Slim Fast And Jillian Michael's, I Am Your Slave

I slacked off on my diet. Pizza was just too tempting. Cupcakes were calling my name. But one night as I was getting ready for bed, I was reminded of why I started this journey in the first place. I want to be happy with myself and my body and I want to set a good, healthy example for my small ones. So, it begins.

Last week, I jumped on the wagon. David and I went out, and he bought a bathroom scale. That night, I stepped on it. It said 160. Before I got pregnant with Ethan, I bounced around between 120 and 125 pounds. Those five pounds really never meant much to me. I ate what I wanted. I didn't exercise much. My clothing sizes never changed. But, let's face it. Before I got pregnant with Ethan, I was an 18 year old girl with no baby and a metabolism that could handle it. My exercise was walking everywhere with friends and having a damn good time doing it. Fast forward a year and now I'm 19, holding a newborn and I drive everywhere because, let's face it, this is (was) Arizona and I wasn't going to be walking my newborn down the street in 120 degree heat. I was too tired to exercise and too poor for a gym membership that included free child care. Most of my time was spent looking for a job, working at a job or taking care of Ethan. Most days, convenience foods (Hello McDonald's) were just easier for my brain to process instead of measuring and pouring and stirring. Why do that when someone will bring a pizza to my door? My weight went up.

When I was working at the Target distribution center, I literally walked all night long. Twelve hours every night. I lost a good amount of weight. I started eating better and taking better care of myself. We moved to Wisconsin. I managed to keep myself in good shape. Then I got pregnant with Claire. Then a year later, Grayson came along. I am nowhere near as heavy as I was after Ethan, but I still don't feel as though I'm healthy. I catch glimpses of myself and know I could have a healthier body, which means a healthier body image and me being happier with myself. And I deserve that.

So, last week, after the weigh in, I bought some Slim Fast. Let me tell you, Slim Fast is really not the best tasting drink in the world, but it does fill me up. I have my sensible dinners. Once a week on Monday's David brings home something for dinner. It might be a little less sensible that what I make, but I allow myself to eat some of it. But, here's where I kick it up a notch.

Jillian Michael's has the 30 Day Shred. It claims you can lose 20 pounds in 30 days. I don't know how true that is, but I'm willing to give it a shot. Once a week, I'll post my results. So far, just with the Slim Fast and some walking, I've lost 3 1/2 pounds. My goal is to go from 160 to 125, which I think is a healthy weight for someone of my age and height (5' 3"). Today is day one on level one of the shred. My workouts will start when Grayson naps. Which will also be nice because then I can take a shower afterwards.

Wish me luck. I think I might need it!