23lbs lost! Sharing my progress... Shout out to the moms, I want to see your pictures too!

xmarye · March 2015

SW: 182.8lbs | CW: 160.2lbs | GW: 130lbs

Hey everyone

I am the mommy of a beautiful 9 months old baby girl.

I've always been into fitness and nutrition. Before I got pregnant I was a runner, I loved weight lifting and I was in the best shape of my life. I used to weight 130lbs and I had 20% body fat. At my heaviest at the end of my pregnancy I weighted 195lbs. 6 weeks later I started my ''journey'' at 172lbs. Ouch! I tried and failed many times. Packed on an additional 10lbs! which brought me to 182.8lbs and almost 50% body fat.

At that point my daughter was almost 7 months old and I decided that it was getting out of hand and that I had to do something about it before it got any worse. I had already used MFP in the past when I was trying to create menus for myself (told you, I love fitness and nutrition), but never had the need (or the will) to really use it to log everyday. So I started by logging everyday to track my calories. My calorie goal was 1200cals and it made me insane to count. After a while, I would get stressed out about it and binge; then it would take me a few days to work up the will to start over again. I was getting frustrated and depressed... Wasn't health and fitness my passion? I wasn't able to lose the weight. WORSE! I was gaining weight and a scary ED. I don't know what happened, but one day I just had enough. I decided that it was going to take a lot of work, and that I was ready to work hard a it. I was done with being fat, at my heaviest weight I had ever been, I had no confidence and I didn't want to go out in public anymore. I had been in a dark place for so long, and all of a sudden I simply chose to be happy instead of worrying constantly.

One of the things I did was to change my calorie goal to my TDEE. That way, I would NEVER see the damn red number. It wouldn't matter if I had 1190cals or 1210cals. I could also chose to eat more some days; but the green number would remain, and would remind me of how many calories closer to my goal I was getting everyday. Also, when I would check the weekly nutrition tab on my phone, it would show me how many calories I had saved for the week. Knowing that 1lbs is 3500cals (but don't let it fool you, weight loss is far from linear) I would get really motivated by seeing the big numbers. Some friend on here asked me if I was using reverse psychology on myself... Maybe? I don't really know, but whatever works! Right!?

After I lost 12lbs, I had enough energy and I was confident in myself enough to start exercising again. I started with body weight exercises, and I would sometimes use a huge bottle of detergent if I wanted to do some upper body work. After a while, I bought an exercise mat and a pair of 12lbs dumbbells so that I could use and enjoy this equipment and motivate myself to exercise regularly. I also tried yoga, which I was scared to try again since the first time (that was after my pregnancy) I wasn't able to. I was so proud of myself! I have been playing around in my workouts and I have found how to be comfortable being uncomfortable again and that is a great feeling!

Anyway, this weight loss represents so much to me because I had lost myself. I didn't know who I was anymore. I haven't found my old self really... I have learned to create a new me. I will never have the body I once had, but I can still be the best version of myself. Why would I live at less then 100%? Why would I settle for less then I can achieve. Some days I like what I see. Some days I don't, but it doesn't matter anymore. I accept myself as I am, flaws and all!

I have lost 23lbs, but the difference is drastic. I have a waist again, and my stomach doesn't hang anymore. I have 30lbs to go before I reached my goal, my pre-pregnancy weight of 130lbs. I am excited to share with you these pictures, and even more when I try to imagine where I will be in 3 more months. Everyone loves a good before and after, or in this case, before and during! Thank you for reading ♥

At 130lbs and 20%bf

At around 182.8lbs and almost 50%bf

At 160lbs and 37%bf

Melvicmurphy · March 2015

Well done! You are well on your way - love the new hair colour too!

mjones74 · March 2015

Excellent progress. Keep it up and thanks for sharing.

jontucc · March 2015

Well done, you look great! I really like your attitude to value yourself and look after your health and body.

I am a mum to 2 kids and started exercising and eating better about 2 months ago. Hopefully I can share some pics in another months time as that was my goal to really see some change.
So far I have lost 4 pounds and my clothes are fitting much better already.

addictedtograce · March 2015

Congrats!!! You and I could be twins! Same story!! The only difference is my baby boy is now 11 months old! Keep up the good work!

xmarye · March 2015

Melvicmurphy wrote: »

Well done! You are well on your way - love the new hair colour too!

Thank you! It's expensive getting it done at the salon, but I don't regret it one bit! I've always wanted to be a blonde, and my husband loves it too!

mjones74 wrote: »

Excellent progress. Keep it up and thanks for sharing.

Thank you! I will definitely keep working hard until get there!

jontucc wrote: »

Well done, you look great! I really like your attitude to value yourself and look after your health and body.
I am a mum to 2 kids and started exercising and eating better about 2 months ago. Hopefully I can share some pics in another months time as that was my goal to really see some change.
So far I have lost 4 pounds and my clothes are fitting much better already.

It's great to take the time to take care of ourselves! That way, we can be that much better for our husband and children. Seems like you are really motivated! Congrats on your loss, way to get the momentum going.

Soon you will feel unstoppable! Good luck on your journey, can't wait to come across your after picture.

addictedtograce wrote: »

Congrats!!! You and I could be twins! Same story!! The only difference is my baby boy is now 11 months old! Keep up the good work!

Congrats on your little one

It's the hardest job in the world, which makes us bad *kitten* to handle that and so much more!! I have noticed that the positive changes I have made are touching all the other areas of my life, and that was the whole point! Better quality of life for me and those I love! Thanks for the encouragement and good luck on your journey! We will be hot mamas for the summer!!!

abarriere · March 2015

Great job! Your side view looks especially slim and nice curves as well.

As a mom to a 13 month old, I can relate. My waist used to be by far the smallest part of me, but now i have this amazing mom pouch that won't go away.

Seeing your post makes me feel better, as I started two months ago and have lost about 9 lbs so far (8 in the 1st month, and 1 in the 2nd, so in a bit of a stall right now). I want to lose at least 40 more, it seems like so much at this point! I haven't taken any pictures, maybe i should, so i can see my progress better even if the scale isn't moving that much.

I just want to get my old body back, plus go further, and be the healthiest I can be for my family. I want to be a good role model for my son...i want him to know his mom as fit and healthy. Plus, i want to be at a normal weight before trying for baby number two, because I definitely don't want to have to do this again!

rwieber · March 2015

Congrats on being a new mom and putting your health as a priority! Good luck and continued success to you....you can do it! You look great and seem happier :-)

astridwilliams971 · March 2015

Well congrats , that's amazing progress . I've also started on my fitness journey and it's taking me ages to actually get into gear I've so far lost 6 kg in 5 months so it's very slow progress but better than no progress but I agree with the counting calories becomes to much but yes keep on u almost there

wateryphoenix · March 2015

You look *AMAZING*!

Keep it up!

deepaa1980 · March 2015

Awesome job...you look amazing!!!

BL3SS3DFITN3SS · March 2015

You are doing wonderfully!!!

GlindaGoodwitch · March 2015

This is awesome! You're motivating me!

xmarye · March 2015

abarriere wrote: »

Great job! Your side view looks especially slim and nice curves as well.

As a mom to a 13 month old, I can relate. My waist used to be by far the smallest part of me, but now i have this amazing mom pouch that won't go away.

Seeing your post makes me feel better, as I started two months ago and have lost about 9 lbs so far (8 in the 1st month, and 1 in the 2nd, so in a bit of a stall right now). I want to lose at least 40 more, it seems like so much at this point! I haven't taken any pictures, maybe i should, so i can see my progress better even if the scale isn't moving that much.

I just want to get my old body back, plus go further, and be the healthiest I can be for my family. I want to be a good role model for my son...i want him to know his mom as fit and healthy. Plus, i want to be at a normal weight before trying for baby number two, because I definitely don't want to have to do this again!

Thank you! You should definitely take some pictures! You know what they say... If you don't, later you will regret it! It's nice to see how far you've come. I don't see myself having anymore children, but if I were I would want to get as fit as I can before the next one for sure! What we women go through... I regret I didn't take care of myself as much as I could have when I was pregnant, but at the time I was just trying to get through it lol.

rwieber wrote: »

Congrats on being a new mom and putting your health as a priority! Good luck and continued success to you....you can do it! You look great and seem happier :-)

Thank you! I am so much more happy. I have found my positivity back! I have even surprised myself and wanting to go to places! I still am more reserved then I used to be, but I think it is just the way I am now. I find that I have more patience and energy for my husband and daughter, so just that is amazing.

astridwilliams971 wrote: »

Well congrats , that's amazing progress . I've also started on my fitness journey and it's taking me ages to actually get into gear I've so far lost 6 kg in 5 months so it's very slow progress but better than no progress but I agree with the counting calories becomes to much but yes keep on u almost there

It's all about finding a way to eat that works for you! It took a lot of adjusting, but now I have a few go-to meals, so I never wonder what to eat! I actually eat more then I used to most of the time. I would go for long periods without eating, and then binge. I didn't enjoy food anymore. I have found this medium where I can enjoy sweets and such, but it isn't the main part of my diet. I feel lucky that I have found success with this approach (counting calories) and I feel like I will be successful in the long term because I feel informed about the foods I eat and the portions that I enjoy.