Post Partum Bodies and Loving Yourself

I know a whole lot of women struggle with their post partum bodies and I'm here simply to share my story.

When I got pregnant, I gained a whole lot of baby weight. 55 pounds to be exact which looks crazy on a five foot frame.  Anyway I thought that I would be really scared of what I'd look like after Ezykiel came out.

Low and behold I do have a ton of stretch marks and due to the lack of sit ups and such my tummy is indeed a bit "soft."  All of which though I'm fine with.  I thought i'd miss my body before and hate my "after" body.  I looked into a whole lot of support from other women and came across projects such as the 4th trimester bodies project and birth without fear.  All of which center around the idea of loving yourself and acknowledging the fact that your body created life. How incredible is that?

I know media portrays celebrities and such in a way that makes them appear to be a size zero two weeks after having their babies but in reality your body takes a bit longer than that to snap back into shape.

First off, your uterus has to shrink back to size.  That tiny little organ stretched to fit a fully formed baby and needs time to go back down to its average size (smaller than your fist.)  Second, it took your body nine to ten months to change in order to have the baby, so give your body at least that long to readjust back to normal.  I still looked pregnant for the first two months after Ezykiel was born.

I honestly to this day, I still don't work out (I know its terrible of me) but I actually live a pretty active lifestyle.  Breastfeeding helps the weight melt off easily.  Matter of fact I have to monitor how much I eat to keep the weight on (who would've thought right?)  Work outs should be introduced slowly and not until after the eight week period after birth.  Diets are a no-no especially for breastfeeding mamas.  Healthy habits on the other hand are great to adopt. Here are some things that I do that just so happen helped lose the baby weight.

1.  Walk anywhere within distance.  I live in Kaneohe so everywhere and anywhere in Kaneohe I walk as long as the weather permits and I do it everyday with Ezykiel.  For those of you not from Hawaii that's anywhere within a six mile area.  Most often we do two walks, one long one during the day and one shorter one with Alex when he gets home.

2.  I meet up for coffee regularly with my aunty and cousin.  Also note here that I only drink decaf.  I had given up coffee during my pregnancy which was terribly difficult for me.  I figured since I had already broken the bad habit, I minus not get back into it.  We walk laps around the mall regularly just to chit chat and so that the babies can people watch and play.

3.  Baby wearing, oh man I used to wear Ezykiel 100% of the time.  Now that he can sit up on his own I use an umbrella stroller because they're small and easy to lug around.  Although I do stroll him, I still wear him 85% of the time.  Oh and he's 20 pounds so he's not terribly light any more.

4.  Water.  I never really cared for soda or juice anyway but I drink a crack ton of water.  Sometimes I do drink Gatorade rain berry or lemon lime.

5.  Diet.  I don't believe in diets first off.  In other words I don't think diets work.  What really needs to be done are some healthy lifestyle changes.  I was never big on breakfast but I do make sure that I eat all of my meals everyday.  I do usually snack in between because breastfeeding pretty much means you're starving all the time.

Typical days food would go like this:
In fact, this is today's food list.

Breakfast:

Cup of black tea with honey and milk

Two packets of Oatmeal

Yogurt

Snack:

Golden Apple

A Power Bar of some sort (I make my own here, if anyones really interested I can post recipes for energy bars)

Lunch:

Huli Huli Chicken Salad with Ginger Sesame Dressing

Bowl of Soup
Water

Snack:

Apple Sauce or Pear Sauce (I also make this in bulk because its Ezykiels favorite)

Tuna Wrap

Water

Dinner:

Steak with broccoli

Salad with strawberry pomegranate dressing and croutons

Water

Snack:

Ice cream (I eat a ton of ice cream, ridiculous amounts)

6. Get some sleep.  Ezykiel has slept through the night since he was three months so I've been fortunate enough to get at least eight hours from the beginning but a lot of that has to do with cosleeping.  To this day we cosleep and he usually sleeps from seven to seven.  Some days I do take naps with him as well.

7.  Love yourself. I don't know what to say about this one other than its self explanatory.

8.  Go outside.  My husband and I have always been quite active and we share a love for the outdoors.  We take Ezykiel literally everywhere.  We don't hike or go to the beach as much as we used to but we still go.  Its not unusual for us to take Ezykiel on a six mile hike and carry him the entire way.  We get out of the house and into nature at least once a week.  Sundays are typically "our" day that the three of us spend together outside somewhere.

38 weeks pregnant/9 months post partum

There is always room for improvement when it comes to yourself, physically, mentally and spiritually.

Physically though I'd like to work on my arms.  I think I have arm fat and I've always wanted to have a "toned" back and arms.  I'd also like to get into yoga.

Oh and as a last note, the one thing I wish someone would've told me is that your body is forever changed. I know it sounds self explanatory but I had thought that when I got back down to my pre-pregnancy weight, I'd fit the same clothes and such.  However my body shape is different. My hips are wider, butt smaller and the same styles don't look quite flattering anymore.