I hope you are all having a wonderful Monday!
I spent my morning playing soccer in the backyard with my 4 year old…
He has his first soccer game tonight, so I thought I better teach him a little bit about soccer, lol!
We also spent some time playing “Go Spidey” (aka. Go Fish)….
I don’t think the baby’s a fan, lol.
I’ve felt so bad for my poor 4 year old the past couple of weeks. All of the big kids have gone back to school and I’ve been so dang exhausted with the baby, so he’s spent entirely too much time watching TV or playing with some sort of electronic device.
It’s just about killed me.
Sooooo, now that life has calmed down ever so slightly, I’ve been trying to spend more quality time with him. We’ve had so much fun! He’s such a sweetheart.
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I’m happy to say that I’m still goin’ strong with my “mega healthy diet” efforts and I seriously feel so so great! It’s been pretty miraculous.
I’ve only been following this “diet” for 6 days and I lost 5 pounds! Woo hoo. Now, 5 pounds in 6 days is usually too fast for weight loss, IMO, but since I’m dropping baby weight and bloated water weight, I think it’s A-OK!
And, for the FIRST time since I had my sweet baby, I finally feel somewhat slimmer. Wahoo! I still have a long way to go, but I’m just happy for the progress.
Here’s a pic I took yesterday…
I still can’t fit into most of my “real clothes,” so I’ve been wearing all of my bigger clothes. For now, I’m fine with that.
AND, I can’t tell you how much more energy I’ve had the past few days! It’s been insane. I’m still tired and sleep deprived since I have a new baby, but I’ve been able to accomplish so much more. I’ve been so happy ’bout that.
It makes me feel sorta kinda normalish again.
The “diet” I’ve been following is how I LIKE to eat all the time. I really enjoy healthy, real food and I feel so much better when I stay away from all the crap out there.
However, as I’m sure many of you can relate, I really enjoy eating a cheeseburger, cookies, donuts, etc. from time to time as well. AND, I think it’s perfectly fine AND actually healthy (mentally speaking) to indulge once in a while. The hardest part for me is getting back to “clean eating” after I’ve indulged a little bit.
So, I’ve learned it’s actually easier for me to steer clear of sugary, fatty, salty, crappy food as long as I can and then if/when I do indulge, I try to make sure it’s short-lived.
Getting back on the wagon is always the hardest part for me!
Anyway, it’s actually been quite easy to stick to my healthy diet so far. I have learned a few things that have made it easier for me….
- Stock the kitchen full of clean, real, healthy food! I love to have things like fruit, veggies, nuts, string cheese, grilled chicken (in the freezer), cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, protein pancakes (in the freezer), oatmeal, eggs, cooked quinoa or brown rice, dried fruit, etc. on hand.
- Prepare foods ahead of time for easy meal prep! I love to chop up a bunch of things for salads or egg scrambles (my version of an omelet) so that I can throw it together in a hurry. I like to cut up lettuce, olives, onions, bell peppers, turkey/ham slices, broccoli, etc. I also keep things like tomatoes, avocados, apples, hard boiled eggs and sliced nuts on hand (I usually cut them up as needed since they don’t stay fresh for too long.)
- When I’m starving or craving something that’s not good, I stop, take a deep breath and tell myself to “chill!” Then, I calmly and rationally find something healthy to eat! If I let myself get too hungry, I start to crave crappy, convenient, quick, easy food like crazy. However, once I’ve filled my body full of real food, the cravings usually go away. If I’m still craving something sweet/salty, I’ll grab something like fruit leather, dried fruit, nuts, a small spoonful of peanut butter, popcorn or a few healthier chips. It always seems to scratch the itch.
- Drink water like crazy! Water helps to regulate the appetite, aids in weight loss, improves digestive stuff and removes impurities. I love how I feel when I drink lots of water. I especially love to start my day with a glass of warm lemon water. It’s so so refreshing. Also, if I start to get hungry late at night and don’t want to eat, a warm glass of lemon water always soothes my tummy and makes me feel more full. Love it.
- When deciding what to eat, I like to think about what will fuel and nourish the body, not just what will taste good. I also like to think about how it will make my body feel. Healthy, clean food always sits well in my tummy, energizes me and makes me feel good! Crappy food always tastes good, but I usually end up feeling sluggish, run-down, tired, and just blah.
- I always like to plan what I’m going to eat AHEAD of time, so I won’t be tempted to eat something that’s less healthy. I’m always thinkin’ about what my next meal will be; not in an obsessive way, just in a “plan ahead, take charge, be prepared” kind of way.
- I like to eat a lot of the same foods in an effort to simplify things. I’ll buy a big case of peaches, apples, yogurt, cottage cheese, etc. and eat some every day until they’re gone. I love to eat leftovers too. It really makes things easier.
Well, that’s all I can think of for now. I’m definitely sticking to this “diet” to a T until the end of the month. I may take a day off after that and then get right back at it. We’ll see. Those “one day offs” can be dangerous. Hee hee.
Anyway, I’ve been eating a lot of the same things I ate last week, but here are some other things I’ve been eating the past couple days….
I had protein pancakes for breakfast this morning. I topped them with some Peanut Butter and berries. I omitted the syrup altogether. A drizzle of 100% Maple syrup is a good choice, but I decided to save on the sugar and calories. I could taste the peanut butter and berries so much more without the syrup on there and I really liked it!
I had this for lunch…
A salad made of Romaine, avocado, apples, hard boiled egg, olives, chicken and sliced almonds. I topped it all with a little Balsamic Vinegar. It was soooo good! I also had a few Luke’s Brown Rice Chips to satisfy my salty/crunchy craving. It was perfect.
I was craving something sweet a little while ago, so I chose this…
Some dried pears, nuts and a little Cascadian Farm Protein Granola. It totally hit the spot and filled me up too!
I made this interesting concoction yesterday…
It was a mix between a breakfast burrito and a taco. I topped a La Tortilla Factory tortilla with scrambled eggs mixed with onions and peppers, cheese, avocado, tomato, lettuce and salsa. It was awesome! I also had some strawberries on the side.
I had this as a “treat” yesterday…
A slice of Aspen Mills bread topped with a little butter and honey. Tasted just like heaven. I’ve really been trying to eat high quality carbs (things like fruit and oats) and have been trying to stay away from bread for the most part. This was definitely an indulgence, but it tasted great!
Well, that’s all the pictures I took. I’m going to keep on pluggin’ along and will keep y’all updated on my progress. I also can’t wait to exercise again in 13 days (who’s counting!?)
Oh, and I just want to put in a shameless plug for myself, K?
If y’all would be so kind as to vote for me on Top Mommy Blogs, I would SO appreciate it!! All you have to do is click on the picture below (or the one at the bottom of each post or in my sidebar) and it counts as a vote for me! Seriously, that’s all you have to do. It really helps me a lot and makes me so happy!
If you’re feeling extra generous, you can vote each time you visit my site! You can only vote once a day though.
Thanks so much!!
Have a great night!
So fun that you and your little one were able to play some soccer and card games!!!
You look amazing – that big lunch salad with olives looks tasty. I need to do a better job keeping a variety of stuff for salads on hand all the time.
Thanks so much Kim! I really loved that big ol’ salad today. I run out of “good stuff” to put on salads all the time too!
You look fabulous!!!! I can tell a difference, way to go! I think you are doing an awesome job. It was sooooooo hard on me after my Olivia was born. She nursed 24/7….not kidding…and I never had the time to shower or brush my teeth and once I got a break it was like for 20 min intervals, so of course I raced at the opportunity to sleep each time. I’m telling you, I have no other babies to compare her to, but it was THE HARDEST TIME IN MY LIFE. I had absolutely no time, was recovering from a severe vertical painful C-section and a traumatic birth…I never had a moment to check my phone, had trouble eating, no time to sleep and a baby that cried for hours on end. It was terrible and the fear of going through that again will keep me as a one child mama, lol! I mean, I guess I would be better with the 2nd…but what if I had a baby that cried all the time again? She grew out of it of course, but those first 3 months were so tremendously tough.
I admire you for all that you do! You just amaze me. That is the truth!
Thanks so much Brandi! You’re always so sweet. Wow, your childbirth/new baby story sounds so so tough! I have a friend who had a baby that sounded a lot like yours and I have no idea how she survived. Motherhood is not for wimps, that’s for sure! I think the newborn stage has been hard with all of my kids, but I only had ONE really, really tough baby. I thought I was going nuts. I really think I was borderline insane/delirious during that time. So far, Carson has been a pretty good baby. I’m still mega tired and sleep deprived, but he sleeps a lot and seems to be a mellow personality. I’m just hopin’ it lasts!
Melanie you look amazing and more importantly you look so happy! And more energy too.
Thanks so much Jill! It’s been so nice to start to feel like my normal self again. 😉
You are looking great mama! I love reading all about your post-pregnancy journey. It helps me feel like there will be light at the end of the tunnel! Poor Carson doesn’t like Go Spidey very much though! 🙂
I definitely agree with all of your healthy tips. I think they are really great. I’m looking forward to getting back onto the healthy eating bandwagon. I haven’t been doing terrible during pregnancy but I just need to eat so much more and sometimes the only thing that is appetizing are salty chips. So I’m just rolling with it until after the baby!
Thanks so much Brittany! Those last weeks of pregnancy are so so tough. I sometimes gave in to the chips/sugar because it was the only thing that sounded good to me! You’ll be done before you know it though. The newborn stage is hard too, but I’m happy to be slowly, but surely getting my body back.
MELANIE!!!!!
YOU ARE AMAZING!!! You tooootally nailed it with your tips–I have NO doubt you will get to your goal weight, in no time. You totally have this girl!
As far as your quick weight loss-I think you’re totally right! What you are doing is super healthy and smart. Totally love this. KEEp it up!!
Thanks so much Kirtley! I hope to lose this baby weight as soon as possible. We’ll see how it goes….
Hi Mel! I love how motivated you are about loosing the weight. Very inspiring, and everything you eat looks yummy in my tummy and its healthy too!. It’s great that you got to play with soccer with your baby boy and got to bond with him.
Thanks so much! I really do love healthy food so much and I love how it makes me feel. I will always love to indulge now and again too!
You look fantastic! It amazing how much healthy food can make a difference and impact our entire lives, isn’t it? I hope the soccer game went well!
Health & Beauty: The Grass Skirt
Mommy: The Mini Skirt
Thanks so much! I’m always amazed by how much better I feel when I fill my body full of healthy things and steer clear of the crap. I know I shouldn’t be surprised, but it really is miraculous.
No wonder your body is already turning back into your former self, Mel! You think you can’t exercise for 13 more days, and you’re not counting playing soccer in the yard! Between being a mom, breastfeeding, and your healthy diet, I can’t wait to see how fast you bounce back to pre pregnant you!
Oh you’re so sweet Deborah! I hope I’m able to bounce back quickly. So far, it’s been tough, but I’m trying to be patient. 😉
Haha you use the baby bowls just like I do! They are the perfect size for little meals!
Ha, I love those little bowls. I’m thinkin’ of buying some more!
I love your great reminders of so many of the things that I know, but forget in the hustle and bustle every day life.
Thanks so much Anne! I know I need to remind myself all the time as well. Life is crazy!
So glad you are feeling so much better and seeing progress.
All the tips you mentioned are things I am working on with my WW.
Great suggestions.
Thanks so much! It’s always nice to see progress. I think WW is great and I’m happy my tips are similar to what they recommend. 😉
I’m the EXACT same way with eats, I usually eat really clean, but if I start indulging too much it’s so hard for me to get back on track. Right now I am on a break from sugar and it’s helping!! YAY!
Yay for the break from sugar! I know I will always love sugar, so I just try my best to find a “healthy” balance. It’s so tough and so addicting…but so dang good!