Mothers...

treehopper1987

I'm having a hard time with some body issue images of myself. I had stretch marks before getting pregnant with my son, and they became even more extreme when I was pregnant with him. The stretch marks do not bother me as much as this double hump, if you will, that protrudes out above my belly button, mid-torso. I can see it through every shirt I wear, and I am really self-conscious about it. I've lost 36 pounds since November, and my son is almost 2 now. It doesn't seem to be changing any. Will this go away, or lessen quite a bit eventually, or is this something I'm just going to live with? I need some supporting mothers who have went through something like this. I just feel like other areas are shrinking and this just looks worse since it sticks out more now.

4Kayakers

My kids are 11 and 9, and as many sit ups as I do...as many weights as I lift, I can't seem to get rid of the dbl hump. I know what you mean. I'm not giving up though....maybe one day it will go away. There are many of us out there feeling the same!

treehopper1987

I just feel like it is so noticeable, and it really bugs me.

sanfromny

Yep, I know what you're talking about. I have it to. but it's getting smaller as I lose. I have 19lbs to go before I reach the "healthy" range (I started obese) so I'm hoping with time and being the right weight for my height that it will go away. the stretch marks, not so much but they don't bother me nearly like they used to. It's like war wounds and I'm proud to have them because I have a close friend that can't have kids and I'm sure she'd switch places in a heartbeat

MzManiak

Have you checked for diastasis recti (a condition where the abdominal muscles have separated)?
Are you taking measurements to know whether or not it is decreasing for sure, or are you just going off looks? Is your body fat percentage going down, or mostly just your weight?

sistrsprkl

Congrats on your loss! Yes, it'll get better. Lift heavy. My youngest is 3.5 and my stomach is just now getting flatter, stretch marks are not too noticable. Just keep plugging away. Weight lifting helped me the most.

treehopper1987

I do cardio as well as doing more strength as I go along and focusing more on the abs to maybe tone that area about 4-5x a week. I've lost about 15% of my original weight, and have about 15 lbs to go before reaching my pp weight. I've went down almost 2 pants sizes. I'm not sure how to check fat % to see if that is going down, but I am assuming it is.

I have not been taking measurements in that area, but I have lost inches around my waist and bust (I tend to lose the quickest in my upper portions than lower). I'm just thinking it looks worse since losing in other areas.

How would I check for diastasis recti and what can I do about that?

Bettina82

There are videos I like to do that strengthen the core. I noticed a difference when I started doing those. Hang in there!

AR10at50

They say, that your abdominal muscles are some of the first to go if we don't keep exercising them. You do not have to do anything crazy, just remember that we just need to keep after them. Also, it is easy to stretch your stomach out, filling it with lots of food. Count the calories, eating just what you need and drinking your water through out the day. I have two teenage boys and this works for me. I do not like to tuck my shirts in any more, but I do feel good when my stomach can be half way flat. Just don't give up, our bodies take regular maintenance, such as ab work, backed up by good core muscle care.

treehopper1987

I think it is just hard to stay motivated when I feel like all my hard work is making my most self-conscious area stand out more. It's not even like one hump If I look down it has 2 peaks with several inches between them and it stands out almost as much as my bust...

Thank you for all your responses.

4Kayakers

I just started strength training/weight lifting a week ago...going slow! So, I'm going to give that a shot and see how I do over the next 6 months to a year.

EskaiC

Don't become so frustrated that you aren't able to remain motivated. You'll never know if just going beyond a certain limit would have taken you to where you wanted to be insofar as the image of yourself. With that said, first understand that other women don't see what you have but how you present yourself. To think any woman is more concerned with your appearance than health or her own business is an injustice to women. I get having a certain image you want to create of yourself, for yourself so stay motivated to do the best you can and wait for it all to fall into place. Hopefully the first place it'll fall into place with be within your mindset.
I don't know what your diet is like but you may want to consider a change that might help. I have found that those dreaded bicycle crunches are tremendously helpful in cutting through my own belly chub. I started using a stabilizing mat that definitely helps maintain the proper lift in my crunches so it is easier to use certain muscles, being upper or lower, in order to achieve my own goals. Try not coming up so much with your crunches and see if you feel it in that area more than a full crunch.

treehopper1987

I'm trying to not let it bring me down, but some days when I look in the mirror, that is all I can see.

kristieshannon

I've bought a couple camisoles that are like Spanx for now, until the bulge goes away. They help keep things smoothed out a bit

hugzeelaroo

[/quote] How would I check for diastasis recti and what can I do about that? [/quote]

I am by no means a health care professional, but I myself suffer from this so I began to do some research about it. Here is a YouTube video showing you how to check for diastasis recti:
https://youtu.be/uzIrt82maws

If that it what you are suffering from, I have read that the bridge exercise works well, where any type of crunches are counterproductive and may cause the condition to worsen. Pinterest has quite a bit of info.

Like I said, I'm not a health care professional, just sharing what I have researched myself.

treehopper1987

Thank for the info @hugzeelaroo.

hugzeelaroo

treehopper1987 wrote: »

Thank for the info @hugzeelaroo.

No problem! Hope it helps!