Using your Body post-Baby

This past weekend I attended a dance competition and convention and while I’ve been teaching regularly since before Doodle was born, I haven’t been dancing full-out and though I was really dedicated to regular ballet classes while I was pregnant (see my journey of “Dancing during Pregnancy”), I haven’t taken a real class since before he was born.

But I decided this weekend was my chance and instead of watching the class as all of the other teachers in attendance did, I jumped right in there.  At 9 o’clock in the morning I took on a contemporary class (which I haven’t done since right after we moved to Dublin and I was pregnant with Sugarplum!) with a teacher I’ve never known, never met, never seen.  This kind of thing used to be the norm and no big deal, but it’s been so long!

To make it worse, I was side-by-side with my students and the pressure of their expectations made me even more nervous.  I tried a “jazz” class at the convention I attended in November and that was a total disaster, it was not a style I was comfortable with and in a room of people ½ my age, I just couldn’t keep up (luckily none of my own students were there to see my utter failure!)

Turns out the contemporary class this weekend wasn’t so bad.  The style was great for my body and movement style, the teacher was relaxed and I did pretty well, even busting out a few decent double turns and was able to get up and down from the floor like a pro (which has never been easy for this taller lady!)

So what’s the lesson here?  The lesson is that having babies will forever change you in more ways than you can ever imagine but it’s not always a negative thing.

It’s no secret that pregnancy  brings on huge body changes and that it takes time and patience to get back to your pre-pregnancy size but what isn’t as widely discussed is that even when you’re back to your pre-pregnancy size or shape or weight, your body will never be the same.  The way it moves, the way it works, the way it feels will never be the same as before pregnancy.

It’s not always easy to jump back into things post-baby.  Your body goes through a lot during pregnancy, birth and post-partum recovery.  There is often apprehension about how your body is going to react.  Will you be able to do it?  Will you be able to keep up?  Will you be able to meet your expectations?  What about the expectations of others? In my experience, though, it’s never quite as bad as you expect it to be!  Let your body lead the way and listen to its cues.  Just accept that things will be different and take it easy to start until you get your footing.  Don’t expect to be back where you were before pregnancy or even before baby.  Accept where you are now and try to enjoy what that experience is like, knowing you now have another little person to be a part of your life journey, to eventually cheer you on and cuddle you when you’re sore!

After Honeybun                      After Sugarplum

After Doodle