Keri Wernecke: How I Lost 27 Pounds After My 3rd Pregnancy

Keri Wernecke

Keri Wernecke, 35, Gainesville Florida

Profession: I am a stay at home mom to three amazing boys.
How much weight have you lost? I have lost 27 pounds so far.
How did you lose it? I lost the weight by watching what I eat, writing down everything I ate using MyFitnessPal, and running using the C25K (Couch to 5K) program.
Why did you lose weight? I had 27 pounds to lose to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I want to be healthy and active and teach my kids to be healthy and active too. It’s important to me that I am able to keep up with my very active children. With the extra weight, I just wasn’t able to. I still have about 20 pounds to go until I reach my goal, but I am feeling so much better and more active already!
How long did it take? I have been trying to lose those last 27 pregnancy pounds since February 2013. I started to really take it seriously in May 2013 when I started walking. From May to August 2013 I lost the weight.
What was the hardest part? The hardest part about losing the weight for me was finding the time to exercise. Once I decided to take it seriously though, I started getting up at 6:00 am to run before my kids woke up and my husband was still home before the work day started. It also gave me the motivation I needed to keep eating healthy, since I didn’t want to ruin the exercise I did that morning.
Most fun part of your weight loss? Discovering again just how much I love to run. In college, running was my main form of exercise and I loved it. Now I hate the days I don’t run. I love the feeling of accomplishment I get and how great it makes me feel, and training with my friend Melissa makes it even more fun.
Most rewarding experience? Finally losing those last two pregnancy pounds! They were very stubborn and took a couple of weeks to finally come off, but when they did I was so proud of myself. It was something I had started to believe wasn’t going to happen. My goal was to lose the weight in nine months since it took that long to put it on and I reached that goal.
Who/what inspires you when you feel like quitting? My kids inspire me when I feel like quitting. I want them to see their mommy work towards something that isn’t easy and accomplish it.
How has this weight loss changed you life? I am so much more active now. I am on the floor playing with my kids, I look forward to walks with them and can’t wait for it to cool off a little so we can start going on family hikes together! That’s something I haven’t had the energy for in a long time.
Have any advice for others who’d like to lose weight? Don’t give up, even when you get discouraged. One of the most important things is to track your food intake, if you aren’t doing that, its impossible to know how much you are actually eating.
Your must-have fitness equipment. A really good pair of running shoes.
Favorite training song: Don’t have a favorite, but I love anything fast with a good beat. My playlist has everything from the Beatles to Garth Brooks.
Favorite healthy food: A well-cooked fish.
Favorite not-so-healthy food: Candy.
Future goals: I have 20 pounds to go to reach my ultimate goal. I am hoping to do that before the end of the year. I am also training to run in my first ever 5K with my good friend Melissa in February.