Hi my name is Hugh Jass

So here I am 6 months post-birth and I figured I have the right to one big whinge about my body. Actually, in the big scheme of things, I have little to complain about, as you wouldn't necessarily know I'd had a baby recently... I think swimming must tone those stomach muscles back into shape. So this is more of a general whinge....

...Sprurred by an attempt to buy some new pants. I always find this traumatic. My body has a narrowish waist, "good thighs and calves" (ie muscly yet with a good softening layer of fat), short legs and round hips. Call me a muscly pear. Jeans are designed for people with narrower legs and hips, and longer legs. Therefore at best I'll find jeans that fit perfectly but need to be taken up.

I don't have a pot belly, therefore side-on, I'll look in the mirror and think to myself "yeah, you're kinda in shape, go you!". Today I tried on some jeans at shop where usually I find exactly the right size and fit (bar length) and found not only had I gone up a size, but MY ARSE LOOKED HUGE! Arrrrgh!

Then there's my arms. They are getting quite muscly also from lifting and carrying an 8kg child around quite a lot. Arms also have soft protective fatty layer on top of muscle therefore appear quite large. The other day I saw a photo taken of me where I swear my arms looked so big I looked like a transvestite - a man dressed up as a woman, except of course I am a woman and would rather look like one (no offence to anyone who wouldn't rather). Worse still, this picture of me is floating around on the net somewhere on someone else's site. Would love to ask them to pull said photo, but it's the only one of me taken at a social occasion, and I'd feel very superficial asking them to do so.

Not suprising really. I have kind of eased off on the pavement pounding lately, and probably overindulging a touch with the food. So short of C-chan's most helpful suggestion that if it bothers me so much why don't I walk around sideways all the time so people can see my "good sides"*, I'm going to make sure I walk a bit more every day (properly, not side on), swim twice a week, and cut down on some foody overindulgences... Nice, sensible, gradual, nothing too drastic. Well let's see.

*he of course is humouring me and doesn't see what all the fuss is about...