So it’s no secret that I had a baby in September. I had just gotten under 200 pounds for the first time in my adult life when I found out I was pregnant! Although I imagined gaining weight would feel tough on me mentally/emotionally, it really wasn’t. Not that I wanted to go crazy, mind you. But knowing that my body was nourishing my baby made me surprisingly okay with the weight gain. I was right on schedule for a very healthy weight gain until about the last month of my pregnancy, when I gained weight more quickly, resulting in a total weight gain of about 45 pounds – gulp!
Right after I gave birth, I started losing weight like CRAZY! Taking care of a newborn full-time (and the resulting loss of two-handed-ness) combined with breast-feeding meant that I had lost nearly 30 pounds in 6 weeks. Then I went back to work. And, you guessed it, gained some of that weight BACK! I got my hands back, my milk supply dipped a bit (pumping just isn’t as effective as the baby at keeping the supply going!), I wasn’t taking care of a baby 24×7, and boredom eating in front of the computer snuck back in.
Long story short, I’m still down about 20 pounds from my highest pregnancy weight, but that means I’ve got 25 pounds of pregnancy weight to lose, plus the 10 or so pounds of holiday weight I gained last year right before getting pregnant! Are you still with me?
In any case, I’m not ready to make weight loss my priority and I’m not going to do anything drastic because that could jeopardize my milk supply, something I’m not willing to do. But I do want to start making the move towards healthier eating habits both for me and my baby. So here is my loose plan (subject to revision if anything messes with my milk supply or just doesn’t feel right):
- Starting yesterday, I am off sugar, grains, and processed foods. This is with the thought that eventually I will transition to the Paleo way of eating at least 80-90% of the time.
- Next (probably next week but nothing is set in stone) I will eliminate legumes and reduce my dairy intake. I’ve decided to do that more gradually (rather than eliminating dairy altogether) and really watch closely to see if/how it impacts my milk production.
- I am committing to a 20 minute walk 5 days/week. This is a VERY small step and a time commitment I know I can follow-through on, so if I don’t, it’s just because I chose not to make it a priority.
- Within the next 4-6 weeks, I will start my one month of unlimited CrossFit.
So far (one day in), being sugar and grain free has been okay. Of course I think of sugary foods or bread (I love sandwiches!) often and have had to say “no” to several cravings. And of course, my office just happens to be one of those offices where there are constantly “treat” foods around – literally. No, seriously: we order candy and Goldfish in bulk from Costco! And there are cupcakes or donuts or other pastries on an almost daily basis! But it actually feels really good, right now, to be choosing not to eat those foods.
I remind myself often that this is a choice and nothing is forever. I can choose to eat ice cream tomorrow if I want to. But last time I did, I didn’t feel very good. And ice cream isn’t going to disappear off the planet, so who cares if I go a month (or three) without eating it?
I also remind myself that some things (like ice cream or store-bought cookies) are always available and are not worth a “cheat,” while other things (such as my grandmother’s homemade kibbee with fresh pita bread!) are more rare and are worth the splurge! So far (again, only one day in) nothing has crossed my path that has been rare enough to reverse my decision to be sugar- and grain-free.
So there you have it. No resolutions, nothing set in stone. Just a starting point for a year in which I will continue my journey towards a healthier me.
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I can totally relate to your postpartum story. I lost a lot of the baby weight shortly after I gave birth too – you’re so busy feeding and caring for your baby that its a wonder any food makes it into your mouth at all those first few weeks! I think I had about 12 pounds left to lose after 6 weeks, and I tried getting back on WW but it was too soon for me. I wasn’t ready, willing or able to invest the time it takes for all the planning and cooking and counting. I decided I was ok with just being able to eat something, whatever it was and whenever I could without beating myself up about it. No surprise that about 10 months later I ended up gaining back ALL my pregnancy weight PLUS a tidy postpartum gain to match it. Yikes! Now here I am, a year out and I’m just NOW mentally and physically ready to put myself on the list, and you know what? There’s nothing wrong with that. A year dedicated to nothing but the needs of my daughter was absolutely the right thing for me and I don’t regret one second of it. I think that whenever a new mother decides she’s ready to lose the baby weight is the right time; there’s no rule that says it has to be done in __ months, and any step you take towards a healthier you is always a good thing. Alana is worth it all. Go girl!
Rissa, thanks for sharing your story AND for the support! I know I am not ready to put weight loss ABOVE my daughter’s needs – quite frankly, I don’t think I’ll EVER do that! But I am ready to put my HEALTH on the list, especially since she is getting her nutrition straight from me! So I’m figuring out, by trial & error, the best way to get healthier for me AND her, one day at a time. We’ll see what that ends up looking like!
I wish I lived closer so we could all meet in Seattle and have those wonderful 20 minute walks together.
Miss you like crazy.
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Oh how I would love that! You know what I thought of yesterday? You guys should be Alana’s first ever Skype experience! I don’t know how well she’d sit in front of the laptop now, but someday soon (in the next couple months) I think she might be game!
I just started eating paleo about a week ago and I really like it so far. I had hard core cravings the first couple days, but those have subsided quite a bit. So, if you can get through the first couple of days it will most definitely get easier! Just thought I’d offer some encouragement since I know how bad those silly cravings can be
Oh, and there is this website: paleohacks.com It’s a user run site where people post questions and things…I bet there is some stuff on paleo and breastfeeding. Maybe you could find something that will help?
Your daughter is adorable, btw.
best of luck!
Julia, THANKS for the paleohacks website – I just checked and there is a TON of info on there about breastfeeding! I can’t wait to read through more of it. I added your blog to my reader & look forward to reading. Thank you again!
Sounds like you are being really smart. The way I ended up losing my baby weight was very similar but the real key for me was in having a race goal. I ran a marathon when I was 5 weeks pregnant (didn’t realize I was pregnant yet) so I knew that I wanted to get right back to marathons. I scheduled one for 8 months after my baby was born and ended up running two that within that time period. Being fit and healthy is key for you but also for your baby. Keep taking care of yourself and you will both be happy.
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