Belly, Baby!
I have battled my roly-poly tummy all my life.
In the seventh grade when I started to care about my appearance, I started doing various exercises on the floor next to my bed before going to sleep at night. I did crunches, leg lifts, jumping, anything that I could think of that might help me to look thinner. I guess that's when the obsession started. I have been on again, off again, for 25 years.
It wasn't that I was so overweight, I was average size through adolescence and college, After I started having babies I gained, and gained, and gained. It was terrible. My body image was so mixed up. When I was heavy, I thought I was thinner than I was. When I was thin, I only saw my flawed body as heavy. As I made my way out of misses sizes and into plus sizes after Trebo, #4, I knew something had to change.
Dale battled the same demon for years until he found out that he couldn't be a chaplain and maintain that level of overweight and lack of physical fitness. He got on the weight loss train and only derailed for short stints along the way, always able to get back in gear. To my shame, when he derailed, I derailed and stayed in the pasture grazing to my heart's content!
Now that I am convinced we have had our final addition to the family, I want to get the weight off and start living in maintenance mode. It's been gains and losses for so long, I worry that I will have physical repercussions. You know when Luther Vandross died, we all assumed that it was because his weight yo-yoed so drastically for so long that it finally caught up with him. I don't know if that was why he died, but I don't want that to be my story!
Besides, I am getting older... 37 this year. My body doesn't rebound like it used to. It takes real work to get the weight off. In the past, as recently as the months following Scarlette's birth, I was able to eat whatever I wanted as long as I was working out regularly. I could lose pretty easily. This time I have to watch what I eat AND exercise. UGH. It makes sense, really. If you run for an hour, your burn 400 calories. If you eat 4 oreos and drink a glass of 1% milk, you consume 400 calories. It all comes down to the math. I guess my metabolism just isn't compensating for my splurges anymore. boo...
About a month ago, my sister challenged me to start doing push-ups with her. I downloaded the app and hopped to it. I was doing them three days a week. I had worked up to 57 push-ups and 2 minute planks. That's what this post is really about. Within two weeks I noticed results in my arms, and by the third week my waistline had noticeably changed. My spare-tire was shrinking away!
Plank also has strengthened my lower abs in a way that nothing else ever has. It was incredible to see such good results from such minimal effort. NO CRUNCHES! I managed to continue doing that regimen through vacation, but as is my pattern, I fell off the wagon right after and have only just gotten back on.
I have high hopes of trimming my waist down enough to show before and after pictures that will be more inspiring than embarrassing.
So here's my challenge. For a full month, I intend to do plank for at least one minute a day. Do it with me! See if it doesn't change your waistline and your lower back strength!
I use a yoga mat, but if you don't have one, just put a towel or something soft under your elbows. Lie face-down on the floor. Push your elbows into the towel directly under your shoulders with your fists pressing into the floor, thumb knuckles facing up. Raise up onto your toes like you're doing a push-up. Raise your rear just slightly so that the pressure of the position is not too much strain on your lower back. Now sing happy birthday and hold the position to the end of the song. That should be about 45 seconds. You may have to work up to that, but you will get stronger! I like to keep a stopwatch and challenge myself to hold it a little longer. I always shake and sweat when I get to the last few seconds, that's very common. It means it's working your whole body! Don't forget to take a (clothed) before picture and keep me posted on your progress!
I will never have a bikini belly, but I hope to not have to adjust my waistband to hide my muffin-top every time change positions! HAHA!! Besides, that little trick does more for my confidence than it does to fool anyone!
lvb
In the seventh grade when I started to care about my appearance, I started doing various exercises on the floor next to my bed before going to sleep at night. I did crunches, leg lifts, jumping, anything that I could think of that might help me to look thinner. I guess that's when the obsession started. I have been on again, off again, for 25 years.
It wasn't that I was so overweight, I was average size through adolescence and college, After I started having babies I gained, and gained, and gained. It was terrible. My body image was so mixed up. When I was heavy, I thought I was thinner than I was. When I was thin, I only saw my flawed body as heavy. As I made my way out of misses sizes and into plus sizes after Trebo, #4, I knew something had to change.
Dale battled the same demon for years until he found out that he couldn't be a chaplain and maintain that level of overweight and lack of physical fitness. He got on the weight loss train and only derailed for short stints along the way, always able to get back in gear. To my shame, when he derailed, I derailed and stayed in the pasture grazing to my heart's content!
Now that I am convinced we have had our final addition to the family, I want to get the weight off and start living in maintenance mode. It's been gains and losses for so long, I worry that I will have physical repercussions. You know when Luther Vandross died, we all assumed that it was because his weight yo-yoed so drastically for so long that it finally caught up with him. I don't know if that was why he died, but I don't want that to be my story!
Besides, I am getting older... 37 this year. My body doesn't rebound like it used to. It takes real work to get the weight off. In the past, as recently as the months following Scarlette's birth, I was able to eat whatever I wanted as long as I was working out regularly. I could lose pretty easily. This time I have to watch what I eat AND exercise. UGH. It makes sense, really. If you run for an hour, your burn 400 calories. If you eat 4 oreos and drink a glass of 1% milk, you consume 400 calories. It all comes down to the math. I guess my metabolism just isn't compensating for my splurges anymore. boo...
About a month ago, my sister challenged me to start doing push-ups with her. I downloaded the app and hopped to it. I was doing them three days a week. I had worked up to 57 push-ups and 2 minute planks. That's what this post is really about. Within two weeks I noticed results in my arms, and by the third week my waistline had noticeably changed. My spare-tire was shrinking away!
Plank also has strengthened my lower abs in a way that nothing else ever has. It was incredible to see such good results from such minimal effort. NO CRUNCHES! I managed to continue doing that regimen through vacation, but as is my pattern, I fell off the wagon right after and have only just gotten back on.
I have high hopes of trimming my waist down enough to show before and after pictures that will be more inspiring than embarrassing.
So here's my challenge. For a full month, I intend to do plank for at least one minute a day. Do it with me! See if it doesn't change your waistline and your lower back strength!
I use a yoga mat, but if you don't have one, just put a towel or something soft under your elbows. Lie face-down on the floor. Push your elbows into the towel directly under your shoulders with your fists pressing into the floor, thumb knuckles facing up. Raise up onto your toes like you're doing a push-up. Raise your rear just slightly so that the pressure of the position is not too much strain on your lower back. Now sing happy birthday and hold the position to the end of the song. That should be about 45 seconds. You may have to work up to that, but you will get stronger! I like to keep a stopwatch and challenge myself to hold it a little longer. I always shake and sweat when I get to the last few seconds, that's very common. It means it's working your whole body! Don't forget to take a (clothed) before picture and keep me posted on your progress!
I will never have a bikini belly, but I hope to not have to adjust my waistband to hide my muffin-top every time change positions! HAHA!! Besides, that little trick does more for my confidence than it does to fool anyone!
lvb
Getting healthy and losing weight is supreme! Does wonders for so much!!
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