Measuring Progress

Last week I decided to do some body measurements so that I could measure my progress better. I've never done this before, but I'm already glad that I did. I measured in centimeters using a flexible measuring tape:

• Bust: Measure around the breast right at the center line, but don't pull the tape too tight.
• Chest: Measure just under your bust
• Waist: Measure a half-inch above your belly button
• Hips: Place tape measure around the biggest part of your hips
• Buttocks: Measure around the midline of your buttocks
• Thighs: Measure around the biggest part of each thigh
• Calves: Measure around the largest part of each calf
• Upper arm: Measure around the largest part of each arm above the elbow
• Forearm: Measure around the largest part of the arm below the elbow.

I also measured my pulse for a minute to get a resting heart rate and then my total weight, of course.
Because of a rotten cold, I wasn't able to start back to running until this week. Monday was pretty discouraging. I would try to jog at a brisk pace and after about two house lengths I was ready to walk. Wednesday I tried jogging again. I decided postpartum for me is lower than "couch potato", because running for a full-minute is too long, even at slow pace. I opted instead for 30 seconds fast jogging and then a minute walking. It turned out great! I was able to go a couple miles that way and even keep up a reasonable pace on the running segments. It was much more encouraging (although I still have a long ways to go).

Well, after one week, I already have made a small amount of progress in my measurements. Once a week I'm adding data into a speadsheet so I can make a graph. This is what it looks like now.