?): Jason and I have officially registered for Weight Watchers online. I just did this a few hours ago, but in my brief browsing of their website, I was a little bummed that they didn't have a meal planning feature, at least not that I found, as that seems to be my biggest battle everyday... the elusive "what are we going to have for dinner" conundrum - I hate it! I'll admit it, I'm a little picky, and I'm not the biggest fan of veggies, so this may be the hardest transition. I will gladly take and try anyone's favorite "healthy" meals, as most things in my rotation are probably not weight watcher friendly (ahem, lasagna, Chinese food, pasta, etc). I guess one thing that is working in my favor is that I am not much of a grazer/snacker, maybe b/c I was a teacher for so long and you don't really have that luxury, but I am def more in the 3 squares a day camp, of course I do indulge occasionally in the good 'ol 2:30 snack attack. I started looking through the recipe index on the WW website and immediately became overwhelmed, unfamiliar with most of the stuff I was reading and a sense of regret poured over me, and I went and crawled into bed feeling defeated already - and I haven't even started. So, yeah - this should be fun. I'm trying to keep a good attitude about it, and tell myself that I don't have to been all hard core weight watcher person, and that as long as I eat healthier (more veggies), practice portion control, and try to stay under 1200-1300 calories a day, I should be ok - everything in moderation, right?!
So yeah... there it is. Here are some of my goals (I need to make some short term goals, but here's what I hope to get out of all of this):
-Get back to 120-125 lbs (need to lose 25-30 lbs)
-Get back to a size 4 (currently an 8)
-Run a 5K (and eventually a half marathon)
-Be a model of healthy eating and fitness for my kids (which currently my kids eat waaaayyy better than me, but I know at some point they will catch on that mommy doesn't eat like they do)
-Just feel better
-Look good naked again and in a bathing suit (yeah I said it)
Sooo... hopefully between the health/weight/fitness transformation and the debt elimination transformation, I am really excited to see what the next couple of months has in store for us. Please pray that I am able to stay the course and follow through. Here goes somethin'!
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