Mom Bod

Ya’ll, three C-sections is no joke.  It sure did a number on my 6-pack. (Ok, well I didn’t really have a 6-pack before kids either, but you get the point.)  I bounced back from a 50lb weight gain with my oldest (E) pretty quickly.  With my second (A), I gained a little less, but I also hung on to a few more afterwards.  Still, I felt pretty confident that the weight (50 lbs again) would come off easily the third time around with little effort.  Who was I kidding?!?! Those little fat cells are clinging on for dear life.

It’s been about 9 months, and I’m trying to find ways to get back in shape, but it’s so hard!!!  Kudos to all you mamas out there who make the time to work out and stick with it.  It’s no easy feat to find time to exercise uninterrupted for any length of time that is actually effective.  However, here is what is working for me currently:

• DDP Yoga.  My husband bought these DVD’s a while back, and I kind of made fun of him for doing it.  I was like “Who is going to use those?!?”  Well, now I use them because I can do it in my living room (so I don’t have to go outside or to the garage and leave my children napping or unattended!), my kids can do it with me, and because I can get a workout done in 20 min. Those are basically my three prerequisites for any workout these days: something I can do in the living room, with my kids, and in less than 30 min. (Get your DDP Yoga DVDs here )

• YouTube video workouts.  Free. Fun. Short. and again, in my living room.

• Walking.  (I will allow the first rule to be broken on this one.) Not only is this a great way to get moving, but my kids go with me – either walking or riding their bikes.  They get sunshine and exercise.  It’s good quality time; and it’s just plain ‘ole fun.  Being outside always lifts my spirits and brightens my mood.Exercise in general does that. I always have a better and more productive day if I am able to get in even just a little physical activity early in the day. I try to “work out” in the mornings – usually between 8:30-9:30am.  If I can’t do it then, we try to get in a walk in the afternoon when E gets home from school. Sometimes we do both.

• Another thing that is helping is good nutrition.  I love healthy food, but I hate cooking!  Normally my diet consists of whatever my kids didn’t finish on their plates. I’ve been trying to be more intentional about actually making myself lunch and snacking on more healthy options throughout the day.  Our family also added new nutritional supplements to our diets last year, and we have really seen positive results in each of us.  (You can check out more about what we are taking here )