Labor. Baby. Joy.

I had a baby this week!  On Monday, January 10th I started having contractions in the afternoon.  The baby we now call Treyden arrived at 9:56pm.  The plan was to have a natural labor as my previous labor experience with my first son took forever doing it with drugs.  I had this hunch things would go faster this time around if I could forgo the drugs.  Well, my hypothesis turned out to be true.  I was in hard labor for 2-3 hours.  And let me just say it was HARD.  I definitely underestimated how hard it would actually be.  Yeah, having a baby is painful.  I now know that firsthand.  But all the pain was worth it.  I got to hold my baby boy.  

Here's the kicker though.  If someone were to ask me, drugs or no drugs I'm not sure I know the answer.  I guess I'd have to say no drugs.  But let me tell you during the very hard part of labor I questioned myself as to why I would have decided to forgo pain medication.  Maybe everything was fuzzy at the time. I'm sure I wasn't thinking straight. 

It's all behind me now and we're experiencing pure joy at it's finest.  Every minute of every day I'm so thankful this little boy arrived safe and sound. 

Not Just About the Scale

I know (especially as women) it's easy to obsess about the number that appears on the scale.  Sure, it matters but it's not the only factor.  In fact I'd argue that two other numbers would be more important over the scale.

The first being body fat percentage.  This is the percentage of fat your body is composed of versus the percentage of lean body mass (bones, muscle, organs). 

Classification           Women (% fat)                     Men (% fat)
Essential Fat              10-12%                             2-4%
Athletes                     14-20%                             6-13%
Fitness                       21-24%                            14-17%
Acceptable                25-31%                            18-25%
Obese                       32%+                                25%+

Body fat percentage can be changed through strength training and eating clean.  Make it a point to know your body fat percentage and use this to analyze where you need to be.  Overall you're going to be healthy and not just thin.  It also mean that your metabolism is working for you at maximum effort.  The lower this number the more calories you're burning at a resting state.   

The second number is your waist circumference.  What's important here is that your waist (around your belly button) is less than half your height in inches.  For example a woman that's 5'5" (65 inches) tall needs to have a waist circumference less than 32.5. 

I think a big mistake we can make is analyzing one area when there's so many facets that make up being a healthy, good-looking person....because after all, healthy is very attractive.
 Don't get me wrong these are great numbers to use as guidelines but also realize where you're at.  Maybe your body fat percentage is over 40%.  It may seem daunting to think about how far you have to go but listen up, it's actually a fairly easy task to lower that number in a reasonable amount of time with proper strength training and eating clean things can be turned around in 2011.

Looking Foward: 2011

I food journal everyday.  It's not pretty but I do it.  I suck it up and look back at what I've eaten and what exercise I've done for the day.  It keeps me accountable and not to mention gives a good laugh to the few readers that are allowed to follow it.  This is what I wrote on my journal for the first day of the year. I had a revelation. 

The last day of the year, wow I went out with a bang!  This morning (1-1-11) I printed out a new weekly weight log and a new set of calendars for 2011.  I realized I've been tracking my weight for 3 full years on a weekly basis and keeping track of my exercise and calories for 2 years.  As I was looking through them my brother walked in and I shared with him what I'd been doing.  His response was, "that's kind of creepy."  Maybe it's a little creepy.  It definitely proves I thrive on making lists, staying organized via paper records and keeping track of what I've done.  My theory is that if I write it down on paper it's proof I did it.  For some reason it gives me motivation to complete the 3 miles, weigh myself every Thursday and count my calories because then I have something to record.  Interesting...and it only took 3 years for me to figure it out because of my reflection on all the papers I'd collected since 2008. 

In lieu of that discovery I'll continue to food journal everyday in 2011.  Sure, there are days that I don't food journal but I'd say I journal 95% of the time.  I'm good with 95% or 90% for that matter, it's still an A.  My rule is that I journal no matter what.  Even if it's a really bad day and trust me I've had my fair share of those lately. 

Then there are the lists.  I really enjoyed reading 20 books in 2010 so I'm going to keep that one going.  I might not necessarily write a review on each book (unless I need to rave about it) but there will be an ongoing list under the "lists" tab.  Along with books I'm going to record victories in 2011.  I hope to keep track of at least 50 temptations that I've overcome.  Most likely they will have something to do with passing up a sweet as I'm going to try my hardest to get back to one sweet per week in the very near future.  And then lastly, I may keep track of my weekly exercise so you can see in the life of a trainer what goes on.  During this pregnancy it worked out really well to set a weekly mileage goal, attend a yoga class and complete 2-4 strength sessions per week.  I think I'll keep track of that as well since I know I thrive on lists and its really interesting to look back after the year is over and analyze.

I'm really looking forward to what 2011 will bring.  I'm at a weird spot this New Year because I hope to have a baby in a week or so.  I'm hungry all the time and I'm eating a lot of calories (my body needs at least 2400 these days) and not to mention the sweet cravings.  This little boy is going to love chocolate cake when he gets older-just sayin'.  I'm anxious to get back my old body and feel like Mandy again but I'm also cherishing these last few days (okay, trying to cherish) of pregnancy.  In the spirit of making lists here's 5 things I'm looking forward to doing in 2011 when I'm not pregnant:

1. Run!
2. An ab workout
3. Have a glass of wine-my favorite, Moscato.  Nothing crazy I just always want what I can't have.
4. Go to an intense, sweaty yoga class.
5. Go shopping for some new clothes!!  (Granted, I know this could be awhile)

Looking Back: 2010

Well, 2010 proved to have some successes and some unfulfilled goals. Like I've posted before, I like using yearly goals as guidelines.  We do it with finances: savings, giving and spending goals and it's worked well for the last 3 years so why not keep it up with other areas of my life?  Here's the deal, throughout the year I use the goal as a guideline.  I knew 10 races would be easier than a sweet a week.  I knew that 10 races would be easier than 20 books.  And as we can all see, I didn't quite make the sweet a week.  I actually failed miserably here at the end.  And as much as I want to use this pregnancy and hormones as an excuse I'm not going to.  I could have been stronger, much stronger.

In the near future I'm going to write about what I'd like 2011 to look like as far as "guidelines" go.  I know I want to keep the 20 books as a goal and we'll see what forms with the others.  My mind is a little nuts at the moment being 38 weeks pregnant.

Ten Races in 2010
1. 1/23: Mission Duathlon-Done!
2. 1/31: Groundhog Run-Done!
3. 3/27: Rock the Parkway-Done!
4. 4/11: Brew to Brew-Done!
5. 4/25: Acorn Walk/Run-Done!
6. 6/12: Maryville 10K-Done!
7. 7/31: KC Women's Triathlon-Done!
8. 8/26: Run for the Kids 10K-Done!
9. 10/2: Northwest Athletic Training Walk, Run or Roll 5K-Done!
10. 10/16: Kansas City Part of the Half Marathon-Done!

The Saga Continues: 2010 Sweets
1. Jelly Filled Donut
2. Vegas
3. Cupcake from Johnna
4. Glazed Donuts
5. Cake
6. French Silk Pie
7. Donut
8. Brownie
9. B-day week: vegan gf cheesecake, cookie cake, cupcake ala-mode
10. Brownie and Mrs. Fields Cookie
11. Chocolate Cake Dessert from Bravo
12. Sugar Cookies
13. Easter Candy
14. Swiss Cake Roll (only half!) and CC cookies
15. Donut
15. Frosted Cookie from TCBY and chocolate cake
16. Vacation week to Mexico
17. The Week after the vacation. Too many sweets.
18. Smores
19. Sugar Cookie and Cheesecake
20. Jelly Filled Donut
21. Cupcake Ala-Mode
22. Jelly Filled Donut
23. Donuts
24. Donuts
25. French Silk Pie
26. Cupcakes
27. Reeses PB cups and some brownies
28. Reeses PB cups and half a cookie from Mrs. Fields
29. Donuts, Cupcakes and Apple Dessert (BAD week)
30. Pineapple Dessert (did so great this week! Really, only 1 sweet and so happy with that at 4 months pregnant)
31. Cheesecake
32. Donuts
33. What didn't I eat that was sweet this week?!? (BAD week)
34. Ice Cream-and not even that much
35. Cookies
36. Donuts
37. Frozen Yogurt
38. Too many bad things
39. Another week of bad things
40. Reeses PB cups, cake
41. Reeses PB cups, cupcakes
42. chocolate cake
---------Warning, here's where it gets bad and out of control------------
43. Candy, Cheesecake, Cupcake, Black and White Cookie
44.Chocolate Chips, CC Cookies, Cupcake, Candy
45. Donuts, Chocolate Cake
46. Cin Roll, CChips, CC Cookies, Brownie, Cupcake
47. Chocolate Chips, Chocolate Cake, CC Cookie Dough
48-52. Bad, Bad, Bad-that's all I have to say

20 Books in 2010
1. The Noticer (Andy Andrews)
2. Food Rules (Michael Pollan)
3. Find Your Strongest Life (Marcus Buckingham)
4. Pilgrims Progress (John Bunyan)
5. Mere Christianity (C.S. Lewis)
6. Change Your Brain Change Your Body (Daniel G. Amen, MD)
7. Redeeming Love (Francine Rivers)
8. Master Your Metabolism (Jillian Michaels)
9. The Shack (William Young)
10. The 5 Love Languages of Children (Garry Chapman)
11. You Having a Baby (Mehmet Oz, MD and Michael Roizen, MD)
12. Runner's World Guide to Running and Pregnancy (Chris Lundgren)
13. The Culprit and The Cure (Steven G. Aldana)
14. Authentic Christianity (Kim Dean May)
15. Active Birth:The New Approach to Giving Birth Naturally (Janet Balaskas)
16. The Carb Lovers Diet (Ellen Kuhns and Frances Largeman-Roth)
17. The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
18. The Impact! Body Plan (Todd Durkin)
19. The Marriage You've Always Wanted (Gary Chapman)
20. Shepherding a Child's Heart (Tedd Tripp)

Book 20: Shepherding a Child's Heart

I'm just so glad to be done with book #20 for the year.  This was a good perspective.  I always enjoy the little things I get out of a book.  It doesn't have to be a ton of information but there were a handful of items that stuck out to me; the main one being how much of a time investment we as parents need to put into our children.  I think it's easier said than done living in such a fast-paced world.

Book 19: The Marriage You've Always Wanted

A great book for anyone married.  I got this book back in April when we attended Gary Chapman's marriage conference.  He challenged every couple to read the book together chapter by chapter and then discuss the questions together at the end of each chapter.  I'd love to tell you Aaron and I did this but we didn't--yet.  I completed the book and Aaron has agreed to read it and so the goal is to complete the assignment originally given by Chapman by April of 2011.  Not bad, one year to complete this simple task?!

One reason I like the book is it goes over so many areas of marriage with the overall goal to increase communication.  We've all seen the couple that have this overwhelming sense of "oneness."  The couples that talk through everything.  Then you see the couples that are on completely different pages.  They are the couples that let things slide under the rug.  My hope and prayer is that Aaron and I would continually grow into a couple that has the overwhelming sense of "oneness."  I think this book is a great start to that.

Motivation Monday: Victories

I had this thought last week when I was checking out at Hobby Lobby and desperately wanted a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.  Then I had the same thought on the way to my OB appointment when I wanted to stop by Cupcake Ala Mode (I have this fight with myself every time I go to visit my OB which is now weekly).  I didn't do either (trust me there was other major damage done) but I thought to myself how I should make a goal to have 5 or 10 small victories per week.  Maybe it's passing up the chocolate cake at Target or maybe it's getting to the gym when my original intentions were to go and then I thought I wouldn't go but ultimately had a small victory and went.  It's an idea for 2011.  It could be a weekly count or a monthly goal of keeping track of victories no matter the number.  I think it can also give a sense of strength on days when we feel weak.  Looking at victories can be a motivator to keep attaining more victories.

If we can begin to think about how the small things will add up they will do just that.  Many small things can make up something very big.  Never underestimate the power of the small things.