2nd post for May 28th!!!

WOW, two posts in one day - I must be feeling good, or maybe need to unload some stuff that's been rattling around in my head for a bit now to make room for new fresh stuff!

What I've been thinking a lot about lately is how I had SO much free time to do whatever I wanted like work-out, work on my fitness routine, work on my business, etc. before having my baby. Now I have Zak, and it is super-awesome but as most of you know or can imagine having a baby is very time-consuming. Many mothers complain that they don't have enough time to work-out on a regular basis and that they'll never get back into shape. Well, I want to be their inspiration and show that it can be done. I have totally looked towards many fitness competitors like Jennifer Nicole Lee, Mindi O'Brien, Fran Dennis, and others for my own inspiration. They have babies and come back strong onto the fitness scene sometimes looking even better than before their baby/ies! When I first started thinking about the less time to yourself idea I thought, 'I really had it made all those years before I had a baby... I had all day to work-out and eat 5 clean meals a day, etc.' And while I did compete in fitness competitions here and there, and was generally fairly fit, I never really took it to the next level in the time I really should have (when I was younger and had time for all of that stuff). But, then I got thinking I feel way more focused and determined now than I ever did back then. Maybe it's because I have less time and energy, I need to really make my gym time count, I really need to get up that extra hour early to squeeze my early-morning cardio in before Zak wakes up, and of course I want to show everyone it can be done with a baby no less!!! Also, I think it's a matter of we sometimes don't realize how precious something is until it's taken away from us or not available all the time (like work-out time). So now when Zak actually cooperates and sleeps for a few hours and I can bring him down to the gym with me and get an awesome work-out in without interruptions it's like gold! I definitely took it for granted before baby! This should be a lesson to people without kids who can totally focus on their training 100% all the time(oh, and I know all the child-less people are going to say, but I have work and relationships, and social life that always seem to take all my time away from the gym - but just remember, I've got that all too as well as the baby), but I know to really understand some things you need to live them sometimes (unfortunately - it's like one of those 'I wish that I knew what I know now when I was younger' moments! I have a lot of those, like I wish I could go back to high school knowing everything I know now - ha ha ha!

Before I had a baby people who had kids would tell me "oh, you can get so fit and work-out so much because you don't have any kids - just wait...", now I have a kid and some of those people see I'm getting into shape and they're saying "ya, but you only have one - wait till you have more!" Throughout my career as a dance instructor, I've also had similar people say "You can do that because you're so young - just wait till you get old like me!" I'm starting to not be so young so I feel like they'll quiet down on that, but there always seems to be something... these people will always find a reason not to achieve their goals and blame is part of the game. They're always more hard off than anyone else. I have vowed not to ever become like this no matter how many babies I have, or how old I get! Will this never end? I guess not, I just have to forget about haters and hope I can inspire others!

OK, end of rant session! Thanks for listening!