My pregnancy journey has been a unique one. I was pregnant for almost 2 years straight. First I had Enzo and then when he was just 6 months old I found out I was pregnant with identical twin girls! My multiple pregnancy with the twins was much harder on my body than with Enzo. I worked out as much as I could but my workouts were super limited and I couldn’t really do much for the last few months. What I could do was keep my nutrition in check and eat as healthy as I could. Don’t get me wrong, I did indulge in plenty of strawberry snow cones but for the most part, I tried to keep my diet in check and not give in to every pregnancy craving. It just goes to show you that nutrition really is 80% and working out is the 20%. I stayed true to my 1st Phorm supplements; prenatal vitamins, fish oil, opti-greens 50, and Level1/Phormula1 protein shakes on the daily (free shipping if you order here)! You can also read about my pregnancy regimen for fitness, nutrition, skin care and beauty here! But today we’re talking about how it all went down after birth.
Postpartum Fitness
After I gave birth to Enzo it took about 6 months to really get back in shape and feel like I had my body back. The switch finally when off right after I stopped breastfeeding. I think it was a combination of finding a new sense of independence and also a big hormone fluctuation. That is until I found out I was pregnant, AGAIN. With the twins I ended up gaining around 30lbs. When they were born I delivered Francesa vaginally and Isabella via emergency c-section. Needless to say my body had a lot to recover from after that.
Fitness is such a big part of my life and both my physical and mental health. I loved my pregnancies and all the changes my body went through and how capable my body is, I’m forever grateful for it all, but there’s nothing like feeling like yourself.
My journey to ‘getting my body back’ was slow and steady. I began easing my way into some nice walks with the babies. Keep it mind we didn’t start with our little walks until 2 or 3 weeks after they were born. I gave myself the grace to settle in with them and establish routines before pushing myself into anything more. It was a beautiful and stressful and exhausting but amazing time. After 3 weeks I was definitely getting a little stir crazy and felt ready to leave the house with them.
After a few weeks of our light cardio I went back to working out with light weights and doing HIIT style training. I love EMOM workouts and you can read my blog about that here. I did miss my bump for months after giving birth but at that 6 month mark I began to really feel like myself again and by 9 months I was like I’M ME!! lol. I felt strong, and capable and remembered how it felt to be a friend, and a nurse, and an athlete AS WELL AS a Mom.
The hardest part is giving yourself time. Focus on your new baby and get settled at home before you even think about your fitness!
Postpartum Nutrition
Postpartum Beauty
