I have been asked this question more times in the last 3 months of working out than I have been asked in the 6+ years that I have been pregnant. In fact, I was asked this same question 2 times in the last week….by the same people! Yes, you read that right; SAME PEOPLE. After working out while relaxing in the hot tub I have been approached by the lifeguards (one of whom is the one who asked me the first time and I told her no) saying that someone “told on me” for being “in the early stages of pregnancy” while in the hot tub. The first time I was so upset that I went to the locker room and I cried. This time, however, I was angry. I AM angry! I’m talking seeing shades of red angry. I had every intention of telling this guy off but my husband spoke up before I had a chance and took care of it for me. (Good man!) My husband says it is because I am in such good shape otherwise that my stomach makes people wonder but still. Not ok. Rude.

Ok, ok, I’m getting ahead of myself (anger, see?). I have been diagnosed with Diastasis Recti, which is the separating of the ab muscles, and an umbilical hernia. I mean, I had 4 children in 5 years so, yeah, it’s bound to happen. That being said, I have a pooch and I look like I am 3 months pregnant. Now, I’m sure you are thinking “well then if you look 3 months pregnant than the lifeguards were just doing their jobs.” That’s what I said at first, too, but the more I think about it the more I think that yeah it is their job but I have told them once before that I am not pregnant and yet they are going to keep sending different people to ask me? No. It’s not ok. Diastasis Recti can be fixed but not everyone has thousands of dollars to fix it and, not to mention, it is very rude to continue to ask and embarrass someone every few days. So, no, it is not ok.

So why am I venting here about this? Because I want you to know that if this is you, if you have a pooch that will not go away with diet and exercise, you may just have diastasis recti as well! And let me tell you what, no amount of dieting or crunches or core work will fix it. I thought for the longest time that I was just fat and that I was doing something wrong in my diet and exercise because although I was seeing results everywhere else and although the scale would drop, that pooch never got any smaller. If anything, I began to look even more pregnant. You’d think that I’d be ok with the question by now, “Are you pregnant?”, and having an actual official diagnosis does help me keep my mind around the fact that I can’t help it but it still hurts.

I’m going to do something that I can’t believe I am even doing but I’ll even post my pictures so you can see what I am talking about.

So maybe my husband does have a point that to see me else where I don’t look like I should look like I do from the front but it doesn’t make the hurt any less. It doesn’t take the embarrassment of being called out in front of people away. I can’t help it. I’ve tried it all. Next step is some major surgery to fix it. That is what people don’t understand, you don’t know what someone is going through or what they have been through. Asking once is ok but sending someone else to ask again in hopes of getting another answer is simply not.

I want to leave you with this tonight, friends, if you have a pooch that won’t go away and you have tried all the diets, wraps, pills, and crunches known to man, go get checked for diastasis recti. It’s quick, easy, and painless. Trust me, you’ll feel much better knowing that you’re doing everything right but that beautiful wonderful body that birthed that baby or babies just isn’t going to go back to it’s normal state on it’s own no matter what you do.

#FattyGetHott