I Need Help - Eau Claire, WI

Hi N....i had a baby in May and wanted to lose the extra poundage. My friends were doing this high protein diet and getting B12/B6 shots, they were also weighing in once a wk...anyway i started it the end of Aug and lost 15lbs in 8 wks. It wasn't hard and I look and feel great. The # is ###-###-#### and tell them C. F sent you. You have the choice of doing a low does of ephedermin(? spelling) but i didn't. They were really nice and helpful. Hopes this helps.

~C.

Have you ever heard of OA? It's a non-profit twelve-step program to treat overeating. Have a ____@____.com free to email me, too, ____@____.com.

Now that your little one is 18 months, he's going to start running running running & guess who will have to chase him! Yes, you. This really helped me with my 50lbs extra.

i think when i was pregnant my behind grew more than my belly did! :)

Anyway, i kind of did a similar thing that Amy O. talked about. It isn't a formal “diet”, though. i eat only whole grains (no refined flours), low on dairy, (soy milk is a terrific energy producing, low-fat drink), no refined sugars, plenty of fresh veggies, plenty of chocolate chip cookies (whole grain with oats, of course) with soy milk! :) I avoid: msg, fast foods, beef, artificial sweeteners… these things will slow you down & actually add to the depression those of us feel who are or were overweight. With the great food options these days, it is easy to eat healthily and at the same time eat what tastes good to you!

i walk walk walk and chase my son constantly. i avoid TV like the plague.

i just recently donated my size 14 pants away. i'm currently a size 6 and enjoying my new found energy which comes with new lifestyle choices and fewer lbs to pack around everywhere.

Hang in there! It takes TIME.

It took time to gain the weight you want to lose and it will take a little more time to lose it. It will happen for you if you are consistent.

On a side note: I would totally avoid fad diets. As a psych major & a student in nutrition I have found that, scientifically, people gain the weight back shortly after they have lost it when using ephedrine or protein fads and the sort. I recommend eating healthy, living healthy, loving your body now & in the future & you will have the figure you desire.

Good luck!

P.S. you might like to check out a few yoga dvd's from the library and see if you like any of them. your son might enjoy doing it with you which really makes it fun (not to mention a little extra challenging!)

I have been waiting to share my discovery with someone! I also gained weight with my baby 50lbs! I found a diet called the sonoma diet. It was easy and I lost fast. Basically you trade your white starches and sugars for whole grains and then there are suggesstions for snacks etc. It came with an excellent recipe book and I left room for "cheating". I was 170lbs after my third child one year ago and I now am staying comforatable at 120lbs. I don't even have to try much anymore. I have incorporated healthy eating and don't crave the super sweets actually they sound gross to me. I do eat my chocolate though.I will always eat chocolate!! :-)
Good Luck,

A.

I would say to start doing winser palates. I love her! I went from a size 10 to a size 6 working out for 20-50 min. a day in a little over a month, no joke! And I basicly ate whatever I wanted as long as my portions were right and drank lots of water. Drink a full glass of water before each meal that way your belly will be full and not able to consume as much food.

I know exactly how you feel! I have more than 30 lbs to lose and have no motivation to get off my behind and get rid of it! I eat well and only hit the drive thru on occasion and dont overeat but it is so hard to get motivated to go to the gym etc and I am realising that i cannot use the excuse that I just had a baby as my son is now 15 months old! I think the older you get the harder it gets to lose baby weight and I am 34 so I know I am in for a fight but I am getting fed up with being a fatty! I think you are going about it the right way, walking, eating healthy etc, and I think if you just persevere then you will get where you want to be. I should follow my own advice! Anyway, I don't really think I know the right advice to give other than to keep doing what you are doing, maybe throw in some vitamins and weights are always good, but I wish you Good Luck and God Bless!
Shane

Drinking more water helped me a ton! Juice at breakfast but then the rest of the day- water, water, water. And it helped me to cut out pop altogether- not even diet pop. I also really watch for things I know I indulge in; 1) chocolate; which when I have to loose weight I have to eliminate chocolate completely and 2) bread- I eat way too much bread so I cut that back too. Exercise helped too but if you don't have a lot of time, the easiest thing to do is just eat less- not starve, just go back and look at what a portion size really is. I measured out a serving of juice and milk and cereal, etc, so that I would know what a serving size looked like in my dishes. I think that helped a lot because not only are many dishes much bigger than what a single portion is, but it made me think about what I was eating. Good Luck to you!

Hi N., it took me a little while to lose all the weight after having my son. I guess I dont eat alot at meal times and sometimes with being so busy I dont have time to eat which isnt good or dont have time to eat much so my stomach has gotten smaller from that so when I do eat I dont eat much. I also have migraine headaches which Im on a medication that has weight lose as a side affect (some side affect huh?) anyways that wont probably help you much there with that one unless you have mirgraines. But the combo is helping me I know weigh less then I did before I was pregnant and fit into clothes that didnt fit before well all my clothes are a bit big now. Im down to 105 lbs now and seem to keep slowly losing it, my hubby keeps trying to fatting me up I dont look really skinny or anything that just would look sick Im finally happy with how I look! I dont excercise either some people have higher metabolism's also. The exercise you get at work is great, dont stop! Cut back on eating as much and maybe that would help just dont stop eating cause that isnt healthy. Good luck to you and dont worry it takes time but it will go away, mine did and I didnt think it would and Im smaller now so give it time!

If you aren't motivated to get out there to the gym (which who is?!) There are body wraps you can get. They take an hour and they wrap you a few times and soak the wrap with mineral water. I lost 14 inches the first time. You have to continue to eat healthy. Also I heard (but haven't tried it yet) that if you add extra virgin olive oil with cayanne pepper and a sqeeze of lemon into hot water once a day that helps to detoxify the liver. That's what I do because I hate going to the gym!!!

I know how ya feel girl! My son is nearly 7, and I was fortunate to have lost weight while I was pregnant- but put on a ton in the last 7 years. I know I need to follow my sons lead. When he wants to go out and play- I need to go with him- when he wants to go for a walk- we need to do it- for the benefit of both of us. I am sure you spend time playing with your son and entertaining him, just make it active entertainment- put on a dvd of Sesame songs and dance with him. It's easy to incorporate activity into play time with a child around.

It takes as long to take the weight off as it did to put it one. The safe amount is about 2 lbs. a week. What your doing is good. Walk Walk Walk. Is the best. Good luck

It's great you're not content to just sit around with that extra weight. I've waited too long to get the baby fat off, and I have no excuse anymore because my youngest is 7!

I joined Curves. It's the only gym-type thing I've been able to stick with. I lost 20 pounds the first year (I wasn't willing to change my eating habits too much...) but now in my second year I'm working on the eating.

You work on each machine for 30 seconds, then jog in place on a recovery pad for 30 seconds. The time goes by quickly, especially when there are others there to talk to.

I think it's reasonable ($29/month). Plus, paying for something is a motivator to me to use it.

Hope that helps.

i totally know what you are going through. my daughter is 13 months and i still have 20 extra pounds on. i have lost ten in the past 4 months. Just keep eating well and walking. i have also started holding my daughter when i vacum..alternating arms. then i am getting a little more of a work out doing it. play time can also be exercise time. lay on the floor and lift him up and down put him on your legs when you are sitting down with him sitting on your feet and lift him up and down. you will get more of a workout then you think!!!

If you are already watching what you eat, and of course drinking LOTS of water, have you ever heard of the "kettle bell"? It is a GREAT workout program that is easy and works out your entire body! But watch out, just the instructional video made me sore! But I will say that, although I did not have 30 lbs to lose (my youngest is almost 4 so I can no longer blame the extra on her), I had more like 15 but once I got on a routine with that the weight just sort of starting melting off! It was great! And my body is nice and tone again. I just love it and cannot say enough good stuff about it. I've told all of my friends about it. You can get the kettle bell at Target for about $15 and the video for about the same. Good luck and just remember to keep at it. Even when you don't want to.
L.

N.,

I know how hard it is. I had to loose 30 after my 1st one. What I found worked best for me was weight watchers. What I loved about the program is you can eat anything you want.Every food has a point value so if you want that cookie go for it. You know how many points it is and how many you get a day. So you have lots of choices. They also have a different points system if you are nursing your child. I'm not going to lie and say it was easy but...I had choices and it's a lifestyle not just a diet. I lost 35 pounds and have kept them off for 4 years...until now. I'm expecting my second in June...so it really works...keep up your excercise program too!! It helps and you get points back if you work out!!
I also really like to make meals from the cookinglight cook books and Mag. They taste great and easy to calculate points ahead of time. Good luck. Enjoy the ride and take one day at a time.

Hey N.~
I gained 60 pounds with my first child!! I totally took advantage of the whole "eating for two" thing. Needless to say, I needed to lose some weight after he was born (and he was not a 60 lb baby like I had thought). I lost about 30 pounds right after giving birth but it took me about a year or so before I actually got motivated to get in shape. I tried various diets and nothing worked with my body. I finally enrolled at the YMCA. They have a wonderful drop in daycare. I cut out fried food, started watching what I ate (measuring portions, lean meals/pockets, sensible snacks, making sure I got enough calcium, switched 90% of my beverages to water, etc.) I started out slow with excercising with walking, then running. When I would get into a slump or plataeu, I tried a cardio kickboxing class. It kicked my butt, but with other people around, I was motivated to keep up with everyone and to show up every week. I started to see the pounds melt off. I finally lost that last 30 lbs when I found out I am expecting again. I had hoped to lose a bit more and tone up a bit but will have to wait. I wish there was an easier way, believe me, but I found good old diet and excercise to be the way. It took about a year to lose all 30 too! Best of luck to you! If I can do it, you definitely can!

Hi N.!

Something I tried recently and was simple was replacing my morning and lunch meals with a protein shake. . .and not just any protein shake, because some have more carbs or use artificial sweeteners in them. So read your labels.

I'll share what I did to shed some unwanted pounds. What helped me was making certain that I continued to consume enough protein. I did not want my muscle mass to be used as energy while I was reducing my caloric intake. Muscles help burn calories even while you are inactive.

I'm and Independent Consultant with Arbonne. So I used their products while doing this. It worked for me. The proteins are low fat & low carb, are naturally sweetened and have lots of vitamins in them. Our vitamins are great, too!

I used 2 scoops of Arbonne's protein powder, along with 3 Tblsps. or milled flaxseed in the morning and took Arbonne's Women's vitamin pack. For lunch I would mix 2 scoops of the protein powder along with some raspberries or other fruit, and have that and took 5 Omega 3 fish oil tablets. Then when my kids got home from school, I would have a snack with them (usually 2 T peanut butter on an apple) and then I would have grilled meat on a bed of lettuce for dinner and my evening pack of vitamins.

This was my routine during the week, on weekends I would only do one shake a day.

It worked great!

One word of caution, check with your doctor ALWAYS.

Oh, and about that SAHM comment, take a look at Arbonne for that, too. We can help with that! I'd love to share more!

After a year of will power, eating no more than one helping of food a sitting, eliminating snacks at night and getting more into my exercise routine (and that was only after losing 20 pounds), I finally dropped 30 pounds and reached my goal!

For a year, I would have a bowl of cereal for breakfast (with more than 7 grams of fiber), I ate a 6g of fat or less Lean Cuisine for lunch (Yuck! It was hard at first, but after a week I got used to it), had a small snack at about 3:00 (yogurt or a piece of fruit), eating a small dinner before 6:00, no snacking at bedtime, going from 3 sodas a day to 2 a week, and drinking 4 glasses of water before lunch and 4 glasses after (drinking water kick-starts your metabolism), I have shed 30 pounds! I never ate until I was full (I was terrified of feeling hungry...what a psychological find!) and ate anything I wanted, but in moderation.

AAAaaaaa...it feels so GOOD! I feel lighter, with more energy, I recover more quickly from sleep deprivation and I am feeling sexy again. Someone at work actually asked my husband how he liked being married to a Barbie! I'm 31 years old, to get a comment like that made my year!

The big thing for me was self-talk. I would tell myself, "If I eat that, I won't make my 1 pound goal for the week." I weighed myself, officially, every Sunday morning and kept a record. I would list it in columns of four so I could see the ups and downs of my montly cycle and would know which weeks would be higher or lower than others.

I would celebrate every 5 pounds (calling a friend or buying a new book). Every 10 pounds was an even bigger goal and celebration (time for myself at home, or buying new clothes, every ten pounds made me drop a size). And when I reached my goal, I celebrating by buying a new wardrobe (well, one new piece per paycheck)!

Good luck! And support is huge! Have a girlfriend you can call when you are weak who will ask, "Do you NEED it or do you WANT it?"

Let me know if this helps!

PS I was stuck at 174 pounds forever!!! Once I did this, I dropped to 145 and have kept it off for 6 months!

C.

I lost my baby weight from doing body for life. I didn't eat as strictly as they suggest.... I have no will power... but I really liked the concept of how they say you should work out and I honestly noticed a huge change in my body & muscle. They make you track what you work out which was helpful for me to see results. And the work outs are not longer than 1/2 hour so it was completely managable. Although I did not follow their meal plan they did have a lot of good ideas on snacks and how to combine protein & carbs together. They have a really good website with meal & snack ideas and online support. I highly recommend it...

Hi N., I am in the same boat that you are in! Need to get rid of some baby weight. I am currently using Sparkpeople.com. It tells you what you need to do and how much fat, calories, so on that you should have in a day and how much calories you need to burn each week. It helps you keep track of your progress and even has 1000s of recipies for healthy eating. It's not so much as losing weight, but helping you keep it off and change to a healthy lifestyle. You should check that out, it fast and free and offers all the help and support that you need. Hope you join!
S.

Try weight watchers. I've been through it. I didn't feel motivated to exercise but I got on the plan and lost all of my extra weight without a lot of exercise (although it does help tone and lose the weight faster).