Wow!...I'm kinda in shock.

I gotta say first that I love MFP. My husband is always bugging me because I can't eat without running to my computer to input my calories. It's so accessible and definitely has made me responsible about what I put in my mouth.

I reached my first goal of losing 11 lbs and reaching my pre-pregnancy weight, about 5 weeks ago and that was awesome. I was finally at the top range of a healthy BMI but I still couldn't fit into most of my pre-pregnancy clothes so I figured I was on a roll and would try to get to my 2nd goal (another 8 lbs and a better weight for my frame).

I continued to lose some weight but about 4 weeks ago I decided I should really start throwing in some exercise which I had avoided until then (except for occasional walks with the baby in the stroller). I started some circuit training in my basement about 2-3 times a week and tried to get some cardio in as well about 3 times a week. I made sure to input these into MFP and tried to eat all my exercise calories.

I quickly noticed some changes in my body...I was doing some crunches on a ball and looked down at my legs and went Wowzers...I've got muscle! Same thing happened when I saw my arms in the mirror as I was putting my hair back into a ponytail. My clothes had started to loosen and I finally fit my pre-pregnancy clothes. For my birthday I told everyone I needed new clothes and last week, I went on a great shopping trip and bought a bunch of clothes that I could wear for the summer and once I was back at work.

This past week I didn't do as well as I wanted. It was my first week back at work after my maternity leave. I was really good in planning my lunches the night before and inputed them into MFP, but I found I was getting hungry at work and eating more snacks, which was cutting into how much I could eat for dinner. With waking up earlier for work and trying to get to bed earlier I was getting pretty tired and only got one circuit training in all week. I DID get 2 cardio sessions in though, and one was a great run on hilly path near my house (I've only ever walked it pushing the stroller). I surprised myself at how far I was able to run before having to take a walking break. I used to only be able to run for about a minute before being out of breath...I made it at least 5-10 minutes at a time and some of that uphill! I also got a nice ego boost as I headed back home and some guys in a car whistled at me as they drove by. A little crude yes, but it put a smile on my face as it'd been years since I'd heard something like that.

I finally changed my setting to lose 1/2 lb instead of 1 lb a week on Thursday so I could give my self some more calories to snack during the day especially as I wasn't eating all my exercise calories. I was exercising after dinner and it just wasn't viable to eat 300 extra calories right before bed after having had only 1200 in the rest of the day. I also figured I was only 3 lbs away from my goal and if it came off a little slower...oh well. I was already starting to feel real good about myself.

Anyways, today is my free day where I eat whatever I feel like. I got up early with the baby, ate some breakfast and for some weird reason around mid-morning I happened to step on the scale. I was shocked... I had to get off, reset it and step on it again. And yup there it was....130.4...I had reached my goal of 130 lbs. I just kinda stood there flabbergasted (which gave me a funny look from my husband when he walked into the room) and I'm still kinda in shock. I still ate whatever I wanted today and even had a big portion of the deeelicious bread pudding I made for Father's Day as it's my free day and...I've got something to celebrate too!

Tomorrow starts a new phase in my weight loss journey. I will change my settings to maintain my current weight and see how that works. I think the hardest part in the end might be to finally let go once I show myself that I can maintain my weight and to stop inputing everything I eat. It has been a great journey that MFP has led me through and while I sincerely hope I won't be needing it again down the road...I will not forget it and already mention MFP to anyone who will listen.

Thanks again for everything!