We had just finished rhyme time when the leader of the
toddler group piped up that she was teaching gym classes down at the local
school. Should any of us mums like to join her she’d be very happy to see us.
Now I don’t have a problem with exercise – well I don’t do
enough of it so perhaps I do - but what I was bothered by was the ideology of
the perfect body being propelled once again into people’s minds. As soon as we've
given birth or as soon as possible following c-section many of us are being told
we should be aiming to pop back into shape with a toned tum. We've just given
birth for goodness sake should we not be celebrating that fact rather than
pretending it never happened?!
Yes I know the celebrities would have us believe that we can
spring back into shape following the birth of our baby. They ditch the excess
weight and shape up with a good trainer but we aren't all celebrities are we?! What
if we can’t afford these extortionately priced gym classes or personal trainers
or we are just not gym bunnies at heart what then? We are all shapes and sizes
and abilities for that matter and should be celebrating how fortunate we are
that our bodies have allowed us to house our babies.
Health and particularly mental health should be our first
and foremost concern. Are those that appear to shape up instantly after the birth
of their baby truly happy or are they looking to aim for a perfect shape that’s
non-existent?! Should there not be more emphasis on loving the skin we are in,
being healthy and being thankful for being able to carry a baby in our body.
What are your thoughts regarding the search for the perfect
body shape do you think it exists? Do you think we should celebrate the body we
are in? I would love to hear from you in the comments below.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! I think you are totally right Helena, we should be celebrating the fact that we've just given birth, not trying to forget it happened.
ReplyDeleteOur bodies do some amazing things and forcing it to get "back into shape" after all that change can't be good for you. Not to mention the added mental issues. I think we should all take our own time, if you want to get back in shape good but if not there shouldn't be any pressure to do so.
Great post!!!
I think it's a myth. My husband has been undergoing a healthy lifestyle change, part of that included a fitness assesment by a biokineticist and visiting a Dietician. BOTH of them advocate for a change in diet over going to the gym as a way of losing weight AND being healthy. Guilting people into going to the gym will never deliver long term results.
ReplyDelete#BigPinkLink
Reread on #brillblogposts
DeleteI'm totally with you, everything needs it's time! When I was pregnant they told me that I'd need almost as long as pregnacy to build my body back ;-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing! #Globalblogging
Celebrate the skin we're in. It's the only one we've got. And look at the amazing things we can do!
ReplyDeleteBack again from #mg :)
DeleteI think we should all love the body we are in. That means take care of it so we don't become obese, but you always need time to recover after having a baby and we shouldn't be pushed in to 'getting our figure back' What if we like our 'new figure' better? #MMBC
ReplyDeleteI think we should just be happy in the body we are in...Everyone who I know that goes to the gym moans about it. People on diets spend time counting calories and worrying about what they eat. I think a sensible diet and a little exercise is good... #MMBC
ReplyDeleteI love the way you put it. "We should be celebrating, not forgetting about it".. I am SO pregnant right now, I can't even think about exercise or a flat tum :) .. I think I am more the shape of a pea, loving every minute of it! A great reminder, thanks Helen! #globalblogging
ReplyDeleteI think that you raise such an important point here - We should be encouraged to embrace and love our bodies and accept the changes that will inevitably happen as we become mums. I also totally agree that society could do to pay a little more attention to our mental health and well being as opposed to just fixating on whether we appear to have lost our baby weight. Great post. Thank you for linking with #DreamTeam x
ReplyDeleteToo many people put pressure on themselves (and others) to "lose the baby weight". It's important to remember what it did to make another human! Thanks for linking up #globalblogging
ReplyDeleteI think we are all different, with different ideas of what the perfect body looks like. I dont do enough exercise either - never seem to have time. x #DreamTeam
ReplyDeleteTotally agree we should celebrate the bodies we have and what they have accomplished. I would love to be super thin and have rock hard abs but I wouldn't like the lifestyle that would need to come with it, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication and needs to be something you enjoy otherwise what's the point? Vanity? It doesn't bring you happiness. I'd much rather eat healthy (most of the time) and stay active and stay the shape I am than go on the latest diet craze and spend every day in the gym. My husband is fitness mad and cycles almost every day, but he enjoys it and I think that's the point, do whatever makes you happy x
ReplyDelete#Mg
I totally agree with you! Mental health should definitely be priority and women shouldn't feel pressured to be that perfect body shape. We must not forget that behind every celebrity, is a huge team helping her. So we shouldn't feel bad that we might take that extra longer to get there. Thanks for linking with #bigpinklink
ReplyDeleteThank you. I agree there certainly is. So true.
DeleteHi Helena, I love this and you are so right. I'd much rather be happy and healthy than be stressing about my body shape. I actually feel sorry for the celebrities that are flaunting what they believe to be the perfect body two weeks after giving birth. They must be missing out on those most precious moments that you cannot get back with your baby.
ReplyDeleteAfter having each of my children I gave myself nine months to get back to my 'normal', which I thought was fair as my body had spent nine months creating a miracle. I never stressed over it though.
xx
Hi Debbie. Thank you for making this post your Blog Crush. That means I've only one left to get back into shape!
Deletecouldn't agree more. After my c-section I needed to heal emotionally and give my mind and body time to adjust from all I had been through. Mental health is much more important than any flat stomach. Exercise can help our bodies heal and also is great for mental health, but we should never push ourselves, we should nurture ourselves! Fab post #mg
ReplyDeleteThanks Mackenzie. Very wise words.
DeletePerhaps it would help if everyone expected dads to be in shape after months of comfort eating biscuits during pregnancy? I am at least a stone heavier. Seriously though, it's ridiculous to expect women to look a certain way whether or not they've had kids. It's time we started accepting how we all look and using our time to think about more interesting things. Like what people have to say about life and love. #brilliantblogposts
ReplyDeleteHaha. I agree with your sentiments.
DeleteI abhor the pressures of pregnancy and post pregnancy and have written about this over the years. C-sections take a long time to heal as do any kinds of birth. It took my body two years to resemble it's former self and pregnancy is body altering. I hope women can be kind to one another. The media has a lot to answer for.
ReplyDeleteI will have to check your posts out on it. You are right about c-sections taking their time to heal. I agree we should support one another and that media doesn't always help.
DeleteFor the sake of my mental health i had to start exercising again. When i exercise it's my 'me' time away from the house and truly i felt uncomfortable in my skin with the 2 extra stone i gained through pregnancy.I 100% agree that no one should be pressured into losing weight and the emphasis should be on having a happy mental state and not a size 8 waist but my own personal journey i felt more better in my own skin once i had shed the 2 stone. Thanks for linking up with #PostsfromTheheart
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with you! I am fed up of the number of people who try to add me on twitter to tell me about some new weightloss regime or pill or whatever. Why do they assume that because I'm a mum, I must need to lose weight??!! My body has produced a miracle, and I'd like to give it a bit of a rest now, thank you very much! Haha #blogcrush
ReplyDelete