6 Months Postpartum: Body After Baby

6 Months Postpartum:  Body After Baby

It's an interesting thing being six months postpartum. I feel like that number has a lot of weight to it, as though society has attached a underlying message of pressure for women to get their bodies back after 6 months of having your baby. The way I see it today is that i've had 6 months, JUST 6 months, of spending time with this sweet little life, learning how to be his mommy, figuring out the in's and outs of having a child, a child who grows and changes so often that each time I learn about the stage he's in, he manages to switch things up on me all over again.  Just 6 months of learning how to balance marriage, work, chores, family time, social life, cooking, time with God, and giving enough of myself to my son. … throw in fitness and living a healthy lifestyle and thats A LOT for anyone to handle.  Out of my list of priorities, fitness and strength are really important to me but are not my TOP priority in life. Being a new mom I had to learn how to juggle all of these different roles, obligations, things I enjoy, and people I love. 

I believe I have now learned how to balance everything that is a part of my life right now in a healthy way. Some weeks I am blessed to be able to make it to the gym 4-5 times and other weeks in the past couple of months I've been blessed with greater opportunities and priorities that take up my time and have caused me to choose to skip out on the gym for several weeks at a time. Both are healthy, both make me happy, and both are a blessing that I thank God for. I went on 2 vacations over the past 2 months, spent a wonderful holiday break with family and friends, worked hard with the clients God has blessed me with, was privileged enough to take time off work to stay home with my son through two cold virus' and care for him, had much needed days of rest and relaxation, and certain days I simply chose to put God and family over a work out.  I can say that exercise is helpful in keeping my sanity, helping me sleep better at night, building confidence in what my body is capable of, giving me strength to feel empowered and healthy, and is a HUGE stress reducer and outlet for me to blow steam. I am a big advocate for living a healthy life- mind, body, and spirit.. and that is why sometimes you just need to take a break and do what needs to be done: whether it be a vacation, rest, family time, social life, alone time with God, being under the weather, healing, feeling fatigued, needing a break from routine, etc.   A healthy LIFE isn't just about what you eat and staying active.. it includes your mind, your soul, and your body.  

So month 5 & 6 of being postpartum I had taken 7 weeks off from lifting weights and for 3-4 weeks only did one or two days of cardio. That doesn't mean I didn't move around and stay active while dancing at my best friend wedding or walking around Aspen and Big Bear with our families, or playing with my son at the park.  I just didn't do the whole gym thing.  Now that things have slowed down I have incorporated more activity and healthy eating back into my routine, it feels good to build back some of the muscle that I lost, and to feel strong again.  It feels good to get in a good sweat and know that Im treating my body the way it deserves.  So I missed it but definitely enjoyed some time off.  

This is the life I choose to live. A healthy one. Its my life, and I won't spend it fixated on the pressure that the world places on me to meet a goal of body weight or the way I'm told I'm supposed to look by "MONTH 6 after having a baby"… i WILL however enjoy being a first time mom, being a parent with my husband, watching my son play with his uncles, aunts, grandparents, friends and cousins, and figure out the whole balancing life being a parent thing.. & in the middle of all of that FUN,  i am dedicated to staying healthy the way I feel is best for me, myself, & I. 

I aim for 4-5 days  a week of exercise/activity which usually includes, 1-2 strength training classes and 4 days of cardio. I also make sure to get my little guy outside every day for short walks on days that I don't work. My husband and I will go on a longer walk or two on the weekends, sometimes we'll even go for a hike. 

Heres my 6 months postpartum body that the good Lord gave me! Thank you Jesus for a healthy strong body that I get to do so much l i f e with.  

Just me, no tricks, no makeup, lots of good sweat, and loving it.. pretty sure you can also see where I lost my hair (4 mnths pp) after having cash (hormones do that to ya) its finally growing back in and i have all this cute little baby hair lol! 

Theres nothing better than venturing out with my boys

Baby wearing for some good old outdoor hikes

Heres my little guy in his big boy stroller, enjoying the scenery!

I want to hear from you ladies. What pressure have you faced? How do you encourage yourself to love yourself? How do you see yourself after having a baby? 

You can read more about my postpartum journey in my posts here: 1 Month Postpartum, 2 Months Postpartum, 3 Months Postpartum, 4 Months Postpartum


xo