i admit, i lost a LOT of weight after i had bjl. and i continually get comments about it. while, yes, i lost the weight fast, and "deserved"* the comments early on...but i'm 10 months out now, and people still comment on a daily basis about how i look great, etc. while it's flattering and all, i feel like by now, a normal woman should at least be "on track" to her pre-pregnancy weight, if not there already.
am i living in an ideal world here? i've only had a baby once, and i know every woman is different..but i feel like 10 mos out, most women should look somewhat like they did before they had a baby, and the comments should really stop.
*i didn't "deserve" the comments, but they just made more "sense" the first few weeks/months after i had her.
so, WDYT?
i know, because i posted this, my next baby will take like 10 years for me to lose the weight.
Post by picksthemusic on Dec 17, 2012 13:09:25 GMT -5
It depends on the person, but rule of thumb is it takes about as long as you were pregnant to get back to pre-pg weight. If you're BFing, it's sometimes faster since you burn a ton of calories making BM. Also, it depends on how fit you were pre-pg, and that helps you bounce back a lot faster as well.
Post by georgeharrison on Dec 17, 2012 13:47:37 GMT -5
I said 6-8 months, but I don't mean like exactly where you were pre-pregnancy. It seems like it would be reasonable to expect a woman to be back AROUND pre-preg weight. I am saying like close enough to be able to wear pre-preg clothes. Of course there are some legitimate reasons why it might take longer.
Post by InBetweenDays on Dec 17, 2012 13:52:36 GMT -5
I agree it depends. For me I couldn't lose the last 10 lbs until after I stopped breastfeeding (which I did for a year+). Which isn't uncommon as I've read your body sometimes holds on to the excess weight to help with milk production.
Dude opinion: lots of people just expect moms to keep some or all of the weight gain. So it's a "pleasant"* surprise when moms get back to pre pg weight.
Also i think a lot of people think moms start to "let themselves go"* (and yes this whole frame of the issue of weight makes me hurl and i don't buy it) once there are kids.
* insert my standard disclaimer about how body image issues in society suck, especially for women, and people should find a weight/fitness that they're comfortable with and enjoy it, etc.
Well, I haven't gone through it yet, but I would "expect" 1-3 years for multiple reasons. First, you lose a lot of sleep with a newborn. Poor quality/low quantity = increased cortisol in your blood. Cortisol actually helps cause the body to retain or gain fat. Plus, I would imagine quite a bit of less healthy eating because there's the little binge of "I can eat what I want again!" combined with too exhaused to meal plan so eat ready-made meals.
I figure, about the time the kid starts running is the time a woman "should" get back to PPW since she'll ben chasing after that little one a LOT.
That said, I'm sure if I'm lucky enough to have a baby, I probably won't bounce back at all. Seems my lot in life as an exchange for being super-skinny all growing up.
Post by karebear219 on Dec 17, 2012 15:28:05 GMT -5
jennlin- I don't think people get the 10 months have gone by part. I think most people think "oh she just had a baby, she looks great". I still get comments from people on the lines of that it doesn't look like I've had a baby. On the inside I thank god that I don't considering its been over a year now. I just don't think people think about how much time has passed.
I'm in the nine months to gain it nine months to lose it camp. My nurse friend told me the body doesn't fully recover from pregnancy and child birth
jennlin- I don't think people get the 10 months have gone by part. I think most people think "oh she just had a baby, she looks great". I still get comments from people on the lines of that it doesn't look like I've had a baby. On the inside I thank god that I don't considering its been over a year now. I just don't think people think about how much time has passed.
oh yeah this is true, too. people always get surprised when i tell them how old bjl is. they think she was born yesterday. which she pretty much was
I lost my gained 30 plus 10 within months, while breast feeding. After 18 months of BFg, when i stopped, I gained 38 back... Holy crap... I'm the heaviest I've ever been... About-to-give-birth-weight... I repeat, holy shit :-(