How To Lose Weight After Pregnancy: Your Step-By-Step Guide To Losing Weight After Pregnancy

Losing Weight After Pregnancy: A Step-By-Step Guide to Postpartum Fitness Colman to help new mothers lose the weight they gained during their pregnancy.
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For the first few months, I'd add just a couple of sets a day as we were playing.

Losing weight after pregnancy

Now that he's almost a year old and a lot heavier , it's still a great way to get in an extra workout without hitting the gym. I started keeping yogurts there and would have those for dessert instead of ice cream. Because they come in pre-portioned containers and take longer to eat frozen, you tend to have less.

I'd also freeze Twinkies or some other splurgy dessert for when I was craving something just plain baaaad -- you're much less likely to pound down four at once this way.

Losing Weight After Pregnancy - How to Lose Baby Weight | What to Expect

When I was down to the last 10 pounds, I increased the amount of water I drank, sipping a glass before, during, and after feeding the baby. This helped to keep me full -- and away from the snacks! I dropped the first 30 pounds in a few months, but the last 10 were a struggle. I stopped caring after a while but decided to finally slim down for an upcoming wedding.

Bust a Move with Baby

Since I love eating, I knew I couldn't handle a restrictive diet. I kept things simple with a few rules:. These subtle changes have made a huge difference. It probably took longer than a stricter diet might, but this fit my lifestyle much better! Ease back into exercise with simple moves that help you incorporate baby into your everyday routine.

For the first few weeks after my baby was born, I kept her diaper changing station downstairs, which was easier while my body recovered from labor. But once I was all healed, I moved it to the second floor. This forces me to go up and down stairs to the nursery every time I need to change my daughter's diaper. I walked with my daughter a little bit every single day, whether it was down the street, around the backyard, at the grocery store, or at the mall. We'd stroll for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour a day, depending on how long my baby would stay into it.

I needed a target -- and a deadline -- to motivate me to lose the baby weight. So I decided to run a half-marathon my first! I figured since it took me that long to put the weight on, I should have at least that long to take it off. I started exercising slowly at first -- just walks around the neighborhood, pushing the stroller. Then once I was back at work, I'd run at the gym during lunch. And slowly, I built up my speed and distance.

Sheana shares how working toward her goal of becoming a professional cheerleader gave her the motivation to lose her baby weight. Kerri; Queens, New York Lost: I'm a chronic snacker, so I've made a real point to keep my favorites out of the house so I'm not tempted as much. When I'm really craving something like chips , I buy only a single portion size so I can eat the whole thing guilt-free. Emily; Brookline, Massachusetts Lost: With all the running around that you do with kids, I thought the weight would come off naturally -- but that didn't exactly happen.

So after a few months, I made a couple of small but significant changes. I stopped my daily Starbucks runs I'd always eat some kind of pastry whenever I'd go there and limited alcohol to no more than two cocktails a week. After a couple of months, my clothes became looser and I started getting those wonderful "you look awesome! Now, my smaller size keeps me motivated to stay that way.


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I still had 45 pounds to go two weeks after my daughter arrived. Taking advantage of my gym's babysitting center helped me lose the weight -- while holding onto my sanity.


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Knowing I could stop my workout and check in on her at any time, I loved having a little me-time to exercise, sauna, and shower at a leisurely pace. This boosted my mood all the day and made my workouts feel like an indulgence, not a chore. Christine; Providence, Rhode Island Lost: I make a point to eat a light breakfast usually an English muffin with margarine and jam at home every day instead of at the office, where it easily morphs into something enormous and sweet. Now that my 4-month-old is sleeping more, I set the alarm early so I can sneak in a meal with my toddler before the baby wakes up at 7.

Nursing your baby really does help you drop the weight fast, but I needed more structure to deal with the last five pounds. Weight Watchers worked for me, because I got specific meal plans and help with proper portion sizes. But a little note of warning: Despite what many women's magazines and celebrity stories would have you believe, losing weight after pregnancy can take time. One study found that women retained an average 1—6. Another study of women found that Depending on how much weight you gained during pregnancy, it is realistic to expect that over one to two years you may lose around 10 pounds 4.

If you gained more weight, you may find you end up a few pounds heavier than you were pre-pregnancy. Of course, with good diet and exercise, you should be able to achieve any level of weight loss that you desire. While the amount of weight you lose after giving birth may vary, the most important thing is that you return to a healthy weight range. Crash diets are very low-calorie diets that aim to make you lose a large amount of weight in the shortest amount of time possible.

After delivering a baby, your body needs good nutrition to heal and recover. In addition, if you are breastfeeding, you require more calories than normal 14 , 17 , A low-calorie diet is likely to be lacking in important nutrients and will probably leave you feeling tired. Assuming your weight is currently stable, decreasing your calorie intake by about calories per day will stimulate safe weight loss of about 1. For example, a woman eating 2, calories per day could eat fewer calories and burn an extra calories through exercise, making a reduction of calories in total.

Breastfeeding has many benefits for both mother and baby, including:. One study of 4, breastfeeding women found that participants had lost an average of 3. Other research has found similar results 30 , 31 , A study of 36, Danish mothers demonstrated that, for women who gain weight within the recommended range, breastfeeding may help get rid of pregnancy weight by as early as six months after delivery However, in the first three months, you may experience no weight loss or even some weight gain.

This is due to increased calorie needs and intake, as well as reduced physical activity during lactation 14 , 30 , 31 , Counting calories can help you work out how much you are eating and where any problem areas in your diet may be. Moreover, it can help you ensure you are getting enough calories to provide you with the energy and nutrition you need. You can do this by keeping a food diary or even just taking pictures of your food as a reminder of what you have eaten 35 , 36 , There are also many helpful mobile apps that allow you to track what you eat throughout the day 38 , 39 , Using these techniques can help you reduce your portion sizes and choose healthier foods, which helps with weight loss 41 , 42 , Eating foods that are high in fiber has been shown to help with weight loss 44 , 45 , 46 , For example, one study of 1, adults found that every 10 grams of soluble fiber people ate per day accounted for a 3.

Soluble fiber may also help you feel fuller for longer by slowing down digestion and reducing hunger hormone levels 49 , Additionally, soluble fiber is fermented into short-chain fatty acids in the gut. These effects on digestion may help reduce calorie intake, though results of studies overall are mixed 47 , Including protein in your diet can boost metabolism, decrease appetite and reduce calorie intake Studies demonstrate that protein has a greater thermic effect than other nutrients.

That means that the body uses more energy to digest it than other types of foods, which results in more calories burned 56 , 57 , By stocking up on healthy snacks like cut vegetables, nuts, fruit and yogurt, you can ensure you have something close at hand if you are feeling hungry. Furthermore, just keeping fruit out on the counter has been associated with a lower body mass index BMI Likewise, having unhealthy foods out on the counter is associated with increased weight.

Breastfeeding

Therefore, it is best to keep them out of the kitchen, or even better, out of the house Accordingly, a high intake of added sugar and refined carbs is associated with an increase in weight, diabetes, heart disease and some cancers 66 , 67 , 68 , Common sources of sugar include sugary drinks, fruit juice, any type of plain sugar, white flour, sweet spreads, cakes, biscuits, pastries and other baked goods 70 , If sugar is one of the first ingredients on the list, that product is probably better to stay away from.

It is easy to reduce your sugar intake by avoiding processed foods and sticking to whole foods such as vegetables, legumes, fruits, meats, fish, eggs, nuts and yogurt. Processed foods are high in sugar, unhealthy fats, salt and calories, all of which can counteract your weight loss efforts These foods include fast foods and pre-packed foods like chips, cookies, baked goods, candy, ready meals and mixes. Furthermore, processed foods are associated with more addictive eating behaviors You can reduce the amount of processed foods you eat by replacing them with fresh, whole, nutrient-dense foods.

Research has shown that small amounts of alcohol, such as a glass of red wine, can confer some health benefits Additionally, alcohol may be related to weight gain, and may lead to more fat being stored around the organs, also known as belly fat 75 , 76 , Furthermore, alcohol can cause a temporary reduction in breast milk volume in mothers who are breastfeeding. Additionally, small amounts of alcohol can be passed through breast milk to your baby 78 , There is no known safe level of alcohol for infants. Therefore, if you do drink, consider expressing milk beforehand, or leaving enough time between drinking and the next feed for the alcohol to pass from your body Depending on your weight, one standard alcoholic drink takes between 1.

Cardio, such as walking, jogging, running, cycling and interval training, helps you burn calories and has numerous health benefits.

Exercise improves heart health, reduces the risk and severity of diabetes and may reduce the risk of several types of cancer 81 , 82 , 83 , Although exercise alone may not help you lose weight, it will if you combine it with good nutrition 85 , 86 , For example, an analysis of 12 studies showed that people who combined diet and exercise lost 3. Other research indicates that it is the amount of aerobic exercise, rather than the intensity, that is important for fat loss and heart health.

So even just going for a walk is a good step toward improving your weight and health 87 , 88 , 89 , After delivery, your pelvic and stomach areas need time to heal, especially if you have had a cesarean section birth. How long postpartum you can safely start exercising depends on the mode of delivery, whether there were any complications, how fit you were before and during pregnancy and generally how you feel 91 , You may be able to start something gentle like pelvic floor exercises right away, whereas you should wait to take on more intense exercises until your body is fully healed and it is medically safe 91 ,