I delivered twin boys via c-section in January ’09 at age 38. Now I am 39 (40 later this year). For many years pre-pregnancy, I worked out frequently and intensely. I am 5’5″ tall, and at the time I got pregnant (my first and only pregnancy), I was very fit and weighed about 120 pounds. I definitely was concerned with what pregnancy would do to my body, but I also knew I had to gain a great deal of weight, and do so relatively quickly, since twins were more likely than not to come early, and I wanted mine to be as big and healthy as possible. I exercised mildly through week 30 or so, and religiously applied vitamin E oil to my belly, back, butt and thighs, though I knew this would probably have little or no effect. By the day I delivered at 34 weeks (when my preeclampsia became too severe for my doctor to allow me to continue with the pregnancy), I weighed over 190 pounds; my boys weighed 4 lbs & 3 oz., and 4 lbs 13 oz. at delivery. Although they had to spend a couple of weeks gaining weight in the NICU, the doctors and nurses all told me how impressed they were with boys’ sizes given their gestational age.
I nursed and pumped my breasts until the boys were 6 months old, and then switched to formula. During this time, when I wasn’t going crazy taking care of twin infants, I was despondent about my weight and my body but had absolutely no time to exercise or do anything else for myself. I wore maternity clothes for at least 4 months postpartum, and then bought 2 pairs of large cargo pants (I couldn’t come to terms with buying any other “big” clothing), and wore them to death, along with empire-waisted nursing tops. Lots of weight came off, but still I couldn’t stand the sight of myself naked, and avoided my friends and colleagues. By July ’09 I was down to around 145 pounds.
By September ’09, I was still up about 20 pounds, and vowed to do something about it. By that time I had the assistance of a nanny to help with the kids, and could take some time to exercise. I started going back to the gym, but even with help it was too difficult to have to schedule workouts outside the house. I committed myself to a home workout program, and followed through (note this involves approximately 1,000 abdominal exercise repetitions weekly — in addition to very challenging resistance routines for each major muscle group). By Thanksgiving, I felt like I had 90% of my old body back. I am now half-way through my second round of the program, and I can actually see my old body when I look in the mirror — so long as I’m standing far back enough not to notice that my areolas are a bit stretched out, and I have a bit of extra skin on my belly. I am actually very self-conscious about my areolas, but the extra belly skin is okay and I love my c-section scar!
My husband hasn’t given me any positive feedback on my body whatsoever. I have worked my butt off (literally), and am really pretty proud of myself for what I’ve accomplished, which is why I’m sharing here.
As for my boys, they are absolutely amazing. Within a few months, they were all caught up in terms of their prematurity. Now, at just over a year out, they are healthy, hilarious, gorgeous and smart. I love them beyond all measure.
WOW! is all i can say. for some1 who’s had twins and gained that much weight you look really really good!!!
Did you ever get stretchmarks tho’??? (just wondering, coz ur skin in th epic looks FLAWLESS! and u look sooooooooooo fit!)
wow…you have abs! I want some…I am only 23 and look HORRIBLE next to you…your body just made me so sad. your husband is crazy not to notice!
Holy Sh**! You look awesome! I’m so sorry your husband doesn’t tell you this. Why don’t you ask him if he likes your new body?? I bet he does but maybe he feels insecure and/or jealous?
Keep up the great work and btw, those babies are amazingly adorable!
Dang! Your body looks AWESOME!!! Not an ounce of fat and totally defined! You rock hot mama!
Are you referring to the P**x. I started my second round at 10 weeks PP after a c-section.
You look great! You should be very proud of yourself, your boys, and all that you have done. :)
my husband hasnt given me any good feedback either (well other than the usual you look hot…he has said that for years so its nothing new)…I have had 2 kids and I STILL look damn good…flat belly, abs, no stretch marks..but he doesnt seem to notice how hard i work out or anything…
as for you, you look amazing,hotter than women half your age even,! way to go, your hard work had paid off.
You look amazing!!! Would you mind sharing your workout :)
You look fantastic!!! I too am a twins mom, my twins will be a year in May and i am hoping to get my old body back before my wedding in August. If you don’t mind me asking, what workout regimen are you doing. I will be starting p90x soon & i cannot wait! I am already below my pre-pregnancy weight but am still a little soft in my belly area. Any recommendations.
Again great job all of your hard work has paid off you look AMAZING & ur husband should compliment you ALL the time!! So shame on him! :(
Well your hard work has sure paid off. You look amazing!
Wow! If your husband will not give you positive feedback I’m sure this community will be glad to. You look stunning and your hard work has totally paid off! BTW, your areola look good. I don’t see any stretching:)
First of all… you look awesome! Seriously…. really good, healthy and athletic. I had my first a year ago when I was 37 (I’m now 38 years old) and I’ve been doing Crossfit training, pilates, running (even completed 2 races!), yoga, etc. I’ve lost 65 pounds. All the baby weight I gained with a SINGLE baby! My Husband hasn’t said anything either. I work out 6 days a week! I heard him the other day telling his friend that I’ve been working so hard and that he was proud of me. Crazy… Men just don’t really know how to express themselves. Doesn’t make it right but… Anyway, just wanted to tell you my story in hopes of making you feel better. Twins!?!? You kick ass!
WOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! You look flipping amazing! I’m so jealous of your muscles! Jeez, I really have no ability to keep working out. I’m so, so jealous! You look like I want to look. I’d love to have more definition. Shame on your hubby for not saying anything! You look beyond amazing!!! :D
You look great! and the muscle if very hot! I feel bad for those of you whose husbands aren’t giving you positive feed back, I guess I got lucky there! Are they in great shape? Maybe they’re feeling a little jealous or threatened?
Anyway, keep it up!
Your confidence would make you beautiful even if you hadn’t lost all the weight.
i can’t believe i forgot to check to see if my posting was published!
thank you all SO VERY, VERY MUCH
I can’t believe I didn’t check back sooner to see if my posting had been published!
Thank you all SO SO VERY VERY VERY much for your positive comments. I am so touched. I was feeling totally lazy about working out today, and was thinking of skipping, but now I am encouraged to soldier on. So again, thank you thank you thank you.
Azalia: Amazingly, I didn’t get stretch marks! My belly was freakin’ GINORMOUS. I looked like a cartoon. Friends said that they wouldn’t have believed it if they hadn’t seen it.
Shannon: don’t feel sad. You had a baby. You’re awesome. I felt totally dejected about my body before I committed to a serious workout plan, and I trained as an endurance athlete for many years before I got pregnant. And doing all this ab work kind sucked. At some point, if/when you’re ready, commit to a workout program if you think it will make you feel better. If you commit to any exercise program and follow through (this is of course is the tough part), you’ll get results.
Anna/Kat: Thanks, you guys.
Elizabeth: Yep, that’s the one.
Justice: Nice work! Our husbands are dopes.
Andrea/Sierra: I don’t want to type the name because I don’t my posting to be picked up in web searches, but it starts with a “P” and ends with an “X” and the trainer guy’s first name is Tony. Sierra, this workout has my hips, but and abs looking better than they ever, ever did. Very hard work, but if you do it, you get results — 1000 ab exercises a week just plain works.
Lauren: thanks, mama.
Ms. Petunia: that’s because I’m standing far back from the camera to get my whole body in the shot. Trust me, it’s there.
Newish Mommy: I’ve always wanted to do Cross Fit! For a long time, I did a similar-ish program — group exercise where everybody could work at their own level, with a focus on strength/fitness, not “getting skinny.” Loved it.
Sarah/Ashley/John: thank you so much. Btw, Ashley, my husband is totally sedentary. Does no exercise whatsoever; totally weak and out-of-shape; skinny. Coincidence?
xoxo
I haven’t stopped by this site in a few months, but I randomly checked in today — today, a day of culminated frustration with my body.
I used to be extremely fit too, but got pregnant with twins in March ’08. I, too, gained lots of weight to get the babies as big as possible, as quickly as possible. I gained 60 pounds and ended the pregnancy weighing 185 at 38 weeks gestation.
15 months post-partum, I’m still 10 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight but I’m so out of shape, I can’t stand it. Seeing your post today has sent me over the edge — I need to commit this to myself. I don’t have help, but I will find a way to get myself feeling good again.
All that is to say: THANK YOU. You look absolutely amazing and have inspired me to get back on the wagon. Congrats on your beautiful boys, too :)
Hey momma, I am also a mother of twins and I can tell you that I know the crazy journey it takes you on! I gained just over 75lbs and here I am 15 months PP and still have about 10lbs to go, but no stretch marks and just a bit of extra skin. I look up to you! You really look amazing! I carried to 38 weeks and both babies were just over 6lbs so I am proud of my journey with the, but your post showed me I need to kick my butt back into gear and just get there again! I know I ccan do it. Thank you for your inspiration!
Thank you for this post. You look amazing….I realize you posted this some time ago but just came across it. I am 5 1/2 mths postpartum and have lost the bulk of my pregnancy weight gain but have a ways to go. Your post has helped to motivate me to get myself on track and back in the gym. I can appreciate how hard you have worked and hope your hubby has come to let you know how amazing you are and how fabulous you look! I only hope my results are as wonderful. Heck I’ll be happy if I can lose the tire of fat around my midsection!
Wow, just wow! You really look amazing. I am 10 months post partum with twins and I thought how is that even possible when I saw your photos but now I know that it is possible to be proud of my body again if I put in the effort so thanks for posting. I love that you are proud of your c-section scar. Maybe I will like mine more if the skin ever stops hanging over it. Your scar actually looks beautiful as it shows part of your bodys amazing journey. Did you not get split abs or anything? I am now one dress size above my pre-pregnancy one and don’t have much fat left but still have quite a pot belly that I’m not sure will go without surgury.
Once again, you look great and are an inspiration :)
You look amazing! It’s hard when husbands don’t notice. I lost all my weight and then some after my first pregnancy and felt really good. Fast forward three years and I fell pregnant with my second baby and had a missed miscarriage at 11 weeks :-/ I ended up gaining 30 lbs but am now happily pregnant again and really praying for things to go well this time. I hope to get my body back again like you! I’m glad you admit to how hard it is!