Mangled Midsection

LightBright515 · May 2014

Don't flame me for the title..

With your first baby, was your midsection taken past the point of no return?

I lieu of another thread talking about body changes, I realize that I'm not mad or too concerned about my waist expanding and clothes not fitting. BUT I'm extremely curious about YOUR experiences with "snapping" back post baby and how you and your SO feel about what didn't go back to normal..

pinkshades05 · May 2014

My stomach looked pretty baggy for the first few months and it has really never been the same. I have lots of stretch marks that have faded over the years and it's still a little poochy. However, it has never bothered me. It's never kept me from wearing a particular dress or bathing suit or anything.

JessAnnJ · May 2014

I think a lot has to do with how in shape you were before pregnancy. I've seen fit people bounce back and you would never know. Stretch marks depend on your genetics but they fade a lot for most people. I was not really fit before my first pregnancy and didn't really work out after. I went back down to my pre pregnancy weight but definitely had more of a pouch and was thicker in the hips so my clothes didn't fit the same. I have stretch marks but they are light now and I like them because they remind me of my pregnancy. What stands out to me as never being the same again are my boobs. Definitely extra sag when compared to prepregnancy. ETA - DH still seems to find me just as sexy and I don't care. Though I do hope to commit to exercise after this baby.

Emerald27 · May 2014

By 9 months postpartum, my stretch marks had turned white/faded almost completely, and my baby belly was almost all gone. I had lost all my pre-pregnancy weight and a few extra pounds (breastfeeding burns like 500 calories a day, and it worked great as a weight loss plan).

You could still see my stretch marks if you shined a flashlight on my tummy, but in normal light, there really wasn't much difference between my pre- and post- pregnancy belly. The only things that have permanently changed are that my boobs went from a B to a D, and my hips are wider, so I wear a size larger in pants.

ETA:

jcsumm0 · May 2014

I also lost all the weight while BFing, and looked pretty much like before except I think my hips were a bit wider. Then I gained 10lbs back because I continued to eat like I was nursing a newborn while I was nursing a toddler.

That was my own fault though.

JessAnnJ · May 2014

One more thing I wanted to add is that your age probably factors in. There is a pretty wide age range on this board. I will say that my body at 33 is different than it was at 23 and not all is related to pregnancy so who knows what it would have been like had I had children earlier. The older I get the harder it is to lose weight. I was 31 when I had DD.

BreandMikewedding · May 2014

With my dd I lost all my pregnancy weight almost instantly but my hips got wider and my feet grew 1/2 a size and never went back. With my ds I have a lot of flab on my tummy. He stretched my skin so much and it's never gone away. My feet also grew with him.

2goingon3 · May 2014

Stretch marks galore (I have medium brown skin tone, those suckers have faded some but have never looked faint, the whiteness stands out pretty bad), "loose" tummy, and my feet went up 1/2 a size as well, which never went back. The only thing that I could "fix" with vigorous exercise is the loose tummy, that I could tighten and tone, but it will be very hard work. I lost all my weight after my 2nd, and even fit into a size smaller than pre-pregnancy, but never looked the same naked!!

MagentaMouse · May 2014

I had a 23-inch waist before I had DD and now I'm 5 lbs less than I was then and my waist is 27 inches. FML.

ETA: Well, it was 27 inches before I got pregnant. Not actually sure (nor do I care!) what it is now.

IrishHoney123 · May 2014

My midsection recovered quickly from DS1. I'm left with a saggy belly button after DS2. I've been lucky not to get any stretch marks (I can't believe it, my mom's are pretty bad). BFing helped me lose the weight after each. I've had issues with ab separation, but eventually it resolved each time. DH says I'm "softer" now, but that he prefers my body post babies.

slsl509 · May 2014

I lost all of my pregnancy weight but my stomach is still jacked up. I have a 10" vertical scar from above my belly button all the way down to my pubic bone and a c-section scar that runs horizontally. Short of major plastic surgery, my stomach which was once flat, will always be jacked up and I'm trying to just live with that. I'm in my 30s and that makes a huge difference.

mle7106 · May 2014

By 6 months pp I was back to my pre-pregnancy weight and fit into my old clothes. I started working out and eating right again around 4 months pp and it pretty much melted off. My stretch marks faded by about 9 months pp. My feet grew 1/2 size and never went back. My stomach kept a pooch and my boobs deflated once we finished BFing.

IrishHoney123 · May 2014

Yes, @mle7106, I didn't know the deflated boobs would happen....such a bummer!

BBBrady · May 2014

My boobs definitely deflated like 2 week old balloons. I went up a pant size due to hips, even after I was at pre-pregnancy weight. My belly button will never be the same. I had six pack abs and now I have a two finger width diastasis recti split so I had quite the pouch before getting pregnant again. But I would do it all again in a heartbeat as I cuddle in bed watching cartoons in bed with my dd. Hubby might care, but he gained weight with me so he can't complain

JessAnnJ · May 2014

IrishHoney123 said:
Yes, @mle7106, I didn't know the deflated boobs would happen....such a bummer!

Deflated is definitely the right word.

ashie0610 · May 2014

JessAnnJ said:
I think a lot has to do with how in shape you were before pregnancy. I've seen fit people bounce back and you would never know. Stretch marks depend on your genetics but they fade a lot for most people. I was not really fit before my first pregnancy and didn't really work out after. I went back down to my pre pregnancy weight but definitely had more of a pouch and was thicker in the hips so my clothes didn't fit the same. I have stretch marks but they are light now and I like them because they remind me of my pregnancy. What stands out to me as never being the same again are my boobs. Definitely extra sag when compared to prepregnancy. ETA - DH still seems to find me just as sexy and I don't care. Though I do hope to commit to exercise after this baby.

Exactly the bolded. I was very into fitness prior to my last pregnancy and was (comfortably) in a bikini again the summer after DS was born. My body changed for the better IMO. I eased myself back into working out after the all clear from my doctor at 6 weeks and was back in pre-pregnancy clothes around 7 months. With bf'ing and working out, I ended up losing more weight than I gained and was at my lowest weight ever at 10 months PP. I got back up to my normal weight after we weaned.

I'm very curious to see if the same applies this time. Something tells me it will be a little tougher to get my body back to where I am comfortable so I'm tying to stay very active and avoid junk food during the pregnancy.

mle7106 · May 2014

JessAnnJ said:

Yes, @mle7106, I didn't know the deflated boobs would happen....such a bummer!
Deflated is definitely the right word.

The good news is they look great since getting pregnant again! And I agree with others, it's 1000% worth it!

JessAnnJ · May 2014

mle7106 said:

JessAnnJ said:

IrishHoney123 said:
Yes, @mle7106, I didn't know the deflated boobs would happen....such a bummer!
Deflated is definitely the right word.

The good news is they look great since getting pregnant again! And I agree with others, it's 1000% worth it!

---End Quote---

Yes they do. We've already had a conversation about how much more deflated they will look later. Just enjoying the moment

ohdaddycat · May 2014

Everyone is different. My stomach went down pretty quickly but my breasts weren't the same until I became pregnant with baby number two.

JJsMum · May 2014

With DS#1, I got bad stretch marks, as in, when I got preg with DS#2 they were still purple (I am a pale white girl, bikinis are no longer an option). I also lost all the pregnancy weight by my 6 week PP check up (I exclusively pumped). When I got pregnant with DS#2 I weighed less (about 20 lbs less) than I did with #1, put on the same amount of weight, my stretch marks did not get any worse, but I could not lose the last 10 lbs of baby weight. Even though we BF until 6 months, I never did lose that last 10 lbs before getting pregnant again. We shall see what this LO does to me. It astounds me that pregnancies and recoveries can be so very different!

LightBright515 · May 2014

I think I'm going to start working out again. I'll be walking around the lake in my area this weekend, and may go for a few walks on my days off this week.

Mnerani · May 2014

I lost all of the weight (a little under 30 lbs) by 2 months PP. I attribute that to breastfeeding and working out almost every day throughout my pregnancy.

However, my boobs definitely aren't as perky anymore and my belly button is perma-stretched. I only got a few small stretch marks, which you can't see anymore. I hate the way my belly button looks, but...there are worse things in the world.

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