Shredhead Results & The Quest for a Butt

If it weren’t for how much better my clothes are fitting, I’d say that it’s hard to believe that the April Shredhead challenge is over. I’m a little late on reporting in but here goes.

First, please note that my data is qualitative not quantitative. Ever since I ditched the Worst Boyfriend Ever who drove me to the brink of an eating disorder, I don’t bother with scales, instead using how my clothes fit as a measure of where I’m at. Here’s my history though:

1. I was one of the lucky ones who dropped my pregnancy weight and then some very quickly after delivery, probably due to the fact that all Laurel wanted to do as a baby was nurse or have me walk endlessly around the neighborhood with her in a sling. From my post-partum checkup, I was probably around the mid-120’s in weight (pre-pregnancy I was about 130).

2. After I finished nursing at 13 months, my weight slowly started to creep up and I couldn’t shake it. My clothing (size 6) was growing very snug. I bought some size 8 pieces, which sometimes fit or were sometimes too loose (I really needed a 7) but 6 just wasn’t totally comfortable. I suspect I was probably closer to or over 140 lbs.

3. I started the Shredheads in March and continued on in April. You can read my accounts in the self-care thread. In March I was shredding almost daily then got knocked over by a wicked cold and was out of commission for a week. In April I found my needs best met with Jillian’s Boost Metabolism and No More Trouble Zones programs. These are longer programs (about 60 minutes) and I did them 4 times a week.

4. In mid-April I also got sick of being wed to sugar; I was eating dessert every day (no wonder I was having problems shaking the weight). I decided to limit myself to dessert once a week or not at all. I was surprised by how easy it was to do that.

Now, on to the photos, though I should first give kudos to the folks who shared their true before pictures. Now that I’m where I am I wish I had had the balls to take pictures at the beginning of March.

In the spirit of Perez Hilton, here’s my best estimate of what I looked like at the beginning of March:

Beginning of April, with illustration to represent beginning of March status

Here’s the un-edited version of the photo, beginning of April. I definitely lost my muffin as a result of the March challenge (woo!!) but I still felt kind of solid around the middle and through the thighs. It was at this point where I moved to Jillian’s longer programs so I could get more cardio to try to trim down.

Beginning of April, after 1 month on the shred

And here’s me at the end of April. Sorry I didn’t manage to wear the same workout top (it was stinky from the previous day’s workout) but the pants are the same. Not a huge difference but I think in the front picture my waist, thighs, and hips actually look trimmer compared to the beginning of April photo.

End of April

What the photos can’t capture is this:

My clothes are feeling way better. My tummy is definitely smaller. I have more energy and feel more lighthearted about things. I eat way less sugar. Most importantly, I am prioritizing myself for a change.

So what’s next?

The Shredhead leaders are going for a 5K and sadly, I can’t join them on that. I’ve tried – many times – but I’m just not built to run. BUT, I am setting a little challenge for myself. I would like to march on with the shred and focus on the thigh and butt area this month — attempting to trim down the thighs some more (I have one particular pair of pants that I want to get back into that I’m using as a benchmark) and do what may be impossible: give a little booty lift to my kinda flat Asian butt.

Honestly, I’m not sure if the latter is possible. Even in my seriously fit days I didn’t have much of a butt, but let’s see how it goes!