Getting Your Body Back After Pregnancy: What not to do

See – she’s fine now! Check out that core strength!! Compare Jelly Bean’s fab plank to this woman’s – this has got to be the worst “fitness” photo I’ve ever seen! (And no comment about the two binkies. We’re working on it!) I love her one boot/one plaid sandal combo. She cracks me up every …

Have Your Feelings About Your Weight Ever Held You Back from Doing What you Love?

Gwen Stefani with 4-month-old Zuma Nesta Rock (I cannot hear that name and not immediately think Zima. I’m sure she did not mean it but her baby will forever be linked to a much-mocked adult beverage.) If this is “gross, big and uncool” sign me up! Gwen Stefani is hot. I think everyone, regardless of …

Can Exercise Hurt Your Breast Milk? [A Study in Mother Guilt]

A mother’s love – they say that nothing is more powerful. (At least if you believe Harry Potter, which of course I do. I’m a sucker for green eyes.) So if this is true then I know the second most powerful force on the planet: A mother’s guilt. Whether they hand it to you as …

Tips for Losing the Baby Weight – That Really Work!

I am ten days past the scream-n-push Bodily Fluids Festival of ’09 (Marilyn Manson should take notes) which means, of course, that it’s time to talk about losing the baby weight. No, not because I’m feeling overly anxious about it – I’m too busy being anxious about being anxious! – but because I’ve gotten a …

Confessions of a Pregnant Compulsive Exerciser

Yeah, this poster has a typo. Several actually. Kids these days. I have the feeling that eventually this will be one of those Turning Points in my life that I’ll talk about later with great insight. But living it thus far has felt anything but profound. Unless you mean profoundly depressing. Backstory: Wednesday morning I …

New Research: A Distorted Self Image Linked to Weight Gain

I read FitPregnancy. It seems slightly silly to me, this being my fifth (I’m a breeder!) pregnancy and all and yet I’m still drawn by the lure of Build An Entire Maternity Wardrobe Out of 5 Simple Pieces (of clothing I could never afford) and essays by professional athletes who do two-hour trail runs when …

Weight Gain in Pregnancy: What’s Normal and What’s Just Celebrities

It’s official: I am half way done with my pregnancy! With 20 weeks under my metaphorical belt – like I could get an actual belt on these days – and perhaps less to go if the universe loves me, I feel pretty excited about this milestone. As I’m looking obviously pregnant now, there are many …

The Problem With Being a People Pleaser

This would also be good reason for a freak-out. And now for an interruption in our regularly scheduled programming (I owe you a dissertation on poo, I know.) The following is an announcement from the Emergency Charlotte Broadcast System. This is not a test. I repeat, this is not a test. (And it’s not a …