But why? Accepting My Post-Baby Body

I am now a mom of three small children.  Whoa!  That was unexpected.  One of the hardest things for me has been accepting my post baby body.  But why?  Why can’t we accept the amazing thing our body just did?  Why is it so hard for moms to come to terms with how their bodies have changed once we are holding our beautiful, perfect, amazing babies in our arms?  Why? 

I don’t think the answer is the same for everyone.  For me, it was knowing I was the fittest I had ever been when I got pregnant with my third beautiful baby.  I had worked so hard to get to that point.  My original goal was to work as hard as I could to maintain that during the pregnancy.  I got sick for about nine weeks with a ‘bronchial thing’ as my doctor called it.  It made it very difficult and painful to breathe. My fitness took a hit.  A bit one.  On the good days I could walk at a super slow pace.  This was not a way to maintain fitness.  Eventually I recovered from that and then the third trimester hit.  Again, it was hard to breathe and move.  Really hard. 

I have been wanting to get back to fitness and in the meantime, I’ve been ashamed of how my body looks.  But why?  If this isn’t how a body is supposed to look after having a baby?  How IS it supposed to look?  This is how my body looks. The fitness will come in time.  Will my body change as I get back to fit?  Probably.  In the meantime, I’m going to enjoy each of my children who came from my body. 

Almond Crusted Chicken

This instantly became one of my favorite recipes.  I love it and make it all the time.  It's from the Hammer and Chisel nutrition guide.  I'm pretty sure you'll like it too! 

Click the image to make it bigger.

Motivation

Motivation is key for the journey to a healthy life.  My motivation has morphed along the way. First it started with me being in a really deep, dark, hopeless place.  The possibility of crawling out of that place one burnt calorie at a time motivated me.  It was is a daily struggle.  It's hard.  So hard.  Fitness is just plain hard.  It hurts.  The pain makes it so easy to think you should just stop.  I mean after all, aren't you doing this to feel better?! 

It didn't take too long before I started seeing the number on the scale get smaller.  OK.  Now we're on to something!  This might have been worth it after all.  Then eventually, my motivation came from success.  Knowing my starting point and knowing I was actually not only losing weight, but becoming more fit, became my motivator. 

Then eventually, my success in itself was my motivator.  Why would I ever do anything that would put me back where I started from?  Hard work pays off and knowing I am working hard day after day motivates me. 

Where Do I Even Start?!

So I guess I'm a blogger now.  Wait...what?  How, when...what?  I don't know.  I'm just here trying to be as healthy as I can and trying to help a couple people along the way if I can.  I'd love you to be one of them!  But before that, I'm guessing I should tell you a little about myself.  Here's where my path to becoming a blogger starts:

My story starts like so many others, and I'll admit, it's almost cliché.....it starts with embarrassment and shame after having my babies.  Ugh.  It's real.  Really real.  I came to a point where I thought that was it and my 'new normal' was here to stay.  Did you hear that?!  I just about gave up.  On myself.  DON'T.  EVER. DO. THAT.  We are all created to do great things.....we just have to start. 

After being embarrassed of my postpartum maternity pants wearing self, I decided to make a change.....does that sound familiar?  A flip of the switch.  How or why it suddenly flips, I don't know.  But when it does, look out!  When my switch flipped it was time for me to not just get back to the athlete I used to be, but be a better version of that athlete, and me.  I have always been a runner, running in high school and college and continuing since college training for the occasional half marathon. Eventually, I got to the point where logging the miles got a little easier and less painful after the baby.  But running just wasn't cutting it.  Weight was not coming off and my maternity pants seemed to find a forever home in my dresser drawer.  Yuk.

Enter P90X3!  I knew about P90X and even bought it and got through a few weeks of it about ten years ago.  However, because the workouts are pretty intense and about an hour long each, it just wasn't something I could keep up while training for half marathons.  I would have been one over-trained, mess! I saw P90X3 as my opportunity to get the rest of my body in shape...the parts you don't train and tone through running...there's a lot of them. I added it to my daily training routine after my runs. Towards the end of the program I ran my first half marathon in two years and less than one year after my second baby.  I ran my fastest time by far, which I credit to the athletic training emphasis of P90X3.  Beachbody has brought me back to the athlete and competitor I once was. 

So here I am, documenting where I came from, where I am and where I hope to go.

I want nothing more but to help others, help you feel the same!  Isn't today as good a day as any to start?!  If not now, when?

~T.