Fit

For the last few months, I've been losing it -- weight, that is.  Towards the end of November, a mom friend and I began walking at Edwin Warner Park, often with the kids, and I figured it was as good a reason as any to try and lose the extra weight and inches that were keeping me out of my pre-pregnancy pants.  Some of it was weight I hadn't lost after my pregnancy with Emme, and some of it was weight I had started to put on because of little exercise and poor eating habits.  I lost a lot of weight after my pregnancy with Oliver -- around 30 pounds -- and for the first time in as long as I could remember, I kind of liked the way I looked.  I didn't gain much with Emme, but I didn't put a lot of work into losing the pregnancy pounds after she was born.  And so by fall, I was starting to not fit into some of my "loose" pants.  And that wasn't a good sign.

And so I started with food.  I cut calories quickly, trying to get used to a lower-calorie diet, and focused on that more than exercise.  I went walking periodically, but it was a plus, not the main focus.  I managed that pretty well for about a month -- focusing on what I ate, how much, and how often.  I stopped the "grazing" that often happened when I worked from home, ate more salads, and cut out basically all soda.  I also switched to unsweetened tea and started drinking a lot more water.  One thing that really helped me was also focusing on how I felt.  I've always had digestive issues -- everything from horrible abdominal pain to a perpetually unsettled stomach to bloating and constipation.  But I feel better when I eat better and don't consume too much fat.  So if I can just remind myself of that when I'm tempted by, say, cake, I can keep my diet under control.

With a better fix on what I was eating, I slowly switched over to exercise.  I started with walking, and walking lots of steep hills.  Then I started jogging.  Just 2-3 miles at first, on a flat surface, alternating walking and running until I could go a bit further.  I have done some running in the past.  When I was studying abroad in Germany, I did a 30k (around 19 miles) in the Swiss Alps and lots of running in preparation.  But I haven't done that kind of running since.  Since then, I've gotten in much better shape and now run a faster 3-6 miles and can run confidently up to around 10 miles.  I'm doing the half-marathon here in Nashville come late April, just as a fun activity to motivate my miles.  I've been swimming a few times, which is good for my joints but harder to find time for.  We actually bought a treadmill (and a TV and Blu-Ray player) in early January and installed the whole "workout room" in our garage so that I'm able to run even when the kids are home and resting.  (Wes uses it, too, but has problems with his knees, especially the one that is missing the meniscus.)  I run while I watch movies, which makes me feel healthier, more energized, and somehow also like I had fun!  I also run outside when the weather and time permits, but the "workout room" makes it easier to be more consistent.

So I'm slowly getting more fit.  I'd still like to increase strength in my upper body and core and reduce the fat right at my belly (which I'm not sure I can entirely blame on the babies).  The big payoff is that all of my clothes now fit and look a lot nicer when I wear them.  I'm not someone to put a lot of importance on a number like weight, but it is important to me that I like how I look, feel good, and can keep up with kids.  That said, I'm happy to say that I've lost 11.5 pounds in the last 12 weeks and am officially at my pre-pregnancy weight.  I don't have any particular goal to lose more but hope that I can keep up my fitness regimen and healthy diet for the duration.