Mar 1, 2011

Body after Baby


2round
(Taken before a run)


Three weeks post-partum I sat on the floor in a dressing room in tears. All I wanted was to be in non-maternity jeans but nothing fit! I left the store flustered and hating my body. This happened after both pregnancies. I didn't even recognize myself in the mirror. Over the next several weeks I lost the weight but my body still looked different.

With little man's pregnancy I gained 38 lbs. and with Cohen's I gained 32 lbs. I was back down to pre-pregnancy weight with both at about 7-8 weeks  post-partum. Although I was back down to pre-pregnancy weight my body did not look like it did before children. And I definitely needed to be in better shape.

 Before I share how I lost the weight. Please know that it is different for every woman. And no matter where you are in your "getting back in shape post baby" journey, you are beautiful! The goal is not to be "skinny", the goal is to be healthy.

So what's my story? How did I lose the baby weight? There are several components.... healthy and fit before pregnancy, exercising during pregnancy, nursing, eating right, age and genetics.

Exercising-
I didn't exercise very much with little man's pregnancy. But with Cohen I did and I gained less weight during my pregnancy with him. I worked out to a Summer Sanders prenatal video that used a resistance band. I can not say enough great things about this workout video. It has a different workout for each trimester. It was great for keeping the body toned! I would always be sore a few days afterwards. For my post pregnancy workout, I am training for a 5k which has really helped with keeping the weight off and stay in shape. I am also doing P90x ab ripper to tighten my belly.

bodyafterbaby (1 of 1)-2

Eating-
We try to have very little processed food in our home. We eat a lot of vegetables during meals. I rarely buy "snacks" (swiss cake rolls, oreos, etc) or any junk food. If we had junk food in our home, I promise you I would eat it. Instead we have fruit or yogurt. For dinner most of the time we eat chicken with a vegetable. And the times that we don't eat very healthy meal I try to be very conscious of portion control.  (portion control is always a good thing no matter what your eating) Sweets are also scarce in our home. Trust me that gets tough around a "certain time of the month."

One thing I have recently been doing is using an app called My fitness pal.  They have an app for android and Iphone users. And the best part is it's free! If you don't have a smartphone you can use it online. My fitness pal helps you count calories and reach your weight goal. I love it!

bodyafterbabyveggies

Drinking-
Unless we are having company over we don't have sodas in our home. So the only thing to drink is water. Dr. Pepper is my weakness but it's just empty calories. There are occasions that I treat myself to a Sonic Dr. Pepper if it's been a hard day.

Mindless eating-
We don't make a habit of eating while watching TV or on the computer. If your mind is pre-occupied with The Bachelor or any other show you tend to eat more than if you were sitting at the table eating.

We are far from perfect when it comes to eating right. I don't want you to see this and think that we never go through a drive-thru or eat sweets. It's ok to treat yourself every once in a while. It's ok to have your favorite starbucks drink every now and then.  What is important is that the majority of what you eat is healthy and that you are active. With two little ones it's hard not to be. I'd love to hear about your body after baby journey. Ok give it to me straight .... do you ever get the abs back (or at least a flat stomach)? :)

15 comments:

  1. holy cow, girl... you look amazing! I share your Dr. Pepper weakness. GO GIRL!

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  2. You look great! It's amazing how fast I'll drink Dr. Pepper when the husband buys it and how much less water I end up drinking because of it.

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  3. you look great! my youngest is 4, and I still don't have my Pre pregnancy body!

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  4. I've gotten back to my pre-preg weight both times. But it's like someone took my body and shook it up in a big paper bag and it's been redistributed and it's now my mommy body. I don't work out in a strict traditional sense- though my very active children get me running many times a day! My stomach has never been the same...I have a question for you with the eating an such, what kinds of "snacks" do the kids get thru the day? I'm considering ditching most traditional snackie foods and am not sure what would work for easy snacks for the kids. :)

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  5. Good for you. I struggle with my diet quite often and I was recently told by my doctor that "I'm old enough" to not eat fast food anymore. Hmmm...I'm not sure how I feel about that, but fast food isn't my favorite anyway. So why is it that I can't stay away? Anyway, we try to eat right as well and I agree about the empty calories in anything but water. I drink coffee and lattes fairly often but otherwise it is just water!

    You look great!

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  6. You look gorgeous!! My daughter is 1 1/2 and I'm still not quite ... "there". I'm hoping to breastfeed my second {when the time comes ;) } so I can lose all of it then - ha!

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  7. You look wonderful! My youngest is 5 and I'm still trying to get my pre pregnancy body back. I may need to try a bit harder.

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  8. First of all you look uh-MAZING. :-)

    I had my first baby 15 months ago. I reached my pre-pregnancy weight somewhere between 5 and 7 months (I wasn't trying that hard, so it took some time). I wanted to lose just a teeny bit more weight, so I started actually trying, and then adjusted my eating for some other health issues and the weight just fell off my body! I'm perfectly happy with where my weight is at now. I'm not as toned as I would like to be but I'm working on that.

    My body, though, is NOT the same. My stomach is flat but has that little bit of flappy skin left over. That's fine. I can live with that. My boobs are...well, they're post-nursing boobs. I can't say I'm a fan of their new shape, but a good bra has done wonders for my attitude. My husband doesn't mind any of the above at all, but he said one day while I was whining about my boobs that if someday, after we're done having kids, I decided I wanted to "get something done" he would help me make it happen. And if I never "got something done", he'd be fine with that too. He just wants me to be happy. :-) So we'll see. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. Until then, I'll just keep wearing my awesome bras.

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  9. These are great tips!
    I LOVE that double stroller- looks great for brisk walking and running.
    Exercising has been my weakness- I am not very good at keeping up with it but if I don't my body is in horrible shape. I'm only 10-15lbs "overweight" from my ideal "the doctor told me I should weigh this" weight. However not exercising has wreaked havoc on my triglyceride and cholesterol numbers and then I had gestational diabetes when I had Brad.
    I really want to get into exercising this year. Running would a nice goal.
    And I know all about not being able to have sweets in the house. :) It does seem though that after a while of not eating the oreos or swiss rolls at all, you kind of realize how gross they are and the "yum" factor only last for like 10 seconds when you are eating them anyway. It seems that if you distance yourself away from those kinds of foods long enough you crave better food.
    I'm just going to try to eat better the next 5 months or so because now I am pregnant and can't exactly start an exercise routine- even a brisk 2 mile walk my hubby and I took with Brad did me in! After July 24th I really want to get in shape. :)

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  10. I really need ur discipline! i mean i'm not saying i huge, and that i need to lose a few pounds BUT, i am saying i do need to be more active in cardo and tone my body up a little. As far as eating healthier, im not so good at it..

    i really need to be more disciplined like you, u have now inspired me to work out, eat healthier for Me and my family, and enjoy living life.

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  11. Well, I've never been skinny...and my stomach has never been flat...but I did get back to my pre-pregnancy weight and, surprise! My body shape was NOT the same. I'm not sure why that is (or why no one ever told me that would happen!) but it's worth it to have to the children that I've been blessed with!
    Congrats on the 5K! What a great motivator to get back into shape.

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  12. Thanks for sharing! I have a little boy one month behind your Cohen and am in the same boat. Just a few more pounds to go for me and I am slowly working my way back into my jeans. Just have to work on the skinny jeans! I lost a lot through nursing and now I feel like I actually have to "work" at the rest. Better get exercising!

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  13. You look amazing! It took until after my second baby to realize I was going to have to work at losing weight. I left the hospital after the first weighing the same as I did the day before I had him. I nursed both my babies for a year and never lost any weight. What a struggle. It is all portion control. Be proud of yourself, not only for your body, but for the healthy lifestyle you are creating for your family! Congrats and thanks for the inspiration.

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  14. I signed up for MyFitnessPal yesterday! I LOVE IT! After two days I can definitely see that I need some nutrition work!

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