Small Accomplishments

It's important, when working towards any goal, to identify and celebrate the small victories.  So, today, like I sort of expected, I did not wake early.  I did however safely care for our children (it was a little iffy when the three-nager came screaming over from the playground with a river of blood coming from her nose) but everyone is well.

I got a workout in just before dinner. (Dinner was buffalo chicken pasta with the pasta replaced by quinoa)

And I stayed within my calorie allotment.

The reward? Going to bed.  And celebrating 10 years with my hubby tomorrow without worrying about the calories I'll consume in champagne and cupcakes after bedtime.  :)

But I will get a run in...

*Starting Weight*

So, I weighed myself and was shocked I had only gained 4 pounds on my all-drinks and food you can eat vacation of a lifetime (though it's our third time going!).

Today was good- I knew I couldn't be a "clean eater" or anything restrictive right now, so I just tried to stay in my calories.  I went with what MyFitnessPal suggested and came in with 50 left.

I have slight issues with MFP and how it syncs with FitBits but I guess that's another post for another day as it's late and I'm going to try my hardest to get a workout in before everyone is up tomorrow.  I'm not a morning person. Never have been.  But...  I miss getting a workout in before lunchtime.

Starting Weight: 168

Goal Weight: 135 while maintaining milk supply

Let's do it.

Post vacation & baby back to square one...

So, I tried. I tried to stay on top of my exercise routine and MyFitnessPal tracking and you know what? I did pretty darn good!  I gained 35 pounds with my fourth little blessing- a full 20 pounds less than with any prior pregnancy.  And that was in the midst of a cross country move as well.

So, what now?  Well, I'm a breastfeeding momma back from an all inclusive week away with 900 of my dearest business partners and husband and so...  It's time to get back to it. And there's only one real way to get any goal you set- accountability.

This morning, after being rudely brought back to reality (no one handed me a mimosa at breakfast, made my bed while I was running kids all over or had dinner options ready when I walked back in the door), I took my measurements. Tomorrow, I'll take my weight.

My goal? To be back in shape (trained up and ready to earn the coast-to-coast medal in 2016), back to my pre-pregnancy size and all without losing my ability to breastfeed my beautiful baby boy.

How will I do it?  Workouts, manageable eating (after all, I'm a homeschooling momma with a half million dollar sales team to support and run) and regular check ins.

Anyone with me???

Me at 41weeks+

I'll take a starter picture tomorrow.  Not sure I'll post it ;)

A day on my plate :)

I thought I would chronicle a day in what I ate just to show you what this "can" look like and maybe help explain why I do still count calories on this "plan".

This morning started with overnight peanut butter oatmeal. I love this dish- I'd been making it for a few weeks, but realized last night, I hadn't ever added the protein powder.  I added it last night and this morning it was fluffier. It definitely filled me up!  I add chocolate chips, which I think makes it a cross over, but that's okay. I needed the higher carbs for my morning workout. Also coffee with Natural Bliss Sweet Cream coffee creamer (yeah, not giving that up).

42 g protein, 58 g carbs

My workout was great- I did RIPPED and then Zumba for a total calorie burn of 892 calories.  For snack between classes, I had a CLIF Fruit Rope for a little boost.

Lunch? Yummy. 2 pieces of bacon, some shredded cheddar cheese, 3 eggs and 1 T of cream cheese mixed together with a big glass of water. (S)

My indulgent snack?  While running errands, I love a Starbucks so I get to have a grande breve latte with a Chocolate Peanut Butter Quest bar.  It's a higher calorie snack but worth it. It's so yummy and hot and the Quest bar adds needed protein to the snack to keep me going. (S)

Dinner is White Bean Turkey Chili (E or Crossover depending on fat) from SkinnyTaste and I use whole fat sour cream. I do this because the slight increase in calories in the sour cream is worth the feeling of being full longer.  My kids love this recipe, mostly. I'm also making corn muffins for the kids.

Dessert? I love this Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake in a Mug with fat free whipped cream on top.

You'll notice, not many vegetables...  Yeah, that's why I need to calorie count. If these meals were balanced out with higher bulk veggies, the calories wouldn't add up so quick on me, but they do.  Here's my screenshot from MFP and my FitBit steps for the day :)  Technically, I have over 200 calories left, but I will prob assume that my sour cream in my chili being full fat made up for some of those and see if I'm still hungry at the end of the day.

At the almost 1/2 way mark in this pregnancy, I want to be responsible- not eat too much but enough. If I gain less than 50 pounds, it'll be my "best managed" weight gain of all 4 babies...

Anyway, I hope this helps.  I'll also try to diary a day where I don't do a high intensity workout.

Check in!

Im pretty happy! At almost 19 weeks, I'm at a 10 lb weight gain. My goal isn't to restrict the natural pregnancy weigh gain but to limit excess so I feel really good about this!

I plan to continue to exercise, adjusting intensity as needed, count calories & weigh in weekly just to keep myself informed. And drink LOTS of water :)

Checking in with an Update! :)

So, I'm back!  I have good news to report so far.  I am officially weighing in tomorrow, giving me almost 5 days to recover from an east coast trip...  The problem with being pregnant and living in an area that doesn't have your comfort foods readily available is that when you DO go to a place where you can obtain such foods, you may go overboard. :)  I enjoyed Chick Fil A, Cracker Barrel, Panera and even brought bagels home all while at a leadership retreat in South Carolina last weekend.  There is an amazing place here where we do live that has a delicious brunch, so instead of going right back to eating well, we dropped the kids at a child care spot and hubby and I enjoyed a kid-free brunch where we could catch up.  It was so nice. And I will definitely miss the grilled biscuits and gravy from that little spot.

So, in my last post, I mentioned that I love the tanks from Old Navy for workouts.  I happened to have pics to show the difference between the regular compression tank and the maternity style.  Regular is on the right, maternity on the left. Pics were taken 2 days apart.

I've been back on Trim Healthy Mama but with the calorie tracking.  I really have to do this. I know that a big benefit to THM is that you won't need to calorie count in theory, but I just have such a taste for heavier calorie meals that I can't balance them out with veggies/lower calorie options to make it balanced overall.  I have to be very intentional.  The good news is that I've tried new things as a result.  

Last night, we have a hamburger gravy (with seasoning not in the recipe linked) over creamy whipped cauliflower. 

Today looked like this:

Breakfast- Overnight Peanut Butter Oatmeal with mini chocolate chips (crossover)

Coffee with creamer (not really on plan but accounted for in my calories and minimal sugar)

Lunch- (s) meal

Quest Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar (on plan)

Grande Breve Latte, Starbucks 

Snack- (s)
Cheesy Biscuits and patty

Dinner- Off plan/Crossover
Pork tenderloin with BBQ sauce (sauce has <4 g sugar)
served over a baked potato and topped with cheese

I had a couple potatoes from our weekly basket and didn't want them to go bad, so am using them up.
I am going to finish at just 3 calories over plan and am sure I'll figure out a way to cancel those out. Not worried ;)

For exercise, I did 50 minutes of Zumba then 30 mins of walking on a treadmill.  My FitBit Charge HR is on its way but not arrived yet, so am using a polar hr monitor still.  The benefit is I have an accurate count of calories burned.

Tomorrow is typically a pizza night, so I am going to use a THM crust this time and make it work. I really want to make this work and keep the weight gain under control this time.  Any good thoughts and encouragement would be appreciated!!!!

16 week work out and Maternity Work Out Clothes Recommendations

Hi!  So, I've been doing great with my workouts since I last posted, tracking with MyFitnessPal and using the Trim Healthy Mama "plan" to manage my food.

Today is week 16 (or 16w3d depending on whose date you trust more- me or the OB) and I did a RIPPED class plus 30 mins on the elliptical in heart rate mode.  The thought crossed my mind of how long I'll be able to do burpees but as long as I can without feeling bad, I will.  Or at least modify them when I realize I need to. ;)

I have to rave about 2 new items I've found during this pregnancy. The first is these tops from Old Navy.  I actually love the regular one for first and even second trimester pregnancy because it gives you some room but support in the bust as well.  Sadly the maternity one is less structured at the top which is a miss if you ask me.  If you shop Old Navy, be sure you're using ebates.  Yay free money.

The second items are the pants.  I have tried a lot of maternity pants (this being baby #4) and these are my favorite.  I love them. I bought 3 pairs and my awesome hubby makes sure there is a pair clean for me on work out days.  They don't fall off.  I just started wearing them maybe 2 weeks ago and won't go back. The back crosses over so it doesn't go super high and helps you not overheat at the gym.  Love!

BeMaternity Active Pants

In the picture above I was wearing the legging style and I did feel these shifted a little more for some reason, maybe they run bigger? But seriously nothing compared to other pants I've worn and I won't stop wearing them.  My Target had a capri option that I wore last week and again, love. I am not kidding. Best maternity work out pants ever.

Now, I do back to back workouts 2-3 times/week and you do have to eat between classes if you ask me.  It's just too much of a deplete otherwise and I don't have the ability to push in the next class if I don't.  I love these:

And my water bottle,  You must replace water if you're working out even if you're not pregnant but especially if you are. (mine is purple)

Ok, that's my feedback for ya so far!  I hope it's helpful.