If you caught my Body after Baby fitness/weight-loss post, the top I was wearing I received courtesy of ActivewearUSA.
It’s true that you don’t “need” expensive fitness wear to exercise, but I recommend it. Yes, you can throw on a t-shirt and pair of shorts, go out and run. But discomfort is probably going to affect your workout negatively. It does mine. High-quality workout gear is going to keep you cool in the heat, warm in the cold, and comfortable during the in-between. It should wick moisture away from your skin, letting you feel as dry as possible. High-quality fitness clothing should also hold up over time and last longer than cheap or regular clothing.
I received the ION Actif long sleeve fitness tee and Beyond Yoga capri leggings in white.
The top is very comfortable. The fabric feels smooth and sleek, and I’ve been wearing it running when it’s around 55 to 65 degrees. After I’ve been running for over 10 minutes, the top keeps me plenty warm and does wick moisture from my skin. There are two little pockets on both sides of the shirt. They’re large enough that you can fit a set of keys and ID card. The wrists also have thumb holes, so I can keep the sleeves down (and my hands warm). Even without my thumbs through the holes, I never have trouble with the sleeves riding up, but the holes do come in handy if I’m doing push-ups, etc., after my run.
When I first pulled the capri leggings out of the package, my initial thought was they are incredibly cute and soft. And they are…just not on me. I gave them to my SIL, who’s smaller than I am, and as you can see, the capris fit her perfectly. The ruching on the legs give these leggings a stylish touch.
I was impressed with both brands and will definitely purchase clothes from ActivewearUSA in the future. Besides their price match guarantee (keep reading for more on that), they have final sales on many of their clothes. This means you can purchase quality workout clothes at a great price.
Founded on a mission “to offer the largest selection of quality, high-performance, stylish women’s activewear, footwear, and accessories,” ActivewearUSA strives to provide great customer service and apparel guidance to the consumer.
With a huge selection of fitness clothes for women, ActivewearUSA features brands like BEYOND YOGA, O’Neill 365, Zumba Clothing, Fila, Hapari swimwear, lucy activewear, and many more. The inventory changes often, but if there’s a specific brand you like, you can sign up to receive notifications via email of when ActivewearUSA receives more stock in that brand.
ActivewearUSA offers free shipping on orders over $75 within the domestic United States. They also have a great return policy, provided the clothing hasn’t been worn and still has the tags on it. Just send back the new, unused items within 60 days of delivery along with your invoice. Orders under $75 will ship anywhere in the US for just $5. And they do ship to Canada as well as other countries. Check out their site for specific details on their return and shipping policies.
They also have a price match guarantee, but there are some stipulations. See HERE for more info.
Please read the disclaimer at the bottom of this post!
Have you been reading the Body after Baby guest posts? You can read the posts and product reviews HERE.
2 Months Before Pregnancy- 165 lbs.
Since this is my blog, I guess it’s fitting that I close out the “Body after Baby” series with my own postpartum weight-loss story! Throughout high school and college, I fluctuated between 135-145 lbs. At 5’10” tall, that was well within a normal range. As an adult, my weight went up due to stress-related binge eating and a lack of time to exercise. Well, I should have made time, but as we all know, when you’re tired after a full day of work, the last thing you want to do is workout! At one point, I weighed around 175 lbs., but dropped that a few months later down to a very fit 150 lbs., thanks to Army basic training. Shortly after that, I started dating J. We were soon engaged, then married. By the time I was pregnant with Baby J, I’d gained weight again until I was fluctuating between 160-165 lbs. I was actually comfortable with my weight there. Not thrilled, but okay with it.
48 hours postpartum- 200 lbs.?
I gained too much weight while pregnant. There were a few reasons why. My husband was deployed until the last two weeks of my pregnancy, so I struggled with feeling motivated to do anything. Whenever he’s away, I have to force myself to do anything beyond getting out of bed. Add to that the exhaustion of pregnancy, and so if I wasn’t working, I was sleeping.
The apartment complex I lived in was really tiny and surrounded by trees, so I also didn’t feel comfortable walking anywhere in the early mornings or evenings. It didn’t seem safe. By the time I was finished at work, it was already dark. So those were my excuses for not exercising while pregnant.
Then the food…I actually ate healthy overall (I think, anyway) during my pregnancy. In fact, the first time I had ice cream my entire pregnancy was in my last trimester. But I did have a burger and french fries at least once a week, sometimes twice. Burgers and fries are my downfall! And I ate too many portions of the food I cooked. Chicken, veggies, and brown rice may be healthy, but you will still gain weight if you eat too much of it.
When I hit 230 lbs., I stopped looking at the scale during my doctor’s appointments, and that was still at least a month before I delivered. My OB would chide me for my weight gain, but I was fortunate to have low blood pressure my entire pregnancy. So despite her concerns about pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes, I never had any issues. I did retain a lot of water. The last few weeks, my limbs were very swollen.
Within 5 days after having my son, I dropped down to 195 lbs. That tells me that a lot of my weight gain was baby and water, but I still had at least 30 lbs. that was just fat, nothing else. Thanks to breastfeeding, I lost the first 10 lbs. pretty quickly, but it took me months to get through the 170s and down into the 160s. I seemed to plateau for about 5 or 6 months. It was really frustrating. I use MyFitnessPal to keep track of how many calories I’m consuming and to estimate how many I’m burning through exercise. I started walking more, trying to get out and walk at least an hour every day, 4 times a week. If the weather was nice, I’d go to the park. If it was raining, hot, or cold, I’d walk around the mall. Finally, it paid off, and I was down into the 160s.
At that point, my son was almost a year old. Again, my weight didn’t seem to go anywhere, but after Baby J weaned at 13 months, I dropped a few more pounds quickly. I started this past summer at 155lbs. I was thrilled, since that was actually 10 lbs. less than my pre-pregnancy weight (although my body was not as firm). Over the summer, I ate too much and exercised too little. Back to 160 lbs!
So, yes, I’m back to my pre-pregnancy weight (slightly under it). My body isn’t the same yet (I still have a lot of toning up to do), but I’m getting there. You can read my final Fitness Friday post HERE, along with before and after photos of my postpartum weight loss journey.
17 months postpartum- 160 lbs.
What worked for me was keeping track of what I was eating, not just calories but the types of food. How much protein was I consuming compared to saturated fat, etc? Was I getting enough fiber? Was I eating too much sugar?
I also concentrated on eating clean and avoiding processed foods. I do have a cheat day every week! I don’t think I could survive without one. Knowing that I have one day that I can eat whatever I want, that helps me make it through the rest of the week.
Besides a healthy diet, I took off most of the “baby weight” from walking and just getting out and being active. When I took Baby J to the playground, I followed him around instead of sitting down. We walked to the grocery store instead of driving. Just making small changes like that really helped.
By this coming Spring, I want to be a toned and muscular 145-150 lbs. I try to not focus on numbers, but I know from the past that when I’m in really good shape, that’s about what the scale will say. I’ve started training for a half marathon with a friend, and it’s been really exciting to see how my endurance has improved. I used to get out of breath climbing stairs or walking quickly, but no more! I couldn’t believe it when I ran 8 miles a couple weeks ago, pushing a toddler in a jogging stroller! (Okay, my friend pushed Baby J half the time for me, but I did push him SOME of the time!) =D
I really want to be in better shape my next pregnancy. I know that I need to get into a fitness habit now, before I’m pregnant again. I was really inspired by Sarah’s story about setting a fitness goal during pregnancy. Working out during pregnancy and gaining just the right amount of weight will help me have an easier delivery and recover more quickly afterwards.
I want to not only keep up with my kids, but be a good example to them by staying active.
By the way, I don’t think I could train for a race without a friend to motivate me. If you can find moms to work out with, I think that makes the process so much easier!
What are your favorite ways of staying active? Do you incorporate your children into your workouts?
Disclaimer: All information presented during this event is purely personal opinion and shared for educational purposes only. The information contained herein is not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult your physician before beginning any exercise, weight-loss, or nutrition program. Please note, My Life: A Work in Progress does not necessarily endorse any opinions presented by guest writers during this event. Not all exercise or nutrition programs are suitable for everyone.
Please read the disclaimer at the bottom of this post!
Have you been reading the Body after Baby guest posts? You can read posts and product reviews HERE.
GUEST WRITER BIO: Beth O’Donnell is a military wife and stay at home mom. She is a prior service member who only stayed in shape because she had to. Now she actually enjoys it and no longer says hateful things while she runs. She now lives a lifestyle of clean eating and regular exercise and plans to keep it that way. Since she has gotten a taste of the fitness Koolaid, she has decided to go back to school to become a personal trainer to help women become their very best. She also vows to quit using Dr. Google.
Diastasis Recti: the ugly words that no woman post pregnancy wants to hear, especially those who are anxious to begin getting back in shape. Diastasis Recti is the separation of your abdominal muscles which untreated, can lead to hernias. (More info HERE.)
After I had my son in 2011, my doctor indicated to me that I had diastasis recti, but I blew it off. I was in the military and had no choice but to hurry back into shape. Shortly after receiving the go ahead from my doctor (who, looking back, really should not have given it to me), I quickly got back into running, pushups, and situps/crunches (huge no-no!). I noticed that I had a ridiculous amount of lower back pain and a funky belly bulge but chalked it up to post pregnancy body changes. I figured it would just work itself out. Then I got pregnant again just before my son’s first birthday.
Courtesy Photo
At one of my first doctor appointments, the doctor made a remark on how bad my diastasis recti was and that it was only going to get worse (total fail on my part!). After I had my daughter, I was extremely worried, and in denial, about having it. I did not ask my doctor how bad it was, because I did not want to know. So right before my six week checkup, I started working out on my own. I was doing crunches, sit-ups, twists, you name it! After about a week or so, I was hurting. It was not the “good” pain you feel when you are working out, it was the “I seriously just busted something up” hurt. Although it killed me to stop working out so hard, I knew I had to take diastasis recti seriously.
So, I Dr. Googled it. I found a youtube video which thoroughly explained how to test yourself for it (Please do not follow my footsteps, ask your doctor first!). I also found out that the exercises I was doing were absolutely terrible for the condition and was only worsening it! The good news is, there are exercises that can be done to help heal your abdominals! So, I googled those too. As much as it pained me, I took it easy and did these exercises every day religiously.
At 12 weeks postpartum, I checked myself and to my surprise, my abs were back to a two finger gap! I have been working out pretty hardcore the last few weeks (thanks to Anna Reed!) and as I wrote this, I checked again and I am down to a one finger gap above, at, and below my belly button.
Courtesy Photo- Beth checking for Diastasis recti.
Do you or have you ever had Diastasis Recti? What are some ways you strengthened your stomach muscles as a result?
Disclaimer: All information presented during this event is purely personal opinion and shared for educational purposes only. The information contained herein is not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult your physician before beginning any exercise, weight-loss, or nutrition program. Please note, My Life: A Work in Progress does not necessarily endorse any opinions presented by guest writers during this event. Not all exercise or nutrition programs are suitable for everyone.
