SnapBack is a Four Letter Word

It’s actually two 4-letter words combined *snort* but you get the point. ;)

I am normally a pretty active woman. I used to work out about 4 times a week on average. My diet has never been the greatest, but it isn’t the worst either. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I was not able to work out after I became pregnant. Not being able to work out, feeling sorry for myself and indulging in my sorrows was the perfect storm. I gained 40 lbs during my pregnancy.

I dropped 20 lbs with ease during childbirth and my first 6 weeks of breastfeeding. After that I was not able to breastfeed anymore, but the next 10 lbs came off fairly easy as well. Not because I was eating healthy again or working out. It fell off because I was doing a lot and barely eating. It’s nothing I’m proud of, but I will admit in the back of my mind I was just glad to be losing. Motherhood hasn’t been an easy transition for me. I was just glad something was working in my favor.

The majority of my clothes fit now, though not the same. My body is soft. My muscle tone is gone. Due to a long work commute and my son’s schedule, I haven’t found the time or energy to start working out again. I still eat a lot of sweets, they are my weakness. So now what? My son is about to hit the half-year mark. It would be nice to start making some milestones for myself. So that’s my plan for the rest of the month: to make a plan. Nothing drastic, just something to help me transition back into an overall healthier lifestyle. I’ve been in pregnancy jail able to use all the excuses in the book: Eating for two. Heartburn. Fatigue. “Just let me indulge this one/tenth/hundredth time”. It’s time to ease back into society lol. But first… can we get a reality check?

Those models and movie stars… the fitness gurus (who were probably way more fit than you pre-pregnancy)… the ones you see two weeks/one month later just skipping around, pushing a stroller with their shiny hair and flat stomachs. That’s not real life, sis. Now, I will say that for some “regular” moms yes, that does happen. But for most of us, that ain’t the way this works. Six days post-pardum, Teyana Taylor posted a picture of her stomach. You couldn’t even tell she’d been pregnant. Six days post-pardum I looked like I was still five months preggo.

My reality is much more common. I don’t have nannies and night-nurses. I don’t have housekeepers and cooks. I have the life I had before the baby, now with a baby. A baby that can do nothing for themselves. I am sleep-deprived and exhausted. Working out usually hasn't made it on my list yet, and honestly I just eat whatever is readily available. God bless women who’ve had multiples or who also have to care for toddlers along for the ride. God bless the single parents. I felt like this one kid was gonna take me out (I still feel that way sometimes), so you have my deepest admiration.

So let’s take a step back for a minute. Before you decide to start comparing yourself to someone else (ever heard the phrase “The grass is always greener on the other side”?) take a moment to understand what you’ve just gone through. It seems very simple: get pregnant, baby grows to term, deliver baby. It’s not. Your body spent up to 40+ weeks preparing in various ways for this child. It grew and stretched over almost a year’s time, then stretched and strained to push another HUMAN BEING out of your vagina. Some of you literally had your skin, abdominal muscles, and uterus CUT OPEN to retrieve this child. For a lot of us, our bodies then continue to work and produce ounces and ounces of sustenance for months or a years+ time frame. WOMAN YOU ARE A MIRACLE!!!

Can we drop one of DJ Clue's bombs for childbirth??!!

Eff a snapback!!! If you get one, I am genuinely happy for you. But if you don’t, please do me a favor. Don't get down on yourself. Don't waste your time comparing yourself to other people or to the body you had before you were "with child". The next time you get out of the shower or bath, go look in the mirror. Look at your body. LOOK at it. Think about what it carried. No, think about what it nurtured. Admire it. Appreciate it. Applaud it. Look at everything about it that has changed after your pregnancy, smile, and say “God used ME to bring life into this world.” *mic drop*

I guess you got ya swagger back. #TRUTH