Is this weird?

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pheebers
pheebers Posts: 5
in Health and Weight Loss
I went 9 months postpartum not losing a single pound. Then I worked out & watched the calories for several weeks, and I'm down 10 lbs to 164. I'm thrilled, want to lose more, etc, etc.

People usually say ignore the scale and just pay attention to how your clothes fit.... but I'm having the opposite problem! My pants aren't any looser. I am so anxious to fit into my old clothes (from when I was about 150lbs) but I don't seem to be any closer.

Could someone please give me some encouragement?

Replies

  • sarahgrace16
    sarahgrace16 Posts: 1
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    you will get there just work hard and stay positive!
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
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    Well I've had three kids and am now down to below the weight I was before I had my first one 9 years ago and here's the thing, my pants from way back then still don't fit and they may not ever. When you have a baby, your hips stretch and that doesn't go back usually.

    I'm not a big follower of the 'throw the scale out' crowd. I do follow the scale even now that I've lost the weight. I want to know that I'm on track. I want to know where I'm at. I want to know if I eat twice as much fish how it will effect me, etc.

    So stay on track. 10 pounds is a great start and you can get to where you want to be. Quit trying on the old clothes and fretting over those. Set reasonable goals and obtain them. Make your focus you - how you feel, your energy level, your mental state. Concentrate on eating healthy, well balanced meals and getting exercise. You WILL see results and you will feel results.
  • Elokyn
    Elokyn Posts: 448 Member
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    I'm not a mother myself but I've seen how being pregnant can change a persons body. My sisters hips got bigger ect ect. It's something that has a crazy effect on your body so you might be close to the same weight just a different shape and things will fit you differently. Gives you your womanly curves :) Please don't get upset about it, it's what makes you you and you're doing a fantastic job! 10lbs! That's awesome! That's probably more than your baby was! Think about that! Never think about where you were and try to compare yourself in a negative way. It's just as bad as comparing yourself to someone on tv, it's never good and it just makes you upset. You can do this!! You've done great so far and I know you have it in you!! :) Stay positive!!
  • GrammaPower
    GrammaPower Posts: 49 Member
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    * According to ob/gyn folks, the female body does not return to the pre-pregnant hormonal state for almost 6months. And according to LouAnne Brizendine, MD, who wrote the book "The Female Brain" - pregnancy hormones abound in the female brain for up to & over 6 months.
    * Point here is - You sound like you are NOW ready to move in the right fat loss (not lean body mass weight loss) direction! Your body & brain are now simply READY to return to near normal! : )
    * Congratulations on the birth of your baby! :wink:
    * PS : The book is EXCELLENT, and she has recently written one called " The Male Brain" (but it's only a few pages long (just kidding GUYS! ) :laugh:
  • iwannawearatutu
    iwannawearatutu Posts: 150 Member
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    I find that often it's one or the other; visible changes or changes on the scale. This is NOT meant to discourage you - it's cyclical... you'll see shifts on the scale for a while and then you might plateau weight-wise for a while and notice the inches melting off. This is probably because of the changes in what kind of weight you have; muscle or fat. Right now you're probably burning off lots of fat while slowly, quietly GAINING some weight from putting on muscle from all that exercise. At some point your body will probably reach a stage where it's putting on weight from gained muscle at the same rate as it's burning fat, so you won't see scale changes but you will see inch changes. Muscle is so much denser than fat, it's what makes you leaner and skinnier.

    I don't have much in the way of practical advice for you, just the experience that has taught me that what you're seeing is pretty normal and that it'll change soon enough. The one thing I could suggest is to drink plenty of water. Water weight is so bloaty, it could be why things aren't fitting right.
  • OlenaS
    OlenaS Posts: 125 Member
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    I don't have any pregnancy-related experience, but wanted to tell you I am in a similar situation in a way that during my first 3 weeks here I lost 6 lbs - but I was not feeling it or seeing it in *any* way - no inches lost, my clothes fit exactly the same... But finally on my 4th week I started seeing the changes, my skirts (I don't wear pants very often) feel a little bit looser at the waist, my rings fit better/looser... So this is my first week where I finally took measurements (waist, hips, bust) and I lost some inches, not much - half an inch there, 1/3 inch here... So maybe it just takes longer for some of us to see these changes. This week I am at 8 lbs lost, so for me any signs started showing at 8 lbs. Everybody is different and will be able to see it one way or another, I am sure!!! (It's hard not to compare ourselves to other people; but we are all different shapes/body structures, we do different types of exercise and eat different types of food, and then our bodies react differently to all of this).

    When I myself was feeling a little discouraged, I thought well, 6 lbs is really a lot, I looked at our doggie's bag of dog food and it was 4.4 lbs and then it made me feel a lot better, because I could visualize how much I lost even though I could not really see it on my body in any way.

    Please don't get discouraged :):)
  • sltoye
    sltoye Posts: 9 Member
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    I went to respond but then realized everyone already put what I was going to say, so I just thought I would add my congrats on the baby and on 10lbs lost! Great job! I know how hard that can be!
  • XFitMojoMom
    XFitMojoMom Posts: 3,255 Member
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    after my 2nd daughter was born, it took me almost 18 months for anything to happen with my body, despite my efforts. A lot of changes hormonally - I'd talk to your doctor and ask for some tests. I found out that I although my glucose levels returned to normal postpartum (had GD), a year later I was insulin resistant. 7 weeks on an Rx and i lost almost 25 pounds.
  • SemiSweetRae
    SemiSweetRae Posts: 30
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    10 pounds is excellent! I made up silly little excersizes to do when my daughter was born...anything to burn extra calories! My hips are definitely wider then they were before, but I am lovin the curves! Just enjoy the time with your new baby and watch what you eat, before you know it, a year will be gone as will a lot of the weight! You're doing really great!
  • pheebers
    pheebers Posts: 5
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    Thank you everyone! This is my 3rd baby, so i was hoping my body wouldn't change THAT much from before the pregnancy, especially as my first two were twins.

    I guess I really just need to hang in there, and hope that I'll eventually fit back into my clothes. At least I have the reward of a baby! :happy: It's just difficult to see so many people who are tiny after a few weeks with almost no effort. Grrr. I actually bought a bathing suit last week, though, so at least I'm making progress emotionally. :wink:

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