flabby/saggy tummy

hi moms,


i am a mother of two kids. With both my pregnancies I gained around 10-11 kg (all belly)and got back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 48kg within 5-6 weeks postpartum. So, losing that pregnancy weight has not been a problem but there is this 3 inches of fat that has unlawfully taken residence in my midriff (which, by the way, is so flabby/saggy that it settles down in my lap when I sit down). Very short (5 feet/152 cm) and small-built, yeah, you get the picture. it does look pretty gross. Yikes!


I am still nursing (including nights) my second child, who is about 8 months old - and plan to do so, for another year or so. I don't know wheher it is because of the breastfeeding, but I do feel much hungrier than before. Any diet that I could safely go on, while breastfeeding? With a toddler and a baby, I do not find time for a consistent exercise routine. Now that the weather is warmer, I am thinking of taking up walking - does that help?


I was never the kind to fret unduly about my body (not even after my first pregnancy) but now I do find it difficult to come to terms with this post-pregnancy body of mine. So ladies, please do write in and tell me what has worked for you!!

First of all, in a nice way I hate you for gaining so little and losing it so fast :) (I turn into a beached whale and take much longer to lose it!)


But even for you lucky ones, PILATES, PILATES, PILATES.... not just a class, but try very focused Physio Pilates at Adventist, you can get a referral from your doctor and your insurance might cover it.


And lastly - congratulations for nursing, lucky babies!!

Well, I totally agree with the exercise suggestions and would add, that mommy needs to take care of herself. You need exercise not only for your "shape" but also to build the stamina to deal with kids and the long term fitness to keep your skeleton (posture, back, etc) in good shape as you age! (I'm NOT one to talk, I'm living proof that lack of exercise is not good! But I feel sooo much better overall physically and mentally when I do exercise!) If at all possible, find a gym and make it part of your everyday routine to spend an hour there, use an amah or find a place that has a nursery if it's good. But if that's not possible, put on some music in your house and dance through your regular household chores, then be sure to do some crunches and all those other trunk-strengthening exercises (angry cat, pelvic tilts etc) that you know are good for you. Your toddler will love dancing and exercising right along with you, while baby watches, naps, or plays! And as Susi hints . . . if worse comes to worst, there's always the tummy tuck. My very petite sister in law had one for medical reasons several years after her twins were born, they found she had a hernia that prevented the tummy from ever being normal without one.