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Weight loss chat

A space to talk openly about weight loss journeys and challenges. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

Original poster

does anyone ever really go back to pre pregnancy body?

51 replies

fulllife · 05/09/2011 09:05

hi, am a bit bummed out since realizing after birth how much FAT (not water, blood, baby) i really gained during pregnancy (10K), and now after 6 weeks also realizing that it doesnt "fall off" as everyone keeps saying...

is this some kind of sisterhood-conspiracy that nakes everyone lie about how their pregnancy flab just magically disappeared?

is there anybody out there that really-squealy got back to their pre preg weight, and if so how long did it take them and what did they do?

need some light at end of tunnel - have end-of-alphabet cup and look like a kangooroo. used to be LITHE!

OP posts:
rubyrubyruby · 05/09/2011 09:09

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Tigresswoods · 05/09/2011 09:11

Everyone is different. I'm one of those people everyone hates; it did drop off. However I seem to have totally lost my boobs (18 months on) with it. Sad

HoneyPablo · 05/09/2011 09:16

Mine did. The midwives all said that I didn't look like I had been pregnant at all, while I was still in the hospital after DS was born. I was straight back to my size 8 pre-pregnancy figure. But, I suffered from awful hyperemesis and was sick, every day, all day and night for the first 5 months, and actually lost weight at some stage. My bump was all baby.

porcupine11 · 05/09/2011 09:18

It does go without diet and exercise, but not in 6 weeks! Mine seemed to disappear in chunks each time, rather than a steady loss. Lost about 10 lb in two weeks when DS2 was around 5 months, and was chumping through loads of milk.

Original poster
fulllife · 05/09/2011 09:18

ruby - how much time? bad enough loosing all ur sensitive bits to motherhood, can i at least have my tummy back for self-image?
also, on top of feeding, changing and napping when i get the chance i really cabt face starting s diet and exercise regime... sorry for typos, im currently volunteering as a mattress

tigress-same question:how patient do i have to be? 3 months?six?

OP posts:
Tigresswoods · 05/09/2011 09:22

Well I think what worked for me was feeding ( he was hungry & I made sure I ate properly) and lots of walks pushing the buggy. I am naturally thin too so not sure how much is genes. Just get out and walk briskly a couple of times a day. Don't diet just eat healthily to stop yourself snacking. Have a good breakfast will set you up.

Good luck. Grin

Bramshott · 05/09/2011 09:25

After DD1 I was pretty much back to pre-pregnancy weight within 12 months. With DD2 it was quicker as she fed so much, but in terms of feeling "normal" again, probably still 12 months.

UpsyDozy · 05/09/2011 09:30

The way I look at it is this:
The baby weight that "falls off" through breastfeeding is exactly that, the BABY weight. The extra pounds that you naturally gained through pregnancy to nourish your baby.

The rest of the weight that I gained through eating dessert after every meal, copious full fat Starbucks hot chocolates and packets of jaffa cakes Blush did not "fall off". For that I needed to pay the piper and follow diet and exercise routines. I used Weight Watchers which I found great. Lots of long brisk walks with the pram and a few exercise DVDs that I tried to do when DD was asleep (if I could be arsed).

I would say it took me about 8-9 months of on and off dieting before I got back to my pre-pregnancy weight. Sadly my boobs never quite recovered!! Grin

Go easy on yourself, 6 weeks is WAY too early to be worrying about this.

Notnapping · 05/09/2011 09:40

Well I'm 6 months next week post birth and nowhere near my pre preg body

I exclusively breastfeed walks everyday eat sensibly (wish I could blame cake then at least I could lose weight by stopping it!)

I'm at least 2 stone off my pp weight

When I had ds 1 he was ff and the weight just fell off in 6 weeks

I feel like shit my confidence is at a all time low and I've started skipping meals to try and shift it I tried my fitness pal for 6 weeks not an oz shifted as with low carb diet I also tried it's really affecting me and I'm sick of people saying oh it'll just fall off through bf !

I just hope it'll go when ds stops bf :(

Chrononaut · 05/09/2011 09:48

im also one of those that people hate, mine compleatly shed off within a month (mainly because i was running around like a nut, we moved house the day before i went into labour!)

but its not all good, i have the worst stretch marks imaginable. my stomach looks like gammon with cheese melted on it :( :(

Original poster
fulllife · 05/09/2011 09:49

notnapping - i feel u!

think 12 month is really long to wait to feel normal, thats 2 years of youth lost tear rolling down face to each child, and probably as sods law would have it means falling pregnant as soon as im down to normal...

im also going on a low carb kinda diet this week:
fruitsalad with nuts in morning, rice with vegetables and thina (like a salad) at lunch and chicken soup in the evening. i tought these are the three dishes i never grow tired off plus i can make soup and rice in bulk twice a week and not worry about it anymore.

ive also come to believe that the women saying it all fell off are cheating (but maybe thats just me being bitter) anyway once im back to normal i intend to tell everyone that it was bloody hard work and a year of being miserable. also started preaching to pregnant ladies : please dont change your diet ! the baby is still the size of a pea!

OP posts:
meltedchocolate · 05/09/2011 09:52

DS is nearly 3 and for a while I have been thin again. I have never gone on a diet and only bothered exercising for a couple of months initially and then decided I couldn't be bothered. I think it was a good year and a half before I went completely back though. My stomach is it's old size but the skin is not tight like it was because I have a tiny waist and DS was 9 lbs 1.

Meglet · 05/09/2011 09:59

I went from 8 stone to 11 stone in both pregnancies, I took 6 - 12 months to be pretty much back to normal. No dieting just stress and the gym. I was very fit before and during pregnancy though so everything did kind of ping back to normal.

Although my hips and rib cage are a little wider than they were and I can't get used to it, I think its the 'stretching' effect of pregnancy as I'm underweight but wider in places. All my bra's had to be binned as I went up from a 32 to a 34. Feet went up a size too.

Fatshionista · 05/09/2011 10:08

I didn't.

I gave birth to DD1 in 2008 and ever since I've had excess skin on my tummy, saggier breasts and more stretch marks. I gave birth to DD2 in 2010 and I've gone back to how I looked after DD1. I'm the same weight as I was pre-pregnancy but such a different image looks back at me in the mirror despite going to the gym and eating well. I am never going to get rid of the skin on my tummy or the stretch marks.

Notnapping · 05/09/2011 10:11

I cant even get to the hairdressers let alone the gym!

Fatshionista · 05/09/2011 10:13

I say going to the gym but I mean I occasionally go for Zumba and then treat myself to a coffee full of sugar on the way home because I'm zonked :o

Notnapping · 05/09/2011 10:17

Lol I can't get a babysitter to do anything like that :( I bought 2 DVDs but they dont seem to work and I can't get in to them enough before ds wakes up

crazykat · 05/09/2011 10:18

I was never thin to begin with but with DD1 I was back in my old clothes in two weeks and after 3 months had lost weight. This was due to DD1 being a nightmare WRT sleeping - she didn't so I was pacing the floor most of the day and night or constantly rocking her cradle.

Then when DD1 was four months I fell pregnant with DS. After I had him it took about 6 months to get back in my old clothes. I used to put both DC's in the pushchair and go for long walks which helped.

DD2 is now 9 months and I've been on a diet for three months and still have a stone to lose.

Plus I ate differently when pregnant, with DD1 I ate healthy meals and got some exercise, with DS I didn't eat quite as healthy and with DD2 I was so tired looking after the older two I definately didn't get enogh exercise (and a massive chocolate craving). It's also harder trying to exercise with three kids under four to look after.

My friend who had her third DC three weeks before me was back in size 6 clothes after two months Envy so I think some of it is down to genes as well.

Original poster
fulllife · 05/09/2011 10:19

yeah, i am also trying to think of something that takes zero conscious effort as i just dont have the extra energy. ive resorted to lifting legs while watching dd fall asleep instead of situps embarrassed

what i did learn from this thread is that its going to take some real effort if i want to drop the weight within half a year. thanks for the reality check!

OP posts:
MistyMountainHop · 05/09/2011 10:23

i'm as slim as i was pre pregnancy, if not slimmer (2 dcs) but i have a stretchmarked crepey tummy that will NEVER go away and saggier boods

i think its very rare for a woman to be exactly the same post pregnancy as she was pre pregnancy

MistyMountainHop · 05/09/2011 10:23

boobs ffs

foreverondiet · 05/09/2011 12:00

Ok, your baby is 6 WEEKS old!!!!

I have 3 DC, and put on loads of weight (fat!) in each pregnancy. Gained even more when breastfeeding due to too much cake and ice cream, and constant hunger. But now, DS2 is 16 months old, and for the past few months I have been maintaining a weight a stone below my pre-pregnancy weight.

No magic answer though, it did not ?magically disappear?. I was 2.5-3 stone overweight and I had to be on a strict diet for several months to lose the weight. I started when he was 6 months old and I have also done lots of exercise including weights. Now have body fat around 20% and BMI around 20.5. I?m a size 8.

So to answer your question:

Does anyone ever really go back to pre pregnancy body:

I don?t know, but for me:

  1. Weight wise I am a stone less, with less fat than I had, (and more muscle now).
  2. On the other hand I have mild/white stretchmarks on tummy, and skin a little crinkly on tummy.
  3. Breasts are same size as before but more saggy.

So overall I think I look better now than before!

sjuperwolef · 05/09/2011 12:04

i saw a friend of mine registering her 2nd child 4 days after giving birth - not a sign to be seen that she was 4 days post partum Envy skinny cow

i took a few weeks to lose weight but a few months to gain tone.

Badtasteflump · 05/09/2011 12:05

I don't know how anybody can be the same as pre-pregnancy, unless you are a 'seleb', so micaculously manage to avoid stretch marks & crepey skin on your tummy & boobs that sag a bit Sad

With all mine I managed to go back to pre-pregnancy weight pretty much straight after the birth, but then always put a bit of weight on through breastfeeding over the months because i was always so ravenously hungry Blush

MistyMountainHop · 05/09/2011 12:48

sjuperwolef am Envy at your friend too!

although hopefully maybe she was wearing spanx.... :o