Since my little man has arrived I have been doing a lot of the following:

Snuggling, cuddling, kissing, holding, staring, loving, cuddling, hugging, changing diapers, breast feeding and cuddling.

I mean, with a face like this… what else would I be doing?

He is such a wonderful little baby that takes up a great deal of my day.  I’m just now learning to put him down (or secure him in the Moby) for a little bit so I can do work around the house, drum up ideas for new blog posts, day dream about workouts and try to catch up with all the things I used to get done in a day.  I have learned that this is NOT an easy task with a little one.  In fact, most days it is impossible to finish the list but it is totally worth it.  Evan has taught me more about staying calm and collected in the 3 weeks he has been there than I have taught myself in a lifetime.  I truly cannot remember a time when I was more content and confident about what I was doing.

However… My body on the other hand, is NOT where I want it to be.  Of course that is to be expected but I have been getting anxious about working out once again.  I plan on doing a one month post partum update, and tracking my progress, so stay tuned.  I have already signed up for my first 5k of the season and hope that I can get through it with a decent time.  I may use a simple couch to 5k running plan to get me started. I also have already started light workouts.  At about two weeks post-partum I just needed to get in something so brisk walking and light lifting has made its way back into my life, along with gentle stretching.  I do what I can and stop when I get uncomfortable, as I haven’t been OK’d by my doctor yet and don’t want to hurt myself to prevent me to getting back into more vigorous workouts in the future.  PLUS, I make sure to make my me time short as I still want to enjoy my little baby as much as I can.  He is growing EXTREMELY fast (in fact his newborn clothes are already tight and he will be moving into 0-3 months AND newborn diapers are not being bought anymore we are in size 1).

He is so much bigger than this already… I really might cry. I do this a lot – cry that he is getting bigger and bigger so fast.

So how am I getting back at it?  Well, I have taken a break from my gym.  Per my doctor, I wanted to make sure I had time to get the breast feeding established and work on getting some endurance back so I could run a few fall races.  My gym is located very close to my work and pretty close to my mother’s house but is not at all convenient from my home and by the time I got there I would need to have a really short workout in order to get back in time to feed my son OR need to bring the breast pump with me to pump while I’m there to not hurt any supply (not something I want to do right now).  So with that said, I’m focusing on at home DVDs (my sister has the ultimate collection and will let me borrow what I want), free weights (I have enough to keep me busy for a few months), and running.  I even have money on the side to treat myself to a new pair of shoes once I accomplish some miles.  I’m starting slow but EXTREMELY excited.

How else am I getting back at it?  The diet area. No I’m not going on a diet.  I’m just focusing on cleaner eats once again.  Like I said earlier I am breast feeding, and making sure I do not cut back on calories and hurt my supply, I will not be focusing on calories but be focusing on the quality of the foods I eat.  The first couple weeks Evan was here we definitely ate whatever was easy. I’d have a baby attached to me pretty much at all times so snacks included store bought granola bars, peanut butter and banana sandwiches with a little been of blackberry jam, lots of watermelon, walnuts, almond milk, cereal and was very vegetable light (the thought of CUTTING up veggies… get real).  Although the options above are not terrible they are not me. When I would visit my mom’s house I’d find my hand in the pop chips bag, and searching for sweets.  I have no idea where my sweet tooth came from (I had not had one while pregnant) but boy has it hit me hard.  So I’m coming up with alternatives to my sweet tooth.  One of the things I’m finding hardest to cope with is life without coffee.  My baby sleeps quiet well and I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize that so I’ve stayed away from it.  During pregnancy the smell of coffee made me sick, now?  It makes my mouth water.  So I keep telling myself that it is ok to have a little dark chocolate here and there but I’m trying to only eat things that have value.  For me and for my little guy.  My new splurge?  1/4th cup oatmeal (NOT instant, good old fashioned rolled oats), a few dark chocolate chips, a table spoon protein powder, and a splash of almond milk – it is to die for and satisfies my sweet tooth without me having to eat a whole chocolate bar haha.

How did you start getting back at daily tasks after adding to the family?  Last night I found myself unable to sleep because I was trying to figure out how to make everything work in a day… This was obviously super counter productive because I woke up later and feel more exhausted.  So I try to just do what I can and let everything else (as best I can) go.