I have just seen my 6 weeks post c section neighbour jogging

[NewChoos]

looking very skinny. I am fairly sure I was still tucking into chocolate at this stage and wearing size 16 clothes post DC1. I am going to feel very inadequate when DC2 born in July (I will have to check she's not around when I venture outside).
I mean it's normal to look pregnant still for about 6 months isn't it?!

[badguider]

Having read brices reply (should have read the whole thread first). I TOTALLY agree that there should be NO pressure on new mums to look a certain way post-birth.

I am speaking ENTIRELY from the point of view of somebody who loves to run and bike and for whom cutting back on that during pregnancy has been harder than keeping off the wine.

If you want to run - run.
If you don't want to. don't.

[badguider]

I'm quite capable of looking pregnant AND jogging at the same time :)

For some people, being active is really important to their mental and emotional health, and if you're already fit it gives you energy rather than tiring you out.

I can't wait to get back to 'proper' activity after cutting back through pregnancy. Not sure if i'll be doing it six weeks after a c section but I will be doing it as soon as I feel well enough (and i'm sure 20 minutes away from the baby and a nice rush of endorphins will be welcome too).

[WhenSheWasBadSheWasHopeful]

I don't get how women find the time to exercise at six weeks (or even six months). My dd breastfed pretty much none stop, when I left her with my mum for a 40 min hair cut at 2 months she drank the 150ml of expressed milk I left for her within 20 minutes.
Is it normal to be able to put the baby down for an hour? Praying this one will be easier than dd.

[50shadesofbrown]

I am incandescent with jealousy at some of these replies. DD is almost 1 year & I still have about 30lb to lose. I did manage to walk the half mile into town 6 days post birth, stitches in my fanjo screaming at me despite the Tramadol etc, very wobbly, I probably looked like a fat duck as was waddling so much. Certainly couldn't have jogged at 6 weeks. Probably won't be jogging in 5 years. Back to the biscuits...

[windywoo26]

I figured that time with my baby was time much better spent than jogging! But I am overweight and pregnant again not having lost my baby belly. Ah well, after this one I'll come off my cake and chocolate diet . Perhaps I am too laid back and lazy about how I look. More seriously after this baby I will be joining weightwatchers but will not be out pounding the streets, 2 under 2 should give me the exercise I need.

[beautybox2]

I put on 3 stone when I was pregnant with DD and lost if very quickly as I did with my DS, I vowed I would eat more and not let it drop off... I'm back to 8 stone, I think breastfeeding definately is a factor, I want my pregnancy curves back! I've just accepted this is the way I'm ment to be so I'm just toning up doing exercises and home :)

[ChunkyPickle]

about 3 weeks post section I was up and down 11 flights of stairs twice in one week with fire alarms... and I was the same (obese) weight at the end of my pregnancy as at the beginning - but for some reason the top part of my stomach never really poked back in.

The only thing that still hurt 6 weeks after my section was opening a stiff sliding door on the coca-cola fridge in the local shop

[motherinferior]

I felt really embarrassed and guilty about my post-baby body for about nine months after DD1. Longer.

[AnneEyhtMeyer]

I'd only just been signed off by the district nurse following an infection in my wound at 6 weeks! I was still wincing at the stairs!

[gardenpixie32]

I put on three stone during my twin recent twin pregnancy. I had an EMCS and still don't feel like I could go jogging (I had them 6 months ago). Taking them for a walk in the pushchair is all the exercise I do. I did lose 2.5 stone 20 days after having them. I still have a lot more flab to get rid of though.

[bonzo77]

We all recover differently. And differently after each birth. My recovery after my 2nd CS surprised me. Back on a horse after 5 weeks. No painkillers once discharged from hospital, back to pre-preg weight within a week or so. First time round was a totally different story, despite being far fitter to start with and not having a toddler to look after. Yet it was 2nd time round I got PND

[JollyPurpleGiant]

I am planning to spend the first two months after this baby in the house. With online shopping being delivered. There's no chance of me doing anything strenuous for a good while!

Last time I lost weight pretty steadily. I was eating lots of cake though, so it was sheer luck rather than effort. My fingers are crossed that I will be lucky twice!

[Springforward]

Oh, I looked about 5 months gone for ages, however lack of sleep ensured I didn't give a toss until he started sleeping through at 6 months, which in retrospect may not have been an entirely bad thing.

This time I'm taking clean maternity clothes into hospital with me, will worry about ordinary clothes later....

[Brices]

Irksome subject for me, wish I'd been enjoying my newborn, rather than feeling the pressure of body image.
It's as if we don't have enough to cope with.
If I had enough self esteem I wouldn't care about perfect images of women in magazines I wouldn't compare and judge myself against friends and neighbours. I would simply be enjoying my new baby and have the self confidence that my body would adjust and be healthy for "me".

Sorry for snide comment earlier. We've just done this amazing wonderful thing of giving birth and yet feel this isn't good enough we need Pre-pregnancy body ASAP. This subject really irritates me. We are our own worst enemies sometimes

[2Labradors]

When I went into hospital to have my DD I packed my pre-pregnancy jeans & a pre-pregnancy top to come home in. I was gutted that, 3 days later when I left hospital, I had to put the maternity trousers & top on that I had gone to hospital wearing. My jeans wouldn't go past my shins.

My mum had bought me a lovely size 14 nursing nightie too. I am a size 12/14 usually so thought it would be very comfortable and was gutted when I could only just get it over my head and no further.

I had forceps too and so many stitches, I couldn't sit down properly for 6 weeks following the birth, I would just manage a very short walk around the block for fresh air.

I envy people who can fit straight back into their pre-pregnancy clothes. Now pregnant with #3 and it's very unlikely I'm going to spring back again if I didn't the previous 2 times. I have IBS too, and even though I'm only 7 weeks, this afternoon I looked 5 months pregnant.

So yeah, in my case I will look pregnant for 6 months following the birth

[VivaLeBeaver]

My dd is 12yo and I look more pregnant now and am 2 stone heavier than when I was 9 months pregnant.

[MissSusan]

I still look a bit pregnant sometimes nearly 3 years after having dts, mostly if I have eaten loads but its still there.

[DanniiH]

I didn't have a CS but I walked in to town 5 weeks after giving birth, my bleeding had stopped a few days prior and the half hour steady walk set the bleeding off again and I got crampy pains too! I was gutted because I was so happy with myself for not going in the car! It put me off for weeks so I think I'll wait a bit longer next time to make sure I'm fully healed!

[LivingThings]

I have had two ELCS and was back out running five weeks after each. However i only stopped running three weeks before ELCS so was still quite fit.

[seeker]

I discovered years later that the reason my sil hates me- well, the main reason anyway, was that I was dancing jigs on St Patrick's night 3 weeks after ds was born, and her mother used it as a stick to beat her with when she took a long time to recover from the birth of her own baby a few weeks later......

People's recovery is incredibly different- there's nothing clever or virtuous or anything about recovering quickly. Just luck.

[Bejeena]

Thanks for the info, have not really researched it to be honest and am just going to follow what my doctor says.

[worsestershiresauce]

Bejeena - it's prolapse you need to worry about more than stitches. Someone posted on here a while back about running too soon afterwards and suffering just that. So not worth it.

[forevergreek]

I wouldn't go running, but a slow jog/ fast walk is probably fine by then.

I found a fast walk through the park actually helped me wake up a bit

[DanniiH]

I'm pretty sure this was meant to be a lighthearted post!!!

I would be shocked at such a sight but then I'm not someone who exercises! I never lost my tummy after ds1, he's 3, I'm pregnant again and would love to lose the belly after this one but still can't imagine even having the time to be jogging that soon! Maybe a brisk walk!

Talking about inadequacies is a little uncalled for I think!

x