Fourth Trimester Week 11

Happy Friday friends!  Sorry, this post is going up a little later than usual, but here it is!  I can’t believe only one more of these updates until babe is three months old, that’s nuts!

Body Changes

I’m starting to see a tiny bit of muscle definition in my back and my arms which is fun!  I’m feeling stronger every workout, it’s funny when you start from the beginning you wee progress so much faster, and it’s so motivating! I was down a couple of pounds last weekend, which I thought was interesting because I hit the wine kind of hard during Christmas.  I also was pumping like a billion times a day, so I guess it all evened out.

I spoke a little bit about my postpartum body insecurities on Instagram after I did a local lie TV segment if you missed the post here it is:

 

Sleep & Breastfeeding

I had to combine this section because the two go hand in hand this week.  After reading the Navigating 3 and 4 months document, I purchased along with the newborn sleep class from Taking Cara Babies I realized the baby was reverse eating.  Snacking during the day and getting most of his calories in at night.  I 100% think this was the result of me freaking out about his weight gain and purposely feeding him more at night. Result – wake ups every 45 minutes – 2 hours.

His weight is fine. It’s still following the same curve he is just a smaller baby.  We will continue to monitor his weight weekly at home though (I was doing it daily, but then I got off the crazy train.  The thing is the night feedings aren’t adding anything. Instead, they are just causing him to eat less throughout the day.  So the last couple of days we worked on reversing that and luckily we’ve seen a few longer stretches of sleep.

Emotional/ Well Being

Lack of sleep got me foggy brained and a tad bit more emotional than I have been.  Finally, I did something Mr. Hungry has been telling me to do and I reached out to a friend.  It’s weird, I have all these friends and all these resources, yet I’m reluctant to ask them questions on the things I’m most worried about.  It’s easy to ask questions on Instagram about leaky diapers, btw thank you all who responded!  It’s not so easy to ask questions about things like breastfeeding, baby’s weight gain, night sleep, etc…

I’m not sure what makes me hesitate, all these friends have said MULTIPLE TIMES to reach out and yet when it comes to the things I need the help most with I hesitate. You know what happened when I reached out?  My friend, who has had FIVE children, immediately called me after I texted her.  She talked me through what it’s like to have small babies, made me laugh and gave me a ton of insight, it was, of course, wonderful and refreshing.  Why didn’t I reach out two weeks ago?  Why is it so hard?  I don’t know, but I hope I can learn from the experience and continue to reach out before I’m at my breaking point.

The sleep regression we’ve been experiencing the last few weeks hit us hard.  While the days are more comfortable because babe is generally more awake and only fussy when sleepy or hungry, I’m SUPER exhausted.  There are a few things I repeat to myself to help get me through both the day and the night.

• “We can figure this out together.”
• “Babies cry.”
• “He has no idea what’s going on.” –> Mr. Hungry gave me that one, he said that when he gets frustrated he remembers the poor baby has no idea what’s going on and it makes it easier to get through whatever it is happening at that moment.
• “The only guarantees about a baby is that they will change.” – Thanks to Jenna for saying this one on her IG.
• “This too shall pass.”  

Workouts

Workout motivation started strong at the beginning of the week, but towards the end of the week, I’ve lost a ton of motivation.  I had a couple early morning appointments I’ve had to be out of the house for which means even less sleep than usual, so I’m not feeling workouts right now.  It’s hard to even get out for a walk right now. Sleep is the priority.

Fri (1/4 )- 2-mile walk run with Nala

Sat (1/5) – 2-mile stroller walk and workout from Post Baby Bod

• exercises included push-ups, calf raises, squats, and spinal balance

Sun (1/6) – OFF

Mon (1/7) – walk 2 miles with a stroller  and 2 miles run in the afternoon

Tues (1/8)- long stroller walk with a friend and circuit workout from Post Baby Bod

• exercises included squats, bicep curls, rows, deadlifts, push-ups, spinal balance, and heel slides

Wed (1/9) – OFF

Thurs (1/10) – walk 2 miles with the stroller

Past Updates

• The Fourth Trimester Week 10
• The Fourth Trimester Week 9
• The Fourth Trimester Week 8
• The Fourth Trimester Week 7
• The Fourth Trimester Weeks 5 & 6
• The Fourth Trimester Week 4
• The Fourth Trimester Week 3
• The Fourth Trimester Weeks 1-2