Work it out...

I like to work out. Really.

I love the rush of endorphins.
I like my clothes fitting properly.
I like to eat like a pig.

The main reason I work out is mainly so I don't have to monitor my food intake as much.

I still have to watch my portions and make sure I'm getting enough protein, but I can splurge some if I'm working out!

Typically, you will find me in the living room working it out with Sean T. from Insanity. Huge fan of his videos. LOVE them.

I work out at home with DVD's because -
1. Gym's with childcare cost waaaaaaaaaaaay more than a DVD
2. Getting my booty to the gym....unloading the children...timing it with 2 schools, and 2 naps.....reloading children....getting back home....is entirely too exhausting of an evolution for this woman.
3. I can squeeze in a HARD 45 minute workout, 5 minute shower, 10 minute make-myself-presentable...and be ready for the day - in ONE HOUR.

Lest I paint myself in a more favorable picture than is true - I have worked out only 1 time per week for the month of October.  Over the Spring/Summer I was working out 3-5 times a week, but it took me awhile to figure out the groove for our schedule with the new school routine. AND once I had it figured out...My Love went away for 3 1/2 weeks.

I wanted to give the world an accurate picture of my workouts....

the Beans are exceptionally helpful.

Boy Bean loves to climb over my back when I do planks

They all love to crawl through my legs when I'm doing squats

Sometimes - Boy Bean will actually hang on to my waist while I'm holding a plie....which makes it ridiculously hard, but I don't stop him - because I figure it must be helping somehow! :)

There is a sneak peak into the workouts at this house.....what do yours look like??

(all photos were taken by String Bean....over the summer....and on that particular day I was actually doing Kenpo from P90X)

~Whitney
 Copyright 2012

Workin' It Out...

Soooo, you know how I ran that 1/2 marathon over Labor Day weekend?

(2 whole months ago.)

And you know how I've stated loud and clear that I love to run?

And thoroughly enjoy working out?

How I even miss it during late pregnancy and post-partum?

Well, ummmmmm.....that makes this kinda awkward.

I haven't worked out. Or run. AT ALL. Since my race.  ZERO. 

(Yeah, that was 2 whole months ago.)

And you know what? I'm okay with that.  I will get back to working out - but right now, I'm going through my expectations on myself and carefully examining them to see what is REALLY important.

Notice a lack of bloggage lately?? Yeah, well, that was on the chopping block also.

I just don't see the need to beat myself up over stuff not getting done that doesn't have to get done in the first place! 

So, I've relieved myself of the requirements of working out, blogging, and just basically working every second I'm awake. And you know what? It is totally AWESOME! Who says I need to do all the stuff I think I need to do?

I mean, really, will the world stop turning if I go to bed without wiping my counters down? 

I will be honest (that's what I do!) I have still not lost all my pregnancy weight. 

And I am sleeping just fine at night. 

Who cares if I don't look like a movie star? 

Or don't have the same body I had at 20? 

Why do I think I should look the same?! 

This body has carried and birthed 4 human beings - 4 people!!! - and has sustained life consecutively since October of 2008.
(Can you say 'Identity crisis' for whenever Boy Bean finishes nursing?! But more on that another day)

Working out and blogging will pick back up again sometime...

hopefully soon....but until then I'm giving myself a break.  

(But not with a kit-kat cuz those are gross)

Copyright 2011

The Check WILL Come!

So yesterday, something amazing happened.

I mean, totally-awesome-I'm-utterly-impressed-with-myself, AMAZING!

I ran.  On a trail.

For the longest distance and time I've ever done.

In. My. Life.

Granted, it was only 4 miles in 40 minutes - but I was riding high afterwards.

I was never one who wanted to exercise - ever.  But then I started being a constant Pod for Beans.  And suddenly, my metabolism decided to plummet.

Actually, it felt like my metabolism came to a sudden and complete stop.

Hence, my introduction to exercise.

Now, 4 beans later, I have begun training for my first ever 1/2 marathon.

 I started training for a 1/2 marathon when Bitty Bean was 2 months old, but injured my knee before race-day. I was doctor-ordered to rest for 4 months to let it heal.  Before the four months were up, the Pod was occupied with Boy Bean.

But I digress.

So here I am, an almost-29-year-old mama, forcing myself to lumber across track, field, and road, seeking a check mark on my bucket list.

My goal: 

Run the 13.1 miles of the Rock 'N Roll 1/2 Marathon in September in 130 minutes.

Will I succeed?  I don't know. I mean, at this point, the farthest I've ever run - IN MY LIFE - is the 4 mile/40 minute trail run of yesterday.  But it felt good. It was actually fun!  My body was strong and I was accomplishing a goal that was not mom-related.

I don't have to run to change diapers faster, fold laundry better, or clean my house more thoroughly.


It is for me.

As the woman I was pre-kids, the woman I want to be, the woman I'm capable of becoming.

And, I really, REALLY, like how less of my body jiggles with each mile.

Copyright 2011

I've lost it.

Not really. Actually, I've hardly lost any...weight that is. With my 23 pound weight gain with Boy Bean I thought it would really just disappear VERY fast this time around. (In comparison to the 55/55/35 pounds I gained with each of the girls, respectively.)

I was wrong.

My Boy Bean is now 8 weeks old....and I have lost a TOTAL from when-he-was-IN-my-belly-till-now of 10 pounds. TEN. He weighed 6 pounds 3 ounces. And ALL that water-weight....and I still have only waved goodbye to ten actual pounds.

Slightly discouraging.

On the up-side (Because there is one most of the time)....
This is my first baby born in the winter. So it gives me months before I can wear shorts or...horror-of-horrors...a swimsuit. And since I would look rather insane wearing a circa 1920's swimsuit.....I'm pretty thankful for getting to keep my body under wraps for a few more months.
I've also seen 8 1/2 inches around my abdomen disappear. Which would be super-awesome....except when you stop and consider a HUMAN BEING was inside there. Then it isn't so impressive. I mean, I had 19 1/4 inches of squirming-kick-boxing-human squashed in there...so you'd figure my inches would drop a tad.

Which is exactly what has happened.

This all means - as usual - I will have to work to lose weight. Oh the injustice! Shouldn't the weight just fly off your post-baby body? It isn't like I'm already running around like a crazy woman trying to hold back the tide of dishes-laundry-mess that threatens to overtake our home at every turn. Nor am I being lazy and sleeping....instead, most of my waking moments are spent feeding someone in the house....and rarely is it myself. Now I get to add in to my day...somewhere...working out.  Which is fine - because I actually really enjoy fitness  - but frustrating because I don't know where it will get squished in.

Oh well. It will all come off in the end....I just would rather have my cake and eat it too. 

Chocolate preferably.

Copyright 2011

I got the blues...

The post-baby-body-blues.

Well, technically it isn't primarily the body...although we'll get to that later....it is mostly the wardrobe. I'm frustrated by my clothes. Not so much by them not fitting exactly right  - even though I have a spectrum of sizes to choose from - but by how little they reflect the me-I-am-now.

Here's the deal:

I have been...pretty much.....constantly pregnant since 2005. 2005. Wow. I've been pregnant and/or nursing 51 of the 72 months since January 2005. That stat basically explains why the majority of my clothing is maternity. 

Now, I have absolutely nothing against maternity clothes. 

I mean, I actually grew quite fond of much of my maternity wardrobe...although I would love to have a celebratory bonfire for the underwear. 

But in these years that I have lived out of my maternity bin, I figured out my style.

My basic maternity clothes stayed the same since my pregnancy with String Bean....but due to extreme differences in belly size....I needed a couple new pieces each time around. During the last trimester of each pregnancy I had three options -
1) buy something new
2) borrow something new-to-me, or
3) go naked.

Since I really didn't feel like paying for therapy for the general public....I stuck with the first two options. 

Anyway, back to the style problem. Over the 4 pregnancies, I figured out what I like. What works for me and my lifestyle. The image I want to have. Unfortunately, very few of my non-pregnant clothes fit into any of those categories.

Which brings me to my body.

It is amazing how much more confidence you can have when you are pleased with how you are presenting yourself...even when the body isn't how you want it.

Or, at least, that is how I feel. 

So, this love-pot-belly of mine is really not that frustrating....except when I have to try and get dressed. Because, not only am I frustrated with the body the clothes are going on.....I'm frustrated with the clothes going on the body. 

Which isn't really the end of the world...I mean, noone will be harmed by my outfit not reflecting "me"....but my selfish/vain/shallow self would really, really enjoy my pregnancy wardrobe just re-worked for everyday.

Which would be possible if my circumference didn't increase by 25 inches with each pregnancy.

I'm not planning and going out and collecting an entire new wardrobe in a weekend....I would like to stay married to My Love....I just have to figure  out how to make what I've got, work.

Because, really, walking around naked is just NOT an option.

Copyright 2011

Casing the joint...

There was nothing so wonderful as the complete ignorance about, well, pretty much everything regarding health and fitness - with which I entered college. Somehow, I thought a steady diet of large Papa John's pizzas, easy mac'n'cheese, ramen noodles, ice cream, and potato chips would not cause me to gain weight.

I was wrong.

I had NO idea that you actually would need to buy larger underwear if you gained enough. I was in severe denial - so I didn't - instead, I remained extremely confused about the indentations left on my hips. 

I was a busy bee back then - but none of that busyness involved any form of exercise.
Unless you count walking up the 2 flights of stairs to my dorm room.
Yeah, me neither.

 I enjoyed every bite. I did not, however, realize exactly how much I had gained. The fact that my stomach, butt, and thighs, had grown exponentially from September to April became crystal clear to me in a moment I will never forget:

I had my favorite jeans on - Union Bay symbols of comfort, does that age me? Do they even sell Union Bay any more??? - and had a severe case of the giggles. In my fit of laughter, I suddenly folded over...and the butt pockets of my jeans flipped up. And OFF my pants.

They had been stretched to capacity and could no longer hold this freshman in her jean casing.

With the diet listed above, I managed to gain 20 pounds my freshman year. Oh what lucky people gain the freshman fifteen!


Lucky for me, I didn't have to work to lose any of it. Instead, the summer after my freshman year, I came down with a severe case of Mono. . . and lost almost 30 pounds. 

For the record - even though it is known as "The kissing disease," it is really NOT fun. At all. But it was a pretty easy way to lose weight....kinda hard to eat when your throat is swollen-almost-closed.

Honestly, that is pretty much how my weight was managed until I started procreating. I would eat like crap, be a total lazy butt, and then get sick-as-a-dog and lose loads of weight. While it did enable me to not think about health/weight/diet, I wouldn't really recommend it!  

Unfortunately, my metabolism - which was like that of a hamster, courtesy of my Dad - went on permanent vacation with Pregnancy #1. Thanks go to String Bean for showing me that weight is very, very fun to put on....and very, very hard to take off. 

But I still spent 2 more years trying to squeeze into my jeans....in complete denial of the work I would need to put in. Thankfully, no more jeans were harmed due to my slow learning curve. 

Copyright 2010

All that is gained....

....Does NOT like to be lost. 

Starting point: round 4

Seriously. What IS it about pregnancy weight-gain? I'm not asking for every-single-pound-gained to suddenly disappear when you deliver....but at least the amount the baby weighs to be lost - that would be nice. (Although the fully-disappearing-weight would be nice too!)

Before you say something like "your baby is not even 3 weeks old! What are you worried about?!" Hear me out....all the way out.

With Boy Bean I gained drastically less weight than I did with the other 3 pregnancies.

And I'm going to say the exact numbers because it really is relevant.  

With String Bean and Jumping Bean I gained 55 pounds each time. Fifty-five. 

String Bean in the pod

That whole "eat for two" idea? Well, I fully embraced it. 

Unfortunately, I didn't realize that most of the pregnancy, the other person you are eating for is not a pro-linebacker. . . they are actually smaller than a cantaloupe. 

Jumping Bean in the pod

Anyway. With Bitty Bean I gained 35 pounds...and I was very proud of myself!

Bitty Bean in the pod

Boy Bean in the pod

But with this man-child, I only gained 23 pounds...bear in mind he was 3 weeks early - so I was on target to gain exactly what I was supposed to. Lucky for me, Boy Bean didn't have me craving Hardee's thickburgers, bbq, and ice-cream, like the girls did....I just wanted LOTS of fruit. AND I really didn't have time to eat. So, that makes it a lot easier to not gain weight. I would actually make myself eat - even if I wasn't hungry - if the opportunity presented itself!

Now, I am not a person where the weight just melts away....I have had to work....very hard...to get it off.
With String Bean it took 14 months....I got pregnant one month later.
With Jumping Bean it took 12 months....I got pregnant one month later.
With Bitty Bean it took 6 months....we were shocked I didn't get pregnant until she was 10 months old!

So far, I have lost 8 pounds. Eight. When you consider the fact that my son weighed 6lbs 3oz and I lost (what felt like) 25 gallons of water....you would think it would tally up to a little more than eight. Apparently not.

So I have decided to chronicle my journey back to myself to (hopefully) encourage someone else out there who is struggling to find time to work out....or say "no" to the oh-so-tempting-food that should be directly applied to my stomach.

2.5 weeks post-Boy Bean

I tenderly call my post-baby tummy - which is where all of my fat goes - my "love-pot" because if the fat rolls on the side are "love-handles"....

Oh well. My body will have a break for the rest of the month and then I will get to start working out again. I have really really missed running and working out hard!

More on that shocking sentence another day....

I'd love to know how you manage your healthy weight!  

Copyright 2010