Postpartum Update

I have had a few requests for a postpartum update, along with questions as to how I lost the baby weight. Let me start off by saying I am NOT (and probably never will be) a fitness/dieting guru. I binge just as quickly as the next the person. If you see me in the gym I will most likely be seen wandering around looking for the nearest vending machine. However, a healthy routine coupled with a few great resources were life savers when it came to my recovery.

Here I am full term, about a week before Brady was born. YIKES! Look at the seam on that poor shirt!

At my first appointment I weighed 119 and at 42 weeks (yes, that's right, 42 weeks) I weighed 145 pounds.  I lost a couple of pounds the week I delivered, staying right where I was supposed to for weight gain, at a total of 26 pounds. The key for me was staying active. Again, I didn't do any hard core exercise. I simply took the dogs for a walk after work. Brian and I would get out and go to concerts, festivals, whatever kept me active.

Here I am in labor. That baby belly, whoa! My doctor suggested I use primrose oil the last few weeks of pregnancy.  You can read all about its uses here. In pregnancy it specifically helps in dilation of the cervix, as well as aids in the recovery of the goods down under. I barely tore and was able to quickly recover without any long lasting effects. If you are pregnant I definitely suggest using the capsules the last few weeks. (Quick tip: even though you can, don't take them orally. I am sure you can figure out what to do.)

As soon as we were transported to recovery I put my belly bandit on.  This is seriously the best money I spent for recovery. Now, do NOT go into recovery thinking you will be back to that size 2 the day after. Awesome product, yes! Magical miracle worker, no. The belly bandit is super effective in 'locking and loading' all of those core muscles that have loosened over the past nine months. It gives the uterus tons of support while it shrinks back to normal size.  I felt like my lower back and abdomen were strengthened even after day one. When I first put it on I could barely get the Velcro to reach.  By the end of one week postpartum I was able to fully wrap it around. (That was a nice little ego boost, for sure!) This is what the BB looked like after ten days postpartum.  All-in-all I wore mine for 6 full weeks during the day only. If you aren't sure about this specific one there are tons of other compression wraps to choose from. Definitely do the research and find one right for you. You won't be sorry!

Breastfeeding was a huge help in my post baby weight loss as well. I pump 3 to 4 times a day. I literally sit on the couch and watch Netflix for 15 minutes and by the end of the day I have burned approximately 500 calories. Ummmmm.... yes, please! 

Lastly, diet and exercise weren't overly intense for me. During my initial recovery I was starving all the time! Breastfeeding requires a ton of stored energy so I had to to supply that fuel by giving my body foods that were going to help me keep up. I kept tons of snacks on hand. Anything from fruits and protein bars to granola, pretzels, and peanut butter are all great power foods and are easy to grab-n-go. At the same time I treated myself to a pastry or ice cream if I wanted it. My doctor told me I could have whatever I wanted, so naturally I took that in the literal sense.

 Exercise was the one area I struggled with the most. I went back down to my pre-pregnancy weight in less than two weeks. But let me tell ya, my stomach did not look the same. It was all types of loosey-goosey and not the fun college kind. I decided that I didn't want a strong cardio workout. My body wasn't high in fat. It just needed some muscle strengthening and toning. After looking around I found the perfect workout called Barre. The objective is to create long lean muscles versus dropping excess weight. My local YMCA offers these classes at a fair price. However, there are tons of at-home workouts posted on youtube. 

I am going on four months postpartum and feel fairly confident in my "new" body. There are days where I don't feel like I look my best, but I think everyone goes through that occasionally. I remind myself that my body has done something incredible and it should commended, not criticized. I am going to keep working hard to stay active. As for eating healthy I won't make any promises. The holidays are quickly approaching after all.   

2 Weeks PP

6 Weeks PP

10 Weeks PP