I've had a baby...where do I begin?

The post baby body can be a scary thing for the unsuspecting. During pregnancy you've had time to adjust to the expanding waistline. After the baby is born, all of a sudden the tummy's empty and your breasts swell to the size of watermelons. Then over the next few months your body changes shape again. There's fat sticking where you'd rather it wouldn't, veins popping, hair falling out, skin wrinkling and maybe breast shrinking, and some of your bones don't seem to be where they were previously.

BUT - don't panic and definately don't give up on achieving your health and fitness goals.

Did you know:

• Skin relies on elastic properties to regain shape, so gaining, and losing weight more slowly during and after pregnancy helps prevent damage and helps you to return to shape.
  
• Skin is also more likely to sag if you lose your weight quickly without exercise. If you lose fat under the skin without maintaining or increasing muscle tissue, the skin can wrinkle or sag with nothing to fill it out.
  
• Exercise increases your circulation, and so increases the blood flow and hydration to the skin.

So look to no one but yourself in setting goals. Don't compare your body with your sister's, your friend's, or a celebrity 'Yummy Mummy'. Although all Mums essentially have a similar experience in pregnancy, we all have our own stories, we're all effected differently, and there's a huge range of normal.

After all, you don't see the complete effects of motherhood on other women's bodies - only on your own.