Recreating Good Habits Postpartum
On April 13, 2022, the world as I knew it had forever changed for me. That was the day I found out that I was pregnant. Having a baby is undoubtedly the best thing that’s ever happened to me but boy did it wreak havoc on my good habits and healthy routines!
Immediately before pregnancy, I was a 29-year-old healthy vegan, around 170 lbs (which is thin for me), and I exercised daily. I had been working on those good habits for several years - at 26 years old (just 3 years earlier), I was 250 lbs, a smoker, and eating McDonald’s daily. 26-year-old me was on the fast track to diabetes, and I’d wanted to avoid that at all costs.
Once I became pregnant at 29, however, I kind of entered into “f*ck it” mode - my daily walks slowly faded away and eventually stopped altogether. My 2-year streak of not eating McDonald’s quickly went out the window. Although I hadn’t eaten beef in over two years, I craved it almost immediately after becoming pregnant. I reasoned with myself that I no longer had to worry about my weight - I would have to gain weight during my pregnancy no matter what, so I might as well enjoy it. I also justified poor habits by saying things like, “The baby craves what she needs!” and by using the aches and pains of pregnancy as reasons not to exercise. Those aches and pains were real, but honestly, a little exercise and better food would have made me feel better.
I was also delusional enough during my pregnancy to think that once the baby came, I would get right back on track. Ha! That’s possibly the biggest lie I’ve ever told myself. Immediately following childbirth (especially since I’d had a C-section), I was in so much pain that it was difficult to even walk. Also, my blood pressure was so high that I was too anxious to exercise, even if I wanted to. That continued for several weeks until I was more or less healed from surgery. But even then, my partner and I were in pure survival mode for months after Bebe’s birth due to chronic sleep deprivation, coupled with our full-time jobs and parenting duties. Getting healthy again was the last thing on my mind. I was just happy to make it through the day most of the time.
So, what’s my point? I know I have a habit of perhaps giving too much backstory before getting to the point in my articles. Well, my point here is that now, 16 months postpartum, I finally feel a little bit like my old self again. It took a long time, but I am finally ready to get my sh*t together. However, it’s for different reasons now than before I had my baby. Before, I just wanted to be healthy and hot. There wasn’t much depth to it. Now, as a mother, I am terrified of something bad happening to me, leaving my child motherless. I also want to be a good example for her, too. I don’t want Bebe to think not exercising and eating junk food for every meal is normal. It’s not. A third reason is that I want to be able to easily keep up with my electric toddler. I’m not exaggerating - she is truly like the energizer bunny! Therefore, she deserves a mom who isn’t always too tired to run around and play.
Here are the steps I’ve taken to improve my health (they’re not all weight-related):
I quit vaping - this was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I was a smoker years ago, and it was SO much easier to quit smoking than it was to quit vaping. But, I did it and I’m so happy about it. I didn’t want Bebe to know me as a vaper. She’s young enough still that she won’t ever have to.
I started taking daily walks again. Walking is truly underrated; it’s the one exercise I truly enjoy and it helped me lose a lot of weight several years ago. I walk at least 30 minutes every day now, sometimes more. During the week, I generally take a walk during my lunch hour. On weekends, I either walk by myself or with Bebe. I try to take different routes to break up the monotony.
I’m tracking calories again. There has always been some debate on whether calorie counting is effective or healthy, but I’m supportive of it. It’s hard for me to gauge what a “normal” portion is without counting calories.
I’m measuring my food. Same as #3, not everyone agrees with measuring food but it’s also been very effective for me to keep calories low. This is especially true when it comes to calorie-dense foods, like oil, peanut butter, etc.
I’ve started skipping breakfast. Some people call this intermittent fasting. It helps me keep calories low, and it doesn’t make me eat any more food than I normally would for lunch and dinner. When I skip breakfast, I feel like I’m in better control for the rest of the day. I also believe there is some value in allowing yourself to get properly hungry before eating a meal.
I’m cutting back on alcohol. It’s been pretty standard for me to have a few drinks on Friday nights - it helps me unwind from a long week. But, alcohol has empty calories and it inspires me to eat a lot of junk food with reckless abandon. So, I’ll be putting my sweet High Noons on the back burner for a while.
No more seconds (or thirds). Every Wednesday, food is catered to my office. It’s usually really delicious, calorie-dense food that I normally wouldn’t want to eat on a diet. I used to fill up my plate two or three times every time, but I’ve stopped doing that. It’s really hard to stick to one small plate, but it’s worth it.
Implementing the changes outlined above wasn’t an immediate thing. It took several tries and a lot of mental gymnastics for me to finally do what I’ve been saying I’m going to do. But as a result, I now feel more in control of my life than I have in a long time.
XOXO, Alexis.