Congratulations on the new addition to your family!
A baby is a wonderful miracle, but pregnancy and birth changed your body in ways you didn’t expect.
If you’re like me, you may be stuck with a mom belly pooch.
The lower abdominal skin that’s left over after loosing all your baby weight. Saggy stomach skin after pregnancy is also known as a “mommy tummy.”
Sometimes, our bodies can be so cruel.
Yes, I performed an amazing feat by carrying a child for nine months, but after birth my body should return back to normal! But that’s just not the case.
Since having a baby I am stuck with a mom belly pooch that is not going away.
My son is almost two years old. I also lost all the weight from my pregnancy. I’ve gotten my flat stomach back.
Now I’m left with stretch marks and loose skin.
I can handle the stretch marks. However, I have to admit I am self-conscious about my loose skin on my lower stomach.
I know I should wear the loose skin as a badge of honor for being a mom, but as a momma I also need to be comfortable in my own skin.
And eventually comfortable enough to wear a two-piece bikini. (The thought of wearing a bikini scares me to death).
While your body has chanced in many beautiful ways since giving birth, you deserve to be comfortable in your cloths and confident in who you are!
I too strive for the same thing. I am lacking self-confidence because of my extra loose skin.
To help combat a mom belly pooch, let’s look at some natural ways to eliminate it to gain back confidence!
Disclosure: Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you click on them to make a purchase I will earn a commission. Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.
8 Natural Remedies To Get Rid Of Mom Pooch
Aloe Vera
You’ve probably used this amazing plant at some point in your life if you’ve ever gotten a sunburn.
Aloe vera has the ability to sooth and help heal skin.
Not only used for sunburns, aloe vera is able to tighten loose skin.
When applied to the skin aloe vera shrinks pores and hydrates at the same time.
This aids in tightening the skin, improving overall skin texture and soothing dry skin.
This natural moisturizer can be used wherever you have saggy skin, including lower abdominal skin, AKA your mom belly pooch.
To use aloe vera on this troublesome area, just extract the gel from the leaves of an aloe vera plant and lather it on. Just like you would for a sunburn.
You should notice an immediate smooth texture to your skin.
Leave on your skin for at least 15-20 minutes for a tightening skin effect. Then, wipe off.
Simple, right? This process should be repeated a couple times a week.
I actually leave the aloe vera on longer than 15-20 minutes. I don’t really see the harm in leaving it on longer.
My lower abdominal skin is definitely smoother with the use of aloe vera.
However, I feel for my mom pooch to be gone completely I will need to use aloe vera an extended period of time.
Therefore, I’m tackling my mom belly pooch with multiple natural methods and remedies.
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Skin Firming Lotions
There are many firming lotions on the market today bragging of miraculous results.
Every product promises to reverse the aging process while eliminating cellulite, stretch marks and saggy skin.
Well… Everyone ages and no amount of lotion is going to start the aging process.
But if your looking for lotion to do some mild skin tightening, then a quality skin firming lotion may help you.
When looking for a lotion to firm up your mom belly pooch it’s important to look at the ingredients.
Many lotions include chemicals that you can’t pronounce, let alone don’t pose any benefits to your skin.
Always make sure to research ingredients before using!
Do NOT use products that contain sulfates. Sulfates do the opposite of help you with saggy skin.
They actually make wrinkles, loose skin and acne worse by drying out skin pores.
Sulfates are found in a variety of lotions and soaps, so beware of them at all costs when it comes to trying to decreasing loose skin.
Coconut Oil
Coconut oil is a natural remedy to treat a multitude of skin ailments like psoriasis and eczema.
During pregnancy coconut oil can be used to prevent stretch marks and saggy skin. But I’m sure you’ve heard that already.
I used coconut oil religiously in combination with cocoa butter to sooth my itchy pregnant belly.
I still ended up having stretch marks!
Although I still have stretch marks, I shudder to think about what my stretch marks would have looked like without using coconut oil.
Even though I still got stretch marks, they are not red and glaring at me when I look in the mirror.
Instead, they are a transparent white. I’d like to think that’s thanks to coconut oil.
This incredible natural oil is antifungal, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial. Wow!
Coconut oil works by deeply nourishing multiple skin layers to promote baby soft skin.
Even better, coconut oil contains vitamin A to help increase the production of collagen.
Vitamin E and fatty acids found in coconut oil also promote new cellular growth.
With increased collagen and new cellular growth, overtime your mom pooch could disappear for good.
Be aware that when using coconut oil as a moisturizer, a little goes a long way.
You don’t need to lather on a ton of oil, only a tablespoon at a time.
If you use too much coconut oil on your stomach, you could develop pimples. You definitely don’t want that!
Exfoliate Your Skin
While coconut oil, tightening lotions and aloe vera could help increase skin moisture and decrease loose skin, you always need to exfoliate.
Why exfoliate your skin?
Overtime, the firming products you use builds up on your skin.
When products buildup, they can cease to work as well.
By exfoliating your loose stomach skin, you can minimize pore appearance and remove dead skin cells.
Whichever method you choose to eliminate that mom belly pooch, it will work better with an occasional exfoliating scrub.
An exfoliating sea salt scrub used three times a week increases blood flow and elasticity to saggy skin.
Some people choose to exfoliate more than once a day, but I think that’s a little excessive.
If you exfoliate too often, you do run the risk of your skin being overly dry.
Another option for exfoliating is to use a coffee scrub.
Other than just smelling amazing, coffee has antioxidants to help slow down skin aging.
A coffee exfoliate scrub should be applied once a week to your troublesome areas.
You can either buy a pre-made coffee exfoliate located here or combine your own ingredients!
DIY Coffee Scrub By SIO Beauty
1/4 cup coffee grounds
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons coconut oil
Add Collagen
Instead of piling on creams, lotions, oils and scrubs, you could nourish your skin from the inside out.
Collagen hydrolysate, also known as hydrolyzed collagen has been found to increase the skin’s collagen amount.
By adding a collagen supplement to your diet, your mom belly pooch can gain elasticity and firmness.
Be aware that collagen is a gelatin, which means it contains animal proteins.
So, if you’re vegetarian or vegan, a collagen supplement may not be your best bet for loosing that stubborn saggy skin.
Breastfeed
Breastfeeding your baby is a great way to lose your mom pooch fast.
However, I find this method of losing a mom pooch a little laughable.
It’s laughable because not every mother is able to breastfeed.
Breastfeeding is difficult work for both you and baby. A million factors go into whether you can breastfeed or not.
If every mother was able to breastfeed, there wouldn’t be formula, breast pumps and donor milk banks.
I was not able to breastfeed. Which is maybe why I still have a mom pooch almost 2 years after giving birth.
But things happen in life and my son and I were unable to make breastfeeding work.
Instead I opted for pumping as much as I could of my low milk supply and formula feeding.
If you are blessed with a great milk supply and your baby has a great latch. You’re in luck!
Start and keep breastfeeding as long as you can to help diminish your mom pooch.
Breastfeeding burns a massive amount of calories, 300 to 400 a day.
Along with extra calories being burned, breastfeeding also contracts your uterus to tighten your belly back to its original size (before pregnancy).
So if you can, keep on breastfeeding momma!
Exercise
Easier said than done, I know. With kids it’s hard to find the time for yourself to exercise.
I find the best time to exercise is during my son’s nap time or after he goes to bed.
I basically just fit exercise in whenever I can.
Make exercise a priority, not only to rid yourself of your mom pooch, but to just be a healthy momma!
Incorporating an exercise routine that targets your lower stomach area could reduce your loose skin.
One of the simplest and quick exercises to tone and tighten loose skin on your stomach is planks.
Love them or hate them, planks make your muscles work simply by staying in one position. I happen to love planks.
Since getting serious about losing pregnancy weight, I increased my plank holding time from 25 seconds to 2 full minutes! Yes, this did take time.
Here’s a simple guide to get you started:
Hold a 30 second plank
Rest for 30 seconds
Hold a 30 second plank
Rest for 30 seconds
You can continue this pattern of planking for as long as you like. Or until your arms simple collapse.
If planks are not your favorite exercise, stick to any exercise that gets your heart rate up. Cardio exercises like 30 to 60 minutes of speed walking and jogging help burn calories to reduce your belly size.
Instead of jogging, jumping jacks are a quick way to get your heart rate up without leaving your living room.
You can also add resistance training to your workout routine.
For instance, add kettlebell weights for adding resistance when doing lunges and squats. Add a medicine ball to your ab exercises.
With resistance training and cardio it is always best to start slow.
Don’t push your body too far. You will be sore the next day if you do. You have been warned!
Shapewear/Undergarments
Do you ever have a day where you just feel self-conscious about your body?
You know, those special days were you’re a little gassy and bloated?
I do! There are some days were I’m lacking in confidence and other days were I’m just bloated.
When I have days like this and I have to leave my house, I reach for my Shapewear.
I’m not ashamed of it! Although my mom pooch is still there, Shapewear gives me the (temporary) confidence I need to cover up my loose lower stomach.
While shaping undergarments are not a solution to get rid of loose stomach skin, they are quick fix to hide my mom pooch.
If you need or want to give Shapewear a try, don’t be embarrassed by it!
No one will know you’re wearing it except you. Plus, most Shapewear are more comfortable than you might think.
I personally like Shapewear that looks like really high underwear. It covers my belly without extending down my thighs.
What matters the most is that you feel confident in a beautiful outfit when you walk out the door!
Related articles: The Best Self-Care Tips for Mothers
Final Thoughts About A Mom Pooch
Many mom’s are stuck with a mom pooch. We just don’t acknowledge or talk about our extra stomach skin.
We like to pretend that if you don’t talk about then it doesn’t exist.
Worse yet. We don’t talk about our loose skin because we’re embarrassed.
You might feel you’re the only one who has a mommy tummy.
Well, you’re not the only one! I too have that annoying saggy mom pooch that has stubbornly stuck around for 2 years.
Yes, I am self-conscious about it and a little embarrassed to wear a bikini just yet.
But, a mom pooch is proof that both you and I have birthed beautiful human beings into this world.
Our bodies have changed greatly from pregnancy.
If you feel confident in your own skin and wear a bikini with pride, then that’s amazing! I wish I had your confidence.
However, if you’re like me and you feel self-conscious about your loose skin then start doing something about it today!
Every mother should feel comfortable in her body!
If you want to gain your confidence back by getting rid of your mom pooch, then apply these natural remedies today!
Works Cited
Do Collagen Supplements Work On Wrinkles and Sagging Skin?
13 Amazing Skin Tightening Treatments You Can Do At Home
Coconut Oil Secrets For Beautiful, Glowing Skin!
20 Best Tricks To Tighten Sagging Skin After Weight Loss
6 Benefits of Exfoliating Your Skin
How to Tighten Loose Skin After Losing Weight