When I stayed at the luxurious Park Hyatt Melbourne 2 weekends ago, I had the pleasure of experiencing the Post-Natal Massage at the hotel’s Day Spa. The lovely Akiko, my masseuse, heard that I had a baby 11 weeks ago and so prepared a special pregnancy pillow. However, after seeing my waist, she removed the cushion. It was the back she had to concentrate on, not the belly. After an hour and a half of firm kneading and muscle manipulation, the knots that have plagued my back since Winston was born were finally loosened. Afterwards, a delicious brew of ginger, honey and lemon tea was served and she remarked on my post-baby figure.

Many of you have been asking me lately how I lost my pregnancy weight. I must admit, I didn’t expect it either, especially because I still eat a lot (because I’m breastfeeding) and I’ve not been exercising (also because I’m breastfeeding, apparently that’s how saggy boobs are created…). I have to thank my mom for cooking me healthy dishes during my ‘confinement’ month, and breastfeeding certainly has helped (it probably cancels out the fact that I can’t exercise), but my biggest ‘secret’ to losing pregnant weight is actually a change of heart.

You may not know this, but I used suffer from a serious addiction to junk food. I used to eat bags of chips and entire cakes on a daily basis. My husband can testify. I wanted to eat healthily, especially when I was pregnant, but I just couldn’t help myself. For years I’ve been trying to break this bad habit, without avail. But something happened when Winston was born. Nursing him made me realise the importance of eating healthily, for his sake. Not only do I want his food (ie my milk) to be of good quality, I need to be healthy too to take care of him (and hubby). So after all these years, my battle with junk food was finally over, the addiction defeated by love.

I only learnt to love because “God first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Instead of being afraid that I would put on weight or that I could get sick from eating all the junk food, love became my motivation. I want to be as healthy as I can so that I can better take care of my loved ones, and because of that, my previous deep desire for junk food just melted away. A dear friend told me last week  that”only love can drive out fear because love endures.” When we do things out of fear, it is not sustainable, but when we are driven by love, it not only enriches us, it can truly change us. I wonder, what would your world be like if you allowed love to transform it?

Where: Sun Lounge, Level 9, Park Hyatt Melbourne

Wear: Mina & Katusha Dress (from Gusto & Elan) / Gigi New York Bag / Vintage Hat (check out this similar one by Missoni), Sunglasses & Belt / Arezzo Shoes (from Tragen)

[spoiler title=”中文版”] 2周末前当我住在豪华的墨尔本Park宾馆的时候，我经历了他们的“产后按摩”。我的按摩师，一位从日本来的可爱小姐，听说我十一星期前生了一个宝宝，为此为我准备了一个特殊的孕妇枕头。但她看到了我的腰后，她把枕头拿走了。一个多小时后，因为她揉得很有力但也很舒服，恰到好处，我的背终于‘松开了’。随后，她递给我美味的蜂蜜柠檬和姜泡的茶，并再一次称赞我生了宝宝的身材。 最近很多人都在问我是怎样失去我的孕期体重的。我必须承认，我都没想到我会这样瘦下来，尤其是因为我还吃得很多（因为我在哺乳期） ，我也好久没有运动了（因为喂宝宝所以不能去跑步 ）。我要感谢我的妈妈在我‘坐月子’的时候为我烹饪了健康的菜。母乳喂养也有帮助 ，但我最大的瘦身’秘密’其实是个心里的变化。 你可能不知道，以前我有严重的垃圾食品瘾。我几乎每天得吃芯片和蛋糕。我的丈夫可以作证。我想吃得健康，尤其是怀孕的时候，但我就是控制不住自己。多年来，我一直想办法打破这个坏习惯，但一直没有办法。但很奇妙的是，温斯顿出生以后，给他喂奶，为了他，使我终于意识到健康饮食的重要性。我不仅希望他的食物（我的奶）质量好，我也需要健康的身体来照顾他（和老公）。因此，我与垃圾食品这么多年的战斗终于结束了。这个瘾被爱情打败了。 我所以学会爱，因为“神先爱我们”（约翰一书4:19）。以前我会害怕长胖，或吃了垃圾食品怕生病，但现在爱成了我的动力。我想变得健康，因为这样我能更好地照顾我所爱的亲人，正因为如此，我以前对垃圾食品的爱慕就突然淡了。有个朋友上周告诉我​​说：“只有爱可以赶走恐惧，因为爱是永久的。”当我们因为恐惧做事，这是不可能持续的，但当我们被爱驱动去做事，它不仅让我们的生命更丰富，它能够真正改变我们。我不知道，但如果你允许爱来改变你，你的世界会怎么样？[/spoiler]