Let the year begin!

This is it.  2013 is the year I finally shed these pounds I've been carrying around for too long.  This is the year I get fit.

A little background, I'm a mom to 3 amazing kids ages 11, 8 & 4.  My husband is a great guy, supportive of any endeavour I take on and also somewhat annoying because he's an early riser who does the treadmill and gym before I even get out of bed.  Don't you just hate people like that? Well, not for long because I'm going to turn into one of them this year!

I haven't always had these extra pounds.  Here's a chonology of my weight and fitness level over the years:

1999 - I weighed a respectable 130lbs on my wedding day (I'm 5'4").  I was a good weight but not very fit, I didn't exercise regularly and only kind of watched what I ate.

2001 - I ballooned out during my pregnancy.  I'm not exaggerating, I got up to a whopping 180lbs before my son was born.  Once he was born some, but not even close to all of the extra weight came off.  I was busy with a newborn, then busy being a working mom and didn't really put much effort into losing the weight.

2003 - This was a great year.  I joined Weight Watchers (great program!) at work.  Between following the program and doing regular cardio and weight training I got myself down to 126lbs.  I even managed to train and complete a triathlon.  A mini one but still quite an accomplishment for someone who hadn't exercised much before starting this program.  I was eating healthy, exercising regularly and felt great.

2004 - Another pregnancy, and while I didn't get quite as high this time I still tipped the scales quite a bit.  My daughter was born at the end of December and to say I somewhat indulged in holiday treats is an understatement.

2006 - I had lost some baby weight, I was down to about 155lbs mainly due to a gluten free diet which limited my food options (my daughter, who was still breastfeeding, was allergic to wheat). 

2008 - Another pregnancy.  Never one to shy away from a challenge I did indeed get back up to 180lbs this time.  Our second daughter was born in April of 2008, we knew our family was now complete and I thought this is now when I can once again get fit.

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 - My weight fluctuated up and down by a few pounds but I never did have any significant weight loss.  Embarassingly, I even managed to get up to my nine month pregnant weight.  Oh I had a bunch of excuses...I'm a busy mom (true), I don't have a lot of time for exercise (somewhat true), I don't have time to eat healthier (not even a little bit true). 

2013 - This is it, I'm determined this will be the last January I resolve to get fit because I will already be fit.  I have no excuses.  I'm now a full time stay at home mom with kids in grades 6, 3 & JK.  The little one is in school on Mondays and Wednesdays along with some Fridays.  That gives me 12-18 hours of kid-free time each week, plenty of time to get into an exercise routine.