‘Fix it or fall in love with it’
Fêteing mom Lecia-Gaye Taylor shares journey through fitness
Published:Friday | April 5, 2024 | 12:09 AMShanel Lemmie/Staff Reporter
Before giving birth to her first daughter, Lecia-Gaye Taylor was playing mas at a laundry list of events during carnival season.
Seven years ago when Taylor had her first daughter, Jordan, she took her time getting back to the body she was used to.
Always dedicated to her workout, she told Living she was in the best shape of her life when she got pregnant with second daughter, Justyce.
“I think when I got pregnant this time I was at the peak of what I would call the fittest period of my life, thanks to COVID, because we were all home doing nothing so my workout routine was up 20 notches. I was on a roll so my body was in a really great space heading into the pregnancy so I was able to keep the workouts going through that.”
Now, a year later, while the commercial lawyer and carnival veteran prepares to take to the road for Sunday’s Carnival in Jamaica Road March, she is grateful she stayed active all throughout her pregnancy.
Working out up to six months into her second pregnancy she said, “I find that just being consistent throughout the process and consistency when you’re pregnant is little bit different from consistency when you’re not because when you’re pregnant it could mean just 20 minutes. Just giving yourself grace because you have a whole human being inside your body and you can’t push as much as you would before but still being active.”
Though she remained active all throughout, she explained that getting back to ‘fit’ was a journey after giving birth.
“Immediately after I think we all [just] feel strange. It feels strange because you’ve just given birth, it feels like you’ve just been hit by a truck and you really feel out of sorts. I had a C-section so you have that surgery to heal from as well. And then your hormones are all over the place so you really don’t feel like yourself.”
She continued, however, “You’re not really dwelling or focusing on that particular feeling at that time because the most important thing on your mind is the fact that you’ve given birth to a healthy baby and the baby is doing well. So yes, you pop dung, and yes, you’re not feeling like yourself but you’re so overjoyed by the fact that you’ve given birth to a health baby and everything seems okay, that everything else pales in comparison.”
A year later, Taylor says in hindsight, there was never any pressure for her to snap back.
“If there was any pressure, it was self-imposed pressure, to be honest. My husband really don’t care. The people around me, my family and support system really don’t care and even externally, I don’t think there was pressure for me and the reason, too, is because I always knew that [when] I have the baby and once [the] doctor gives me the clearance to go ahead and work out, it would just be a matter of time before getting back to where I like,” she said.
“I am pretty happy with the way I look now. I am happy with the routine I have now. After a while you kind of adjust and accept that your body has given birth to two kids, give yourself some grace. Accept that you are probably never gonna look the way you looked before, and in fact you might just fall in love with your new body. My mantra is ‘fix it or fall in love with it’.”
With 15 pounds of extra muscle that she says she just cannot seem to shake, Taylor says on ‘di road’ she isn’t the least bit concerned about the optics.
“One of the things that I truly appreciate for carnival and soca is the fact that it’s one of the times that you literally see women of all shapes and sizes in their costumes or at a carnival party just having fun. Enjoying themselves and not caring too much about how they look.”
She continued, “I feel like there’s a lot of diversity and no matter who you are, you can celebrate your body type so I don’t feel any particular pressure to look a certain way outside of the pressure that I have placed upon myself by looking in the mirror.”
Reciting her mantra ‘fix it or fall in love with it’, Taylor is encouraging all feting moms to not be distracted from the miracle their body just accomplished.
“I think it’s more focus on your overall health and well-being and staying active in a way that feels good for you. Be realistic as well about what you can accomplish. I’ve had to make peace with the fact that I am not going to be in the 130lb to 135lb zone any more. And to be quite frank, my husband thinks that I look better now.”
She continued, “The most important bits would be to give yourself some grace. You’ve created a whole human being, that is a miracle in and of itself. So focus on that and be kind to yourself. Childbirth is an incredible journey, our bodies really go through a lot and so there’s no expectation that we should immediately bounce back. Focus on the amazing thing that your body has accomplished, which is producing a whole human being.”