Postpartum body - truthful answers!

[Sammie1990]

Hi all
just for context before having my baby I was a semi professional athlete who trained 5 times a week to a very strict regime with a nutritionist also. During pregnancy I put on 4 stone (I know!). I am now 8 months PP and 4lbs heavier than my pre pregnancy weight which considering the training I was doing I’m pretty cool with (im obviously aware I’ve lost some muscle). I am back in the gym and have been since 3 weeks PP. I train hard but obviously not like I did before. My diet is okay, could be better but not terrible.

so my question is is it possible to get your stomach to be how it was before kids? I’ve always had short big legs (which I hate but needed for my sport!) with a really flat toned stomach. This meant if I was going out I’d wear wide leg trousers/jeans with a crop top and feel like I looked quite good. However my stomach doesn’t stick out now but it’s not toned looking and a bit wobbly. If I up my cardio and sort out my nutrition can I make improvements to it or is this just what PP stomachs look like? I see a lot of women online who seem to have done it but that’s the internet after all!

interested to hear people experiences

thanks

Ha! I’m breastfeeding but unfortunately it hasnt had the same effect and my poor boobs are swinging in the wind 😂 although I have shifted the weight pretty quick so maybe it is helping 🤷🏻‍♀️

Oh gosh that sounds really tough! I don’t think I have DR as I’ve done that test to measure the gap and there is only a small one. Hope you get sorted x

Feminism is saying a woman is allowed to look however she wants…you shouldn’t be shamed if you want to try and get your body to look a certain way 🤷🏻‍♀️

I lost a stone instantly as I had high fluid but yes nearly 3 stone off although again I’m sure some of that was all the fluid!

I was at my best about 6or 7 years after dc2, so late 30s. Stomach was flat and legs were amazing. Boobs were shit though.

And by flat stomach, are we talking above or below belly button? Above was always flat. Below was always round until dd2.

I've never been on a diet. Never done mad exercise.

I’m breastfeeding and my boobs have gone from a 32DD (which was too big for me to comfortable anyway) to a 32H! So I feel your pain on that one 😂

I breastfed for 26 months but only went up 1-2 cup sizes once they settled in to it (30E/32DD- 32E/F). But now I’m 34E or F and that’s just silly.

I’m carrying an injury that means no exercise and in need of some HRT (only 2 periods this year) and all I am doing is eating. It would have been preferable to get this much fatter pregnant.

Good luck @Sammie1990. I’m sure you can get to a point you are more happy with things, it’s still such early days. My DD is 5 and I’d say my body was still adjusting in the first 2 years.

Had the same problem. Check your pelvic tilt.

Mine was an anterior pelvic tilt disengaging the core/ corset muscles. These are like a big sleeve all the way from from your pelvic floor to your diaphragm.

It’s actually an incredibly quick fix. Reformer Pilates 1-1 physio (so classical trained Pilates not Instagram Pilates) and breathing excercises / mindfulness of reconnecting mentally with engaging this body part fixes it in about 6 weeks.

It’s actually like magic. But there’s no way you can do it without someone training you too. That’s because you likely can’t see or feel this engagement so you need to guided and corrected until it’s normal.

Feminism is saying a woman is allowed to look however she wants…you shouldn’t be shamed if you want to try and get your body to look a certain way 🤷🏻‍♀️ anyone can want to look any way they want, nobody needs to ask permission but you asked if you could regain your pre pregnancy physique. I wasn’t trying to shame you but I was saying I don’t think it is possible. I certainly have never seen anyone do that.

And to pp I do look like pre birth. So do the French women who have this pelvic tilt rehab as standard post partum. We have incredibly low expectations in this country.

‘Accept your new normal’ can fuck right off 🤣

Friend sounds similar to you, bigger legs & a great flat tummy (although not someone who trains). I think her tummy looks the same, she is convinced it doesn’t but I guess people are harder on themselves?

Yes after 6 children, still very toned. Lots of work tho. More now after 28 years but still doable.

Definitely possible, my body returned to pre pregnancy state after both my babies were born. Also to add, I didn't manage to lose the final bit of weight until I finished breastfeeding. Keep the weight training up. You've done an amazing job!

But yes, fine just after babies, not too much work, now yes a lot of work

Hi, I was size 8 before having my 2 children and have been size 8 ever since. Flat stomach, abs, bikini wearing honestly as if nothing happened. My babies were small however.

I bounced back,never had a toned stomach, two pregnancies in my 20s, prob easier when younger.
i’m sure some have figures and others don’t

I had two sections and have the delightful shelf. Think I have the diactis recris thing too, top of abs stick out

I am fairly slim but even if I was skinny you'd still see the shelf shape

I know if I'd do more exercise/crunches I'd have a better belly but I don't really care

I'm around a size ten

Not a professional athlete but: 2 babies via c sec within 2 years, put on 20kg with each baby (suspect lots of that was water retention though) and always back to pre preg weight within 9 months without huge effort. My stomach is almost the same as it was, although the skin isn’t quite as taut. I think it’s mainly genetics / muscle memory. You should be fine as a former athlete but make sure you see a pelvic health specialist to check for diastasis as that can make sure tummy look looser. X

I packed it on when preg - didn’t eat any differently than when not pregnant (in fact I probably ate better as was obsessed with eating wholesome things for the babies) so assume my body wanted to hold on to some extra fat to support the pregnancy. I did have terrible morning sickness the whole way through with baby number 2 but somehow still managed to gain weight 😂

My body certainly didn't feel "right" or "normal" until at least 18 months after birth. It took some time to let things settle after pregnancy and birth. So maybe you are not fully healed yet OP?

And some bodies put on much more pregnancy weight than others (and this is provably genetic/luck). I don't think it's controllable - more damage limitation is the best you can aim for!

My rib cage increased by about 2-3inches and it's never gone back down. I also have the wibbly, wobbly tummy skin (which I quite like) but that is not shifting without surgery. My abs are in fine condition now though (but it's a shame no one will ever see them due to the light layer of chub over them).

My friend had a tummy tuck which she is delighted with.

Hi
that’s interesting thank you, I’ve just had a look online and it does sound that perhaps it could be the case. Did you go to a physio that specialises in post partum?

Hi
yea I guess this is what I’m kind of asking…at 8 months will my body have settled from pregnancy, birth, hormones etc enough to be able to tell what it’s going to look like or will it take more time? My friend also had a tummy tuck and it looks great but honestly I don’t care enough to have surgery I just would like to be able to look the best I possible can through diet and exercise I’m just not sure if I’m being unrealistic with my expectations!

Hi all

thanks for all the replies wasn’t expecting so many! I have found a physio near me who specialises in postpartum… she does however charge £100 an hour which I think is a bit steep! However I’ll definitely go and see what she thinks as the NHS specifically say they don’t refer for diastic recti and pelvic tilt (which I think is awful..so basically if you can’t afford private you just have to live with it!)

I think also I’m comparing my body to when I was literally weighing and measuring everything I ate and training 5-6 times a week sometimes twice a day. Obviously baby or not if you stop that you’re going to have a different body! X

with my first it took 1-2 years for my skin to loose that weird elasticity. My (completely unscientific) view was that it takes that long to loose the effects of the hormone that loosens up your muscles (relaxin i think) to dissipate. I also found stopping breastfeeding helped my body and stomach in particular go back to normal. After 2-3 years my stomach was as it was before. Second time around is a different story but im over 40 now and havent lost the last 7-10 lbs yet even though dd is nearly 4.

Have you had post natal physio and made sure everything in the pelvic floor and core is working optimally again? It could be you need tweeking (yes, that will probably involve some internal work).
At 8 months there's still scope for you skin to tighten up, especially if you have youth on your side.

thanks for the reply, yea I think BF might be making me cling to weight in places I never had it before I normally hold it all on my legs but I had it on my back and arms for the first time. Hopefully when I stop things will get better and I can also diet a bit more as at the moment obviously I don’t want to risk my milk supply x