Coming back to exercise after twins...
Prior to having my babies, but rather late in life, I finally found a form of exercise I enjoyed - aerial arts. For someone not at all fit, flexible or strong this proved to be challenging... but what I lacked in strength and flexibility I made up for in enthusiasm! I joined pole, hoop and silks - silks being my favourite as I got a rush from learning drops! A twin pregnancy and global pandemic led to an abrupt break in my training, and I’ve spent most of the last two years since then living as a potato.
Nothing prepared me for the exhaustion I would feel with two newborns. I can remember being so tired I would hallucinate. Despite aerial arts being a complete obsession of mine before children, it was suddenly low down on my list of my priorities as I navigated life as a new parent. A return to aerial arts was something that seemed so out of reach, although I dreamed about it often.
My twin boys are now 16 months old and about a month ago I made a return to silks once a week. I was nervous. My abs had separated during pregnancy. My body had been sliced open and scarred. I felt as if I had aged about 10 years and was still so very very tired. I felt sure that there would be no way I’d still be able to lift myself off of the ground.
My instructor, aware that I had had twins but who knew me as someone who threw myself into learning silks wholeheartedly had no intention of easing me back into things - an approach I was skeptical of but ultimately grateful for. To my surprise I was able perform a catchers sequence- one of the foundations for silks, and although it might have looked clumsy I surprised myself with how much I remembered and how much strength I still had. A few weeks later I am back doing some of the drops I love - albeit from slightly lower until I find my head for heights again!
For all the new mums out there who feel you have lost a part of yourself - don’t worry! You will get there! Life might not completely the same after you have children, but eventually you find a way of fitting some of the things you loved about your old life around the new little people you love in your new life and the sense of achievement makes it all worthwhile.
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