Other than awkward hospital pictures during labor,
this is the last photo taken of my pregnant belly.
I took this at work on a Thursday... Colin was born the next Monday. When I was big pregnant and waddling everywhere, I loved my body. Yep, it's true. I adored my belly and would constantly touch it. When I got home from work each night, I'd lay back and watch my baby boy kick and roll around in there. It was great.
And then, he was born, and suddenly I hated my body.
Without a baby in there, my belly became loose, saggy and awkward-looking. My stretch marks seemed to be even bigger and more purple. Oh, and my lovely c-section incision didn't help, either.
Now, here I am, nearly six months postpartum, and, well... I'm still not in love with my new shape.
During the 37 weeks I was pregnant, I gained about 23 pounds. Within the first 2 months after his birth, I lost all but 5 pounds of my baby weight. Since then, I've gained all that weight back, and maybe a couple pounds extra. This, I am not proud of. I'll be honest: it's hard to put good meals on the table when you work full time and have a little one at home, and have a marriage to maintain. The relationships in my life are so important to me that I'd rather throw something together in five minutes and have more time with my boys, than to spend forty-five minutes preparing a nice meal and another fifteen minutes cleaning the kitchen up afterwards. As a result of our recent lifestyle, both hubby and I have suffered in the weight department.
Okay, okay. I don't hate my body anymore. The first time I looked in a mirror after having Colin, I did. I'll fully admit it: I thought the big, ugly incision was horrid and my squishy belly looked appalling. I wondered how I managed never to think about that stuff until after he was born. How had no one prepared me for the way I might look and feel after the blessed moment of my child's birth? I figured that either: 1) I was the first person to ever look this bad postpartum, or 2) It was one of those things moms didn't usually talk about, because they didn't want to burst the bubbles of blissfully ignorant first time mommies-to-be. I think I'm going to go with option #2 on this one. It's one of those lovely things you get to find out for yourself once you have your first baby. I'm discovering that there are quite a few of these little bits of wisdom that tend to be kept "hush hush" around a pregnant woman. No one wants to talk about the fact that breastfeeding HURTS and can wreck your nipples, or the fact that labors can last a full day, or that Pitocin is the devil... or that postpartum bodies aren't so cute.
Sorry if I just scared any first time expectant mothers. Trust me, all the craziness is 100% worth it.
Anyway, long story short - hubby and I both decided it's time for a change. We both downloaded the "Lose it" app on our iPhones, and have started tracking our calories and working out regularly. He, at the gym with his brother, and I, on our stationery bike at home and with hand weights. I also get a constant "mommy work out" from carrying around my 20 pound little linebacker, too. Ha!
I'm not ready to share numbers as far as my weight goes, but let's just say I have over 40 pounds to lose before I get to my goal weight. Let's see how this goes!
Oh! On an unrelated note.. my mom and sister are coming to visit us this week, all the way from beautiful Michigan. I am beyond thrilled to see them! They'll be here tomorrow. So.. I'll post about Colin's 6 month stats and check-up, but don't expect to see too much of me this week. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment