Druid Warrior Mama

[Missstyx]

Hello, everyone!  My name is Mel, and I’m a 32-year-old new mom in California.  I’m writing this post to cement my intentions and to show my progress thus far.  

I was moderately active before pregnancy, and had just started heavy lifting when I found out I was pregnant.  Since I was new to lifting, I dialed back my weight routine, but stayed as active as I could.  

During my second trimester I got searing lower back pain that sent me to the chiropractor.  I couldn’t do any of my activities.  I could only walk for 10 minutes at a time without crumpling in pain.  It was awful.  I had signed up for the Star Wars 10K before I got pregnant, and now I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it.  I was afraid I wouldn’t even enjoy my wedding, the pain was so bad.

Luckily the chiropractic worked and I recovered well enough that I could resume activity.  I managed to walk/run and finish that 10K at 6 months pregnant.  I was so proud of myself!  Unfortunately my body was still out of kilter, and after my honeymoon I got really bad sciatica.  Durnit.  I was sidelined again.  I still managed to eke out bits of activity.  Water aerobics was the best.  However, I still gained 50 pounds during my pregnancy.  Ouch.

Postpartum, my nutrition was crap.  My baby had to spend 4 days in the hospital and I ate emotionally to deal with my feelings.  People were bringing me food—for which I was grateful—but the food they were bringing was not the most healthy.  I have always had issues with food and I felt all those demons start to flare up again.  I had to wait 6 weeks before working out again.  I was obsessed with getting back into shape.  I started making healthier food choices, so any weight loss and shape changes that happened are because of that, and breastfeeding my baby (burns an extra 500 calories per day!).  When the 6 weeks came and I was cleared, I jumped in too fast and started bleeding a bit too heavily for my comfort, and had to slow back down.  It was frustrating to feel so weak and shaky, but I did what I could, working out when my daughter was napping or when someone was there to watch her.  

It’s been 3 weeks and I can already see a huge difference in the photo.  I can see my stomach definition returning and the fat melting away.  More importantly, though, I FEEL better, and can take better care of my daughter because I’m taking care of myself.  I have dedicated myself to 30 days of daily yoga, and a 66-day mindful eating plan.  I’ve lined up all my fitness resources and have chosen my class.  I have strong goals and a strong motivation to reach them.  Since I have less time to train than I ever have, I see my workouts as precious and make them as meaningful as I can.  I know this was long, so thanks if you read it all!

 

My Class/Guild:

 

Druid Warrior/Battlemage—Focus on strength and spiritual practice with enough cardio endurance to romp around in nature.  I also want to crush some obstacle races, do a pull-up and eventually climb a rope.

 

Strength Goals: Daily Yoga.  Bodyweight training, with at least one strong weight session per week.

 

Cardio Goals:  Ranger Missions:  Zombies Run! 5K training at least 2x per week while someone watches baby.  HIIT training on days when I can’t get out while she naps.   I also plan to try out CrossFit at my local gym once I pass the 12 week mark.  With a new baby around, my goal is to squeeze in as much intensity as I can.

 

 

Nutrition: Plant-based, whole-foods diet.  Elimination of sugar and processed food.  Follow Yoga Journal’s 10-week mindful diet plan for healthy eating.  

 

 

Earth Mama:  I will get and stay fit, clean and healthy for my baby and myself.  I want to show her through my example how to be healthy and strong.  I’ll keep track of measurements and photos as a barometer of my fitness, but my steps onto the scale will be less frequent.  I have struggled with bulimia in the past, so anything more than a monthly weigh-in is dangerous for my mental health.

 

It’s great to be here.  My inspiration came from Nerd Fitness, especially Steve’s posts on starting over (again!) and the “in case of emergency†workout and diet plan.  I’m embracing the re-spawn and making fitness and nutrition true priorities in my life to honor myself and my family.

 

My Fitness Resources (other than NF, of course):

 

http://thebabywearingworkout.com

 

https://zombiesrungame.com

 

https://www.momsintofitness.com

 

http://yogawithadriene.com

 

 

<a data-ipb="nomediaparse" data-cke-saved-href="http://www.yogajournal.com/slideshow/the-10-week-mindful-diet-plan-for-healthy-eating/"href="http://www.yogajournal.com/slideshow/the-10-week-mindful-diet-plan-for-healthy-eating/" "=""> http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2015/05/18/why-having-to-start-over-again-is-great/

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Welcome to the rebellion, great progress so far, keep it up. Just make sure you pace yourself.

[Nightside]

Welcome aboard

[shaar]

I love your goals and your passion to get back into the game!!  It sounds like you are determined and ready to blaze new trails for yourself and your baby.

 

(I also love Yoga with Adriene, she is just the coolest~)

 

Welcome to NF, let's do this!!

[oldnews]

Welcome! I love your goals... I always like to see how others blend Druid with other classes. I may lean toward Druid-Ranger in the future, myself.

[Missstyx]

Thanks for the support, everyone!

I am happy to be starting my fitness journey from a place of self-love and fun! Nerd Fitness is such a perfect place for me.

With the news of Fallout 4 coming out I keep thinking about replaying the old games...but since I have limited time, I'd rather level myself up and build my own character. It's amazing how much I can do while she sleeps!

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Good for you, play the game of life for a while and level up yourself.