I gained a saggy mum apron after having 2 kids in 2 years – my tummy tattoo made it worse, even strangers commented
A mum who piled on six stone while pregnant revealed how she
lost her “mum tum” in just 13 weeks – after giving birth to an 11lb baby.
Emma Scott, 28, piled on the pounds while pregnant with her second child, now four months old – which she put down to “comfort eating and barely exercising”.
Emma felt her body confidence plummet as strangers pointed out “how big” she was – even asking if she was expecting twins.
After giving birth for the second time in January 2023, Emma was determined to get her confidence back.
She took up yoga, walked a total of 43 miles a week and swapped takeaway pizza for porridge.
In just 13 weeks, she went from 16st and a size 16 to 11st 7lbs and a size eight – after losing four stone and seven lbs.
Mum-of-two Emma now feels “better than ever” – and says she “wears her stretch marks like a badge of honour” to show new mums it’s “normal for your body to change” during pregnancy.
Emma, a yoga teacher, from Carlisle, Cumbria, said: “My postpartum body felt alien to me – but it’s important not to hide or feel embarrassed by it.
“I feel like I’ve overcome so much, and I feel better than ever. “Mums just can’t talk about the healing process after giving
birth.
“We go through so much – our periods stop, we’re sore and breastfeeding, we’re even recovering from things like ab
separation.
“Losing weight was important to me, but I also knew I had to get active to keep my body safe and strong.
“It was so hard for me, mentally, to look in a mirror. My body didn’t feel like my own. Now I feel like I’ve finally got my confidence back.”
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Emma had her first child – a daughter – in May 2020. Her tot weighed 9lbs 7oz at birth, and it took Emma 10 months to lose her baby weight.
She gave birth to her son in January 2023 – and he weighed almost 12lbs. “He’s a big baby, and people used to ask all the time whether I was pregnant with twins,” she said.
“It did affect me, and I’d love for people to know they can’t just say whatever they like to pregnant women. As a new mum, I was shocked at how much my body changed.
“I struggled to adapt to my postpartum body – your belly doesn’t just snap back straight away, and I had a lot of loose skin.”
This was amplified by the changes to her tattoo of an ornamental elephant on her stomach.
In the 13 weeks since giving birth, Emma made the decision to get her strength back and try and slim down.
“I wanted to be able to pick my baby up and not feel like I was straining,” she said.
“It’s hard work picking up an 11lb baby lots of times in a day.”
Thanks to the support of her husband, yoga teacher Martin, 44, Emma found time during the day to exercise, make meals for herself and get back into yoga.
She said: “People say all the time that new mums miss out on hot meals – and I’ve got two children under two.
“I would’ve been the same if not for Martin looking after the kids. But you don’t have to set time aside to exercise throughout the day, it’s about the small things.
“Focus on engaging your core when picking your baby up – try diaphragmatic breathing while doing it.
“This means using the diaphragm to breathe deeply, feeling it expand then contract. Kind of like an upside-down trampoline.
“We receive so little support from doctors and nurses on how to build our bodies back up after giving birth.
“We’re told to work on pelvic floor strength – but it isn’t explained how, why – or even what the pelvic floor is.”
Emma’s number one ‘hack’ for losing her “mum tum” is to work on Transversus Abdominis (TVA) engagement.
This means to strengthen your abdominal muscles by tensing and releasing them regularly.
Emma says this can be done by lying down and imagining a belt tightening between your hip bones and belly button – while controlling your breathing.
She also believes new mums don’t have to count calories in order to lose weight – and eating meals with sustenance is “much more important”.
“Porridge with peanut butter is a lifesaver,” Emma said.
“It can keep you going all morning and it really fuels your body. “I was binge-eating takeaways – especially pizza – during my pregnancy. Now I eat to nourish my body.”
Losing weight left Emma with stretch marks and loose skin – but she now uses her platform on TikTok to “normalise” postpartum bodies.
“So many mums look at me and say – ‘that’s my body’ – and I wish I had someone to make me feel normal about mine,” she said.
“Don’t try and fight the stretch marks, there’s often nothing you can do about them. No magical cream or serum is going to fight my genetics.
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“I find showing my body incredibly empowering, and I don’t think women need to hide anymore.”
Before starting her weight loss journey, Emma would eat “anything she fancied” with little-to no nutritional value.
Now, a typical day of meals consists of porridge for breakfast with berries and peanut butter, avocado on sourdough toast for lunch, cereal for afternoon snack, and a lighter dinner of soup, salad or a sandwich.
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