Having spent my life looking after my body and health, the post pregnancy body was a little bit of a surprise.
At peak fitness due to dedicated ashtanga practice June 2014
I am now living with 34G boobs (yes-breast feeding is the cause...i never thought i would wear a bra that size) and a tummy which could be mistaken for yet another baby....accept its not...its the left overs.
I was not expecting a flat tummy after producing my gorgeous son, but the 1st week taken by surprise by suffering from Oedema....No one warned me about this and suddenly my legs, ankles and Tummy turned inflatable.
My tummy was bloated full of wind(trapped air from the C section opening me up ) & water retention, having an emergency C section & being filled with drip fluids didn't help this post pregnancy state.....
12 weeks later, finally allowed to exercise "officially", I have begun a recovery program.
4 weeks ago, i started my ashtanga yoga practice, with 1 sun salutation A...per day, but avoided any plank type poses....not only did I have a c section to recover from by separation of my belly muscles, Diastasis recti, these issues plus the standard stretch marks (i was so stretched) i felt a long way off where i had come from.
near then end, and breathless with walking, but happy May 2016
I increased weekly my sun salutations by 1, so by week 12 I was doing 5 As and 1 B.........
I did my best to do some exercise during pregnancy, much less than before, as I was always tired, out of breath due to squashed lungs(your organs move upwards to make way for the baby belly),
I was lucky to get pregnancy, not suffer greatly from morning sickness....just lack of sleep due to not feeling comfortable, normal hemorrhoid problem as baby weight was on my lower colon, especially at the end when i could feel my tummy muscles separating.......I wondered if i would burst instead of give birth.
My Tummy after birth, hormonally discoloured,, stretched & scarred
Recovery program continuing to slowly increase my Ashtanga practice, as I am publishing this blog at week 16. I will be doing 5 sun salutations A , sun saluations B and thats it.....week 17 I begin the standing poses.....
I am however not just doing my Ashtanga practice, I have a belly to repair, so i am doing post pregnancy yoga, I am doing all the things I need to do to knit my muscles together & there's more......I have joined the Gym., having replaced my ashtanga practice to pregancy yoga for 9 months (a gentle more feminine form of yoga) muscle wastage occurred, I have lost my body strength, so i am weight lifting to build muscle tone/strength as an adjuct to yoga, all very helpful supporting my work as a Ka huna Masseuse & yoga teacher.
I have always home practiced my Ashtanga yoga so now it fits in around baby sleep time,....
Having had the amazing experience of having a baby, I feel there is a need to change my view point of my body & any mothers
Women's body are a vessel to carry their soul & also to welcome other souls onto earthly reality, if they are so blessed in this lifetime.
My Son Elliott
Keeping fit & healthy means we have a chance to experience all of this & more, no matter what age we are, Although my body has changed, never to "springing back" into its youthful shape, it has grown a beautiful, healthy baby and been a door way for my son to enter planet earth....how blessed are we mothers for this amazing & spiritual experience.