My metabolism is not the same as it once was. When I was younger I used to be able to stop eating cheese and I would lose ten pounds in one week. In addition if I would stop eating condiments I would lose another five pounds. However, after having three babies my metabolism has now stopped. Currently I have to work out, eat right, and actually pay attention in order to maintain my weight or lose just a pound or two. I don't know if this is from having kids or just getting older but either way things are no longer the same as they were. To be honest not one thing in my life is the same as it used to be. Learning to work with my new metabolism is just another adjustment of motherhood. Luckily my children keep me on my toes so there is always extra exercise in my future.
My 6 year old was diagnosed with an extremely high metabolism as a baby. Most newborns are supposed to eat 2-3 ounces of formula every three hours. My little redhead was getting 4 ounces of breastmilk and an extra 2 ounces of formula every hour starting at three weeks old. The doctors did a whole bunch of tests and found out her metabolic rate was much higher than normal. She was burning up everything that she ate at a much faster pace than most babies. As a result she was always on the lowest side of the percentile charts and actually slipped off the charts when she was nine months old. Our adventurous little lady started walking at eight months. Therefore, with her new active lifestyle added to her high metabolism we never had a chance of her staying on the charts with her peers. We also knew that she was perfect just the way she was.
By the time our middle kid was two were onto the Pediasure path. Trying to get our extremely active toddler to drink Pediasure was a full time job. We finally discovered that banana was the only one she would stomach without a fight. Meanwhile she was eating like a 300lb man on a daily basis. This tiny two year old that wasn't even 15lbs was able to eat a whole box of Kraft Mac and Cheese by herself. Shrimp and steak were her two favorite things and we would feed her as much as our budget would allow. Giving her extra bones to naw on during steak night was entertaining to watch. Our tiny redhead would suck every ounce of meat off those steak bones like a hairy caveman. Butter was another thing that she lived for. She put butter on literally everything. I am not saying a small smear of butter, she caked a giant glob of butter on everything. We all sat astonished that this little lady was still in 18 month clothing at the age of three after eating all that food.
My amazing girl is now 6 and her appetite has not slowed at all. She will have a whole can of soup or a full ham sandwich when she gets home from school as a snack. A whole rack of ribs or an entire steak can be consumed all by herself during a dinner. The doctor is aware of our struggle for her to gain weight and we went to the doctor the other day for flu shots. When my little redhead got on the scale she was 39.5 lbs. We have been working to get her to 40lbs for over a year now. The nurse said "Girl you need to eat more Halloween Candy and we will get you there." It was really just the fact that she was so close to our next milestone. I know the nurse didn't really want her to go home and eat a whole bunch of candy. As long as she is growing, even though it is slow, it is at her own pace and that is all we care about.
My challenge to lose pounds is the same as my 6 year old's challenge to gain pounds. No matter what your metabolism, the grass is not always greener. We are all challenged by things in our lives and how we let those challenges affect us is what matters most. I could get discouraged by the bigger challenge to lose weight. However, I am constantly teaching all my girls to use their perseverance so I need to demonstrate by using mine too. My 6 year old could get discouraged by the bigger challenge of her gaining weight. However, we just keep packing extra sandwiches for school lunch and giving her broccoli cheese soup as a snack when she gets home from school. Metabolism is a messy business but if I keep giving my 6 year old all my extra food I think it will all work out in the end.
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