Journey #2.1

I call this Journey 2.1 because it's somewhat of a continuation of Journey #2. I mean, I laid off a little bit for the months following my initial weight loss, but never really gained any weight back, so I wasn't really starting from scratch.

So this journey was when I decided to take 'healthy' to another level. 

I was getting comfortable in my new country. I was finally reunited with my husband and we were waiting for our house to be built. During this time, we were staying with my sister-in-law in Wheeling, Illinois.

I was still un-employed, and Brian was working up in Milwaukee for 4 out of the 7 days in the week.

Time. That's what I had. A whole lot of it.

So I decided to join a gym.

Thankfully, they had childcare there and Xander was at an age where he was comfortable with me leaving him with other kids for an hour, while I worked out every day.

Again, I started off pretty slow -- just got my feet wet by doing cardio 3-4 times in the first week, and then eventually free weights. Until the infamous sales people got a hold of me, and before I knew it, I was signed up to meet with a personal trainer, once a week for the next month.

I figured it probably wasn't a bad thing. I had a plan: I'd use the trainer's expertise to get me going, and once I got a good handle on things, I'd break up with him. Easy.

The good news? I worked out harder than I'd ever worked out in my life and I saw results immediately.

The bad news? I worked out harder than I'd ever worked out in my life and I saw results immediately...which made it SO hard for me to quit, like I originally planned. So I continued with the trainer and actually increased my sessions to twice a week. I only did this for another 4 weeks or so until I finally said enough is enough.

I didn't take a lot of photos throughout the length of this journey, but here is a snapshot of 10 days during that time:

I started drinking amino water before my workouts and protein shakes after my workouts and continued to eat healthy. I rarely stepped on the scale -- because of my increase in muscle, I knew that the number would be skewed and I didn't want that to discourage me. I think I floated around 115 and 118 for the most part though.

My body felt tight and I had a ton of energy. I was wearing clothes that I never imagined I could wear again. It was the fittest I'd ever been and the best my body ever looked....


and then, well....
we decided we were going to try to have another baby.


And this is where Journey #3 begins...