After my first baby I remember coming home and slipping on
my pre-pregnancy pants. Except there was nothing “slippy” about it.  The pants came to about my thighs before I started to wiggle and spastically jump. You
know, the shimmy-your-pants-on dance. Come on… we’ve all done it. I was so
happy to not be pregnant anymore. I was so happy to not feel like a blimp. And I was completely oblivious to the stage your body goes through after a baby. 

Pregnancy alone does a toll on a woman’s body. And I haven’t met a women who naturally bounced back the next day from a pregnancy.  I remember first looking in
the mirror thinking, “Where did those hips come from?”.  Or I will never forget what it feel like to
have a pillow for a stomach. When you have a baby, you get a pillow for a stomach for the first week or so. Just trust me.

I was happy
to embrace my curves. Those curves were signs of my strong momma body. That body had carried and grew another life. What I wanted to change was my energy
levels. I knew it would take time. But living on the third floor of our
apartment sure got me in a huff going up and down those stairs. And normal tasks left me panting.

Like most mommas out there I found ways to try to get back
in shape. I dusted off some old TaiBo VHS tapes and even worked out with my
neighbor. I sloowwwwly saw differences. I really wasn’t changing my diet. Then one morning I was flipping through my cable TV and
found a local Yoga class televised.

This was about eight years ago and that early exposure was
great to get me in shape then and has kept me emotionally and physically strong
since. Doing yoga after my first helped me build a strong core, increased my flexibility,
and even built muscle. Coupled with good cardio, I fit back into some of my
pants a little later on. It took work but happily I can say Yoga helped me get back to my pre-pregnancy stage. Some of my pants never fit and that is ok with me. I
grew stronger and that was what mattered. The three floors of stairs didn’t make me lose my breath.

Now eight years later I have continued to practice yoga on
and off. I’ve actually taught yoga at last once a week for the last three
years. It’s been such a good way of living. I really enjoy the benefits of
practicing yoga often. It’s so great to have built a strong core and to stretch
often. Especially after having children these hips really can use a good
stretch.

 

Also having great fitness clothing makes you excited to workout, don’t you think? For me I love feeling confident and strong inside and out. So here’s what I am wearing and would recommend.

 

My pants are from Albion Fit. Aren’t they so amazing? I love the floral pattern and the way they fit is magic. I’ve been a fan of Albion for quite some time and their products never disappoint. My top and sports bra is from Kiava clothing. The sports bra is my favorite with the multi strap design, I never have to worry about support. And lastly this amazing mat is from Sequence Yoga Brand. I have been in love with it for quite some time! It has grips on the ends and is a little wider than your traditional mat. Really it’s a dream and I use it all the time for cross training, yoga, and Pilates. Good equipment makes yoga and any fitness easier and for me more exciting.

 

Along with yoga comes mediation and it has been a huge benefit of learning yoga. Meditation is relaxing, letting go, thinking, and pondering.
I love that spiritually I can meditate too. A big part of yoga is connecting
the body and the mind. Often I think culture makes us think we need to fight
our bodies. But through meditation we can unite our bodies and minds. Though meditation I have learned to let go of hurt and negativity in my life. We all have negative feelings in life, it’s part of being human. But, yoga has helped me to work through my anxiety, anger, fear, and resentment.

You can try mediation here: Meditation Video

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another aspect of yoga that I love is the practice of
“Namaste”. At the end of yoga often instructors will bow and say
“Namaste” and bow. The practice of Namaste is like a hand shake or
high five in eastern cultures. But it also means more. It also goes along with
the belief that we all have a divine spark inside of us. So I like to think
about it as, “The good in me recognizes the good in you.” What if we
all tried to recognize the good in others?

All of this has helped me feel more balanced and stay strong
through the rest of my pregnancies. If you’ve ever thought of trying yoga I
highly recommend it. And if you’ve tried it and felt intimidated try these
sites:

 

So to end this post about yoga I have to bow to you all and
say, “Namaste”.