Staying Healthy While Breastfeeding {Delta Labs Postnatals}

One thing I've struggled with post-baby is finding a great vitamin to take that will also include the nutrients I need while breastfeeding. I've simply been continuing to use my prenatals as a suppliment but recently found a better alternative from Delta Labs.

For the past two weeks I've been using Delta Labs Postnatal Fat Burner in an effort to continue to get the nutrients I need for breastfeeding (and increase milk supply) as well as helping me burn the fat that I still have from my pregnancies and before. While I'm at pre-pregnancy weight right now, I still have a long road to go.

These postnatal vitamins not only are safe for me but are safe for my daughter as well. The pills contain healthy CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), L-Carnitine, and B6. These three ingredients have been proven to promote weight loss, build energy, and increase metabolism leading to healthy weight loss.

The ingredients included in this little pill are 100% natural and are manufactured under strict cGMP (current Good Manufacturing Practice) guidelines in a facility that carries a NSF certification.

Delta Labs offers a wide variety of supplements and nutrients made specifically for women so that any woman can find what they need! And if you want to know what works best for you simply contact them to find out. You can also reach out to them on Facebook and twitter.

Delta Labs is also committed to conservation and a greener planet. They will give you a $5 discount on future purchases simply for returning your empty bottle. How awesome is that?

Interested in WINNING a two-month supply 

of the supplement of your choice?

Enter to win two bottles of any Delta Labs health and wellness formulas in the rafflecopter form below. Two winners! Giveaway ends August 10th at 11:59 EST so hurry up and enter now. Good Luck!

And if you don't win this time around make sure to head on over in September to enter the Noise Girls For the Family giveaway for another chance to win a two month supply!

6 Week Challenge {1 Week Update}

So as of yesterday it's been exactly a week since I've been on the 6 Week Challenge at the YMCA. I'm working out at least 4-5 times a week, counting calories, and cooking a heck of a lot more at home. I'm feeling amazing and looking forward to continuing to see progress on the scale and in my body. We haven't done measurements yet but will do so on Wednesday. However we did have our first weigh in and I am happy to announce that I lost 2lbs!

That's right. I met my first goal of a 2lb loss per week. And I am currently at pre-pregnancy weight. You don't know how ecstatic I was to see that number on the scale! I am hoping to be at least 10lbs closer to goal weight by the end of the year even with the holidays in the mix. That means hard work, determination, and sticking with my 6 week challenge. Then after the first of the year I'll need to step it up and continue to do well on my own.

I might even be looking for friends to join me and create a 6 week challenge of our own. It won't be with a personal trainer but I'll have some sort of structured weekly challenge. A few workouts or classes we can take either together or separately and a food plan. Because the biggest thing I've taken away from my struggle with losing weight is that I need a food plan. No mindless eating, no carelessly choosing items off the menu. I need to be thoughtful and careful when I put food in my mouth.

The fitness part of this week consisted of a cardio challenge to see how far we could run/jog/walk within a 30 minute timeframe. I was able to average about 5mph on the treadmill during that 30 minutes and ran about 2.4 miles. Now that was without any incline, too. I'm sure my speed would have been a bit lower had I been given an incline (or a double stroller!). After the cardio challenge we had a workout with our trainer with resistance bands. Boy those things suck! We then worked in pairs with the 10lb medicine ball. Our second work out with the trainer had us balancing on a bosu (I had NO idea what this thing was before the session). We did lunges, squats, threw the medicine ball to each other, etc. We worked our core and I felt it the next day!

Each week our trainer also gives us classes or activities to do outside of our 2 sessions. She also wants to see us exercising at least once a day for 30 minutes. This week she challenged us to take one of her classes on Friday. We had our choice of a Cardio Sculpt class or a Sports Drills class. I chose the Sports Drills since I was relatively familiar with them from high school. Oh boy... I HATED it! Running the drills was the hardest thing I had done all week (maybe all year?) physically. She had us leaping like frogs, on our backs walking like crabs, doing push ups (both triceps and biceps) and much more. I even had to excuse myself to use the restroom although later on I would find out that I was just sick. I'm really glad I tried the class but might be choosing another option next time.

Along with the challenge we go to weekly nutrition meetings every Monday night. A nutrition expert comes in and not only gives us a wonderful presentation about nutrition but she also prepares a meal for us each week to enjoy while we listen and watch. I'm hoping to start posting recaps of her nutritional information on here soon in case others are interested as well. And, of course, including the recipes to the yummy meals she's making!

I am very happy with this first week and hope to see continued success on the scale and in my eating choices. More to come next week!

Weight Loss Progress

Starting Weight: 224.6 1/30/2011

Size 16

Current Weight: 201.7 11/12/2011

Size 14/16

 

Total to go: 46.7lbs

Total lost: 22.9lbs

The New Food Pyramid

I know everyone's probably already seen the new food pyramid. Or should I say the new food plate. I'm actually really happy about it. I have already decided that I want to do my best to educate my kids about the food they eat as well as nutrition and exercise in general.

Last year we took Ethan to go pick apples and I plan to do so again this year (with Molly too!). I also want to go berry picking next year as well with both kids. And Joseph and I are already planning on building a raised bed for a vegetable garden. I think that getting my kids involved in the preparation of the food we eat might help them not only understand where food comes from but also get interested in eating the right kinds of food.

You don't know how excited I get when I put a chicken nugget, bowl of fruit and a french fry in front of Ethan for dinner and he goes for the fruit first (C'mon! No judging. We went to Chick-Fil-A for dinner the other night). Or when I ask him what he wants for dinner and he says broccoli. Yes, some nights he asks for fruit roll ups or ice cream for dinner but for the most part he is really good about eating a well balanced diet. And I'm happy to say that he's also started eating more than just hot dogs and bacon for protein.

And I believe that starting young will really help us in the future. If you've always had access to fruits and vegetables wouldn't you be more inclined to choose them when planning out your meals at a restaurant or when you want to make a meal for dinner.

Now I'm not knocking sweets or fast food (obviously since I just admitted to serving Chick-Fil-A nuggets and fries to Ethan) but I really think that we need to start working on moderation and variation. I'm on Weight Watchers. My goal every day is to eat at LEAST 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day. That means my breakfasts, snacks, lunches and dinners all contain at least one serving of fruit or veggies. And I've been really working on including a variety of vegetables to our every day routine. Not just salad or broccoli.

So when I see the new food plate I get excited. I hope that when my kids take a nutrition class or learn about healthy eating in school (do they still do that?) that they will just hear what they already see at home. And if you have any ideas or suggestions on how to continue down this path I'm all ears!