The Revival of The Gym Bunny

I figure it's time I revived this blog. I sort of fell away from it mid-pregnancy. I'll be honest, I wasn't feeling particularly Gym Bunny-like during pregnancy, so blogging about fitness just didn't feel right. I'm weird, I know. But I gained more with this past pregnancy than I did with my first two. I gave birth to a gorgeous baby girl we named Farrah Madison, so every lb was worth it, but it is very hard to accept post-pregnancy. I am now about 10 weeks postpartum and still looking at 25-30 lbs to go until I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight. No, don't check your eyes, that's right, I said 25-30 lbs. Yeah, what you are supposed to gain in pregnancy. I went beyond that number by 20-25 lbs. So the good news is I've lost 25 lbs or so in about 10 weeks, but I still have a daunting task ahead of me. I know myself well enough to know that I WILL lose it all, but this summer has definitely been a downer...all I want to do is cover up!

That being said, I'm trying to keep my spirits {and motivation} high...because if I depress myself, I'll only end up procrastinating on working to lose this weight. In the past 10 weeks, I've done many 2-3 mile walks with my son, Breckin and baby Farrah...as well as trekked over the Cooper River Bridge a couple times a week {quite the incline, especially when pushing a stroller!}

 I've been doing a hybrid of T25 and Insanity. I've been going to the gym {albeit not as much as I'd like since I have to wait until Farrah is 12 weeks to take advantage of the childcare}. It's been challenging to fit it all in while being at home with my 8-year-old son, Tanner, my almost 4-year-old son, Breckin and a newborn...but it's important to me, so I have to make it happen.

I have a few goals that I've made for myself over the next few months...and a plan to achieve them.

#1...First and foremost, drop the last of the baby weight and get back in my pre-prego clothes. Once I reach this milestone, I can fully dedicate myself to my other goals, but working toward my other goals is what is going to help me lose that weight, if that makes sense.

#2...Train for and run my first half marathon {aiming for the Charleston Half Marathon in January 2015}. I will begin a better running schedule once my oldest goes back to school mid-August {leaving me more opportunity to fit it in} just to work on getting my feet wet in running again. I will do a few 5Ks. I plan on starting a half marathon training program about 16 weeks out from the race {around October}.

And now, this next one is a big one. But I wholeheartedly believe I can achieve it if I really put my mind to it and have my support system {family and friends} to help me through...

#3...Compete in an NPC Bikini Competition. The schedule of shows for 2015 has yet to be posted, but I'm thinking somewhere around June/July is when I would like to do a show. In January, I will decide what show I am going to work toward. I will choose one close to Charleston. This will take a lot of hard work in the gym {we're talking 5-6 days a week at around an hour and a half each time} and a very strict eating plan. But I really want this. I chose bikini because it is the most feminine of the categories to compete in. I will have to be 8-12% body fat. I know if I put my mind to it {and my glass of wine down for a while} I can do it. I plan on charting my progress on this blog, so I hope y'all will follow along and support me in my journey. I just let my husband know that I was going to strive for this goal and he is behind me 100%. So hopefully by this time next year, I will look more like this:

 

It seems unbelievable, but so many women have done it.

Anyway, that's all for now...stay tuned as I keep you up to date on my postpartum weightloss progress.