Jennifer’s

Let’s take a quick moment to review just how HUGE I was just a few months ago:

(37 weeks pregnant:  BLAH!)

(40 weeks: Induction day.  Can you see the RELIEF?)

It’s been nearly three months since Dean’s birth, which means its been six weeks since I was released to resume all normal activities, which let’s be honest the only activity I really cared about was a return to exercise.  Call me vain, but after gaining 30 lbs and being so miserable at the end I was ready to whip this mound of flesh into some semblance of shape.

I gained the same amount of weight this time around as I did with Isabella, but, for me at least, this pregnancy’s weight did not pile on nor did it come off in the same way as the first.  Perhaps those differences can be attributed to age, gender of the baby, my fitness level before and during the pregnancy, stress, or the unknown, but all I know is I sprinted home from my six week’s post-partum appointment and promptly popped in Gillian Michael’s No More Trouble Zones and never looked back.

I also downloaded the Couch to 5k app and have been faithfully following the 3 day/week running program.  I had been running during this pregnancy, but at 36 weeks I was told to cease all unnecessary activity, so when it came time to start running again I thought it wise to start out slowly.  Six weeks later I know this was a really smart decision as I’ve not suffered any injuries and have been able to easily follow the program.  I dare to say it’s been a little easy since I already have years of running under my belt, but I like that I am injury free, am getting stronger, and most importantly, I love being able to cue up the music, turn on the app and Nike+, and mindlessly run while someone else dictates what I am doing and for how long. 

 In fact, I wish someone would create a marathon training app that would do the same thing.  Not that I am in any kind of shape to run another marathon yet, but I’ve got my eyes set on one late spring of 2011 or mid fall of 2011.  (It all depends on if I can talk Melissa to run Chicago with me! )

The other thing factoring into my get “hot” again pursuit is the fact that I am successfully breastfeeding this time around.  Everything I’ve read says it is okay to exercise regularly, but I think I am still a tad trepidatious about exercising as rigorously as I would like on a regular basis.  If I felt truly free to exercise as I wish I would probably be at my pre-pregnancy weight by now instead of 5lbs away.  Those 5lbs have been lingering for a few weeks now, so I suspect that a few of them, at least, are settled in my milk jugs and won’t disappear until the little one stops suckling at the teat.

I also want to try Gillian Michael’s Making the Cut diet and exercise program, but I fear the diet will mess with my milk supply.  It’s not  so much a “diet” in the sense of really restricting calories as it is a “diet” that helps you eat for your metabolic type with the purpose of helping you shed fat to showcase the muscles beneath.  For my metabolic type I would still consume 1200 calories, which I’m not even sure I actually consume on a daily basis, so it isn’t like I would be starving myself, but I would hate for nursing to end because of my vanity so I am being responsible and holding off on this part of O.G.H.A. until Dean is weened.

But really, who cares about any of this, if there aren’t some before and work in progress shots.  Please bare in mind that no miracles have been performed in the six weeks since I began exercising again, but nonethless I think you can see that some small change is being made.

Before:

(This is a few days after my six week appointment.  Isabella and I were playing princess.  That look of displeasure is less about playing dress up and more about the dismal state of affairs that was my gut.)

Work in Progress:

(I guess that goofy expression in the first work in progress picture is my way of saying what did you expect, it’s only been six weeks!  I know the arm shots are silly, especially given I really don’t have muscular arms, but I wanted some sort of documentation of how they look now so I can compare them after I do Making the Cut.  Plus, this wouldn’t really be a great blog post if there weren’t some pretentious pictures!)

Twenty-six weeks in, here are the ten things I cannot live without:

1.  Gap maternity skinny jeans:

2.  Gap maternity easy straight jeans:

3.  Gap leggings:

4.  Steve Madden booties: (these are not quite the pair I own, but close enough)

5.  Too Faced Natural Eye Shadow Collection:

6.  Asics Gel-3010:

7.¬† Palmer’s Lotion: no stretch marks yet, fingers crossed!

8.  Origins Make a Difference moisturizer: my face was coming off in layers before I started using this cream day and night!

9.  Origins Clean Energy: again, used to combat the dry, dry skin I have this time around!

10.  John Frieda Root Awakening Health Infusing Shampoo and Conditioner:

So, in an ongoing effort to get back into pre-baby shape I’ve come to the conclusion that living in the desert equals getting up early to run.¬† I’ve lived here nine years, and while I’ve done a.m. runs in the past, I am just now coming to the full realization that while the majority of the country can sleep in and enjoy a mid-morning run or even, novel idea, wait until the afternoon/evening to run, I simply cannot unless, of course, I want to suffer through heat stroke, sun poisoning and the general malaise of running in 100+ temps.¬†

This realization, however, has not come without months and months of a concerted effort to ignore the obvious.¬† I’ve tried running on the treadmill at the gym (loathe, loathe, loathe this- even w/ TV and Ipod I am still literally watching the second and tenths of miles tick by until I convince myself that I’ve suffered enough), spinning classes, and videos in lieu of tying up the laces and heading out the door.¬† I’m not in horrible shape, but I am not in prime running condition either.¬† I could head out the door and easily put in 3-4 miles, but the days of 6 miles and more are still a ways off.

The real catalyst for my decision to arise at an ungodly hour (4 a.m. people- BLAH!) was the number on the scale this weekend.¬† I am actually 8 lbs lighter than I was when I got pregnant with Isabella.¬† I know, I know:¬† How can I possibly be upset about this?¬† The thing is I may be lighter, but I am not skinnier.¬† I can wear all the same clothes/sizes I wore pre-baby; none of my clothes hang or¬†bag¬†in a way they did not before.¬†¬† So, I’ve not shed an extra 8 lbs of fat, I’ve shed an extra 8 lbs of muscle (mainly from my legs; the arms are looking good these days thanks to lugging around 18 lbs of kid), which is just not acceptable.¬† My solution is to kick up the running and for now anyway, the only way I can do that is to get up a WHOLE HOUR earlier to get those miles in.

I still struggle too much with the guilt of running in the evenings after the sun goes down.¬† That is my time with Isabella and it just seems so selfish to head out the door for 30-60 minutes to get in¬†a run, so until the afternoons get cooler I’ll suffer through the early a.m. alarm and wake myself up with a cup or two of coffee (heavily caffeinated).¬† Come fall (Nov-Dec here) I’ll be able to get back that extra hour of slumber and save my runs for the afternoon when I can put Isabella into the jogger and not feel so guilty about time away from her.

It was weird being up before all but the other two runners in the neighborhood.¬† I was shocked at how, dare I say it, cool it felt outside.¬† I almost regretted only wearing a sports bra and shorts…almost!¬† I forewent my usual running tunes because I did not know how freaked out I would be about running in the dark (our neighborhood backs onto some empty fields that coyotes and feral dogs like to hang out in).¬† I took a flaslight and felt pretty safe throughout the run.¬† I did get a little freaked out by a white truck that managed to be in every. single. part of the neighborhood I was running in, but I am pretty sure they were lost and I made sure I was on the sidewalk ready to scale a wall to get into someone’s backyard if needed (nevermind the domesticated animals I might find)¬†I even sprinted home so the truck wouldn’t see where I lived just in case they were casing the joint.¬† Paranoid much?¬† Anyway, it was a pretty decent run and left me feeling energized and STARVING!¬† I am only hoping I have the resolve to follow through with this latest running plan for the next month or so!

If exercise is important to you, how do you manage to fit that time in with children?