Helpful Hints (cuz I'm an expert)

Or not.  I'm just learning a few things along the way and thought I'd share.  So take this advice with a grain of salt or something...

1.  Exercise.  Please.  Just do it, but there's a catch.  Don't do it solely for the sake of smaller pants or less flabby arms.  Do it for your sanity.  There's something about exercise that makes life better.  After the birth of my 4th child I suffered from some pretty serious postpartum depression.  It got ugly but it could have been much worse.  Going to the gym most days kept my marriage intact, kept my children alive and made it so I could survive.

2.  Small portions.  I've been eating healthy foods for the last several years but I noticed that my portions were slowly getting bigger.  It's different for everyone but if I keep the between the size of my fist and the size of my hand I seem to do okay.  It's enough to give my body what it needs without overeating. 

3.  Eat often.  I eat breakfast, a morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, dinner and occasionally an evening snack.  I don't let myself get too hungry.  That's when I binge and start the "eating too much and feeling bad about myself" cycle.

4.  Be accountable.  I track my calories using an app on my phone.  It's a bit frightening to see the calorie count of the peanut butter sandwich you just snarfed off your kid's plate.  It's also a nice way to see what you're really eating and how you could do better.  I also text my daily total to a kind and non-judgmental friend.  She knows what my goals are and she knows what I need to do to reach them.

5.  Be patient.  This is the one I struggle with the very most.  It takes time for your body to change.  It takes time for your mind to change.  I know that it took more than a week to put the weight on (duh) but when I see little tiny losses or even worse, gains, I want to just give up.  I'm learning that it's a process, a long process but I also know that time is going to go by no matter what so I might as well spend my time making my life better instead of just wishing it were better.

So those are my wise and totally (not) new ideas.  Now check out the outfit I put together yesterday.  I was seriously impressed with my skills.  All that blog stalking is finally paying off!

That picture is pretty decent but I think my face looks better in this one.

My husband is a lucky, lucky man. 

Happy Monday!

Kristen