Fifty!!!

I am pretty proud to say that I have lost 50 pounds. Yup, FIFTY.

Fifty pounds is about how much an average second grader weighs.

Or how much Paprika and Ginger weigh put together.

I still have more to lose, of course...about 30-40 more pounds until I am back to where I was before I got pregnant with Vivian and Annemarie.

This 50 pound loss has been quite a journey and I have learned so much.

I realized that one of the reasons I gained so much weight is that I have been using food to work through my grief, and as a way to avoid many of the emotions that I felt surrounding the loss of our twins and my subsequent pregnancy with Ginger. It was hard for me to imagine that Ginger would be born healthy and alive. Needless to say, I had a lot of anxiety when I was pregnant with her, and I ate to quell those overpowering emotions and fears.

A lot of the weight was pregnancy-related, of course...but coming off the end of three pregnancies in a row (the baby we miscarried, the twins, and then Ginger), I found myself at well over 200 pounds. I am 5'7" and shouldn't really weigh what a professional football player weighs.

Throughout the pregnancies, I ate good food. Nourishing food. But I ate a lot of it. I'm not saying I would change that necessarily, but after the long pregnancy party was over, I found myself unable to eat that way anymore and maintain any kind of health.

I am now at the weight I was when I got pregnant with Ginger. Now I just have to lose the weight I gained during the twins' pregnancy, and I will be back to square one.

For me, it's not really about the number on the scale. It's about feeling good, being able to be active, and having the energy to take care of two small children.

My methods? Slow and steady. Weight Watchers online. Whole foods. Movement.

Pretty boring, I guess. But so far it's working!

Without further ado, here are my "Before" and "Current" Photos:

Before (on July 12th, 2009 - one month after I had Ginger):



Current (December 13, 2009):