Bit by bit....

I dropped below 168! I have to admit- it wasn't without a bit of a battle. I'm also not that far below 168- I'm at 167.8- but I feel like I broke through another barrier by beating 168. The battle in this case would be finding the time to exercise since I have been working for the past three weeks.

Guilty admission: my weight had crept up past 170 again.

One morning, my son woke up extremely early- the 5 a.m. hour. Once I gave him some milk to soothe his teething- I opted to stay up and put in my Jillian Michael's workout dvd. I had been meaning to wake up early and get a workout in for about a week before this happened. I guess my son knew I wanted to improve my health too. It was exactly the kick in the bud I needed. I struggled through about 20 minutes of the video but kept pushing myself to do more. 20 minutes is the warm up and two circuits. I was exhausted afterwards- but it's worth it. Knowing I'm getting healthier and will look and feel better about myself and have the physical ability to run after my son soon- it makes it all worth it.

I'm also stubborn and don't want to buy a whole new wardrobe in size 14- especially since I have a lot of things I like that are a size 8.

10 Pounds!

What a difference 10 pounds makes! At my peak weight (184) on the left and my new weight (174) on the right. There are clear changes through the waist, thighs, legs, and jaw line/chin. So excited about this new development. I owe a lot of my progress to the Jillian Michaels DVD I purchased ("Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism") which has definitely helped to keep me motivated while working out at home. Motivation has been difficult because I feel like there's still so far to go. I do have to remind myself though I am only 6 lbs away from where I was at my pre-pregnancy weight loss size.

Prior to the JM DVD I had hit a plateau of 176.2. Suddenly, one morning I weighed in and there it was- 174!

I don't know about everyone else but when I start to loose weight- I do not want to lose the momentum once I see loses. It gives me energy to know I'm inching towards my goal and that changes are happening.

When I reach my goal, I will post my real life "before" photo. I cringe at the sight of it but it helps to see where I've been and to continue to charge forward in this self-improvement venture.

Since I've written last- I've basically given up on the Shape website. It's so much detail- who has time? Especially when you're a stay at home mom who is looking for work. The days fly by with taking care of baby, the house, and the job search.