About six weeks after the birth, your uterus is pretty much back to where it was before delivery in terms of size and position, but keep in mind some things will never be back the way they were. Your uterus will always be a little larger than before, the opening of the cervix wider, and your pelvic muscles and ligaments looser.

Your body may not feel like yours. You just got used to having a huge stomach and now it's relatively flat again, but loose and saggy. Your breasts have very little in common with the ones you were used to. Your waist and hips are wider and will probably stay that way, and don't expect your feet to return to their prepregnancy size. Pregnancy hormones cause your joints to become looser and your feet to become bigger. Many women report that their feet grow a half to a full size larger with each pregnancy.

Body Changes

Even if you've lost all your pregnancy weight, expect your body to look different. This is the normal you, just with a Mommy body. If you've had a C-section, the scar may be permanently numb in spots. Your belly may jut out. Your breasts may sag more. While you may not get your old body back, you can get a body you like.

If you're breastfeeding exclusively, you probably won't get your period for five or six months — and you may not get it for several years. Seems only fair, with all the other messes you've got to deal with, but you shouldn't count on it. Some women get their period back within six weeks, even while breastfeeding their babies every three hours, day and night. Most women get their period back about a month after they stop breastfeeding.

Body Work

If you haven't started exercising regularly before reading this, start now. There are a lot of good reasons to exercise — to stay healthy, to boost your mood, and to fit into your prepregnancy clothes again. But the most important reason is to get back in touch with your body. To put on clothes in which you can't nurse (for an hour anyway), to look in the mirror, and to recognize that the leg you are lifting is actually your own!

Check with your doctor, but start easy exercises for your lower back and abdomen once you have the green light. Keep in mind that you won't have much success even feeling where your abdominal muscles are for a week or two. Make sure, however, that you don't do any exercises that require you to be upside down until all bleeding stops (no shoulder stands, for example, if you're doing yoga) because blood flowing back into the still-open cervix can cause infection. If you've had a cesarean, you may have to wait a full six weeks before starting an exercise program.

Breastfeeding, which uses about 500–1,000 calories a day, will help you lose weight, but plan on dropping the pounds slowly. Focus on eating reasonable portions of healthy foods at regular meals. Dieting should mean controlling eating, if “dieting” means a restrictive fad or starvation diet (living on protein shakes or grapefruit), don't — you'll threaten your baby's health as well as your own.

Exercises with Baby

Here are some activities that are exercise healthy for you and fun for your baby.

• Fly a kite: Besides being great for your back and stomach, kite flying can calm a fussy baby. Start out sitting with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Position your baby's body face down against your lower legs and, stabilizing your baby with your hands, roll back, lifting your baby up with your legs. You can stay in that position, pressing the small of your back against the floor, or rock from side to side to help release your back. You can gently lift and lower your baby with your legs to exercise your knee and leg muscles. Or you can do abdominal exercises by lifting your head and shoulders off the ground, reaching toward your baby with a kiss.

• Straddle stretches: Sit with your legs in a V and lay or sit your baby in the middle. Stretch to each side and to the middle, holding each stretch at least twenty seconds without bouncing (do go ahead and kiss your baby as much as you want).

• Baby presses (a.k.a. reverse push-ups): Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Put your baby on your chest, holding her under her arms. While pressing your lower back against the floor, lift her slowly in the air above your face until your arms are almost straight.

Some Cautions

Hold off any form of impact exercise (running, aerobics) for at least six weeks. Your stretched-out muscles, tendons, and ligaments can't safely support your organs, and your cardiovascular system is still changing back to normal. A few things to keep in mind:

• If your lochia (post-childbirth discharge) turns red after exercising, you're doing too much.

• Don't jog or do any exercises that require bouncing with your baby in a carrier. (You can hold your baby in a front pack, however, while walking or riding a stationary bike.)

• Hold off on a baby jogger until your baby has her head well under control — around six months of age. Younger babies can risk neck injuries.

Great Stretches for Anytime

These exercises are easy to do and require no special equipment.

• Wall stretch: Stand facing a wall, about one step (or an arm's length) back from it with your feet shoulder width apart. Put both hands flat against the wall at shoulder height. Bend over, passing your head between your elbows, pressing your back flat, parallel to the ground.

• Pillow stretch: Lie on your back, with a pillow or couch bolster under your shoulders. Let your arms and shoulders relax back and tip your head back. This opens your chest, stretches the chest muscles, and counters the curved position you use while holding a baby.