6.5 Months Later: Postpartum Body & Fitness

I've been meaning to revisit the whole postpartum fitness thing but honestly, it makes me a little - well, uncomfortable? depressed? self-conscious? all of the above?

First, let's go through the current positive state of things:

1. My arms are more muscular. You can see my biceps and triceps flex when I move my arms - without trying!
2. My legs are more muscular. Some muscles are more defined than ever. Others are more noticeable (like hamstrings) than ever.
3. My leg cellulite is almost gone. Seriously. I know, I know. It's not supposed to work like that. But seriously, it worked like that. I have a little hanging out, but it's nothing like before pregnancy, which is pretty damn cool.
4. I have a waist. My hips and chest are clearly bigger than my waist. I'd go so far as to say that my hourglass is coming back (thank the LORD!).
5. While the stretch marks are still around, they've faded significantly which is nice.

Okay, now for the negative state of affairs:

I don't think I'm ready for this jelly!

1. My KP has spread to my forearms and my chest. It's annoying and I feel like I can't spread enough Eucerin lotion on my body (or maybe I'm just lazy about the lotion application and I should be doing it 25 times a day?).
2. I still have a pooch. I've always been sensitive about my belly area and never really had a flat stomach, but this is more difficult for me to handle because of the nature of it...
3. The pooch is like a bowl of jelly. This is partially because of ligaments, partially because of extra skin, and partially because of the fat layer. I want it gone like you wouldn't believe.
4. My breasts have definitely changed. I knew it would happen, and I'm not sure how I feel about it (I definitely appreciate good bras these days for so many reasons). Because I'm close to apathetic and it's generally seen as a negative by society, I'm putting this on my negative list.
5. Stretch marks have faded, but they still make lines across my body and I'm worried they indicate a lack of elasticity in my skin (read: it might never go back to normal).
6. My ankles still appear to be swollen. I think this has something to do with breastfeeding but I'm not sure.

So now you're wondering what the scoop is on the process and maybe how you measure up. Just what have I been doing about this whole thing?

This...shaking and wiggling and giggling...in 20lbs

1. I'm continuing to track my food and exercise on Noom, though I'm not always good about it. Still, I do it more often than not and so I still think about my food choices which is good.
2. I'm trying to sleep at least 6 hours a day because I know that helps your metabolism.
3. I breastfeed, which I think has helped, but honestly I can't be sure.
4. I slather my skin with lotion after every bath or shower and I wear sunblock religiously.
5. I try to eat at least every 4 hours something small if not a meal (supposed to help with metabolism). Being able to eat and feeling the need to eat has helped me feel reasonable about myself.
6. I've added exercise to my day - either intense cardio, circuit training, walking, strength training, or yoga daily (sometimes two or three of these).
7. I use playing with kiddo as a kind of exercise which seems to work well for both of us (kettlebell + Shakeweight workout in one!).
8. I try to wear only clothing that makes me feel good about my body. This one might seem weird, but it really helps my body image these days.
9. I don't use the scale. This is because when I'm working out I tend to gain muscle pretty quickly and densely which means the scale doesn't really move for a while and it gets me pretty depressed even if my clothes fit amazingly well.

I still have a long way to go before I feel like I have things in hand, but still I think I've come a long way so far. I've definitely lost a lot of inches and I look a lot better than I did 6 months ago. If I'm honest with myself, I've probably lost most of the baby weight and the weight I have on me is mostly muscle. The changes in my body don't have to do with "weight" per se, but are related to pregnancy and giving birth. As such, I'm not sure how they will stay or go.

I've seen a lot of woman online talking about how they lost all the weight and how their bodies are better than ever. They often post pictures to prove it. On the other hand, I've seen just as many women attempting to claim the changes in their body and reach some kind of acceptance of the loosy goosy skin, wider hips, etc. It's clear that some women (a very very select few) are blessed with incredibly elastic skin, perky breasts, and low body fat % (a product of youth and genetics) while others are...not.

On the other hand, all women don't have the gift of muscle or healthy babies. I happen to love muscle. In fact, I'm kind of like a little boy that way. I would clean and jerk all day in front of the mirror, staring at my biceps and hamstrings if I had the time. Seriously. 

And of course, nothing can beat out having a healthy baby. So while I'm still coming to terms with the changes in my body (and the fact that while I'm still doing better than a lot of women society pushes an image that is unrealistic) I am incredibly grateful to have a beautiful, healthy, happy, little boy.