The Mum-Bod

We’re 8 months in since welcoming little P into this world and boy what a journey it has been! As the title suggests, this post is dedicated to the female body that has gone through one heck of a change called pregnancy and I’ll be going through ways on how to work with your Mum Bod rather than rebel against it!

Have you quietly looked back at photos of your pre-pregnancy self and wondered whether you’ll ever get that body back? I personally have done so numerous times with envy and longing. However, it has taken a lot of practice and discipline over the last few months to control my thought process and attitude towards my body as I am tired of feeling like I am failing to “bounce back”.

As always, society places certain expectations on the female body by defining what a “healthy” pregnant body looks like and how it should transform to its pre-baby state. In this day and age, we’ve got media in all its forms to thank for influencing our attitudes towards our body. Triggers can either include inspiration and motivation, while more negative feelings can arise such as disappointment, frustration and comparison. For this reason, I chose to actively control how my surrounding environment influences how I perceive my post-baby bod. Here’s a mini-roadmap of what I’ve done:

Deleted social media accounts that triggered any feelings of comparison and discouragement. I had to practice what I preach as this is something I encouraged all my clients to do if they have struggled with their weight or held negative perceptions of their body. Instagram and Facebook accounts of so-called foodies, fitness gurus or wellness bloggers can either act motivators when it comes to health and fitness or simply be a source of misinformation, discouragement, disappointment and self-judgement about our bodies.

Set realistic goals for myself. Exercising was my biggest foe! I had this crazy expectation that I can get back to my previous workouts, 4-5 days a week for an hour. With a baby, a business and a life, that was impossible! I decided to invest in a personal trainer, who was, luckily enough, a woman’s health physio and frankly I never looked back! Home-workouts twice a week worked perfectly for my current lifestyle and anything in addition to that is a massive bonus! Our focus was recovery and building my strength back and we continue to work on upping my fitness not to “look” a certain way but to perform at my personal best. Katharina is someone I can personally recommend and yes, we decided to work together too!

Nutrition is something that comes naturally to me (well I would be concerned if it didn’t given my job!) but the biggest challenge was time! My goal in that regard was to think of quick and convenient meals to come up with and rotate them weekly. Keep it simple is another moto I swear by! My meal prep days are now allocated to baby-food prep so yes, “me” became less of a priority, for now. I am also happy to admit that take out and ordering meals online have become our saving grace post-baby but it really does come down to strategically navigating an overly-tempting menu if this is something that you struggle with. Smood.ch, Mosi and Eat.ch are frequently visited for either lunches or dinners and I’ve actually taught my clients how to eat smart when ordering online if convenience and time are a thing.

Practising Body Neutrality. In a recent post about body positivity, I touched on the concept of being body-neutral, which in my opinion, could be a great start to ending the battle with body image insecurities. The way I view body-neutrality is shifting our focus from “the body” (not neglecting it!) to paying attention on how to meet its needs and help it function the way we want it to. It will require practice, mindfulness and actually listening. You don’t have to love your stretch-marks but accept that they are part of who you are and you don’t have to hate your legs but realise that they can function in ways to make you stronger.

So ladies, if you’re interested in learning more on how I’m working with my Mum Bod, then this program is for you! Next month, I’ll be launching The Mum Bod program: 

The Mum-Bod is a 4-week postnatal program with the aim of getting reacquainted with your postnatal body, working with it and not against it! Our focus is on nourishment, planning, education rather than weight loss and getting that bikini body post bébé.

The Program

x4 1:1 consults with an accredited dietitian

x1 30 min massage by Lea Nydegger from ent-spannt

x4 1 hour small group sessions (Saturday Mornings):

• Session 1 Essential nutrients for recovery post-birth
• Session 2 Meal prep, shopping and label reading
• Session 3 Skin and gut health post baby
• Session 4 Fitness and Recovery – Guest speaker and topic TBA

*You can also join the Mum-Bod Facebook group*

Cost: CHF 475 (Limited offer)

*Limited to 5 participants per block*

For enquiries & registration: info@nutrition-az.com

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