Stacy writes about her life as a mother, wife and owner of crazy pets at Fabulous Miss S, and is a contributing writer at DC Metro Moms. 
 
You’ve lost 50 pounds since the birth of your son in December of 2007 (I hope I have this date right), which is amazing! What are some of the methods you used to lose the weight?

Yes, my son was born in December 2007. I gave my body almost two full months to recover from my unplanned C-Section. Looking back I would have started walking and just moving more, sooner. But, I was tired. I didn’t sleep more than 2-3 hours at a time for almost three months. Energy and motivation were low. In March, when my son was three months old I started walking. I put the baby in the stroller and put the dog on a leash and I went outside and walked. I started just taking twenty or thirty minute walks and I worked up to an hour and mixed in spurts of jogging. Whenever the dog needed to go out I would strap on the Baby Bjorn, add the baby and go walk, just 15 minutes here and there. At one point a neighbor asked when I was going to use a stroller and I responded, “When I don’t need to burn extra calories.” Simply put: take advantage of the baby’s weight, carrying the baby in a carrier helps you burn more calories. I would make an effort to stand up straight and engage my core muscles that were bitterly decimated during pregnancy. 

What’s your fitness background like — have you always led a healthy lifestyle?

Haha. I really want to say, “Yes! I’ve always been fit and healthy.” But the reality is that I’ve spent years yo-yo’ing my way up and down a 15 pound region of the scale.  I would say I’ve always carried about 20 extra (stubborn) pounds. Exercise and healthy eating was something I did when the weather was nice or when I had time to kill, it was never a priority or THE way of life. In college I did a few 5k runs and a few times a week I’d run for thirty minutes or putz around on some cardio equipment in a gym. I did complete two 350-miles-in-4-days AIDS Rides, bicycling from Raleigh, NC to Washington, DC in 1999 and 2000.  
 
After a few months of healthful living I’d give it up because I’d have a scheduling conflict or I’d get sick and get derailed or the weather would change and I didn’t want to run in below-freezing temperatures. I was great at making excuses. 

I am choosing to live more healthfully now because it really does improve so many other non-physical facets of your life. Brain chemistry for one. Self confidence for another.  Making the commitment of time to make a change solely for myself that will better myhealth and extend my life (duration and quality) demonstrates a self respect that I have never before shown myself. I love my new-found energy, strength, and self-confidence, not to mention my jean size!

You’ve been running a website initially focused on your experience (and others’) following the 30 Day Shred workout (now the site is covering a series of 30-day challenges). How did you like this particular workout? Do you think you’ll keep going with it after the 30 days are up?

I love this workout for two reasons: it is very effective with visible results and it is short, which means I can fit it into my hectic MOM schedule. I will absolutely keep going after 30 days. In fact, I’ve been doing it for about two months now already. I didn’t start the website until after about a month when a few others bloggers and I decided to make a pact to do this for 30 days. It is a great workout with varying difficulty options and I will absolutely keep doing it.  

You write for several blogs, and you stay home full time with your son, Noah. How do you make the time to exercise?

Making TIME to exercise is possibly harder than the actual exercise itself. My challenges constantly change as my son grows older and therefore more resistant to sit in a plastic bouncy-baby-holder for any useful duration of time. The majority of my time for exercise comes after he goes to sleep at night. But then my struggle is that I’m tired and my husband wants me to sit and watch TV with him.  I try to go to the gym twice a week in the evening around 8pm for about an hour and a half when my husband sits at home and listens to the baby monitor, but mostly I do the 30DS video in my bedroom at 9pm a few times a week. When the weather allows I take long walks with the baby in the stroller. I also own a treadmill and I recently moved it within eye-shot of the television.  I try to walk/jog on it once or twice a week for close to an hour, while watching television.

Do you have any guidelines that you follow when it comes to food?

I have found that what works best for me is a high protein diet. It keeps me feeling fuller longer. I also strive for as many fruits, vegetables and whole grains/fiber as possible. As I focus on getting at least two veggies/fruits and a whole grain into each meal there isn’t much room for anything else. I stick to mostly oatmeal with dried or fresh berries and ground flax for breakfast; lunch is a big bowl of tuna fish, leftovers from dinner or a big spinach salad with cabbage, carrots, radishes, tomatoes and cheese; yogurt, pears, apples, South Beach peanut butter bars or string cheese for snacks; and veggie stir-fries with a garlic/ginger/soy sauce flavoring, grilled fish or chicken and occasional whole grain pasta dishes with lots of tomato-based (added veggies) sauce for dinner. Also, I frequently use zip steam bags and make a large portion of steamed veggies and add that to lunch and dinner. 

What are your fitness goals for the next year?

I ultimately want to lose about 5-10 more pounds landing in the 130-135 range. I want to maintain my muscle tone and increase my cardiovascular stamina. Also, I want to be as fit as possible going into my next pregnancy and MAINTAIN a moderate level of exercise throughout that currently-only-hypothetical pregnancy.  My biggest goal is to maintain everything I have gained and not let minor setbacks like a cold, or holidays derail me.

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