Fab Friday: You CAN do it! Or how to get a post pregnancy body like Miranda Kerr
Controversial mum Miranda
The media has exploded with images and articles about Miranda’s unreal post-pregnancy body after she walked down the David Jones catwalk 2 days ago for their Spring Summer 2011 Launch. The main debate is that Miranda, by looking fabulous after having a baby, sets “an expectation that most women cannot hope to achieve”.
That is where I would like to enter the discussion and prove the opposite: most women CAN look stunning after having a baby. Moreover, I have a solid argument – my own body.
For those who do not know I gave birth to my baby girl 6 weeks ago. I am not as brave as Miranda to pose publically in a bikini, but I guess the image provided below is self-explanatory. If you need more evidence, here are the photos of me 1 week after giving a birth and here – 4 days before the birth.
Now, the main part: how to get the results, i. e. a hot post-pregnancy body. Once again, I am sharing my own personal experience. So the below comes from an ordinary 30 y.o. woman, not from a celebrity or model.
1) Stay active during your pregnancy.
Exercise. Yes, you can exercise during pregnancy. I am not saying start exercising or become a gym junkie. Unless there are serious concerns about your pregnancy, you can continue with your usual workout routine. You can run, do weights, kick-boxing, dance, etc. Of course be reasonable, just stay at the same level of activity. Your body will tell you when to slow down. Also, you’ll need good equipment and the best running shoes by far – ASICS GEL-Kayano 18. As for me, I was going to gym twice a week and jogging twice per week during the first 3 months of pregnancy. Then I switched from Body Combat sessions in the gym to yoga and pilates. Jogging was replaced with walking. At 6 months I switched to swimming.
You may feel all types of discomfort and have pain in different parts of your body during pregnancy. Do not let this stop you from exercising. For example, in my case I had severe morning sickness. I can tell you, running and yoga helped a lot. Physical activity made me less nauseous. Swimming is great. When I had intense back pain and could not walk, swimming lessened the pain and strengthened my back muscles. Believe me, you will need strong back to carry that bump for last 3 months.
Extra tip: walk as much as you can. It is the easiest form of exercise and cost you nothing. Apparently, 20-30 minutes per day is enough. Walk to the groceries store, walk to get your morning coffee, walk to get your lunch. You can easily get an 1 hour of walking during the day without even noticing.
2) Eat well.
Be wise with what you eat. You know what ‘good diet’ means, right? No junk food. Your appetite will increase. Do not be afraid of that. Eat, but eat good food. Eat more protein: chicken, meet, fish, cheese, nuts, eggs. That will satisfy your hunger for longer. As for me, I was eating as much as I could. In the first 3 months, I could hardly keep anything in my stomach. So to get enough nutrients I ate as much as I could during the ‘feeling good’ days. Every morning I made fresh vitamin & mineral rich juices. Don’t be lazy. Use your juicer, seriously it takes 5 minutes but the benefits of starting your day with a glass of fresh juice are priceless.
Extra tip: eat lots of fruit, avoid cereal and juice from supermarket. have a bowl full of various fruit every time you crave chocolate. You won’t get fat from fruit and it is much cheaper than chocolate or cakes! Cereal: despite of what everybody thinks, cereal is not good for you. It’s sugary, highly processed and low in nutrients. Have oats instead: healthy, low in calories and cheap! Juice from supermarket: despite what the ads say this type of juice is actually bad for you. It’s full of sugar and has no natural vitamins and minerals in it as it’s made from reconstituted juice.
3) Look after your body and face.
To avoid stretch marks, use special body lotion or oil. I was using Bio Oil daily throughout my pregnancy and it helped. I got ZERO stretch marks while in fact I am genetically prone and have got some during my teenage years (where was BIO oil back then?). Your skin may change, i.e. become more oily or drier or breakouts will appear. Change your face cream and cleanser as your skin changes. I got some breakouts, so I had to use a more efficient cleanser and exfoliate 3 times per week instead of usual 1.
Extra tip: do not give up on yourself. Pregnancy can be challenging, so you may feel like doing nothing and not looking after yourself. Instead be stubborn and strong: devote extra 5 minutes per day to your beauty routine and massage oil into your belly. Your body and face will say you thank you after the birth.
4) Continue with your lifestyle (the healthy part of it, I mean)
Pregnancy is not the end of your life. Yes, you will become slightly less mobile at later stages but that is not the reason for you to stay at home or give up on your social commitments, hobbies, etc. You can get quite emotional during your pregnancy, so staying at home watching TV is the worst thing you can do for yourself. Get out of the house, continue on with your lifestyle, good parts and avoid stress as much as possible. Pregnancy can be a challenge and motherhood is also not only about joy. You will need all your positive energy to survive the next couple of years ;) So enjoy your lifestyle and socialise while you can as when your little one comes, your social activities will initially be very limited.
Extra tip: think how your partner can help you and what duties he can take to minimise your stress. If there is something you are dying to do, do it now: travel, wear ultra mini shorts, go shopping with your girlfriends for an entire day. After the birth you may not be able to do so for a long while.
+++
These are the basics that really work. Not only for me, there are many other women out there who look great after having a baby because they looked after themselves during pregnancy.
Finally, remember that we all are different. As long as you are healthy and happy about your body image, who really cares about Miranda’s looks? But if you are not, instead of blaming her for setting unrealistic expectations get yourself working towards your ideal body. It is not that difficult people!
Trust me, you CAN do it!
xx
Maria
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Comments 19
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Wonderful post, thank you for sharing! And you do look stunning.
Great post, thanks for the tips, you and Miranda ;) look amazing!
Excellent post, it’s funny I’m generally a health conscious person (eat healthy, loved to run) but pregnancy just turns me into a fat lazy sloth, all I can think is thank god it’s my last one. I need a detox big time, after this birth so I can get my healthy eating/lifestyle back!!!
Great post, it is so true. I wish someone told me about this when I was pregnant. You look fantastic!
I just gave birth 2 months ago and I wanna try this…:) I love your blog… and the design is gorgeous! plus you’re really pretty.. kisses to the little angel.:)
Fab post!! And I agree if you take care of yourself, eat right, sleep as you can and have good support around, anyone can do it! I was back in my normal clothes the day I gave birth, I ate what I wanted and didn’t stress about it, I went walking to ease my body and now I do heavier exercise and its great!! You don’t need to be a celebrity, just love yourself and be happy and anyone can get there!! You look fantastic!! xx
@Kizzy – Glad we are sharing the same view:) Really it takes little to look great. I seriously could not understand why everybody expect you to look ‘not that good’ if you are pregnant or just had a baby. I think pregnancy is just being used as an excuse to be lazy and over eating. Apparently, when pregnant all you need is extra 200cal per day. That equals to 1 glass of milk…
@Sammy – Yes, dear, you should definitely give it a go. Just a few little changes can produce a great result! Let me know how you go. I am planning to do more posts on health and beauty, things that work and do not require much efforts, from a perspective of a normal woman not a model.
@Marissa – That’s great that this post inspired you:) Really just a little change in your habits can do wonders. It will not happen overnight but in a long run you will see the result!
@Natsumi – Yes, babies are a very cute and addictive. And despite all the difficulties, they bring so much joy and happiness:) and agree, “eating for two” is quite ‘popular’ yet unnecessary
You look amazing. Thanks for motivating me, although I’m going to the chocolate festival tomorrow! Still I’m inspired now to cut back on the junk and embrace movement a bit more :)
THANK YOU for telling people it IS possible. The ones who complain are the ones who never bothered and “ate for two”. Definitely keeping this advice in mind the day I, er, plan on falling pregnant (ironically lately I have been VERY clucky and depressed to the point I’m aggressively pushing S for a puppy…because I have the need to take care of a baby of sorts. I’m a little worried this means I might be keen enough for children in a few years…).
And YOU LOOK AMAZING. I’m loving the glow you have post pregnancy – Yummy Mummy for the win!
xoxxx
you look great, good example for lazy women who dont want to do anything and complain all the time! Its possible, you right, just need to want look great for yourselves,and love yourselve! take care
Amazing inspirational post!!! I’ll save this one for when I start thinking about kiddies in 5 years or so haha
I eat this way daily; pregnant or not;-)
You look radiant and healthy and warm belated congratulations on the birth of your child.
Ah, the joys of being a mama. Enjoy the weekend with your sweet family. xx
Wow! You look fantastic!!! Great post and great advice – when the time comes I’ll be reading this daily!!! Congrats too on your sweet baby!!! Thanks so much for your sweet comment on my blog – I appreciate it so much! Love your blog!!! :)
http://sweetandsassy-sherry.blogspot.com/
OMG, you look amazing! I gained 22 kg with my pregnancy 3 and a half years ago and still can’t get rid of the fat around my belly and stomach. In a month you’ll be looking like Miranda Kerr, trust me!
Xoxo
Girl I told once before you look so FABulous for literally just giving birth!!!! Congrats to you and of course it takes dedication and willingness!!! Thx for sharing with us all this amazing tips. Stay beautiful.
<3 Marina
Fashion.MakeUp.LifeStyle
you look stunning!!!!!!just amazing!!!!
i hope i ll look like you when i have a baby!! wow!!
congratulations really!!
It’s true, those tips you shared. I’ve had 3 different experiences with my 3 pregnancies, but the last one being the most active, and health conscious. With my first one I binged, ate fattening stuff, so yes, it took me longer – 4mths to get back my pre-pregnancy body. Then with the second one, it took lesser – about a month. But, with the last one amazingly…it took me a week! NOT KIDDING! and, breastfeeding did help a bit too. Well, my third child breastfed A LOT during the first few days so I think that helped my uterus to contract a lot quicker too. Just a word of advice for anyone breastfeeding, remember that once bub slows down on his/her feeding…remember to change your eating habits too. ;)
I wish I had taken better care of myself during both my pregnancies… Oh well, there’s always the next!
she’s stunning!
thanks so much for your comment!
i’m glad that it made you discover sabrina from afterDRK.
her style is incredible and totally inspirational. x.