Reached Pre-Pegnancy Weight- Disappointed & Depressed

Hello to everyone & thanks for looking at my thread. I need to talk with some people who can understand what I am going through with my weight loss. I gave birth to my daughter close to 4 months ago on November 15th. On January 5th I started healthy eating & exercising - I weighed 139 pounds. (I am 5ft 3inch)

I now weigh 125 pounds and want to keep going until I reach roughly 114 - 118. I have always had a problem with my self image & my weight. Pregnancy was hard on me because I kept getting bigger & bigger, by the end I weighed a whopping 143pounds. Everything about me was big except for my belly which was quite neat & round, I only had stretch marks on my hips.

I had so many expectations for what my body would look like when I reached my pre-pregnancy weight. Unfortunately I have lost muscle tone & have a lot more fat than I did this time last year & it is such an anti-climax now that I have attained this half-way goal. I expected to look like I used to. I always had a very athletic physic.

The problem I am having at the moment is that every time I eat something I feel so guilty - even though I know I eat healthy foods. Its driving me insane. I look at my body and I'm repulsed by what I see & its not getting better the more weight I lose. Does anyone else feel like this? At what point & I'm finally going to be happy with my weight? 

girl 125 is NOT by all means fat, yes u may have alittle extra weight on but you just had a baby 5 months ago, most woman ive talked to take atleast a year to lose the weight. I give you mega props for how much you have lost so far and i promise you i you keep what you are doing you will lose the weight and be down to your pre- pregnancy weight, you just have to be patient. I am 5"3' also and 100 pounds and my doctors have diagnosed me as anarexic and say that the healthy weight for 5"3' is 115 so 125 is not bad. kerp up your good work and good luck (:

That's awesome - congratulations :) you did great!! the hard part is essentially over and now all you need to do is tone up! Keep that healthy diet of yours ... But more importantly, Are you currently part of a resistance training program? If not, i suggest you go to the gym, start working out 3-6 times a week, lifting weights, doing Pilates, yoga, kick boxing and other strength exercises that'll help you get that lean athletic figure u really want! If you need help, join a workout class or hire a personal trainer to help u reach that goal ... It would be of tremendous help to you and you will not only be able to get the figure u want, but you can also learn what specific exercises to do in order to maintain that physique ... As people age, they tend to store more fat and doing resistance training (the right way) 3-4x a week can really help prevent that... so I would definitely suggest you try that method ... It is well worth the time and money spent if you are able to find knowledgable people to help guide you :)

Thanks guys! Really means a lot to have support with this! My partner tells me all the time how great I look but I always feel like he has to say it - especially because I just carried his baby for 9 months!! I went into my old workplace today (my partner is a manager there) & everyone was complimenting me on my figure which was a HUGE boost!!

I think my problem may be the weighing scales. Its an old-school dutch one & weighs everything in kilos. So if I loose a pound it doesn't show up on the scales. I have to lose roughly 2.2lbs to see it move down. I am used to using a weighing scales that uses stones or pounds as the measurement! 

I am currently doing the Tabata workout on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. I was hoping to do yoga on Saturday & Sundays but I don't think my body can cope at the moment. I'm so drained from the exercise, breast-feeding & the weight loss that I can't do any more than I am at the moment! Once I have reached my goal weight I am going to cut out the Tabata & maintain my body with yoga - hopefully when we move back to Ireland in the next few months Ican start Bikram! I also still have one of my horses at my parents home in Ireland so I can begin riding again!

Beautiful, listen to some Ella Fitzgerald, "Accentuate the Positive!" and dance some Nia (an exercise form I practice and love, highly recommend to learn how to appreciate your body and all it's strengths.)  You've created a gorgeous little human, and that is ongelofelijk!  Also pretty amazing that you're dropping weight steadily so soon after having your baby, a testament to your strong sense of self and will to reach your goals. Patience for change is never easy, but with every day you eat healthily and honor your body, you're improving your heart health, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and bio-chemistry balance- all great things! 

Speaking of bio-chemistry, have you considered that you may be experiencing post-partum depression? Progesterone that your body produces when you're pregnant can drastically drop off once you deliver. It's a happiness boost to cook progesterone that, alas, can really sting when it goes away. 

Above all, love yourself in this one life you've got, and take it day by day. When you start feeling really down, make yourself a list when you can that you can focus on just one thing you know you do right, even if it has nothing to do with your physical form. Body + mind + spirit, they all count in balance toward happiness. 

Blessings across the pond to you~

You are doing a fab job as they say nine months up and nine months down. I too was gutted that pre pregnancy weight didn't equate to shape but believe me with time you will get it back. I found that running round doing mummy stuff was pretty much enough to burn stuff off but I've found that body balance classes have been great for toning up and improving strength. Keep going and listen to those compliments - if people didn't think it they wouldn't say it x

I know how you feel I gave birth 6 months ago and I was going crazy, I know it's baby weight but I just hate looking at myself. My pre-pregnancy weight was 110, I reached I think 161 when I had my baby but he was 8.6 lbs. Now I go to a fit body bootcamp 3-4 days a week and workout at home when I don't go. I'm a stay home mom and I go to school once a week. It's been about 3 weeks since I joined the bootcamp and I have only lost 4 lbs, it's a little frustrating but I know I have to take it easy cause I'm still breastfeeding and I don't want my milk supply to get any lower than it already is.

Hormonal hunger is a difficult foe. Your body has worked so hard for you, your child. It's a long road. You will get there.