mom bod (a machine)

lets talk about postpartum body recovery. shall we?

doesn't that sound exciting and glamorous?!?!

i gained 37 pounds with this pregnancy.

i'm down 20. 

this has happened with terrible eating habits (poptarts, cereal, DDP) and no exercise (except being a mother to  young boys). 

so, i feel like, with moderate exercise and healthier food choices i will see some results.

i'm not reaching for a number on the scale. but i would like to fit in my white jeans. 

more importantly, i have humans to  keep up with that require a substantial amount of energy and agility.

side story: last week i thought i'd wear said white jeans.

they are a boyfriend-ish style and were kind of loose pre-pregnancy, so i thought there was a chance that they'd slide on (terrible idea).

so, here i was in the closet doing the trying-to-get-pants-over-my-hips dance.

Judson was in the room observing.

sweetly, he says "mom, i think those are too small"

yeah, i know. hush.

sweet, cherub Judson, "those are like Kristen's size"

if you know my newest sister-in-law, she is adorably petite and might have to get a size 0 altered.
she is also approximately the size of my 2nd grade body.

i love my son.

moving on...

where was i?

oh yeah, the postpartum body....

my hips and back ache

the hips- because a human had to fit through them.

the back- because i carry a human(s) all of the time and i know my posture suffers from it.

also, at times, we have 5 people sleeping in our bed. 

so you have to contort your body to avoid kicks to the ribs, elbows to the face and falling off of the bed. and a nursing newborn.

so, a healthy body that feels good and can perform well. 

these are my goals

not a ripped body and low body fat. although that would be a nice subsequent outcome.

here's what i've been doing since about week 2. 

stretching. 

mostly in the morning and at night after i shower.

my plan is to keep this up.

it feels good and the results (less aches and pains) are felt almost immediately.

as i progress, i plan to add in more strength training...using my body weight. i.e. yoga.

eventually i will start running again.
most likely that will start after the hot-as-blazes summer ends.

the reason i called the mom bod a machine is because i am amazed at what God created the woman's body to do.
grow a human, get that human out of the body, then be the sole provider of sustenance for that human after born.
isn't that amazing???
so i do feel like my body is a machine, sort of.
i've got to keep it well oiled so that it can function.
not for me, but for my children!
mostly the one that is getting EVERYTHING she needs from my body.
and the boys because they don't need a mom who is too unhealthy to play with them.
pretty good incentive, i think.

i'll keep you up dated as i get the machine in top working order