Can I be honest with you? Post baby bodies are hard and really frustrating at times.
My youngest had food allergies as an infant. This lead to several digestive issues for her. Which meant, as a nursing mom, I could not eat eggs, nuts, dairy, gluten, wheat, soy, or corn until she turned one. It’s amazing what we will do for our babes…
And because of these limitations, I was back to pre- first baby weight by the times she was nine-months-old.
When she turned one, her intestines had matured and I was able to add all foods back into my diet. And I did. The days of fitting into my pre-baby size pants were slipping away again. I slowly regained some weight and I missed those pants.
Fast forward a couple years. We uprooted, there’s been stress, different eating habits, and life changes. All of these have contributed to a bit of extra weight, but I’m also working out more than I ever have. I’m going to CrossFit or Fit 101 three to four times a week, yoga one to two times a week, and sometimes I throw in a run. And yet…
While I’m stronger, my pre-baby jeans still don’t fit. To top things off, I weigh more than I ever have while not pregnant.
Yes, muscle weighs more than fat, but that fact brings me no comfort as I stare into my jean drawer. The hard part is that when I look down or look in the mirror, I’m content with my body. Then I see a picture of myself and am disheartened because the me in the picture looks different than the way I feel. I feel better than the pictures portray.
What’s even more frustrating is that it seems like social media somehow knows my struggle. There’s a post here and an ad there for a weight quick fixes. It’s tempting! Oh ladies, it’s SO tempting. I’m working hard and eating right (most of the time), but the progress seems slow.
At one point, after explaining that I still weigh the same, the pants still don’t fit, and I’m doing more work than ever before, someone asked me, “Wouldn’t it be easier to just give up?”
Yes, it would be easier; however, I refuse to give up on showing my girls that there is a healthy option for obtaining physical goals. I will continue to eat right and exercise. I know one day the results will be there. It might take longer than if I had a quick fix, but what kind of message would I be sending to my daughters if that was my approach?
When I started this journey I wasn’t able to make it two blocks on a run without a side ache and walking. I used light weights and my work outs were beginner level at best. Now I surprise myself every week. I’m learning the strength my body has and can acquire with persistence. I used to think people who worked out or ran were insane, but…
Now I crave some sort of movement every day.
I’m here for you mama as you gaze into the mirror or fold those jeans up, yet again. It took my oldest starting kindergarten and my youngest going to preschool for me to find the time to exercise consistently. Don’t beat yourself up and I promise I won’t attack myself either. We are in this together and we will get to our goals. I would love to have any of you as accountability partners! Leave me a comment or find me on Instagram (jamiereed26) and, together, we will work towards becoming the healthiest versions of ourselves.
Jamieeeeeee! Oh how this speaks to me. I have been beating myself up since returning to work because my commitment to working out has faltered. In return I feel depressed and I turn to food for comfort and thus starts the vicious cycle. But your post reminds me of how far I’ve came in this journey. I started out walking and only being able to run for maybe 30 sec at a time to now I can run without stopping for a good 12 minutes. Just because I fell off the wagon doesn’t mean I should give up. I didn’t come this far to only come this far. You are inspiring me to be happy with the little wins in the day. If I only get 15 minutes of workout in with a baby thats better than none at all. Thank you for this!