One year postpartum, I finally feel like myself again—but it didn’t happen overnight. The first six months were purely about survival: keeping my milk supply up, adjusting to life with a newborn, and putting most of my usual wellness practices on hold. But as time passed, I slowly started incorporating tools, habits, and mindset shifts that helped me regain my strength, energy, and confidence. From bodywork and supplements to more time in nature, each small change made a big impact. In this post, I’m sharing everything that truly helped me feel like me again—no fluff, just the real, effective strategies that worked.
Fascia Therapy
One thing I never really experienced until after I had a baby: cellulite. While I was accepting of my new postpartum body, I also knew there were at-home treatments, like fascia therapy, that could help reduce the appearance of it.
I’ve been doing fascia therapy religiously for one full year, and I will tell you—it works. But like anything else, consistency matters. While I see my practitioner, Tamara, 1 to 2 times a month for in-person treatments, I truly noticed a shift in my body composition when I did it daily at home.
I found a way to incorporate fascia therapy into my daily routine. Showers are one of my few moments of solitude, so I turned them into a quick ritual. After stepping out of the shower, I apply body oil and do a brief scrub all over my body. A year later, this remains a daily practice for me.
You can get the tools online, and my practitioner also has a postpartum course that will teach you how to do it yourself and target the areas many new moms struggle with.
Finding mom friends
I’m going to be brutally honest here. Early motherhood + postpartum is the time where your “non-parent” friends can’t really relate. While I would still regularly see my friends who do not have kids of their own yet (and truly value these friendships), I’ve either found myself feeling guilty venting about the struggles of motherhood or boring them with the only topic that is consuming my life: my baby.
I’ve found that motherhood can be extremely isolating, especially for those of us who don’t have family nearby and don’t (or can’t) go back to work. I’ve found that I’ve leaned heavily on my mom friends – new and old – in the early days to vent, ask questions, and just lean on in rough times. Truthfully, I don’t know how I would have gotten through the tough times without the support of my friends who have gone through it before me.
Finding mom friends can be easy or challenging depending on where you live. You really got to put yourself out there. A few tips: look at local birthing centers (even if you birthed at a hospital). Many offer new parent meet-ups or get-togethers that anyone can attend. My chiropractic office has a breastfeeding support group and you don’t need to be a patient to attend.
If you’re pregnant, keep in touch with the people in your birthing class—they typically have babies around the same time as you. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself and spark a conversation with a mom in line—you’ll quickly realize that more moms are looking for new friends and support systems than you think!
NAD+
I’ve been curious about NAD+ for years but never did it (mostly for cost purposes – it’s pricey). But I gave it a shot after receiving a NAD+ patch kit to test in January.
As I share in this detailed article, I believe this peptide was meant for tired mothers. I’ve never felt such an amazing improvement in my daily energy, mental clarity, and even my outlook on my day-to-day. I’ve talked to my other mom friends who’ve tried NAD+, and they say the same!
While most things aren’t exactly “advised” if you’re breastfeeding, this is one thing I personally feel comfortable doing while breastfeeding if we have another baby (this is just my personal take – please talk to your healthcare provider before trying NAD+, especially if you’re breastfeeding).
Shifting my focus from “bouncing back” to getting stronger for my son.
What made a serious impact on my body composition was shifting my focus from “losing the baby weight” to getting stronger for my baby – mostly out of necessity.
Our boy is huge for his age (I’m 5’8 and my husband is 6’5 – you get the picture). I remember the day when I picked him up and thought to myself, “How the hell am I going to keep up with this heavy, active kid?” That moment was when I realized I needed to drastically increase my strength in order to keep up with him – and more importantly, to keep him safe.
Functional, compound movements like deadlifts, squats, pull-ups, and treadmill sprints have been the game changers for my strength – and in return, my body composition. I have a background in athletics and weightlifting so the gym was nothing new to me, but lifting with my new-mom body was.
On a completely different note, the more I learn about longevity, the more I realize that lean muscle is the key organ to living a long, healthy life. Putting on lean muscle mass gives me better odds of living a long and healthy life with my family. Prioritizing health, longevity, and working out is something I want my son to recognize and value in me.
I joined a YMCA
Two words – free childcare. Every morning after our family walk, we head straight to the gym and I drop him off at childcare for an hour. Not every workout is perfect – but it’s an hour where I can take care of myself without interference (without paying extra for a sitter.) Not only does my YMCA also offer a great selection of kids programs but I’ve also been able to meet new mom friends just by chatting in the childcare line.
Getting outside every single day.
The best advice I got as a new boy mom: get outside every single day. One year later, it’s our family’s non-negotiable. Even in the early days, I’d make an effort to get outside even when I felt like shit, and even when I was in the same sweats as the day before. And these days, the second my son starts to act up or get fussy, I strap him in the stroller and throw on my shoes before I can change my mind. Every single time I always find that we both just needed a change of scenery and it makes the world of a difference in the rest of our day. Fresh air, sun on the skin and a change in environment goes a long way as a stay-at-home mom.
I invested in a few, easy outfits that are flattering to my body.
It wasn’t until I turned 30 that I truly understood what “shopping for your body type” meant. Even more so as a new mom. My body has evolved constantly over the past year, for better and worse. And what has worked style-wise for me in the past no longer does.
I remember taking my baby to the mall (around 2 months PP) and walking into Banana Republic without any interest in trying on clothes. One of their sales reps miraculously managed to get me to try on a few items and I’m so happy I did. She put together a few outfits that she thought would fit best for my body type, even if I lost or gained some weight. It was then I realized that I needed someone else to help me find what works best for my body type and not default to what’s trendy or what looks good on someone else.
She also threw together a few timeless, easy outfit combos I could rotate every week. I invested in a few classic button-downs, two new pairs of jeans, and some basic, high-quality tops that I still wear regularly a year later. And I’m not exaggerating that that shopping experience has made me feel like a new woman. My closet has happily narrowed down to classic, staple items that take away any decision fatigue in my daily outfits.
High-quality, complete protein.
Going to keep this straight-forward:
- I ate my “ideal” body weight in grams of protein, no exception. 135g per day.
- The protein needs to be animal-based/complete. Steak, chicken, and often a high-quality protein powder (I love this brand) to fill in the gaps when I needed it.
- 30+g in the first hour of being awake. Most of the time it’s me chugging protein powder and water before my morning gym session, and I’ll eat a full high-protein breakfast right when I get home.
Doing a full-blown gut panel/GI Map Test (and protocol.)
By December I decided to get my hormones checked with my naturopathic doctor, with the goal of “optimizing” myself before trying to conceive again. We decided to do a GI-Map test (stool test) to get an accurate look at my gut health and I’m so glad I did.
Little did I know I was dealing with H.Pylori, candida overgrowth, and even a parasite (with literally ZERO symptoms) and was put on a gut-healing protocol right away. If you follow me on social, you’ll see I eat an insanely clean animal-based diet – but I needed to make some tweaks to allow my to stomach heal.
After four weeks of a candida diet and supplementation, I feel the best I’ve ever felt in over 10 years. My energy is through the roof, my abs made a comeback, and I’m feeling the fittest I’ve felt in ages.
The GI-Map, in my honest opinion, is the test everyone should take before hopping on any “gut healing” supplement or trend. Don’t even waste your money on a probiotic before understanding what’s going on internally. The test (and an experienced practitioner who can interpret it for you) will tell you exactly what you need without wasting your money or making matters worse. More on the GI-Map test here.
And lastly… giving myself grace, but also holding myself accountable.
This one might ruffle some feathers – but then again, this is my personal take. Postpartum was a special time where my main priority was bonding with my baby. The gym wasn’t in the picture for months, cooking healthy meals for myself was often replaced by “healthy” takeout, and I didn’t give two thoughts of putting myself together for the day. The weeks after delivering your baby are a beautiful, messy and chaotic time – especially if you’re newly navigating parenting like I was. And taking it slow that first month set me up for physical success later on.
But the months flew by and I quickly fell into the mindset of “this is not the time.” Not the time to worry about cooking meals for myself, not the time to worry about losing muscle, not the time to look my best. But when is the time to start worrying about it? I felt like 6 months went by and I didn’t put one ounce of effort into myself. The “giving myself grace” period turned into just laziness.
I think there’s a really fine line between giving yourself grace and self-accountability. I realized that I wanted to be as healthy as I can for my baby. I also realized I wanted my son to recognize that I took the time to take care of myself – specifically, how I take care of my body and my appearance every day. I want my son to remember me as polished, put together, and as someone who prioritizes physical health.
As I mentioned above, that was the spark that got me into the gym, that pushed me to invest in a simple capsule wardrobe, and pushed me to focus on my protein intake. I know every mother’s situation is different, but for me, a swift accountability kick in the ass was exactly what I needed to get myself put back together.
Comments +