Easy? NOPE
Necessary? Hell Yes.
I would loose my freaking mind if I did not workout. First off, I would never be alone EVER. I am always with children. I get the kiddos ready in the morning. During the school year the kids and my husband drive me to work (we have one car). I teach a room full of 8th graders all day and then they pick me up. We proceed to make dinner, hang out, play outside, take tubs and do the VERY long bed time routine that comes with little ones.
I usually have an hour to talk with the husband, clean up, get ready for the next day and then I need to be in bed in order to function.
Now that it is summer the only difference is that instead of heading to work during the day, I am the one taking the kids to appointments, activities, the beach, playground, etc.
Now that we have our sweet little girl I have to add nursing (basically around the clock at this point), pumping just to be able to tolerate working out and adjusting my plan to her still ever changing sleep schedule.
I NEED a break. 1 hour to myself in a day full of giving smaller human beings constant attention. Without it I get depressed. I slow down. I don't get as much accomplished. My marriage isn't as strong. My kids do not get me at my best. And of course I don't feel as healthy.
I will wake up whenever I need to in order to make this happen, even on very little sleep, even when the kids don't want to let me go. It's worth it.
It almost has started to piss me off when people who have no children bitch about not having time to get to the gym. I shouldn't hate on them because I was guilty of the same thing at some points in my life. However, I really just want to scream..JUST FRIGGEN GO THEN!
So we make it work. One of us gets up early (during the school year I go first, at 4:30am, but now I go second) and works out for an hour or so and then comes home to relieve the other.
At this point in my life I cannot be a fitness super star. I could not train for a marathon even if I wanted to, because I get ONE precious hour in my day. It could have been different when I only had one (jogging stroller and what not) but as a working mom with a four, two and one month old, getting to the gym for an hour is what I am working with and for now it is enough.
I find it hysterical that some people I work with marvel at the fact that I work out and stay in shape. They act like I am ridiculous or super human for getting to the gym at this point in my life. But what they don't seem to understand is that I LIKE working out, I live for it and it is a break in my day.
I made the mistake of getting lazy and giving up something important to me once before, and I will not make that mistake again.
And it is hard. We have to schedule out what we are doing. I cannot take my time at the gym and sometimes a sick kid or a sleepless night makes me miss a day....but we do it because we need it, to be a happy and healthy family.
Sometimes I even smile about all the difficulties that come with staying fit and having three small children
Want an example? This week I was all excited to write up a tabata workout for my husband and I to do after the kiddos went to bed. I had it all written out and somehow it got on to the floor where my two year old (who is currently potty training) somehow thought it would be an excellent idea to pull down her princess panties and take a pee all over my carefully planned workout. My workout literally was pissed on. Guess she isn't into tabata. **Sigh** That's life.
Showing posts with label Fitness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fitness. Show all posts
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Spring-air, playground workouts and new life on the "farm"
There is nothing like good weather to brighten your spirits. As I mentioned before, I am starting my spring break and enjoying a week off with the kiddos. Today was a beautiful day. We spent some time at the beach (even though it was cold at the shore) because my husband was out for a run and needed us to drive him some water and food on his route. So the kids and I did some digging, seashell hunting and of course Liam HAS to jump off the sea wall 100 times.
Next stop was to pick up daddy and go visit my Mother-in law at the rehab center where she is working hard to get better from a bad surgery. The kids love Nana and we had a good visit.
Then we convinced daddy to head to the playground. It was about 15 degrees warmer inland, which was fabulous
Liam wanted to go to the playground to show his daddy how he can go ALL the way across the monkey bars without help. I tell you my little guy is pretty darn strong for someone who just turned 4. He is going to be quite the athlete.
I love that we have so many playgrounds here. This playground is my favorite. The last few times I went I did some mini-workouts as the kids played. Today was no exception. We all got our fitness on as we played.
Pregnancy Playground Workout
Here are some examples of what I did:
As I pushed the kids on the swing I did very love squats as I pushed out. I bet I did around 60-80 total.
I did one leg step ups on various size steps..somewhere around 50 on each leg.
I did side scissor step ups on the piping around the border of the playground 3 sets of 12 on each leg.
I went to a steep hill and did lunges up and down that hill 5 times.
There was also a set of stairs that I climbed a few times, two steps at a time.
Then a did alternating sets of double knee lifts (great for working the birthing muscles)
and twist planks, modified from Maria's amazing post found here: http://alifetobraggabout.blogspot.com/2012/04/friday-5-five-exercises-you-dont.html
I enjoyed my mini-playground workout. This playground also has a small gravel track, so it is a great place to come with all the kiddos and set up a routine when the baby is here. I love working out with the family and it is amazing to see the kiddos get some great exercise as they watch their parents do the same. Being a role model for my kids to be active and healthy is my main drive for staying fit.
And just when I thought our day couldn't get any more exciting, I remembered it was time to pick up the baby chicks we ordered. We had chickens for the last two years, but sadly lost the last of our small flock to coyotes a few months ago. So we decided to expand our chicken operation here on our wanna-be farm and now have 30, week old chicks living in our garage. So this fall I will be posting some serious egg recipes, as they are likely to begin laying around the end of October.
So we will have a lot of new life around these parts. I love the spring and the changes it brings. Our little family plans to take it all in stride and do a lot of planting, growing, working out and raising little things this spring and summer. There is nothing like fresh air and nice weather,,,it seems to revive the spirit.
Next stop was to pick up daddy and go visit my Mother-in law at the rehab center where she is working hard to get better from a bad surgery. The kids love Nana and we had a good visit.
Then we convinced daddy to head to the playground. It was about 15 degrees warmer inland, which was fabulous
Liam wanted to go to the playground to show his daddy how he can go ALL the way across the monkey bars without help. I tell you my little guy is pretty darn strong for someone who just turned 4. He is going to be quite the athlete.
I love that we have so many playgrounds here. This playground is my favorite. The last few times I went I did some mini-workouts as the kids played. Today was no exception. We all got our fitness on as we played.
Pregnancy Playground Workout
Here are some examples of what I did:
As I pushed the kids on the swing I did very love squats as I pushed out. I bet I did around 60-80 total.
I did one leg step ups on various size steps..somewhere around 50 on each leg.
I did side scissor step ups on the piping around the border of the playground 3 sets of 12 on each leg.
I went to a steep hill and did lunges up and down that hill 5 times.
There was also a set of stairs that I climbed a few times, two steps at a time.
Then a did alternating sets of double knee lifts (great for working the birthing muscles)
and twist planks, modified from Maria's amazing post found here: http://alifetobraggabout.blogspot.com/2012/04/friday-5-five-exercises-you-dont.html
I enjoyed my mini-playground workout. This playground also has a small gravel track, so it is a great place to come with all the kiddos and set up a routine when the baby is here. I love working out with the family and it is amazing to see the kiddos get some great exercise as they watch their parents do the same. Being a role model for my kids to be active and healthy is my main drive for staying fit.
And just when I thought our day couldn't get any more exciting, I remembered it was time to pick up the baby chicks we ordered. We had chickens for the last two years, but sadly lost the last of our small flock to coyotes a few months ago. So we decided to expand our chicken operation here on our wanna-be farm and now have 30, week old chicks living in our garage. So this fall I will be posting some serious egg recipes, as they are likely to begin laying around the end of October.
So we will have a lot of new life around these parts. I love the spring and the changes it brings. Our little family plans to take it all in stride and do a lot of planting, growing, working out and raising little things this spring and summer. There is nothing like fresh air and nice weather,,,it seems to revive the spirit.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Real Men Rock Prenatal Workouts
As I mentioned before, my body is rebelling against pregnancy right now and I have had to rethink my workouts.
The last few days this consisted of walking, stretching and dusting off the ole' prenatal workout DVDs.
I did a lot of these when pregnant with Charlotte, and while they are not quite enough to stay in the kind of shape I'd like to be in....they fit my better than nothing mantra.
My favorite one is Summer Sanders Prenatal Workout
It is a decent toning, stretching and light cardio workout that gets your heart rate up a bit and has you use resistance bands.
You can select the trimester you are in and the workout length (60 or 30 minutes). I personally have never bothered with the 3rd trimester workout, it's a bit to easy. But the 2nd tri is a good little workout.
But the BEST part of all of this is that my cooperative, loving husband as agreed to do it with me. Only a real man can suck up his pride and do pregnancy workouts with their wife. This is one of many reasons I love this man. It is always great to have a partner in exercise and keeps me motivated.
I would love to post a photo of this, but the man does have his pride..so I will not be that mean. I actually think he was impressed by how hard he had to work.
So I am trying to figure out this new fitness routine and will be back to the gym tomorrow with a new routine..here's to hoping my hips don't fall off.
The last few days this consisted of walking, stretching and dusting off the ole' prenatal workout DVDs.
I did a lot of these when pregnant with Charlotte, and while they are not quite enough to stay in the kind of shape I'd like to be in....they fit my better than nothing mantra.
My favorite one is Summer Sanders Prenatal Workout
You can select the trimester you are in and the workout length (60 or 30 minutes). I personally have never bothered with the 3rd trimester workout, it's a bit to easy. But the 2nd tri is a good little workout.
But the BEST part of all of this is that my cooperative, loving husband as agreed to do it with me. Only a real man can suck up his pride and do pregnancy workouts with their wife. This is one of many reasons I love this man. It is always great to have a partner in exercise and keeps me motivated.
I would love to post a photo of this, but the man does have his pride..so I will not be that mean. I actually think he was impressed by how hard he had to work.
So I am trying to figure out this new fitness routine and will be back to the gym tomorrow with a new routine..here's to hoping my hips don't fall off.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Wobbly vacation legs
I haven't posted in a while. I have been enjoying the gloriousness of vacation week and we were on a trip to here (Wildflower Inn in Vermont)
It was a good time, mostly because the kiddos got a lot of love from their meme and pepe and we ate some excellent food.
I needed a little R&R after a stressful week of pregnancy tests. First off I failed the one hour glucose test and had to do the dreaded 3 hour the day we left. I also had an ultrasound o be sure I didn't have placenta previa. Before the tests I was getting down on myself. It annoyed me that I am working so hard to be healthy, yet still having to do all this stuff. However, I passed all the tests and everything is fine.
My other issue is that my SPD is HORRIBLE right now. If you don't know what this is, here ya go:
Symphysis pubic dysfunction, or SPD, is one of those weird pregnancy conditions that sounds bizarre and well, kind of is. It means the ligaments that normally keep your pelvic bone aligned during pregnancy become too relaxed and stretchy. This, in turn, can make the pelvic joint — aka the symphysis pubis — unstable, causing some pretty strange sensations and sometimes pain.
While your legs won't actually fall off (promise), it may seem like they're going in opposite directions from each other (and the rest of your body). Walking, standing, or rolling over in bed can really hurt as one side of the joint shifts more than the other, throwing everything off-kilter. In very rare cases, the joint may gape apart noticeably, a condition called diastasis symphysis pubis, which can cause serious pain in your pelvis, groin, hips, and buttocks (truly, a pain in the rear!).
The more babies you have, the worse it can get. I had it with Charlotte and it is 1000x's worse this time. So what does this mean. For me it means walking has been extremely painful the last week, sitting is worse, and sleep is impossible. It also meant that the 5 hour car ride to Vermont was hell on earth and the bad hotel bed was even worse. So I am having to rethink my exercise plan. I had to take a few days off from the gym, per doctors orders.
Basically the main parts of my fitness routine are making it worse. Anything where my legs are not both stable and on the ground together or where there is weight on one side more than the other, is making it worse (Think step ups, lunges, split squats, bosu ball leg work, high intensity arc trainer and elliptical work and anything on the core board). Honestly I am not sure what to do. I am going to start on Monday and try to lower my resistance on the cardio machines and do some of the circuit machines and any weight work that doesn't require my legs to move much. This is tough because I base everything I do on multiple body parts moving at once and I am having to change all of that. I am going with the mantra, something is better than nothing.
On a positive note, I did receive my foodie penpal box and am looking forward to posting about all the tasty treats that I got!!!!!
It was a good time, mostly because the kiddos got a lot of love from their meme and pepe and we ate some excellent food.
I needed a little R&R after a stressful week of pregnancy tests. First off I failed the one hour glucose test and had to do the dreaded 3 hour the day we left. I also had an ultrasound o be sure I didn't have placenta previa. Before the tests I was getting down on myself. It annoyed me that I am working so hard to be healthy, yet still having to do all this stuff. However, I passed all the tests and everything is fine.
My other issue is that my SPD is HORRIBLE right now. If you don't know what this is, here ya go:
Symphysis pubic dysfunction, or SPD, is one of those weird pregnancy conditions that sounds bizarre and well, kind of is. It means the ligaments that normally keep your pelvic bone aligned during pregnancy become too relaxed and stretchy. This, in turn, can make the pelvic joint — aka the symphysis pubis — unstable, causing some pretty strange sensations and sometimes pain.
While your legs won't actually fall off (promise), it may seem like they're going in opposite directions from each other (and the rest of your body). Walking, standing, or rolling over in bed can really hurt as one side of the joint shifts more than the other, throwing everything off-kilter. In very rare cases, the joint may gape apart noticeably, a condition called diastasis symphysis pubis, which can cause serious pain in your pelvis, groin, hips, and buttocks (truly, a pain in the rear!).
The more babies you have, the worse it can get. I had it with Charlotte and it is 1000x's worse this time. So what does this mean. For me it means walking has been extremely painful the last week, sitting is worse, and sleep is impossible. It also meant that the 5 hour car ride to Vermont was hell on earth and the bad hotel bed was even worse. So I am having to rethink my exercise plan. I had to take a few days off from the gym, per doctors orders.
Basically the main parts of my fitness routine are making it worse. Anything where my legs are not both stable and on the ground together or where there is weight on one side more than the other, is making it worse (Think step ups, lunges, split squats, bosu ball leg work, high intensity arc trainer and elliptical work and anything on the core board). Honestly I am not sure what to do. I am going to start on Monday and try to lower my resistance on the cardio machines and do some of the circuit machines and any weight work that doesn't require my legs to move much. This is tough because I base everything I do on multiple body parts moving at once and I am having to change all of that. I am going with the mantra, something is better than nothing.
On a positive note, I did receive my foodie penpal box and am looking forward to posting about all the tasty treats that I got!!!!!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Pregnant chicks lift weights too
Pregnancy workout of the day....
15 minute arch trainer workout to get this big belly moving
3xs 10 squats on the squat bar with 20 lbs each side.
Alternating sets of
Shoulder press 3 xs 12 with 12 lb weights
Lat pull downs 3xs 10 with 50 lbs
Alternating sets of
Weighted step ups, with 2 15 lb weights
Weighted lunges
Alternating sets of
Planks with legs on stability ball
Oblique twists with medicine ball twist, 3 xs 15
Alternating sets of
Cable machine wood chop, 3 sets of 12 on each side with 20 lbs
Squats with 15 lb weight on reebok core board, 3xs 12
Followed by lots of stretching. I have to take tomorrow off because I am hurting...but am still happy to do some good lifting. I hope this strength pays off when I start my postpregnancy journey.
15 minute arch trainer workout to get this big belly moving
3xs 10 squats on the squat bar with 20 lbs each side.
Alternating sets of
Shoulder press 3 xs 12 with 12 lb weights
Lat pull downs 3xs 10 with 50 lbs
Alternating sets of
Weighted step ups, with 2 15 lb weights
Weighted lunges
Alternating sets of
Planks with legs on stability ball
Oblique twists with medicine ball twist, 3 xs 15
Alternating sets of
Cable machine wood chop, 3 sets of 12 on each side with 20 lbs
Squats with 15 lb weight on reebok core board, 3xs 12
Followed by lots of stretching. I have to take tomorrow off because I am hurting...but am still happy to do some good lifting. I hope this strength pays off when I start my postpregnancy journey.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Baby names, healthy choices, pigtails and workouts
One of the biggest lifestyle changes I made in the past year is that I have learned that most of the time the healthy, more wholesome and less processed version of any food tastes so much better.
Take my Friday night homemade pizza ritual.
My pizza includes a full bag of spinach, a full container of fresh mushrooms, 1 whole fresh tomato (instead of sauce with added sugar), fresh garlic and olives....YUM!
Anyhow, I am really hoping to pass on these healthy eating habits to these cuties.....
They are always asking me to buy them prepackaged, sugary, processed crap (the damn boxes and commercials are sooo appealing to the 3 year old eye) and it can be difficult to say no. I admit, they have eaten more gold fish crackers than I would like and they have had plenty of other treats in the same category....but I am trying to influence their choices even more these days.
I will let you know how that goes. At least they like my pizza.
Speaking of my babies, I am loving that Charlotte can have her hair in pigtails now. What is it about baby girls and pigtails that is just so stinking cute? Love it!
I am looking forward to seeing what this next little girl will look like. My sister and I look nothing alike and I find it strange that two siblings can end up being so very different.
The great news is that we finally named baby girl. I didn't know if I wanted to share it with everybody but now that I feel 100 percent sure, I don't care who knows.
Our newest little lady will be
Vivienne Rose
I have loved this name for a while. I adore the French spelling and pronunciation which honors my French heritage and Rose was my great grandmother's name. But best of all it is not in the top 100, which is super important to me. The kiddos are already calling her "Vivi" so I am pretty sure it has stuck.
Pregnant life is still going okay. I am getting a lot bigger and have had to modify some of the workouts, but I still made it four days last week. I am doing 2 days of lifting and 2 days of cardio/ core with lots of stretching.
I still spend a lot of time on squats, lunges and deadlifts because I know these keep my lower half strong for carrying around this big belly.
I love the looks I get at the gym; some sympathetic, some concerned some just friendly. I just keep plugging away. I also wear these tanks sometimes:
I don't exactly look like this lady:
Monday, January 2, 2012
A health and fitness post to kick off the New Year
I started this blog a little over a year ago. At that time it had a heavy focus on my journey through post pregnancy weight loss, healthy eating and lifting weights/ fitness. Then by the summer I had reached my goal. We were eating clean. I was exercising and lifting heavy and I was down to my lowest weight since my very early 20's.
In August I stopped nursing my daughter, put back on about 5lbs, which was probably a more realistic weight for my body and kept up my routine for another month. In September we were shocked to find out I was pregnant. We were sort of trying, but I hadn't even got my period back from nursing.
Fast forward a few weeks and enter morning sickness...or better yet, ALL DAY sickness. It was bad, really bad. I had constant migraines and was literally on the verge of puking ALL day. I stopped eating my usual healthy, veggie rich diet and ate whatever I could keep down. For a few days that was plain noodles. It was tough because I felt horrible and knew I was taking steps backwards in all I had accomplished.
As I entered the 2nd trimester things went back to almost normal. I haven't been eating AS healthy but I am at least getting more variety. I have been pretty exhausted and that leads to less cooking, but I am hoping that might change.
The one bright spot in the early pregnancy woes is that I was pretty good about getting to the gym. I believe I had one really bad week where I only made it once, but otherwise I have gone at least 3 days a week. Sure, it isn't as good as the 5 I was going before, but I am okay with that at this point. Now that I am feeling much better I have been going 4 days. It helps me keep a balance, 3 mornings of "sleeping in" (which means 6;6:30) and 4 morning of early wake-ups and fitness.
So that is where I am at right now. I am just ending a nice, long vacation and I feel well-rested. My husband is back to wanting to eat as clean as possible and so I am hoping with his encouragement we can do a bit better in our diet through this second half of pregnancy.
I have tried to keep my workouts to at least two days of strength training, so what does that look like for me? Here's what I did this morning:
-20 minutes, high intensity intervals on the elliptical (I find I need a longer warm-up to get this preggo body going)
-3x's 10 of romanian deadlifts
Alternating sets of
One leg, leg presses on press machine (3x's 12) 40 lbs
Lat pull downs (3x's 10) 50 lbs
Alternating sets of
Free weight shoulder press (3x's 10)
Squats on reebok core bored w/ 20 lb kettlebell raises (3x's 12)
Alternating sets of
Kettle bell oblique sidebends (15 lbs in each hand x's 3 sets)
Various ab work with 10 lb medicine ball (3x's 15)
End with stretching with foam roller (hurts go good)
As you can see, it is nothing too crazy, but hopefully will keep me strong enough that I will not have to start at square one after delivering this little girl.
In August I stopped nursing my daughter, put back on about 5lbs, which was probably a more realistic weight for my body and kept up my routine for another month. In September we were shocked to find out I was pregnant. We were sort of trying, but I hadn't even got my period back from nursing.
Fast forward a few weeks and enter morning sickness...or better yet, ALL DAY sickness. It was bad, really bad. I had constant migraines and was literally on the verge of puking ALL day. I stopped eating my usual healthy, veggie rich diet and ate whatever I could keep down. For a few days that was plain noodles. It was tough because I felt horrible and knew I was taking steps backwards in all I had accomplished.
As I entered the 2nd trimester things went back to almost normal. I haven't been eating AS healthy but I am at least getting more variety. I have been pretty exhausted and that leads to less cooking, but I am hoping that might change.
The one bright spot in the early pregnancy woes is that I was pretty good about getting to the gym. I believe I had one really bad week where I only made it once, but otherwise I have gone at least 3 days a week. Sure, it isn't as good as the 5 I was going before, but I am okay with that at this point. Now that I am feeling much better I have been going 4 days. It helps me keep a balance, 3 mornings of "sleeping in" (which means 6;6:30) and 4 morning of early wake-ups and fitness.
So that is where I am at right now. I am just ending a nice, long vacation and I feel well-rested. My husband is back to wanting to eat as clean as possible and so I am hoping with his encouragement we can do a bit better in our diet through this second half of pregnancy.
I have tried to keep my workouts to at least two days of strength training, so what does that look like for me? Here's what I did this morning:
-20 minutes, high intensity intervals on the elliptical (I find I need a longer warm-up to get this preggo body going)
-3x's 10 of romanian deadlifts
Alternating sets of
One leg, leg presses on press machine (3x's 12) 40 lbs
Lat pull downs (3x's 10) 50 lbs
Alternating sets of
Free weight shoulder press (3x's 10)
Squats on reebok core bored w/ 20 lb kettlebell raises (3x's 12)
Alternating sets of
Kettle bell oblique sidebends (15 lbs in each hand x's 3 sets)
Various ab work with 10 lb medicine ball (3x's 15)
End with stretching with foam roller (hurts go good)
As you can see, it is nothing too crazy, but hopefully will keep me strong enough that I will not have to start at square one after delivering this little girl.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Dear 2012, be good to us.....
It's New Years Eve. Christmas has come and gone and that is always bitter sweet. It is such a wonderful time of year, but dang does it involve lots of work and clean up.
Of course it is all worth it for these two peanuts:
Reading with daddy on Christmas Eve
The loot on Christmas morning
The Village Green all decorated for Christmas.
Charlotte is proud that she can explore on her own.
So we say goodbye to Christmas. We also said goodbye to our family who came to stay with us. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins and it was fun to have a house full of craziness.
Now I have a few days to relax, even though it is oddly quiet around here.
Tonight we will have a New Years Eve pajama party with some close friends who have kiddos who are the same age as ours. It is perfect for us. We make lots of good food, let the kiddos play, and usually don't make it even close to midnight. It is nice to hang out with people who get the fact that having little ones is not conducive to staying up late and partying.
In the spirit of New Year, I need to make my resolutions.
Here is my resolution from last year: NYE
We did pretty damn good with this one until about 2 months ago. As the pregnancy exhaustion set in, clean eating suddenly became less clean, I was easily tempted by Dunkin Donuts trips and pizza takeout sounded so easy and tempting.
This vacation is helping me get back on track and is a great time for resolutions. I do feel like I should give myself positive credit. I started this blog in December of last year, 6 months post baby and 154 lbs. I weigh less than that now at 21 weeks pregnant but more importantly I feel much better about how I am living my life. I still make exercise and eating healthy and priority and although staying healthy while pregnant is not easy, and I have my slip ups, I do feel like I have made some very positive, permanent changes in my life.
I am looking forward to going back to using myfitnesspal.com, working out harder and getting back to my best shape (135 lbs and muscular) after the baby is born.
So with all of that in mind, here are my resolutions for 2012:
No dunkin donuts coffee (unless we are on a road trip or someone brings it to me) and using the Kuerig instead.
Try more clean eating recipes
Get the kids to eat healthier and make better food choices on their own
Spend more time on simple pleasures that don't cost (knitting, long walks, etc)
Flirt with my husband more: It is really hard to keep the spark alive when you have a honeymoon baby followed by two more babies, all in a less than 5 years. As our 5 year anniversary approaches and I am finally done with pregnancy and eventually nursing, we need to work on that spark.
Go back to following New Rules of Lifting for Women
Start working out (slowly) 2-3 weeks after baby as long as I have a normal delivery.
Start to really accept and enjoy where I live and stop investigating moves to other places
Get to the beach on almost every nice day this summer, even though it will be next to impossible with 3 kids
Have a better garden with more variety
Get more chicks and merge them successfully with the rest of the flock
Actually finish some knitting projects.
Happy New Year. I wish you all great joy, health and lots of love in 2012!
Of course it is all worth it for these two peanuts:
Reading with daddy on Christmas Eve
Charlotte is proud that she can explore on her own.
 |
| And of course, Mama and her babies dreaming about Santa. |
Now I have a few days to relax, even though it is oddly quiet around here.
Tonight we will have a New Years Eve pajama party with some close friends who have kiddos who are the same age as ours. It is perfect for us. We make lots of good food, let the kiddos play, and usually don't make it even close to midnight. It is nice to hang out with people who get the fact that having little ones is not conducive to staying up late and partying.
In the spirit of New Year, I need to make my resolutions.
Here is my resolution from last year: NYE
We did pretty damn good with this one until about 2 months ago. As the pregnancy exhaustion set in, clean eating suddenly became less clean, I was easily tempted by Dunkin Donuts trips and pizza takeout sounded so easy and tempting.
This vacation is helping me get back on track and is a great time for resolutions. I do feel like I should give myself positive credit. I started this blog in December of last year, 6 months post baby and 154 lbs. I weigh less than that now at 21 weeks pregnant but more importantly I feel much better about how I am living my life. I still make exercise and eating healthy and priority and although staying healthy while pregnant is not easy, and I have my slip ups, I do feel like I have made some very positive, permanent changes in my life.
I am looking forward to going back to using myfitnesspal.com, working out harder and getting back to my best shape (135 lbs and muscular) after the baby is born.
So with all of that in mind, here are my resolutions for 2012:
No dunkin donuts coffee (unless we are on a road trip or someone brings it to me) and using the Kuerig instead.
Try more clean eating recipes
Get the kids to eat healthier and make better food choices on their own
Spend more time on simple pleasures that don't cost (knitting, long walks, etc)
Flirt with my husband more: It is really hard to keep the spark alive when you have a honeymoon baby followed by two more babies, all in a less than 5 years. As our 5 year anniversary approaches and I am finally done with pregnancy and eventually nursing, we need to work on that spark.
Go back to following New Rules of Lifting for Women
Start working out (slowly) 2-3 weeks after baby as long as I have a normal delivery.
Start to really accept and enjoy where I live and stop investigating moves to other places
Get to the beach on almost every nice day this summer, even though it will be next to impossible with 3 kids
Have a better garden with more variety
Get more chicks and merge them successfully with the rest of the flock
Actually finish some knitting projects.
Happy New Year. I wish you all great joy, health and lots of love in 2012!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Vacation, Vacation, Vacaaaaation
Yes, 10 days off from work.
10 days home with my babies, part of which will be spent hanging with the sweetest niece and nephew ever (who are coming to stay with us for 5 days) and my brother and sister in-law.
There is nothing in this world as special as watching your kids experience the magic that is Christmas morning. I am so psyched.
Tomorrow will be spent cleaning and cooking and baking. Our Christmas plans are always the same. We go to church at 4pm, have my in laws over for dinner and dessert after church, have a birthday party and sing happy birthday to baby Jesus, watch a Christmas movie, read "twas the night before Christmas to the kids and get them in bed and then set up the magic for the morning. Christmas morning we wake up, wait for the kids, open presents, my in laws come over for an early breakfast (usually overnight french toast, bacon and fruit salad. We get dressed and head out to my mom's (a two hour drive). The kids open gifts there, we have snacks and then we head down the street to my grandmothers house, where our extended family gathers for a party/ dinner/ lots of love, laughter and fun. Then we all head back home, exhausted, full, usually with a car load of presents.
It is of course a lot for two days, but as you all know, totally worth it. It certainly helps that it is followed by 8 days off from work.
So as so many people are this time of year, I am excited.
Things have been good around here. I finally got over a cold that seemed like it would never leave.
I have gone to the gym three mornings this week. I have had some serious crotch pain issues. I swear this pregnancy is so much harder on my body. Everything is happening so early this time. It just helps to remember that this is the last time. The gym does help to get me going. I am planning to go tomorrow and then beat the crowds at the grocery store when it opens.
My eating has been less than stellar. I feel like there has just been food everywhere lately. I have gained about 13 lbs so far. I am hoping that since today is my half way point (20 weeks) that I will only gain 15 more, putting me at a 30 lb weight gain...which seems to be the norm for me. It is so hard when you are hungry and exhausted all the time. When I cook I am careful to keep it healthy and clean, but there have been a lot of pizzas lately. Having a week off to reset will help, because I usually love to cook but don't love doing it when I am so damn tired. I tell ya, having a full time job and taking care of two toddlers is painfully tiring when you are pregnant.
Anyhow, I will leave you with 20 week belly pictures. I know how big I am for 20 weeks. No, it is not twins...I call it "third child in 4.5 year syndrome" I was not even close to this big with the other two at 20 weeks...but baby bumps are always fun, even if people don't believe you when you day how far along you are.
Merry Christmas everyone!
10 days home with my babies, part of which will be spent hanging with the sweetest niece and nephew ever (who are coming to stay with us for 5 days) and my brother and sister in-law.
There is nothing in this world as special as watching your kids experience the magic that is Christmas morning. I am so psyched.
Tomorrow will be spent cleaning and cooking and baking. Our Christmas plans are always the same. We go to church at 4pm, have my in laws over for dinner and dessert after church, have a birthday party and sing happy birthday to baby Jesus, watch a Christmas movie, read "twas the night before Christmas to the kids and get them in bed and then set up the magic for the morning. Christmas morning we wake up, wait for the kids, open presents, my in laws come over for an early breakfast (usually overnight french toast, bacon and fruit salad. We get dressed and head out to my mom's (a two hour drive). The kids open gifts there, we have snacks and then we head down the street to my grandmothers house, where our extended family gathers for a party/ dinner/ lots of love, laughter and fun. Then we all head back home, exhausted, full, usually with a car load of presents.
It is of course a lot for two days, but as you all know, totally worth it. It certainly helps that it is followed by 8 days off from work.
So as so many people are this time of year, I am excited.
Things have been good around here. I finally got over a cold that seemed like it would never leave.
I have gone to the gym three mornings this week. I have had some serious crotch pain issues. I swear this pregnancy is so much harder on my body. Everything is happening so early this time. It just helps to remember that this is the last time. The gym does help to get me going. I am planning to go tomorrow and then beat the crowds at the grocery store when it opens.
My eating has been less than stellar. I feel like there has just been food everywhere lately. I have gained about 13 lbs so far. I am hoping that since today is my half way point (20 weeks) that I will only gain 15 more, putting me at a 30 lb weight gain...which seems to be the norm for me. It is so hard when you are hungry and exhausted all the time. When I cook I am careful to keep it healthy and clean, but there have been a lot of pizzas lately. Having a week off to reset will help, because I usually love to cook but don't love doing it when I am so damn tired. I tell ya, having a full time job and taking care of two toddlers is painfully tiring when you are pregnant.
Anyhow, I will leave you with 20 week belly pictures. I know how big I am for 20 weeks. No, it is not twins...I call it "third child in 4.5 year syndrome" I was not even close to this big with the other two at 20 weeks...but baby bumps are always fun, even if people don't believe you when you day how far along you are.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Friday, November 11, 2011
2nd trimester, coffee and feeling good
I am up and at 'um this morning. It is 6 am here and I have returned from the gym and am feeling good.
I had a mini-battle with myself this morning because I have today off from work and really considered staying in bed. However, I wasn't really even tired and I new I would feel better if I got there...so off I went.
I went 4 days this week. Two of which I did weight training and two of which I did cardio and stretching. I am in the 2nd trimester now (or at least I think, they keep changing my due date) and I am feeling good.
I have had a few fabulous blog friends had their little babies this week and another who is about to pop (or maybe she already has) and so I am going to start looking for some other fit pregnant mamas to follow because I need some inspiration. I am also happy to follow the journey of the new mamas as they get back into shape. Madeline at Food, Fitness and Family is rocking it at the gym just one month post-partum and I find her amazing.
I am psyched for a 3 days weekend, even though our car is in the shop and I have no way to get anywhere for the next few days. I think we are going to buy a "new" (used) car soon, which I hate going through...but will probably be necessary with 3 babies.
I wanted to share my faux frappacino recipe. I have had some serious migraine issues the first part of this pregnancy, as a result I started adding in some caffeine a few weeks ago to help keep the headaches away. The problem was, the thought of coffee made me want to die. I LOVE coffee when I am not pregnant, but my pregnant self has a huge aversion. The only thing I could think of that appealed to me was frappacinos from Starbucks. That, however, is neither waist, nor wallet friendly. Plus I needed to have the coffee early in the morning and I wanted to find a way to get a small meal in before the gym. So here was my solution.
The night before I made one small, strong cup of coffee (I have a Kuerig and just make the 6oz cup) and I place it in the fridge over night.
In the a.m. I add the coffee in the blender, along with the following:
1 splash skim milk
1/2 banana
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/2 a large cup of ice (I use the chopped ice from my fridge ice machine)
Blend and enjoy. It is especially good with coconut coffee and it gives me some calories for the gym.
This is pretty much my daily breakfast and when I get home from the gym I eat a sprouted grain English muffin (Ezeikiel Brand) with natural peanut butter and the second half of the banana or other sliced fruit on top. It has kept me fueled and feeling good for the past few weeks.
I had a mini-battle with myself this morning because I have today off from work and really considered staying in bed. However, I wasn't really even tired and I new I would feel better if I got there...so off I went.
I went 4 days this week. Two of which I did weight training and two of which I did cardio and stretching. I am in the 2nd trimester now (or at least I think, they keep changing my due date) and I am feeling good.
I have had a few fabulous blog friends had their little babies this week and another who is about to pop (or maybe she already has) and so I am going to start looking for some other fit pregnant mamas to follow because I need some inspiration. I am also happy to follow the journey of the new mamas as they get back into shape. Madeline at Food, Fitness and Family is rocking it at the gym just one month post-partum and I find her amazing.
I am psyched for a 3 days weekend, even though our car is in the shop and I have no way to get anywhere for the next few days. I think we are going to buy a "new" (used) car soon, which I hate going through...but will probably be necessary with 3 babies.
I wanted to share my faux frappacino recipe. I have had some serious migraine issues the first part of this pregnancy, as a result I started adding in some caffeine a few weeks ago to help keep the headaches away. The problem was, the thought of coffee made me want to die. I LOVE coffee when I am not pregnant, but my pregnant self has a huge aversion. The only thing I could think of that appealed to me was frappacinos from Starbucks. That, however, is neither waist, nor wallet friendly. Plus I needed to have the coffee early in the morning and I wanted to find a way to get a small meal in before the gym. So here was my solution.
The night before I made one small, strong cup of coffee (I have a Kuerig and just make the 6oz cup) and I place it in the fridge over night.
In the a.m. I add the coffee in the blender, along with the following:
1 splash skim milk
1/2 banana
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/2 a large cup of ice (I use the chopped ice from my fridge ice machine)
Blend and enjoy. It is especially good with coconut coffee and it gives me some calories for the gym.
This is pretty much my daily breakfast and when I get home from the gym I eat a sprouted grain English muffin (Ezeikiel Brand) with natural peanut butter and the second half of the banana or other sliced fruit on top. It has kept me fueled and feeling good for the past few weeks.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
A great week
YES!!! Finally a good week.
I am feeling about a thousand times better than last week. This alone makes it a great week, but some other good stuff happened too...
On the health front
I made it to the gym three times. Which is better than last week, when I went once. I actually had a decent workout or two and feel energized to get back on Monday. I actually would have gone more, but with Halloween on Monday, the earlier part of the week was a bit exhausting and I had a badcold..so I didn't push it. Cold was gone by Tuesday and I was at the gym Wed-Fri morning.
I am also eating better. My nausea is not so constant and my aversion to some of my old favs is almost gone. There have been a lot more veggies this week. Today I am making a slow cooked Italian pot roast and red, garlic smashed potatoes...I am in a home cooking mood. I will confess I did hit the Halloween candy a bit harder than I would have liked, but I chopped the rest of it up last night and baked it into brownies for the kiddos, so no more temptation there.
I have been debating if I want to share the pregnancy weight journey...and I have decided I will. Let me just explain that I am sharing this because I want people to see the reality of gaining during (what I hope will be) a healthy pregnancy. This is not for the same reasons as I was recording my weight before baby. I am NOT holding myself accountable because I know my body will gain what it needs to gain, and I hope that exercise might help me maintain a healthy gain. I gained around 30 lbs with my other pregnancies, which I was fine with. It would be nice if I could keep it under that number, simply because I intend to exercise more and eat better than I did...but I will gain what I gain and that is okay with me.
My starting weight on the day I found out was 136.5 lbs.
This morning I weighed 140.9 lbs at 13 weeks pregnant.
The good news is I weighed 145 lbs when I got pregnant with my daughter and about the same with my son..so I am starting off at a better weight.
On the baby front
I had my NT scan this week, which is an ultrasound to check for genetic abnormalities. It was a lot of fun. The baby was more developed then I was expecting and the ultrasound was pretty clear. I also measured a week a head and I think they will be readjusting my due date. This put me at 13 weeks, and the tech was pretty certain based on babies size and development. He/ she was bouncing all around in there and I could feel it too. Even after two other babies, it doesn't get old. I had a boy vibe the whole time I was watching baby. I was thinking girl before, but my new guess is boy. The better best part is that it looks like the hematoma I had before has probably cleared up and that risk has diminished..wohoo.
All and all I am good and am happy to be feeling better. It is soo much easier to be excited when you feel good physically.
I am feeling about a thousand times better than last week. This alone makes it a great week, but some other good stuff happened too...
On the health front
I made it to the gym three times. Which is better than last week, when I went once. I actually had a decent workout or two and feel energized to get back on Monday. I actually would have gone more, but with Halloween on Monday, the earlier part of the week was a bit exhausting and I had a badcold..so I didn't push it. Cold was gone by Tuesday and I was at the gym Wed-Fri morning.
I am also eating better. My nausea is not so constant and my aversion to some of my old favs is almost gone. There have been a lot more veggies this week. Today I am making a slow cooked Italian pot roast and red, garlic smashed potatoes...I am in a home cooking mood. I will confess I did hit the Halloween candy a bit harder than I would have liked, but I chopped the rest of it up last night and baked it into brownies for the kiddos, so no more temptation there.
I have been debating if I want to share the pregnancy weight journey...and I have decided I will. Let me just explain that I am sharing this because I want people to see the reality of gaining during (what I hope will be) a healthy pregnancy. This is not for the same reasons as I was recording my weight before baby. I am NOT holding myself accountable because I know my body will gain what it needs to gain, and I hope that exercise might help me maintain a healthy gain. I gained around 30 lbs with my other pregnancies, which I was fine with. It would be nice if I could keep it under that number, simply because I intend to exercise more and eat better than I did...but I will gain what I gain and that is okay with me.
My starting weight on the day I found out was 136.5 lbs.
This morning I weighed 140.9 lbs at 13 weeks pregnant.
The good news is I weighed 145 lbs when I got pregnant with my daughter and about the same with my son..so I am starting off at a better weight.
On the baby front
I had my NT scan this week, which is an ultrasound to check for genetic abnormalities. It was a lot of fun. The baby was more developed then I was expecting and the ultrasound was pretty clear. I also measured a week a head and I think they will be readjusting my due date. This put me at 13 weeks, and the tech was pretty certain based on babies size and development. He/ she was bouncing all around in there and I could feel it too. Even after two other babies, it doesn't get old. I had a boy vibe the whole time I was watching baby. I was thinking girl before, but my new guess is boy. The better best part is that it looks like the hematoma I had before has probably cleared up and that risk has diminished..wohoo.
All and all I am good and am happy to be feeling better. It is soo much easier to be excited when you feel good physically.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Survival Mode
I have been a major blog slacker, mostly because I have been going to bed around 8pm every night and am still not feeling too fabulous.
I am working hard to stay positive and be a good mom. I am certainly not feeling as horrible as I was a few weeks ago, but I am still playing the....work 24 hours a day to prevent getting so sick that I cannot function. I am constantly on guard of having a migraine come on, eating the wrong thing and then puking and of staying on a schedule because somehow when I veer from my eating, waking, sleeping pattern things go down hill quickly.
On the health front I feel like I am failing miserably, but honestly I am currently in survival mode.
This past week I went to the gym ONCE.
I am trying to look at it like:
well at least you made it to the gym once.
instead of:
I can't believe you only made it to the gym once.
Mostly this was due to the fact that I felt bad much of the week and both of my kids have a cold and we had some seriously bad sleepers the past few nights.
I am hoping for a better week next week and praying as I approach week 12 that I will feel much better.
On a happy pregnancy note, I do get to have my NT scan on Wednesday which means I get to see that itty, bitty baby. Ultrasounds are always fun.
Eating has also been pretty sub par. I eat what I can, when I can.
This week that meant pizza and Chinese food (for my mother-in-laws birthday). The Chinese food was pretty gross, so luckily I didn't go too overboard. The pizza was fabulous and I really overindulged.
I am not sure if you were ever a big partier, but pregnancy sickness is very much like having a bad hangover. You are sick to your stomach, tired, have headaches and for some reason greasy food settles your stomach. This seems odd to me. You would think that greasy pizza would make it worse, but it does not.
Some morning, when I am sitting on the couch thinking of how bad I feel, I think about the bad hangovers I have had and I just cannot believe I would have ever bring that level of illness on to myself.
So after two other babies, I know this wont last forever. Survival mode will turn into cute little belly mode, which will last for a few months before starting I feel like the Titanic and my back and hips make me want to cry mode. This is why I am hoping to get back into my exercise routine in hopes that it will heal some of the aches and pains.
My short term goal is to try and stay away from the Halloween candy. I am taking the kids to a town trick or treating event today and my will power sucks. JUST SAY NO TO PEANUT BUTTER CUPS.
I am working hard to stay positive and be a good mom. I am certainly not feeling as horrible as I was a few weeks ago, but I am still playing the....work 24 hours a day to prevent getting so sick that I cannot function. I am constantly on guard of having a migraine come on, eating the wrong thing and then puking and of staying on a schedule because somehow when I veer from my eating, waking, sleeping pattern things go down hill quickly.
On the health front I feel like I am failing miserably, but honestly I am currently in survival mode.
This past week I went to the gym ONCE.
I am trying to look at it like:
well at least you made it to the gym once.
instead of:
I can't believe you only made it to the gym once.
Mostly this was due to the fact that I felt bad much of the week and both of my kids have a cold and we had some seriously bad sleepers the past few nights.
I am hoping for a better week next week and praying as I approach week 12 that I will feel much better.
On a happy pregnancy note, I do get to have my NT scan on Wednesday which means I get to see that itty, bitty baby. Ultrasounds are always fun.
Eating has also been pretty sub par. I eat what I can, when I can.
This week that meant pizza and Chinese food (for my mother-in-laws birthday). The Chinese food was pretty gross, so luckily I didn't go too overboard. The pizza was fabulous and I really overindulged.
I am not sure if you were ever a big partier, but pregnancy sickness is very much like having a bad hangover. You are sick to your stomach, tired, have headaches and for some reason greasy food settles your stomach. This seems odd to me. You would think that greasy pizza would make it worse, but it does not.
Some morning, when I am sitting on the couch thinking of how bad I feel, I think about the bad hangovers I have had and I just cannot believe I would have ever bring that level of illness on to myself.
So after two other babies, I know this wont last forever. Survival mode will turn into cute little belly mode, which will last for a few months before starting I feel like the Titanic and my back and hips make me want to cry mode. This is why I am hoping to get back into my exercise routine in hopes that it will heal some of the aches and pains.
My short term goal is to try and stay away from the Halloween candy. I am taking the kids to a town trick or treating event today and my will power sucks. JUST SAY NO TO PEANUT BUTTER CUPS.
Monday, October 17, 2011
The BIG announcement, and baby makes 5!
Well,
After spending the past 6 weeks or so being vague, avoiding people and trying not to puke when anyone is around, I have finally gotten to the point where I cannot keep it in anymore.
I am 10 weeks preggo with baby number 3! Wohoo.
I know it is still very early, and there is always the possibility that something could go wrong...but I am hopeful that all is well and honestly, I am just sick of holding it in. I am just not a secretive kind of person.
I mentioned my "injury" a few weeks back. This was all related to my pregnancy. I had some bleeding around 5 weeks, which ended up being a hematoma. The result of that was taking it easy and being careful...especially careful not to have sex (poor hubby) and not to lift anything heavy (poor muscles).
Honestly, it was a bit hard to deal with at first, but then I ended up with such bad ALL DAY AND NIGHT sickness that I didn't get much done in the exercise world anyway. It was bad. I am talking a migraine and puking all day long kind of bad. I ate like crap because crap was all I could hold down.
With my son I was not sick at all. I had it almost as bad with my daughter...but this time was the worst of all. Another girl perhaps?
I am feeling better now and I can honestly say I am thrilled and just praying that everything is okay and that we have our third and final child.
I know this will be our last time, so I am trying to enjoy each moment. I know from past experience that it flies by and that no stage lasts very long.
I have been exercising again and am generally feeling pretty good about myself. I am really hoping to travel down a healthy and active road the next 8 months.
So my blog will probably take a bit of a turn here. I am hoping to focus on maintaining my happiness and health while pregnant, working, and caring for 2 toddlers. And then refocusing on regaining my post baby weight and staying active as a momma of 3.
I am due in May and this time I am hoping to have a gender surprise. So here's to another healthy baby!
After spending the past 6 weeks or so being vague, avoiding people and trying not to puke when anyone is around, I have finally gotten to the point where I cannot keep it in anymore.
I am 10 weeks preggo with baby number 3! Wohoo.
I know it is still very early, and there is always the possibility that something could go wrong...but I am hopeful that all is well and honestly, I am just sick of holding it in. I am just not a secretive kind of person.
I mentioned my "injury" a few weeks back. This was all related to my pregnancy. I had some bleeding around 5 weeks, which ended up being a hematoma. The result of that was taking it easy and being careful...especially careful not to have sex (poor hubby) and not to lift anything heavy (poor muscles).
Honestly, it was a bit hard to deal with at first, but then I ended up with such bad ALL DAY AND NIGHT sickness that I didn't get much done in the exercise world anyway. It was bad. I am talking a migraine and puking all day long kind of bad. I ate like crap because crap was all I could hold down.
With my son I was not sick at all. I had it almost as bad with my daughter...but this time was the worst of all. Another girl perhaps?
I am feeling better now and I can honestly say I am thrilled and just praying that everything is okay and that we have our third and final child.
I know this will be our last time, so I am trying to enjoy each moment. I know from past experience that it flies by and that no stage lasts very long.
I have been exercising again and am generally feeling pretty good about myself. I am really hoping to travel down a healthy and active road the next 8 months.
So my blog will probably take a bit of a turn here. I am hoping to focus on maintaining my happiness and health while pregnant, working, and caring for 2 toddlers. And then refocusing on regaining my post baby weight and staying active as a momma of 3.
I am due in May and this time I am hoping to have a gender surprise. So here's to another healthy baby!
Thursday, October 13, 2011
It's 4am, what are normal people doing?
Yup, I still wake up this early to go to the gym. I took about a week off last week due to the restrictions the doctor put on me and the fact that I didn't feel well and just needed a break.
But here I am again, back into my old routine.
I like my morning workouts. Most days it isn't even hard to get out of bed. However, I am a bit worried about the winter.
I started this routine last April. Before that I had been working out at night in my basement. I had no choice at the time, as my daughter was still nursing around the clock and I couldn't leave at 4am.
Now it is October (still warm) and I am dreading the onset of cold weather. I HATE being cold. I live in New England, the mecca of cold, unpredictable winters and 4am is going to be miserable in January.
I am worried about getting lazy and giving up. Maybe I can save up for an automatic car starter?...hmm.
Perhaps I can plaster pictures of Jessica Biel's Body to my alarm clock and mirror just in case I get tempted to slip back into bed.
I don't know...but maybe thinking this through now will help me next month. Scraping windows, in the dark, at 4am is frightening me already.
Can I convince the husband to move to California? Probably not.
But here I am again, back into my old routine.
I like my morning workouts. Most days it isn't even hard to get out of bed. However, I am a bit worried about the winter.
I started this routine last April. Before that I had been working out at night in my basement. I had no choice at the time, as my daughter was still nursing around the clock and I couldn't leave at 4am.
Now it is October (still warm) and I am dreading the onset of cold weather. I HATE being cold. I live in New England, the mecca of cold, unpredictable winters and 4am is going to be miserable in January.
I am worried about getting lazy and giving up. Maybe I can save up for an automatic car starter?...hmm.
Perhaps I can plaster pictures of Jessica Biel's Body to my alarm clock and mirror just in case I get tempted to slip back into bed.
I don't know...but maybe thinking this through now will help me next month. Scraping windows, in the dark, at 4am is frightening me already.
Can I convince the husband to move to California? Probably not.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Goodbye NROLFW
Well, life has thrown a wrench in my plans. Things were going smoothly with my exercise routine. I was certainly building muscle, maintaining my weight and feeling pretty good.
And then an injury. I will get into the details of this in another post. It is a long story for another day. However, the injury has come with two requirments.....taking it easy (because that's so easy to do with two kids and a full time job) and not lifting anything heavy. GREEAATTT.
I finally built up some strength and now I cannot lift anything for at least 6 weeks.
I am so afraid that this is going to send me backwards. I am afraid of gaining weight. I am afraid of how much I am going to hate the gym if all I can do is cardio.
I want to stay positive. It is just hard when you work really hard at something and then have to walk away from it. I have followed NROLFW for 9 weeks and I never cheated...not even once.
So goodbye for now New Rules of Lifting for Women. I have really enjoyed how you make my arms, back and legs look. I hope we will meet again soon.
And then an injury. I will get into the details of this in another post. It is a long story for another day. However, the injury has come with two requirments.....taking it easy (because that's so easy to do with two kids and a full time job) and not lifting anything heavy. GREEAATTT.
I finally built up some strength and now I cannot lift anything for at least 6 weeks.
I am so afraid that this is going to send me backwards. I am afraid of gaining weight. I am afraid of how much I am going to hate the gym if all I can do is cardio.
I want to stay positive. It is just hard when you work really hard at something and then have to walk away from it. I have followed NROLFW for 9 weeks and I never cheated...not even once.
So goodbye for now New Rules of Lifting for Women. I have really enjoyed how you make my arms, back and legs look. I hope we will meet again soon.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Big dreams, boring workouts
Tomorrow is Friday...thank goodness.
I made the gym every day but Tuesday ( I had parent's night Monday night and I was exhausted) and I fully intend on going tomorrow morning. I have been in a bit of a funk there. I am still following NROLFW, but I feel like I do so much of the same stuff. I may need to modify for a while...but I'll get back to that another day.
Lately I have been down in the dumps about where I live. I would give just about anything to sell everything and move to Maine. I love my house...but I feel like my neighborhood is going downhill. I wish I had the courage to just change everything...but when you have kids you really have to think about more than just yourself. The quality of education is good here and who knows what it would be like in some rural town. I have a great job, with fantastic benefits. Plus my in-laws are here....but some days I am sad that I don't have the courage to take the chance. You only get one life. Maybe there is still a chance? It's hard when you know if you ever left, that it could devastate other people...but yet it is what you and your family really want.
Maybe I am just having back to work blues. I get very overwhelmed this time of year. Maybe my dream of moving to the boonies is my attempt at escaping from my stress. Who know? I have pledged that I will never move my kids anywhere past 5th grade. So I have some time...10 years to be exact.
I made the gym every day but Tuesday ( I had parent's night Monday night and I was exhausted) and I fully intend on going tomorrow morning. I have been in a bit of a funk there. I am still following NROLFW, but I feel like I do so much of the same stuff. I may need to modify for a while...but I'll get back to that another day.
Lately I have been down in the dumps about where I live. I would give just about anything to sell everything and move to Maine. I love my house...but I feel like my neighborhood is going downhill. I wish I had the courage to just change everything...but when you have kids you really have to think about more than just yourself. The quality of education is good here and who knows what it would be like in some rural town. I have a great job, with fantastic benefits. Plus my in-laws are here....but some days I am sad that I don't have the courage to take the chance. You only get one life. Maybe there is still a chance? It's hard when you know if you ever left, that it could devastate other people...but yet it is what you and your family really want.
Maybe I am just having back to work blues. I get very overwhelmed this time of year. Maybe my dream of moving to the boonies is my attempt at escaping from my stress. Who know? I have pledged that I will never move my kids anywhere past 5th grade. So I have some time...10 years to be exact.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The dreaded back to work schedule
It's almost here (although I am in a bit of denial). I am starting back at work next week. At least they ease us back in slowly. We are back Wednesday and Thursday and then we have a 4 day weekend and the kids officially start back on that Tuesday.
I like work, I really do. I like the challenge of it. I like getting to know a new group of kids. I like trying to improve my teaching each year. But I miss MY kids so damn much.
I also miss the flexibility of the summer schedule. During the school year everything is so rigid and our schedule is locked in.
I was just participating in a discussion on a health website I have joined. Everyone was discussing schedules and someone had asked if we could post a "day in the life" example of our week/ day so that they could see how everyone fits in healthy eating/ cooking and exercise in their busy life.
Some of the people seemed much busier than me. It is crazy how some people's lives are so complicated. I think I was somewhere in the middle. But what I liked is that everyone who responded said you just have to find the time to be healthy and make it a non-negotiable priority, just like brushing your teeth or washing your clothes.
Here is my typical schedule during the school year.
M-F
Up at 4:30am, let dog out, lace up shoes and head to the gym no later than 5.
Work out from 5-6am (MWF is weight training/ intervals, TuTH is cardio/ stretching)
Home by 6:05am, where husband is waiting to go to the gym from 6-7:15.
6:05-6:30 Feed the cat and dog and let them out, make breakfast and set up for kids, get work bag and lunch ready
6:30-7 Shower and get ready and PRAY the kids stay asleep. Its about 50/50 chance they wake up.
7-7:30 Get the kids dressed and teeth brushed, eat, husband gets home from gym
7:30 Get everyone in car, kids and husband drop me off at work (yup, we are currently sharing a car)
8-3 (M, THUR, FRI)
8-4:20 (TUES, WED) Work
3-5pm on TUES and THURS, take Liam to Karate or wait to be picked up after karate is over.
as soon as we are home-5:30 Get dinner ready, dishes done, etc.
Eat by 6pm, but usually by 5:30.
6-7pm play with kids either outside, on a family walk, watching a show, reading, etc.
7pm- Start baths/ PJ's (On Tues, Wed, Thurs husband leaves for training at 6:30 so I do both kids...the rest of the week I only have to do one kid)
7:30-8pm (or 9 if it is a bad night with both kids) any combination of rocking, feeding, begging, bribing, reading to the kids to get them to be soundly asleep
8-9/ 9:30pm: any combination of the following: snacking, blogging, Facebook stalking, answering work emails, correcting mass amounts of essays, cleaning up messes, staring at the wall and enjoying silence, talking to my husband, watching TV.
9:30: Pass out in bed.
Midnightish: My darling daugher is STLL (at 14 months) waking up screaming to eat. The getting her back to sleep thing seems to take about 20 minutes.
Am I busy?, yup. If it sounds like an unusually crazy life, you probably don't have kids and might think pretty hard before you do...because I am pretty sure this is the average life of a regular mom.
On the weekends it isn't too much different, except that my husband works and instead of being at work I am taking the kids to activities, play dates, etc. I live for the weekends, mostly because my husband is home no latter than 5 both nights and we can both be there for the bedtime routine.
So if you are like me, and feeling bad about gaining a few pounds or not being perfect in every way...I recommend doing as I did here and writing out your typical schedule. It has helped me realize that I am doing all I can to stay healthy and that I cannot be too hard on myself, I am doing the best I can right now....and sometimes that just has to be enough.
So I am off to enjoy my last few days with a slightly less frantic schedule...thank the Lord for Summer Vacation!
I like work, I really do. I like the challenge of it. I like getting to know a new group of kids. I like trying to improve my teaching each year. But I miss MY kids so damn much.
I also miss the flexibility of the summer schedule. During the school year everything is so rigid and our schedule is locked in.
I was just participating in a discussion on a health website I have joined. Everyone was discussing schedules and someone had asked if we could post a "day in the life" example of our week/ day so that they could see how everyone fits in healthy eating/ cooking and exercise in their busy life.
Some of the people seemed much busier than me. It is crazy how some people's lives are so complicated. I think I was somewhere in the middle. But what I liked is that everyone who responded said you just have to find the time to be healthy and make it a non-negotiable priority, just like brushing your teeth or washing your clothes.
Here is my typical schedule during the school year.
M-F
Up at 4:30am, let dog out, lace up shoes and head to the gym no later than 5.
Work out from 5-6am (MWF is weight training/ intervals, TuTH is cardio/ stretching)
Home by 6:05am, where husband is waiting to go to the gym from 6-7:15.
6:05-6:30 Feed the cat and dog and let them out, make breakfast and set up for kids, get work bag and lunch ready
6:30-7 Shower and get ready and PRAY the kids stay asleep. Its about 50/50 chance they wake up.
7-7:30 Get the kids dressed and teeth brushed, eat, husband gets home from gym
7:30 Get everyone in car, kids and husband drop me off at work (yup, we are currently sharing a car)
8-3 (M, THUR, FRI)
8-4:20 (TUES, WED) Work
3-5pm on TUES and THURS, take Liam to Karate or wait to be picked up after karate is over.
as soon as we are home-5:30 Get dinner ready, dishes done, etc.
Eat by 6pm, but usually by 5:30.
6-7pm play with kids either outside, on a family walk, watching a show, reading, etc.
7pm- Start baths/ PJ's (On Tues, Wed, Thurs husband leaves for training at 6:30 so I do both kids...the rest of the week I only have to do one kid)
7:30-8pm (or 9 if it is a bad night with both kids) any combination of rocking, feeding, begging, bribing, reading to the kids to get them to be soundly asleep
8-9/ 9:30pm: any combination of the following: snacking, blogging, Facebook stalking, answering work emails, correcting mass amounts of essays, cleaning up messes, staring at the wall and enjoying silence, talking to my husband, watching TV.
9:30: Pass out in bed.
Midnightish: My darling daugher is STLL (at 14 months) waking up screaming to eat. The getting her back to sleep thing seems to take about 20 minutes.
Am I busy?, yup. If it sounds like an unusually crazy life, you probably don't have kids and might think pretty hard before you do...because I am pretty sure this is the average life of a regular mom.
On the weekends it isn't too much different, except that my husband works and instead of being at work I am taking the kids to activities, play dates, etc. I live for the weekends, mostly because my husband is home no latter than 5 both nights and we can both be there for the bedtime routine.
So if you are like me, and feeling bad about gaining a few pounds or not being perfect in every way...I recommend doing as I did here and writing out your typical schedule. It has helped me realize that I am doing all I can to stay healthy and that I cannot be too hard on myself, I am doing the best I can right now....and sometimes that just has to be enough.
So I am off to enjoy my last few days with a slightly less frantic schedule...thank the Lord for Summer Vacation!
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Wait, what, 6 lbs..are you kidding me?!
After yesterday's post I weighed myself and I am up 2 more pounds. Are you kidding? I am tryin to remember my own advice, there is a lot more to weight gain then just fat, but I know it ain't 6 lbs of water weight.
I am trying not to get down on myself and not to make excuses. I know that it has to be a combination of factors, the biggest being I have just cut my breastfeeding down to one feeding at night and this is clearly screwing with my metabolism. But since it isn't socially acceptable orconvenient to have a 10 year old hanging off your boob...I have to deal with the fact that no more breastfeeding=less eating.
This is a reminder that my health, weight and how I feel about myself all need to be a priority and something that I constantly monitor. I am clearly eating too many calories, bottom line.
Soooo, back to myfitnesspal to track my calories for a few weeks. I don't NEED to weight 132 lbs to be happy, but I strongly suspect that if I don't get myself in check I will keep gaining.
Good thing I went to the gym this morning, or I'd be living with serious regret after that weigh in.
I am trying not to get down on myself and not to make excuses. I know that it has to be a combination of factors, the biggest being I have just cut my breastfeeding down to one feeding at night and this is clearly screwing with my metabolism. But since it isn't socially acceptable orconvenient to have a 10 year old hanging off your boob...I have to deal with the fact that no more breastfeeding=less eating.
This is a reminder that my health, weight and how I feel about myself all need to be a priority and something that I constantly monitor. I am clearly eating too many calories, bottom line.
Soooo, back to myfitnesspal to track my calories for a few weeks. I don't NEED to weight 132 lbs to be happy, but I strongly suspect that if I don't get myself in check I will keep gaining.
Good thing I went to the gym this morning, or I'd be living with serious regret after that weigh in.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Damn you 4 lbs.
First off, I finally fixed my blog so anyone can comment. People have mentioned they wanted to comment on posts and could not. I think I have solved that...so comment away!
I really need to do a health check in here because I am trying to step it up this last week before I go back to work.
I am now on the 4th phase of NROLFW's stage 1. I wont bore you again with the details, but basically I am still doing the same exercises, but with less reps and more weight. It has gone well except for a few mornings where a trainer at my gym seems to keep training woman using the exact equipment I need. I guess that is a good thing being that the he sees the exercises as valuable.
The only thing about this program is that I have been slacking off on the days I don't lift. You can only lift every other day, so I have stuck with Mon, Wed, Fri. I should still be waking up Tues, Thurs to do some good cardio, but ever since returning from vacation I am finding it hard to pull myself out of bed when I am not following the program.
I MUST change that this week because I am 4 lbs heavier than when I left for vacation. I do think about a lbs of that weight is muscle gain...but the other 3 is due to slacking and also due to a serious and passionate fling I have been having with frozen yogurt.
There is something about summer that just screams ICE CREAM and lately my husband has been on a "go for a drive and get a frozen yogurt" kick. And I have fully and willingly participated in each and every trip...which I am 100 percent sure is why I am up a few lbs. The thing is, my husband does some pretty serious training 3 days a week, plus he does physical work AND he goes to the gym. He CAN eat frozen yogurt. I am not nearly as active and cannot throw away a days clean eating with such a sugary treat.
So, I have thoroughly enjoyed my cones. I will not regret them at all...but since the scale has not budged downward since returning from vacation...frozen yogurt and I are officially broken up. Maybe we will have one last fling before the snow starts falling, but not until I have myself back to where I was.
I really need to do a health check in here because I am trying to step it up this last week before I go back to work.
I am now on the 4th phase of NROLFW's stage 1. I wont bore you again with the details, but basically I am still doing the same exercises, but with less reps and more weight. It has gone well except for a few mornings where a trainer at my gym seems to keep training woman using the exact equipment I need. I guess that is a good thing being that the he sees the exercises as valuable.
The only thing about this program is that I have been slacking off on the days I don't lift. You can only lift every other day, so I have stuck with Mon, Wed, Fri. I should still be waking up Tues, Thurs to do some good cardio, but ever since returning from vacation I am finding it hard to pull myself out of bed when I am not following the program.
I MUST change that this week because I am 4 lbs heavier than when I left for vacation. I do think about a lbs of that weight is muscle gain...but the other 3 is due to slacking and also due to a serious and passionate fling I have been having with frozen yogurt.
There is something about summer that just screams ICE CREAM and lately my husband has been on a "go for a drive and get a frozen yogurt" kick. And I have fully and willingly participated in each and every trip...which I am 100 percent sure is why I am up a few lbs. The thing is, my husband does some pretty serious training 3 days a week, plus he does physical work AND he goes to the gym. He CAN eat frozen yogurt. I am not nearly as active and cannot throw away a days clean eating with such a sugary treat.
So, I have thoroughly enjoyed my cones. I will not regret them at all...but since the scale has not budged downward since returning from vacation...frozen yogurt and I are officially broken up. Maybe we will have one last fling before the snow starts falling, but not until I have myself back to where I was.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Day 2 NROLFW
I just returned from day 2 of the lifting program. It was almost a no-go after my daughter decided to wake up as my fingers touched the doorknob while walking out the door. If you are a parent you know there is nothing more depressing than when you REALLY need to get something done and you are banking on your kiddos sleeping for a few more hours..and then all of a sudden you hear their "sweet" little cries/ voices. UGGGHH.
So after a falied attempt at rocking her back to sleep as I grumbled in the rocking chair, I decided to wake up the husband and run out the door. I mean you can't quit a program on day 2.
So I successfully did it.
Here is workout 2: stage 1:
15 minutes arc trainer warmup
2 sets of 15 Deadlifts with 10 lbs on each side of bar
Alternatine sets of:
2 sets of 15, Dumbbell shoulder press with 10 lb dumbbels
2 sets of 15 wide-grip lat pul downs 40lbs
Alternatine sets of:
2 sets of 15 (on each leg) lunges with 15 lb dumbbels
2 sets of 12 swiss-ball crunches
Now I am drinking my protein smoothie and dreaming of bigger muscles because I have to do something to block out the 3rd "Little Einstein" episode of the morning. Yes, I am letting my one year old watch TV so I can blog.....so shoot me.
So after a falied attempt at rocking her back to sleep as I grumbled in the rocking chair, I decided to wake up the husband and run out the door. I mean you can't quit a program on day 2.
So I successfully did it.
Here is workout 2: stage 1:
15 minutes arc trainer warmup
2 sets of 15 Deadlifts with 10 lbs on each side of bar
Alternatine sets of:
2 sets of 15, Dumbbell shoulder press with 10 lb dumbbels
2 sets of 15 wide-grip lat pul downs 40lbs
Alternatine sets of:
2 sets of 15 (on each leg) lunges with 15 lb dumbbels
2 sets of 12 swiss-ball crunches
Now I am drinking my protein smoothie and dreaming of bigger muscles because I have to do something to block out the 3rd "Little Einstein" episode of the morning. Yes, I am letting my one year old watch TV so I can blog.....so shoot me.
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