Body After Birth

Navigating The Changes In My Body After Birth

The changes to my body after birth have been huge and it is not just fat, everything has moved!

Being a naturally slim person I have never really worried about my weight or figure. I have never had to watch what I eat or exercise to stay relatively slim. Yes my weight has fluctuated slightly over the years but I have never been more than 65kgs.

When I fell pregnant with my first baby I weighed 60 kgs and picked up weight incredibly fast. Shortly before birth I weighed in at 98kgs! I got fat everywhere and it was very uncomfortable. The day after giving birth a young girl asked me when my baby is due, much to her embarrassment I told her my baby had already been born. I did lose weight very quickly because I was breastfeeding but by the time I got to about 68kgs it just stayed there, the majority around my waistline. After 1 year I decided that it was enough and I decided to set up a weight loss challenge through Kaboutjie which was a huge success. By the time the challenge ended I had lost about 5kgs and I was very happy.


My stomach was still flabby and not very attractive but it was better than before. Over the next few months I lost the remaining weight and reached 60kgs again. In the same month I hit my pre-pregnancy weight of 60kgs I had another surprise, yes I was pregnant again. I cried for weeks, for a few reasons: I struggled with my first pregnancy, I got so fat and struggled to lose it, I got so depressed after birth, I struggled with breastfeeding, I struggled to work and look after my baby. My daughter was hardly sleeping and I could just imagine how having teo young children must be to handle!

Luckily for me I only picked up 14kgs in my second pregnancy and only my stomach got large, the rest of me was still very skinny. I thank my daughter for that because it must have been because I could not sit around and get fat, she had me on the run from the start to the end of that pregnancy.

It was such a different experience losing weight after birth this time because my son was exclusively breastfed and ate a lot (My daughter was breastfed and formula fed). By the time my son was 6 weeks old I weighed 55kgs and I looked terrible. I had to start stuffing my face just to keep my weight maintained. That is once again not to say that I suddenly got a 6 pack stomach, my stomach was stretch-marked, flabby and just plain gross.

My son has just turned 1 and my stomach has now grown in size due to still pigging out even though my son is not breastfeeding as much and I don’t have the time, energy or inclination to exercise. As my hubby keeps telling me: You need to do crunches not eat Crunchies! And he is spot on.


I love the chats I have with other women about their after birth bodies. Much to my amusement someone told me a few weeks ago “OMG that’s not my vagina!”. And a friend of mine refers to her “Crooked Smile”. The saggy, stretch-mark boobs, the flabby stomachs…. it is all part of bringing a child into this world. I have until this point been perfectly happy with my after baby body, even though it has suffered quite a bit of wear and tear. I blame my hubby for this complacency as he is insisting that my stomach is smaller than it was when we met. (Not sure if that is an insult or a compliment to be honest).

Now that 1 year after my baby’s birth has passed and a few times in the last few weeks I have had people ask me when I am due or congratulate me on my pregnancy I have decided it is time to make a change. I also looked at the bikinis this year and realised if I don’t do something I will never wear one ever again! Time to eat properly and exercise. Operation slim down will commence in the New Year of course, not prepared to miss out on all the great festive meals and chocolates that are coming my way.

I will keep you posted on my progress next year when I start, perhaps some mommies would like to join me on my mission!

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19 comments

  1. Gave birth 3 weeks ago and still the size of an elephant 🙁

  2. My son is almost 3 months. I breastfeed, and everyone told me that the weight just disappears if you breastfeed. Well that certainly isn’t true for me 🙁 I’ve also never really struggled with my weight, and I was probably the fittest I’d ever been just before I fell pregnant. I picked up almost 30 kg during my pregnancy and am so unhappy and uncomfortable with my weight now. New year plan is definitely to loose weight!

    • Shame Suzlynne, I know the feeling! When I get back from leave and the kids go back to creche 14 Jan I will make a plan and share it with everyone 🙂 It is much more motivating to do it with someone else!

    • Suzlynne my son is also 3 and still breastfeeding with no end in sight and I feel trapped in the exact same boat 🙁

    • True this what I feel at the moment. I gained so much weight. Started going to the gym. I don’t really see the results. Clothes don’t suit me worst they don’t even fit! My face is so chubby I hate it! I’m trying my best to eat healthy but I feel I don’t have any thing to show. I’m breastfeeding non stop but I don’t loose the weight.

      • I took a year to lose my baby weight after the birth of my first baby. Don’t be too downhearted. I have learnt to be accepting of my body. My husband is happy with my and he is the only one that really counts 🙂 Remember that your body made the miracle of a baby, love your body for that!

  3. I haven’t lost my baby fat yet, son is 1year old,still breastfeeding. It bothers me, but its the festive season now. So next year Ill browse the internet for quick easy peasy diets that make you lose kgs in record time without having to do anything else. Blah blah blah while chowing away on something sweet or greasy lol 🙂

    • LOL Mandy, you made me laugh! Let me know if you find a good solution, next year of course after we have added another 5kgs…

  4. I am with you on this one Lynne lets make a difference in 2015 We start a clean year 🙂

  5. I’ll join this club in a few weeks time!

  6. At least now I feel a bit better knowing that I’m not the only one..

    But 2015 I will definitely be back to my much healthier eating habits and will hopefully be able to fit in some exercise!

  7. It’s great to hear so many mom’s going through the same thing as me. I’m 5weeks post partum shed most of my weight except for the dreaded apron (loose wobbly fabby skin). Everyone says you ‘looking good’, why don’t I feel good? My whole shape has changed… from being small short and petite, I now am short butch and top heavy. Any advice on how I can reshape my body again.

    • Deels try not to be so hard on yourself! You gave birth 6 weeks ago and it can take a lot longer to get back into shape than that. Watch out for my blogs in the new year, hopefully something will help you with your weight loss 🙂

  8. Here’s an idea!!! maybe we can start a weight loss programme!!!! Or if we don’t lose the weight then just a programme where we can talk about it to motivate each other. It’ll be fun.I would love to follow the progress of all you beautiful mommies 🙂

    • Hi Mandy. We do a weight loss challenge a number of times and we will be relaunching it again 🙂 Unfortunately it will be a while still before we have the time to focus on it again. Watch our website for news!

  9. With my last (3rd) pregnancy, I picked up around 14kg’s. 8 Months later I have only lost 8kg’s so far … 6 to go – aint easy !

  10. The same happened to me 2weeks ago.
    I was waiting in the mall for someone when one of my friends from school years passed by and ask me… “So when is the baby due?” There was that awkward silence for a few seconds and then i replied “no my baby’s born 11weeks ago.”
    How embarrising!!! Cant wait to lose this flabby fat tummy…

    My best friend had her baby 2months before me and she’s so chilled about losing the baby fat. She said it took her 9months to look like this and she also have the most beautiful girl and she will lose wait again but she’s proud of her fat flabby tummy cause it was her “baby’s house” for 9 months and we should be proud about it. Its only temperory – we will look great thin sexy again but it takes time!

    • Marisca your friend really does have the right attitude, and yes if it took 9 months to stretch out and get all tubby then you can expect to take some time to get back into shape.

      My oldest is 5 years old and my youngest is turning 3 next week. I am not sure I will ever have my body back!

  11. I stayed look a like pregnant for 2 weeks about huge andmy c-section cut got infected for some reason like some places on cut it was it stayed open(wet) like after a bath dr said its normal it not like infected i asked for something to heal it and gave me stuff cant remember the name was good worked quickly.

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