Apr. 2 -- HALFWAY POINT.

Half-way point.  Down 4.2 lbs since Feb 1.

I was trying to get to a steady 129 by Apr. 1, but am holding steady at 130.

Bummer, but, I am coming off the most gluttonous weekend I've had in ages.  Many amazing, delicious, rich, fatty, sugar-filled birthday treats from Fri-Sun.  And, throughout that weekend, I stayed steady at 130.  I tried to offset the orgy with lots of water and exercise.

So, countdown to June continues.  Goal is 125 by June 1.  And, more importantly, more strength and enhanced fitness.

My running game is coming right along.  Ran a hilly 4.15 mile course last weekend, and an even tougher 3.1 mile course this week.  Major goal is completing the courses without stopping.  Successful on the last two runs.

Half way pics have some subtle difference.  A little less flab, a little more muscle.  Still not where I want to be.  Post-babies, my toughest section is right above belly button to right below butt cheeks.  Work in progress.

Daily goals: WATER, MICROMOVEMENTS, SLEEP.

Sleep, you tricky beast.  I haven't slept through the night for five days, and before that, who knows.  The science is clear between sleep and weight loss.  This is a tricky variable that is going to impact the loss of these last five pounds.  Gotta keep the other variables as tight as possible.

While allowing for nightly red wine.  Let's not get crazy.

Mar 24.

What a whirlwind.

Took a week off for period time. There is no sense in tracking weight during that time. It futile and frustrating.

Weight is stuck at 130, despite frequent exercise and pretty damn clean eating.

A couple impacting factors:

NEED MORE WATER

NEED MORE SLEEP

Seriously. These two pieces are huge. I can control the water, and some days are much better than others. But SLEEP. UGH. Two small kids + child's medical issues = 6/7 interrupted nights of sleep per week. Seriously interrupted.

Lack of sleep = fatigue = sluggish energy = minimal eating = slower metabolism, etc. It's a vicious cycle. And totally outside my control.

So, I have to dig deeper to shake these last five pounds and make more muscle. Half-way photos are in 9 days. I need to be at 129 steady by Apr 1.

Changes:

WATER (64oz per day)
No booze for the next three nights
Limit drinks to two for Fri (Ringside date night); one for Sat (bday); one for Sun (more bday); NONE next Mon, Tues.
Make sure that meals are tried-and-true equation: protein + healthy fat + veggies

Mar. 9

Weight was down to 129.8.

Then the weekend happened and it's back up to 130.2. Not bad at all for a night at the Timbers game, complete with beers and sausages, and a family dinner with ample potato salad, steak, and wine.

Today:

Vitamins
Coconut milk latte
Protein bar
Banana

Nuts
Dried fruit

Meat
Salad
Avocado

Grapefruit

Chicken stiryfry
Two glasses red wine

It was a workday today, so little movement. But the weekend was full of exercise. Back to strength bursts and walking tomorrow.

Mar. 4

Weight: 130.2. Back in action.

Yesterday:

Vitamins
Coffee
Protein bar
Banana

Two slices lunch meat

Eggs
Carrots
Grapefruit
Hummus

Almonds

Chicken stir fry over cauliflower "rice"
One glass red wine

11,000 steps. Day was busy and active. No strength training, though. So today I will complete 30 push-ups, 50 crunches and 2 planks before bed. I would like to do more, but I finally got my kids' cold, so this is a reasonable goal for the day.

Mar 3.

Weight: 131.4

Yesterday:

Coffee
Vitamins
Eggs, spinach, sausage, olive oil
1/2 grapefruit

Protein bar
Banana

Nuts
Small serving dried fruit
Sweet potatoes with coconut oil
Carrots

Two slices lunch meat

Chicken and veggie stirfry
1.5 glasses red wine

Decent amount of water

Still need to up the water.  Also, I'm stuck around this 131lb point.  I'm going to cut out the coconut milk lattes for a while (I only have about 2-3/week, but that's still a decent amount of sugar).

Overall, diet is pretty solid (paleo-based) most days.  It's the regular exercise that's the killer.  Days off work - lots of activity and movement.  Days at work - next to none.  Need to balance that out.

Started at 134 and change.  Goal is 125 by June 1.  Half way point is Apr 1.  So I'd like to be down to 129 steady by Apr 1.  Shouldn't be a problem.

Life got bananas so I stalled on the blogging.  Sure enough, stalled on the progress.  As Steve and Tim Ferriss say, "What gets measured, gets managed."

Feb. 22

Weight: 800lbs

No clue, really. Just finished period (TMI), which means water retention should be gone. I was at 130lb yesterday morning. That's 4lbs lost, 5 more to go. But then I blew it up last night with five cocktails, chicken tenders, fries, etc. It was a splurge date night and it was amazing. In the effort to "live outside the box," I tried marrow and it was delicious. Check.

Today was complaint. Healthy eating throughout. It started with a one-hr Barre3 class and was filled with regular bursts of activity throughout the day. Tomorrow starts a fresh week and no big diet-crashing social events in the near future. I see some real gains from a few lbs lost and new muscle. Need to harness that momentum and keep going.

Goal to start tomorrow with an outdoor run. Hubs and I are registed for the Shamrock 8k in March and the Rock n Roll 10k in May.

Days 14-17.

Weight: no clue. It's point less to weigh during period time.

It was a crazy weekend of socializing, which meant eating and drinking outside the lines. Not to excess, but certainly not in line with my overall goals.

Back to it this past Monday. I've had lots of healthy eating and exercise during the past two days.

Both girls sick, again. This winter has been insane. Insane. Little sleep, little time.

But our trip to AZ is set for mid-April, so no excuses. It's go time.

Days 12 & 13.

Day 13:

131.6

Weight up today, despite perfectly compliant day yesterday and a lot of exercise. Low and behold, got my period this morning. Never fails, weight creeps up approx 2 lbs with PMS. No problem. It'll be back down in a few days. GOAL: DONT FALL INTO CONTAINER OF CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM. It's a very real, physiological thing. Period = cravings.

Yesterday:

Coconut milk latte
Eggs, ham, zucchini, mushrooms, peppers, olive oil

Meat
Carrots
Olives
Avocado

One hour, hilly walk
20 minute leisurely family walk

Protein shake*:
Protein powder
Big scoop almond butter
1/2 banana
Ice
Water
Touch real coconut milk

Stirfry with pork chops, cabbage, asparagus, olive oil, touch of soy sauce, coconut aminos, sesame oil, garlic, leeks. salt and pepper

*This was the BEST smoothie EVER. This batch made enough for me, hubby and daughter. We all drank them down with delight. Healthy and amazing. Again, I prefer to eat whole foods, but sometimes you need something quick and easy. I think the protein powder makes a huge difference. We got this at New Seasons after exhaustive research.

My brother is toying with the idea of an insect-based protein powder.  This is a terrible idea and I suggest the veggie-based protein, instead.  For all of the obvious reasons.  I hope you're reading this, SB.

----

Day 12:

130.6

Totally compliant day with the exception of chicken-tender (fried) salad for dinner.

50 crunches
3, 1 minute planks
40 push-ups

Day 11.

Day 11:

129.6

Almond milk latte
Vitamins
Protein bar

Banana
Almond butter

BLTA lettuce-wrap sandwich

One-hour, hilly walk, pushing buggy
50 crunches

Another BLTA
Carrots

Eggs, kale, turkey bacon, kale, red pepper, olive oil, avocado scramble
One glass red wine

Weight loss is happening faster than I anticipated. It's amazing what transparency, focus and awareness can do.

I'm plenty satiated and nourished. Back on track re: exercise. I hit 14,500 steps yesterday. But the strength training is my continued (lifelong) weak spot. I signed up for two barre3 classes next week. Today's goal: 50 crunches, 30 push-ups, 1 minute plank (x2).

Hubby and I are planning a get-away in early spring, so the heat is on. Bathing suits are right around the corner.

Day 10.

Day 10:

130.6

Coffee
Vitamins
Protein bar

Trail mix
Banana

Protein shake
Carrots

Paleo pizza
One greyhound cocktail

Workday - no exercise.

Tweak to goal: run one race per month. 10k in April. Thinking about baby tri or duath in June.

Day 9.

Day 9:

130.6. Boom! Haven't seen that weight since I was 12 weeks pregnant with Ruby.

Started at 134.2. Down 3.4lbs.

Yesterday was more normal eating. Getting back into the swing of things. GI issues gone.

Coconut milk latte
Protein bar

Bacon
Fruit

Leftover chicken stir fry, 100% compliant

Exercise: 15 min run, 15 walk, 50 crunches, 1 min plank

Protein bar (emergency movie theater snack). I don't like having two in one day, but I figured it was better than a hotdog or popcorn.

Delicious Stevie B dinner -- Asian-style beef with vegetables and pineapple

One glass red wine

Water -- 48oz? Still struggling. HAVE TO MAKE THE TIME.

The physical goal will be a 10k, for now. I would love to do a dualathon. That's on the bucket list. But for now, while I'm gearing up, a 10k is the way to go. Get a success under my belt and use the momentum. 1/2 marathon is out of the question. It too bad, as running is my most favorite sport. My bad knee simply won't make it that far, and I'd like to preserve as much good use of it as I can. And until I can rock a Tough Mudder, I'll find the next dirty obstacle course that comes to town and make my sister-in-law do it with me. I'm calling you out, May May.

Days 7 & 8.

Tell me, what is it you
plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?

-Mary Oliver

Excellent question, Mary. One I've been asking myself more and more each day. This question gets at the heart of big, huge, systemic and existential issues. I don't have the bandwidth to find all of my answers to those, quite yet. But, as my brother recently discovered and started practicing, start small. Get some traction. Create a success and use the momentum.

So, I'm going to step outside my comfort zone and participate in a challenging athletic event. Haven't decided which one yet. Still researching. In my ideal world, I'd rock a Tough Mudder. But, this first step needs to be realistic and achievable, so I need to lower the bar a bit to create a success. I'm open for ideas if anyone knows of a challenging, yet manageable event.

Back to basics...

131.6lbs

After a week of not eating (stress and GI issues), and two days back in the real world with proper hydration and nourishment, I think this is a pretty fair number.

Nourishment has been pretty solid. I indulged two nights ago with delicious French bread (with butter!), apple pie ala mode, and a Moscow mule. ALL. AMAZING. Other than that, it's been healthy. Still trying to bump up the both food and water intake. It's a delicate balancing act between food going in and STAYING in. Fingers crossed I'm through the worst.

Exercise has been pitiful. I've had just enough energy to get through the days. Although, as I said before, my fitbit tells me that I average 5000-8000 steps per day on a non-active day, so that's not too shabby, But I'm feeling much more like myself and am ready for action. Time to do this day.

Days 5 & 6

Days 5 & 6:

Weight 131.2

Let's just say this week has been rough and stress has been high.

As a result, I've eaten and hydrated poorly.

Day 5:

Coffee by the gallon
Protein bar

Protein bar

1 mile walk

One piece gf/df bread with ham and avocado

Water - who knows, I can't remember.

Day 6:

Coffee, again by the troughload
Protein bar

One piece gf/df bread with ham and avocado

Small bowl chicken soup
One glass red wine

Water - ?

Today (day 7) has been a bit better, but not by much. In addition to life stressors this week, I seem to have a cold/GI combo, and all of it combined result in zero appetite.

On the plus side, my Fitbit came and I've used it diligently the past three days. Seems like I average 7000 steps per day without any exercise. Chasing kids is pretty busy. My daily goal is 10,000 steps, so once I get back into the swing of things (tomorrow) I'll be well over 10,000.

Current, most important goal: get life back in order tomorrow, with re: to food, water and movement. My brain needs support right now and it's not going to get it with 600 calories and dehydration.

Day 4.

Day 4:
Weight 133.6

Vitamins
Coffee with coconut milk
Protein bar

Workout: 60 min Barre3 class, plus an additional 75 crunches I owed myself from day before

Two eggs
Apple

Handful almonds
Few carrots, celery

Super Bowl party:
My weight in compliant dip, carrots, celery
Meat
One pasty puff
One brownie
Two glasses red wine

Weight up today. No surprise at all. Last night was an orgy compared to the previous few days. Back on track today. Water consumption biggest goal of the day. No workout because I'll work a long day, so I'll focus on micro-workouts between sessions.

Water trick.

I seem to be incapable of remembering to drink water like a normal human, so I have to trick myself with silly schemes.

I saw a neat trick at Barre3 (http://www.barre3.com) today.  Four rubber bands around your water bottle.  Each time you finish a bottle's worth of water you take off a rubber band and put it around your wrist.  All four bands must be gone by end of day.

It's been a nice reminder today, seeing the bright orange bands on my bottle.

Goal: two bottles down before noon, two bottles before bed.

Day 3.

Day 3:
132.2

Vitamins
Coffee with dash coconut milk
Protein bar
Grapefruit

Smoothie (coconut milk, almond butter, ice, protein powder)

Workout: one hour walk, 50 lunges (split into sets of 10), 25 crunches (goal was to do 100 by end of day, so I have to make up 75 today)

Meat, olives, carrots and celery

Scrambled eggs, kale, olive oil, avocado, sausage
1/2 large apple

One glass wine

48oz water total

Wondering about the coconut milk (and its added sugar) in my daily diet. Usually, it's not much. Just a splash in morning coffee. And I usually like to eat my food, not drink it (smoothies), but the protein shake was delicious, nourishing, and convenient. Think I'll cut coconut milk in half and replace with water.
Weight is trickling down. Feeling a touch less "fluffy." Feeling motivated. Hubby is along for the ride so we're keeping each other on track.

 Ready for compliant Super Bowl Sunday. I don't care for Seattle or New England, so these commercials better be good.

Day 2.

Day 1:
Weight 134.2

Vitamins

Coffee with almond milk

Protein bar

1/2 banana

Meat

Avocado

Workout: one hour hilly walk, pushing 85lbs of buggy/little girl weight

1/2 banana with almond butter

Celery
1/2 protein shake

Chicken (fried)

Spinach

Drizzle of ranch

One glass red wine

48oz water total

----

Day 2:
Weight 133.4
Vitamins

Coffee with coconut milk

Scrambled eggs, spinach, avocado, olive oil

Grapefruit

Meat

Celery with almond butter

Workout: one hour hilly walk pushing buggy/girls

Handful almonds

1/2 banana

1/2 orange

Grilled chicken wings in lime/cilantro sauce

Kimchi

Carrot/celery/spinach salad

(Thanks, brother for an awesome meal!)

Three glasses red wine

48oz water total

Observations so far:

 I need to drink more water. I am ALWAYS more successful when I have a big mason jar constantly filled. Goal: 64oz per day. Time to get back into it.

 I need to eat more consistently throughout the day. I forget to eat and half a day goes by with no food. Sunday night food prep is going to be vital for success. If the food is prepped and ready, I'll eat it.

Day 1.

Up since 3am with sick kiddos. Going on two weeks now. It's no wonder time and energy are limited. But, I promised my brother (and myself) I would get up and running (literally) by today, so here we go.

Goal weight: 125lbs by June 1.  I weighed in this morning at 134.2.  So that's a 9.2lb loss in roughly four months.

That's the easy part.

I told my husband while I was pregnant with our second daughter (who turns 1 tomorrow!) that after this pregnancy, I want us to get in the best shape of our lives.  So that's what I'm going to do.  The weight loss is great, and I'll take it.  It'll be nice to slide back into all of my clothes.  But, I want to be active, fit, strong under those clothes.  Not beefcake strong -- slender and toned.  I want a new and improved version of my old self -- able to run, hike, lift, and SUP!

This used to be easy.  Fitness was a non-negotiable every day.  But, 10 years, two kids, and a career later, it's tough.  And not to ride the pity wagon, but often times our particular life makes daily fitness harder (up for weeks at a time in the middle of night, multiples therapy/doctor appts per week, etc.).

We could ride that excuse till we die, but I'd rather not.  Time to get moving.  REALLY moving.

To get to my goal I will adhere to the following regimen:

6 days of movement per week
At least 3 days of strength training per week
On the days I can't fit in a solid chunk of exercise in one shot, I'll focus on micro-movements throughout the day
Fitbit purchased and should arrive next week
Continue to follow a fairly strict paleo diet (we've been eating paleo since Kiddo #2 was born and I went from 160lb the day I came home from the hospital to current weight of 134.2)
Daily blog check-in re: consumption and exertion.  I don't care if anyone else reads it -- it'll hold me accountable.

Allowances:

I love one glass of wine per night.  Not changing that.
The occasional healthy deviation (oats with coconut oil, raisins and pecans for breakfast, etc.) -- because life is too short to be locked up too tight.

I don't have any interest in being food/weight/exercise-obsessed.  I have too many other important, wonderful, pressing things in my life I want and need to attend to.  So, we'll see how this goes with this new injection of exercise.

Before pics posted below.  At first I was horrified by my brother's suggestion to document and hold accountable with photos.  But, my vanity kicked in and it's a pretty strong motivator.  I will post half way photos at the beginning of April, then final photos in June.