For my family, the 4th of July weekend means we will be going SWIMMING!  And swimming means what moms?  We will be putting on bathing suits!

Now this can be a traumatic time for any mother of a baby!  If you have some anxiety about putting on that bathing suit, here are a few thoughts to hopefully encourage you:

1. Choose a bathing suit that is most flattering to your figure. This may be your maternity swimsuit. Use a cover up when you’re not in the pool. A sarong wrap that ties around your waist and covers up that post-baby belly works great.

2. Don’t focus on the way your body looks. Focus on having fun with your friends and family! Remember that almost every woman in the pool or on the beach feels conscious about her body too!

3. Set a goal for yourself to get back into your pre-baby bathing suit. Why not use that pesky bathing suit as incentive? It may take several months, but make it your goal to put your old bathing suit on next season. Here’s a video tip I made about this and you can see me in my old bathing suit.

You can get in your old one too with some work and determination!  Dive in with both feet moms!

Today’s Action Step:  How many pounds do you have to lose to get into your old bathing suit?  Set a reasonable goal (maybe dropping 2 pounds a week) and set a goal date to get back in your swimsuit.  Even if it’s in the dead of winter, you will be proud of yourself when you can put it back on! 

Tomorrow we are going the state fair where they fry almost any food you can think of!  Years ago, when I was a teenager, I ate a ton of fried zucchini and onion rings at the fair (they’re vegetables right?).  The next day, I went to a movie.  I got sick and ended up throwing up in the bathroom.  Hope that wasn’t too much info, but needless to say, I’ve never indulged in fried foods again after that! 

When will you be walking through temptation alley next?  Hopefully you won’t have to get sick before realizing that too much of a good (tasting) thing can make you feel terrible afterwards AND gain weight in the process.  A double whammy!

Tomorrow at the fair I know I will have kettle corn which is a family favorite.  To make up for the calories, I’ll do an extra cardio workout.  Losing and gaining weight is all about math.  If you know you’re going to cheat (like at the sweet-laden, delicious fair), then plan to skimp on calories the next day and put in an extra workout. 

Today’s Action Step:  Assess your week.  Is there a day when you know you’ll be eating extra?  Maybe you’ll be going out for dinner or to a family barbeque.  Plan for damage control.  Add an extra workout to your week to make up for your cheats.  Then enjoy yourself!

There are a lot of things in this world that require patience, and losing weight after baby is definitely one of them!  Like the saying goes, nine months on, nine months off.  It took me about 6 months to get the weight off after my last pregnancy.  Many days, I thought, “I’ve been exercising like a fiend!  Why can’t I zip these jeans yet!?”  Do you know the feeling?  Patience, my friend.  The prize goes to the tortoise, not the hare, remember? 

Another thing that required a lot of patience in my life was waiting for Mr. Wonderful to waltz into my life.  I’m blessed because the wait was definitely worth it!  I wrote about meeting my husband on Ungrind, a wonderful Christian webzine for women.  I hope you will enjoy the article. 

Today’s Action Step:  Take a deep breath.  If you’re frustrated about your weight loss, remember to be patient with yourself.  Set small doable goals and don’t give up!

If you want to find out what muffin tops and bomb squads have to do with losing weight after baby, you’re invited to listen to my weekly podcast.   In this week’s podcast, I interview Tracy (pictured above) and learn her secret of shedding those pregnancy pounds.  You’ll find out what a muffin top is, and how a bomb squad fits into her life.  By the way, isn’t her son adorable?   

Tracy is one of those inspiring women who exudes life so you won’t want to miss her great tips.  You’ll be encouraged for sure, especially if you’re a single mom or have a husband who’s deployed. 

It doesn’t matter if chocolate is shaped like a bunny, egg, basket or chicken - this weekend, it’s time for restraint!  Just like bunnies multiply, the chocolate in your life will multiply too.  From getting Easter baskets ready for the children in your life, to Easter egg hunts, to Easter dinner - get ready to be surrounded by chocolate!

Here’s my advice moms as you continue to lose weight after baby (or at least MAINTAIN during the Easter festivities) - choose your Easter treat wisely.  Don’t just fall for popping in a peep, unless peeps are your total favorite!

You might think they’re gross, but I love Cadbury creme eggs.  So I will have one at Easter and enjoy it :)  But I’ll skip the other stuff. 

What will you enjoy this Easter?  Leave a comment and we’ll see which Easter treat is our favorite.

Have a blessed Easter holiday!   

After meals, you may be craving something sweet.  But alas, no cake, ice cream or cookies can help you with weight loss.  Enter the frozen fruit.  Try eating frozen fruits for dessert.  Grapes, blueberries, strawberries and bananas are my favorite.  When you eat a frozen grape, imagine you’re having sorbet.  They are actually quite satisfying and fun to eat.  Put them in a pretty glass bowl with a mint leaf and it actually looks artistic. 

Bananas aren’t as pretty but they taste delicious frozen.  They really do!  Adjust your expectations of dessert and enjoy some frozen treats that are completely guilt-free! 

Today’s Action Step:  When you crave something sweet, reach for a frozen fruit. 

I wrote an article on my website http://www.losingweightafterbaby.com titled, “Me, Look Good Naked?”  As moms living in a postpartum body, we can feel a bit uncomfortable in our own skin.  Many women wonder where they can go for a new body minus the cottage cheese legs and tummy folds thanks to baby.  When you don’t feel confident about your body, it affects your love life with your husband.

A mom emailed me about the article.  She was feeling discouraged about having sex with her husband because of all the weight she still has to lose.  But after reading the article, she was encouraged by the reminder that her husband loves her and wants to have an intimate relationship with her, no matter what her shape or size.

Remember moms, a negative body image robs you and your family from realizing the beautiful person you are.  Accept where you are with grace, and push yourself to become healthier and more attractive with discipline. 

Find out more about overcoming disdain for your body and celebrating lovemaking with your husband, even if the lights are on.  Read ”Me, Look Good Naked?” and other weight loss articles for yourself at http://www.losingweightafterbaby.com/article_content.php?id=167

I’m reading Mireille Guillano’s terrific book, French Women Don’t Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure.  How’s that for a great title?  I want to know how to eat for pleasure and still stay thin.  One thing I have learned so far:  choose your pleasures wisely.   Don’t fill up on a bag of chips you don’t really enjoy.  Skip the chips and eat one piece of dark chocolate that sends you to the moon.  Pick your pleasures and really savor them.  Be choosy about wasted calories.  You may not need to completely deprive yourself after all.  You just have to learn how to make wise choices and balance out your calories throughout the day. 

No more closet eating habits (you know, when you’re leaning into your pantry hoping no one will catch you with your hand in the cookie jar).  Indulge in the open; enjoy the fine pleasure of food and friends - but only once in a while when you’re losing weight after baby. 

You’re trying to lose weight, but then comes the beautifully wrapped truffles for Valentine’s Day.  What is the chocolate-deprived-because I’m trying to lose weight-mom supposed to do? 

 Here are a few suggestions: 

1.  Eat only dark chocolate. Give all your milk and white chocolate pieces away to your skinny friends. Enjoy dark chocolate that is at least 70% cocoa. Research shows that flavonoid-rich foods like dark chocolate may keep high blood pressure down and decrease your risk for heart disease. So as long as you’re indulging, make it dark chocolate.

2.  Give yourself a chocolate allowance. Enjoy 500 calories worth of chocolate throughout your Valentine’s celebrations, or have five pieces of chocolate, or one piece of cake. Decide beforehand what you are going to do. Indulge all at once by ordering that rich cake for dessert on Valentine’s Day or savor your chocolate over a longer period of time (like one piece of chocolate, five days in a row). But after you have your allowance, you are done. Finished. Just like when you were a kid and your parents gave you a dollar a week, once the dollar was spent, you didn’t have money to buy anything else.

3.  Get creative with the leftovers. Chances are you’re going to have some chocolate left after you’ve had your allowance. You can wrap chocolate pieces and give them away to your friends and neighbors with notes of appreciation. Or if your truffles came from your husband who doesn’t really want to see his hard earned money going to buy chocolates for the neighbors, you can put the chocolate in the freezer and have a celebration when you hit your goal weight.

Want to lose more weight while walking moms?  Try the following:

1.  Pump up the speed. Start the first few minutes at a comfortable pace. Then step it up, like how fast you would walk if you were 15 minutes late for an appointment. Step it up again and walk as fast as you can. When you can’t sustain that speed any longer, drop it down to a slower pace, and then ramp back up again.

2.  Practice good posture. Stand up straight with your eyes forward, not looking down. Keep your chin up to reduce strain on your neck and back. Suck in your stomach with your shoulders slightly back. Bend your arms at the elbow 90 degrees. Keep your elbows close to your body (not out like wings) and pump your arms up and down as you walk. You don’t have to pump your arms high in the air; this doesn’t do much for you except attract attention.

3.  Add circuit training. Walk for 5 minutes and then do 1 minute of something different: jumping jacks, squats, push-ups, sit-ups, or tricep dips on a park bench. There are lots of possibilities! If you feel self conscious about doing these things in public, then run for 1 minute. After your 1 minute push, return to walking for 5 minutes, then push again for 1 minute.

4.  Make it a race. Walk a particular route and time yourself. Next time you do the same walk, try to beat your time by 30 seconds. Keep doing this until you shave minutes off your original time. When you reach a certain goal, reward yourself with a new workout shirt, movie, or manicure.

5.  Do your route backwards. Sometimes you just need a fresh perspective for some inspiration. Walk the opposite direction than you normally do and take in the different scenery. You’ll also hit the hills at different times if the terrain is sloped.

Today’s Action Step: What is one thing you will do to take your walking to the next level?