Losing that baby weight!

The 4 Moms of Many addressed losing the baby weight today and I wanted to chime in.  For one thing, I'm just interested in weight and fitness.  I majored in Sports Medicine, swam competitively for 15 years, and still try to maintain some semblance of physical fitness.  For another, I've survived 5 pregnancies and births!

Interestingly, I tried something slightly different after each of my pregnancies, although they all included exercise and watching what I ate.

1.  I was 26 when I had my first, a boy.  He nursed like a champ and the 40 lbs I had gained with him just seemed to melt off.  I also swam and walked whenever I had the chance.  (P.S.  I swam between 2,000 and 3,000 yards daily while pregnant with him, so that probably helped, too.)

2.  I was 28 when I had my second, a girl who was not particularly interested in nursing, though I persisted for 6 months.  I knew after Twinkle Toes that I was going to have to try something "extra" to lose the weight I gained with her.  My mom was working for weight watchers at the time so I attended meetings and weigh-ins and loosely followed the points plan (meaning I paid more attention to eating the freebies, but didn't really count every point.)

3.  I was 30 when I had Measle Bug and had not exercised much during my pregnancy with her, except for walking up and down three flights of stairs several times a day (grad school building).  So I took up running after Measle.  I ran pretty seriously for several years and the weight fell off.  (Have you ever known a runner who was fat?  Just sayin'...)  But it was tough and time consuming and eventually after spending a month in Kazakhstan where we adopted Prince, my first year of teaching college, I got out of the habit and just couldn't get back into it.  I was thinner at 31-33 than pre-kids.

4.  Queen was our first quiverfull baby and I was pretty freaked out about being an "older" mom (if you consider 35 as being older, which of course I now see as silly).  I swam and walked religiously throughout my pregnancy with her.  Surprisingly, I didn't do much after having her, though.  Maybe this is why I never lost that last 5-10 lbs.  ( I could probably also blame this on taking up blogging.  Not exactly a high caloric expenditure activity!)

5.  My pregnacy with Calvin was filled with walking, walking, and more walking.  I often walked twice a day with him and sometimes did circuit weights while waiting at the gym for my kids.  I swam a few times, but just couldn't get it in the schedule consistently like with Queen.  I even ran some at the end of the pregnancy, but am afraid that may have contributed to his tweaked head, poor kid.  Calvin nursed like a champ right from the beginning, which helped the big weight melt off.  When Calvin was 6 and a half months old I started Insanity and am 24 days in right now.  Supposedly I'll be in the best shape of my life in another 40 days, so time will tell.  I'm enjoying the challenge and am amazed at how out of shape I had let myself become.  (Guess I've been living in denial : ).

My diet hasn't changed much over the last 15 years or so.  I'm a simple person and like simple food.  Often I eat crackers and peanut butter or crackers and cheese for lunch or dinner while my family eats something else I've prepared, especially if it borders on "home cookin'".  I also eat Total Raisin Bran for breakfast most mornings even when I make the kids waffles, pancakes, cinnamon rolls, etc.  I don't buy chips or sodas so I don't eat and drink them.  A couple of years ago I started the bad habit of drinking those fancy high caloric coffee drinks like frapuccinos and mochas.  I'm trying to cut back to 3 or 4 days a week.  I also love a nightly cup of hot cocoa and if it's been a really tough day, two cups.  I joke that I drink most of my calories, but that may not be far from the truth!  I eat lots of fruit, some veggies, and gummy vites, though I'm sure I'm just paying for expensive urine (another post.)  I have started making homemade bread, bagels, etc. and do indulge in those tasty treats with peanut butter or honey when they're around.  (I try not to keep them around too much : ).  I'm also addicted to Kimberly's granola bars (though I do cut the sugar to 1/2 c) and make them at least once a week.  I also eat lots of nutty granola (WW magazine recipe) with yogurt.

All this to say that while my body has shifted here and there over the years (use your imagination), I'm still the same size I was in high school. 

Finally, I want to share a Scripture verse that has meant a lot to me in the food department through the years, whether I was struggling with not eating enough or with eating too much.

Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Mathew 6:25