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Tell us a little bit about yourself and your blog?
I am a wife, mom of two boys, a blogger, and I work full time. I have only struggled with my weight for the past 7 years or so. After high school I just started gaining about 10 lbs. a year. Then I got married in 2008 and pregnant with my first son in 2009 and was at my heaviest ever, 217 lbs. I decided after I had him that I wasn’t going to be a mom who had “let herself go”. So I set a goal of losing the baby weight and then some. It took me about a year, but I shed over 80 lbs and kept it off until getting pregnant with my second son in 2011. I started my blog just after getting married and it has morphed into many things over the years: being a first time mom, losing the baby weight for the first time, and now, for the second time. It is where I document the day to day life of a full-time working mom who is trying to balance it all and lose weight. Along the way, I have found a passion for fitness, running, and helping other moms and women know it IS possible to reach your goals with a little kick in the pants and a lot of hard work.
How did you lose your baby weight after your first son? What kinds of important life changes did you have to make and what was the most challenging?
I wish I could sit here and tell you there is an easy way to lose weight. But there isn’t. I did it the good, ole’ fashioned way--with a lot of hard work and dedication. I started tracking everything I put in my mouth and got in exercise at least 5 days a week. I really credit a lot of my weight loss to portion control and doing a running program called The Couch to 5k. It’s an amazing beginners running program that takes you from basically sitting on the couch to running 3.1 miles in 9 weeks. I recommend it to EVERYONE!
What are your top tips for other moms who are trying to shed post pregnancy weight?
I’d say my number one tip is to BE PATIENT. I know it is frustrating after having a baby and things have just shifted all over the place and there is flab in all the wrong areas, but try to remember that it took nine months to gain that weight, it’s going to take awhile to get it off! I’d also suggest trying to get in exercise almost daily. It really does make us feel better and gives us a time to focus on just us, with no kids. I truly believe that if you take care of yourself and make yourself a priority that you will be a better mom in the long run.
Keeping a food journal is another thing I highly recommend. It holds you accountable and lets you see just where all your calories are coming from.
How are you keeping yourself motivated to lose weight after baby #2?
My readers motivate me. It’s so funny because when I started my blog, I never thought it would turn into what it has today. I really just wrote to write, and if anyone read it, then cool. But now I have readers from all over the country that write me daily telling me that I’ve motivated them to get off the couch and run, or that because of a post I wrote that they have decided on changing their lifestyle and making their heath a priority. That, in turn, motivates me to keep going. It’s an amazing full circle that I’m really flattered and honored to be a part of.
What does a typical daily menu look like for you?
Since I am still in weight loss mode after having my second son in November of 2011, I keep to a pretty strict diet. For breakfast I might have a smoothie, Luna bar, Greek yogurt, or a big plate of fruit. Lunch is usually always a salad of some sort or a turkey sandwich with an apple, grapes, or other fruit. Dinner is where I’ll usually take any recipe and “skinny” it up. I will substitute almost every ingredient for a low fat or fat free version to save calories. Ninety-five percent of the time it works and my family loves it and can’t tell the difference. The other 5% of the time, I learn from my mistakes. I am a firm believer that you can have whatever your heart desires – in moderation!
Being a busy wife, mother, and career woman, how do you find the time to exercise?
There is a saying that I love: “If it’s important to you, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.”
Isn’t that so true? I usually get my workouts in right after I get off work before I pick up my kids. I can’t do morning workouts, but if things change in the future and mornings are the only time I have to get in a run, I’ll suck it up and do it because my health is important to me.
I’m not a sugar-coater. I am not going to sit here and tell you that it’s easy. It’s not. It’s hard. And sometimes you’ll want to quit. But I can promise you one thing- it IS worth it. Every bead of sweat, every early morning workout, every pound lost. You will be thankful you did it, and that, in and of itself is something worth fighting for.
What is your biggest weight loss challenge and how do you work on overcoming it?
Weekends. Hands down. I do so great on the weekdays. I track my food and get my runs in. I am like a machine on the weekdays. Then the weekend comes and it’s parties, and eating out, and birthdays and barbecues, and life. It’s what I call the two pound cycle. You work so hard to lose weight during the week, then the weekend comes and you undo all of your hard work from the week, so you end up losing and gaining the same two pounds over and over. It is a hard cycle to break out of. I just try to make the best decisions I can on the weekend and not let it be a time for excuses. I will still indulge and have a cheat meal here and there, but not a full on free-for-all all weekend. It’s all about finding a balance.
If you had one message or piece of advice you could share with other women out there struggling with diet and/or fitness, what would it be?
You are not alone.
I really struggled, thinking I was the only one who had weight problems. All of my friends were tiny! Then I voiced my struggles on my blog and it was like all these women flocked to me telling me they had the same problems. And they started to support me. Complete strangers, rooting for me and telling me I could do it. It was uplifting and motivating and suddenly, I felt like I COULD do it.
I suggest finding a support system.Your husband, blog friends, a close workout buddy, whatever it takes. You don’t have to go through it alone. There are tons of women out there that struggle. I know-- I used to be one.
What does “healthy” mean to you?
Healthy to me means being at a comfortable place and not letting a number define me.
Being able to enjoy life and not worry about if my rolls are showing. Going for a run just because instead of doing it for weight loss purposes. It’s finding a balance in a life full of chaos. It’s being the best mom I can be and playing with my kids instead of watching from the sidelines. It’s feeling good in everything I put on and knowing I worked my butt off to get there.
Follow Mama's post-pregnancy weight-loss journey and pick up healthy living tips and inspiration over at her blog, Mama Laughlin!
