Do you feel pressured to lose weight as soon as you've given birth?

[memoo]

I am due in september and it seems I can't open a magazine at the moment without reading about the latest celeb who is back to a size zero within a day of giving birth!!

I didn't to be honest and I put a lot of weight on.
I was more concerned with my new baby and learning to cope with motherhood/having 2 DC.
After a few months I started trying to lose the weight, but before that I couldn't give a flying fig which celeb had dieted/had tummy tuck post C/S, not bothered in the least.

My DD is 6 months and only just started to try and loose weight, I didn't like being big but sing weight wasn't really my priority with a squishy little girl to cuddle.

I did feel like 6 months was my cutoff point and i needed to do something once I got there.

I have already put a couple of stone on, not good I know but I had such bad Morning sickness and the only thing that helped was eating.

All I can imagine focusing on at first is how to get enough sleep and cuddling my new baby

Hi

I go to a family wedding in October so I want to be half decent but I am not going to bust a gut so to speak I will have a baby to look after and that is going to be first and foremost for me. Maybe these celebs have more time/money and help than we mere mortals!

I did feel a bit pushed but what I did was start after 6 weeks.

I just did 10 mins a day and if I was too tired I didn't bother, and slowly upped my exercise time.

But I didn't look at the scales until my baby was 12 weeks by which time the my weight was back to normal.

I found the little bit of me time a day quite enjoyable and extra bonus got my figure back without any stress.

I didn't feel any pressure with DS but I did lose weight quickly (and hadn't put much on anyway)

With this baby, I'm now touching 12 stone and WANT to lose weight and get back into shape quickly.

I'm not sure I feel external pressure, but I DO want to lose weight / tone up

ooh heartmoon, I have a family wedding in October too, hats my deadline

Nope, no pressure.
I probably don't read those types of magazines, mind.
Which is a pretty easy choice to make considering how vacuous they are .
I only put on 2-3 stone each time, so not much left after baby was out. That must help.

Mil's theory is it takes 9 months to go on and probably 9 months to come off - she is very laid back lol.

My next door neighbour's DH hid her scales! She is very slim and lithe (and is again now 6mths post birth) and did carry extra weight for a wee while but she walked miles with the buggy and lost it steadily. I was surprised because she has an Elle Mcpherson body shape and I had thought she'd be one of those women who was back in her size 8 jeans within the week.

Memoo, I'm with you. I think those magazines give some men an unrealistic idea of women losing baby weight, even if they are aware of the fact that celebrities have personal trainers, chefs and of course surgery. I live in France and I feel pressure here to stay in shape (and I'm only 7 weeks!) Putting on excess weight in pregnancy is considered a bit lazy and self-indulgent, but like others I'm combatting constant nausea by eating little and often, but eating a lot of plain white carbs which can't be good for my rapidly expanding waist-line!

My DH's SIL, who is stick thin and normally quite careful about her weight has been very relaxed about the extra tummy she is carrying around in the two months since she gave birth. The other day BIL (who is French, DH's brother) made a jokey comment about her not losing that tummy if she ate that second slice of cake I'd just offered her. So yes I am aware of the pressure!

In saying that I'm not going to let pressure get to me and I never have really. The only time I ever react to pressure is when it comes from me, and really that's the only time I achieve anything - if it's self-motivated.

I felt the pressure after ds1 but that was because we'd got wedding booked for a year later.

After ds2 didn't really get properly motivated until he was 6 months.

This pregnancy i haven't put on nearly as much weight and am hoping to get back to normal fairly quickly.

I don't enjoy feeling big and as i'm only 5ft i don't carry extra weight well. But i'll be breastfeeding and for me i find it quite hard to diet when doing that.

Have lost the weight though both times - its just like dieting at any time takes will power and you need to be in the right place mentally to do it.

yes but mostly by myself... i had my flabby belly and thunder thighs and really want to get back to feeling like me again.... can't honsetly say that pressure comes from any outside source though.

Yes. I am quite obsessed with the speed at which I can regain my pre pregnancy figure. It isn't clever and I know this.

I have had ketones in my urine several times this pregnancy due to my attempts in not over eating. I have not gained more than a few pounds of 'me' weight I don't think but am still anxious about post birth body.

I'm very anxious. My husband is majorly into the gym and is very fit and toned. He doesn't stop asking me to go to the gym with him which is stupid as the MW said to not take up exercise unless I used to do it before. He's made me promise to join up when baby comes. I agreed just to shut him up but I'm not going to till I'm ready. But I do feel uncomfortable in my skin carrying this extra weight - the weight is showing in my face and I feel bloated and yuck. I'm an avid reader of Heat magazine so that probably doesn't help with body issues.

I have managed to get up to 13 stone, I was already a bit over weight before I got pregnant. Mumsie, sorry your DH is making you feel uncomfortable about it, thats the last thing you need.

I too have put weight on around my face and also my ankles and feet are permenantly swollen. DP is always really nice about it but I feel like a big heffer and worry about him fancying me.

I read an interview in OK a few weeks ago with a pregnant celeb (her name escapes me) she was 8 months pregnant and was saying that she'd put loads of weight on and was up to a huge 9 1/2 stone!!!!!!

Hello Girls (I'm a bit of a Newbie here!) ..

My first baby is due at the beginning of October and I am getting increasingly concerned about my post bump blobby bits! Not being helped by the celebs plastered about mags everywhere having twanged back to a size 2 before they got off the delivery table.. sighs

I know they have help but..

Also have a couple of "friends" who have suggested I may be getting a bit over-porky and could do with a bit more exercise and less eating.. I have actually only gained 10lbs.. not through trying to stay slim.. I just prefer salad to chips generally!

Well, I don't feel pressure as such, but I can't wait to have my own body back (although my sister loves to tell me, with undisguised glee, it'll never be the same... hmm)

I don't expect it to be 'the same', but I'll probably try to lose a bit of weight at some point after birth. I bough a mini-trampoline ages ago for that purpose.

Stannie, 10lbs is actually a nice healthy amount to have put on, please don't listen to your friends! There was a women at work who insisted on calling me 'fatty' from the moment she found out i was pregnant.

I am definately looking forward to having my own body back too, I'm desperate to be able to sleep on my tummy again and to be able towalk without a waddle

Never weighed myself to find out how much I'd put on in pregnancy or after for about 6 months - the massive saggy creature attached to my front after the birth was depressing enough. But it did go eventually - had almost lost all the weight only 4 years after the last child only to then get pregnant straight away again. At least this time wierd side effect has been to go off chocolate so might not put on so much. Never been helped by my mum's reminder that she was so sick she lost a stone with both pregnancies after we were born

only from myself. I lost gained weight by about 9 months after DS was born and found out I was pregnant again! Haven't been too obsessed with extra gain this time round, but do worry about chugging around feeling flabby and inactive after the birth....
For me the weight really stayed quite stubbornly until after BFeeding was over. Several friends found the same.

My attitude after having a baby is that I am breastfeeding, I am very tired because I am not sleeping enough, I do not have the willpower to resist lovely food, if I do I will be very very grumpy and I won't enjoy my lovely new baby as much (or be able to feed him/her so well). So I did put on weight after both my DC's...not huge amounts, maybe a stone with DS and then less than 1/2 stone with DD (probably thanks to additional physical demands of DS)! I lost all of it and more after DS and was on my way with DD, except got pg again (oops).

Seriously, the first 6-12 months of your baby's life is so precious and flies by so quickly, enjoy it, prioritise your DC and don't worry about your tummy, you can sort that out later, you have years to tend to it. Be reasonable, eat healthily and try and exercise if you can but enjoy a bit of cake and chocolate, forget about your weight. You do not have paparazzi in your face every time you go out, nor do you (presumably) have a personal trainer, babysitter, housekeeper and chef on call to attend to your every whim. Getting back into shape is made easier for celebs by all of these things and I still think they miss out on enjoyment of their babies by putting so much priority on getting back to a size 6.

Celebs can afford personal trainers and personal gyms etc and nannies to look after their weirdly named sprogs.
The likes of us common folk can only manage an hour dipping in the kiddy pool with our little ones in arm bands burning half a calorie every Tuesday morning when the local public pool holds the mother and toddler session.
Don't expect too much from yourself in regards to weight loss. Saying that I do intend to shed my pounds ASAP after having my baby because I hate carrying all this weight around. I miss my old size 8 body. But I won't let anyone pressure me to loose weight.

Thought I would share my experience of this afternoon.

The doctor (before and after weighing me) said to me that I must be careful not to put on too much weight - I have put on 1lb since she last weighed me two weeks ago.

And then she repeated it again to DH, using the third person to describe me.

I'm not really annoyed as this is France... but I know plenty of people will point and call me a fatty behind my back (I'm 5 10 and 11 stone, so not a whippet but I've never really had issues with my size - I veer from 12 to 14).

Pressure's for tyres and for footballs, not for pregnant ladies or new mothers.