My journey back to my pre-pregnancy weight
I’ve always had a complicated relationship with fitness and weight. As a 5’7 big-boned person with an athletic build, I’ve never had the quintessential Asian waif-like figure. Growing up it didn’t help that my mom and sister were both petite and thin. Once my mom tried to comfort me saying that kids called her “chopstick legs” when she was young, to which my response was, “oh, please!” I used to look at pictures of my mom at my age and wonder why I lost the genetic lottery (I was a tad dramatic at 16).
Although I was never technically heavy, I was heavy for an Asian girl. As a teenager I tried every diet under the sun including, Atkins, low-cal, juice cleanse and even more extreme things like binging and purging. Luckily none of them ever stuck around long. In college, the disruption to my previously regimented schedule combined with frozen yogurt and late night pizza meant I gained a ton of weight the first year. What made that transition even harder was that I grew up doing sports and that stopped once I got to college. As an athlete I never had to think about staying fit because I would just go to practice and follow a set training schedule.
By my sophomore year I was ready to make some changes and started joining my friends at the gym. But I struggled with the willpower to make it to the gym (even though it was a 2-minute walk from my dorm), then once I got there it became a social hour. Most days I would leave the gym without even breaking a sweat. It’s hard for me to admit but it wasn’t until I graduated from college and was diagnosed with cancer that I really started paying closer attention to my health.
During grad school, Mr. Ice Cream talked me into doing the “Couch to 5K” program. At first I was adamant about “not being a runner” but eventually agreed to give it a shot. If you aren’t familiar with Couch to 5K, it is a program designed to get non-runners to a 5K in 9 weeks. 156 weeks later we did it! And the even more impressive thing is that somewhere along the line I actually started to enjoy running. I finally understood it when my friends said running was the best stress reliever. And for the first time in my adult life I had stumbled my way into a regular exercise routine and it felt great. I was in the best shape of my life since high school and it felt like a major accomplishment. In March 2014 we ran our first 10K then in June 2014 we found out I was pregnant.
Mr. Ice Cream and me before we ran our first 10K
When I got pregnant, I’m almost embarrassed to admit that one of my biggest fears was losing the baby weight. Before M was even born I was selfishly plotting my return to my pre-pregnancy jeans. Despite gaining over 40 pounds during my pregnancy, I kept up a fairly regular exercise routine until about 36 weeks.
Fast forward to now, these days my exercise habits are sporadic at best. I’ll have spurts where I’ll consistently make it to the gym or go for quick runs, but nothing sticks. For a while after M was born, Mr. Ice Cream and I made it a priority to take turns going for a run after work. That worked for the first couple months until M started going through a sleep regression and we were way too exhausted to exercise. Then once M started crawling and getting into everything, it suddenly became increasingly difficult to find time to sneak in a workout. As a result, my weight has started inching back up. We haven’t given up completely on getting in shape, but for now we are accepting that we might be a little more winded while walking up stairs.
Some days I get really down on myself since I’m not as active as I’d like to be. I’m a little heavier than I’d like to be but I’m not bummed about it. I know that M won’t always be so little and there will be a time when I wished he needed me more, so right now I’m just enjoying chasing after my little monster even if I’m more winded doing it.
How do you fit fitness into your life with a little one?
grapefruit / 4923 posts
i vacillate between accepting/loving the new mom bod and getting back in shape. i was recently reading a critique of the celebration of “dad bods” as sexist, because we don’t celebrate “mom bods” the same way, and instead emphasize how quickly or not the mom gets into shape.
these young years are crazy, and you’re right to set your priorities and be content with them.
guest
It’s tough! I’ve also been on the weight roller coaster of pregnancy, birth and back again (2 kids – 5yrs and 22mo). And have recently been getting into running, I’ve never thought of myself as a “runner” but I did my first 5K last month! The way I fit in exercise is over lunch at work. My employer offers an on-site gym with classes over lunch at no cost to employees. I do a quick 30-45 minute work out (yoga class or jog on the trails) and eat a quick lunch at my desk. It’s not ideal, no time for a shower means I can’t break into too much of a sweat and there is a risk of my co-workers seeing me in my workout clothes, but works for now.
pear / 1622 posts
I am too tired after work so DH and I try to take turns exercising before work during the week while the other is at home watching the LOs. On the weekends we’ll either take turns staying at home while the other works out or we may go to a park. We have a jogging stroller that DH is starting to use with LO1.
guest
I can totally relate to this! Before I got pregnant with my first, I got in really great shape but gave up all my healthy habits once pregnant. Fast forward three years and two kids later, and I wasn’t feeling too great about my body. I’m a SAHM so I decide to join a gym with childcare and got a trainer and started going a few times a week and it has been amazing! I feel so much about myself and love having some me-time during the day. Now if I could just get my eating under control!!
All this to say, I think once your LO is older, it makes it much easier to get back to some things for yourself.
guest
My husband and I are both very invested in exercise and fitness so we make it a priority to make time for each other to get to the gym and prep food. I kept working hard during my first pregnancy (true story: I was in labor during spin class) and started right back up again as soon as possible.
I definitely don’t have as much time as I did before, so I’ve learned to maximize the time I do have. I do circuits of barbell weightlifting and HIIT, which allows me to murder my entire body and be back home within an hour.
kiwi / 511 posts
I was never really in shape pre-kids so I didn’t really expect much in terms of post pregnancy. I love food, I hate exercise, and I went from no kids to two kids in 9 months (when my youngest was born my oldest was 23 months old) and the youngest didn’t sleep the night until he was 16 months old!
But I finally got myself on track using the Scaleless app, smaller portions and the strategy of convenience (see Gretchen Rubin). Like a previous poster I took advantage of the onsite fitness center and also cannot sweat too much so I would walk outside for 35ish minutes if it was nice but mostly was on either the elliptical, treadmill or bike for about 35ish minutes. I went early to avoid most people and it was a fitness center for the office park not just my company.
I added in another 25-30 minutes either before work or after work but I could only do this with my DH’s support. He has taken on more duties to free up my time. I really need to do about 60 minutes a day 5-6 days a week to consistently lose (which sucks), but at about 30 5-6 days a week I can maintain (which is ok). Right now I weigh less than I did when I got married 8 years ago pre kids and it has taken forever and I am not at the halfway mark yet.
But on the up side while I still love food and hate exercise I do like the way I feel if I after I exercise more than I hate that exercise, so that keeps me motivated. I also am less hungry on most days so I am satisfied with smaller portions and don’t feel terribly deprived.