Time for some real talk guys. I’m about to get real vulnerable. In about a week, I will be ONE YEAR POSTPARTUM with our 2nd baby. The photos above are NOT what I currently look like. I wish! This was taken back in 2012 when life was a beach – literally. This was right before I found out I was expecting with Marli. I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t miss my pre-baby body. I was in the best shape of my life and I was really proud of my body – not because I was thin, but because I was the strongest and leanest I had ever been.
Even after Marli was born in 2013, I recovered so well and was back at the fitness game in no time. Fast forward to Matea’s birth almost one year ago and whoa – what a difference. They say that it’s harder to get back in shape with every addition to the family and they were not kidding! For me at least, my road back to a healthier body has been a roller coaster ride. With a tough recovery, baby blues up the wazoooo, not having a consistent schedule, lack of energy, poor meal planning, and running on little or no sleep for the past 12 months, so many things affected my progress. Talk about a surprise. I mean I thought I was mentally and physically prepared for our baby number 2, but I never expected it to be this challenging.
I guess I’m mentioning this because I want to keep it real with you ladies. I have my struggles too and I sure as heck am the farthest thing from being perfect. But I’m completely OK with that. I hope you don’t judge me solely on the curated blog posts you’ve seen or the pretty Instagram posts on your feed. The flaws are there – just hidden with some good lighting, carefully positioned poses, and clothing. Ha! It’s been a year full of highs and lows, but I’ve learned to love my new body and give myself a lot more patience and grace. I’ve realized that there isn’t a deadline to get back into shape. We all work at our own pace and it’s not fair to compare to ourselves to other mommas or even our ’20-something self’ because circumstances are so different. Remember that!
Now that I’m FINALLY getting a little more sleep at night, I am so ready to get back into shape. I’m not worried about the number on the scale – it’s all about fine tuning my 30-something year old body into a stronger and healthier body. I want to tone up, gain more muscle, and build my endurance.
Today marks Day Zero of my fitness journey. I have BIG goals for this year (read more about it HERE) so join in and let’s do this together! We can inspire, encourage, push, and lean on each other for support as we sweat our way to a better YOU this year.
Above are the 3, 6, and 9 month postpartum progress photos I took. Not the best lighting (sorry!), but it’s the real and uncut version – with no makeup and messy hair galore. 🙂 Below are my one year postpartum photos -aka the “before photos.” Ekk! I am really excited to see the transformation in the coming months! I’ll be posting some workouts, recipes, reviews, collaborations with brands/shop I love, and more so stay tuned!
In the mean time, here’s a Quick 15 minute Total Body Workout you can do in the comfort of your own home AND it doesn’t require any weights or equipment (unless you want to add some to the mix). This is a great and effective workout to get your heart pumping when you’re crunched on time or trying to ease back into the routine. Let me know how this workout worked for you.
What type of workouts would you like to see? What problem areas do you want to target? Let me know in the comments or you can message me as well. Thank you so much for reading this post and allowing me to be a little vulnerable. If you’d like to keep up with the latest happenings including my fitness posts, make sure to SUBSCRIBE HERE. Have a great day, loves!
Linh, I SO appreciate your authenticity — all the time, and especially in this post. It was exactly what I needed to read today! It’s so easy for me to look at perfectly curated Instagram feeds and assume I’m the only one who hasn’t achieved the “perfect” body post-baby. I have to keep reminding myself that it’s not about getting back to my pre-baby self, because as you said, my circumstances are different and my body has been through a lot! Instead, it’s about figuring out how to care for and love this new body through good nutrition, working out, getting strong, and caring for myself in so many other ways — sleeping, reading, being creative, going on walks, etc. Thanks for the inspiration, friend! And sorry for writing you a book here in the comments. 😉
You look pretty perfect to me. This is as perfect any busy mom of two can get! Thanks for the inspiration, you’re always so active and fit. I haven’t gone to the gym in over a year since getting pregnant and having my son. Thanks for the kick in the butt!
You look killer in all stages! It takes hard work to maintain your fitness for anyone, nevermind new moms. Thanks for sharing the workout, too! ps I love that black and white bikini.
First you look beautiful!! Second yay for your body being amazing to carry both your sweet babies. Third I hear ya!!! I just had my second baby 6 weeks ago, and yes to being kind to ourselves. I’m giving myself a year to get back to my prebaby weight, but I’m not too strict at the moment. Everything in moderation. Including the cotton candy I picked up at the grocery store. Haha!! I love sweets!! I look forward to following along on you becoming an even fitter momma. Oh and yes to not caring about the number on the scale. My measurement is do I fit in my normal not having a fat day jeans. Haha!! So far I’m a month ish from that.
Angela
http://www.prettyinherpearls.com
Linh, you are beautiful. I head the word ‘Postpartum’ twice today. My girlfriend just had her beautiful baby girl two week ago. She was telling me she is having a hard time right now, and no words would describe how she feels. I am glad you feel better and open up. Thank you for sharing your story.
I love how real this post is. It took me a long time to really feel somewhat normal in my new mommy body. I admittedly didn’t really dedicate to getting toned and back in shape, aside from some minimal maintenance. I want this year to be different though. I don’t expect to get the same body back that I had before having a child but I want to get nack to a place of strength.
Thanks so much for your open post and for the inspiration!