Weighty Matters

Bridget had her one month appointment today. Chubby cupcake has gained almost THREE pounds. She is now a plump and juicy 11 pounds 2 ounces. I know one should never compare their children, but since there is no judgment in the following (just a statment of the facts) I am going to proceed. All three girls were 22 inches long at 1 month, so the playing field is even. However, Abigail was only 7 lbs 6 oz (5 oz less than her birth weight) and Autumn was 9 lbs 7 oz (2 pounds over her birth weight). Needless to say I take a little pride in how much better the breastfeeding duos have improved over the years.

Now, as I told the nurse, if only each pound gained by Bridget was one pound lost by me. This is the part that I imagine no one will care much about, except for me. Maybe you enjoy reading the trials and tribulations of others. Either way, keep in mind that this is all relative to me and I get that others have much more significant weight struggles. But, since this is my blog, I get to write about mine.

I hope you're good at math because the following is going to make your head spin. With Abigail I gained 24 pounds when I hit maximum density. I can't say the weight came off early, but that kid nursed every 3 hours around the clock for 4 months and never slept. The exhaustion melted the weight off (and a few hours on the elliptical). With Autumn I gained 21 pounds...still hit the exact same maximum density, but that's because I started out a few pounds heavier. I was into my pre-pregnancy jeans within a month. I don't say this to be all 'look at me', but to give context to my current distress.

This pregnancy I started out 10 pounds lighter than my second pregnancy, but more than made up for over the next 9 months. 40 pounds later (YIKES!) I hit maximum density + 7 and thankfully delivered Bridget. Having never been that heavy, I spent each passing day just hoping I wouldn't get stretch marks or gain yet another pound. The good news is I didn't get any stretch marks (although I will enjoy my linea nigra while it lasts) and I've lost 23 pounds. But I feel like I'm never going to be able to wear cute clothes again. I've never worn maternity clothes after delivery because I can usually get by with gym shorts and my one pair of super-sized post partum jeans. This time around I blame the weather because it's too cold to wear my stretchy shorts, but not cold enough to break out the sweats. I know, my post partum look just screams high fashion. Just be thankful I shower and shave every day. I think what has been making me feel particularly doughy and frumpy is the fact that I can't fit into any of my shirts. They are all too small. So I've been wearing maternity shirts. They have plenty of stretch to them, but are not really designed to be slimming.

The long and the short of it is, I'm really just feeling the need to complain, I'm being unrealistic in the status of my body, and I'm reminding myself that I will get my pre-baby body back once I feel up to exercising. Bridget's pregnancy was so different from my other two that I suppose I just wasn't prepared for the unexpected. Can you ever be?

Of course if carrying a few extra pounds right now is the price to pay for a well-fed, sleeping baby, then I will quit my complaining. Besides, I've only got 7 pounds to lose until I hit my breastfeeding weight and 12 to hit my norm (I have no desire to strive for my pre-Bridget weight since it was about 5 pounds lighter than my norm and would actually be an effort to maintain). Have the numbers lost you yet?