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Sunday 18 October 2015

Love your post baby body.

A friend of mine recently went on holiday with her fiancé and little boy. While eating out at a restaurant with her 4 month old son on her lap, the waitress looked across at her and remarked - "and another on the way?!"
Now not only does she not look remotely pregnant, but even if she did it has been a mere 4 months since she had her gorgeous little boy and it got me thinking - it takes 9 months to grow a baby, why does the world expect us to be back in our pre-pregnancy skinny jeans within a few short months? 

It is hard enough to have the motivation and willpower to stick to a diet and exercise programme when you don't have a baby. Throw in sleepless nights, a feeding schedule and trying to make your house resemble something a little less like a pigsty and it's not surprising that most mums aren't desperate to start a diet of salad leaves and pack gym sessions into their evenings. 

Now don't get me wrong, they're are some mums out there who shrink straight back down, or who do work hard at the gym to get their pre-pregnancy bodies back. And that is fine. But for those who want to spend their evenings when the baby has settled, on the sofa with their other half eating chocolate and drinking wine, having a bubble bath or simply crawling into bed in a desperate attempt to get more than 2 hours sleep, we should not be chastised or judged. 

I personally have done both in my 6 months since having Luke. 
Having always been a slight control freak with my figure, I was desperate to get my pre-baby body back. A few weeks after leaving hospital, I was back on my exercise bike and I have to say at the time I genuinely enjoyed it. It was a good stress reliever for me. However this last month (despite needing to be bikini ready for my holiday this week!) I have done no exercise and treated myself to more than my fair share of chocolate (Galaxy salted caramel anyone?! If you haven't tried it, go to the shop NOW!)

When you're a mum, and when you're not for that matter, sometimes you need to put your happiness and well being before your desire to get a supposedly perfect body. You have years to get your fitness back, don't break your yourself trying to do it while you're still having little more than 2 hours sleep at a time. 

In the end, your child isn't going to remember the fact that their mum looked awesome in her size 8 skinnies or had washboard abs 9 weeks post partum. They will remember that you cuddled them when they needed it, did anything you could think of to make them giggle and put them first no matter what. 
The phrase is happy mummy equals happy baby. Do what makes YOU happy, not what society dictates you should do. 
I'm heading off on holiday this week and have bought a new bikini to soak up the sunshine in. My body is not nearly as toned as before - my tummy isn't as flat, my boobs aren't as perky, my bum isn't as peachy and I still have my pregnancy line going up my stomach. But I had a baby 6 months ago. So that considered, I am actually pretty damn proud of how my body looks right now. Sunshine and cocktails here I come! 


18 comments:

  1. I was lucky in that I lost all my baby weight (plus an extra 12lbs), very quickly, however I wasn't so lucky in that I was left with excess skin, tons of stretch marks and a proper mum tum, I've avoided taking my little girl swimming because of it but I've mustered up the courage to take her in the winter lots as long as I find a flattering swimsuit haha x

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  2. Fantastic post. My baby is also 4 months old and a child asked me if I had another baby in my belly last week. I just laughed. Like you say - it takes 9 months to grow a baby, it must take at least that long for your body to repair and recover, right?

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  3. I hate the fact that the world expects a woman to be back to her pre pregnancy self days after having a baby. It annoys me sooo much. I remember I was asked if I was pregnant again when my son was 4 months old (same as your friend). People can be soo rude!

    Gemma xx

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  4. Just seen the comment above mine, what is it with being asked at 4 months old if we are preg again?! It seems to be the time when people must think that we must be skinny minnies again grrrr xx

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  5. Clearly the people expecting us to be perfect by 4 months haven't had babies! Xxx

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  6. Great post! I lost all my baby weight pretty much as soon as I gave birth both times but I was all baby. However i do find it ridiculous that people expect all women to go back to how they were straight away. Every body is different! xx

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  7. I lost the bulk of my baby weight really quickly but have kept an irritating 7lbs on. But my baby is only 6 months. A teeny tot still. And I'm only just ready to go out running and not panicking in case he needs feeding in the 20 minutes I'm gone!

    And I love chocolate. Salted caramel sounds right up my street!

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  8. I had my little boy just over 2 years ago and I'm not scared to admit that I'm still a stone (or two) heaver than before I got pregnant. But who cares? I don't have time to make myself different meals for dinner which are healthy. Oh and everyone loves chocolate right?

    Commenting to you from #Love2Blog :)

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  9. Exactly! I was all bump so didn't have much weight to loose, but my body is definitely not the same as it used to be pre baby. Exactly Laura - more important things to worry about that runs! Xxx

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  10. Great post, I lost most of my weight very quickly, then piled it back on eating biscuits whilst breastfeeding! I've now started to run and am trying to tone up again though as I would like to be back to my pre-baby weight x

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  11. I'm hoping to one day be as toned as I was before. But I think for the moment at the stage I'm at, lazy sofa evenings with my hubby take a priority! Xxx

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  12. And well done with the runs Stephanie! Xxx

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  13. I wasn't skinny before I got pregnant, and I managed to not put on a lot of weight during my pregnancy so I lost most of it pretty quickly afterwards. I would love to lose a bit more but at the moment I am way too in love with salted caramel galaxy! x

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  14. Here here! I hate the pressure the media puts on pregnant celebrities to snap back into shape too. It's rediculous and so sexist. Great post

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  15. Thanks for this post! When my baby girl was 4 months old, I still had plenty of baby weight on me. I did work hard to get rid of it, but I did it to be a happier and healthy mommy. Feeling fit makes me happy, that's why I exercise, but I never judge the women who choose not to stress about that. You do you! And congrats on rocking that bikini!

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  16. Good for you that's how you should be. I have had three children in the space of 4 years although I am lucky and remain quite slim my body is not how it once was - I do enjoy working out but I also love pizza meh I'll do both haha! xx

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  17. Having a child is a superb ordeal; a post pregnancy body-not really. How we feel about our bodies in the wake of having an infant can influence our lives in such a variety of ways. Getting over into shape can change more than simply our bodies.

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