***WE CANT BE GOOD MOMS/WIVES IF WE AREN'T GOOD PEOPLE, WE CANT BE GOOD PEOPLE IF WE DON'T EVEN FEEL GOOD ABOUT OURSELVES!***
I tell myself this all the time. Shed the negative, find ways to make my thoughts positive, and surround myself in a positive environment. Find the good in things, glass half full kind of shit.
Before I met my baby daddy I was a model, nothing big, but I had lots of jobs and it was so much fun. I traveled and I really enjoyed it. When he and I got together I gained weight. I was so happy, genuinely happy. I had been through a shitty marriage prior, so this was definitely a change for me. It took us about two and a half months to get pregnant after deciding to start trying. I had always wanted to be a mom, and as excited as I was to be knocked up, I thought there was no way I could ever feel confident again, especially not with my stretch marks. There's always plastic surgery and that's fine, but we can't all afford to look like Barbie. I will not lie to you, it has been a long year full of hard work, but now I'm smaller than I was before I had my kid and I'm starting to feel sexy again. I'm starting to love to go shopping and I've cleaned out my closet to start fresh. I'm not saying it's easy and it does not happen overnight. For me, it has been a year of hard, ball-busting, back-breaking, bring you to tears sometimes, work. A whole year, and I'm just starting to see results. You think it's not working because you haven't noticed a change and then all the sudden BAM!! You are hotter than the Fourth of July!! Everyone is different, and you may not be "model skinny" when everything is said and done, but believe me, you will look hott and feel beautiful.
YOU CAN BOUNCE BACK FROM THIS!
As a former model about to be a first-time mom, I was terrified about what my body was going to look like. I've heard a lot of women say, "they don't care, they would do it all over again, they are just battle scars,, blah blah." that's all great and everything, but reality is, we are devastated, and let's face it, some of us end up looking like we got in a fight with an angry feline and lost. Thankful for our children, but devastated. Personally, I could look worse,and I'm very thankful I don't. I took very good care of my skin during my pregnancy. Don't get me wrong, I have stretch marks on my stomach and on my hips, but I've seen worse. I have researched and invested in stretch mark creams, studied and tested every diet you can find, and signed up at the gym four days a week. My child is a year old and I am just starting to feel like myself again. LADIES LISTEN!! You can too!!! I am going to tell you my personal discoveries that helped me revive myself. Just because you are a mom does not mean your body has to remind you every time you look in the mirror. You don't have to be depressed or feel like you aren't beautiful, or let the postpartum, weight gain,and stretch marks destroy you. We can become confident in our new bodies and feel more empowered than ever! My goal is save you time and money by sharing my personal story with you. After trying all of the stretch mark creams, I found an unlikely treasure. I want to help those who cant afford to go to the gym, get their bodies back from the comfort off home, and share what I have done for myself, to keep the post-partum away and also keep from losing who I was before I became a mom.
* WORKING OUT
I've been going to a gym owned by two of the best trainers around! I understand not everyone can afford a gym membership. I'm blessed enough to be able to do that. I go Tuesday through Friday. They alternate legs and arms, high cardio and low cardio days. All gyms do that. If you are able to go to a gym I recommend going three days a week and then doing something at home at least one of the days you don't go. Monday is my day off and I run in my neighborhood with my baby in his jogging stroller. I have learned to thoroughly enjoy it. it's our time together, I get to think clear my head. You don't have to run fast at all, just run, create your own pace. For those who cannot afford the gym, I'm going to include some efficient "mom-bod" workouts that have really helped me, that you can do at home. The key is, creating a workout you will do three or four days a week at home either in the morning or the afternoon. Using the workouts I am providing you, you can keep them as they are, combine the workouts, or mix them up. Keep it interesting so you don't get bored with them!
* NON-DIET
I have decided to call this a "non-diet". It's my own way to lose weight while eating whatever I want. I swear it works. I have only been dong this for a few months an I can already tell a huge difference. I love food, so when someone says diet I, of course, think they are bat-shit crazy. For me, a diet was unrealistic because I knew I would never stick with it. Also, when you starve yourself, or go cold turkey on a diet, you break down and binge eat, which can be worse than eating unhealthy for every meal. My revelation came when the nostalgic bastard we call Time Hop, showed me old modeling pictures of myself. I knew I had to find a way to lose weight successfully. No matter where I am or what meal I am enjoying I always follow these rules. This is literally all I do along side working out.
1. Take the bread off- For example, If I get a hamburger, I take the top bread off, eventually I started taking both pieces of bread off. I had to work up to that. You still get to enjoy the burger!
2.Small pieces- If you get a side of fries, or a bread stick, or chips whatever your side may be, make it smaller. You can still enjoy it, but you wont have as much. If you break the fries in half, you still get to enjoy them as much but you don't have to eat as many.
3.Try the healthy way first- sometimes there is a healthy option that you may actually enjoy. Check first before going straight for the "bad" stuff.
4. Snacking- Find a way for you to have the munchies without indulging. I drink green tea and coffee whenever I need to snack. Also, there are protein cookies that taste like birthday cake. They are delicious, by Lenny and Larry. Caramel rice cakes are another favorite of mine. At work, I keep bags of popcorn. They have garlic, jalapeno, and butter. Soooo good! All of that is GUILT FREE!! Find what works for you!
* STRETCH MARKS
Y'all I swear, I spent more money on mederma stretch mark cream than I care to admit, 2 years worth. I''m sure it worked a little, but I never looked at my hips and thought, "damn, that's some good shit!" I u-sed it before I got pregnant, during my pregnancy, and after I had my son, only for a month or two, until I discovered the holy grail of stretch mark creams!!!! My goal here, is to save y'all a lot of money. Are you ready for this?? You're gonna die!! VICKS VAPOR RUB!! It doesn't even have to be name brand!!! This is no joke, I wouldn't lie about stretch mark cream. They may not completely go away, but you will see results. I use coconut oil also. Hell, I use coconut oil for everything! Put coconut oil on your whole body before you go to bed. Every morning before you get dressed, and every night before you get in bed, rub vicks on your stretch marks. Once a week, exfoliate your stretch marks really well with a scrub of your choice. I don't recommend doing it more than that because It can have a reverse effect. Keep in mind you have to do this religiously, if you slack off, you will not see results.
WASH YOUR HAIR BEFORE YOU TOUCH ANYTHING OR ANYONE!!