I wasn’t one of those women who lost the baby weight easily. Or ever.
I’m not certain if after two years you can still call it baby weight. It wasn’t there before, but it’s certainly been there since. I believed in the tales that breastfeeding would help me drop the weight, certainly thought that all my sleep-deprived walking would help, had to believe that the constant bending and lifting would do something, and have my waiting for my Michelle Obama arms to appear – but for all of it, the pounds have stayed exactly the same. Exactly.
In April, I had the shock, horror and gasp that I’d actually gained eight pounds. No, just no. That’s when I decided I needed a goal.
I wish I loved running. I don’t. That would be the easiest activity to start with a toddler. It would make sense that I would start a running regime and then sign up for a 5k, 10k or more, and that the weight would fall away and I’d be done.
Instead, I reflected on what I do like. So I set my goal for July 5, 2014 – to stand in line with 100 ladies on the street in order to gain myself $500 worth of clothes at BikiniEspy.
My feminist inside died a few deaths, then reemerged in the form of Katy Perry’s Roar. For eight weeks, I found ways to cut out the carbs, limited the booze during the week, and committed to yoga 3x a week. By the day of the event, I was feeling healthier and confident.
With a bit of strategy, my total time in bikini-on-the-street was only 45 minutes. Surrounded by 100 other ladies, I did not feel alone or as self conscious as when I left the house.
Ironically, in the eight weeks of my prep, the scale didn’t move. Since the event, I’ve kept up the eating and drinking patterns and continued with yoga. While I can feel the change in my clothes, the scale is putting up a good fight.
More than anything, doing this challenge made me realize that my actions will be observed by my daughter. Getting clear around what type of lifestyle I want to life is essential for her seeing a mommy that is healthy and feels happy with her body. Today that combination is yoga and bikini goals, tomorrow it will be something else.
I’m starting to embrace that damn number on the scale.
