Fitness after 4

Well here it is Monday again. I did well last week, diet fairly consistant. I am starting to enjoy eating breakfast, I have alot more energy as a result. I weighed myself on Sunday, same scales as last week, and am down a pound. I feel better overall and seem more toned. Today I did lower body and will run this evening. I am up to 4 miles and am really anjoying getting out and having time to myself.

Livefrom NY: the "4" refers to my kids. I have a 9 year old, 7 year old twins, and a 4 year old. Trying to fit in exercise time between work and 4 kids is not as easy as I thought it would be. I am the heaviest I have ever been at 140lbs and was really feeling worn out. I am here to change that.

Okay, so here is my mental conditioning. I am telling myself the scale doesn't matter and that as long as I eat right and exercise I will be healthy and at a good weight. Right now I am consuming about 1500 calories which seems to work well as I am down a pound. I run daily and lift weights 3 times a week.

I also took the time to measure:

bicep: 11 inches
chest: 36 inches
waist: 29 inches
hips: 37 inches
thigh: 22 inches
calf: 13.5 inches

weight 140 lbs
 
I am telling myself the scale doesn't matter and that as long as I eat right and exercise I will be healthy and at a good weight.
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Very very true. The scales can lie. Don't always trust them. Don't get upset what it says. The best way to tell is by your clothes.

Thanks for the recipe ideas She they are great!
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Your welcome.
 
Yesterday went well. Here is a rundown of what I ate:

Breakfast: Oatmeal 130 cal, coffee
Snack: cheese 100 cal
lunch: peasoup 140 cal
snack cheese 100 cal
supper: low carb spaghetti with two meatballs and homeade sauce: 500 cal
salad 45 cal
snack: cashews 140 cal
Total 1155 cal, alittle lower than normal, but I wasn't hungry either. I was a little low on my protein which I think accounts for the lower cals. I will work on that today.

I did lower body weight training in the am and ran 4 miles in the evening. Overall, I am doing well and sticking to my plan. I am definately seeing more tone after only two weeks and that in itself is great progress. I am a little tired today as I was up half the night with a sick little girl. Maybe I can catch a nap before I run this evening lol.
 
A suggestion which might help or might not... try making your breakfast bigger and your dinner smaller... The extra calories in the morning will help you start your metabolism and the lower calories in the evening will be better suited to your needs then.
 
Thanks Stingo, that is a tough one. I know it is better to eat less in the evening but years of big dinners is hard to change lol. I guess change is what it's all about though. Going shopping today and planning on buying alot of fish, my kids will eat it and it seems to be a better evening choice. What do you think about a bigger lunch. I am not a huge breakfast fan, although eating breakfast the last two weeks has made me hungry in the morning again. Thanks again for your advise......I will keep trying ;-)
 
Intersting revelation, I used the calorie needs calculater and came up with 2080, subtracted 500 calories and used that as my goal for the day. According to theory I cut 3500 calories in one week and I should have lost a pound of fat. Amazingly enough I did.....have to see if this theory is accurate next week. I actually think I am eating much less calorie wise due to the types of foods, even though I am eating much more often and don't feel hungry. It is amazing to see that it works.
 
Well, it just seems people limit their calories all through the day, then have a big meal, or worse yet, a binge session at night. My gut feeling is that this sets up a mini starvation mode where the body knows how many calories it should've had by that point in the day, and it gets determined to make up for that loss by storing more fat than it normally would.

As per Men's Health: Eat like a king at breakfast, a queen at lunch and a peasant at dinner.
 
Well I stayed on track the last two days. No time to post yesterday as my daughter was quite sick. I am currently sleep deprived but following my exercise and nutrition plans out of habit ;-)

Tuesday: Breakfast: grapenuts 210, coffee
Snack: cheese 100
Lunch: tunafish and a banana 270
Snack: cheese 100
Dinner: leftover spaghetti and two meatballs 350
Snack: cashews 140
Total: 1170
Ran 4 miles
Wednesday: Breakfast: Grapenuts 210 coffee
Lunch: bologna and cheese sandwich on wheat 350
Snack: italian ice 60 calories
Dinner: chicken 180, 1/2 serving rice 100, peas 80
Snack: peanut butter 1tbsp on slice of wheat bread 190
Total: 1170

Ran only 2 miles, it was late and I was exhausted.

Today I am planning on lifting ( upper body) and running four miles. I am definately noticing progress this week. Abs are the toughest I think for me, I have had the pleasure a twin pregnancy and a cesarean section. All in all I think I look okay, but would love to see my abs, I am thinking much of it will come with fat loss, but some of it I have to accept as battle scars I wouldn't trade for the world :)!
 
Oh, four kids..............ah, gotcha.

I'm a little older than you are, have two teens, and weighed a little less to start off with.

I'm also happier when I exercise and weigh less !
 
Here it is Saturday. I will weigh in tomorrow again. I am using scales at the gym my hubby works out at. We swim there on Sundays, I am able to be consistant that way and avoid the "scale obsession". Regardless of what it says my clothes are looser and I can tell I am making a difference. Nutrition wise I am holding steady averaging 1200-1400 calories a day and not feeling hungry. I am also not having as many nighttime cravings ;-). Exercise wise I ran 4 miles last night I am averaging an 8-9 minutes mile with a half mile or so being up hill in the middle. I did upper body on thursday and had a great workout. Definately feeling stronger and have much more ENERGY! I have a samll frame and would love some muscle definition to square up my shoulders a little. Overall, I am feeling great and appreciate all your support.
 
I'm so happy for you. I'm glad you are doing a good job and having so much energy. Don't obesess with the scales, they are evil..very evil. Go by your clothes. They are the best way to tell.
 
Saturday was great! I stuck to my niutrition plan, with the exception of a small icecream. I bought Bryers light Vanilla Bean which is only 100 calories in a 1/2 cup, cones are 15 calories ...so for about 100 calories I had a small cone that was wonderful ;-) Overall calories for the day was a little low at 1200, but I was really busy. We also took the kids to the PA Grand Canyon (yep I said PA lol) and hiked the Turkey Trail which goes from top to bottom, and we made it with all four kiddos lol. We got some great pictures of the trail and kids. My dog Lucy led the way and thought she was in charge stopping to make sure we could keep up lol. I had to piggy back back my 4 year old on the way up at times as it is steep ( great strength training). Takes about 45 minutes each way. Excellent cardio and strength training. Today is my weigh in, wish me luck!

Edited to add that I weighed in at 138.5 lbs, same day, same time, same scale! I am now down 2.5 lbs ;-).
 
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I had an awesome run last night, it seems to be getting easier. I also did lower body weight training in the am. Nutrition wise I did okay with the exception of a glass of wine. I don't think one glass once a while hurts though. Here is my food diary:

B: grapenuts, coffee 210
s: cheesestick 100
L: one slice homeade pizza 300
S: missed
D: one light hotdog on wheat bread 2oo
salad 100
S: one half glass of wine with low fat yogurt: 200?

total: 1210
 
Nope, it certainly won't hurt - in fact you need that balance so that you don't feel deprived, get frustrated and quit all together. In the same sense you don't want to be "That Guy"/"That Girl" when it comes to being overweight - you also don't want to be "That Guy"/"That Girl" when it comes to training (i.e., the one that is ALWAYS training and NEVER eats anything unhealthy).
 
Hmm well yesterday I did well on my nutrition plan except for the serving of baked chips I threw in. They were 140 calories of sinful pleasure lol. Took a break from working out yesterday as I hadn't done so in almost two weeks. I did clean all day, so no sitting around for me. I am definately seeing some definition in my muscles, Casey (hubby) even noticed :eek: . Overall staying on track. I did an upper body workout this am and it felt great. I plan to run 4 miles this evening. I am a little worried about keeping this up when my classes kick in two weeks from now, but I am definately going to keep at it.
 
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