Now that I am three weeks postpartum, I have started thinking about my post baby shape up plan. Even though I had a pretty good tear during delivery, my doctor gave me the ok to start going on slow strolls when I got home, and slowly resume workouts after two weeks if I felt up to it. I went for one walk a week and a half after Emma Kate was born, and then another two days ago, for one hour with her in the BOB Revolution SE.
Be looking for a full review of this awesome stroller in the next month. I am loving it so far, and luckily Emma Kate loves going for walks! It’s really easy to maneuver and is so smooth, but more on that later.
Up until about day 19 I was seriously questioning my ability to get back into workouts. I was still not feeling “normal” from the delivery physically, and was experiencing pain and pressure, but I can honestly say I just woke up and turned a corner the other day, and now feel more confident in my ability to get going again. So, here is my “plan” to SLOWY get back into shape. Please keep in mind I am in no hurry, am not frantic about losing the weight, but I do feel if I don’t have a true plan outlined I will just kind of flounder around not really getting anywhere, so here goes:
1.) Cut back on the junk: My very sweet friends from church and my family have been bringing us meals for the past three weeks. This has been SO wonderful, but now that it is ending I am going to have to get back into cooking again, and not eating so much junk during the day. I cut myself slack the first three weeks because I was sleep deprived, still learning this whole mom thing and what not, but it’s time to stop making excuses. I can still be sleep deprived and eat healthy!
2.) Walk every other day until four weeks post partum, then start walk/running 2-3 times a week: Going on my one hour walk on Monday really boosted my confidence. Granted, it was a SLOW walk, but I was pushing the baby in the BOB. I plan to continue to walk, especially since the weather is nice this week, and am hoping next week to start a Galloway-type run/walk/run until I am strictly back to running and not walking. I do have some races coming up in early 2015!
new shoes make getting outside a lot easier!
3.) Join a gym at the beginning of November: When we first moved back up here in the summer, Bobby joined a local gym. I was getting to the very uncomfortable stage of pregnancy where all I was doing was walking, so I thought I would save some money and wait and join the gym after the baby came. By 4 weeks post partum I think I will be ready to start doing some light weight lifting and cross training. It will feel good to be back at a gym again!
4.) Keep track of my progress: If I don’t keep track of what I am doing to where I can see my progress, I am more likely to give up. I have been using my Aria wi-fi scale to track my weight, and will continue to do so and plan to go back to wearing my fit bit to help me keep track of what I am doing during the day.
QOTD: Any tips for getting back into shape post baby?
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Sounds great! Getting back in shape seems so overwhelming in the beginning but I bet you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how quickly you bounce back.
Stay committed and forgive yourself, as long as you know you can start over immediately, you don’t have to wait until Monday! I think loving yourself is key. Our bodies do amazing things!
Great plan! Just want to let you know that sometimes cardio can effect milk supply so just be mindful. Everything you read will say breastfeeding burns calories and women who do it bounce back quicker, it’s not always the case. I had to really wait until I was done breastfeeding to run a lot because my supply would tank. So for me, it was a lot of other types of workouts and not much running while I was breastfeeding.
Sounds like a great plan! I think by being fit before and during your pregnancy and BFing, you’re ahead of the game.
Although my little guy is not even a week old yet and I’ve had ZERO time (or interest) to think about my postpartum “shape up,” I imagine my plan will be much like yours. A lot of strolls (best time of year weather-wise) and gradually easing back into legitimate workouts and runs. The only “goal” I have is to run my first 10k in mid-March (I’ll be just over 5 months postpartum).
Good luck girl! I’m sure that you will have no trouble bouncing back since you remained so active throughout your pregnancy.
Increase your water intake the more you work o
Be sure to hydrate more then you normally would. Breastfeeding takes a lot of fluids from you.
Sounds like a great plan! I’m always so amazed by new mamas who are able to get back out there immediately after giving birth – so much just happened to your body! But the body is such an amazing thing, and is full of surprises I guess! But sounds like you’ve got a great plan for you and your beautiful baby!
You are so positive, I love it!!!
The only thing I could suggest is making some nice, healthy snacks in advance to leave in your fridge. There will be days when you won’t have time to brush your teeth, let alone prep a healthy meal so if you are blessed with an easy day go ahead and make up a bunch of grab foods for the fridge, or if you can swing it, prep some of your dinners for the week to cut your cooking time in half. You could do this while EL gets some daddy bonding time :).
Emma Kate :). Sorry, autocorrect made it EL 😉
Sounds,Ike a great plan! I have no doubt you’ll bounce back quickly!
You got this girl!
Yes, eat healthy but with BF make sure you are eating enough. Between BF and working out you don’t want to have too few calories. It will hurt your supply. I also aim for at least 100 oz of water a day when I’m not working out and just BF. I’d love to see what cleanse items I can use while I’m still nursing. Thanks for posting the link, I’ve been working on finding somewhere I can get this sort of thing from. Keep up the great work!
Working out also makes a big difference in post-partum depression and post-partum anxiety. If you run into that I’ve found that exercise is a huge mood improver.
Sounds like a great plan Heather! Since you were in such great shape before your pregnancy I think it won’t take you long to get back to where you were!
I think doing the advocare cleanse is a terrible idea! You are breastfeeding – you DO NOT need to diet!!! The weight will come off JUST FROM BREASTFEEDING! I don’t know why women put so much pressure on themselves to get skinny after baby. It is sad. I know you don’t feel like “yourself” yet, I’ve been there. If you focus on eating healthy, drinking water, getting some sleep, and exercising like you said, the rest will fall into place. I promise.
Im not dieting, just making healthy choices. Also, been doing a lot of formula supplementing, long story.