When I found out that my baby was going to be a boy (I really wanted a girl, I wanted my daughter to have a sister but instead she has 4 brothers), I went into depression and during pregnancy I just kept gaining weight. I couldn’t control my eating or my stress. Towards the end of pregnancy, I didn’t even want to look at the scale. Every appointment when I got weighed, I just looked away. I didn’t want to know what my weight was. I almost made it to the end, until one doctor told me the number while we were talking. It hit me hard, 163! I had gained 40 pounds. From that point on I realized that I couldn’t go eating whatever I wanted and just expect to not gain weight.
So I had my baby. I felt huge and was expecting him to be a bigger baby because I felt so big. But nope, he was tiny! Only 5 lbs 11 oz. So I had a lot of weight to lose. Here are a couple pictures of me three weeks after he was born. It was really hard for me to have pictures taken. I knew that I had to be in them because they were special occasions, my oldest son’s baptism and my baby’s blessing.
In May of last year I decided that I needed to control my sweets. So I gave up candy. And then in June when I ate a whole 1/2 gallon of ice cream in 24 hours, I decided it was time to give that up too. The reason why I chose candy and ice cream is because I absolutely love them. I can eat a whole bag of candy easily. Those two sweets are just bad for me. When it comes to cookies and cupcakes, I can usually have one or two and then I’m good. So I got rid of candy and ice cream. And haven’t eaten them since. It’s been hard but I can definitely feel a difference. I am going to do a full year without candy and ice cream, that’s my goal.
Then when my baby was 5 weeks I started to run. The first run was pathetic and so slow, but I got out there. I ran the whole summer, training for a half marathon. In three months I ran over 100 miles.
And that put me to October. I was feeling better but I could tell that the running wasn’t cutting it for me. I was down to 134 and feeling pretty good, but not like myself.
The sugar fast did the trick! I finally weighed myself and I pleased to see that I was actually under my pre pregnancy weight by 3 pounds! I was able to lose a total of 43 pounds!
I was able to lose the weight without ever going to a gym and taking care of my five kids. If I can find the time, you can too. My husband and I would put the kids to bed and then work out. Sometimes we would be working out with all five kids awake. They weren’t the best workouts but they were better than nothing.
Here are a few tips that I have to help with losing the weight:
-Find an exercise partner. It helps a ton to have someone to help you and push you. Chances are if you have someone counting on you to exercise with them, you are more likely to do it.
– Don’t make excuses. We are all busy. Find a time to just do it and exercise.
-Don’t buy the junk food that you absolutely love, because there is a good chance you will eat the other bag by yourself.
– Change up your exercise routine and diet.
– If you love sugar, then try out a sugar fast, even for just a week.
-Eating good is just as important as exercising.
-Control your snacking. Eat meals instead of just snacking all day.
– We all have days, weeks and months that life is just crazy. Too crazy to exercise. So don’t give up. Just get through those crazy times and when life settles down start up again.
-Drink lots of fluids (water!). Not only does it help hydrate, it also helps with cravings.
Now that I am down to the weight I want to be at, I’m not going to stop eating healthy and exercising. I am loving how I feel! I was exercising 5-6 days a week. Now I am going to do 3-4 days a week. And I am continuing to control my sweets intakes.
One of my favorite things about exercising is that it’s something that my kids can’t take away. You know when you clean the house and then five minutes later it’s a disaster again. At least when I exercise I feel like I accomplish something that day :).
Kristin
I love this! Congrats on your success and dedication! I gained 70lbs with my two kiddos in under two years (50 of it, I had lost once before). I've gotten down 50lbs in the past year, but have struggled since the holidays. Stories like yours keep me inspired and motivated to keep going!
Britni Vigil
Congrats Space, that's awesome. I've lost my baby weight, unfortunately I wasn't even close to a healthy weight before I got pregnant so I've got a ways to go as well. You're better than me though, I just haven't found that spark and motivation yet to do anything… hoping that it'll happen with SNAP and two weddings that I know I'll have to be in pictures for.
TheKimSix Fix
Nice job! I had baby last April too and I still have a good 40 pounds to loose. Your story is so motivating. My 20th High School reunion is this summer so I am hoping that gets me motivated!
anastasia anezinis
You are my hero!I can't believe what a great result for a one year! You get me courage to make it for myself !
Wish you all the best!
Congratulations
Kori
Wow. What a difference. And you look so very good now. Amazing.
Coleen
Wow, you look amazing! Great job on following thru with it! I'm trying couch to 5k now. Almost done with week two and happy I'm doing it. You're right about doing it with someone. That gives you more motivation to stick to it!
Kelly M.
Yay! Congrats!! You look great! And this post is totally motivating me to get moving again. And I'm right there with you on eating a whole bag of candy and a carton of ice cream by myself. – keeping the junk food out of the house totally helps with me eating healthier.
Britney Mills
Totally true! Thanks for sharing! I'm at the same point right now, just slowly getting weight off! Keep up the good work!
Melissa
You look great!
LisaRae
Awesome job, I lost 50 pounds after my daughter was born, but I've since stalled out and gained 10 back. Now I'm trying to certify as a jazzercise instructor so I have no choice but to stay in shape. It's nice to hear that other moms who have a lot on their plate can lose weight without hitting the gym.
Emily Rooney
You've done a great job! I have my third baby is April, and I have baby, toddler, and preschooler weight to lose! I wish I'd been as on the ball as you've been, but I am happy to report that I finally had the (all-too-obvious) epiphany that I couldn't continue eating the way I was and lose weight. I said goodbye to ice cream too (we were bffs), and now 5-6 weeks later I'm already down 11 pounds. I still have 40 or so to go (it's hard to write that!), but it's great to feel like this time it's actually going to happen. Thanks for sharing your story. This inspires me to keep going!
-Emily @ My Love for Words
kiki comin
you are amazingl love this post as i am in the same position of losing my baby weight from #5! π
Lindsay
You look great and that is some really good advice! I'm leaving on vacation next week and I wanted to lose a few pounds before then. I need some new jeans and I want to buy them in my current size and have them fit comfortably. My old ones were getting kind of tight. So I decided to give up all sweets during the week and just allow myself something small on the weekend. I'm not ready to give up sugar completely, but that seemed like a good compromise. Like you, I just don't buy it because I know if it's in the house, I will eat it. Something else that helps is eating something healthy (fruit or yogurt usually) every couple of hours. That way I'm never starving and never feel tempted to go to the vending machine at work or slip and eat something sweet. It really makes a difference and I can lose about 1-2 pounds a week that way. I would still like to lose a couple more, but my pants are fitting comfortably again and that was the goal. Now I can go shopping!
Thi Tran
Congrats! You look beautiful. Im the opposite of you, i love salty snacks more than sweets. Ive plateau in loosing weight and i think its bc i need a new exercise routine. Been wanting to try T25 and now i will bc of you.
Luisa Chandler
What an awesome success and inspiring journey you've shared! You truly do look fantastic and you are just glowing π I love the fact that you were able to do it all at home and you didn't have to pay insane amounts of money for gym or trainer. Congratulations! Your hard work and willpower against sugar (it really can be addicting…trust me…I know) has really paid off!
Emily Thompson
Awesome, you look great!!! Can't believe you've had five kids π I've been doing Jillian Michaels videos for years, but I might need to change it up with t25 for awhile..
Victoria ObSEUSSed
Great job Kaysi! I love how you showed that if something wasn't working, you tried something new. I cut out soda and milk last fall and have been doing exercise DVDs 3-4 days a week and not seeing a change. It has been frustrating. So last month I got my husband to start doing P90X with me at night once the kids are in bed. We checked the DVDs out from the library and we are loving exercising together. Thanks for all your tips and inspiration!
Gallegos Newsletter
Congratulations and thanks for sharing! You look awesome! I am on a weight lose journey and after reading this I feel very encouraged….
Lee
I'm actually really depressed about this very thing right now. I lost all the baby weight about my pregnancies, but gained a ton being stressed out by a women's retreat I was leading when my daughter was 2. In the past four years I've loved going to the gym several times a week, but can't ever seem to loose the weight. We started T25 on New Years and now 8 weeks into the program, I've basically quit 'cause I haven't lost one pound. I just feel like it doesn't matter what I do. This weight (about 20 pounds) just isn't going to come off.
Michelle Melville
Thank you for sharing your story! I think it is really motivating! I am expecting my baby in August and I have been trying to eat better and exercise throughout my pregnancy. I am definitely going to reference your tips! π