FAT Friday:6/8/12

I'm linking up with Ginger over at (not)Just Another Mom of Twins for her F.A.T Friday series.

This week I am down 2.2 pounds!!! Almost as much as I lost the entire month of May. I'm not sure what the difference is. I have eaten slightly better and my runs are becoming more significant and therefore burning more calories.  Also, I just think maybe (hopefully) my body is getting on board. 

Also exciting this week, I seem to have picked up some speed during my runs. I was averaging around 11.5 minutes/mile during the running portions and now seem to be at about 10.5. The first day it happened, I thought it was probably a GPS fluke (they are not perfect) but it happened again the next day. I have never been a fast runner, even when I was in great shape I averaged about a 10 minute mile. Respectable but I'm never gonna place in a race. My fastest race ever was an 8K in 45 minutes. I nearly died when I saw that time. I still am not certain they measured right. Anyway, yay for increased speed! 

This week Ginger asked:   What “triggered” you to take control of your weight and start on the road to healthy living? If you're already "there" what keeps you "there"? 

Right  now is a continuation of where I left off last year. In February 2011, I was fat and had been for over a year. I gained a lot of weight when I was pregnant with my daughter and just couldn't seem to get myself together enough that first year of motherhood to do anything about it. At tried and failed several times but always found myself reaching the M&Ms to deal with the stress of being a working mom. At the end of 2011, I got pregnant again and though elated, I was unhappy to be going into pregnancy 30 pounds heavier than I started my last pregnancy.  Unfortunately, I miscarried that baby. It was tragic but we were determined to try again.  I decided to make the best of a bad situation and use the time until I (hopefully) got pregnant again and get in the best shape I could. I didn't know if I would have a month, a year, or a lifetime. 


So in February 2011, I started counting calories and by the end of May I had lost 23 pounds. Then on Memorial Day of that year, I found out I was pregnant again. I hoped that I could limit my weight gain to 20 pounds but I gained twice that. After having the baby and dropping all the water weight, I settled in at about 20 pounds more than I had started the pregnancy. It was disappointing to see all that weight back but I was thankful that I had lost it in the first place or I would have been looking at 50 lbs of gain in 2 pregnancies.  Anyway, after allowing a couple of months for my body to heal (c-section) and my milk production to stabilize, I was able to pick up where I left off. It honestly surprises me that I was able to get back on the wagon so easily. Especially, since my stresses are double. I don't really know what it different about right now than times in the past,  but I am ready to finish what I started a year ago. 


I'm excited for a new week!