Runing while it H-O-T! and some stats

Well, we have had heat advisories for the past couple of days.  Like it's not hard enough to get out and run, now it's just down right HOT.  I went out yesterday with the kids at 9:00am and got my 5 miles in.  But I can tell you I was drenched in sweat when we returned home (and I am not a big sweater either). 

I would love to go out early in the morning, but it's just not realistic with little A not sleeping through the night.  Hopefully, in the next couple of months his sleep will be a little more predictable and I will be able to get out there and log some miles while everyone is still asleep.  Right now, he is waking up at 2:00, 5:00-5:30, and then at 7:00-7:30am.  At 5:00am, he usually won't fall back asleep unless he is in bed with us, so that I what we have been doing with him (and by us, I mean me).  I feed him in bed and then he falls back asleep.  I guess I could get up then maybe, I am afraid he is going to immediately wake up as soon as I leave, and then I will get it from the hubs when I return that little A woke up and was hungry.  I don't know, maybe I will try it one day and see how it goes.  Any advice from the peanut gallery on this (yes, I am still BFing exclusively).

Some stats for ya
Little A turned 4 months old on Sunday and he rolled over for the first time on Sunday too.  He went to the ped yesterday and he thriving.  He is up to 14lb. 4oz (25%tile).

My stats
Last week I hit my goal range for pre-preg weight.  According to Dr. Oz's book (it was on clearance for $3.99 on bn.com), you should have a range, not just one specific number.  I have always had a range along with a number.  My range is the number plus or minus 2 lbs., so last week I hit my number + 1.6lb., so I have considered that to be pre-preg.   So I made it back to my pre-preg weight in just under 4 months.  With Hope it was 4 1/2 months (gained a little more weight).  But both times, I did it slowly and other than my mental breakdown at the beginning, I didn't stress about it, just ate well and exercised.  The last 4 lbs. though, I really relaxed about though.  I lost 3lbs. in 5 weeks.  I know some people see that they are so close and try to crash diet or starve themselves to get there, but I read somewhere a long time ago, that when you only have those last few pounds, take it slow (0.5 -1.0 lb/week) and they will stay off.  I have since adopted that mentality and it has worked for me.

Running
In June, I logged 69.68 miles.  If I had known I was so close, I would have tried for 70.  Oh well, I am still getting back into running/training mode, so I will let it slide.  And at the end of June, I had logged 315.19 miles for the year.  Not too bad considering on Jan. 1 I was 7 months pg and then had a baby and had to recover.  My goal is 750 miles this year and I know I can log a lot more miles during the second half of the year compared to the first, so I am feeling good about that. 

I am trying to figure out my races for the fall.  Any races you like that I should do?  Especially ones in the ATL?

Hodgepodge post

Holiday
Well I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day (especially the Mothers).  Mine was wonderful.  The weekend started off with my first race since my son was born.  It wasn't a great race.  Too crowded and I didn't start up far enough so my time was terrible (30:54 for a 5k).  Then we went to brunch (my favorite meal).  On Sunday, the husband made me cornflake crusted french toast with strawberries (I am not a fan of syrup).  He also gave me a wonderful necklace with 3 charms/pendants for it (H, A, and love) for my beautiful children.  Unfortuantely, 2 of the charms don't fit and we tried to return it so they could fix it, but they were already closed.  :(  Hopefully we will get it fixed sometime this week, I want to wear it. 

Of course, Mother's Day is very bittersweet, but I tried to be a good sport about it on Sunday.  I know it bothers the husband when I am bummed out on holidays. 

Exercise
I am still holding myself to running 3 days a week, yoga once a week, and abs once a week.  I have been able to do it for a couple of weeks now and have started to increase my mileage some (4 miles at a time minimum).  Unfortuantely, I am running either in the late morning or afternoon and the temperatures are starting to increase.  I guess if it gets too hot, I will have to go back to the mill (not a fan).

Weight loss
Well I am down another couple of pounds and have 7 more pounds to go (my son is 8.5 weeks old).  Not too bad.  I am eating more veggies (think salads most days for lunch), very little dairy (not totally vegan, because I just can't avoid my ice cream, but no cheese really), and mostly whole foods.  My go to snack when I am on the run is a Larabar.  My current favorites are peanut butter and jelly and peanut butter cookie, but they are all very good.  I am also drinking a lot of water, both for weight loss and nursing.  I have been very happy with my progress over the past couple of weeks.   

These 6 weeks have flown by

I can't believe my little boy is already 6 weeks old already.  He is growing so fast.  Even me, who sees him everyday, all day, can see the changes in him.  His cheeks are getting so full and round; they are adorable.  His legs are also starting to fill out (he started off with some real bird legs), but the boy still has no butt.  Don't know where he gets that from.  :)

So I had my 6 week post-partum appointment as well.  All is good.  I checked out just fine and am good to go.  So of course, I celebrated with a 3 mile run.  I an tell you that I had been taking it easy after my OMG moment I have to lose all the baby weight and get back into running shape immediately.  I had only been running a couple of times period since then.  I feel much better that I have to.  (Thanks for all the great comments).  I am going to try get back easy.  That is going to be hard.  I am an all or nothing kind of person.  I feel like I should work out everyday, but I know that is not possible right now.  I am going to be make a goal to run 3 times a week, and of course, it won't be for long runs at the beginning.  I am also try to do some yoga.  I will keep you posted.

Thanks for the cyber hugs

Thanks for the great comments on my last post.  I don't know why I am so anxious about losing the baby weight.  I was not like this last time.  So weird.  I feel like a failure so much recently.  I feel like I am  not getting enough done around the house, not spending enough time with the daughter doing things she would want to do, not making great dinners, not losing the baby weight fast enough, etc.  Again, I don't know why I am feeling this way.  I was much more laid back last time.  I guess because I have been feeling better sooner, I feel like I should be getting more done, especially when it comes to losing weight.  I know I need to relax and chill out and let it be.  I am not sleeping much.  The son is not sleeping well so of course, I don't have a lot of energy to get me through the day.  I am also breastfeeding which means every 2 hours, I have to take a 20-30 minute break to feed him.  I don't mind doing it but I have to realize that, it takes a lot of time out of my day to feed the little man.  He is an eater! 

I am starting to work out again and am getting on a regular schedule with it so that is good.  I think that will continue to be the way I operate and not worry so much about eating.  I typically eat healthy, wholesome foods, so I should really worry about it. 

So I enjoyed my dessert last night (and tonight, ice cream both nights) and don't regret it.  I know I just need to relax.  I wish I could more.  Any tips to relaxing?

It's go time

It's funny, I am actually psyched to get back into working out and having my body back (well as much as back as I can considering I am nursing).  Aidan is now 2 weeks old and I am feeling pretty good.  I am still a little sore, but I am not taking Motrin for pain anymore and nursing is going really well, so I think I can start to think about watching my eating and start "working out."  I know I can't run yet, but I have been walking a couple times a week. 

My first walk - 3 days pp

I am now going to start incorporating some strength training which will be easy on my healing body, but will help me build muscle and burn calories until I can start running again (still weeks away).  I did The Firm with Hope when she was 3.5 weeks old.  I didn't have as bad of a delivery with Aidan so I thought I would start today and see how it goes.  Any little bit will help.  With Hope I did work out, but I didn't even think about losing any weight because I wanted to make sure my milk was in and I had a good supply (FYI - breastfeeding was/is very important to me.  I BF Hope for 15.5 months and plan to BF Aidan for at least 1 year).  I didn't want to restrict my calories with Hope in case it affected my supply.  This time around, I feel more confident about BFing and my milk came in early and Aidan is nursing great and at 5 days old had already gained back his birth weight plus 3.5 oz.  So I feel good about BFing and would like to lose my baby weight a little faster than last time (3-4 months). 

Me and my belly the evening Aidan was born

I am actually in between contractions which is why I am smiling

Working Out
This time around I plan to use Your Shape to get some strength training in.  I actually got this for Christmas last year, but our PC couldn't handle it so I had to wait until I got a new computer before I could load it up.  I had my first workout today and it was pretty good.  I think it was just a fitness test but I did it for 30 minutes and burned 246 calories.  My goal is to do it 3 times a week and walk 2-3 times a week as well.  That seems like a lot to do with 2 small children and my lack of sleep means I am not getting up early to get my workouts in, so we will see how it goes.  At least right now, Aidan can't go out so I am stuck at home which means no errands at least right now. 

Eating
I gained 24lbs. during my pregnancy.  I did not restrict myself during pregnancy because I knew with Hope I had a very small placenta and that made it difficult for Hope to get enough nutrients and calories.  Aidan started off fine, but really dropped in the end.  Again, another small placenta, so I am glad I gained a good amount of weight.  I signed up for Babyfit.  I will try to track my calories on this site and see how I am doing. My goal is to eat as many whole foods as possible and limit refined foods.  I do know I need extra calories because I am nursing as well as lots of water.  So I do plan to have dessert most nights.  :)  According to babyfit, I need 1,800 - 2,100 calories a day, so that is my plan.  I do not plan to do anything dramatic, just try to be smart. 

Stats
According to the scale, I am 11 lbs. above my pre-pregnancy weight, with a current BMI of 22.2.  With my pre-pregnancy weight, I will have a healthy BMI of 20.2.  I have gotten down to 19.8, but for now we are focused on 20.2.  I also took my measurements today.  I will update you on how many inches I have lost.  I can tell you that my chest measurement is currently 4.5 inches bigger than my pre-pregnancy chest measurement.  Yes, I look like a porn star right now.  :)

My belly today

So, my goal is mainly to just get back into shape so I can get back to my running shape.  I am not so concerned with the weight.  I know it will come off, well at least it did last time.  :)  Wish me luck.