Post-Partum Pants Question

[not_telling]

Not sure where to post this, so...

I'm wondering if my hip size will ever go back to what it used to be.

I was about 120-124 lbs when I got pregnant, and wore size 4 and 6 pants. I have A LOT of pants that I love and would hate to not be able to wear them again (not to mention the expense of getting new pants). I gained about 45 lbs when I was pregnant, but didn't really carry that weight anywhere but my belly (a bit in my butt, though...at least, according to my sister). I'm now about 134 lbs (6.5 weeks post-partum)...so not that far above my initial weight. When I try to put on my pants, I either can't get them up past my hips, or I get them up, but can't button/zip them (can't get the two sides of the zipper or buttons to even come together).

Will my hips stay as wide as they are now? Are all my pants a lost cause?

[kjoy2]

I'm wondering the same thing!!! I was a size 4/6 and gained 60 pounds all in my belly... but have found that my hips are wider... and besides that, my excess 'twin skin' on my belly will probably never allow me to pull on my old pants

[Sabo]

I am wearing pants that I haven't fit into since 2002. Those last 10 lbs can take a while to lose and then (at least in my case), your body continues to change shape. I'd say that around 9 mos post-partem, I finally realized that I can fit in my almost all of my pre-pg clothes again. Then again, everyone has a different experience. Here's hoping for a narrowing of your hips.

[limabean]

At 6 weeks post-partum, I couldn't get the two sides of the button of my jeans anywhere close together either, even though by then I weighed 10 pounds less than I did before I got pregnant. But once another 4-6 weeks went by, I could easily button all my pants, even though I didn't lose any more weight. I think your body will continue to change shape for a while before you'll know what it will really be like.

[Norasmomma]

I fit some pants and clothes from pre baby, and then others just don't fit. It's been 2 yrs since DD was born. My body has changed shape, not very noticibly but enough to make me go up a pant size, I just bought new pants to be comfortable.

[aaronsmom]

My hips went back to normal after both my kids. In fact, I wore a smaller size after DS than I did pre DS.

[mommyshoppinghabit]

Originally Posted by not_telling

Will my hips stay as wide as they are now? Are all my pants a lost cause?

Well, no one can answer the first question, but I can help with the second, since I currently am am a sz 10 and pre-pregnancy, I had a pretty nice selection of pants all in the sz 6-8 range. The pants that I could get over my hips but couldn't quite zipper or button, I used this, this, or this (yes, I bought all three but then you could probably improvise something like one of them). Not very comfortable to wear all day but for dressier occasions, it was cheaper than buying nice pants in a larger size. For pants that were more casual that I really thought were staples in my wardrobe, I got them altered at the dry cleaners. Not too expensive, maybe $5-10 a pop. Again, cheaper and less time-consuming than looking for new clothes. And then I bought one or two roll-top panel pants/skirts (in smaller sizes than what I had from being pregnant--those were all too loose). Those roll tops are really forgiving because you don't have to commit to a size. The will still fit if you drop 10 lbs.
HTH!

[slgt]

It's different for everyone. My hips didn't seem to change all that much during pregnancy/birth, and I'm about 10 lbs. under my pre-pg weight now (thank you, breastfeeding!). Just give it time. I was back to my pre-pg weight by 11-12 weeks, but was still shaped differently.

[GISDiva]

Wow, I totally could have written that exact same post. It's good to know that there is some hope!

[loveandgarbage]

10-15 lbs is the difference of a few pant sizes, especially if you're carrying it on your belly and hips. with my older son, i gained 65 lbs (!!) and noticed that even though i got back down to my starting weight, my hips stayed a little wider and my waist was thicker, too. however, i was still able to fit back into my old pants, they were just a tad snugger. i think at 6 wks postpartum, it's too early to tell. your waist will continue to shrink, trust me.

[flapjack]

This isn't fat. It isn't a weight issue. The ligaments in your pelvis stretched to accommodate your baby and to allow baby to be born, and your pelvis and hips are actually physically bigger than they used to be. In most women, nine months will see you back to your old self. HTH.

[AlpineMama]

I could have written your post, down to the sizes involved.

We recently moved and somehow a box of "I'll never wear these again, so I'll donate them" pants got mixed in with the moving boxes instead of going down to Goodwill. I found the bpx the other day, and tried a pair on for fun, and uh, they fit! My hips somehow went back to normal. I'm about 7 months PP.

[annettemarie]

I"m going to move this to Birth and Beyond since it's about your post-partum body.

[thixle]

My hips were back to pre-baby size WAY after the weight was... about a year or so? and many of the pants were just too high-waisted for me to like anymore, or had random stains I had not noticed before... so, if you love the pants and have storage for them, keep them!

Oh, and my waist stayed a little thicker. That's why I didn't like the pants that went up just a little too high-- just a teeny bit too tight at the band.

[kalirush]

My hips never quite went back... I lost all the weight, they were just actually wider than pre-baby. That happens sometimes.

That said, the only clothes I had to get rid of were those that fit me very snugly around the hips in the first place. Most of the pants etc. were fine again. So it wasn't *that* big a change.

[nighten]

My hips and pants size went back completely. I actually ended up losing more weight than I'd gained, and had to start increasing my caloric intake to maintain a healthy weight. (Gotta love that EBFing :-)) I have a very small frame and pretty narrow hips, but apparently they weren't permanently affected by the pregnancy. Luck of the draw I think?

The one thing that did NOT change post-partum though was my bra size # measurement, around my ribs. My ribcage expanded in pregnancy and is now stuck there. It's not freaky looking, but the bones actually moved and now that's where they are, so my bra # size remained bigger even though my cupsize eventually went back to the pre-pregnancy normal size.

But my hips reverted with no problem, so it can happen. It was somewhere around 9 to 12 months PP and one day I realized I was in size 2 pants. I was in a 4-6 pre-pregnancy.

It takes time, but it can happen. As long as the bones themselves weren't messed with (same thing happens with some women's feet -- the bones spread out a bit), or some permanent ligament stretching, etc., and the weight goes, you should be able to fit back into the same size, I think. At least I was able to, but the weight was definitely the key. But once the bones themselves move, I think that's pretty much the new shape you have.

[Trinitty]

Hi there!

Our numbers are about the same. Have hope! I was back in my favourite jeans/pants 4 months out. Breastfeeding and walking every day have burned everything off.

Hang in there.

Trin.

[KiwiZ]

I think you can but it may take time. Even though my weight was back to normal by the 6 wk pp check up, my measurements definitely were not. I couldn't even get some of my pants over my thighs much less see if it still fit my hips LOL! It took roughly 4-6 months of regular exercise for me to return to normal but I eventually fit back into all my old fave clothes. Hang in there

[MrsTC]

At 6.5 weeks you're asking if you'll EVER be able to get back into your prepregnancy clothes?:

Yes, you probably will get to wear them again, but not for a few months, at the earliest.

I got back into all my skinny clothes and am actually too thin now for my skinniest skinny clothes after #2 (who is 18mos old) but this only happened in the last month or so, being too thin for my skinny clothes.

Your hips spread, yes. Your ligaments loosen. You will come back together, but in the meantime, investing in a few nice pairs of pants isn't a bad invesment, especially if you're planning on having more kids, because you'll get to wear them again.