Pregnancy

So…How is life REALLY?

The body issue:

Everyone is at such a different place in how they look AND how they feel about how they look (whether you’ve had a baby or not) so none of my comments (or photos for that matter) are meant to offend anyone. I realize that some people will look at me and think I look great and others will think I look not so great. I have decided that I look how I look and I am trying my best to do what is healthy for me and for my little guy.

Of course, I would love to “get my body back” but I am trying to respect the process my body wants to take and not freak out too much. I have friends who slim down by breastfeeding and are tiny within weeks and others who can never seem to lose the weight until they are finished breastfeeding. I’m trying to be patient with my process, it’s difficult sometimes, but if I can keep the big picture vision—things will be fine.

That being said, I’m pretty much hips and boobs these days. (The state of my midsection is “soft” at best.)

I finally got sick of my options being: A) stretchy waist maternity or B) camel-toe. Thus, I went to the mall and bought some clothes that fit.

If there is one piece of advice I would give to any woman post pregnancy is to BUY CLOTHES THAT FIT as soon as possible. It makes a huge difference. RIGHT? I was trying so hard jump from the maternity clothes to my “larger” pre-preg clothes just to save some cash. if you are a person that slims down in a month than this is a great option…for me—dumb idea. The few pairs of pants and T-shirts I bought that actually fit are worth every penny. The child bearing years are a strange time for clothes shopping. I feel like over the course of a few years I have accumulated 4 wardrobes. 1. Regular size 2. Maternity 3. Postpartum 4. In between stage.

But the clothing headache is worth it for this little dude.

Family Adjustments:

At any given time you could drop by the house and probably find at least one room looking like this…

PML initially was so in love and protective of the little guy, but now I think he has realized that Parker isn’t going away. I can tell that he rides the line between wanting to kiss and hug him all the time and wanting to do bodily harm.

Let’s just say that I never leave the two of them alone.

My dad gave Parker the nickname of “The Buddha” because he is a very zen baby. So calm and he just looks wise, doesn’t he?

Nutrition:

Remember how this used to be a “Health blog” before it turned into a pregnancy blog? So yeah, (cough)…nutrition.

I’ve been trying to eat intuitively lately, but I have to say that it is difficult with all the decadent desserts that Annie (sis in law, bff, and new neighbor) makes. I have a hard time saying no. This week I’m focusing on adding more fruits and veggies into the diet. I’m almost done with my Integrative Nutrition program, and the curriculum has been so helpful for me and my relationship with food. We all have one, don’t we? Ultimately there is so much more to health than just what we eat. Obviously, food is important but so is the happiness level in our relationships, spirituality, career, and exercise. For me, I’m trying to make wise choices without being to obsessive about it so that I can try to find a balance in the other areas.

The farmer’s market has been a great healthy-eating motivator lately.

Those grapes are from the vine in our yard. Yay California!

Fitness:

Annie is out of town, but I think I am going to have her give me some workouts to post online. I’m just venturing into workout realm and we’ve done a few CrossFit style sessions, I love that you can get a crazy workout in under 15 minutes. As much as I’d like to “Dance my Ass Off” (waka waka), I don’t have daily childcare to hit the gym or Zumba class and so something high impact and short is the best option. Yoga is also feeling amazing. I’ve loving Detox Flow Yoga with Seane Corn. She was one of my favorite speakers at the IIN Mega Conference last Spring and I really enjoy the DVD. It’s great for someone just getting back into a yoga practice.

I don’t want to misrepresent myself. I’m trying to do one “fitness” (term is used loosely) activity per day. Something (even if just for 5 minutes) is better than nothing. I haven’t had one workout longer than 30 minutes yet.

What is your strategy for getting in shape? What do you find helps to pull you out of an exercise slump or come back from something like pregnancy or an injury?

Related Posts:

• Post Pregnancy Mind and Body: Part 1
• Post Pregnancy Body: To Wrap or Not to Wrap
• Birth Story: Part 1
• Birth Story: Part 2
• Birth Plan

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