Worried that I'm not just fat but pregnant...

[ParsleyCake]

I have a 19 month old son and had no plans for a second (at least not for a good few years - I don't like to say never). Apart from a flabby (but fairly decent looking all things considered) belly, I've lost my pregnancy weight. To get rid of my pooch, I've been doing exercises every morning, following along to a video on YouTube. At first I wasn't very committed, doing it from two to four times a week, but since the beginning of January I've been doing it almost every day.

Thing is, I swear I'm getting fatter. Looking side on in a mirror, I'm carrying the weight low and I swear it looks like my pregnancy bump, but I'm not sure if that's just my belly pooch filling in. But I have been eating really healthy, and that alone has in the past always helped me slim down fast, but with the exercise on top of that I should definitely be seeing the fat drop away. When I put my mind to it, I've always lost weight very quickly in the past but at the moment it seems to be getting worse.

The fat doesn't even just seem like flab, it feels heavy and filled in. Whenever iv started getting chubby in the past, the fat has felt light and squishy, not like a solid mass...

I'm on Implanon (contraception implant) so it's very unlikely I'm pregnant, so is it normal to gain this kind of heavy fat on your belly after a pregnancy? I can't bring myself to buy a test as OH wouldn't take it well and I'm a bit anxious because we are really poor at the moment and another baby would make things very difficult.

I'm half certain that it's just longing for a baby that's making me see things that aren't there. Even though my head says no, I'm so broody sometimes. I just find this faux pregnant belly hard to dismiss. I did have a dizzy spell the other night, but not morning sickness which I had in my last pregnancy.

Sorry for rambling, I feel like I can't speak to anyone in real life about this...

Just to add, I don't have regular periods so that doesn't help. With the contraceptive implant, I actually have went a year to two years between periods before as it makes it even more irregular.

I don't have personal experience of this but have you checked that your abdominal muscles have come back together. If not you may be strengthening them but with a separation, meaning it ends up looking bigger rather than flatter. I think it's called diastasis recti. Might be worth a google and see if you think it could be what's going in with you.

Parsley, my diastisis recti definitely got worse (I got much poochier) when I started doing a lot of core work (pushing a heavy buggy up a lot of hills). My core tummy muscles pulled apart even though it was 12 months after dc3 was born.... it was the first time my tummy had had to do a lot of work. I looked pregnant again.
Doesn't help answer your question, but might be worth looking into.

The only way you will know is to do a test - if you don't want to do one in the house incase your partner finds it you can visit a pharmacy/walk in/GP etc.

With the stomach I always used to lose weight easily and it would come from my larger areas first (stomach/bum/thighs etc) since having my first child my body shape changes, so although I got down to my pre pregnancy weight I was a different body type and I found that weight would come off other areas first. X

Thanks, I did look into Diastisis Recti but I was unconvinced I had it as though I can feel a gap, it's like less than one finger. I guess I can keep an eye on that as I continue exercising

First take a test then get checked out. I was getting a big hard belly a few years ago and it was a huge cyst!

I have never lost my baby tummy. Lost my baby weight but my boobs have remained several cup sizes bigger and my stomach has never gone back to how it was