I've been asked about keeping in shape after a pregnancy quite a few times lately, and I've come to realize that it has almost become a 'norm' and 'accepted' among us that a woman is going to lose her figure once she goes through a pregnancy - and perhaps in Asia more than anywhere else.
My sister in law gave birth to a baby boy on the 4th of July this year (Yes, I'm now an uncle! Yippieee!), AND she managed to get back into shape rather quickly - now why was that? I also saw another friend yesterday at church, who gave birth about 2 months ago - and though she's not exactly what she was before, I wouldn't consider her overweight or out of shape.
She maintained her figure very well.
Now how many people do you personally know who have gone through a pregnancy, and after that got back to their former bodies? And how many do you know that have remained double their size? Sadly, I know one too many women who balloon up while being pregnant and stay as a whale for the rest of their lives.
Clearly women that keep their weight at more realistic levels during pregnancy will be able to quickly return to their former bodies once they give birth.
This is what my sister-in-law did.
Also, she did make it a point to exercise during her pregnancy at Fit For 2 and was careful with what she ate (note - she was not on a strict diet, but just made good choices in her food).
Yes, you may say that you're now eating for two, but there's no reason to actually let that translate to you growing up to two times the size you are, and followed with the pressures and lack of time looking after a baby after your delivery - you then never manage to lose the weight while watching the many moms in magazines, tv, and also around you return to their former slim shapes.
I would bet that there are women out there who do not event want to get pregnant just because of the fear of not being able to regain their physique - how sad is that? Another common excuse we get is that since there's now a baby in the family - there's no time to keep fit or slip in some daily exercise into our daily schedule.
Know this - keeping yourself fit and staying healthy is not a trend - it's a lifestyle - it needs to become PART of what you do in your everyday life.
If you follow this principle, you will realize that it's not something you give up once you don't have the time.
If you DO give up just like that, it only shows that you never got the right mindset all this while (even if you saw results!).
For example, do you stop shopping for new clothes just because you don't have the time? No, right? We always find the time to do the things we love.
It is also the motivation to workout that probably is more of the reason why some lose it and some just don't.
So the next time someone tells you that they put on all those pounds because of their pregnancy X number of years ago - acknowledge their comment, and ask them when they're planning to get back into shape! Cos really now...
getting pregnant is a lousy excuse to stay overweight.