Finding your fitness after you have a baby is more of a mental battle than an actual physical one. The mental component is the decision that no matter what your body looks like post-baby, it is exponentially more beautiful than it ever was or could have been before. When you come to accept this as truth, you will be able to appreciate your body for how incredibly amazing it is…which ultimately empowers you to enjoy the journey back to your healthy and ideal body weight and fitness level.
As a first time mom, I only have one experience from which to speak, but since millions of moms out there want to improve their fitness and their post-baby body I feel compelled to share my progress with the hopes to encourage, motivate and inspire you to action.
I am now 18-weeks post-partum and just last week I experienced a breakthrough in my workouts. It was the first week I felt fully at the same fitness level as I was before I got pregnant.
My accomplishments from last week that empowered me to feel so confident?
- I ran a total of 50 miles for the week.
- One of my runs was a 6-mile run at a 7:30 average, another run was a 16-mile run at an 8:01 average.
- I performed 3 sets of unassisted, strict hanging (non-kipping) pull-ups. 1×5, 1×7 and 1×5.
- I completed 3 sets of 25 unbroken push-ups.
- I rocked out 3 sets of 20 unassisted, body weight, deep dips on parallel bars
- I got my pre-baby body fully back – my weight and my body fat are back to pre-pregnant me.
So, how did I do it?
Here’s what my last four months of fitness and workouts has looked like:
After I had my little baby girl on February 24th, I waited four weeks to start running again. Since I had a C-Section, I actually started running a little too early, so I ran for a week, and then took another week off to heal since my first week of running caused some irritation at my incision site. At six weeks postpartum, I recommenced light running. On week seven I picked my running up but still kept it easy, simply staying active five to six days of the week. At eight weeks I was my pre-pregnancy weight again and started following a marathon training program. I began to build my running mileage, but since my incision was still healing and I wanted to allow my core to fully recover, I only jogged lightly and avoided doing any running pace work or threshold speed. I re-introduced strength training into my workout regime at ten weeks and allowed myself to start picking up the pace on my runs. From weeks ten to twelve I lifted three times per week, but didn’t engage my core intentionally and didn’t do any ab work whatsoever. At thirteen weeks I permitted myself to take my lifting up a notch, implementing high intensity interval training, super-setting exercises and core work.
Since I am currently training for a marathon, my weekly workout routine currently includes six runs per week, ranging from 4-miles to 18-miles per run, and three to four lifting sessions per week of 45-minutes each. Additionally I spent 15-minutes three to four times per week stretching, foam rolling and performing self-myofascial release.
Fitness progress aside, what I am most proud of with my post-baby body is that I feel like myself again. Not only that, but I feel more empowered, having had my body go through such drastic transformations and changes from pregnancy and delivery. I wear my C-section scar with pride as a reminder of what my body has endured and of the beautiful life that it has given birth to. Furthermore, as someone with a history of an eating disorder and negative body image, the journey through the pregnancy process has actually been one giant leap in my overall mental wellness and healing, as it has shown me just how amazing and resilient the human body, and my body, can be. Pregnancy taught me to love my body in a way I never knew was possible, and for that itself, I celebrate this journey and encourage you to do the same.
The secret to my success?
The secret to bouncing back post-baby isn’t that I’m super committed or hyper-motivated. Am I those things? Yes, but it’s more than that. The secret is that I have been celebrating my body for giving birth, not being critical of it. Too many post-baby mommas allow their minds to dwell on their scars, extra weight or stretch marks with a negative attitude, bringing them down with discouragement and disconnecting them from feeling like their pre-baby selves. I have found that the more we celebrate our bodies – even when we aren’t at our ideal weight or fitness level – the more we will be apt to honor it by making good nutritional choices and by prioritizing our workouts and physical activities.
Another factor that has contributed to helping me bounce back to my original pre-pregnancy weight at just eight weeks post-partum is that I stayed active during my pregnancy. In short, while I was pregnant, I just kept being myself and being as active as I was used to being. I ran and lifted throughout the entirety of my pregnancy, lifting and running up until week 35, and then transitioning to incline walking and elliptical workouts from weeks 35-40. Typically I exercised 5-6 times per week and kept my heart rate under 140 beats per minute in every workout.
On this note, a question I have been asked over and over in the past eighteen weeks is, how did you do it?
How did I do it? How did I lose my baby weight in just eight weeks without going crazy?
The first thing you should know is that I don’t weigh myself. For that reason this post will not provide you with my exact pre-baby and post-baby weight, but, after having worked in the fitness industry for ten years as a personal trainer, I can assure you that I have a finely honed skill of guessing my own weight by how I feel in the skin I’m in within a few pounds…all without stepping on the scale.
Why don’t I weigh myself, you may ask? I don’t weigh myself because at one point in my life I was a slave to the scale. During my ten year long battle with bulimia, binge eating disorder, laxative abuse and compulsive exercise addiction the scale determined my worth. The scale simply isn’t a part of my life anymore.
Secondly, breastfeeding is magical. It is God’s natural weight loss. I have been blessed to have a wonderful experience with breastfeeding and contribute a large portion of my natural weight loss to it. Additionally, breastfeeding makes me inordinately thirsty, so I have taken to drinking approximately 200 ounces per day of ice, cold water.
In short, I got my pre-baby body back by staying fit and eating well during my pregnancy and then taking care of my health and nutrition immediately, as soon as I could, postpartum. Below are some more specifics of the breakdown of what I did:
My approximate starting stats pre-pregnancy, during pregnancy and post-pregnancy are:
Pre-Pregnancy:
5’4” / 125-135 lbs. /16-18 % body fat
Pregnancy:
5’4” / 130-160 lbs. /26 % body fat
Eight Weeks Post-Pregnancy:
5’4” / 135-140 lbs./ 22 % body fat
Sixteen Weeks Post-Pregnancy:
5’4 / 125-135 lbs / 18% body fat
Nutrition During Pregnancy:
During my pregnancy, to avoid the risk of under-eating, for which I have a propensity for, I tracked my calorie intake through MyFitnessPal and averaged between 2,000-2,500 calories per day. Additionally, I focused on eating whole, unprocessed foods as much as possible and ate fresh organic spinach by the bagful (as in, almost one full bag per day, ha!). Overall I ate a high protein, high fiber, low carbohydrate diet, but indulged in frozen yogurt or dark chocolate in the evening at least five nights per week. I didn’t have any “cravings” so to speak during my pregnancy aside from for Sweet Frog, Swiss cheese and Party Mix.
Nutrition Post-Pregnancy:
Because of the demands of caring for a baby, caring for a puppy, working from home, meeting writing deadlines for a book project, and being a good wife, my ability to only eat non-processed foods has demanded some flexibility. I now keep my diaper bag equipped with QuestBar Protein Bars (190 calories, 21 grams of protein, 17 grams of fiber and 1 gram of sugar) and Eat Me Guilt Free Low Carb Low Sugar Gluten Free Chocolate Brownies (160 calories, 22 grams of protein, 2 grams of fiber and 0 grams of sugar); I am continuing to eat a high protein, high fiber, low carbohydrate diet, however I have recently had to cut nuts and diary out of my nutrition temporarily to help alleviate my baby’s eczema. I still track my calorie intake and exercise output on MyFitnessPal and average between 1,900 and 2,400 calories per day depending on my workout demands.
My typical workout routine looks something like the following.
(Please note that this workout routine rotates depending upon the season. I typically train for and race one major marathon per year and one major half marathon per year. The months in which I train for the marathon demand more running and higher mileage than the months that I train for the half marathon. That being said, my half-marathon training involves more high intensity work, hill work and specific pace work. My winter training schedule flexes around any access to snowboarding that I get. The same goes for summer time. Any time I get the opportunity to surf or snowboard, my workout routine goes out the window and I focus on enjoying the cross-training that comes with surfing and snowboarding.)
A typical workout week for me:
Monday
4-7 Mile Run [+] Core Work – 10 Minutes [+] Foam Rolling – 10 Minutes
Tuesday
5-6 Mile Hill Run [+] Total Body, High Intensity Strength Workout (45-75 Minutes)
Wednesday
Cycle or Cross-training Day or Easy Run [+] Core Work – 10 Minutes [+] Foam Rolling – 10 Minutes
Thursday
4-7 Mile Run [+] Total Body, High Intensity Strength Workout (45-75 Minutes)
Friday
Day of rest [+] Core Work – 10 Minutes
Saturday
4-7 Mile Easy Run [+] Total Body, High Intensity Strength Workout (45-75 Minutes) [+] Foam Rolling – 10 Minutes
Sunday
Long Run (10-20 Miles) [+] Foam Rolling – 15 minutes
Additional Note:
My High Intensity Strength Workouts include are variety of exercises and an eclectic mix of body weight work, free weights, machine weights, cable weights, balance work, core stabilization work and plyometrics. I always super-set exercises together and like to minimize my rest between sets. Every few weeks I assess my base strength thresholds by seeing how many push-ups, pull-ups and dips I can do as well as how long I can comfortably hold a basic plank hold.
Additional, Additional Note:
The cost of a gym membership is absolutely worth every penny of it if you have access to a gym that provides excellent child care. My gym is wonderful and loves on babies from the age of six-weeks and on. My little Ellie spends two hours a day there and loves it – and, even if I am not working out for two hours, it’s a wonderful emotional recharge as a momma to have time to read a book in the hot tub or to take a leisurely shower. It is literally the cheapest and best childcare you can get for your buck; add to that the bonus that you can get some you-time to take care of yourself physically, and the gym membership pays for itself ten-fold.
That’s it.
I drink a lot of water. I eat as well as I can, allowing myself indulgences every now and then. I move my body as much as I can. I celebrate my body and my C-section scar for the beauty it represents. I sleep as much as I can (which can be challenging with a newborn), and I honor my body as a work in progress. Now that my body has journeyed through pregnancy, I have a new standard of beauty – and that standard is simply to care for myself well and celebrate the process.
Go, be confident in the skin you’re in.
Be you, be free.
Confidently yours,
Trish
PS: I’ve put together a FREE eBook, The 77 Secrets of Hot Moms, that highlights some of the post-pregnancy principles I have been following to help you or anyone you know get back to their pre-baby body. These 77 secrets are the habits of highly healthy, fit and confident moms that I have compiled together from my eight years of working with fit moms as a personal trainer. Get your FREE copy of The 77 Secrets today by clicking >>> RIGHT HERE <<<
Or, download your FREE copy right here: Send me the 77 Secrets!
