Helloooo all you Haute Mamas out there! My name is Gina Rossetti and I would like to start off by saying how excited I am to be this week’s guest blogger on Three Haute Mamas! I was honored to have been asked to chat with all your gals (and guys) on how to get back into shape after the birth of your little one!
I sat down to write my entry and had 2.5 pages written in about 5 minutes, my background, my exercise programs before, during, and after pregnancy, my eating habits, my failures, my success, etc., etc., etc. Then I sat down and realized that none of you really care about any of that. Well, maybe you do, but maybe I’ll return again some day and fill you in more – right now I’m sure you just want to know how you can drop that baby fat au natural.
First off I want to tell you that I began my weight loss and fitness journey the second my dr gave me the ok. I tried the personal route, the gymmin’ it on my own route, the no carb, no fat, no life route! Nothing worked. 10 months after the baby was born and I was still pretty miserable with myself. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be standing on stage in front of hundreds of people struttin’ my stuff. But that’s what I did- May 2nd 2010, less than 15 months after I had the munchkin, I was competing in the Bikini Division of the National Physique Committee’s fitness competition.
HOW I got there is what you really want to know. Its ok, no hard feelings, I wouldn’t read a 2.6 page blog on some random person’s life either. So here goes.
My transformation started in January of 2010 when I joined Cathy Savage Fitness. I can’t even begin to tell you what Cathy and her team do for women all over the country. It is a sisterhood through and through and I’ve met and become friends with the most beautiful women – inside and out. This industry can be cut-throat. It can be mean and scary – and being a Savage Sister takes all of the fear and anxiety away and molds you into a better person. Seriously – Google her, You Tube her, Facebook her – do it all and you’ll almost be able to feel what its like to step on that stage. And if you don’t ever ever want to compete, still Google her – there is an amazing Lifestyle Program that will transform you into having the body and “look” of a fitness model.
So while I’d like to take all the credit for my transformation – I do have to give most of it to the Savage Crew – especially my coach Mel – who I grew to absolutely adore.
On to what you really want to know – HOW TO DROP THOSE LBS! Again, since I’m well aware of the fact that no one wants to read a ton of text written in big blocky paragraphs, I’m going to give you a bulleted list of the most crucial parts of getting back into your pre-baby shape – or even better!
1) EAT CLEAN! Get rid of all the processed junk, refined sugar, and white flour. This food does nothing for you – no nutrients, no vitamins, nothing good whatsoever. It just fills your body with chemicals and toxins. Once you start eating real whole organic food, you’ll notice those inches start to melt away, your skin and eyes will be clearer, your nails longer and healthier, your hair stronger and shinier. I can not stress how important this is.
2) Eat 5 or 6 meals a day. Think of your body as a furnace or fire. In order for the fire to burn longer and harder, you need to keep fueling it. You can’t expect your body to last a full day by just eating a big breakfast or lunch. You need to be constantly eating in order to speed up your metabolism so your body can burn fat and calories.
3) Do not give up your carbohydrates. You need these – especiallu now with a baby to chase after! If you are one of the millions of people out there who have tried the Atkins diet, you’ve noticed that your energy levels severely decreased during the diet. Don’t give up your carbs, just be smart about them – brown rice, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, quinoa. Eat these earlier in the day so your body can break them down and use them for enegy.
4) Don’t give up your fat either! Fat doesn’t make you fat. Your body needs Omega 6 and Omega 3 fats so that it doesn’t shut down and start storing the fat its already got a hold of. Avocados, Flax Seed Oil, Udos, and Olive Oil are all great examples of good fat your body will love!
5) Drink plentyyyyy of water! The more you drink, the less you will retain. I am now drinking 1 gallon + per day! If I don’t get at least a gallon in, I’m constantly thirsty and cranky. Plus, when you’re drinking a lot of water, you’ll fill yourself up and not be as hungry, which means you’ll be less likely to reach for that afternoon Snickers bar!
6) Incorporate HIIT into you workout program. What is HIIT you ask? High Intensity Interval training. Its basically tricking your body. When you’re on a treadmill or elliptical for a period of time at a steady rate, you’re burning calories, but after time your body gets complacent and won’t burn as many. By incorporating HIIT, your heartrate is being raised and lowered through the workout, keeping your body guessing and burning more fat!
7)
You need
your cardio and weights. You will not bulk up by lifting
weights! You will build more
muscle – muscle eats fat. Nuff
said!
So this is the basis of what you need to do to lose that stubborn Buddha belly or muffin top. Take it from me, this stuff works! Check out cathysavagefitness.com to see what its all about.
Hopefully you’ll all be hearing from me again! Good Luck!
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