The time has come. It’s that definitive moment when, as a new mom, the need to get back into a life of regular exercise and a routine comes knocking hard. By “exercise,” I don’t mean the thousands of bends, lifts, hoists, and lunges I do naturally a day- chasing after two small kids and carrying cumbersome strollers, bags, and other awkward items up and down staircases and in and out of cars, right and left. Or what about the crazy under-the-couch or shoe rack reaches we parents do… balancing on one knee…stretching to get that last hidden toy from dark oblivions. No, that exertion doesn’t seem to be melting the pounds off, or getting rid of my post-11 pound baby tummy. The irony of it all is too much!
It’s time to face the music and accept that it needs to be a consolidated routine and something that helps realign me with my old, own self. A sweet physical check-in, along with some work. The notion of doing any “more” sends me reeling, but I know how ultimately freeing it will be to add some sort of exercise to my life. Yoga had long been a daily part of who I was, before becoming a mother. It was how I spent the weeks, months, and years of my life. How strange that it has gotten shoved aside so much, but where there’s life, there’s hope.
On top of being rather disconnected with plain old “me” for so long (breastfeeding and mothering can do that), I have felt so drained from sleepless nights and day-to-day mom demands, that the thought of exercising has simply baffled me. Do any other new moms feel the same way? I often wonder. Memories of many rail thin, narrow-hipped ‘become a mom now’ enthusiasts who told me in my twenties that, “Oh please, breastfeeding takes it all off and more! You’ll be so thin just from nursing” float in and out of my head- only to burst as I look down past my milk-stained shirt to my stomach. Thank goodness that, the other day, as I went through a few vinyasa poses at a yoga event in Manhattan, I checked in with myself for the first time in about eighteen months. And what an eighteen months it’s been! A real wake-up call ensued. To feel my back on the floor stretching and simply…feeling. To stretch and meet the new me, to acquaint myself with someone I, honestly, haven’t taken any time to unify with. The “me” that has been through so much. No, I can’t lie… I didn’t like the extra padding and bulk I felt, but I did like the fact that I was able to even take the time for myself to feel it. That was a first step into the realization that a yoga practice needs to find its way into this post-baby life again. I’d abandoned knowing my own relationship to my physicality while healing from childbirth, and nursing, changing, cuddling, holding, bathing, twirling, feeding, and tickling my two children. Since that initial stretch session in Manhattan, I have started returning to a regular class schedule, and it is completely kicking my ass. But it’s important to remind myself that right now, it’s only a temporary point, where I’m at. In the future, it will be easier- I know that. Bodies change, muscles extend and loads lighten. Currently, I feel like I’m on the frontline in a war.
Luckily for all of us at the media event that first day, our yoga teacher was the amazing Latham Thomas (the Founder of Mama Glow, among many other accomplishments), who is known for being nurturing, healthy, positive, and radiant. It was obvious that her reputation was spot-on. Afterwards, I decided to ask her some questions about re-entering a yoga practice after pregnancy and childbirth. Here is our interview. If you have lost time for yourself, please don’t be afraid to start again with your practice, too, wherever you are on your own personal road. Enjoy!
1) What changes has someone’s body gone through during pregnancy, birth, and nursing that will make revisiting yoga a tad challenging if they stopped practicing during pregnancy?
There are lots of changes that happen along the pregnancy and birth continuum but I think there is always an entry point for all levels for yoga, it’s about taking your time as you re-enter your practice. Yoga is about union. You have to meet your body where it is today.
2) What can the most challenging poses be for someone out of practice or who has just had a baby?
Goddess Squat Series: Strength in birthing squats is key. It helps to have strong legs during pregnancy and postpartum. This series gets your legs ready for the final stretch—the pushing phase. After the birth the legs and pelvic floor are fatigued. This squat sequence helps to reintegrate the body. Ab work is also challenging since it’s something we avoid throughout the pregnancy- for good reason, but postnatally ab work is important.
3) How long, realistically, should it take for a woman to feel back in some sort of a groove with her body and yoga after having a baby? I know celebrities often say “a couple of months,” but what about for regular working women who don’t have a personal trainer?
It is different for everyone. I think the biggest thing to remember is maternal satisfaction is dependent on support. There is a sense of pressure that isn’t spoken about and so many moms feel they have to adhere to unrealistic standards for getting back into shape postpartum. I believe in taking your time. Yoga is great because it helps with reintegrating the body post-birth. For some women it will be 6 weeks and others it will be within the first year- it depends on diet, etc.
4) Does a tummy ever really go away or get flat (like yours did)? What exercises can help?
My son is 12 so I am way out of the newborn window. Pelvic floor tilts right after birth helped me get the strength of my muscles back. People love the Belly Wraps like Belly Bandit, I didn’t use one because I found that I used my muscles with awareness without the support. The flexion and extension exercises that integrate legs and abs are good- on all fours leg lifts etc. But it’s not a race and all of our bodies are different. One thing to remember is stress creates a barrier of fat around the waistline, we sometimes attribute it to baby- but it’s usually our stress that causes it.
5) What kind of daily mantra should a woman be telling herself, in your opinion, if she’s feeling unsure of herself physically after having a baby. It can be hard on the ego to “embrace” the new you, for many….
Affirmations:
I celebrate my changing body.
I am strong and capable of motherhood.
I am taking the best care of myself and my baby.
I surrender to this moment of peace from within.
Latham Thomas is the Founder of Mama Glow, as well as a graduate of Columbia University & The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Latham is a maternity lifestyle maven, wellness & birth coach/doula, yoga teacher, on the vanguard of transforming the maternal wellness movement. Her practice provides support to pre/postnatal women along their journey to motherhood offering culinary and nutritional services, yoga, and birth coaching services. She authored the bestselling book titled,“Mama Glow: A Hip Guide to a Fabulous and Abundant Pregnancy”, foreword by Dr. Christiane Northrup.
Rebecca Conroy is an artist, stylist, and the Editor of A Child Grows in Brooklyn. She is from New York City, and has an MFA from Columbia University in screenwriting. Rebecca often finds herself on film and photography sets making things run or look better, and is the mom of two outrageously wonderful kids.