21 DF Challenge

There's no magic pill - just hard work. You can get what you want by being lazy.

I wanted a change. I wanted a healthier lifestyle for me and my family. I wanted my body to get the proper nutrition it needs to thrive each day. I wanted to feel better - physically, mentally and emotionally. That's why I took control over my eating habits.

I've tried ways to get in shape before. Pilates and spin (which I still love), workout equipment from Walmart, and that terrible 'Fit Into Your Jeans by Friday.' Yes, the Kim Kardashian one. What was I thinking? Bored college kid.

When you're breastfeeding, you literally eat all day long to keep your supply up so you can give your baby the milk she needs. But when you stop breastfeeding, then what? Then what's you're excuse for that milkshake at 3:00 a.m.? I needed some self control! Please don't get me wrong- a woman who just had a baby is BEAUTIFUL! Everything about making, carrying and having a child is incredible and amazing and fantastic and perfect. But mamas know how it feels to look a lotttt differently than you did in that wedding photo where your husband has his hands wrapped around your tiny 31-inch waist while you two are slow dancing to Jack Johnson. It can be a heavy-on-your-mind feeling.

I started my 21 Day Fix journey on March 2nd, and completed it on March 22nd. It's a three week program that's based on clean eating, portion control and daily exercise. So I filled up my colored containers each day, and tried to eat everything I was supposed to take in in a single 24-hours. That's a lot of food! The trick is, eating the right amount of the right things. I was only allowed (with my caloric intake) two yellow containers per day, which is considered carbs. Before the program, carbs made up probably 80 percent of my daily diet. Who knew I needed 4 servings of meat and three (LARGE) servings of vegetables each day? Now I do! And that's only a drop in the colored container bucket.

I was so surprised at the results I was seeing! I'm not big on photos of my stomach, but I'm stepping out of my comfort zone to show what a difference eating right and exercising regularly has made..
Yikes. Here goes..

March 2, 2015. Four months postpartum.

March 22, 2015. Three weeks later.

I may have light purple stretch marks across my stomach and I may have to re-position myself while sleeping because that pesky rib (that used to be in the correct place) sticks so far into the mattress it hurts to breathe, and I may have dark circles under my eyes because I chose to forego that nap while everyone else was napping because I had little things to take care of, like washing bottles or ironing uniforms... all these things for the rest of my life. But I'll feel good about myself because I've made a great change. A change that's good for the body and soul.