10 Week BumpDate: First Trimester Healthy Pregnancy Round 2

Wow, I cannot believe how fortunate we are to be in our first trimester with our second baby!!!

I hadn't thought this was possible, I had believed that we might not get pregnant for a long time. I only had one, yes ONE CYCLE postpartum from Braelyn - that means from December 2013 when we conceived to June 2016 when we conceived baby 2 that I had 1 cycle, ONE shot to get this.  

I owe it all to God!  I owe it to the prayers many of your prayed and the support SO many of you gave! I cannot thank you enough!

My first trimester so far has been harder than I remember it being with Braelyn.

I'm constantly hungry, but food sound so bad.

I'm constantly tired, but I love my work and I have a toddler I care for daily.

I'm constantly working on that balance of rest now, eat now, work now, play now.

Being healthy is extremely important to me this time around, just like it was with Braelyn.  I am SO grateful for all that I've learned over the past year as a health & wellness coach that has provided me the proper nutritional balance.

I know, even when I don't want a food, that I need to eat it to nourish myself and our baby.  My once beloved Shakes have sounded pretty gross this first trimester, but my Dr. looked at them, loved the nutritional value and vitamins they provided, and I didn't need to take a prenatal because of all that was already in these shakes I enjoyed.  But now, I'm struggling to make them! I ALWAYS enjoy them when I finally drink it, but holy cow the thought of making them makes me want to vomit!  Thankfully, I haven't had any morning sickness, just food aversions.  And I push through and am SO much happier when I have that healthy shake.

Beyond that, to keep healthy in mind and body, I'm still reading my bible daily, participating in studies, reading personal development books to help with positive mindset I battle, and I'm working out when it feels good.  I'm not forcing a workout, but I'm not neglecting it. If the scheduled workout sounds terrible, I opt for stretching, walking, yoga, or a prenatal workout.  If working out feels bad, I stop.  

I hope you can choose healthy through your pregnancy.  I know morning sickness is NO JOKE and I pray that when you battle it, you know that you are doing amazing things, your body is growing a heart, lungs, and a brain - you are freaking rockstar!!!!

How far along: 10ish

Gender: I always say she, but I think that's bc we have Brae. My symptoms are much different, so I wonder boy - I still have no clue if it's 1 or 2 kiddos - we have identical (just a fluke) and fraternal (means passed down) twins in our family. My mom is identical, she has siblings that are fraternal, and her grandmother was also a twin, and I have cousins who are twins.  

Weight gain: 0.5 lbs (118.9 starting weight)

Working Out:  This past week's workouts are listed below.  I'm not feeling the desire to workout as I had with our first pregnancy. I'm so much more tired and I've been choosing to sleep in most of this week rather than do my morning routine. So workouts have been hit or miss.

Clothing Choices:  I'm still wearing my normal clothes. Everything fits okay, the only thing that's a little tight are some of my shorts on my belly. I prefer dresses right now. 

Stretch marks: No new ones, just my soccer ones ;)

Belly button: Inny-ish/Outy-ish ALREADY! ahh!

Sleep: Needing a nap every day

Best moment this week:  I really think I felt little bit move right at the start of week 10, which is absolutely crazy! But I remember that 'bubble' / 'butterfly' feeling with Brae and I felt that one night before bed....but hey it could have been gas ;)

Hardest moment this week: So apparently I did this last pregnancy too, thinking we'd get to see the little on a at our first appointment, calling in, and being disappointed that we only do the doppler to hear baby, no ultrasound to see baby. If you check my 1st Trimester post with Brae, at week 10,  was upset over this same thing - ha! not much has changed ;) 

What I’m missing:  nothing. 

Movement: See above - gas or baby?!

Cravings: Salsa & marinara - hello tomatoes

Queasy or sick: Food aversions - a lot of times food sounds so bad, but then I eat and i'm fine. 

Looking forward to: Less food aversions (fingers crossed)

This weeks workouts have included:

• Monday - Dancing to Country Heat

• Tuesday - The Warrior P90X3

• Wednesday - Tone it Up Stretch & Release & String Bikini from Beachbabe 3 DVD

• Thursday - Dog walks w/ the toddler then Turbo Jam 20 Minute Workout

• Friday - none

• Saturday - 22 minute treadmill walk on incline 5, speed 3 

• Sunday - Yoga Booty Ballet - Baby on the Way <3

6 Years of Marriage

I am so happy to be celebrating 6 years of marriage.

I like to reflect on what was and what is to come.

Many people said, oh your first year of marriage will be the hardest - Lord I wish that was true because our first year was a freaking blast!

Now, I would like to say, your first year of marriage with a child...that will be your hardest.  Zero energy, lack of sex drive, change in lifestyle, no desire to stay out with friends, waking up in a bath of your own breastmilk...oh yes, so sexy ;)  Don't I make it all sound fun!!!!???

After Brae was born, it was no joke how much of a mess I was emotionally.  Neal has been a true man of God and has been such a constant. He never gets mad, he never yells, he never does anything but try to lift me up.  Ladies, I'm a very very lucky woman, I know!

As we hit our 6 years, I will say things have been SO much better between year 5 and 6 than they were between 4 and 5!  I cannot thank my husband enough for his genuine support and love as I transitioned from stressed out full time worker to full-time mom-entreprenuer!

This man right here, he's my rock.  Together we teach each other to dream bigger.  To believe in ourselves.  To think highly of ourselves and others.  To attend church regularly.  To be loving towards each other always.  To work by our actions and words to show love so Braelyn will know what that looks like.

Are we perfect?  ABSOLUTELY NOT!  I still have those bad moments of massive self-doubt and huge hormonal fits of anger, but I can truly say Neal is the perfect match for the balance of life.

Here's to 60+ more years of marriage together Nuzzle Bug! I love you!!!

Transformation Tuesday - How Heidi Didn't Know She Was Unhappy or Unhealthy

Who's excited for warmer weather and to be getting outside with family and friends?  I know this woman, Heidi Norman, is a totally different woman inside and out going into last summer versus going into this summer! I mean LOOK at the changes in this woman's SMILE!

Heidi is a mom, friend, devoted wife and God Fearing Woman!

She's been working on her nutrition, fitness, and MINDSET for a year now, and oh boy can you just feel the difference when you see some of her before and afters!!!!

This is a photo she shared with our team, and the text blow she typed up with it!

If you had told me a year ago that I would go from a size 14 to a size 6...I would have laughed at you. If you told me, I would actually finished a 10 week at home DVD fitness program then go on to do not one but 2 more programs and finished them all...I woulda laughed at you. If you told me that my husband and my son did it all with me...I woulda laughed at you again. Then if you told me that I would be inspiring and empowering my friends and family to join me on this crazy journey....I woulda laughed at you even harder! Thank God no one told me what was to come or I would have come up with a million excuses of why it wasn't gonna happen.

I am sooooo happy that I embarked on this journey a year ago and have been stronger than those excuses. I'm not even close to the same person on the outside or the inside. I had no clue how unhappy and unhealthy I was till I became happy and healthy! Some days are rough, life happens and we don't always get our workout in. It's not about perfection, its about progress. When we fall off the bandwagon, we get back up and recommit to ourselves and our fitness. 

I'm down 5 dress sizes, 33 pounds and 20+ inches and I still have 7 pounds to go before I am at my dream goal weight. I have met some amazing people on this journey soo far and paying it forward by supporting and helping other people meet their fitness goals has become my passion. IF I CAN DO IT, YOU CAN TOO!! 

Each and every one of you on Team Give, have had a part in this amazingtransformation. You are all the wind in my sail! You all inspire me on the daily and encourage me to be the best coach that I can be. Here is to another year then another and another. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you do for me. 

 Heidi and her family started off with T25, then moved onto 21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, and now Insanity Max 30!

She currently not only leading people in a healthy nutrition and fitness lifestyle, but also helping others by hosting a virtual book club to work on personal development.  The group is currently focusing on our own misconceptions of ourselves, our own personal beliefs, and kicking ourselves in the butt by reading "You Are A Badass" by Jen Sincero.

Connect with Heidi on Facebook or Instagram and let this woman help you live your happiest & healthiest life inside and out!

To learn more about starting your own health and happiness journey, contact me here 

Hammer & Chisel Results

At the beginning of January, I asked my husband to join me in completing a fitness program together, Hammer & Chisel.  It was the first one in just over 5 years that I've actually done at home with him.  When we were engaged, we did P90X, I think I made it until the 2nd to last week, and he finished...I know I know, I had 2 weeks left, I could have finished, but the past is in the past.

Before we began, I knew I wanted to gain more muscle tone. I did not want to lose weight.

Weeks 1-5 were AWESOME!  I meal prepped like nobody's business, and stayed very focused with the workouts.

Weeks 6-8 were a little harder.  That always seems to be the case for me. I got 'busy' and stopped meal prepping, and my stomach was showing for it, so I had to do a mini pause and do a 3 Day Refresh to help get my nutrition back on track.  That sorta helped, but I still couldn't quite pick up motivation like I had the first 5 weeks.

While I KNOW I could have done better about food, especially in the last week (hello pizza, burgers, and a few beers), but I am still SO proud of my results.  I wanted to gain muscle tone in my arms, and I truly did.  My biceps, shoulders, and lats all grew :) And I went up with heavier weights a LOT more than I thought I would have.

Over all, I ended up:

• + 2 inches in my shoulders
• + 0.75 inches in my chest
• + 0.5 inches in my left bicep
• + 0.5 inches in my right bicep
• + 0.25 inches in my waist - hehe I think that's some pizza, beer, and burgers ;)
• + 0.75 inches in my booty!!!
• - 0.25 inches right around my belly button
• My calves stayed the same
• My thighs stayed the same
• I gained almost 2 lbs, I hope that's muscle, but it could totally be pizza, beer, and burgers that I couldn't resist in the last week.  Yep even though I'm helping other people with their own health and fitness, I still have hiccups of my own :)

And here's my hubby's results (photo's only) I can't find his measurements - wah wah...but I am so proud of him for doing most of this program with me too!

Here's a pinterest board where I pinned some of the places where I got my meal prep ideas:  CLICK HERE :) 
Here's some of my favorite meal preps with links back to the original Instagram post :)

Zucchini Noodles, Shrimp & Quinoa

Meal Prep

Example Day of  Meals

...and again, towards the end of this, there was pizza, burgers and beer....so I didn't go 100% with the full program, but I am so glad I did the program, I totally loved the variety of the workouts, and that I could do them at home and at the gym.

The workouts included a lot of strength training with lighter or heavier weights.  There are cardio days, with and without weights.

I will certainly do many of these workouts again! I loved doing them especially with my husband, and we could bring the sheets to the gym, which was really helpful too!

What's the last workout you did with someone you loved?

A Clean(ish) Eating Mom's Take on the 3 Day Refresh

I like to think of myself as a pretty clean eater.

Sure, I love pizza, cookies and the occasional Taco Bell, but for the most part, I make my meals and I eat foods from the outer sections of the grocery store aka fruits, veggies, and meats.

I like to spiralize noodles instead of have pasta. I seriously do love vegetables and could eat them almost all day (especially steamed or sauté), and I make 'nice' cream instead of binge on ice cream because I truly know I feel a lot better without artificial sweeteners, preservatives, and extra processed foods.

But again...I like pizza, cookies and the occasional Taco Bell. I'm human.

Well after a little too much of those extra cheats in my life, I had started to feel really nauseous.  It was just a little here and there, truly not much, but my stomach was truly upset with me.  "YAY, I'm pregnant again!" was my initial thought, but 4 tests proved me wrong :(  So then I thought, oh nausea, here come my cycle, but nope, that wasn't it!

I realized it really was my little cheats here and there creeping in that left me feeling sick. I had let my 90/10 rule of eat clean 90% of the time, indulge 10% move more towards a 70/30 and that's just not something my body can handle.

So I decided to give the 3 Day Refresh a try.

I actually didn't do this to lose weight, although it's a great tool for helping with that. I just did the 3 Day Refresh to feel better.  All in all, I lost 1.5 lbs and 1.5 inches in my bloated belly.

Here's a video breakdown of my thoughts and feelings of this 3 Day Refresh - cleaning up my body - process.

If you are interested in giving this a try, let's chat, see if this is right for you, or find something that may work even better for your goals.  Helping people is what I do, I share what I'm doing, my experiences, and my knowledge to help you find something that could work for you.  It may be a Beachbody program, it may not.  I've tried a lot of programs within Beachbody and lots of them outside of Beachbody.  I'll recommend to you what could be best, and have helped may people find the perfect one for them.  From those that want to join our accountability groups, to those that just want a little information to get them going solo, it's what I love doing and I'm here to help :)

The easiest way to catch me is on Facebook
Next would be email - tamara.lee.bratton@gmail.com
Next after that would be here via the blog at the Contact Me section


Here's my breakdown day by day


DAY 1

Thoughts

• HOLY S**T THIS F***ING SUCKS!!!!
• I'M SO HUNGRY
• I hate today
• Hey, I'm not nauseous
• Hmm, it's now 7pm and I actually feel okay
• Alright, that wasn't so bad...I'm just a bit of a baby

Meals
    ***Lots of water - I mean like over 100 oz***

• Cafe Latte Shakeology, 10oz Water, 2/3 C frozen blueberries
• Chai tea to hold me over
• Fiber Sweep with cinnamon added - mixed just enough water for pudding consistency (LOVED IT!)
• Vanilla Fresh, 10oz water, 1/2 C frozen grapes
• 2 carrots cut up (it called for 1/2 a large but screw that), 1.5 t almond butter
• 1 G containers (1cup) Spaghetti squash with 1 t coconut oil
• Chai tea
• Coconut steamed veggies - broccoli, carrots, cale and coconut oil + salt free seasonings
• Vanilla Fresh with cinnamon made into pudding consistency = dessert YUM
• 1/2 C Beef Broth, it calls for veggie broth, but we had beef so that's just what I went with

Workout

• Walking around the mall with 2 of my mom friends and our kiddos - we did 2 or 3 laps, can't remember

DAY 2

Thoughts

• I feel amazing this morning
• I have energy
• I mean A LOT of energy
• I'm a freaking rockstar, this is awesome!
• I'm not even crazy hungry

Meals
    ***Lots of water - I mean like over 100 oz***

• Vegan Chocolat Shakeology, 10oz Water, 1 drop mint extract
• 1/2 banana
• Chai tea
• Fiber Sweep with cinnamon added - mixed just enough water for pudding consistency 
• 2 carrots cut up, 1.5 t almond butter
• Vanilla Fresh, 10oz water, 1/2 C frozen grapes, PB2
• 1 cup cucumbers and 2 T hummus
• Chai tea
• Coconut steamed veggies - broccoli, carrots, cale and coconut oil + salt free seasonings
• Vanilla Fresh with cinnamon made into pudding consistency 
• 1/2 C Beef Broth

Workout

• Body pump with a friend - I had 1/2 my carrots before and 1/2 after class followed by my Vanilla Fresh AM meal
• 4 Mile Hike with the Hike it Baby group
• note, I was not going to workout, but had been asked to do these events and I was feeling good, so I did them....I do not recommend this. I think if I had done one, not the other, I would have been better off :)

DAY 3

Thoughts

• I feel pretty great this morning
• I have good energy, but not as much as yesterday
• I totally over did it yesterday
• I'm a little bit hungrier today

Meals
    ***Lots of water - I mean like over 100 oz***

• Exact same as Day 2 only an apple instead of a banana in the morning
• I may have cheated and had part of my daughters PB, Banana Tortilla Wrap Up ;)

Workout

• Walking around the park and from store to store in an outdoor shopping area with the little one

All in all, would I do it again?  Absolutely. If I'm feeling as nauseous as I had been, then I know I need to make a clean and quick break of the extra trigger foods. 

Having the fiber sweep to help clear out my digestive system and help get my intestines healthier along with my loved Shakeology full of superfoods to nourish my body, and the Vanilla Fresh protein to help stabilize me throughout the day, these tools were fantastic at getting me back on track.

I have some friends that do it once a month as a 'tune' up, others that do it seasonally to help cleanse when needed, and some that just need it at the beginning of their journey. 

If you want to know if this is right for you, then think about what I've said.  Check the video I'm posting here that goes in more depth, and let's chat. I want to work with you and help keep you accountable through this and your new healthy lifestyle.

The easiest way to catch me is on Facebook
Next would be email - tamara.lee.bratton@gmail.com
Next after that would be here via the blog at the Contact Me section