Athletic? I think not!

So I stated back to the gym last week. It had been since I got sick the first week in April that I had even stepped foot in a gym...but it felt GREAT!! I no longer shutter at the thought of stepping on the scale to weigh in because I am eager to see how much I am losing! So far I have just stuck to cardio; doing the eliptical, stairmaster, bike, and treadmill, but I have to start somewhere.

You see, one of the keys to weight loss is getting your max heart rate up. My max heart rate has been in the 180's everytime...that's really high! The higher your heart rate, the more calories you burn...or something like that! It feels really great to work out, which may sound crazy, but it allows you to burn off stress and weight at the same time!

Random fact about ME: I found out at age 18 that I have Spina Bifida! Huh? Don't you usually know you have that when you are born? And doesn't it usually effect your ability to walk?? Well the kind I have is actually calles Occult (hidden) Spina Bifida. You see there is a small section at the bottom of my spine that didn't fully close in utero...luckily for me all I get is some back issues, but no serious complications...atleast I can walk and am healthy! Second part of the fact: I also at age 18 had already developed Degenerative Disc Disease in my spine...just a complication from my Spina Bifida I was told. So at age 18 a female disc should be at 17degrees and mine was at 7degrees...Great! Not really because I have terrible back pain like...all the time. So what does this all mean? Well the doctor had told me I am not allowed to run...not for sport, not for excerise because the constant compression of the spine from the impact would only make things worse for me. SO!...I found an alternative and that's why I LOVE the eliptical so much!! You can literally run on that thing all day (you might get tired though) and it doesn't have the impact like running on flat land because your feet never leave the platforms! Also something I LOVE about the eliptical and the stairmaster is that they are really toning up my thighs and BUTT!! And yesterday I noticed I am forming a 4pack at the top of my belly...oh yeah!

Taboo for you, but not for me: Most people don't like to talk about the horrible after math that having a baby can leave your body in, but me? Yeah I don't care! If you don't like my body, I'm sorry that's not gonna bother me:) So after Maddox I was lucky..all the nurses even made comments about have flat my belly was after my C-Section...yay me! I was left with only ONE stretch mark on my side from his pregnancy, but I was still left with some extra weight in other parts of my body "/ But yay for nearly no stretch marks!! So seven months postpartum I get pregnant again, and I guess my skin didn't want to stretch again so soon and Whala! Nice little stretch marks all over my tummy(well five vertical ones that I feel cover the whole thing!) The good news: they are white so they aren't that easy to see! So since working out again, my skin has regained elasticity and is toning up and what do you know? Those horrible, forsaken stretch marks are disappearing!! Yay!! See what awesome things exercising will do for you??

So now I have some ab muscles showing (my little four pack), and my tummy is becoming stretch mark free!!! Well I don't know if they will ever totally disappear because they are technically scars but they are definitely making themselves less noticable as well as the scars from my gallbladder surgery!!! I feel way more confident in a swim suit now and I just feel better all together!

I must go now..I have had a long day which is a must tell for my next blog post...but for now:

Brotherly Love:)