There is so much controversy over new mums transforming their bodies so soon after birth. Being a mum who did just that, I’d like to share my opinion on this topic. I applaud all mums who take any step to improve their body image and lifestyle, however big or small. I feel it’s extremely important for women to feel confident in their own skin. When you experience insecurity over a body hang up after birth, this can lead on to ignite various other issues in the future. · Effect relationships with partner and baby · Self-loathing · Daily negative mind-set · Comfort eating · Depression · Anxiety Before I go any further I wish to make it clear that a post baby body transformation should never have a time frame placed upon it. The key focus should always be on the health and happiness of the mum, her baby and the rest of the family. I believe it’s possible to safely restore your body’s function while at the same time getting healthy, strong and waving goodbye to the maternal fat gain. My first pregnancy wasn’t an enjoyable experience, despite sailing through with very little aches and pains. Yes, I was delighted to be expecting a baby but found myself struggling to embrace the changes which my body undertook. After my son arrived, I only felt worse about my appearance and felt this enormous pressure to snap back into shape like all the celebrities on TV and also given how I looked prior to pregnancy. I hated the body I was left with. Some mums post quotes on social media saying ‘I earned my stripes’, I would read these empowering words but simply unable to identify with them. I was fortunate not to gain any stretch marks through pregnancy, but the extra maternal weight gain, deflated spongy bump, larger butt and wider thighs were definitely making me feel down and not myself. I missed my abs so much (as vain and terrible as it sounds). For my post baby transformation, I employed the help of an online coach who I had met the year previous at a fitness expedition. If I was going to get back in shape I needed a solid support network, someone I could be accountable too and someone who would be my voice of reasoning (knowing all too well how harsh I can be on myself). Online coaching is also much more cost effective than meeting a personal trainer for a one to one session in the gym. The biggest tip I could give to anyone who is struggling with fat loss after having a baby, is to pass the responsibility and planning over to the professionals. I signed up initially for a 12-week online training and nutrition package to get me started, which then saw me completing a subsequent 8 weeks to achieve a level of happiness with my physique. I made my gym debut 6 weeks post birth, however had already been doing light resistance training 1-2x per week at home, along with long daily pram walks. Throughout my 20 weeks of online coaching support, I only trained 3 sessions per week at the gym, alongside 1 cardio session which was added in around week 7 on plan. I would prep my meals for the week ahead every Sunday evening, and I would religiously stick to my set food intake. I was hugely judged on my healthy lifestyle during my post baby transformation, which still astonishes me. Making small social sacrifices to create happiness within my own skin was an easy choice for me to make. In the early days, I did avoid local mother and baby groups, but just so I didn’t have to make excuses for not eating cakes and biscuits and being singled out by those happy to indulge in tasty treats. I will admit for the first 3months on my plan I banned my husband from eating chocolate and crisps in front of me. If he wished to indulge in treats then he had to go into the kitchen and be discreet about it. That might sound crazy to most or even a little extreme, but the theory of 'out of sight out of mind' really worked for me. Being the supportive husband he is, Clark happily obliged and supported this request and I thank him hugely as it was a great help and a key to my success. Always limit temptations! I didn't become a loner as I did still met up with my friends, but usually just for coffee dates, as I found it so much easier to avoid deviating from plan by avoiding eating out. The nutrition plan was fully flexible, which meant I could select my own food choices as long as I hit my set daily macronutrient targets (protein, fat and carbohydrates). I won’t lie, being organised and following a plan so soon after birth was probably one of the hardest things I have ever done, but also one of the best decisions I have ever made. I felt so confident seeing the physical changes in my body each week and feeling happy and positive daily, despite the sleepless nights. It wasn’t the plan which challenged me, as everyone has the time to exercise and cook (despite what they say), it’s the sleep deprivation which is the biggest barrier for new mums and was definitely my main struggle. When you’re sleep deprived you become irritated, emotional, fatigued and generally just become an all round Debbie Downer. No one likes a Debbie Downer! The main negative I experienced on my first post baby transformation was the judgement of others around me. I was not prepared for how uncomfortable my eating habits would make others feel. I was eating well over 2000 calories per day through a healthy balanced intake of wholefoods, yet still asked when I would be eating proper food again and informed I made others feel bad about themselves for losing my baby weight so quickly. People seem to think doing very low calorie diets and doing copious amounts of cardio will get them that skinny beach ready body, but in fact this couldn’t be further from the truth. Yes a low calorie intake will inevitably bring about a big initial weight loss but this isn’t a sustainable healthy way of eating or living. Results will quickly plateau and the only way to push things on further is by doing more exercise or eating even less food which becomes dangerous. Its not calories or carbohydrates that make people gain weight, you just simply need to eat healthier, watch your portion sizes and move a little more daily. Finding a balance between energy intake and energy output is crucial. There’s a huge lack of basic nutrition education out there. Personally, I’d like to see schools educating young children in the importance of nutritious dense foods in their diets, but that’s a rant for another day. When clients contact me looking for support to get back into shape soon after having a baby, I fully support their decision and help them achieve their goals. Just because you become a mum doesn’t mean you can no longer achieve the body you once had or want. There are personal trainers out there that don’t promote quick post-natal body transformations, but when you have a support network in place, a flexible plan, work within your own limitations and don’t set a timeframe, then I see no issues at all starting a plan when you feel ready to do so. We are all different, no one size fits all. A post-natal plan should be fully customised for everyone based upon their personal circumstances. Generic plans won’t cut it. It can take as long as 6 months to 1 year for a lady to feel like herself again after giving birth so not everyone is physically well or ready to commit to making changes so soon. We hear so much about fat shaming in the media but very little on body shaming and bully that goes on for people who are in good shape or currently living a healthy lifestyle. I feel people that eat healthy are singled out way more than those who choose not to care what they are putting into their bodies. I found this personally was the case for me when I worked in an office environment for many years. It gets annoying when you’re constantly asked why you don’t want pizza, a pie, or cake when there’s a birthday or someone leaving, as a simple no thanks never seems to be a satisfying answer. I think it made those around me feel a bit guilty regarding their own eating habits hence why making me seem odd for not having, may have made them feel better about themselves. My advice is to never start a plan if you are not ready to fully commit. Have a precise goal in mind but also lots of little achievable smaller goals ones along the way. Find a personal trainer that you can connect with, who supports your goals and proposes a sustainable plan which will support your home life and commitments. I plan on getting back in touch with my coach before summer to pre-secure my online monthly coaching space post baby number 2. To me this is just as important as the birth itself. If I’m not happy, then baby isn’t happy and neither is the rest of the family. Be kind to yourself and those around you. Never judge or body shame, you don’t know what battles people are going through or their personal circumstances. Roll on Post Baby Transformation number 2. Its going to be so much harder this time with having a 3 year old and also battling with winter months, but I know I will give it my all. Sharon x
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Not sure where to begin, since this is my first blog post, I guess I should touch on what this lifestyle blog is about. I will be blogging about my second pregnancy journey, the birth and general life happenings.
People say that parenthood changes you and for me it wasn’t just a switch up in daily routine but a huge revaluation of my life and what I wished to achieve. In 2014 my son Max was born and my life dramatically changed, in more ways than I ever could have imagined. Things which were once important to me no longer seemed significant. That is a subject I will touch more on within future blog posts. Myself and my husband now have ‘The Fear’, something which all parents know too well. It’s that maternal worry you constantly feel. Life becomes so much more precious and the fear of something happening to your perfect little family unit, literally scares the bejesus out of you. I am currently 13 weeks’ pregnant and this time round, the first trimester has been incredibly tough. Constant feelings of nausea and fatigue along with various aches and pains have been really challenging. Last pregnancy I worked full time in the oil industry where I sat on my butt for 9hours of the day. But this time round I’m constantly on the go, entertaining my 2-year-old son and an 8year old German Shepherd (who we are still waiting on to calm down and mature). It’s safe to say I haven’t seen much of the gym lately and only just recently getting back into it. The best I could manage for a while was home workouts and lots of long dog walks. I felt a bit guilty being a personal trainer and skipping proper structured gym workouts, especially considering I currently have pregnant clients managing to soldier on and get all their workouts complete each week. But not all pregnancies are the same and this is certainly true in my case. Ever since I got that positive result on the pregnancy test in January, all I can think about is the birth and wishing it was sooner. I'm probably one of the small percentages of people who actually enjoyed their labour and birth. My son Max was born at Montrose Maternity Unit in a birthing pool. It truly was an experience which I will never forget. It was a 7 hour, straight forward, natural labour and birth with no interventions. I'm a huge believer of the importance in educating yourself on childbirth and knowing all your options as it definitely builds confidence, removes fears and anxieties. How can people expect to have a positive birthing experience without a well thought out birth plan and being fully informed of pros and cons for possible interventions? On a complete different note (bit of a rant), why is it females seem to think it’s acceptable and their rightly duty to share horror birth stories with pregnant women? At least this time round I won’t need to put up with such stories with it being my second pregnancy. After hearing numerous traumatic births during my first pregnancy, I was surprised and fortunate to hear a lovely birthing story from a work colleague which opened my eyes to the possibility that birth didn’t need to be a dreaded painful event which required medical supervision and intervention. This inspiring lady had recently given birth to her third child in the comfort of her own home using HypnoBirthing techniques. Had she not shared her positive birthing experience with me, then I may not be writing this blog post today and most definitely wouldn’t be running ‘Bump Birth Beyond’. I was around 20 weeks pregnant when I took ownership and prepared for the birth I longed to have. My first step was purchasing the Marie Mongan HypnoBirthing book. My second step was signing up for HypnoBirthing lessons with a Marie Mongan qualified practitioner. I soon felt empowered and confident and started counting down the days to labour. Second time round, the excitement for birthing day has reached an ultimate high already. I certainly won’t be making the 52mile drive to Montrose while being around 7-8cms dilated, instead the plan is to have a home birth and hire a birthing pool. If all goes to plan, this will be filmed, photographed and heavily documented on. I had my NHS scan last week and to say I was disappointed would be an understatement. Having had private scans in the past (early scanning / gender scans) I came away feeling rather deflated despite all seemingly well with baby. The sonographer explained that my uterus was positioned at an awkward angle therefore she was struggling to get accurate measurements of the baby and clear photos. This also meant that she couldn't do the down syndrome screening measurements, but stated that in her opinion all looked well, which was no reassurance for me. After around 4 or 5 ordered trips to the toilet to slightly empty my bladder a little more (which made no odds to the quality of image on the screen) I was then told I was 13 weeks pregnant instead of 12 (which is nonsense as I know my dates as the baby was planned and very much wanted). I'm now looking forward to my private gender scan which hopefully is a more enjoyable experience. Thanks for reading, I ask that you please be forgiving of all spelling and grammar boo-boos. I do not have an editor and posts will be written as and when I feel I have worthy, interesting content. Finally, a special thank you to Laurie Cowie for inspiring me and sharing her beautiful HypnoBirthing story with me back in 2014. I'm very excited to experience it all over again with baby number 2. |
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September 2017
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