THE TWINS: 4 MONTH UPDATE

 

 Milla and Mara turned four months old on the 14th. 

 I currently don't know exactly how much they weigh since I haven't taken them to the doctors since they were a week old but I'm assuming they weigh about 11 and 13 pounds based on when I get on the scale without holding them and then when I am holding them while standing on the scale.  Milla still weighs more than Mara but they are almost the same length. Both girls are in 3-6 month clothes now. 

Both girls have started to laugh. Not often but every now and then when I'm talking to them and making certain noises during our conversations, they will laugh (Milla especially).  Mara coos a lot and is very dainty and quiet.  She doesn't try to roll yet and pretty much never cries unless she's incredibly tired.  Milla smiles so big and has the cutest dimples in her cheeks when she does.  She doesn't coo often but makes lots of high pitch excited sounds!  She is so wiggly and yesterday rolled from her back to her stomach and onto her back again for the first time! She cries a lot more than Mara and is a little harder to get to fall asleep for naps and bedtime but overall they are both extremely happy and very content babies. 

They are currently going to bed around 7pm every night. Then they wake up around 1am to nurse and are back asleep around 1:30am.  Then they wake up again around 4:30 or 5am and go back to sleep until around 7am.  Sometimes they will stay up if it's after 5 when they wake up in the morning but usually they aren't.  Then they are able to stay awake for about 1-2 hours at a time and then are back asleep for 2-3 hour naps all throughout the day.  

They need to be swaddled in their halo sleep sacks in order to sleep well.  They sleep in their sleep sacks in these co-sleeping nests.  These are basically the same thing as doc-a-tot only they cost about $25 instead of $180 and they are AMAZING.  I love them so much. I bought at doc-a-tot but literally felt sick about the price so I returned it and got these.  They are perfect. The girls sleep in them next to me in our king size bed.  I can easily reach them but love that they have their own little bed. It's the first time I've been able to get really good sleep during the newborn stage which has been incredible. The twins are my best sleepers and I'm getting more sleep with two newborns than when I had just one baby. I've also been forced to sleep train them because there are two of them which has made a difference as well. 

A few weeks after they were born, we really got a good routine going with tandem nursing and getting up in the middle of the night to nurse them instead of nursing one at a time in bed.  I'll have to do a separate post on how I worked on sleep training them. 

Both girls love to be talked to. They love to be held the most but if not being held they love to to lay on my bed and have someone sit next to them and talk to them. 

They also recently discovered each other and have started smiling and cooing when they see each other. 

They love baths and walks. They like to hold onto things like their pacis, their knitted blankets, or their animals.

They have started to hold hands when they tandem nurse which is the sweetest thing. 

It's been so amazing experiencing all of this with two babies and figuring out how to make things work in the best way. I can't believe it's been four months already! 

Love you two sweet girls to the moon and back! 

FITNESS GOALS 4 MONTHS POST PARTUM

 

Yesterday the twins turned four months old.  It's so hard to believe.  Time just goes faster and faster with each child I have and especially with having the twins, I'm so busy taking care of two newborns I seem to have blinked and they are four months old! 

I worked out from the 15th-37th week of my pregnancy with them.  I did Barre Blend with Beachbody the entire time.  I absolutely love that program and am so glad I did it during my pregnancy.  It helped with flexibility, weight gain, back pain, and of course it helped me mentally as well. 

I like to workout for several reasons....

    1. I struggle with anxiety and physical movement is such an amazing way for me to manage that.  When I am consistently working out, especially first thing in the morning, I notice an incredible difference in my stress levels.  This isn't just me saying this either, it's scientifically proven that movement helps manage stress. So if you're feeling overwhelmed or deal with anxiety I encourage you to start a fitness routine and keep at it consistently.  You will see a difference almost immediately. 

2.  It's important to take care of your body.  When I don't workout, my back pain from my scoliosis is so unbearable, and I get heavier. We only get one body and if we don't take care of it, there are many issues that can come on from that. 

3.  I like to be able to play with my children without being exhausted.  When I don't workout it's hard for me to play with my children.  I get exhausted easily and don't enjoy chasing them around the yard etc.  With six children, I need to be in shape. 

4.  I want to be in shape for my husband.  I like that my husband works out and is strong.  He's very physically attractive to me and while I don't except him to have a 6 pack, because that's incredibly hard to maintain...I do appreciate that he is strong and has muscles.  It's ok to workout for your spouse and enjoy each other being strong fit and healthy.  Again, this will look different for each couple.  My husband and I communicate about this and he in no way expects me to be rock hard and have a 6 pack but we both enjoy and appreciate that the other person takes the time to work out and keep our bodies healthy. 

5.  I like to be strong and healthy for myself.  This isn't selfish or vain.  It's ok to like being in shape and being strong.  I like having toned arms and legs and feeling confident in my own skin.  No, I don't need to let it become an unhealthy obsession or be stuck on myself etc...that's not what I'm talking about.  But when I am in shape, it helps my confidence and fills my cup and that in turn makes me happier and allows me to better pour into the people I love.  It gives me the energy I need to take care of myself, my husband, my children, and my home.  

Those are a few reasons I like to workout.

So, like I was saying the girls are four months old now and while I've done some working out since they were born, it hasn't been anything consistent and I'd like to get back into a consistent routine. 

The first few months after birth it takes time for your body to heal and to get your baby on a good routine so I don't feel bad for not consistently working out but now the girls are sleeping pretty well and consistently and I feel it's time to get back at what I know makes me feel my best. 

I enjoy working out first thing in the morning the most.  I like to do fasted cardio and then weights. So here is my plan: 

Do 15 minutes of my favorite cardio program Insanity Max 30.

Do 15 minutes of Barre Blend.

Do one full weighted workout. 

That will take me about an hour to get through.  I LOVE insanity max 30 and I LOVE barre blend and I also LOVE lifting weights.  When I'm only doing cardio, I don't build the muscle tone I like, but when I'm only lifting weights, I don't have the endurance to chase my kids around like I like to. And neither weights nor cardio has helped my flexibility and back pain and glute strength like Barre Blend has. So I'd like to try out this combo of incorporating a little bit of everything I love daily! 

I'm also going to try to end my evening with 10-20 minutes of yoga. 

My plan is to get up at 5am which is when I've been getting up for the past two months now, and have my coffee, do my quiet time routine, and then start my workouts.  If the girls keep sleeping how they are now, I should be able to do all of that (even if they wake up for the day and need to nurse) by 7am.  My other four kids all get up at 7am.  So at 7am I can then take a shower and get ready for the day before starting our breakfast around 7:30am.

Obviously, if the girls have a really bad night of sleeping as newborns do when cutting teeth or getting a cold etc., my schedule might need some tweaking but that's what I'm shooting for.

For nutrition, I have started relearning the principles of Trim Healthy Mama.  If you followed me years and years ago, prior to my Beachbody Coaching days...you know that I used to do THM for several years.  It was my most favorite way of eating.  I never felt hungry, deprived, or anxiety about food.  I developed severe food anxiety during my time as a bb coach when I was using their container food system.  While I love their pre workout and shakes and bars, the food plan was very restrictive for me and caused a lot of issues around food.  I'm still working through some of that but I'm excited to be diving back into THM. 

I plan on doing a full post about THM but for now you can read more about it here on their website.  I have both of their books that explain it, and the first two cookbooks and plan on getting their newest cookbook.  They also have several very amazing FB groups, and an IG page.  The books and cookbooks are VERY worth the investment.  I use them daily. 

Detoxing off of social media and sugar (THM is a no sugar plan unless you decide to add in some of course) and adding workouts back in has been very...difficult interesting.  The last week has been full of realizations and humbling moments. But I'm here for it and ready to push myself out of my comfort zone to really become the person I know I want to be. 

I took my before photos for Day 1 of beginning multiple workouts and Trim Healthy Mama. 

Here are my photos from 37 weeks pregnant right before I went into labor:

(This was taken the night before I went into labor)

Here are my photos in the hospital 24 hours after giving birth:

Here I am at 9 days post partum:

And here I am today at 4 months post partum:

 I was 175 pounds when I went into labor.

I was down to 160 9 days post partum. 

I'm at 129 as of today 4 months post partum.

My goal is to lose about 9 more pounds and build muscle. However, if I don't lose any weight I'm really not worried about it.  Having muscle makes your body look totally different than when you don't so I'm not going to stress about the number on the scale since I'm within my normal weight range. 

And just in case you're feeling like maybe I "bounced back" so fast...

remember I have loose saggy skin and diastasis recti as well:

Don't fall into the trap of comparing yourself to me and feeling less than.  I used to literally look in the mirror every single day and cry or tell my husband he shouldn't tell me I'm beautiful etc. because I was so ashamed of how I looked.  I don't feel that way any more but it took years YEARS  of working on my personal development and self love to get to this point where I can now look at my stretch marks, saggy skin, and ab separation without feeling shame and disgust. 

My body created life six times and that is a miracle. No two bodies react to the miracle of creating life the same so don't compare your journey to mine. I'm simply sharing as an accountability for myself and an encouragement to other mamas to make time for yourself to take care of your body. 

Well that seems like a long enough post for today.  If you made it this far thank you for taking the time to follow along!  I'll keep coming back with updates.  Hoping to do so once a week or every other week on how it's going :) 

xo. 

Lauren