The truth is a woman’s body goes through numerous changes when she carrying a child. And somehow the media glosses over a lot of these non-glorious parts. And leaves most women chasing about the elusive snapback. But the truth is the female body is not a rubber band and cannot just change form and shape at a moment’s notice.
MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
I have had 4 kids and ever caught a glimpse of the ever elusive snapback with my first baby. But in all honesty I was 19, extra active and in my third year of college. So of course I snapped back of course I was never quite the same again but never less, a SNAPBACK it was. So naturally when I got pregnant again I looked forward to my “Snapback moment” and boy was I in for a rude awakening. Not only did I not snapback but I gained so much weight than my first pregnancy, I was less active and I was constantly tired. In a nutshell the journey was not easy and the postpartum journey was an uphill task but still it was pretty easy compared to the others…lol.
THE WHAT?
So if you are chasing the elusive snapback this is what you should know first. The ever elusive "snapback" is the false societal assumption that a mother must immediately shed all of her baby weight after delivery, and should immediately get back to doing everything she did before the baby. This is a false image fueled by the media, a mix of illusion – Photoshop, editing, lighting, angles and waist trainers. While we see our favorite celebrities and moguls make their first appearance post baby looking much like they do pre-baby. This is not the case for the average mother and family.
Furthermore, your goal post baby should not be “snapback” You can’t “snap” away the last 40+ weeks and all the changes your body went through to get you through. You will more lose all the weight but, Slow and steady. New moms have just two responsibilities – recuperate and nurture the baby. That’s it.
THE HOW:
Getting back to your pre-pregnancy fitness levels is influenced by a lot of things like:
YOUR AGE:
The younger you are the easier it is to bounce back or snap back, it is what it is. Am not saying you can’t snapback as you get older, but you need to put in extra effort and work for that “effortless” snapback. Just like the older you get the more effort you put into maintaining your body and looks.
WHETHER IT’S A FIRST BABY OR A THIRD ONE
The reason why the postnatal journey is easier with first pregnancies is simple, your attention I less divided. With a first baby it is just you and baby, but the second time around you have an older child to think about and it’s a bit tougher, and the more children you have the harder it it to focus on yourself solely postnatal.
YOUR SOCIAL SUPPORT SYSTEM
There is an African saying, it takes a village to raise a child, and one person does not marry a woman. In the typical African setting when a woman gives birth, the family rallies around to lend a helping hand. The woman usually doesn’t even get to bathe the baby for the first month, she is cooked for and her older kids are taken care of by the family and she is forced to rest and focus on her recovery for the first months, this is what we Igbo’s call “OMUGWO”. This massive show of social support helps you heal and get back on your feet sooner rather than later.
HOW MUCH WEIGHT YOU GAINED
Let’s talk frankly for a moment here; some pregnancies you can barely eat enough to keep healthy and other you can’t seem to stop. Every pregnancy is not the same, and the journey takes different routes at different times. So the weight gain is not uniform, and thus the weight loss does not proceed at the same pace. Now don’t go starving yourself so you don’t gain too much weight, the goal is to get through pregnancy and give birth safely to a healthy baby.
HOW ACTIVE YOU WERE PRE AND ANTENATAL.
This is the one factor no one ever talks about, your fitness level pre and during pregnancy. As cliché as this might sound, preparedness is the key to success. Your fitness level plays a huge part in determining how your postnatal fitness journey will go. This is why the Royal college of Obstetrics and gynecology recommends you to keep up 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity. It might interest you to know this is the WHO recommended activity level for adults aged 18 to 65 years.
So relax, Rome was not built in a day and more than likely it will take you time to regain pre-pregnancy fitness levels. But relax and enjoy your new-born, and remember these early days are precious. Keep thriving mama.
Xoxo
Chiamaka Ikpeze B.MR(PT)
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