Heard stories of women who are back in their pre-pregnancy jeans the day after delivery? It's urban legend. Always someone who knows someone who's cousin managed this impossible magic trick.
Here I am 2 months after birth and my body is still not my own. Well, it is, but I just don't recognise it much. My pre-pregnancy clothes remain tucked up in vacuum-sealed packs under the bed. I survive in leggings and even still wear my maternity trousers. The scale says I am about 15 pounds heavier than at the start of the pregnancy. But the differences in my body are not accurately reflected in body weight alone. My once firm leg muscles are all lazy and floppy. So I imagine that even losing that extra 15 pounds wouldn't make me look and feel that same as before. I am going to have to burn some fat as well as build up some muscle again.
While walking is ok in moderation, proper exercise isn't recommended for 6-8 weeks after delivery. Longer for c-section mums like me, so I might be looking at 12 weeks before I can begin in earnest. I am further set-back by an infection of my wound, and will have to be more cautious than I'm used to in my workouts.
Post-pregnancy workouts have their own specific considerations. Abdominals are still working their way back into alignment so any movements that use them have to be carefully selected. Using the rectus abdominus (the muscles of the old 'six-pack') too soon can result in something called doming. This is when the muscles do not realign, leaving a gap in the middle and a permanent disfigurement. Also, workouts that are too intense or when calories are not replaced can negatively affect breastfeeding.
Then there are the things that only time can fix. Swelling above the c-section incision site can take months to smooth out. And even though it's thought that breastfeeding helps burn off fat accumulated during pregnancy, the hormones active during breastfeeding can also force the body to hold onto 5-10 pounds. Not to mention that the average increase in breast size can account for about 2 pounds of the extra weight packed on in pregnancy.
Good news is, it's still winter. Comfortable, baggy knitwear doesn't look out of place. But even now the daffodils and crocus are bursting up form the soil. Soon my snug-fitting summer wardrobe will be calling me. I'm attempting an approach of amusement and amazement at my body. Along with weaning myself off pregnant-lady portions of dinner and some exercise should see me right in time.
Besides, post-pregnancy body isn't just about weight and body-shape. There's so much more going on. I find it fascinating, a little frightening at times and all very interesting. Hope you do, too.
1. Hair
All the good things that happened to my hair during pregnancy are still here. It's thicker and grew long over the 9 months. It's a great comfort to be happy at least with my hair if nothing else. A wonderful treat for me was to get my hair dyed, finally, after 9 long months of unsightly roots. Before becoming pregnant, I regularly dyed my hair jet black. After 9 months of no dying, I had a good 5 inches of natural hair. I found a colourist who embarked on the process of getting the black out of the ends with me. After some hours of lifting, bleaching and tinting my hair is back to a natural shade, slightly umph-ed up with a few cleverly placed highlights. So my ass is fat. But my hair looks great.
2. Under-eye bags? That's just an excuse for some fun eye makeup!
It hardly bears writing about sleep-deprivation. It is a guaranteed given for the first few months, or if my mother is right, the next 30 years. After a night of mere minutes sleep, I remind myself of the days when sleep was happily sacrificed for fun. Thom and I would go out, dance up a storm and waking up tired the next day just meant that it was a good night. My eyes show the signs, though. Puffy with dark circles. I considered using the fab hair to hide them, but I need to see to avoid tripping over the various baby things that now litter the floors. Next best option - eye treats. Little potions that come as roll-ons or moisturising creams that smell nice or a new mascara all help hide those sleepy peepers. As soon as Ethan goes down for his first nap of the day, I grab myself a few minutes of face-time to treat those tired eyes to something nice. It's what baby naps were invented for!
3. How little other people care
Makes me wonder what I ever worried about. No, I'm not the fit little chickie I was. But who even notices? And of those who notice, who of them care? The answer to both is pretty much none. Friends still have compliments for me, despite my feeling so different and out of place in my own skin. As for Thom, I can truly say that he has seen my body at the absolute worst. Following the c-section, and all the trauma surrounding us during that time he's had a front row seat for the horror show that was my cut-up franken-belly. He was the one who helped me into the first shower after the operation. He fetched the big, old lady panties for me from the store. He has become accustomed to the sight of me attached un-glamorously to the end of an electric breast pump. And he still says he I look nice (maybe more after my eye-treatment routine) and gives my butt a little naughty pat when the opportunity presents itself. Getting back into shape is still the goal, but there's a little lesson to be learned here about the validity of self-obsessed body hang ups that might grab hold of me at this point. They will only make this time of life stressful and make me dismissive of all the positive feedback about my slightly chubby frame. Maybe those that mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.
Here I am 2 months after birth and my body is still not my own. Well, it is, but I just don't recognise it much. My pre-pregnancy clothes remain tucked up in vacuum-sealed packs under the bed. I survive in leggings and even still wear my maternity trousers. The scale says I am about 15 pounds heavier than at the start of the pregnancy. But the differences in my body are not accurately reflected in body weight alone. My once firm leg muscles are all lazy and floppy. So I imagine that even losing that extra 15 pounds wouldn't make me look and feel that same as before. I am going to have to burn some fat as well as build up some muscle again.
 |
| couch potato times are not helping to shift the preggo pounds |
While walking is ok in moderation, proper exercise isn't recommended for 6-8 weeks after delivery. Longer for c-section mums like me, so I might be looking at 12 weeks before I can begin in earnest. I am further set-back by an infection of my wound, and will have to be more cautious than I'm used to in my workouts.
.JPG) |
| out for a walk with the emerging daffodils |
Post-pregnancy workouts have their own specific considerations. Abdominals are still working their way back into alignment so any movements that use them have to be carefully selected. Using the rectus abdominus (the muscles of the old 'six-pack') too soon can result in something called doming. This is when the muscles do not realign, leaving a gap in the middle and a permanent disfigurement. Also, workouts that are too intense or when calories are not replaced can negatively affect breastfeeding.
Then there are the things that only time can fix. Swelling above the c-section incision site can take months to smooth out. And even though it's thought that breastfeeding helps burn off fat accumulated during pregnancy, the hormones active during breastfeeding can also force the body to hold onto 5-10 pounds. Not to mention that the average increase in breast size can account for about 2 pounds of the extra weight packed on in pregnancy.
Good news is, it's still winter. Comfortable, baggy knitwear doesn't look out of place. But even now the daffodils and crocus are bursting up form the soil. Soon my snug-fitting summer wardrobe will be calling me. I'm attempting an approach of amusement and amazement at my body. Along with weaning myself off pregnant-lady portions of dinner and some exercise should see me right in time.
Besides, post-pregnancy body isn't just about weight and body-shape. There's so much more going on. I find it fascinating, a little frightening at times and all very interesting. Hope you do, too.
1. Hair
All the good things that happened to my hair during pregnancy are still here. It's thicker and grew long over the 9 months. It's a great comfort to be happy at least with my hair if nothing else. A wonderful treat for me was to get my hair dyed, finally, after 9 long months of unsightly roots. Before becoming pregnant, I regularly dyed my hair jet black. After 9 months of no dying, I had a good 5 inches of natural hair. I found a colourist who embarked on the process of getting the black out of the ends with me. After some hours of lifting, bleaching and tinting my hair is back to a natural shade, slightly umph-ed up with a few cleverly placed highlights. So my ass is fat. But my hair looks great.
2. Under-eye bags? That's just an excuse for some fun eye makeup!
It hardly bears writing about sleep-deprivation. It is a guaranteed given for the first few months, or if my mother is right, the next 30 years. After a night of mere minutes sleep, I remind myself of the days when sleep was happily sacrificed for fun. Thom and I would go out, dance up a storm and waking up tired the next day just meant that it was a good night. My eyes show the signs, though. Puffy with dark circles. I considered using the fab hair to hide them, but I need to see to avoid tripping over the various baby things that now litter the floors. Next best option - eye treats. Little potions that come as roll-ons or moisturising creams that smell nice or a new mascara all help hide those sleepy peepers. As soon as Ethan goes down for his first nap of the day, I grab myself a few minutes of face-time to treat those tired eyes to something nice. It's what baby naps were invented for!
3. How little other people care
Makes me wonder what I ever worried about. No, I'm not the fit little chickie I was. But who even notices? And of those who notice, who of them care? The answer to both is pretty much none. Friends still have compliments for me, despite my feeling so different and out of place in my own skin. As for Thom, I can truly say that he has seen my body at the absolute worst. Following the c-section, and all the trauma surrounding us during that time he's had a front row seat for the horror show that was my cut-up franken-belly. He was the one who helped me into the first shower after the operation. He fetched the big, old lady panties for me from the store. He has become accustomed to the sight of me attached un-glamorously to the end of an electric breast pump. And he still says he I look nice (maybe more after my eye-treatment routine) and gives my butt a little naughty pat when the opportunity presents itself. Getting back into shape is still the goal, but there's a little lesson to be learned here about the validity of self-obsessed body hang ups that might grab hold of me at this point. They will only make this time of life stressful and make me dismissive of all the positive feedback about my slightly chubby frame. Maybe those that mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.
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Go Jess!! You ARE beautiful - just know that :)
ReplyDeleteAnd those women who are back in their skinny jeans a month after giving birth are celebrities - who have trainers, stylists and cooks up the wazzoo helping them along. It is nearly impossible to bounce back so quickly(so I've heard) unless you have all the money in the world to have someone cook amazing low-cal dinners, to have a stylist wrap you in shrink wrap before going out and trainers at your beckon call to help you get back into shape. Pssh. You do you, girl! You're amazing ;)