TTC after loss penguins get fit & healthy in 2020

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

This is the thread for those of us in the TTC after loss penguin huddle who want to try to eat a more healthy diet, exercise more, lose weight or just feel better physically this year
🐧🐧🐧
@MrsMGE @Avocuddles @MissSparkles81 @SunshineCrocodile @Mumlili8 @VenusStarr @SunStruck

If I’ve missed anyone please tag them

How about we start by saying what our goals are whether that he the number on the scale, doing more exercise or just feeling better about ourselves?

I’m BunnytheBlueWhale (NC recently - see TTC thread). I’m 35 and probably weigh about a stone more than I’d like since I had my stillborn daughter in February. I don’t need to lose weight massively but having post-baby weight and no baby is a bit rubbish!

I’d like to lose a bit of a weight all over and also target my belly with brushing, moisturising and maybe microneedling at home...

I eat a lot of sugary snacks so want to massively reduce those and also try to take a healthy lunch to work to stop me spending so much money on food!

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

@LASandOtto just adding you to the tag!

[MrsMGE]

Hello 😊

Mrs MGE, as you know, 33.

I have a stone to lose to be healthy weight, if I lose two I'd be pretty hot, so I might as well go for two!

Lost my baby to MMC in June, been through many ups and downs as a result of that and other issues, to include other bereavements and family issues since.

After a bitch of a year, I'm keen to do something good for myself. Also focus on something else than the loss/pregnancy/ttc. which can be dangerously consuming.

For many years before, I did sport on a semi-pro level, also went to ballet school and was slim, although I'm naturally curvy. Since I've stopped, I went through phases of various food-related issues, not as serious as long-term eating disorders, but borderline at times.

I'm an emotional eater, I eat when I'm bored, stressed, unhappy or angry. I sometimes binge on snacks on a bad day, more savoury than sweet.

It's time for me to recognise I don't need to do this and I can manage my emotions in a healthy way.

Also time to feel more empowered to face the future, whatever it might bring, I'd like to be physically and mentally stronger and ready to face it.

I'm going to own this weight loss success ladies, there's no stopping me, it will be mine 💪

@LASandOtto and other grieving mummies from the penguin huddle, join in 🐧🌺

#togetherstronger !!!
Xxx

[JuniperAndRose]

I’m in! I don’t think I’ll be weighing myself but would be very happy to see this thread as a supportive group for making more healthy choices.
I’ve also really lost my exercise mojo as I found it very difficult to go back to an exercise class after losing DD1 at 30 weeks. I didn’t know what exercise I was capable of doing after giving birth, but I couldn’t bear to attend or follow online any postnatal exercise classes as they all assume that you have your baby with you. So, if anyone has any online workouts they follow then I’d be glad to hear about those.
I’ve also started eating slightly more healthily as DH (previously the world’s biggest carnivore) has been doing plant based eating for the past couple of months and so I do that when we are eating together. I’ll post any particularly nice recipes I find!

[LASandOtto]

Thanks ladies! Oh I love it, #togetherstronger! @MrsMGE I second you... after a bitch of a year, ready for a feel good start to 2020!

About me: I'm 33, TTC for over a year. One MC in January/February at 8 weeks and one in October at 11 weeks.

I'm usually enjoying exercise of all types (classes, running, gym) especially in teams or with people I know, but I've been really slack the last few months.

I also like to eat well and do care about origin of ingredients, so am looking forward to re-igniting my passion for preparing nice meals!

My OH has the metabolism of a 5 year old, is constantly holding a piece of chocolate or a biscuit in his hand (or one in each). I guess you could say I'm the opposite!

I've never set a weight goal, mine is a 'I want to feel good in my clothes' goal and just feel better about my choices.

Lots of all to you ladies xx

[Shefliesonherownwings]

Hi, I'm in too. Great idea for a thread. I have pretty much lost all my baby weight since giving birth to my daughter 7 weeks ago. She was born sleeping at 41 weeks. I've really had no appetite due to the grief. DH and I have also got into a bad habit of going to sleep in the early hours then not waking up until midday. Then we just snack until dinner which has been lots of takeaways.

However this weekend I started back on WW as I still have about 2 stone to lose to be back to a weight I'm happy at and I'm hoping this will give me a focus in the new year. I'm not going to classes but will be weighing in at home. I've done it before and I know it works for me.

I'm planning to get back to the gym next week, I want to work on my core and losing the stomach flab mainly but also just get some fitness back. DH and I are off to New York at the end of February and I'd like to be about 10 pounds lighter by then.

I'm also planning to doing some yoga or pilates to help with the mental wellbeing and sleep. I've never been into before but I'm hoping it will help with my anxiety which is huge right now. I'm doing a two hour restorative yoga class at the end of January with a friend. Here's to a healthy 2020!

[MrsMGE]

Girls, I will be following a mixture of Fertilitykitchen.co.uk recipes, sensible healthy food and SW, although personally I find SW a bit hard because I like to eat healthy and I find a lot of their recipes to be fakeaways that allow you to eat more than you actually need. But I know it works, so not dismissing it.

I'll be doing chicken + veg/salmon or white fish + veg combos or something plant based, soups, casseroles, jackets etc. during the week, plus homemade salads for lunches and porridge with blueberries & honey for breakfasts. Easy, cheap, and will cook dinners in batches for the week.

Weekend wise, I'll treat myself to some pasta since I love it, might have steak and veg or a more fancy veggie recipe.

Fertilitykitchen recipes are super tasty!

Also exercising HIIT with Joe Wicks, 15 mins 5xtimes a week, DH will be doing it with me and he's so strong!

I'll be going out walking at least 4 times per week on my lunch breaks.

And if I can be bothered, I might add some gym or yoga, too. January will be busy in work so I'm not pressurising myself with this, but I find the more active I am, the easier it gets to add morr activities in.

GOOD LUCK, GIRLS!!! ❤️❤️❤️

xxx

[Seahawk80]

Hi everyone, hope you don't mind me joining. I just got a BFP and as we all know that's no guarantee of a healthy pregnancy / baby so I've decided to focus on being healthy. I had a TMFR in July this year and since then I've been really unhealthy. My goal is to lose my belly fat and feel better in my clothes.

I'm 39 (just!) and after having DS who is now 2.5 I was quite pleased with my weight loss at first but it stalled when he was 1 and I feel like I've put lots of weight on. He was a terrible sleeper until about 20 months and is hard work so I end up eating loads of crap on the run or huge dinners and chocolate because I'm so tired. I'd got back into cycling to work and now I'm doing couch to 5k. I thought it was something to do to count down to 12 weeks and also might help me if it is bad news, at least I'll be on my way to getting fitter and have something positive to focus on.

My main problem is portion control/ alcohol and chocolate but at least I'm off the booze now!

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

@MrsMGE Wow! I didn’t realise we had a
Sportswoman among us 😊 I eat when I’m bored too, as if I need to eat just to watch TV! 😬😂🙈 I will look up those recipes. Walking on a lunchtime is a great idea and easy to overlook when you’re busy in the office.

@JuniperAndRose I don’t really weigh myself either. It is so hard to get back into exercise when you’ve had a baby but don’t have a baby. As you say lots of exercise is mum and baby type stuff but I also found it hard attending classes and explaining I’d had a baby (which they sometimes needed to know as I got the ab separation) but what happened to the baby. I found yoga was great to get me back into exercise.

@LASandOtto I love gym classes. My favourite are body combat and zumba but I have been SO lazy about it recently! I think a good routine helps a lot and maybe we’ll motivate one another on here!

@Seahawk80 I think it will be really good to have something to focus on and to exercise for as long as you can. I had pelvic girdle pain with my first pregnancy so couldn’t do much beyond about 12 weeks (and before that was too exhausted!) so see how you feel

Just a thought ladies but I’m back at work on 6th and feel like it’s still Christmas as I’m still on holiday so wondering whether it would be really bad to start my healthy eating properly on Monday?!? I still have Christmas chocolates to eat!

[MrsMGE]

@BunnytheBlueWhale It sure is fine, go for it whenever you feel ready. I'm hosting a NYE party tomorrow, obvs got all the goodies from M&S and will be enjoying them. I'm starting on the 1st, brought my Christmas chocolates to work today to share and make sure they're gone 😂

I used to be sporty...but years of school-training-extra activities regime, whilst useful, are not sustainable in adult life, certainly not in our job. But, I know if I focus my mind on something, I will have the determination to do it, need to bring some of this healthy discipline back to my life.

@Shefliesonherownwings Meditation really helps with anxiety and rebuilding a positive relationship with food. I've gone through very similar phases of grief when it comes to eating to what you've described and I'm finding my meditation app very useful. It makes me pause and think whereas before I'd just eat mindlessly in the last few months. NY is a great motivation. DH and I are off to Greek Islands in April/May, and for once I want to feel fabulous in my bikini. I deserve this! Xxx

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

@Shefliesonherownwings I think focussing on our health will be good for us to take the focus to something more positive. I’ve mentioned I started doing yoga after I lost my daughter as I had pelvic pain while pregnant and couldn’t even walk far so didn’t exercise. I started doing yoga to build up my strength and did it a few times a week while I was off on my 6 months maternity leave. I found it great for my physical strength and mindfulness. Might sound strange but have you heard of ASMR? I find that helps me relax and sleep sometimes. I also like listening to a Buddhist podcast sometimes, there’s one from The Buddhist Society of Western Australia and their talks are on YouTube and podcast.

@MrsMGE Thanks

[Avocuddles]

Hi ladies just checking in for now (whilst I eat a bowl of crisps with a glass of wine) then come Friday once I'm back home and back to work I'll be shifting to the healthy mindset!

I've been TTC for 19-20 months, it took me a year to conceive first time round and I've subsequently had two miscarriages. I'm about to start ovulation stimulation treatment and have been advised to try to lose a bit of weight as my BMI is currently around 28 which equates to a stone overweight. I'm short (only five one) and naturally curvy, I've never been sporty and am pretty unfit so struggle with exercise though enjoy Zumba or other similar classes. I tried weight watchers about a year ago and lost around ten pounds but it's crept back on so I'm back up to my heaviest weight now. My first goal is to lose half a stone, ideally a stone but if I get my BFP then obviously that will change. I'm going to use weight watchers online again which basically allows everything in moderation but steers you to healthier choices through a daily points limit.
Looking forward to some motivation and encouragement here with some understanding and like minded ladies!

[SunshineCrocodile]

I'm in! I'm 37, out of shape after a year of TTC and two MMC at 8 and 10 weeks. Embarrassingly I work in the fitness industry, none of my clients were aware of my pregnancies so I just look like I don't practise what I preach - not easy to hide a paunch when you wear Lycra to work!

Have already been watching my diet for a month or so and lost quite a bit but not where I want to be yet. Normally I'm a stone lighter, I do a lot of weight training and yoga and am usually quite fit and strong although not ever particularly slender. Have let all my training fall by the wayside recently though and need to get back to both - I have an unfounded fear that I caused the mcs through exercise although I know that's not the case as I wasn't pushing myself hard.

I also have issues with food (very disordered/binge eating as a teen and very overweight until my late twenties) and can go into spirals of damaging eating if I'm not careful. So I don't like to diet per se, just try to aim for mostly healthy food with the odd treat chucked in and trying not to feel guilty about the treats. I do love to cook so hoping to plan some more exciting healthy meals than the three or four I'm currently rotating which do the job but aren't particularly inspiring.

[MrsMGE]

It's interesting how all of us have gone through the same thing, ie falling off the bandwagon after the loss. I guess you just don't feel like prioritising yourself very much, it's nearly too much to deal with at once to face what's happened to us and to keep the healthy routine which involves willpower and effort. We don't have any spare amount of that when we're in a survival mode. But staying in this frame of mind only makes things worse because extra weight or being unfit don't help with ttc, healthy pregnancy or losing weight afterwards, and primarily they make us feel worse about ourselves and the misery continues. I also feel desperate to focus on something else mentally, it's been so long and draining to be in this baby-loss-ttc-no success mode, I feel like saying right, it is what it is, it won't go away, I don't want to dwell on this every day. I can do things that will help me deal with this now and going forward.

I think doing something good like this is so needed, we got to get our mojo back and feel good about ourselves again. Good self-esteem is so important on this journey. We'll do something fresh, something new and something that we'll be proud of and hopefully this is going to be that first spark igniting lots and lots of positive things for us. ❤️😊

@SunshineCrocodile I'd be very interested to hear your professional opinion about doing short HIIT sessions regularly, is this a myth in your experience? If so, what do you think works best?

Happy LAST DAY of 2019, ladies, FINALLY!!! We survived 💪💪💪 Onwards and upwards ❤️❤️❤️ Xxx

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

@Avocuddles I’m glad I’m not the only one thinking the strict new mindset shouldn’t start until we are back at work! As you say the weight loss goes out of the window if we get pregnant but I would hope that a better diet and exercise can only help our reproductive health.

@SunshineCrocodile I’m similar in that I don’t like to diet and actually think it causes more problems if I try to fully restrict what I eat but I just try to take it day by day. For me it’s often setting a goal of not eating sugary snacks for the week or X days in the week and then tracking when I manage to stick to that.

I’m also a bit of a planner so it motivates me to put my gym classes and plans in my diary! 🤓

@MrsMGE I think you’re right this will do us some good and I think it will be nice to chat to you ladies more 😄

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

Also I’m thinking of getting Invisalign type braces soon and you have to take them out to eat so I think I’d really cut down on snacking if I get them! I’m having a root canal today 🦷 😫 (someone tell me it’s not as bad as it sounds!) so that might delay things a bit but I’m also excited about having straighter teeth in 2020!

[dublino]

Hi ladies do you mind if I join. I'm 36 and ttc since around sept 2018. I've pcos which means I've probably only had around 6-7 cycles in that time due to long cycles. I started taking clomid in feb and got my bfp in march . However I had a mc a few weeks later that didnt fully happen until after my 12 weeks. I was ok with going to the gum before , wouldn't call myself a gum bunny but I usually went 2-3times a week and would try do some hill walking at weekend. Ever since I found out of the bfp I've been a disaster. I've been to the gym once since june. When it comes to healthy eating I'm brutal and need a serious boot up the backside. I struggle to eat anything remotely like salad . I dont binge too much on sweets as I'm on metformin for the pcos and too much sugar generally makes me ill. Lately my clomid has not been doing what it's supposed to ,this cycle is especially difficult with numerous peaks on opks but no temps to back it up so decided I need to get my shit together and want to lose a stone or two to both get myself healthier and give me a lot stronger chance of ttc. I'm also getting married in August so that another motivator. Hope you dont mind me joining as it be great to have the support

[LASandOtto]

Going to reply properly later - but thread has motivated me to don my gym leggings and to for a run (ok, jog) with OH! 🥳

Look forward to chatting later ladies x

Happy last day of this difficult year for all of us! X

[MrsMGE]

Hey @dublino 😊 I think you're in the best possible place, we're a pretty cool bunch, tut, tut! 😊 Welcome 😊

We've all been through this, we know how hard it is to come out the other end, we don't even have to explain to each other.

You'll be well looked after, we support each other every day, through thick and thin!

@LASandOtto Wooo, go for it! Well done! I've been good today girls, no snacks! Obvs having a party later, but still feeling good and light despite my AF!

@BunnytheBlueWhale I had braces when I was younger, massively helpful when you're trying to lose weight! Great timing!

Xxx

[MrsMGE]

Btw @Avocuddles & @BunnytheBlueWhale I'm only starting this week cause I'm in work...I don't think I'd be that good at home! Xxx

[dublino]

Thanks @mrsmge ! Hoping to get it started tomorrow with a good walk pr the gum and a swim. The other half is also looking to lose weight so probably go and get the weeks shop done

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

You’re in the right place @dublino As MrsMGE says this is a lovely supportive group

Well done @LASandOtto I just had my root canal (wasn’t as bad as I thought) so I’m taking it easy 😬

@MrsMGE I had braces too and they really sorted out my teeth but my retainer broke and I didn’t replace it so my teeth have moved a bit. I’m thinking about the Invisalign type that you can’t really see but think I need to wait a couple of months following my root canal

[SunshineCrocodile]

@MrsMGE I don't actually know what Jo Wicks' sessions involve but re HiiT, depends on what your goals are! Great for improving overall fitness, done daily they're probably every bit as effective as three longer cardio gym sessions in a week for example. We own a gym running classes and our sessions are only 45 mins including warm up and cool down, as generally people don't benefit from doing more than that at a time. So the actual workout is only 25-30 mins.

Personally I think everyone should do some heavier weighted work at least once a week too - I'm a bit biased because my big love is resistance training but it's very effective over the longer term to change body compostition (fat to muscle) and faster than you might see changes with pure cardio or bodyweight resistance only. Building muscle increases your resting energy requirements so basically you burn more calories just by doing nothing if you have more muscle. Plus it's SO satisfying moving big weights around 

Food wise, I've found a photo tracker app is invaluable. I've used MFP in the past but it's so time consuming and as I have a fairly good grasp of nutrition I find it easier to just take photos of my meals and upload them so I have an extra level of accountability (only to myself, I don't share them!). My main goals are to watch my portion size and ensure my meals incorporate a good portion of protein and green veg or fruit at each meal, and keep starchy carbs to sensible levels. Also to keep my fluid intake up, I'm basically a cactus unless I remind myself to drink!

So far I'm back on track after yesterday's self-pity cakefest, low fat yoghurt and fruit for breakfast, about to have broccoli and potato soup for lunch. Taking the dog out for a nice long walk in a bit!

@BunnytheBlueWhale my sister had invisalign, exactly the same as you her teeth moved after she lost her retainer. It's made a big difference, her teeth look great!

@dublino welcome - sorry for your loss and this is a great group of ladies. Really looking forward to the support with getting as healthy as possible this year, not just for TTC but for my own wellbeing. I have PCOS as well so have complete sympathy for you there, my cycles regulate much better when I'm a good weight for my height.

As soon as I'm completely convinced that this is a CP and not a long and drawn out implantation that might fall out if I so much as sneeze I'm going to get my gym/yoga sessions for the week booked in. Dying to get back on the barbells now, you ladies have lit a fire under me!

@LASandOtto well done on the run!

Oof, sorry, that was a far longer post than I intended..!

[BunnytheBlueWhale]

@SunshineCrocodile A photo tracking app sounds good as I also think MFP is too time consuming. I might look into that. The other way I sometimes do it is to just make a note of anything bad that I eat such as chocolate or sweets but that can be a bit subjective obviously!

Your gym sounds great!

[LASandOtto]

@dublino welcome to the thread! Look forward to supporting each other, along with all the other great ladies on here 🤗

@SunshineCrocodile I had a PT a few years ago who got me into resistance training with weights and I really love it! I still at times felt it was a male dominated area of the gym, but thanks to my PT at the time and the plans he put together for me, I made it my second home and felt the best I ever felt!

I am contemplating asking him to make me some new plans for 2020!

@

[LASandOtto]

Posted too fast! 🙄

@MrsMGE I hope you have a great party tonight!

OH and I are going to see Starwars today (I am not a massive fan personally but OH is) and we aren't celebrating NY especially, but tomorrow we are meeting some friends for brunch and then off to a day party thing (not sure what that'll entail?)!