Post-Baby Reality or Recomposition Addressable?

JessicaMcB

So I've cut to 133 from 213 (5'9") and go back and forth about keeping to goal of 130 or throwing in the towel now. Honestly if my stomach didn't look so horrible I probably wouldn't have reservations about stopping now. I'm not sure if its recomp addressable to fix what I've got going on (especially as a runner who has very little interest in bulk or heavy things) or if I'm just stuck with this. If recomp would address it I probably would grit my teeth and bear the process, but I've been going back and forth on this for a while.

So what say you wise recomp folk, fixable or accept that three kids in three years ruined me lol?

robingmurphy

Do you know if you have a diastasis of the abdominal muscles? For many women, the abdominal muscles separate excessively during pregnancy and you would probably need a tummy tuck to fix that.

JessicaMcB

I had DR from baby 1 on, but it seems like it's healed together again? I might have to ask our doctor at baby girl's 1 Year appointment to be sure

middlehaitch

Are you back to running now?

If you don't feel you want to get into going to the gym and doing a weight lifting routine, why not include some body weight exercises at home 3 days a week. (Link below).

Get the DR checked out first as there are specific exercises you can do to rectify that, and ones that can make it worse.

I don't think your tummy looks all that bad, especially since your last baby is less than a year old. There is still time for a little more skin retraction.

Switch to maintenance for 130 and you will probably lose those last few vanity lbs slowly.

You have probably been running your own little weight lifting programme lifting and carrying 3 little ones around.

Cheers, h.

12Sarah2015

I'm 133 and had dr. Do u think it's because you've lost a lot of weight v quickly?

jemhh

I would recomp. But I lifting. If you truly do not like it, I'm not sure what to tell you. I do not at all think that straight up losing 3 more pounds is going to give you the stomach you want.

janjunie

This is just my opinion. I don't think you have DR, but you do look like you have some loose on your tummy. The loose skin probably isn't just from three babies but also from losing 80 lbs which is amazing btw. To me you look like you're ready for a recomp or even a few cycles of bulking and cutting if you feel confident going that route. The loose skin will never completely go away, it may tighten a bit, but improving body composition will help.

janjunie

12Sarah2015 wrote: »

I'm 133 and had dr. Do u think it's because you've lost a lot of weight v quickly?

No that's not why women develope dr after delivery

JessicaMcB

jemhh wrote: »

I would recomp. But I lifting. If you truly do not like it, I'm not sure what to tell you. I do not at all think that straight up losing 3 more pounds is going to give you the stomach you want.

Yes I know, my logical mind keeps telling me this, I don't know why I'm bothering some times. Gah. I feel like I'll have to recomposition and just deal because it's so unfortunate looking.

janjunie wrote: »

This is just my opinion. I don't think you have DR, but you do look like you have some loose on your tummy. The loose skin probably isn't just from three babies but also from losing 80 lbs which is amazing btw. To me you look like you're ready for a recomp or even a few cycles of bulking and cutting if you feel confident going that route. The loose skin will never completely go away, it may tighten a bit, but improving body composition will help.

I really feel like sometimes this stomach mess is my penance for letting myself get so fat (my top weight was closer to the 250s) and I'm stuck with it. Bulking would definitely give me a panic attack at this point lol, recomposition I can HOPEFULLY handle while still marathon training

middlehaitch

Here is the Nerdfitness link I mentioned in a post above.
It is a body weight programme you can do at home.
Sorry I forgot to put it at the bottom of my post.
https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

Cheers, h

Kdp2015

I think you like great, if it's really important to you then recomp will help

RoxieDawn

I do not see anything wrong! Personally where you are with dieting in general should decide when you are ready to recomp. If you feel you want to loose X more pounds to cut, then cut some more, or if you are tired of dieting per se, go into maintenance and do recomp for a while. When recomp is not cutting it any longer (no pun intended) you can resort to doing cutting/bulking cycles if you want to go that route.

The issue here is that you cannot spot reduce that area, all you can do is what you can to continue cutting fat and growing muscle, etc.

I cannot tell if you have DR or not, or just how much is loose skin and even how long it has been.. so pick your posion and do that. You can always change the plan as you go as nothing is set in stone. I do recommend that what ever the direction you choose, give that some time to work before changing the plan too quickly.

edited to add: marathon training added to the mix is a bit more challenging. If I were me (and I did this earlier this year for HM training) I leaned down more during training so I could bulk afterwards. Trying to do body recomp during training is challenging and hard to do. Not to say stop lifting (so don't) but the recomp should not be dual goals in my honest opinion when doing this type of training. You will be frustrated while trying to work on body composition changes and concentrating on this type of running. It is hard to build muscle to begin with as a woman, and adding in mass amounts of running to that, is all the more difficult.

jemhh

JessicaMcB wrote: »

jemhh wrote: »

I would recomp. But I lifting. If you truly do not like it, I'm not sure what to tell you. I do not at all think that straight up losing 3 more pounds is going to give you the stomach you want.

Yes I know, my logical mind keeps telling me this, I don't know why I'm bothering some times. Gah. I feel like I'll have to recomposition and just deal because it's so unfortunate looking.

janjunie wrote: »

This is just my opinion. I don't think you have DR, but you do look like you have some loose on your tummy. The loose skin probably isn't just from three babies but also from losing 80 lbs which is amazing btw. To me you look like you're ready for a recomp or even a few cycles of bulking and cutting if you feel confident going that route. The loose skin will never completely go away, it may tighten a bit, but improving body composition will help.

I really feel like sometimes this stomach mess is my penance for letting myself get so fat (my top weight was closer to the 250s) and I'm stuck with it. Bulking would definitely give me a panic attack at this point lol, recomposition I can HOPEFULLY handle while still marathon training

Your stomach is actually not that bad considering your weight lost. Do you have much excess skin that is tucked into your swimsuit bottoms? It doesn't look like you do. That is fantastic. I truly think that adding muscle mass is the best way for you to firm up your physique.

leajas1

I'm posting this article a lot today...I don't know if this might help?

http://www.muscleforlife.com/?s=lose+skin

kirstenb13

I think you are far from ruined, you look great and are already very thin, so I don't think losing more weight will make you look very different. I think if you really want to improve (and you don't have to if you don't want to) I would try to add some mass to your glutes, that would balance you out a little bit.

nxd10

First, I think you look fine. Your backk and side look fantastic. I see why your tummy bothers you, but wow, you've done great. Second, I lost inches for at least 8 months after I stopped losing weight. My skin firmed up. There was lots of extra room where there used to be fat and now there wasn't. Same as after when I had babies. Zooped right back up eventually. It took a long time to put that weight on it will take a while to adjust back. Congratulations!

mitch16

Did you lose the 80 pounds relatively quickly? Loose/floppy skin is sometimes the downside to that...

The longer you stay at weight/close to maintenance, the more your skin should tighten up. Recomp would help, especially with rebuilding your stomach muscles. If you keep on running/training for your marathon that would probably help, too. Weight lifting and marathon training aren't mutually exclusive, but you might need to plan carefully to get time in the gym as well as all of your mileage without burning yourself out.

sijomial

Give your skin some more time to recover - how much it recovers is down to genetics.
Abs and core work will help give your skin a better framework to hang on if that makes sense? It can help your posture which gives the illusion of less fat/loose skin. It may well help your running too.

Ref marathon training - you can do weight training and large amounts of cardio but it's both a challenge and a compromise.
I do long distance cycling and weights but lifting is compromised by the training and recovery needs of my cycling so I have to prioritise. Mostly in summer I only do upper body and core work in the gym. Have been experimenting with some leg strength work in the last couple of weeks and stairs are a real problem some days!

Build up slowly and progressively. Fuel your exercise and recovery properly. Be conscious of growing fatigue and adjust as necessary.

kdiamond

I had 2 kids in 2 years and gained 50+ pounds twice and then lost 80 at the end. My "baby" is 13 so I know what I have is what I will have. It is similar to yours.

I will say (and I know you said you don't lift weights) it looks tightest when I am following a good lifting program, and doing less cardio. When I was 100 pounds and doing only cardio it looked really saggy, now at 112-114 pounds and more muscular all around it looks waaaaayy less saggy.

alida1walsh

I'm at the low end of normal for bmi but, after having twins, I was left with a baby belly that I can't get rid of.

I had my twins at the age of 39 and another at 41 so perhaps my body isn't ever going to bounce back.

I also love running. The muscles in every part of my body feel hard except for my tummy.

I'm begrudgingly trying to accept it. I don't want to lose any more weight as I'd just be an underweight chic with a protruding tummy.

If you're a young mother your tummy will have a much better chance at bouncing back. Give it time.

_piaffe

Amazing work!

I think recomp will definitely help you. I have DR and have seen vast improvement from strength training and diet. That said, for me, it will never entirely "go away" - I'd need a full abdominoplasty to repair my lower abs. (I've looked into it.)

Ab progress pics on my recomposition efforts are in my profile. I'm quite lean on top, but there's the lower ab pooch... sigh. At the end of a day, depending on my cycle and volume of food ingested, I can look 5 months pregnant. Overall, though, I'm much happier. Recomp was / is worth it.