Those extra pounds gained during pregnancy can be a bit of a challenge to get rid of, especially when most of the focus is on your newborn. Center your attention on good nutrition, healthy snacking, and stress-relieving exercise. Most importantly, remember to be patient with yourself.
The Best Way to Lose Weight After Pregnancy: Weight Management Before Delivery
Although it sounds a bit too simplistic, the truth remains: the more weight gained during pregnancy, the more difficult it usually is to lose. Be sure to eat nutrient-dense foods during pregnancy to keep both baby and yourself healthy and those extra pounds at bay.
Foods to Avoid: Lose the Processed Food
Our waistlines increase alongside our growing need for convenience. Boxed foods and frozen dinners are enticing with their easy-to-pop-in-the-microwave allure.
When you have a newborn to attend to 24 hours a day, finding time to cook a meal can seem just about impossible. But if you want to lose weight, heal quickly, and have energy to keep up with the long hours now required of you, good nutrition is a necessity. Fortunately, healthy meals don't have to be time-consuming and difficult.
The period of days and weeks after bringing home a new baby is not the time to try out complicated recipes, but find some simple meals that take little time to prepare. A crock pot is the perfect tool for an easy-to-prepare meal.
Make dinner preparation even easier by stocking up on dinners soon before your due date in order to help avoid the temptations of the take-out menu. Prepare and freeze wholesome meals to simply thaw and cook. Chicken stock is a wonderful item to make, portion, and freeze in containers. When you need a quick lunch, pop out and warm up a container, then use it to cook vegetables and rice.
Healthy Snacks Help Keep Hunger Under Control
High protein snacks, like nuts, nut butters, canned tuna, or leftover meats will help promote satiety and stabilize blood sugar levels. A feeling of fullness and satisfaction after eating foods high in protein and natural fats will help to avoid the need to munch on conventional snack foods.
Drop the Diet Cola: Artificial Sweeteners and Weight Gain
Although many people drink diet sodas and other artificially sweetened products in order to cut back on sugar and calories, they may be promoting the opposite effect. The artificial sweetness that doesn't include the calories may be tricking the brain into a "calorie search", which brings on an increase in appetite. Not only will they add to your cravings, but these ingredients may be potentially harmful to your health.
Drinking soda is a habit that can be broken. Quench your thirst with other drinks that don't require sugar or artificial sweeteners, like water, coffee, and tea.
Breastfeeding and Weight Loss: It Ain't Necessarily So
Don't be discouraged if your post-delivery pounds aren't melting away as you nurse your newborn. Although the weight-loss benefits of breastfeeding are often repeated, there is no definitive evidence that it is a worthy tool for shedding pounds.
Researchers have found that the women who breastfeed for longer than 6 months tend to weigh less than those who formula feed their babies. Other studies have found that the difference in postnatal weight loss is negligible.
Although nursing does burn calories, this does not necessarily mean you will see great results when you step on the scale. This assumption that the number of calories burned simply needs to be greater than the number of calories consumed is a myth (Taubes 2008: 293). Depending on a number of variables, calories consumed may also be stored in the body as fat. This is why it is important to eat nutritious, real food, and cut out sugar and refined carbohydrates.
The advantages of nursing are overwhelming, with great health benefits for both mother and child, but don't assume that breastfeeding alone will bring you to your pre-pregnancy weight.
Exercise Benefits
We have all seen/read/heard about the benefits of exercise with regard to weight loss. Many share the common misconception that the only worthy exercise requires a gym membership. The truth is, a brisk 30-minute walk around the neighborhood each day is excellent exercise. You and the little one can get outside for some fresh air, which is also good for both of you. Another great at-home workout is yoga with your baby. There are several DVDs on the market, and they can be pretty intense!
The most important thing to remember in the days and weeks following the birth of your baby is to be patient when it comes to getting back to pre-pregnancy weight. It takes some time for the body to get back to normal after 9 months of hard work. Everyone is different, so some new moms will lose weight quicker than others. Concentrate on eating nutritious food, getting outside for some fresh air and exercise, and, last but not least, enjoying your new little munchkin!
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only; it should not be used for diagnosis or to guide treatment without the opinion of a health professional. Any reader who is concerned about his/her health should contact a licensed medical professional.
Source:
- Taubes, Gary. 2008. Good Calories, Bad Calories. New York: Random House, Inc.
Elizabeth Davis - Liz is mom to a toddler, an avid researcher of issues related to food and diet, and experienced in nutrition and supplementation.
