Update

What 6 Months of Weight Training Can Do! (Ashley)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 62 Comments

You can read my full story in my 1st entry, but to sum things up: I was always pretty fit and a healthy weight but gained 60lbs during my pregnancy. Three months after giving birth I suffered from severe ankle injuries which left me pretty much unable to walk for 6 months. While I lost all the weight by 6 month PP I still felt jiggly and soft. I was able to start working out 9 months pp. I had a lot of muscle atrophy especially in my legs.

I have now had 6 months in the gym and I wanted to share “What 6 months of weight training” can do for a woman! I don’t like cardio so I haven’t done any other then going on walks pretty regularly. I lift weights for an hour a day 5 days a week. A lot of women are afraid to lift “heavy” weights, I want to show them that they won’t look like men if they pick up more the a 10lb weight! I’m TRYING to gain muscle and it’s not easy!

So to try to put things in prospective here are my “stats”:
Height: 5’9.5″
Weight: ~138-140lbs
Estimated One Rep Max Lifts:
Bench Press: 156lbs
Squat: 168lbs
Dead Lift: 168lbs
Leg Press: 600+lbs

I can do 30+ military style push-ups, only 4 military pull-ups (working on bringing that up), I can do 3 sets of 10 dips with my body weight, I’m doing bicep curls with 25 to 30lb dumbbells, etc.

I still want to get stronger but I’m pretty proud of how far I’ve come in 6 months! I think I lift pretty heavy and I sure don’t think I look “too big or manly” lol. Hopefully this will inspire some other mama’s to pick up the weights too!

-1st 2 pics: My progress, the 1st pic is 8wks pp, the second is 6 months later (I had lost the weight but not made it to the gym), 3rd pic is 6 months after the 2nd with 6 months of weight lifting (15mo pp).
-The 3rd pic is of my ab progress with 1yr between photos.
-The 4th Pic is of my ab progress with 6 months between (after I’d lost the weight to after 6 months in the gym).
-The 5th pic is my back.
-The 6th pic is back/shoulders/arms flexed.
-The 7th is front/shoulders/arms flexed.
-The 8th pic is of my legs flexed.
-AND the last one’s just for fun.

~Age: 27
~Number of pregnancies and births: 1
~The age of your children and how far postpartum you are: 16 months (15 months in the last pictures)

Updated here.

Update (Roxy)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 7 Comments

Previous entry here.

hey ive posted my story when I was 1month pp and my selfesteem was very low because my pregnancy left me in a pretty bad shape, but Ive worked my self up. Ive been doing a lot of exercise, running, walking etc,and I have noticed that I have improved alot. My stretch marks are still there but I have tried a lot of diferent lotions and they have fade away a lot. The skin ripped looks better and after 7months I feel sexy again.

The pictures are me when I was 1moth pp and 8months pp (now) and my little princess.

Breasts, Acceptance (Autumn)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Breasts, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Teen Mom, Update 13 Comments

My name is Autumn, I’m 21 (22 in September), and almost 4 years postpartum.
I’ve posted here 3 or 4 times before, mainly with updates. This time I wanted to share my postpartum breasts (my belly is included, too!).

(Previous entries here, here and here.)

I’ve always been extremely insecure about my breasts, when I was a teenager I used to cry almost every time I looked in the mirror and I’d avoid the mirror until I had to shower, because I was so ashamed of my breasts. Thinking back, I don’t understand what I was seeing that was so awful and realizing they were actually quite pretty back then, made me realize I may not be seeing them in the correct light nowadays. I’ve been on a mission recently to feel as little shame about my body as humanly possible. I’m sick of devouring myself in insecurity. I’ve come to accept each of my body parts in their own time, I’ve been okay with my tummy, legs, butt, etc for awhile now. But I just could shake off the insecurities about my breasts, and seeing the breasts in the media (mainly movies that my husband watches, mainstream movies that tend to have breasts) really did not help me in coming to terms with them. So I started Googling natural breasts and was very pleasantly surprised at the amount of breasts that resembled mine and the fact that the super perky perfect ones didn’t completely monopolize the search. They were there, but I didn’t feel threatened by them with how many other breasts weren’t super perfect (but were still very attractive!). Over the last couple of weeks I’ve found acceptance for myself as a package and I’ve never felt so good. It’s a wonderful feeling not being down on myself every second of the day. So I figured since this site has helped me immensely in coming to terms with my body and seeing that I am attractive, in spite of what the media tells us, I would add these photos to show I’m no longer ashamed!

Updated here.

Michaela Marks (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Hips, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 7 Comments

I’ve been visiting this site on and off over the past year. I happened upon it one day when I was trying to see if there was anyone else out there who was struggling with body changes, due to pregnancy, on the web.

How much more perfect can you get than this site?! This site has really helped me realize that I’m actually quite normal in how my body looks post pregnancy. I have a lot of stretchmarks … that’s the only thing I don’t like about my body. But, over the past year, I’ve gained encouragement by reading other people’s stories … especially those who are proud of their marks. I want to be too. I am striving everyday to get to the point where if someone saw my marks in a derogatory way I’d be able to say … “What about them? … You got a problem … you don’t need to look”! :)

In fact … I often call them “Michaela Marks” because that’s my daughter’s name. She left me cute little marks to remind me of when she was in my tummy. When I’m old, gray, no longer able to have children and vanity is considered for what it is … nothing more than a smokescreen … I’m going to love being able to see these marks on my tummy and hips. They represent love- Michaela is the love of my life.

I posted on here right after my daughter was born, 15 months ago, but wasn’t quite ready to share pictures. However, since I’ve gained so much encouragement by looking at other people’s pictures, I thought it was only fair to share some of my own. Hopefully it will encourage someone else to know that they are normal and not alone in their body changes.

I just stopped breast feeding too … and let me tell you … the boobs aren’t what they used to be! I’m 34 and look like I’m 12 in that department. It’s kind of funny though! That doesn’t bother me too much.

I really hope that this site becomes more and more popular so that people in our society can become more and more realistic, and through that less critical, about post pregnancy bodies. There’s so much going on in this world – why do we waste so much time worrying about our physical appearance anyway? Although I’m guilty of it myself … it’s a very selfish thing to be consumed by don’t you think?

So here’s some snaps of me! The Michaela Marks, depending on the light, are sometimes more prominent than in these shots.

Updated here.

16 Months Update (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Breasts, Cosmetic and/or Reconstructive Surgery, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 13 Comments

16 Months Update

Age: 27
Number of pregnancies: 1
Number of children: 1, 16 months old

See my first post, from 4 weeks pp, here. And my second post, from 8 months pp, here.

And now here we are, 16 months pp. Whoa. Where did that time go? I had a tiny newborn and now I’ve got a toddler! He’s a force to be reckoned with, too, but in the past 16 months I have seen myself swept up in his magic and find myself happier and healthier than I have been… well, ever.

I became pregnant in August of 07 and weighed around 175-180lbs. I gained at least 30lbs while pregnant – I stopped counting when I hit 200lbs. Today I fluctuate between 132 and 134lbs and my final goal is to maintain at 128lbs (but believe me, it’s challenging. I still haven’t broken 130.) I haven’t weighed this since I was about 19 – almost 9 years ago. It’s pretty cool.

Now I am living a life that I never thought I could achieve. I’m a stay at home mom hanging out with a very cool dude every day. I find I am gaining more confidence in myself and realizing that, seriously, stretch marks are so not a big deal. I’ve got tons of them all over my thighs, but seriously, life has SO much more going on that I forget they’re even there. I still don’t like my oogly belly, but oh well. I suddenly like salads and this year I learned to garden. All the things that seemed intimidating and scary and “too hard” for me are just… not. I can do it. I can do anything I want.

Seeing your child grow up puts a lot of things into perspective. I want to be around and healthy and set a good example for my son. A positive attitude, healthy habits, and appreciation of small things are the lessons my son has taught me – now I just hope I can return the favor to him.

Having a child was the best thing I’ve ever done. I’m so much happier, healthier and complete than I was before him. I hope someday I can tell him how much he has changed me for the better!

PS: When my son turned one I had a medically recommended bilateral breast reduction mammaplasty surgery. I’m not going to tell you or anyone else they should or should not have breast reduction surgery. I was referred for the surgery before I became pregnant and it took me 2 years to get in to actually see the surgeon for a consult. You can see the scars in these photos. It was the right move for me, and I’m very happy with the results.

2.5 Months PP, Second Cesarean in 2.5 Years (Shannon)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Child Loss, Children with Health Complications, Postpartum, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Update 9 Comments

Previous posts here and here.

age:22
Pregnancies:2 pregnancies and 2 births

I wrote that I would eventually post some pictures of my PP body, so I am! I am now 3 months PP…the pictures are 2.5 months PP though! The part where my stomach hangs from my cesarean really bugs me…but it has gotten better! Liam is doing great, laughing, smiling, doing good on his tummy, breastfeeding like a champ. I see so much of Connor in him! I read him a book my Mom made me for him called “My Big Brother, My Guardian Angel”, and he loves it. I have made 2 very amazing boys, and I love them both so much!!

Pictures:
6 months pregnant with Connor
About 8 months PP with Connor
9 months pregnant with Liam
The rest are me 2.5 months PP after both boys

Updated here, here and here.

Time Machines Don’t Exist, Unfortunately (Mir)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 5 Comments

I posted a belly photo of myself in February along with my thoughts and totally forgot to go look at it again until last night.

I want to post another couple of photos now, six months on showing my belly again. What has changed in six months? The most dramatic/helpful change is that I went back to work–which improved my level of sanity and just made me feel better about myself overall. Now, my son gets more quality time with me even if it’s not quantity. Before he was spending so much time with me but neither of us were happy with that. The set-up is much better now.

I’m not really sure how much weight I’ve lost–probably about 15-20 pounds (I’m about 175 pounds now)–haven’t exercised at all–just walk everywhere I go. I still need to lose another 30-40 pounds to be down to a good/pre-pregnancy weight. Even if I don’t lose that amount of weight, I’ve dropped about 4-5 pants sizes so that’s nothing to complain about. My boobs are still saggy but I’ve gone from a D-cup down to a C-ish cup which is nice–maybe someday I’ll see a B cup again but by then my boobs will be even more raisin-like probably. My belly is still stretched out beyond compare (nothing to do with fat–just the lose skin that’s hangin’ around there).

Um…I’m sorta neutral right now on the body-image thing. I probably still feel pretty sad and hurt over the whole thing but I try not to think about it because it just makes me feel like shit, honestly. Have decided that I’m not having any more children and have made peace with that as well in the past six months. I’m going to just keep doing a damn good job raising one and it’s gonna be awesome (probably). Thanks for all who commented before and for this encouraging site!

~Your Age: 26
~Number of pregnancies and births: 1 pregnancy, 1 birth (more than enough!)
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: 1 son, age almost 20 months, 20 months post-partum

Updated here.

That’s Why You’re Beautiful (Traci)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 6 Comments

Previous entry here.

The first time I posted here was 2 years ago. That’s quite scary! Our little ones grow up so fast. I have been viewing this site for three or maybe more years now and I am blown away by the many women who post and say they dislike their body or that they are unappy with themselves now that they have had a child, and while I can understand that (believe me, I do!) it saddens me so much because now that I am older I can truely appreciate what my body has done for me. My body had to grow to make room for a tiny human. And in growing it had to stretch that little bit extra because we can never predict how big our little squirts are going to be. And due to stretching we are given little rivers on our tummy (back, thighs, calves, breasts, etc) that grow as our baby grows. Lets face it, our little ones must get bored staring at their placenta all day! Imagine when the light or sun shines on your tummy and those stretch marks create little patterns for your baby to look at. Babies begin to learn in the womb. Wouldn’t it be nice to know they had something to look at other than their water sack! :)

What I am trying to say is, it took me a long time to realise I was beautiful. Not because of my face or my body, but because I could truely appreciate how lucky I am to have a healthy child who I watch growing every single day. I am blessed. I tell you something, I would MUCH rather have some stupid stretch marks than NOT have my son at all.

There are so many women (and men) who would take all the stretch marks, saggy skin and droopy boobs if it meant they could conceive a child of their own. Unfortunately, in some sense, things dont turn out in that way for everyone.

Biological mother or adoptive mother, either way, you are beautiful, not because of your face or your body, but because you can truely appreciate being a mother.

“Diamonds used to be coal, look young ’cause they’ve got soul. That’s why they’re beautiful.
And my heart used to be cold, ’til your hands laid on my soul. And that’s why you’re beautiful”

I attached some recent pictures of myself and how my body has changed since my last post and the rest are my two wonderful boys :)

~Your Age: 23
~Number of pregnancies and births: 1
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: 3 years and 2 months

I’m not so sure I hate my body anymore (Nicole)

Bonnie (SOAM) Before Pregnancy, Belly, Breasts, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Pregnant, Submissions, Update 15 Comments

~Your Age: 26
~Number of pregnancies and births: 1 pregnancy, 1 birth
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: Currently 15 1/2 weeks PP (photos taken at 13 weeks PP)

I have struggled with my body image ever since I was a child. I remember, when I was in primary school, sucking in my stomach during swimming lessons so that it would be flatter than the other girls’ tummies (it’s a habit I have had ever since). In high school I developed severely disordered eating, accompanied by anxiety and depression, and battled my body and weight for a very long time.

5 years ago I met and then married an amazing man who thinks I am beautiful and tells me so often. I loved being pregnant – I was healthy, happy and have never felt so beautiful in my life! My stomach, long despised, was my pride and joy. I was pregnant in summer and would walk to the pool in my bikini.

I put on 15 kg (33lb) while I was pregnant. It was 38 weeks before I saw a stretch mark and when I found my first one (I got 4 or 5) I cried and cried. And then I realised – millions of women around the world have nowhere safe to give birth, no doctors or midwives or antenatal care, how dare I act like this is the end of the world??!!! I was horrified at my vanity. My husband thinks they’re cool. He says they make me look like a pirate. I’m not so sure but they’re growing on me.

Labour was surprising, quick and hard. My son was born naturally just over 4 hours after my waters broke, 3 days before his due date. I’ve been told I was ‘lucky’ but going from the odd prelabour Braxton-Hicks to full, active labour in minutes left me feeling like I had been hit by a truck, both during my labour and for weeks afterwards. I quietly envy my friends’ stories of relaxing in the bath between their contractions!

Postpartum, I had expected to look pregnant for months after delivery, but what my hungry little boy hasn’t sucked out I unfortunately seem to have lost in a distressing haze of postnatal anxiety. It’s nice to fit into my old clothes but I would rather be fatter and happier. My body’s landscape is completely different now– where once there was muscle and firmness there just seems to be softness all over the place. I jiggle when I wiggle. My butt, which I used to like, now just kind of sags and squishes around in my pants. My problem skin flared during pregnancy and again now as I’m breastfeeding. My poor breasts have succumbed to mastitis four times.

But in the end, when I stop for a moment to silence the negative voices, I am kind of in awe of my body. It grew and protected my baby for 9 months. It was strong enough to withstand the full force of labour without a single drug or stitch. It has fed and sustained my son entirely for nearly four months now. I look at my body and then across at my sleeping child – the most beautiful I have ever beheld – and realise that my body is amazing and I can’t wait to do it all again.

Updated here.

Update Post (Kayla)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Butt, First Pregnancy, Mothers with Health Complications, Postpartum, Submissions, Update 7 Comments

My first post was called “I wish I could love my body“.

Well its been 3 months since my last post and Ive been trying to find the time to fit in workouts. When my son was 6 weeks old I ended up in hospital with gall bladder stones. I had between 20-30 attacks over the next 5 months, putting me back in hospital 3 times. I finally was booked in for surgery about 2 months ago. 2 weeks after surgery I woke with the same pains. I had to call an ambulance for myself because I couldnt get ahold of anyone to take me to the hospital. The doctor had the nerve to tell me that I had anxiety problems due to being a single mother of such a small child. A week later, while on vacation, the same pains came back. I went to the hospital in the other city. They ended up finding I had stones lodged in my liver backing up the bile causing an infection. I was rushed back to my hometown for surgery because I was alone with my son there. While they were taking it out they knicked my spleen and I ended up with a double infection, hospitalized for 7 days. I didnt have help with my son really so I never got to fully heal. Finally 2 months later I am starting to feel normal again. Here are updated photos of me at 7.5 months pp. I think that there is a bit of a difference. What do you think? He is a VERY busy 7 and a half month old. I find myself constantly chasing after him. He began crawling a couple of weeks ago. Early starter! My weight has been going between 151-161 since the hospital. I cant seem to keep it steady and get below 150. Slowly but surely I am coming to terms with my new body, but would love to just be able to lose 10-15 more pounds and tone my flabby, streched marked stomache!

Photos – 7.5 months pp
Son – 7.5 months

Updated here and here.