I worked out today!

I visited my friends at the school I used to work at yesterday.  Max and I had lunch with everyone, laughed, played "Pass the Baby," and I spent a large chunk of change on books at the Scholastic Book Fair.  I also may or may not have dropped 12 big ones on a little Pete the Cat stuffed animal for Max.  

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I love the Pete the Cat books.  Therefore Max will love them too.

While we were visiting, I got a lot of comments on how "great" I looked.  I'm not trying to toot my own horn or anything.  Yes, I've lost the baby weight (and then some), but no one is more shocked than I am that I was able to lose it so quickly.  "What have you been doing?  What's your secret?!"  The honest truth is NOTHING.  In fact, I'm pretty sure I do a heck of a lot more sitting on my hiney now than I ever did while I was teaching, so I can't claim that walking around all day has helped in the least.  Max and I do get out as much as possible--errands are my cardio.  I've been exclusively breastfeeding since Max was born, so I know that has helped tremendously.  That and lugging around a 23-pound almost-6-month-old.  Seriously, my kid is a tank.  He weighed 16 pounds at 2 months, more than double his birth weight.  Victor and I joke that if our future children grow at normal rates, we're probably going to be concerned that they're too small!

That's a 12-month outfit

I gained 45 pounds during my pregnancy.  I was blessed with virtually no morning sickness, and I craved Chipotle ALL. THE. TIME.  I was wearing maternity pants at 11 weeks because my regular jeans were too uncomfortable.  They still fit and buttoned fine, but I was miserable wearing them.  I was also exhausted during my first trimester, so I didn't really begin a good exercise regimen early, and therefore didn't keep it up throughout the pregnancy.  That will be different the next time around...hopefully.

Before today, I worked out twice since Max was born.  It felt great both times, but I'm always finding excuses to avoid it, the biggest one being that the weight is coming off on its own...why do I need to work out?   

I'll tell you why.  My rear is turning to mush.  My tummy, while flattening, is squishy.  My thighs and arms could use some toning.  AND we're going somewhere tropical in the next few months and I'd rather not wear my "mom" bathing suits.

So, this morning during Max's nap, I did a 30 minute barre3 video.  And I fell in love with it all over again.

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Barre3 was founded by the lovely Sadie Lincoln in Portland, Oregon.  It's a combination of ballet barre, yoga, and pilates, and I'm obsessed with it.  A friend introduced me to it back in early 2013, and I went to studio classes on the weekends and did online videos at home during the week to get "wedding ready" for my big day in June.  I was working out 7 days a week, which was atypical for me.  But I loved it.  And today proved that I missed it, too.  My legs were "shaking and quaking" as I struggled through power leg, sumo squats, and standing diamonds.  My thighs burned when I brought Max downstairs after his nap.  But it hurts so good.

My friend and I joke that we are going to open our own studio nearby (the closest one is in the heart of DC, which isn't super convenient for a mommy with a baby) as soon as we win the lottery.  Then barre3 would be my JOB!  A girl can dream, right?

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If you'd like to see for yourself how amazing barre3 is, try this 30-minute Standing Slim workout.  You won't be sorry.  Here's a preview.

I didn't enjoy working out during Max's nap (constantly checking the monitor, fearful that he was going to wake up and interrupt my efforts), so I'm planning to get my mushy hiney out of bed at 6 am on weekdays to get my workout in.  I know I'm going to feel great and after a while, I won't struggle to get out of bed to do it.

The opinions in this post are 100% my own and I am not being paid to endorse barre3.  It's just that good.

Will you/have you tried barre3 or another type of barre workout?  Did you enjoy it?  What are your tips and tricks for ensuring that you get your workouts in each day?