Chaos Reigns

I am pretty well healed from my c-section (not yet approved for exercise other than walking yet) and trying to get a routine figured out for our new kindergartner, our new half day preschooler, our 22 mth old who is ready to be potty trained and the newborn who still doesn't have any sort of routine herself.  Oh yeah and the house, the piles of laundry and dishes we go through daily, our workouts, our business, oh and might as well throw our sanity in there as well! 

Some days are definitely better than others.  We are lucky to have some pretty well behaved kids, but even well behaved children have their off days.  I strive to get a little bit of one on one time in with each of my kids, even if it is just reading a story or chatting about their day at school while cooking dinner. In order to accomplish one on one time I often have to push something else to the next day.  I need to get things figured out because I still haven't really done much for working out....and really need to figure out how I am going to fit a P90X/TurboFire hybrid into our routine, along with my husbands workout.  He works nights, so there is also the sleep factor that we have to work around : )  I will be returning to work, part-time, November 16th and will need to work that into my routine without losing all of the other stuff.  Ugh!  I have a lot of work ahead of me!

How exactly am I going to accomplish all of this without losing my sanity?

That is a good question!  It is a work in progress and I plan on sharing anything that works for us here.  I know I am not the only mom with a ton on her ever shrinking plate!

To do lists are great...if you can find them!

I have everything I need to do daily on a dry erase board, in addition to my extra "to do" items (for example, removing all out of season clothing from the kiddos dressers and tagging Rory's old clothing for a yard sale) to help keep me on track.  I used to keep lists and lists of things scattered around the house, but then I would lose them to a creative mind with a marker or crayon.  The dry erase board will hopefully help me get these things up where I can see them and can't lose or forget them.

I think this is a step in the right direction....hopefully there will be more steps to follow!

Sweaty Pleasure - we meet again!

At the bottom of my "naptime" list of things to do was get in my workout (haha...get your mind out of the gutter!).  I dutifully checked off all the items on my list and got to the last.....Turbo Jam 20 minute workout.  The kids are still asleep and so it is a perfect opportunity to get this item checked off.  I have tried this workout several times over the past few weeks and each time been very anxious about putting in too much effort and harming the healing process of my c-section.  All the same fighting off my desire to jump right back on the wagon and forget that I had a major surgery.  My apprehension has been growing lately because I really want to start P90X when I get the a-ok to resume normal activities at my 6 week check-up on the 30th, but I am getting a nagging feeling that P90X really should not be considered a "normal" activity.  Would I recommend to anyone else that they should start P90X so soon after a c-section????  HELL NO!  So why, you ask, am I determined to do just that?  I dunno....I blame my parents.  One (or both) of them gave me a stubborn gene and it is near impossible to ignore the urges that stem from it!  I will revisit this issue when the time comes.....

Anyway..back to today's workout.  I started off just as timidly, as I have in the past, and slowly added a little bit more energy and bounce paying careful attention to any strange twinges or sensations as I went along.  Before I knew it the workout was over and I was going full intensity!  I felt awesome!  No discomfort...just the awesome feeling of being hot, sweaty & full of energy after a great workout.  Today was a success & it isn't even half over yet : )  Can't wait till tomorrows workout!

Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse - Results!

The Shakeology Cleanse was developed after I got pregnant, so I have been itching for the past 7 or 8 mths to try it.  Now that Ashyn is here and I am feeling pretty good, I decided to do the cleanse as a way to kick off my fitness regime since I am not yet comfortable doing any of my fitness programs this soon after a c-section.  I made it through the 3 Day Cleanse and was very  happy with my results!

The Cleanse:

When you wake: Green Tea (no dairy or sweeteners...plain!)
Breakfast:  Shakeology (can have fruit in it, water & ice)
Snack:  1 piece of fruit
Lunch:  Shakeology (only water & ice)
Snack: Shakeology (only water & ice)
Dinner:  Salad with 6oz of white meat or fish (greens plus 3 servings of vegetables, low or no fat dressing)

Drink between 2 and 4 liters of water each day.  Absolutely no dairy during the cleanse! This is done for 3 days.  Don't forget to measure your waist & weigh in before you begin!

My results:

7am on 1st day     183 lbs starting weight    37 5/8 inches
7am on 2nd day    178 lbs                          35 1/2 inches
6am on 3rd day     175 lbs                          35 inches
7am on 4th day     173.2 lbs ending weight  34 inches


I measured & weighed in early morning the first day of the cleanse and made sure to try and weigh in and measure around the same time each day to stay consistant.  My ending weight & measurement was taken in the morning following my last day of the cleanse. 

Of Note:

I did just have a baby 2 weeks ago, so part of my weight loss could be natural loss that occurs after having a child.  I also hadn't been eating very well the last two months leading up to the cleanse, so I had a lot of cleansing to do : )  I followed the regimen to to the letter.  No nibbles of anything etc...... I wanted to get good results so I didn't cheat myself out of them.  My pre-pregnancy weight was 158 and I weighed 199 when I went in for Ashyn's delivery.  I have NEVER been able to get within 15 pounds of my pre preggo weight in just 2 weeks after delivery : )

You can learn more about Shakeology by clicking here.  To buy a monthly supply it costs about $4 a shake.  However, you can sign up as a coach (we call it a preferred customer if you don't want to run your own business) and save 25% on your purchases.  If you would like details on how that works, let me know.  I also can sell enough for just the cleanse for $45 plus the cost of shipping....contact me for this option as well.

Reflections

As I sit here with little Ashyn, I am thinking about how different each of my pregnancies have been.  Each time I have improved a little on my eating & staying active throughout the pregnancy.  This last time I worked out fairly regularly until I was about 7 1/2 months along before I lost my motivation.  I know that, for me, as soon as my workouts stop I succumb to poor eating as well.  This results in low energy levels and high cravings for foods that help keep my energy levels low, in addition to packing on the pounds.  Towards the end of my pregnancy I was so tired all the time and the reason was that my eating was very poor.  However, I was able to meet my goal of keeping my weight under 200lbs (thanks to the first 7 1/2 months!).  I successfully kept 11 of the pounds I had gained with the other three at bay.  I am not yet able to pick up a rigorous workout routine and am focusing on walking as much as possible and staying on my feet during the day.  Once I am sure my c-section is completely healed & ready for action I will start a new program and work on tuning up this old body of mine!  The things I CAN and AM doing right NOW are the following:  Sleep - 8 hours each night....if I don't get it I nap and I HATE napping, but I know sleep is vital for my body to repair itself properly.
Water - 6 bottles a day (approx 168oz) 
Snacking - cut it back to 2 snacks & 3 meals rather than eating every time I get an urge (side effect of poor eating at end of pregnancy)
Shakeology Cleanse - today is day one the Three Day Cleanse....this should make my transition to clean eating so much easier
Exercise - walking, stairs, laundry dishes, chasing the kiddos etc... working up to Turbo Jam

All in all it is a slow start and frustrating for me, but important that I do what is best for my body.  After all this body has produced 4 wonderful little personalities and I wouldn't trade that for anything!

Welcome Ashyn Rayne!

I haven't been here in a while and am going to try to change that!  I figure the most appropriate place to start is with the birth of our fourth (and last) child.  Our little munchkin, Ashyn Rayne Good, was born via c-section on August 19th at 8:35am.  She weighed in at 7lbs and 10oz and was 20 inches long.  She fell in rank as the second smallest in terms of weight & height of our four kids. 

We left the hospital on the 20th and have been busy getting settled with our new addition.  Now, 11 days later, Ashyn has settled in and proven to be a very easy baby.  We only get up, at most, twice each night and she is rarely fussy.  The other three kiddos have adjusted well and are very fond of their little sister.  Tabby being very motherly and helping out with Rory & Ember in addition to helping me out with Ashyn.  All in all, things are settling quite nicely around here.

We are very lucky to have such great kids!

Fitness Room Showdown

A little background:

I am in Chicago, Illinois, right now for a FAS 109 training for work.  The hotel is extremely cushy & nice, food is super expensive, and there is a fairly nice fitness room in the hotel.  I am here by myself, as my co-workers each had a different area of expertise they wanted to focus in on.

At about 6:30 last night I decided to go check out the fitness room.  I threw on my sweats, a tank, and my Shakeology shirt to wear to and from the fitness room.  I chose my treadmill, and fiddled with the controls trying to figure out the programs etc.  Finally I got settled and watched Se7en Deadly Sins as I did a brisk walk/jog.  I figured a half an hour was a good length of time.  Even with a t.v. to watch, I find the treadmill to be incredibly boring, but the living room in my hotel room isn't set up in a manner condusive to doing my Turbo Jam that I brought along just in case.  I was in my last 2 minutes of cool down when these two incredibly fit guys walk into the room.  GRRRR there goes my pride ballooning up twice the size of the city! In my head, I saw them thinking "oh look at that poor, fat preggo chick, coming in for a light walk on the treadmill", and in my head I replied "poor, fat preggo chick...my ass!  I could keep up with the two of you any day that I am not pregnant and wouldn't be far behind right now...preggo or not!"  So after that transfer of words (all in my head of course), I kicked it back up to high speed and did interval sprints for the next half an hour.  I felt sweaty, gross & accomplished when I finished and as I walked out of the fitness room, I mentally shot them  a "so there!".

Tony Horton Leads us in Squats

Tired & hot after an amazing Turbo Fire workout

                                           aerial view of the super workout - about 1500 of us in there!

Tony Horton leads us in Squats