Don’t Forget to Move to Arlene’s New Blog

The Losing Weight After Baby blog is ending. Baby Lucy is 15 months, Noelle is 4, and Ethan is 6.  We’re growing up!

Coming follow us to the new Arlene Pellicane blog.  Bookmark it now before you forget!    Every day this month, I’ll be blogging with a tip from my book 31 Days to a Younger You:  No Surgery, No Diets, No Kidding. I look forward to chatting more on the new blog!

Thank you so much moms for reading this blog and making it special!  Here’s a quick pictorial stroll down memory lane!

New Podcast is Up!

I’m so happy to say I have a new Losing Weight After Baby podcast up!  The episode is titled “Nine Months On, Seven Months Off.”  I can’t believe how time has flown since I last made a podcast.  Many of you have emailed about wanting new podcasts (thank you) so here you go!

The last few months, I’ve been working on edits for my book coming out in December, 31 Days to a Younger You plus caring for baby Lucy, speaking at events, etc.  But the real kicker for the podcast was that my husband computer died sending our podcast into a tailspin.  But we are back and functioning now.

Can I give you a peek into where the podcast is going?  I’ll be doing a few more Losing Weight After Baby podcasts but will be transitioning to a podcast that will be broader in scope covering topics such as:

• weight loss
• looking and feeling younger
• getting closer to God and others
• finding meaning in your work

I hope these are topics that will interest and inspire you to live your best life.  Motherhood is so special even with the sleepless nights and muffin top bellies (ours, not our babies!).  I want to help you enjoy every moment!

Guess What? I’ve Reached My Goal Weight!

I am happy to say everything in the closet fits!  Thank you God.  Here are baby Lucy and I at my son’s kindergarten graduation party.  We’re all celebrating!

I have to thank YOU because when you have a blog called “Losing Weight After Baby” – guess what you’re forced to do?  Yup…lose weight after baby!  Thank you for all your support, encouragement, and for giving me a name I had to live up to.

My husband and I are at about Day 60 of the P90X workout program.  Phew – it has been hard but good.  We have been perpetually sore for the last 2 months and I don’t think that’s going to end anytime soon.

I’m off the Atkins diet and enjoyed eating a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast this morning!

Be encouraged moms…when you are persistent in your diet and exercise (don’t give up), you will reach your goals!

Giveaway of 31 Days to a New You

Want to win my audio course, Losing Weight After Baby:  31 Days to a New You?

Just hop on over to Karen Ehman’s blog. She’s giving away a free audio course – just leave a comment on the post and a random winner will be chosen.

Karen is wonderful speaker and author.  You’ll love her weight loss Wednesday posts and books like The Complete Guide to Getting and Staying Organized and A Life That Says Welcome.

I Can Zip ‘em But…

Progress is GOOD, no matter how big or small.  I happy to report I can zip my pants now!  Sure, I can’t sit down comfortably in them yet, but we’re making progress.  I wore them around the house for about 3 hours, but after too much sitting and bending, my stomach hurt from them being too tight.  Gotta hate that. 

So they were a good reminder to snack small so I can get into those jeans and wear them in public by the end of the month.  Can’t give up…

Here’s where I was just a few weeks ago:

31 Days to a New Me!

It’s appropriate that my blogoversary is coming up.   After all, I’m starting out all over again with baby pounds to lose.  This process of losing weight after baby is what got me started blogging in the first place!

So I figure it is very appropriate to listen to my own stuff.  Starting today, I’m subscribing to my own audio course, Losing Weight After Baby: 31 Days to a New You.  Nothing like your own words to convict and convince you! 

One of the action steps today is to fill in the blanks:

I will be back to _________ pounds by ________ (date).   (I suggest putting your pre-pregnancy weight here)

Let’s work together moms & have a great December to help us get towards that goal!  I think if you can maintain your weight during a cookie crazed, sugar coated Christmas season, you’ve achieved success.  And if you can lose a pound or two, even better!   

 

Podcast listener lost 60 pounds!

This was the highlight of my day…I received a great email from a Losing Weight After Baby podcast listener who wrote about her miscarriage and unhappiness about her weight.  She was at the highest weight of her life.  Understanding her need for change and encouragement, she sought out tools to help her and found my Losing Weight After Baby podcast.  She began with mini-goals.  Her the big audacious goal was to lose 50 pounds.  She knew this would help her be healthier in the future especially because she wanted to get pregnant again. 

Guess what?  She did it!  On the day her baby would have been due if she had not miscarried, she had achieved her goal and lost not 50 pounds – but 60 pounds! 

And now she’s pregnant! 

She wrote, “You had practical advice and were a positive influence in my decision to get physically active.   Thank you Arlene!”

You are so welcome…your email made my day.

Let’s all be encouraged that we can set mini-goals with a long-term goal in mind, just like this podcast listener!

We All Need Somebody to Lean On

My big girl Noelle loves to help with baby Lucy.  She say excitedly, “Oh no!  Our baby is crying!”  Then she’ll say things like, “It’s okay baby Lucy.  We are here.  It’s going to be all right.”

Someday there will be sibling rivalry between my girls, but so far, there’s just lots of love and support.

Which reminds me that we all need lots of love and support when it comes to losing weight after baby.  (But sometimes we may get caught up in comparisons instead – kind of like sibling rivalry).  Encouragement makes a big difference.  You need to surround yourself with encouraging friends.  People who lift you up and believe that you can reach your goals.  Without support or encouragement from your spouse, family member, or friends, it is all too easy to give up and say “This is just too hard!”  But when you have someone cheering for you, you have a reason to push through the quitting points. 

Having an exercise partner is a great way to stay motivated.  Put your exercise times in your calendar as non-negotiable appointments.  And/or subscribe to my 31 Days to a New You course for daily encouragement and motivation.  Why  not start on December 1 for added protection against Christmas pounds and to start the New Year right?  Because we all need somebody to lean on!

Happy One Month Baby Lucy!

This is one of my favorite pictures of baby Lucy.  Check out the hair!  She got that look without the help of a stylist or gel or any product – very impressive! 

I can’t believe it’s already been one month since baby Lucy was born.  I am thankful for her sweet demeanor and for the way her siblings have welcomed her into the family. 

Since she’s one month old, that means I have 2 more weeks of recovery post-c-section to “enjoy” and then I’ll be dusting off the exercise videos and cutting up celery sticks!

P.S.  You’ll see baby Lucy in action plus I share how losing weight after baby can be E-A-S-Y…it’s all on my free podcast/vidcast. 

No Cookies Mom!

I was in the grocery store with my 5 and 2 year old.  Right as you walked in the door, there was a table full of cookies for 10 cents each from the bakery.  They were sold in packages of 18.  This was a no brainer for this pregnant momma!  18 cookies for $1.80 baked from the bakery – I was in! 

There was only one question:  oatmeal raisin or chocolate chip?

To my utter amazement, when I asked my 5 year old which one I should choose, he said with all seriousness, “I don’t think we should buy cookies mom.” 

“What?”

“We shouldn’t eat cookies mom.”

I was so shocked (my kids are human and like treats too!) that I put the cookies right back.  Isn’t it funny when the positive influence comes from the kids and not the moms?  It was a crowning moment in the grocery store (although I have still been thinking about those cookies!).