Extreme Makover: Me edition - week 1

I'm just finishing up Week 1 of Extreme Makeover: Me Edition, courtesy of Amber, and I can honestly say that I think it went pretty well. Sure, I had a few slip-ups (can you say 'fudge stripe cookies'?), and a couple of days that got away from me without any form of exercise, but overall I am making progress, and that's what counts! Not once did I go to the kitchen in the middle of the night for any kind of snack (those days are over!), and while I did indulge in some treats now and then, I'm not sure I want to cut those out entirely. I don't want to deprive myself. So instead, "moderation" is the key word around here.

I did purchase a new scale. It's nothing fancy, but it is digital so that I can keep better track of weight loss (or gain?!). I'm happy to report that I've lost two pounds since last Wednesday. A pound of that came off pretty quickly (like in a day), and the other pound was lost in 2 and 4 oz. incremements over the rest of the days. As I've mentioned before I am nursing my baby daughter, so weight loss is not my number one goal, nor do I plan on losing all of the weight right away (although I did with both of my older daughters simply because, for me, nursing just shed the pounds naturally). And as far as numbers go, I have about 14 pounds to lose in order to get to my pre-pregnancy weight, but would be happy even to lose 10. This is definitely the longest I've held on to that much extra weight after having a baby, but I am a little older now, and there have been other issues that have played a role. Mostly I would like to feel better and be more fit (and it wouldn't hurt to fit nicely into my old clothes ;)

I also wear a pedometer. I've worn one for a long time. I'm a visual gal, ya see, and I like to keep track of how many steps I'm taking/how many miles I'm walking per day. It gives me a goal to work toward. Before I was hospitalized with Kam I was taking around 10,000 steps per day. That was my goal, I guess you'd say. Once Kam came home from the hospital, that number was cut drastically ~ like less than 3,000 steps. I was literally just holding her all day long. These days I rarely take less than 5 or 6 thousand, but am working my way back up toward 10,000, and have been coming closer and closer to that goal.

Alright, down to business, now for Amber's Question of the Week! What are some methods you use to stave off temptation and/or keep from over-eating?

Hmmm, honestly I don't have a lot of willpower, AND I love sweets (not a good combo, I know). But, I used to drink nothing but water ~ no soda, no juice, nothing. That is definitely on my to-do list now. I hate the thought of "wasting" calories on beverages, so I plan on going back to water-only (or at least, water-mostly). I try not to let myself get overly hungry (typically if I'm starving, I'll just reach for whatever is closest). And if I'm craving something sweet, often times I'll give in to the temptation, but only eat 1 chocolate, NOT 10 chocolates. It may seem basic, but know your limits. I know that I'm weak, so I deliberately don't buy certain sweets. Last week, after my 8 week post partum check, my mom, the girls, and I met my dad for lunch at Shari's. When we were getting ready to leave, my dad bought an apple pie to take home (yep, you guessed it, that's where I get my sweet tooth!). Later that day he brought half the pie over for me. Sierra and Makenna aren't big pie eaters, and Jeremy was at work for 48 hours straight . . . this was not good. I *did* have a slice, but I knew that if that pie sat on my counter it would eventually all get eaten . . . by me. So, I packed up the pie and delivered it right back to dear ol' dad.

Take a look at what other moms are doing to get healthier over at Ambers!

Until next week!