Mother of 3 Getting Back into Shape!

Ahh, the joys of pregnancy! Knowing you are growing another human being inside your body, feeling those little (or not so little) kicks and flutters, special treatment from non- pregnant people, and you can’t forget that pregnancy glow!! The joys of the aftermath of pregnancy- not so cute! Cellulite, stretch marks, stitches only if you are lucky, that wiggly, jiggly, not even close to flat belly! And don’t forget those unpredictable hormones- oh yes, those are the best!
Ok so I just had my 3rd little girl, whom I love with all my heart and soul, but that wasn’t always the case. The day I found out I was pregnant, I cried hard. They weren’t tears of joy at all. I wasn’t crying because of our dire financial situation with daycare, or because it was more laundry, another mouth to feed, more savings for college, or because we lived in a teeny tiny two-bedroom house and were already busting at the seems with our other two kids. No, I was crying for selfish reasons. I was at a good point in my life. I had been working out and feeling good for the first time in a very very long time. My arms, butt, and legs were tight, my stomach had cuts in the sides. I wasn’t quite at six pack status, but I was on my way. I was able to get a great night’s sleep every night. I was able to lift heavy items without a problem. All of that went immediately out the window when I peed on my hand for 5 seconds, while trying to steady the stick, to clearly read the double line that no doubt meant “PREGO!”
After I got over the initial shock I knew what was coming and I tried to be positive. I vowed that this time would be different from the other two pregnancies. I would eat healthy, I would exercise daily, I would NOT gain either 46 or 42 pounds. I started off strong. I bought a treadmill so I could walk, and I was doing Beachbody’s TurboFire workout a few days a week. However, I was very sick for almost 5 months, and eventually I realized it was sooo much easier to lie in bed at night and eat ice cream than try to exercise while nauseous.
Fast forward to labor which was 36 hours (my most intense by far) and baby Addison finally arrives. She’s so sweet and was worth the 44 pounds I wasn’t supposed to gain, but here I am where I have found myself two other times before-ugh!! I so badly wanted to see an infomercial about a magic pill you can take after pregnancy so within 2 weeks you are back to your pre-pregnancy weight. Deep down, I know there is no fast way to lose the weight. I know that eating right and exercising is the best way to do it even though I know it is a long journey. At 5 weeks postpartum, my journey begins. The good news is that right after giving birth about 23 pounds seemed to literally fall off me. NICE! Only about 22-25 pounds to get to a place where I am comfortable again.
I chose to do Turbo Fire as my first workout program because it’s very upbeat, dancy, fun, and the workouts range from 15 minutes to 45 or 55 minutes long. It may be the most realistic program for me to use with a newborn and 3 year old home with me. I have done P90X and Insanity as well and had great results with both programs. I just felt devoted to Turbo Fire because I started it in early pregnancy and never got to finish. So here is an overview of my journey. I am curious to see how well I will be able to stick to this having a newborn and eventually going back to work. I know what needs to be done and I am very aware of the amazing high that comes with a healthy lifestyle. I miss what I had. A new found energy, and a progressive change in my body and how it looks. I am committed to getting back to where I was and I immediately began drinking Shakeology again on a daily basis.

WEEK 1– I’m excited to jump right in- I rush to change into workout gear right after I feed the baby, so hopefully she will sleep while I exercise-fingers crossed! The first day, I surprised myself with keeping up (for the most part) with the whole 30 minute workout. My theory is go hard and suffer through-don’t waste your time doing it half-ass even though I am exhausted from unpredictable nights with Addie and crazy mornings, days, and nights with all 3 kids. I need to make the time count so hopefully it will pay off.
There were only 2 days of working out where the baby was crying uncontrollably and I needed to hit pause to calm her down, but otherwise I lost almost 2 pounds that first week.

WEEK 2– Not too bad- I had one crazy day halfway through the week and I missed my workout. It just wasn’t in the cards for that day. Otherwise, I was able to log into WOWY supergym daily (I’m hoping to win one of their drawings for money) and complete my workouts. I did an extra HIIT 15 minute workout on a day it wasn’t scheduled just for fun. I had energy that day! The workouts are definitely fun and I even found myself doing well. I will be doing the Shakeology Cleanse next week to help me along, hopefully.

WEEK 3– I’m still motivated and I definitely feel better after my workouts, but I’m not going to lie and say that scheduling these workouts is easy. I prefer to workout in the morning to get it done when I have the most energy, but some days I look at the clock and it is already 12 o’clock! I am doing the 3 day Shakeology cleanse and am STARVING most of the time- It is definitely tough! I’m trying really hard to stick to it- still going….. I never realized how many food commercials there are on TV….. ahhh!
I lost 3.2 lbs doing the cleanse and although it was hard, I find myself saying I would do it again. Weird. When weighing myself, I’m still only down about 2 lbs, but I definitely know I have lost inches all around by the way my clothes fit. I was able to get up and zip a pair of jeans that originally were way too tight and unable to zipper. They are still tight but they are up and zippered-Whoooo!

WEEK 4– This was the hardest week by far. Finding time to get a workout in has been really challenging. I admittedly have missed 3 workouts this week. We did have a ridiculous snowstorm before Halloween (which is unheard of) and we lost power for 2 days. Without heat or the ability to shower after, I decided to forgo the workouts. Next week is hard core workout time- I would love to be able to add Ab ripper X from P90X for 3 of the 6 days and see what happens- hello soreness!!

Kristen Atkins