One year ago I wrote an article on how I’m losing 50 lbs after two pregnancies without counting calories. Several months ago, when I was nine months postpartum, I shared an update that I had lost 40 lbs and was gaining muscle—still working back to my pre-pregnancy weight, brain health, gut health, and more. This past week I was at my one-year OBGYN appointment, which got me reflecting on what I’ve achieved in this last year, an audit of my habits and what I plan to tweak moving forward.

What Happened at My OBGYN Appointment 

Social media is filled with women who seem to bounce back to their pre-pregnancy fitness within just a few months. And while parts of me wish that were my journey, it just has not been the case for me. I tried to talk myself out of sharing this many times. Would the fact that I’m not at my pre-pregnancy fitness at one year postpartum take away from my credibility as a dietitian? Would it decrease the confidence some people have in my nutrition programs? Both are possible even though our clients achieve incredible whole body health benefits and better body composition. But I would rather share my honest journey if it helps even one of you feel less alone.

At my appointment, I stepped on the scale and was 15 lbs above my pre-pregnancy weight. I don’t weigh myself more than every 1-2 weeks because I don’t want the number to become a mental deterrent. Just three days prior, I had weighed myself at home and was 10 lbs above pre-pregnancy weight and again this morning I was back to being 10 lbs above my pre-pregnancy weight. That fluctuation can feel defeating! Again, an important reason to not overrely on the scale. 

My first thought at the doctor’s appointment was: I felt defeated. I never imagined that it would take more than one year to get back to a healthy weight. But my mindset shifted quickly: look at how far you’ve come. I have more energy, better gut health, improved brain health. I feel so much better in my clothes and can fit into most of my pre-pregnancy jeans. I’ve lost 40 lbs. I feel stronger. And then I thought: imagine how amazing you’ll feel one year from now when you keep going.

You Don’t Have to Get There Overnight

I’ve never been an overnight success at anything. And in today’s Ozempic era—where we’ve grown even more impatient with our bodies—it’s easy to feel like slow progress isn’t enough. But what I’m especially good at is not giving up when it gets hard. Whether it’s my health, my business, or any other area of life, I stay the course. This has strengthened my belief that it’s not about getting there the fastest but in the healthiest, most sustainable way possible.

I don’t want to resort to weighing my food, counting every calorie I put in my mouth, or projecting an unhealthy body image onto my kids (especially my daughter). This isn’t about following the Special K Diet, avoiding all fruit, eating less than 1200 calories per day, doing the celery diet, drinking Slimfast for multiple meals per day, rice cakes for meals, and 100 calorie packs. I don’t want to follow a 4 week program that drastically limits my calories, helps me lose 10 pounds, only to hurt my hormone health and gain it all back a few months later.  

I can say with confidence that I’ve achieved what I have in this past year without feeling deprived, controlling or obsessive and that I’m still aligned with the three themes I talked about last year:

1. Improving Body Composition: Focusing on muscle, fat, and bone health instead of just weight loss alone. 
2. Thinking About Health Holistically: Supporting blood sugar balance, muscle mass, energy, hormones and inflammation. 
3. Not Tying My Worth to the Scale: Weight is just one piece. I rarely weigh myself and never let it dictate my day. 

Nutrition & Health After Becoming a Mom 

Going into this past year, I didn’t realize how hard it would be to prioritize my health while caring for two babies, running a business, and being a wife. In the past, I would wake up early or hit the gym after work. Now, evenings are sacred, it’s dinner and bedtime with my kids. Time is flying and I don’t want to miss these precious days with them.

My husband travels often, so when he’s home, I hit my strength training goals. But solo weeks? It’s harder. We’re also prioritizing no screen time before two, which adds a layer of complexity and makes me uninterested in just sitting them in front of a screen.

That said, I’ve been reflecting on balancing the legitimacy of barriers with the ability to overcome them. It’s valid that there are challenges. It’s valid if you feel busy and you have a lot on your plate. But that doesn’t mean I can’t work through them to reach my goals. A lot of times people will say: I’m too busy to follow a plan or focus on my nutrition and it’s because most nutrition programs focus on just following the plan. Whereas our approach is completely different. It’s all about helping you learn to become flexible, have success when life is crazy, let go of perfection and focus on the best possible choices in a variety of situations to get you incremental but consistent results. 

My Health Audit 

Often I speak to women who say: I’m doing everything right, nothing is working. Instead of allowing yourself to feel discouraged, I would recommend you do an audit to say: what am I doing really well and what needs to be optimized? Despite how perfect you are, if you still can’t lose 10 lbs, your blood sugar or inflammation markers are elevated, and you feel extra depleted then there are very likely still opportunities for improvement. 

I want to share my personal audit based on what I had committed to doing at this time last year, including how I would rate myself. 0=not doing anything and 10=100% consistency at all times. 

Things I’ve Focused On: 

• Letting hunger and fullness cues guide me: 8/10
• Never skipping meals or eating protein bars for meals: 7/10
• Hitting Protein Goals: 9/10
• Eating Nutrient-Dense Whole Foods: 10/10
• Measuring Healthy Fats: 7/10
• Not Eating Directly Out of the Bag: 7/10
• Getting Enough Sleep: 8/10 (still waking up about once a week with James)
• Limiting Alcohol to One Glass Per Week: 10/10
• 10,000 Steps Per Day 9/10 (Averaging 9,000 steps per day for the last 6 months)
• Modeling Very Healthy Habits to My Kids: 10/10
• Enjoying Occasional Treats Like a Chocolate Chip Cookie from The Being Collective when McKinley and I bake together: 10/10

How I’m Modifying Moving Forward 

Moving forward, I’m keeping my strong foundation and circling back to the areas above that I can become more consistent with while also dialing things in for the next three months. Just to note all of these are not geared towards weight loss, as I continue to work on my comprehensive health with better body composition as one of those goals.

1. Getting More Strategic with Exercise
2. Becoming More Dialed in With Portions
3. Focusing on Antioxidants, Polyphenols & Fiber Sources at Every Meal 
4. Working on My Gut More Intentionally with Supplements & Identifying Trigger Foods 
5. Doing Nutrient Deficiency Testing (This will Also Help to Direct My Gut Needs) 
6. Testing Body Composition–Bone health often peaks in mid 30s. I want a clear picture of that paired with my muscle and fat composition.  
7. Running a Full Panel of Conventional Markers
8. Continuing to Embrace Nutrition with Joy and Without Rigidity 
9. Optimizing my Heart Rate Variability Levels (Track this on Oura)

I’m excited to continue to take you on this journey with me as I know many of you are working on your own health goals. If you are in a place of feeling discouraged or like “it’s not working”, I want to reiterate the importance of not giving up on yourself. Especially in this information era where there has never been more information available through books and podcasts. Sometimes the opportunities lie in personal reflection, mindset shifts, more accountability and understanding your body better. Health is not linear. There will be ebbs and flows.