Last day to get in on the Housewarming Party and have a chance at an iTunes gift card!
Check out my lucky mixture of the time change and nap conversion at How Do You Do It?…
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I am missing one of those stereotypically feminine genes. I really don’t care for the act of shopping. I don’t mind going to the mall if I need something, and I don’t even mind going to semi-aimlessly wander as a way to kill time with the kids. But I don’t actually like shopping. Most especially for myself.
But, sometimes I think I’ll go for it anyways. This weekend was one of those times. My sister-in-law wanted to head to the outlet mall, and I had never been there. I figured, why not? It was a Sunday, the kids could stay home with M, I could look for some bargains. It was a half-hour drive into the city to pick up my sister-in-law, and another 45+ to the mall. But we made it before it was too mobbed, and split up to hit our respective stores.
Mostly, I was looking for stuff for the kids. In particular, a winter coat and maybe some boots. No luck, on either front. There were a few things to be had, but I didn’t love them, and the prices weren’t good enough to make me buy them anyways. I decided to take the opportunity to try to find some clothes for myself. And that’s when the day went straight downhill.
Like any number of moms, I’m carrying around plenty of extra poundage post-pregnancy. Unfortunately, when I got pregnant, I was already more overweight than I’d ever been. And trust me, the last time I was considered “thin” was the day I was born (six weeks premature). So, here I am, pounds piled upon pounds. And being in this enormous mall with a million different clothing stores only served to remind me: I can’t actually shop in the vast majority of them.
I was teetering on the edge of plus-size before I got pregnant, but could usually get away with shopping at “regular” stores. No more. And, I’m sorry… Lane Bryant is a perfectly nice store, but it’s really depressing to have to shop there. And I never fit well into the clothes in Banana Republic, even in my slimmer days, but walking past it is now somehow even more bothersome.
To be even more frustrated with myself, why does this experience not provide sufficient motivation to actually do something about it?! I’ve done Weight Watchers countless times before, and frankly, it always works really well. My body responds to it, I drop some weight. But then I get lazy and stop counting and fall back into my old ways, and it comes back on. And with SO much to lose, it just feels too overwhelming to even start.
I can’t even go to the damn gym I joined over the summer. Why? It’s not for lack of childcare – they have a babysitting room on-site that is very inexpensive. Nope, it’s because of my goddamn foot. The issue that is causing me to have surgery (more on that soon) means that my left foot is too wide to wear sneakers. I have the time, the gym membership, the ability to bring the kids. But I’d have to be on the treadmill in flip-flops. Crap.
I know, this is a lot of whining and a big pity party. I should just get off my ass and start counting my points and at least get back on the Wii fit (it’s better than nothing!). But for today I’m just feeling frustrated and huge and disappointed in myself. Argh.
If you have On Demand, there may be an Exercise TV (they vary in different markets) you can use. On mine, there are over 30 different exercise videos you can do. I personally like Jillian Michael’s Shred video b/c it’s only 20 minutes. There is Yoga, Pilates, step, etc., which you can do in the privacy of your own home, in flip flops, and even braless you if so desire…
Where did you get your Wii Fit? I want one. I too am having problems finding time to exercise – never mind how I will once I go back to work. Right now the BF means I can eat what I want but I need to not let myself get lazy. I just love carbs and Halloween candy.
Like you I was at my top weight before I got pregnant. I’m back down to that weight but when I see myself in photos it is depressing. Nancy has also been complaining – maybe we should start a support group and email each other what we eat and what we do for exercise.
Mommy, Esq.´s last blog post..Ten Weeks
I felt that same depression shortly after my boys turned one. I was a size 4 pre-pregnancy and a size 14 post-pregnancy. It just seemed daunting to even try to get back into shape and with Jon gone so much, it was hard to fit in exercise. I joined WW, loved it. Even the weeks I did not have time to exercise, I could stilll lose weight bc I watched my points.
Have you considered weight training? That is something you can do at home with simple hand weights.
LauraC´s last blog post..Fall time change = blah, running = not blah
I, like you, can’t get into shopping for myself. Well, except for jewlery and other accessories that don’t need to “fit” -haha! Last time I found my motivation when i was called pregnant by an insensitive co-worker, 7 months post-partum. I wouldn’t wish that kind of motivation on anyone…. I think at some point you just find your stride again. Our bodies may never be the same but we can feel healthy, get a nice hair cut (
), etc.
I understand the struggles – with modifying my food and working out very regularly, I’ve only lost 9 pounds or so since Feb. It’s discouraging but it has gotteb better and all the exercise has made me feel better. I just saw this newsclip in a cab – the guy who invented bikes for spinning invented this arm spinning thing – it was being touted as the latest greatest thing in fitness and great for those w/ lower body injuries. Also, yoga and pilates are done barefoot usually and at least pilates doesn’t use your feet so much. and it helps when I can get Ed to join me too. Don’t get discouraged – I know it’s hard, but you can do it!
ARGH! I hear ya! I just weighed myself this morning and am just ten pounds lighter than the day I gave birth to the boys! YIKES! And the breastfeeding helps you lose weight is a complete myth for me (as I was 40 pounds lighter than I am now at my two week post partum check up, so I have GAINED forty pounds while exclusively breastfeeding. Now that the boys are weaned (almost) I’m going to really try to lose the extra weight. The clothes thing is hard, because I also don’t like shopping and I keep thinking that I won’t be at this weight long, so I don’t want to spend the extra money on them, but then I have nothing to wear…sigh… Good luck with whatever you decide to do!
Luckygirl´s last blog post..Favorite Things
I hear you, it’s difficult to lose weight when you have little ones to look after, no matter if it’s five pounds or 50. Even if you manage to get past all the logistical hurdles of childcare, transportation to/from gym and finding the time to exercise, it’s very hard to find the energy to do it. And the food is complicated. Since staying home with Jack, I’ve found that during his naptime, and right after he goes to bed, I like to unwind with a snack or something — it’s almost like, since I can’t walk over to a coworker’s cube and trade some gossip, I should help myself to a candy bar.
Don’t get me wrong, I love staying home with Jack, but I do find that for me, it encourages somewhat bad eating habits.
Have you tried some sort of online support group? Right now I’m doing a points challenge with some ladies from the moms forum I belong to. You can eat whatever you want, but basically you get a certain number of points for drinking water, exercising (anything that gets you into a sweat — from a brisk walk to heavy-duty chores to gym time), staying on whatever eating plan you choose and checking in with each other on the board. The team with the highest number of points at the end of seven weeks wins. It’s just enough competition, but it’s more the idea that there are other people doing this with me, that are checking in with me, that keeps me motivated. For me, it’s not so much about losing poundage as keeping semi-active (even if just brisk walks with Jack in the stroller) and eating healthy during the holidays. There are other ladies who are looking to drop a significant amount of weight, though, and they’ve been doing the challenges for a long time and have made really great progress! Let me know if you’re interested!
Beverly´s last blog post..Boo!
Does your gym offer pilates or yoga? You do both of those barefoot. It’s not cardio, but it does build muscle. I know people who’ve gone down a whole size just by building muscle but not losing a single pound. Nia combines cardio with yoga like conditioning. It is also usually done barefoot. I’m loving my pilates class. I’m working on my post twin abs and trying to improve my injured hip, plus dropping the kids in the child care room for the length of the class and a shower after is pure luxury.
Rhonda (twinsanity)´s last blog post..Hey, look, we’re famous
From one twin mother to another, I know EXACTLY what you mean. After having weight issues my whole life I dropped almost 60 pounds before I got pregnant. I had started to gain some of it back before my pregnancy, but now my children are 9 months old and its ALL back. I really am motivated to work out, but I honestly think the only way that I can lose weight is to practically starve myself. I know exactly what you mean about the clothes though. i have bought practically nothing post preganancy, I keep telling myself I won’t buy clothes until I lose some of this weight. We should all do something to encourage eachother.
Oh man. You are ME.
And I had to laugh at Mommy, Esq. comment about us emailing each other what we eat during the day…so, ya- today you’d get an email that had coffee, bagel with butter, coffee, soup, and about 4 cookies (so far. they’re still calling to me). *sigh* And I consider this to be a GOOD day! LOL
Wonder if we should try out a MMOTA Weight Watchers. They give group discounts…I found I lost weight on WW, but like you stopped counting when I didn’t have the weekly weigh-ins, and BOOM it’s all back (and then some).
Nancy´s last blog post..“Borrowed”
Like you, I used to feel overwhelmed about the amount of weight I had to lose. But I finally found something that worked for me. I set myself a goal of losing a pound a month. It sounds like nothing…it’s pretty easy to achieve with just being cognizant of snacks/eating habits. It’s not a quick way, but it was a healthy way for me to do it since it’s more about living a new lifestyle, rather than a short-term diet that I was going to give up when I lost a set amount.
I figured it might take me three years to get where I wanted, but either I could lose a pound a month for three years and weigh what I wanted three years from now, or I could do nothing, and still be unhappy with my weight in three years.
It worked really well for me, and I maintained my weight for years, though I’m also about 15 lbs heavier than I’d like post-twins. I think it’s time for me to embark on a year and a half long 1 pound a month goal
WhatACard´s last blog post..Why I love Sesame Street
Amen. I so know that pain. I was heavy after my first son and then the twin pregnancy sent me right over the edge into “huge” territory. I was too cheap to do WeightWatchers, so I did fitday.com. It’s nothing fancy, just counting calories, but since I sit at the computer a lot during the day, I could carefully track and see all the results right in front of me. Worked well, but we’ll see what happens when I stop nursing the twins. Eek!
RuggerMom´s last blog post..Little Rugger In Training