How I'm Trying To Lose Weight and Get Fit

Today's lunch. (I had half the fish.
 The other half I ate for supper.)

Some of you might remember that I posted 5.5 months ago, when I was 6.5 weeks postpartum, that I wanted to lose weight, and how I would try to lose weight. The reason that I wanted to lose weight was because I was over 40 lbs more than the upper range of my ideal weight, and that scared me. I felt like a fat blob...
Well, over the last 5.5 months I did lose weight. Between 15 and 20 lbs. Not sure how much is from how I was eating and how much because of nursing (and tandem nursing to boot), and while I am glad my weight went down 15-20 lbs, I still have a long way to go... but my body seemed to have plateaued at this certain weight, 25 lbs above my upper end of my ideal weight range.
And I keep on getting people asking me if I'm pregnant. No, for the record.

I was trying to decide whether or not I should just "learn to be happy with my body" and not try to lose weight... but honestly, I would like to be a little less fat, would like to lose cellulite, and would like to be able to go clothes shopping more easily and/or fit into my old clothes better. Not to mention that I'd like people to stop asking me if I'm pregnant.

A friend recommended to me this program called "No Excuse Moms" which caused a little bit of an uproar and controversy back when, but in short, she says there's always an excuse why not to try to lose weight, etc... but being a mom isn't an excuse. In short, she has a program and a group to try to encourage and motivate moms to get fit and lose weight.
I read through the program and it sounded very up my alley. Not extreme overboard, cutting out carbs or fat or both- but rather sticking to healthier fats and keeping the carbs healthier- and only minimizing carbs past a certain hour. And stopping to eat minimum 3 hours before bed, but ideally by 7 pm.
It also includes a certain amount of exercise on a regular basis.
And you're allowed one cheat meal per week- but it should be planned.


So I joined this Facebook group and now I'm surrounded by a group of like minded moms- moms who are trying to lose weight, and get in shape- and are going to do it in a healthier way- no fake sugars, no processed "diet foods", etc... And seeing all these moms and seeing what they've been able to accomplish has been really inspiring for me.

I officially decided to join the group 8 days ago.

Since then I've been working on cutting down my carbs- since I think that's probably my biggest thing causing me to stay heavier- I used to live off carbs, then I've gradually reduced my need for them. I'm certainly not cutting them out, but for the most part I'm doing Paleo and/or GAPS diet approved carbs- legumes (mainly lentils and split peas), sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pumpkin, carrots, bananas and other fruit... I am having other carbs, like the occasional gluten free grains, and potatoes- but much smaller servings, and ideally not more than once, maximum twice a day.
Basically- I've been heaving diets heavy on the produce, and ideally less carby produce, plus some carbs every meal, though trying to concentrate the carbs for breakfast, have less for lunch, and even less for supper. And then having protein every meal. I'm doing legumes sometimes for my carb and my protein for meals, but for supper I am trying to have an animal based protein and very little carbs.
And while I am including fats, I am trying not to go overboard. Like I had avocado today- a quarter avocado with my lunch and a quarter avocado with my supper. But I'm not deep frying at the moment- though I will drizzle things with olive oil or sesame oil or whatever...
I am following my body's cues- when I first started this, I was doing no grains, and too low carb, etc... And I realized it was making me a little light headed. So I am making sure to have some "heavier carb" meals and then it's great.
To make this doable, both from a work perspective and from a financial perspective- I am making separate meals for myself and my husband/kids. No one in my family needs to lose weight other than myself- my husband and kids are all very slim- they should not be eating low carb/diet friendly foods. So I am making them simpler foods, occasionally we're having our meals overlap. Like if I make a salad, I'll take a bigger portion for myself, give some to the kids and hubby along with their carbs and proteins, and make a separate protein for myself. (Something I often did anyhow since I can't have cow dairy or eggs which the rest of my family does have.)
I also am serving the same thing for a few meals sometimes for myself- eating leftovers for breakfast, etc... making a bigger batch and spicing it differently for different meals, maybe. Or even the exact same thing for two meals in a row. That's cool with me, so long as the food tastes good. Which I'm making sure of.

Another big thing I'm working on is portion control. I have a self control issue when it comes to food- I eat way too much; even if the food is healthy, that doesn't mean I can eat unlimited amounts without gaining weight... So I'm really working hard on deciding before the meal how much I'll be eating, and eating only that, no more. It's hard, and I'm not always successful, but I'm making progress there.

Another self control issue is I like to snack before bed. I sometimes eat the most junk right before bed. I'm working hard on not eating past 7 pm, or even 6 pm- my goal is to wake up hungry in the morning, not satiated, so that I can have a nice breakfast to start my day off. Most days I've been good about this, though I occasionally don't manage.

I've also been getting more active- because it's not just diet that needs to change- I need to burn calories and speed up my metabolism via activity, in addition to building muscle.

In short, I have three things I want to work on- cardio/aerobic activity, and especially improving my endurance so I can exercise for more than a few minutes without getting winded, plus exercises to strengthen my abs and thighs and glutes, and strength training.

For cardio, I have started running. There's this program called C25K- standing for Cough to 5 Kilometers- turning you from a "couch potato" to being able to run 5 kilometers in one go, in 8 weeks. There's a bunch of apps you can download- I got this free one- and I've been liking it so far. All I know so far about it is the first week's training sessions- you start off with a 5 minute walk to warm up, then it tells you to run for 60 seconds, then walk for 90 seconds, then run then walk, etc... 8 times, and then you walk for 5 minutes more to cool down. It's very managable since it breaks down the running into smaller, doable chunks. Don't get me wrong- it's still very hard, and I'm sweaty like a dog and my heart is racing after I finished, but I manage to do the whole thing, and am not just dragging my feet home...

I'm also doing exercises at home. As much as I know I can just do my own exercises that I make up, and I have done that- I find it easier to follow along with a video. That way I know exactly how much to push myself, to know how much is doable, so I don't stop before I should.

I like this Jillian Michael's 30 day shred video- there are others with other levels, but this is level one where I'm up to.

And then there's fitness blender's calorie burning workout.

Since I don't have weights, when these call for weights, I just use closed 1 liter lemon juice bottles in each hand instead of weights and it works well.

Because my biggest problem generally is keeping at something, I really like the motivation I get from this group.
And for the past 8 days, I haven't gone a single day without exercising. I'm trying to rotate exercising different parts of my body, letting my muscles rest as needed. But I've been on a roll and I'm really proud of myself.
And I just feel really good. My stomach feels great with this current diet as well.

I even think I can see a difference in my belly already! My husband also sees a difference.

I am buying a new digital scale for myself- I broke the last one- because I would like to be able to track my progress- and I bought new running shoes for myself since my sneakers are falling apart... So hopefully I'll make good use with them.

And here's to more progress!

Anyone successfully lost weight? How much did you lose? Did you lose it in a healthy way? Did you manage to keep it off?
Anyone trying to lose weight? How much are you trying to lose, and how far along are you so far? What are you trying to do to lose weight?
What's your favorite at home workout routine?

Linking up to WFMW, Real Food Wednesday, Fat Tuesday, Mostly Homemade Monday,