To ask if you managed to get a flat stomach again after having children

[Floridasunset]

I am finally shifting the weight after having children. Youngest will be 3 this year. I have lost 2 and a half stone so far and need to lose 1 more to be a healthy BMI. Whilst I am over the moon with my weight loss I still have what I would describe as a pouch. Did you get rid of yours or am I stuck with it forever? I can't do traditional ab exercises as I have an umbilical hernia and diastisis recti (which is improving with appropriate excercises).

i did - not sure how tho. Just disappeared. Im the laziest person when it comes to working out. Before pregnancy i was quite small.

Pretty much flat, with a bit of sucking in. I did loads of yoga and weights before pregnancy, so the muscles are probably still lurking under there, pulling things in.

No.

But it did improve a fair bit. It took longer than I'd expected though, over a year.

I seem to be incapable of having a flat/toned stomach no matter what I weigh or how much exercise I do. It was the same pre-baby and I don't think having a baby has changed that particularly. Which might mean that I've come out of the whole thing relatively unscathed (despite having a massive bump and a c section) which I guess is positive maybe?

No, I run 20+ miles a week & have good core strength, no ab seperation but my skin is puckered & I have a pooch under my belly button. I did have a section though, I think my belly would be flatter if I'd not had to have one.

My youngest is 5 and I'd say I've just about accepted the changes in my body now. It did an amazing thing etc etc etc.

It’s not as flat as it was pre-baby (said baby is now 4), but it’s ok. I have a little bit of an overhang/ dip where the bottom of my bump was where it’s not quite flat, if you see what I mean. It looks fine in clothes though, I suspect it’s a big deal for me and not really remarkable to anyone else 🤷🏻‍♀️

Oh and I’m relatively fit- regular runner, do weights and core work, etc. And DS is an only child, which probably does make a difference I guess.

Not entirely. I'm fit and in reasonable shape but I never got rid of the loose stretch marked skin even though my muscles are hard underneath so I'll never have a properly flat stomach without surgery.

I should just add, I don't particularly mind it, it's just one of those things and I look perfectly ok with clothes on.

Nope. Ds is 3 in June. I'm at my lowest weight since having him but still can fit a finger in the separation above my belly button and have a definite roundness, especially after eating. I don't excessive beyond walking though.

I'm endeavouring to find a "fun" excessive that will motivate me to build some core strength when restrictions lift.

Yes. I am naturally skinny and with no exercise I just have a very small pouch, barely noticeable. When I exercise (running) it goes away very quickly.

I got my stomach back fairly quickly but my thighs and butt haven't gone back to what they were before. I walk a lot but don't specifically exercise so it doesn't bother me enough to try change it.

Yes, my stomach went back down pretty soon afterwards though, I had horrendous after pains which felt like literal "snapping back". I had my kids quite young too not sure if that makes a difference. But my tummy just isn't a problem area tbh, my love handles however....that's where my weight is first to go and last to come off.

Thanks everyone - its a very good point being a big deal to me but not others. It doesn't look so bad in clothes and when standing up. Sitting down its pretty horrendous!
I didn't have a section but did have a giant baby. I also ate A LOT of chocolate over the last 2 years.

I was back in shape after 5 to 6 weeks.
I worked really hard at it though both times.
I wish I looked that good now though!! I'm in worse shape now than I was pre birth!!!

Yes but I barely put much weight on due to GD and only had 1 DC.
I think it’s luck and long term BF (still BF at 18 months), seems to burn calories!

I had twins over 10 years ago, massive bump, big babies, ab separation.
I was a size 8 bikini body beforehand.
I have looked 4 months pregnant ever since they were born.
I have accepted it tbh, I am quite tall and otherwise slim so I manage to hide it quite well but I have saved all my tiny bikinis and sometimes get them out to gaze wistfully at them

I did. Apart from my section scar my stomach looked exactly the same about a year after the birth each time. I think though that was because of my natural build rather than anything else.

It’s no more though sadly now I’ve hit the menopause:(

I did after my first child but the second one killed my body. I have a smooth stomach but there’s a hang and my boobs are permanently sagging now.

No, and I'm very very slim. My stomach muscles ripped apart when I was pregnant, so there is no support to hold my insides in place.

Nope, I weigh less now than I did before I fell pregnant with my youngest who is 1 and my belly looks worse than ever !!
Crepey and loose skin.
Even when I was down to pre baby weight I still had a tummy sadly, in fact it looked worse the more weight I lost.
Before I had children I was tiny with a completely flat stomach, slowly getting used to the changes in my body (5 years later!)

I have done weights and HIIT workouts and lost several stone in a few years, and while I can plank for three minutes without dying, I still have a stretchmarked slack bit under my belly button. I know there is a strong core under there, and having no backache in two years is worth WAY more to me than having a flat stomach. Oh, and my arms and back and bum look amazing so it is give and take.

I did but it's purely genetic. I'd lost all my baby weight within a week of delivery, again genetics and luck!

I have a flat stomach / defined abs above my underwear but an overhang where my c-section scar is. The skin on my stomach looks fine but it’s very loose / crepey! Like deflated balloon skin. I moisturised daily, sometimes twice a day and have done since I was early 20s. No stretch marks, just skin that wasn’t as tight as it was. I only have one child but I was 34 when I had her. Younger mothers might be more lucky!

Full c-section shelf.

My stomach muscles were destroyed twice. Surgery would be the only way I could possibly get a flat tummy.