An important part of being a good mum & wife is taking care of myself both mentally and physically. It is not selfish, it is important. Along the lines of “happy wife, happy life” I strongly believe “If Mum ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”. As mums we put ourselves last all too often, which is the worst thing we can do. This is why I was so motivated to start exercising again. Everyone wants to feel happy with themselves and their lives and I have never been happier.

After having my second baby (with a 7 year age gap) I had forgotten how that post baby belly looked and felt. I was disheartened leaving hospital 5 days post C-Section with a belly that looked as if my Obstetrician had left one in there. Admittedly, a lot of it was swelling from the surgery and I had probably set my expectations too high, but I was still unhappy and no amount of ‘sucking-it-in’ was hiding that post baby belly!

During the 6 weeks post baby when I couldn’t do much, I started planning my ‘come back’ in my head and this is when I felt my motivation starting to build and I was really looking forward to being able to start exercising again. Having the right mindset is always the best way to start, so I was already at that point. *Tick*.

My recovery was much better second time round and I felt so great I started doing a bit too much too soon and suffered some pain and bleeding. Much to my Obs disgust I was vacuuming upstairs and downstairs, picking up after my 7 year old and hubby and walking with the pram. Oops! Just because I was feeling good doesn’t mean I was ready to be doing all of these things yet. I am naturally a very active, busy person who does not do “sitting down” and “resting” very well. I find it really hard and I don’t enjoy doing nothing. So after a good telling off from my post natal nurse and wanting to be a good patient, I waited my 6 weeks to recover and after getting the nod from my Ob I slowly began my reintroduction to exercise and fitness. It was just like riding a bike (pardon the pun) but I was starting with my training wheels on.

Once I started with the fitness part, I found that my eating and nutrition automatically improved too *bonus*. I’ve always been health conscious but I was beginning to enjoy way too many indulgences (read: creamy hot cocoas and Kit Kats among other naughty temptations). In a way, I was comfort eating, if I couldn’t exercise yet then why not enjoy eating as much as I wanted of all of these yummy foods?! This is a bad mindset to be in and my poor eating had become an extremely bad habit. The more junk food you eat, the more you crave. I couldn’t just have a cup of tea, I had to have 3 biscuits with it…. that kind of thing. But like everything these bad habits can be changed, it’s mind over matter. I needed to find my willpower and get back on track. In my next blog post I will go through a few of the eating/nutrition challenges I faced both during and after my pregnancy. Let’s just say it hasn’t been smooth sailing…..but it has taught me how to be dedicated and strong willed.

As I said in my first blog post, motivation is a very personal thing and comes in many forms, different people are motivated by different things. When you find your purpose and motivation, it makes it a lot easier to succeed. What motivates you? If you need a bit of extra motivation come join me on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter (links in my about me).