Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

I am so excited to get my body back in 2012! I now have a beautiful 8 month old girl, and I'm re-learning how to live my life as a new mother. I'm doing pretty well, but she keeps me on my toes.

Hurdles for me: working out means getting up at 5:00am, which I find challenging after 2 to 3 nighttime feedings; we are now a single income family, so I have to do whatever I can for free; I have a bad knee from skiing and track when I was younger, so jogging is risky.

I'm aiming for 6 workouts a week. Just 30 minutes rotating strength, cardio intervals, and yoga practice.

I would love to weigh 125lbs and have some of my tone back by May.

Okay, so this morning I busted out an old Gillian Michaels DVD called No More Trouble Zones. I made it through the warmup and almost the first 2 circuits before LO was up and fussing a little, so I skipped to the stretching and took care of that before starting with my day as mommy. Only about 22 minutes total, but a good start. Those first 2 circuits were tough for me and there was a little knee pain.

After my workout I weighed in at 133.8lbs.

Cheerios & soymilk for breakfast.

Carrot bisque, pita & hummus for lunch.

Black eyed peas, collards & cornbread for dinner.

I destroyed my feet with some cute heels yesterday, so I swapped out my intervals with my yoga today. I did a gentle yoga dvd and it was great. I really focused on correct form and breath.

Breakfast: tofu, tempeh & potato breakfast casserole, banana

Lunch: leftover casserole, carrot soup & cornbread

Dinner: roast veggie & black bean fajitas

Congratulations on becoming a Mom! Yoga is always a good option!

_________________
an evolving primate

Thank you so much John! I feel like I finally found what I am supposed to be doing with my life

This morning is the first chilly morning we've had in weeks (52 fahrenheit), and I got to enjoy the change by doing my 30m interval walk/run this morning.

breakfast: leftover cornbread, black beans & avocado

This morning I did another old Gillian Michaels DVD, but LO was already up, so it was a real challenge. I could only do about 10 minutes at a time, but I got it all competed eventually, while also entertaining and feeding a baby!

I seem to have a much easier time completing the day's tasks if I start with some exercise.

I think I'm going to add some background today. When I moved from Salt Lake City to the Big Easy about 3 years ago I was in fantastic shape for me. I was miserable in Utah, and when I'm depressed I cope by eating well and working out. I was on a well planned, balanced vegan diet, I was at my ideal weight, and I had good overall tone. I wouldn't have won any competitions, but I looked awesome in a swimsuit. Enter New Orleans. It turns out that for me fat and happy really do go together. I LOVE it here. I felt like I was coming home. I immediately started drinking, smoking, and eating whatever southern/cajun specialties came my way. Barbecue, oysters, crawfish pie. I felt bad about it, and I gained about 15lbs, but I was just so happy.

Well, all this being happy made my hubby and I decide that it was finally time to start a family. While we were trying I quit smoking and drinking... so don't judge me too harshly. I knew that I could never teach a child to be desensitized to the cruelty involved in the meat industry, but sometimes when you're in that first trimester for some reason a half pound of genoa salami is the only thing that won't make you throw up. Bad, bad, bad.

I gained a totally healthy amount of weight during my pregnancy without watching my diet or working out most likely because we live carless, so between work and errands I walked several miles a day, frequently while carrying thing other than my big belly.

Post pregnancy the weight just melted off. I weigh less now than I did pre-pregnancy, but all that tone I used to have is long since gone.

I totally forgot to update yesterday! I got up at 5:00 and had a lovely 30 minute jog. It gave me the energy I needed to power through the day. The big news yesterday was that my LO started to crawl! Amazing!

This morning was a yoga morning, but I woke up in the middle of the night soaked in blood, like way more than seems right for a period, but this would be my first post partum period and I have an IUD, so maybe its normal, but I'm gonna take today off. My midwife says take it easy and give it a couple of days to see if it slows down. Tomorrow is shabbat, so no workout planned, and hopefully by Sunday I'l be ready to go again.

I had a great Shabbat! I took the time to work on an art project for myself. LO slept for 11 1/2 hours straight last night, and I woke up feeling totally amazing and got my first strength workout for the week knocked out. Yes, it was an old Gillian Michaels DVD. I tried to be mindful of form through the whole workout so I would remain mentally present.

I weighed in this morning at. 132.6lbs, about a pound less than last week, which is nice, but it's the increase in energy and focus that I am really excited about.

breakfast: Ezekiel toast, black beans, 1/4 avocado, peach salsa & a glass of fortified soymilk

Yesterday I took the bus to Audubon Park and did my interval workout with LO in the jogging stroller. She tolerated it relatively well, but I had to switch her into a backpack for my cool down walk because she was getting to fussy. This morning I practiced yoga for half an hour while my hubby played with the baby. I'm glad we got out in the sun yesterday, because it's raining today.

Check. Workout accomplished, but I'm almost out of motivation to post anything here.

My "jogging window" at 5:00am has evaporated due to a change in my husband's work schedule. Actually, he is now working 14 hour days, so he is pretty much the guy who stops by and un-does the housework at night. He'll be making bank, though, so I will work hard on staying positive, supportive and happy. Exercise is key for me to satay happy, so I'll just have to make it work. Today I did my interval run with Lailah in the stroller. She was a total trooper, and let me do my whole workout without fussing.

I got my yoga practice in this morning before my early pediatric appointment. Went in for sniffles, left with a cardiologist referral. What a day.

Taking care of a baby all by myself is HARD. She's great, and I love her company, but its just really tiring. It took everything I had just to get up and do my 30 Day Shred DVD this morning, but I did it, and I did it well. This morning I weighed in at 132.2lbs. Not much change from last week, but still heading in the right direction.

Another jog with Lailah in her stroller. No fussing! I think she fell asleep for part of it. I've made it halfway through the month and have only missed 1 workout, and that with a totally valid excuse. It's really starting to feel like a habit, which is what I want. I don't have space in my life for marathon training sessions, but if I can get 30 minutes of movement (not counting walking or housework) I think it will have a positive effect on my life. I know the workouts I have been making myself do are giving me the strength to make it through the days now that my husband is working much longer hours, and I am always alone with my daughter.

Hey there, Gretchen! I just read your whole journal and am sooooooooo impressed with your consistency, dedication, and total Supermom powers! Wow, you're amazing! And I love how your Little One has adjusted so well to your jogging with her in the stoller. So cute!

Keep up the awesome work - both in fitness and in life!

All the best,
Karen