Tuesday, May 3, 2011

My 32 Minutes & 31 Pounds

I have been OH SO WANTING to do this post for SO LONG!!

Truth is...

I'm a BIG FAT CHICKEN!

The moment I got pregnant with our precious "LAST BABY" I had the "LAST BABY" attitude..

  1. "Who cares, what I eat or how much I gain, I'm just SO HAPPY I'm pregnant"
  2. "This is my "LAST BABY" so I don't care how long it takes to get the weight off."
  3. "This is the "LAST TIME" I'm ever going to be able to eat whatever I want and have an excuse."
I had this "fat and happy" attitude until precisely about 2 days after Bakers was born. THATS WHEN I STEPPED ON THE SCALE.. BIG MISTAKE while you are still in the hospital with a sick baby & recovering from a c-section. NO ADULT SCALES should be allowed near ANY POST PARTUM, psychotic, hormonal MOM.. MAY I REPEAT......

Then it hit me..."WOW, I had AN ENITRE 6 pound baby and only lost 5 pounds?" LORD HAVE MERCY!!!

I gained 53 pounds with my pregnancy.  PREPARE YOURSELF, below is the picture of me in August 2010-2 months post baby and I had only lost 13 pounds.  Don't you see the LOVE and happiness written all over this face?

JUST NOW...8 months later I have the courage to share the above photo when in all reality, I have taken a picture of myself every month since then.
I've wanted to do a monthly update, I really have but I didn't have enough faith at the time that the pictures would actually change.

Here I am just yesterday...
It has been VERY DIFFICULT for me to take off the weight. I'm not thinking being the big FOUR O helps...
BUT I HAVE LOST 31 POUNDS as of yesterday! YIPPEE!! Praise the LORD!

ONLY 8 to go until I get to PRE BABY WEIGHT!

HOW DID I DO IT YOU ASK???

THAT'S where the 32 comes in...

On January 1, 2011...

God has allowed me

32 minutes 5-6 days a week, to exercise.
I started out at a SLOW WALK.
I am now up to jogging. I can jog about 2 miles now although somedays I do less.
If I have extra time in my 32 minutes, I continue walking.
This is MY 32 MINUTES!
I PRAY, I listen to my PRAISE AND WORSHIP on my IPOD,
I tune everyone but God out for 32 minutes.

As a homeschooling mother to 7 children, I must strategize this 32 minutes. THE MINUTE Bakers lays down for her a.m. nap, all the kids know "MAMAS EXERCISING".

I am either on my treadmill (thanks to my in-laws for giving us theirs) or outside. I've even had all 6 lined up beside my treadmill to keep them quiet.
Sometimes I even push 2 littles in the jogging stroller for a few miles while she naps. And let me tell you.. THEY AINT SO LITTLE any more, especially when you are pushing 90 pounds up hill! LOL

WHATEVER IT TAKES TO GET THAT 32 minutes!!
I am sharing this with you for one reason...

TO INSPIRE YOU!

IF I CAN find 32 minutes,
YOU CAN FIND 32 MINUTES!!

I thank God for allowing me this time, for allowing me the ability to be able to walk and run and use my arms and legs. For allowing me to be a healthy mom for my family and for giving me the strength I have prayed so hard for when I've wanted to QUIT!!

BUT..

WITH HIM BY YOUR SIDE ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!!



Photobucket

33 comments:

Malinda said...

That made me cry. I am so proud of you!!!! And yes, you have inspired me. I am so glad you shared that. You look amazing!

Kelly said...

You look great!

Jenifer Metzger said...

You look fabulous Jennifer! Congrats to you!

I am doing Made to Crave, by Lysa TerKeurst, with my Bible study girs. We have two weeks/chapters left then I am doing Reshaping It All, by Candence Cameron Bure. With doing Made to Crave, I gave up a very BIG pepsi addiction. I realized I was turning to pepsi instead of God for everything. I was sad, pepsi helped me feel good. I was tired, pepsi picked me up. Every emotion had pepsi attached to it in some way. I haven't had a pepsi since January 5th and I don't crave it anymore. I still struggle with sweets. I love chocolate. I have also started doing Zumba with my mom twice a week. So much fun! I just hate sweating though. lol.

The Anglin Family said...

JEN!!! You look great!! That is SO awesome!! Thanks for sharing!!:))

Kristin said...

Way to go! You look fabulous! :)

Louie said...

Oh Jen, you are inspiring me... and I needed it. I have a LONG way to go to get back to where I was... So incredibly blessed and thankful to have the little guy who helped me add the extra weight, but you are right... I just don't feel good about how I look or how I feel at times. So I am going to do it... 32 minutes 5-6 times a week. I tried to run last week and OH MY... IT NEARLY KILLED ME:) Did you really watch what you ate too.. that is my downfull too:) So happy for you Jen... thanks for the inspiration:) YOU GO GIRL!!
Sara

Kandy said...

thanks for sharing! I have followed your blog for a long time and never commented ( I don't think anyway). I am struggling with my baby weight too. My little man was born Jan 23 and I am in a hurry to lose the weight. Thank you for sharing your journey so far!

Debi said...

Congratulations!!! That is awesome!!! Way to go! It's so hard for us Moms to take time for ourselves. I am so glad you are doing just that! :)

I recently started a program called, "Fit Yummy Mummy" it's geared towards Moms and is only 15 minutes a day. I LOVE IT and feel amazing.

It's amazing how when we take care of ourselves, we have more to give our husbands and children. :)

Christina said...

Great job Mama!

Cheryl said...

I sooooo need to lose weight!! UGH! You are such an inspiration! I need to quit making excuses that I "don't have time" to exercise. Thanks for the inspiration! You look awesome! :o)

Unknown said...

YAY for you!!! That's awesome... the after you does look much happier :) Great job! Can I ask why 32??? Not 30? hahaha! Keep up the great work!!

StarfishMom said...

You have DEFINITELY inspired me!!! Starting tomorrow!!! Thank you!

Jen said...

You are doing SUCH A GREAT JOB!!!! You go girl!!!! Hugs and love!!!

Unknown said...

So incredibly proud of you for so many reasons!

HUGS! You look BEAUTIFUL!!!!!

Love you,
Jill

"Are These Kids All Yours?" said...

Thank you!!! Right now with this move, stress of finding a job, starting over, it has NOT helped my weight creep right back up.....

A few years ago I lost over 60 lbs. YIKES now I have gained at least half back :( BOOO!!!!

Thank you for your willingness to give me hope!

Farm Chick (at Heart) said...

You go girl!!! What a wonderful inspiration. Thank you for sharing!

P.S. We would be honored to have your crew over for dinner sometime! I better get busy on all those chairs. :)

Ashley said...

That's awesome- you look great!!

Kristy said...

I've never commented here before, but was too excited not to! I work in the health field and am thrilled to see you losing weight the healthy way. No quick-fix fad diets or hours at the gym. Way to go!

Kristy said...

I haven't ever commented before, but wanted to congratulate you. I work in the health promotion field and am so glad to see that you're losing weight the healthy way. No quick-fix fad diets. Way to go!

MyLinda said...

You look GREAT Jen! Thank you for sharing how you did it, I totally needed the inspiration and motivation :-)

bella said...

You look fantastic!!! It's really something to celebrate because it couldn't have been easy with so many little ones. Congrats on a job well done!

Created For His Glory said...

Good job! You look wonderful!

Carpenter's said...

Oh my goodness, I am INSPRIRED, thank you! I am starting Monday so I can hopefully feel a little better before surgery! You look fantastic and I am elated that you shared with me! What a great example for your children you are!!

Adeye said...

Wooohooooo....keep going, my friend...you're looking amazing. I admire you so much for sticking to it and NOT giving up!

Can't wait to see the pic next month!

You go girl!!!!!

quilt'n-mama said...

YAH!!! I am so happy for oyu. I have some weight I need to loose too that has come in the last year. Hoping to knock some off before I head to China:) We'll see. I like the 32 minutes goal... I was doing great for awhile but haven't done so well the last 6 wees:( Thanks for the encouragement!

I had a great time catching up tonight on your blog. Love the easter pics and your sweet girl made me smile... and made me wish our sweet girl was home!
Blessings,
Gayly

Shonni said...

You look wonderful .... congratulations!

Kelly said...

Happy Mother's Day. I hope you have a wonderful day!!!

Renata said...

Well done Jenn - very inspirational! You look amazing & I bet you feel so much better about yourself.
You have definitely inspired me to try & find some extra minutes!
Blessings
Renata:)

Twinside Out said...

You look amazing!

Thank you so much for posting this. I gained 75 pounds between starting IVF and delivery. And I have been really dejected lately, because I can't seem to get back in shape. I don't know if it's the extended bedrest or the pregnancy or both, but that fat seems to be stuck on me with super glue.

A big part of the problem has been that I haven't been able to exercise consistently. But if you can do it - and you have so much more on your plate than I do! - then I can find a way, too. Thank you for the motivation! :)

Angelwingsbaby said...

Great job! I too gained a lot of weight during pregnancy ,56 pounds.I struggled to get it off and it feels so good now that it is.Sorry I haven't commented lately but I never get your feeds since you changed things a long time ago.So proud of you!Keep up the good work!

Oldqueen44 said...

lookin good !

Peppermint Patty said...

Keep it up! You look great!

Rockin` Mama said...

WOW!! You look fabulous!!! You have inspiredme to give myself just 32 minutes a day!!!